Soerjadi calls for revision of military's political role

MATARAM, West Nusa Tenggara (JP): The government-recognized chief of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), Soerjadi, called for the military yesterday to review its political role.

Soerjadi said Dwifungsi, or the military's dual function, was widely seen as letting the Armed Forces favor Golkar, which has been in power since 1971.

He said the Armed Forces sociopolitical role was secured by its members' presence in the House of Representatives and the People's Consultative Assembly without having to contest general elections.

"One of our four political stands is to support the military's dual roles, but we cannot understand why the Armed Forces joins Golkar's big family," Soerjadi told about 200 youths and students at a PDI discussion here.

He was answering a question by a youth who complained of intimidation to vote Golkar because of his membership to the Communication Forum of Indonesian Veterans' Children.

Soerjadi said that intimidation of the organization's members would not have happened if the Armed Forces got its hands off Golkar.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Hartono had announced that every Armed Forces member was a Golkar cadre, Soerjadi said.

Research by the National Institute of Sciences revealed in February that the military's civil defense role had to be reduced to encourage democracy.

Golkar, an unheralded functional group in the early years after its establishment in October 1964, has grown into the ruling political organization, thanks to the patronage of the Armed Forces and the bureaucracy.

All six million civil servants have pledged allegiance to Golkar. One and a half million of them are bureaucrats.

Later in the afternoon, Soerjadi addressed more than 2,000 people at Nermada field, about 10 kilometers east of the city's center. He was surrounded by light security unlike at his overnight rally in Jember, East Java.

But rally organizers here disappointed hundreds of PDI supporters who arrived at the venue a few minutes after Soerjadi had left the rally.

PDI provincial branch chief I Made Suka said Soerjadi's schedule had been changed for security reasons.

In Ujungpandang, supporters of the party's dethroned leader Megawati Soekarnoputri announced yesterday their plan to stage a rally on May 12 to protest the government's recognition of the Soerjadi-led PDI faction.

The local PDI chapter's deputy chairman Yacobus Kamerlauw said the thousands of people were expected to demonstrate in the town's main roads.

"During the rally, we will inform the public that the Soerjadi-led PDI faction is illegal and Megawati is the party's only legitimate leader," Kamerlauw said.

Kamerlauw's government-recognized PDI counterpart, Kamaruddin, said he was not afraid of the street rally provided Megawati loyalists did not instigate clashes.

"It's entirely up to them whether they go ahead with their plan. We will ask security authorities to stop any third parties exploiting them," Kamaruddin said.

He said he would welcome Megawati supporters to join rallies held by his faction led by Soerjadi.

Megawati has ordered her supporters to refrain from campaigning, but many have ignored this directive. Groups of people calling themselves Megawati supporters have been involved in clashes and disruptions, but Megawati has said they are not her supporters. (30/amd)