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)