Parties back strict rules on campaigning

JAKARTA (JP): Representatives of political parties support a strict code of conduct to govern campaign activities, including stiff sanctions for offending parties and supporters, to guard against violence when electioneering gets underway on May 18.

In a discussion on Saturday, they disagreed on the issue of restricting campaigning to indoor rallies. A representative of a new party claimed it was unfair because it would prevent the public from getting to know the crop of newly founded organizations.

The election is scheduled on June 7.

Qomari Anwar, chief of the research and development department of the United Development Party, Theo Sambuaga, deputy chairman of the ruling Golkar and Nur Mahmudi Isma'il, president of the Justice Party, were among participants in the discussion on a "New Indonesia" organized by Forum Salemba.

Also in attendance were about 700 students from the University of Indonesia, Bandung Institute of Technology and Airlangga University in Surabaya.

Theo said the code of conduct would be used to hold responsible any party organizing a rally which became violent.

"If a campaign turns out to be violent, parties organizing it should be banned from taking part in the election and supporters involved in the violence should be given stiff penalties."

The election committee, scheduled to replace the government- run General Election Institute (LPU) on March 1, will first draw up an election conduct code.

Qomari said parties should be barred from mobilizing masses before and during the campaign period.

"Parties should also be barred from organizing campaign activities in open fields and party supporters should not be allowed to take to the streets because such conditions are liable to violent clashes."

Past campaigns have been marked by rallies in public spaces, drawing huge crowds.

Qomari said the nation should learn from untoward experiences from clashes during past campaigns. The government ruled rallies should only held indoors in the 1997 election, but violence often occurred during the journeys to the sites.

"Amid the uncertain condition and economic crisis, the next rallies could be worse if political parties are allowed to mobilize their supporters to take to the streets and hold campaign activities in open fields." He advocated restricting campaign messages to the indoors and through the media.

"Campaign activities in open fields are not effective to hold dialogs with a crowd of between 50,000 and 100,000."

He believed most of the rally participants were drawn by the dangdut music and singers rather than any curiosity about party platforms.

Nur Mahmudi agreed strict campaign rules were needed but said the parties, especially new ones, should be allowed to hold their campaign meetings in the open to better reach the public.

"The old political parties should not be egotistical... Campaign activities should be allowed to be held in open fields to let people know about their name, symbol and programs."

Nur Mahmudi said much of the past violence was not caused by the political parties, but resulted from repressive actions taken by the government against the United Development Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party. (rms)