Mulyana W. Kusumah denies communist links allegations

JAKARTA (JP): Mulyana W. Kusumah, the secretary general of the newly established Independent Election Monitoring Committee, denied media reports yesterday that he has been blacklisted as a member of the banned Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).

"I have never been a member of any public or political organization, much less a banned one," Mulyana said in reference to reports published yesterday in the Suara Karya and Pelita dailies.

The newspapers said that Mulyana, a human rights activist and vocal government critic from Bogor, was among those blacklisted in his hometown's municipal office of social and political affairs as a communist and has been barred from voting in next year's general election.

Indonesia outlawed PKI in 1966 following the abortive communist coup a year earlier. PKI members have since been banned from voting in general elections.

Mulyana denounced the news reports, describing them as "a political stigma" and called on the government and the mass media to respect the rights of every citizen. He called on the press to also avoid giving misleading information.

"It (the news report) has seriously discredited myself, my family, and the institutions where I am working," Mulyana added.

Mulyana, former executive director of the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI), said that he will settle the allegation case through standard legal procedures.

Bambang Widjoyanto, the newly-elected executive director of the institute, told The Jakarta Post that efforts by certain officials to publish reports on Mulyana are meant to discredit public figures who are critical of the government.

"Mulyana's case is an example of some officials' campaign against freedom of speech and expression," Bambang said. He believed such action could give the public a bad impression of the independent poll watchdog which Mulyana leads.

A staunch supporter of the committee since its establishment in March, the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute denounces any effort to marginalize people's right to campaign for democratization, Bambang said.

Armed Forces Chief of Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid said recently that every citizen has the right to help ensure a fair general election.

Another human rights activist, HJC Princen, said that attempts to monitor free and fair elections should not be considered as a communist undertaking. (16)