Megawati nurses cold with action movies
JAKARTA: After canceling all her appointments in the past two- days due to a sore throat, President Megawati Soekarnoputri decided to spend her time watching two Hollywood movies.
Action flicks Terminator 3 and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle were her choice while she was absent from the presidential office.
Taking most of her guards and personal aides in tow, she watched the movies at the Usmar Ismail cinema center in Kuningan, South Jakarta.
"The President likes watching movies, and she watches many movies including Bollywood (Indian) movies here," one of the members of the presidential staff said.
Megawati canceled all of her appointments on Thursday and Friday as she could hardly speak due to a severe cold. She is scheduled to return to work on Monday.--JP
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Amien Rais' party passes screening
JAKARTA: The National Mandate Party (PAN) has passed the administrative screening process for its central board conducted by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights on Friday, the first of two steps to be eligible to join the 2004 legislative and presidential elections.
The head of political party verification at the ministry, Ramli Hutabarat, said that PAN had fulfilled the administrative requirements for the elections.
He said that the ministry examined a political party's executive board, the status of the party's office and a number of administrative equipment owned by the party.
"PAN's central board has been examined but we must verify the party's branches across the country," Ramli said.
PAN Chairman Amien Rais welcomed the verification, saying and he was optimistic that his party would gain at least 15 percent of the vote in the elections. He also hoped that the party would be included in the elections' big three winners.
In the 1999 election, PAN ranked fifth after the Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), Golkar Party, the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the United Development Party (PPP). -- JP
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Akbar admits 'betrayal' in coalition
JAKARTA: Golkar Party Chairman Akbar Tandjung said on Friday that some Golkar faction members in the East Java Provincial Council had cast their votes for Imam Utomo, enabling him to win the gubernatorial election for his second term of office which will end in 2008.
According to him, three Golkar councillors reportedly opposed Golkar's ruling, asking legislators at the provincial legislative council to join forces with the National Awakening Party and National Mandate Party factions to support Abdul Kahfi in the election.
"We are considering holding a meeting to discuss possible disciplinary measures against those who defied the ruling," he told reporters here when asked to comment on the East Java gubernatorial election on Thursday.
Imam, who was nominated by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), won 63 of 100 votes to give him a mandate for his second term of office. Kahfi nominated by PKB faction, gained only 34 votes in the election. -- JP
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JAKARTA: A forum for university rectors better known as the Rector Forum declared on Friday it would actively monitor the 2004 general elections.
"We hope we can mobilize more than 300,000 students across the country to supervise the elections as we did during the 1999 elections," Sujana Sapiie, an executive of the Rector Forum, said.
The supervisory team would be established next year before the April 5, 2004 legislative election, he said.
Sujana explained that the supervisory team would focus on voter education as the next election would be different from previous elections.
In 1999, people voted for parties, but in 2004, people will vote for the party and its legislative candidates. Several months after the legislative election, the people will also elect their president and vice president. --JP