Neiss praises RI election process
WASHINGTON (JP): International Monetary Fund (IMF) Asia Pacific director Hubert Neiss said Monday's elections in Indonesia proceeded smoother than many people had predicted.
"Everybody predicted violence because they said even under Soeharto there was violence," Neiss told The Jakarta Post correspondent Yenni Djahidin on Wednesday.
"There is no single report of a serious violation of the election process. So, I think it's very great. It's much more important than the results. These are elections, by and large, that have worked as they were intended to work," he said.
Neiss has traveled to Jakarta frequently to assess Indonesia's financial needs and to oversee the implementation of the IMF- prescribed economic reform programs by the government of President B.J. Habibie.
On Monday, just as Indonesia held the first democratic ballot in over four decades, the IMF announced that it approved a US$450 million loan for Indonesia, part of an IMF-led $43 billion rescue package for the country.
Neiss dismissed concerns that the slow ballot-counting process could be manipulated by certain political parties.
"There are always technical problems. Indonesia is a big country, many provinces, many islands, and then I'm sure things will not be perfect ... What's important is that there is no major mistake. And that people, by and large, will think this is acceptable," he said.
On allegations that some of the IMF's money could have been used by the government to buy votes, Neiss said:
"It's nonsense. If they (the Indonesian government) want to buy votes, they don't need international money because they buy votes with their own rupiah," he said, adding that the IMF money has been used to prop up Bank Indonesia's foreign exchange reserves and to finance international trade.
Historic step
In London, British Minister of State Geoffrey Hoon welcomed Indonesia's first democratic general election since 1955, saying it was a historic step, taking the country into the next millennium as the world's third-largest democracy.
"Our hope is that the momentum of political and economic reforms started by President Habibie will be maintained," he said.
Meanwhile in Jakarta, international poll watchers continued applauding the general election, which proceeded without significant hurdles.
The Philippine National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) chairman Jose Concepcion Jr. reported that the elections are "generally free and fair" with no untoward incidents and signs of intimidation.
But Namfrel noted that it was vital that political parties and poll watchdogs paid attention to the consolidation of votes at the village and subdistrict levels to safeguard the integrity of the ballot.
In a dialog sponsored by the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Association, Concepcion said the elected People's Consultative Assembly must not fail the people in bringing about a meaningful change in governance as it organizes a coalition government.
The Australian Observation Mission, which dispatched its teams to Nusa Tenggara, East Kalimantan and East Java, also praised the balloting proceedings.
It observed few irregularities that would have had a significant impact on the overall result, although it did find problems.
"There were, for example, instances of insufficient ballot papers, a lack of safety holograms and a shortage of indelible ink in some locations," the organization said in a statement.
Also in Jakarta, the coordinator of poll observers under the European Union, John Gwyn Morgan, said the team would remain in the country until August. (pan/anr)