Military supports ban on Megawati in E. Java
Military supports ban on Megawati in E. Java
JAKARTA (JP): The military in East Java supported the provincial administration's decision to bar Megawati Soekarnoputri, the chairman of the Indonesian Democratic Party, from visiting the province last week, saying that her presence could further sow unrest among the party's supporters.
But Maj. Gen. Imam Utomo, the chief of the Brawijaya Military Command, said there is no ban against Megawati to meet with her supporters in East Java as long as her presence does not disrupt stability in the area.
"As long as her intentions are good, she can come here. If her visit does not create trouble, I don't see any problem," Imam was quoted by the Antara news agency as saying on Saturday.
Megawati was forced to cancel her plan to install the chairman of the party's East Java chapter last week because the local provincial government refused to issue a permit for the gathering. Megawati was also prevented from addressing her supporters at a gathering in the East Java town of Kediri last month.
Latest reports suggest that she is planning to visit the province this week.
The party has been split in East Java, with one camp supporting her and the other, led by Latief Pudjosakti, rejecting her leadership.
At a regional congress to elect the party's leaders in the province early this year, Latief won five of the eight votes from the electoral college. But Megawati exercised her prerogative as the party's chairperson to annul the result. Instead, she appointed Sutjipto as the new chairman.
Megawati is facing dissension not only in East Java but also Jakarta, West Java and, most recently, Yogyakarta.
Maj. Gen. Imam said his main concern is stability and peace in East Java and feared that Megawati's visit to the province would intensify the conflict between the two PDI camps.
"I know the conditions in East Java very well. I've got intelligence officers monitoring the situation. I know for sure that there is deep hatred between the Sutjipto and Latief camps."
Maj. Gen. Imam said the media have not clearly explained the source of the conflict in the East Java chapter of PDI.
He said when the election was put to a vote, Sutjipto won most of the votes, but the total votes counted exceeded the number of voters. He suspected that the additional votes were smuggled in when the electricity failed during counting.
But later, when the election was entrusted to an electoral college of eight people, Latief took five votes with the other three voting for Soetjipto.
"So which one is valid? PDI should know which election was constitutional and which one was not, because they know the party's statutes," the major general said.
The East Java provincial administration last week said it could not approve Megawati's plan to install Sutjipto because there were questions about the constitutionality of his election.
East Java Governor Basofi Soedirman convened a meeting with media leaders in Surabaya on Friday to clarify his position amidst accusations that he was meddling in the PDI's internal affairs, Antara reported.
"They claim we have given our blessing to Latief. What blessing are they talking about?" he asked.
Basofi suggested that the party's central executive board hold a meeting with the leaders of the East Java chapter and the regency branch offices from both camps to resolve the problem. (emb)