Overzealous voters spoil ballot papers

JAKARTA: Ballot counting officials couldn't believe their eyes yesterday when they found a ballot paper with Golkar's symbol cut out instead of being pierced with the nail they had provided.

The amused officials and scrutineers took a while to decide that the ballot with the unusually large hole was invalid.

They then found a ballot paper with the United Development Party's (PPP) symbol properly pricked but with "Mega-Bintang" written defiantly on it.

Mega-Bintang suggests an alliance between the Moslem-based PPP and Megawati Soekarnoputri, the ousted leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party. The government has banned the slogan, and people caught with banners bearing it risk punishment.

This ballot paper was also considered invalid. (ste)