Moslem-based PPP approves policy guidelines draft

Moslem-based PPP approves policy guidelines draft

JAKARTA (JP): The United Development Party (PPP) faction
approved a Golkar-sponsored draft amendment to election rules
yesterday marking the end of the first stage of a People's
Consultative Assembly general session.

Just an hour before the Assembly session closed, PPP
representative Muhammad Buang signed his approval before dozens
of journalists, much to the relief of chairman of the Assembly's
ad hoc committee in charge of state policy guidelines, R.
Hartono.

Hartono, his deputy Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, his secretary
Edy Waluyo and several other members of the committee including
Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana of the dominant faction Golkar, Muladi of
the regional representatives faction, and Soedarjanto of the
Indonesian Democratic Party faction, were among the signatories
yesterday.

PPP initially opposed the draft, saying there was not enough
of a guarantee that it would be implemented because it was only
an appendix to the 1998/2003 State Policy Guidelines.

PPP faction chief in the Assembly, Jusuf Syakir, said his
party's revised stance was a result of "a gentleman's agreement"
between his faction and Golkar that the government would be
pushed to review some other election regulations.

"We have not buckled down. Instead, we have actually won
because our demands for the election rules to be improved are now
being accommodated.

"I do believe the government will comply with our agreement.
The prominent signatories serve as a guarantee that our demands
will be fulfilled," he added.

Jusuf said that if the government failed to amend the election
rules, PPP would highlight this violation of an Assembly
agreement in 2002 general election rallies.

The draft amendment says the three political organizations
contesting the general election will be "involved effectively in
the planning, implementation and supervision of the polls from
the top administrative level to village level".

In addition, an appendix says each political organization will
be represented on the government-sanctioned team which will
register voters, count ballots, and receive copies of the
results.

In exchange for the draft amendment to the election rules, all
the five factions in the Assembly agreed to maintain a floating
mass policy which has been long accused of curtailing political
parties' outreach opportunities.

The 1,000-member Assembly will regroup in March to endorse the
state policy guidelines and another nine Assembly decrees, and
elect a president and vice president.

Assembly Speaker Harmoko said yesterday the general session
would run as scheduled from March 1 to March 11. (amd)