Megawati tells MPR to heed voters

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri appealed on Monday to the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to heed the aspirations of the people when it elects Indonesia's next president on Wednesday.

"The nation's political elite must put the interest of the people first," she said in a limited interview with Indonesian journalists. "After all, who holds the sovereignty? The people, or the MPR?"

Megawati, whose PDI Perjuangan won the June general election, did not discount the possibility of widespread violence if Wednesday's vote failed to satisfy the public's expectations.

However, she said that she opposed violence and that any uprising would likely be initiated by elements outside party structures.

Government and military officials have said they are bracing for the possibility of mass demonstrations and other unrest involving PDI Perjuangan supporters if Megawati fails in her presidential bid.

When this question was put to Megawati, she said that those who accused her party of condoning unrest should consider the history of violence perpetrated against her party and its members.

Megawati cited the violent attack in 1996 against her party's headquarters and the kidnapping of party executives. "I lost my secretary-general and deputy secretary-general.

"But up to now, we have managed to overcome these issues without resorting to violence."

Megawati promised to control her own party members, but said it would not only be her responsibility to calm people if they were outraged by the MPR decision.

"Why should I be the sole person responsible? The unrest in the past was perpetrated by people who were not from PDI Perjuangan."

Megawati said that many people had been determined to ensure that they could exercise their right to vote in June. She recalled the way people raised money in their neighborhoods to build local polling stations.

"The general election happened because they wanted it to happen... the voter turnout was quite magnificent.

"The MPR cannot squander their hopes. The future of the people in the republic is in the hands of 700 MPR members."

Fears of mass unrest should she fail to take the top post were purely academic as Megawati said that she was optimistic that she would win the vote on Wednesday. Megawati refused to discuss possible scenarios or contingency plans if she was unsuccessful in her bid.

Abdurrahman Wahid, the Nahdlatul Ulama chairman who aspires to the top post, and who counts on the support of Muslim factions in the MPR, suggested in an interview with Tempo magazine that Megawati prepare herself to play the role of an opposition leader.

When asked to comment on the article, Megawati said: "I don't want to talk about scenarios. Let's just wait for the result."

Megawati denied accusations that she failed to take the initiative of approaching other reform leaders, including Abdurrahman and Amien Rais of the National Mandate Party (PAN), after her party won the general election in June.

"We made some approaches, although they were not made public," she said.

Megawati said despite differences which were often blown out of proportion by the media, she shared many common interests and goals with other reform leaders.

The 35 percent share of the vote won by PDI Perjuangan however was not enough to secure the presidency. To be successful, Megawati will need to cut deals with other parties.

Amien's party and Abdurrahman's National Awakening Party (PKB) were earlier expected to provide that support. But the two leaders abandoned a united stance, and Amien even took the initiative of nominating Abdurrahman.

Megawati staked her claim to the presidency by virtue of winning the June elections.

"Our 35 percent is real. The other 65 percent is not. But now it seems that they are trying to amputate our rights through a process they call constitutional. Well, let me ask them, constitutional according to whose interpretation?"

She defended her silent stance on many political issues since winning the election, saying that she did not want to confuse the public who had been bombarded with too many comments following the euphoria of newfound freedom in the country.

"The country is in an abnormal situation because of the prolonged crisis."

Megawati expressed concern at the use of Islamic symbols by her political opponents to discredit herself and her party.

"Why should they bring religion into politics? They are making the situation, which is already abnormal, worse."

Megawati said the subsequent outcry had disturbed many PDI Perjuangan supporters, the majority of whom were Muslims.

"I cannot deny my Balinese ancestry," Megawati said, recalling the attempt to discredit her position as un-Islamic.

Her father, Indonesia's first president Sukarno, was half Balinese. Bali is a predominantly Hindu province.

Megawati appeared more at ease talking about the kind of government or the kind of Indonesia she would like to lead.

She said she would recruit the best people to take Indonesia out of the current crisis and restore peace and stability to the country.

She said that the job would necessitate calling on talent from outside her own party.

On her vision for the country she had a simple answer:

"I want to see Indonesia blossom, where the children smile, where children enjoy going to school, and where women are not afraid to talk politics in the markets.

"I want to see Indonesia blossom, where people have high self- esteem and a strong identity." (emb)