PDI demands changes in electoral law
PDI demands changes in electoral law
JAKARTA (JP): The minority Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI)
vowed yesterday to press ahead with its demand for revision of
the electoral law, which it considers "undemocratic".
"We failed during the last attempt at the 1993 People's
Consultative Assembly meeting, but we will try harder in 1998,"
PDI deputy chief Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno said in Mataram, West
Nusa Tenggara, on Wednesday night.
The PDI's rival party, the Moslem-oriented United Development
Party (PPP), has also been demanding the same revision of the
electoral law.
The PPP has been lobbying PDI and the other two political
factions in the House of Representatives -- the ruling Golkar
party and the Armed Forces -- for support of its electoral bill.
Both PPP and PDI say that the electoral law favors Golkar,
which has adamantly rejected any idea to revise the law on the
grounds that it is "still relevant".
Soetardjo said the PPP has rejected PDI's proposal to draft a
joint revised version of the electoral law.
"The changes that the PPP wants to make in the electoral law
are the same as those the PDI wants to see," Soetardjo was quoted
as saying by Antara.
Both minority parties demand that all political parties
contesting in the general elections are involved in every stage,
right from the planning up to the ballot counting.
They envision an end to the President's "monopoly" in
organizing the election for the sake of fairness. Currently, the
President is chief of Golkar's board of patrons.
They also demanded that the election day be held on a holiday
in order to avoid rigging. For example, civil servants -- who are
chief supporters of Golkar -- could cast their ballots twice: at
home and in the office.
Support
Under the law, any initiative to make a new law or revise an
old one should have the support of at least two House factions
and 20 house members before the issue can be discussed.
Adding to this complication, the law will never pass without
the approval of all political factions and the government. Over
the past three decades, almost all bills were sponsored by the
government.
Meanwhile, in Central Java, PPP politicians are intensifying
their attack on Golkar's alleged efforts to win the 1997
election.
After the local government in Pemalang regency required that
citizens paint their homes, pedicabs and everything yellow -- the
color of Golkar -- officials have now distributed Golkar
stickers.
"Thousands of houses in Petarukan subdistrict are bearing the
stickers," said Harminto Agustono, deputy secretary of the PPP's
Pemalang chapter, yesterday.
The yellow stickers, eight centimeters wide by 12 centimeters
long, contain a message asking people to vote for Golkar next
year, Harminto said.
"The stickers show that Golkar has breached the law, because
it started campaigning far ahead of schedule," he added.
(pan/har)