Parties agree to checkups for on presidential candidates

Moch. N. Kurniawan and A. Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) accepted on Friday the rigid health requirements for presidential and vice presidential candidates set by the General Elections Commission (KPU) and the Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI).

President Megawati Soekarnoputri's PDI-P and Golkar asserted they would follow the requirements.

"The medical requirements have been determined at the interest of all parties, not of any particular individual," PDI-P deputy secretary general Pramono Anung said.

He dismissed suspicions that the health standards, the first to be applied in a presidential election, were set to block a candidate from the election.

Golkar deputy secretary-general Bomer Pasaribu agreed with Pramono, saying the medical examination would serve as a reliable tool to measure a candidate's physical and mental fitness.

"We hope people do not view the requirements as an effort to block a specific candidate," Bomer said.

On Thursday, the KPU and the IDI signed a memorandum of understanding that will allow the medical association to conduct a health check on presidential and vice presidential candidates. The candidates must pass both mental and physical examinations to contest the presidential election on July 5.

Included in the physical is a vision test, which will dash Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid's hopes of regaining the presidency. Gus Dur, who has been nominated by his National Awakening Party (PKB), has a severely diminished vision and is nearly blind as a result of a stroke.

Gus Dur deplored the KPU on Thursday for setting a medical criteria that would virtually cut him out of the race. He said the Constitution did not discriminate against candidates with an optical disability.

KPU member Anas Urbaningrum, citing the Constitution and the Election Law, said presidential and vice presidential candidates must be mentally and physically healthy to fulfill state duties.

"To enforce those articles, we are cooperating with a professional and reputable organization to determine candidates' health," he said.

He also stressed that the medical tests for presidential and vice presidential candidates were of a minimum standard, compared to health tests for military recruits.

The IDI's medical team will conduct the tests on candidates in two phases: The first phase will take place from April 26 to April 29, and the second from May 10 to May 13.

"This way, if a vice presidential candidate, for example, fails to pass the first test, the presidential candidate can select a new running mate to undergo the second test," Anas said.

During the examination, a candidate will undergo tests to detect mental disorders like schizophrenia, acute neurosis and cognitive impairment.

The candidates will also be checked for physical problems such as cardiovascular disorders with a high risk of mortality, respiratory problems with a physiological restriction of more than 50 percent, optical and aural disabilities, acute vocal problems, acute liver disease, urogenital problems requiring hemodialysis treatment, musculoskeletal problems and cancer.