Soeharto urges new poll campaign rules to prevent violence
Soeharto urges new poll campaign rules to prevent violence
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto called for new regulations on
election campaigns yesterday to prevent a repetition of the
disorderliness and violence that marked past elections.
Soeharto asked the National Council for Defense and Security
to draw up the regulations in time for the 1997 general election,
scheduled for the end of May.
The council's chairman Lt. Gen. (ret.) Soekarto told reporters
after meeting with the head of state at the Bina Graha
presidential office yesterday that the idea was discussed
extensively.
The council, comprising retired military officers, advises the
President on various state matters. One of its major jobs in the
past was helping the President draft the five-yearly Guidelines
of State Policy.
The President stressed that election campaigns should no
longer be turned into shows of force by the political
organizations contesting the elections, Soekarto said.
They should rather be aimed at attracting the sympathy of
voters by contestants stressing their respective programs, he
said.
Soeharto was concerned that mass rallies could easily get out
of control and result in fatalities. That, he said, would attract
nobody's sympathy.
The election next year will be the sixth under President
Soeharto. The ruling political group Golkar, which has won all
five previous elections with landslide margins, is pitting itself
against the United Development Party and the Indonesian
Democratic Party.
At stake are 425 of the 500 seats of the House of
Representatives. The other 75 seats are reserved for appointees
of the Armed Forces.
Golkar leaders are scheduled to meet next month to set their
target for next year's polls.
Calls to regulate election campaigns were first voiced by
Golkar at its leadership meeting in October last year. So far
however, there have been no serious attempts at drafting any
rules.
Golkar officials have suggested that outdoor rallies be banned
because they could lead to trouble. They suggested that these
should be replaced by indoor gatherings and televised discussions
among the candidates running for the House of Representative
seats.
Soekarto said that in drawing up the regulations, the council
would consult the three political organizations and ensure
consensus so that the campaigning will proceed in a peaceful and
orderly fashion.
He denied the suggestion that the regulations would restrict
the scope of the campaigning.
Outdoor campaigns could still be held, but "we have to make
sure that the convoy of participants proceed to the venue in an
orderly manner and that their security is guaranteed," he said.
The council is to begin work immediately given the short time
it has before the election campaign begins, he said.
The current electoral law restricts campaigning to a 25-day
period. Next year, it is slated for April 29 to May 23. A cooling
off period of seven days normally follows before polling day.
Soekarto said the council has also begun gathering information
and material for the Guidelines of State Policy for 1998-2003.
The council is seeking the views of public figures,
intellectuals, politicians and others for the drafting, he said.
President Soeharto said that in order to avoid the impression
that the guidelines had come solely from him, the draft would be
circulated widely for discussion and debate before it is brought
to the People's Consultative Assembly for endorsement.
The guidelines should reflect the views and aspirations of all
layers of society, Soekarto quoted the President as saying.
(imn/emb)