'Make sure everyone registers to vote'

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto yesterday urged members of election registration committees to make sure that all eligible voters have their names enrolled.

"Don't let anyone be ignored or be registered twice," Soeharto told the committee which visited to register him at his residence on Jl. Cendana, Central Jakarta.

Soeharto was registered along with his youngest son Hutomo Mandala Putra.

The 20-day registration drive began simultaneously throughout the country.

Registration officers began knocking on doors registering all Indonesians who are 17 or older, and teenagers who are already married, as voters in the 1997 general election, scheduled for May.

Under the Indonesian electoral system voters will choose their representatives for their local and the national legislatures.

Soeharto and his son's names were officially recorded by registration officer Zaenal Asyikin, who was accompanied by neighborhood chief Mrs. Zoelmy Hayati Sri Tando and Gondangdia district chief M. Sanusi.

Also present yesterday was Minister of Home Affairs Yogie S.M. as head of the National Election Institute, Attorney General Singgih who is head of the Election Supervision Committee, Governor of Jakarta Surjadi Soedirdja and Central Jakarta Mayor Abdul Kahfi.

After answering a set of basic questions required for the procedure, Soeharto then asked them what he should do if he loses his registration card.

"Well, we hope it won't get lost but if it does there's always the data that we've collected," one of the committee members replied.

Later on Zaenal Asyikin said the President called on them to be diligent in their task. "If necessary, we have to visit a house several times. That's what he told us," Zaenal said.

After registering the President, the committee proceeded to Vice-President Try Sutrisno's residence on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta. There, the Vice President, Mrs. Try Sutrisno and their three children were registered.

House of Representatives speaker Wahono, after being registered at his house yesterday, said there must be no discrimination during the process.

"However, I'm sure that voter registration is being conducted honestly," he said as quoted by Antara.

The question of unregistered eligible voters has in the past been brought up by the two opposition parties, the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and the United Development Party.

PDI chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, in a statement yesterday, urged anyone eligible, particularly first time voters, to make sure they registered.

Meanwhile, the Tebet district chief, M. Syarif Hassan, said yesterday the registration committee in his area would make sure that those in hospitals and currently being detained by the police are also registered.

Syarif also explained that eligible voters who have not returned from the haj pilgrimage by the end of the registration period can have their names added on to the additional voting list.

He added that registration of homeless voters will be done on July 13-14.

"The main point is that we try to include anyone who is eligible," Syarif said. As reported by Antara up to 1,000 eligible voters were not registered in the Tebet district during the last election in 1992.

In Surabaya, East Java Governor Basofi Sudirman was also registered at his house yesterday. Antara reported that the governor registered 24 people as voters in his household.

They were Basofi and his wife, his two sons, three aides, six security personnel, eight servants and three chauffeurs. (mds)

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