Parties differ on election debates

Parties differ on election debates

JAKARTA: The issue of whether presidential candidates in 2004
should be required to take part in public debates has yet to be
resolved by legislators deliberating the bill on presidential
elections.

All of the factions except for the Indonesian Democratic Party
of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) agree that presidential candidates
should take part in debates, to explain their programs to the
public.

PDI Perjuangan, the largest faction in the House of
Representatives, has rejected the proposal. Some observers
believe this rejection is due to fears that party leader Megawati
Soekarnoputri, who is also the President, would not fare well in
the debates.

Megawati, who was ushered into the presidency in 2001, has
often failed to communicate her policies to the public.

"The type of campaign (candidates wish to run) should not be
determined for them. Each candidate should be given the chance to
determine the most effective way for them to campaign," PDI
Perjuangan legislator Pataniari Siahaan said on the sidelines of
a closed-door meeting here on Monday.

Patrialis Akbar of the Reform faction and Amin Said Husni of
the National Awakening Party (PKB) faction emphasized that the
debates would help the public determine the capabilities of the
presidential candidates. --JP