Megawati's supporters plan rally
Megawati's supporters plan rally
JAKARTA (JP): Supporters of Megawati Soekarnoputri plan to
stage a rally of some 200,000 people in Jakarta this month to
show their support to the embattled chief of the Indonesian
Democratic Party, an aide said yesterday.
Suparlan, a deputy in the PDI central executive board and a
loyal Megawati supporter, said the rally will be held at the
National Monument (Monas) Square in Central Jakarta.
"We expect some 200,000 people, mostly from branches in Java,
to turn up," Suparlan told reporters yesterday.
He did not give a date for the assembly, other than saying
that it would be held before the splinter PDI group, which is
challenging Megawati's leadership, holds its congress.
The 28-strong PDI central board was split into two camps last
week. One group of 16 members led by deputy Fatimah Achmad is
planning to organize an extraordinary congress supposedly to put
Megawati's leadership to the test. The other camp is opposing the
congress, which it has insisted has no legality whatsoever.
As of yesterday, the Fatimah camp had yet to set a firm date
and venue for the congress. Its officials said the congress will
be held some time between June 19 and June 25, with the venue
either Medan, North Sumatra; Bukittinggi, West Sumatra; Palangka
Raya, Central Kalimantan, or Manado, North Sulawesi.
The government has given the greenlight to the planned
congress and the military has promised it will provide the
necessary security to ensure a successful meeting.
Plot
Some political analysts believe the congress is a plot aimed
at removing Megawati, the daughter of Indonesia's first president
Sukarno, from the political equation altogether before the 1997
general election and the 1998 presidential election.
The breakaway group said it has a mandate from 215 of the 306
PDI branches to organize the congress, a claim that has been
widely disputed by supporters of Megawati.
By regulation, an extraordinary congress can be held if half
of the party's branches demand it.
Suparlan said any of Megawati's supporters wanting to take
part in the rally will be asked to gather at PDI's headquarters
in Jl. Diponegoro before marching towards Monas Square.
Asked about the likelihood of a clampdown by the military
given that a large assembly has always been considered as
threatening national stability, Suparlan said the supporters were
ready to face the consequences.
"We have considered all the risks we're facing," he said.
Suparlan said his camp is prepared to call off the rally if
the government withdraws its support for the splinter group and
bans the congress.
Meanwhile, preparations for the congress continued at full
steam yesterday.
Ismunandar, the secretary of the congress' organizing
committee, was in Palangkaraya and will be heading for Manado
today to check on the prospective venues. Ismunandar and Fatimah
had traveled to Medan and Bukittinggi on a similar mission.
"We will decide on the venue and date in a meeting tomorrow,"
Ismunandar told The Jakarta Post by phone last night. (imn)