Police require parties to provide notice of rallies

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With the campaign for the legislative election just six days away, the Jakarta Police called on all 24 political parties contesting the elections to provide them with a detailed schedule of their campaigns.

"The parties must send us notification letters at least three days prior to any campaign activities," city police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo said on Friday.

The police have received a campaign schedule from the Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPUD), but they do not have detailed information on the parties' activities.

"The schedule only gives us the name of the party and the campaign date. It doesn't specify the place, the meeting point and the expected number of people," he said.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) has set the campaign period for the elections from March 11 to April 1.

Prasetyo said that by informing the police of the location and number of people taking part in a rally, the police would be able to make the necessary security preparations.

He reminded political parties that the general elections law prohibited party supporters from parading through the streets of the capital.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Makbul Padmanagara emphasized it was prohibited for party supporters to ride in open trucks during parades and rallies.

"I call on parties supporters to comply with all traffic laws when taking part in the campaign," he said on Friday.

Makbul also guarantee that the legislative election would take place safely and without hiccups.

"We conducted a show of force this morning. We want to erase any doubts the public may have about security in the city during the elections," he said.

A total of 12,000 security personnel -- from the Jakarta Police, the Jakarta Military Command, the Jakarta Public Order Agency and civilian guards -- took part in the demonstration at the Jakarta Fairground in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, on Friday morning.

The police will deploy 4,000 officers across the city during the campaign and will gradually increase that number to 16,000 by April 5, when the voting will take place.

Meanwhile, after weeks of uncertainty, the city police have decided to investigate allegations that 23 legislative candidates submitted fake school diplomas for their candidacies.

The decision was made after police received a letter from the Jakarta General Elections Supervisory Committee urging an investigation.