Ministry seeks party registration delay

JAKARTA: The Ministry of Justice and Human Rights urged the General Elections Commission (KPU) on Friday to extend the deadline for political parties to register with the commission from Oct. 9, to Oct. 19.

Director General of the General Administrative Law of the Justice and Human Rights Ministry Zulkarnaen Yunus said his office would announce the results of its verification of political parties on Oct. 12, instead of Sept. 27 as scheduled.

"We have 66 parties to verify in this last phase. We need more time than the previous phases," he said after a meeting with KPU members Mulyana W. Kusumah and Anas Urbaningrum.

At present, between 50 and 70 percent of the 66 parties have been verified.

Mulyana told Zulkarnaen that KPU would hold a plenary meeting to decide whether or not KPU would approve the ministry's request.

But he hoped that the ministry would speed up the verification process to avoid the extension of party registrations with KPU. -- JP