Soeharto tells others to get tough on violence

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto ordered election organizers yesterday to reprimand the three parties' leaders for the increasing campaign violence.

After receiving a report on the campaign by the National Elections Institute's chairman, Moch. Yogie S.M., and the Election Supervision Committee's chairman, Singgih, at Merdeka Palace, President Soeharto said the parties were obliged to control their supporters.

"Don't continue violating the election rules," Yogie quoted Soeharto as saying.

Singgih and Yogie had told Soeharto that campaign-related traffic accidents had claimed 49 lives and injured hundreds in the first 16 days of the campaign. Most of the accidents occurred in Central Java.

The parties' leaders had to be responsible for order and security during rallies, Singgih quoted the President as saying.

Soeharto ordered Singgih and Yogie to enforce the new regulation which banned banners and pictures portraying an alliance between Megawati Soekarnoputri, the ousted leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), and the Moslem-based United Development Party (PPP).

Megawati, who insists that she is still the legitimate PDI chairwoman despite a government-backed congress that reinstated Soerjadi at the party's helm, is not allowed to stand for election.

Banners and yells in support of Megawati have become the highlights of many PPP rallies across the country after a PPP official sought Megawati's blessing for her loyalists wishing to join the PPP.

Banners and other campaign material must be approved by the police.

"We ask the three contestants' task forces to haul down those banners and pictures," Singgih said.

Singgih said the authorities would take harsh action against people displaying banners and posters on the Megawati-PPP alliance.

Singgih rejected speculation that the government had introduced the ban for fear of Megawati's popularity.

Despite Soeharto's order, Armed Forces Chief of Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid said police would take a persuasive, rather than repressive, approach towards people carrying "Mega-bintang" (Megawati-PPP) banners in the campaign.

"It's about technique. Security officers will persuade people carrying banners to furl instead of unfurl them," Syarwan said while inspecting a PDI rally here.

Soerjadi said he understood the President's reprimand. "We admit that there are many improvements that we have to make. We deeply regret that many people have died in traffic accidents during street rallies."

"But generally speaking, despite the trouble, I think the election campaign has been proceeding well," he said.

Besides, he said, we told the government during deliberations on the election rules "that banning street rallies was impossible". (06/05/mds)