Opposition grows against Autonomy Law review
Ainur A. Sophiaan, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya
The incomplete implementation of regional autonomy and the widespread misunderstanding about the autonomy law have begun to raise new conflicts between the central government and provincial and regional governments.
While the central government was deliberating the proposed amendment of the regional autonomy law with the House of Representatives on Monday, the East Java Provincial Legislative Council also agreed to oppose the government's proposed amendment.
The provincial legislature leadership in their meeting in Surabaya on Monday ruled out the proposed amendment as an attempt by the central government to retrieve the power it gave to provinces, regencies and municipalities under the law since Jan. 1, 2001.
They were of the same opinion that all matters proposed to be amended in the law were aimed at pushing the nation back to the old-fashioned centralized administration system that has proven ineffective in improving the people's welfare and developing democracy.
The crucial issue that has raised confusion among the legislature leadership was Article 38 of the proposed bill on elections of governors, regents and mayors that will be conducted by an independent commission whose members would be recruited from the General Election Commission (KPU) and local community leaders, instead of provincial and regency legislatures.
"With the proposed amendment to the article, the central government is trying to reduce the legislatures's authority and, therefore, to kill democracy in the regions," Fathor Rasjid, chairman of the National Awakening Party (PKB) faction, said in the meeting.
He warned that the provincial and regency legislatures represented the people in the regions.
Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno insisted that the amendment of the two laws on regional autonomy and on fiscal balance were aimed at preventing the unitary state from developing into federal states.
He said only conflicting and confusing articles would be amended. He cited Article 7 of the regional autonomy law because it stipulates that regencies and mayoralties have authority in all fields with the exception of defense, foreign affairs, monetary and court affairs.
Hari also said the central government was reviewing hundreds of local bylaws which were in contradiction to the two laws. "Such bylaws have been made by the regions because of misinterpretation of the laws," he said.
Besides causing misinterpretations, the implementation of regional autonomy has also raised a number of territorial disputes between the regions and the central government and among provinces and regencies.
Surabaya Mayor Sunarto Sumaprawiro's dismissal on Jan. 16, 2002 has raised strong controversy with the central government ruling against it.
Masjkur Hasyim, chairman of the joint faction, said many regions have misinterpreted the laws because the central government had not yet issued other related laws and numerous regulations to implement regional autonomy.
"The minister should not blame the regions for the misinterpretations but its own department that has failed to make more regulations to enforce the two laws," he said, adding that so far, the central government has issued only around 40 of more than 110 government regulations needed to implement the autonomy.
Hasyim warned that the Association of Regency and City Legislatures (Adeksi) was lobbying all its members to oppose the proposed amendments to the two laws.