The debate on which political parties can field candidates in the

The debate on which political parties can field candidates in the 2004 presidential election may soon come to an end as most factions in the House have suggested that parties winning three percent of the seats in the House should be able to join the race.

All factions except Golkar have reached a common understanding that more parties should participate in the elections in 2004, when the country is expected to organize the first ever direct presidential election.

Golkar, which served as the political vehicle of former president Soeharto for more than three decades, insisted that only parties that garnered at least 20 percent of the votes in the House, as proposed by the government, should be allowed to contest the presidential election.

The factions also agreed that the legislative and presidential elections be held separately, but have still to decide on the interval between the two elections.

"We have not agreed on whether the presidential election will be held three months, two months or one month after the legislative election," said Barlianta Harahap, chairman of the United Development Party (PPP) faction here on Wednesday.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) had scheduled the legislative election for April 5, 2004, and the presidential election between June and August.

Previously, the PDI Perjuangan and Golkar factions supported the government's idea of adopting a 20 percent threshold.

The PDI Perjuangan and Golkar, which collected 153 and 120 seats respectively in the 1999 elections, were the only two parties that met the 20 percent quota.

The smaller factions rejected the stipulation and tried to block it by demanding that the elections for the president and legislative members be held simultaneously to avoid the threshold.

Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno had repeatedly said that the stipulation allowing only those political parties winning at least 20 percent of the seats in the House was designed to ensure that the elected president had sufficient support in the legislature.

This, the minister said, would ensure a stable government in order to lead the country out of the current economic crisis.

With the acceptance by the factions of separate elections, it is likely that the three percent threshold will be accepted.

Effendi Choirie of the National Awakening Party (PKB) revealed that most factions had agreed to adopt a three percent threshold for political parties in nominating presidential candidates.

Choirie emphasized, however, that the factions could not reach a consensus on the requirements for a figure to be nominated as a president candidate.

The Golkar and Reform factions insisted that a presidential candidate must have at least a university degree, but PDI Perjuangan rejected the clause, apparently because its chairwoman Megawati has only a senior high school certificate.

The PDI Perjuangan faction meanwhile defended a clause that a criminal suspect, let alone a person convicted of a crime, must not be allowed to contest the election.

Golkar, headed by veteran politician Akbar Tandjung, who had been sentenced to three years in jail for corruption, rejected the clause.

"Basically, all factions are negotiating with each other to settle the arguments," Barlianta told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Faction leaders had conducted negotiations twice at the Horison Hotel and Hilton Hotel in Jakarta. The negotiation settled some contentious issues, but others remain unsolved.

Barlianta said the leaders of political parties would intervene should faction leaders fail to settle the problems.

He added that the legislators hoped to bring the presidential election bill to a plenary session on July 7 for endorsement.

2. PKB (2 X 21) Yusril to settle dispute between PKB factions

With the judicial process in the long-standing dispute between the two camps in the National Awakening Party (PKB) still dragging on, the final say now lies with the Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra.

Both the warring parties came to Yusril in a bid to block each other's path to winning the right to contest next year's general election.

Alwi Shihab, who chairs the PKB loyal to former president Abdurrahman Wahid, led a top-notch delegation that included deputy chairmen Mahfud MD, Muhaimin Iskandar, AS Hikam and secretary-general Syaifullah Yusuf.

They submitted a number of documents required by the ministry to contest the 2004 election.

About an hour earlier, lawyers representing the PKB splinter group under Matori Abdul Djalil met Yusril to file an objection against the Alwi camp, who had registered their political grouping under the PKB name.

Alamsyah Hanafiah, who led the team of lawyers, said his clients demanded that the ministry disqualify Alwi's PKB as the court verdict over the conflict was not final yet. The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the PKB under Alwi, upholding the decision of the Jakarta High Court which ruled that Matori was acting unlawfully in using the party's name, logo and anthem.

However, the verdict did not immediately settle the dispute as the court did not rule on which verdict should be used as Alwi's PKB is currently appealing to the Supreme Court in a different lawsuit over the same case. This lawsuit was also won by Matori.

The ministry's Director of Public Legal Administration, Zulkarnaen Yusuf said his office had not yet decided which camp was eligible to contest the election under the PKB banner.

"We'll hold a meeting on this issue on Thursday because we have yet to receive the verdict of the Supreme Court," he said.

Alwi said that he understood the ministry's decision. However, he said he still wanted the ministry to comply with the Supreme Court verdict.

"We have given every opportunity to Pak Matori. We have offered to make peace. We even agreed to give him a top post in the PKB but he rejected us every time. Instead, he insisted on continuing the legal fight," he remarked.

Alwi said his party would remain open to Matori should he want to rejoin Alwi's PKB.

Yusril promised to settle the case as fairly as possible.

"Both parties have called me. I assure them that we will be fair in settling the case," he said.

Yusril said that his office would comply with the Supreme Court verdict despite a possible legal challenge against it.

"A Supreme Court verdict must be executed despite any challenge from one of the conflicted parties," he said.

The dispute has dragged on following the dismissal of Matori as PKB chairman in 2001 by PKB chief patron Abdurrahman Wahid after the former attended the Special Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in 2001, which led to Gus Dur's removal as president.

Matori later set up another party with the same name.

3. KONSTI (1 X 50)

Experts urge enactment of constitutional court bill

Legal experts urged legislators and the government on Wednesday to finish the deliberation of the constitutional court bill soon and to establish the court before the Aug. 17, 2003 deadline set by the 1945 Constitution.

Solly Lubis, an expert from North Sumatra University (USU), suggested that the government take the spirit and optimism of the legislators into account.

"The constitutional court will be the key to our commitment in law enforcement. The deliberation must go ahead," Solly told The Jakarta Post after a hearing on Wednesday with the House committee in charge of the bill's deliberation.

Firmansyah Arifin of the National Consortium for Legal Reform (KRHN) said the government's demand for revisions to the transitional provisions of the Constitution showed its reluctance to finish the deliberation.

Both experts were responding to a statement by Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra, who suggested the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to amend transitional provisions in the Constitution to delay the establishment of the constitutional court.

The formation of the court was mandated last year in the amended 1945 Constitution to handle constitutional disputes.

The transitional provisions also stipulate that until the court's establishment, the Supreme Court would be vested with this authority.

Yusril said the government doubted the lawmakers would be able to finish within the set timeframe, so he preferred that the transitional provisions be amended in order to extend the time of deliberation.

Although the idea might be logical, Firmansyah said it would only add to the burdens of the Supreme Court, which has about 17,000 backlog cases at present.

"The House must optimize its deliberation process and finish the bill as scheduled," he said.

Legislator Baharuddin Aritonang of the Golkar faction, who was a member of the ad hoc committee in charge of constitutional amendment last year, regretted the government's discouraging response.

He said revisions to the transitional provisions could revive the classical debate on the amendment to the constitution.

"This may lead to demands for revisions of other articles in the Constitution," he said, referring to those groups who rejected the constitutional amendment last year.

Aritonang suggested that the lawmakers work during their recess between July 8 and Aug. 18 to meet the deadline for the establishment of the constitutional court.

The House will have to pass the bill long before the Aug. 17 deadline to give ample time for the President to endorse it, the related institutions to select judges and the head of state to install them.

The bill stipulates that the court is to have nine judges, with the President, the House and the Supreme Court to choose three judges each.

At the hearing presided over by Zainal Arifin of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), Solly emphasized the necessity for separating the judicial role of the constitutional court from the political role of the Assembly regarding impeachment.

Solly was referring to the authority of the constitutional court to assess any alleged misconduct or abuse of power by the President.

4. BOMB (1 X 45)

Mukhlas refuses to testify against Samudra

Prosecutors in the trial of the alleged mastermind of the Bali bombing, Imam Samudra, lost a chance of securing more incriminating evidence on Wednesday after witness Ali Gufron alias Mukhlas refused to testify against the defendant.

Mukhlas, who marked his entry to the court room with an exchange of yells praising God with the defendant, flatly rejected presiding judge I Nyoman Sugawa's request for him to take an oath, the normal process for a witness before giving testimony.

While the judge and Mukhlas were debating the procedure, the defendant's chief lawyer Qadhar Faisal intervened, defending the witness's arguments. Qadhar said that according to Article 168 of the Criminal Code, Mukhlas was under no legal obligation to take an oath nor to testify.

Article 168 states that any person who is a blood relation of the defendant or is being prosecuted in the same case as the defendant, has the legal right not to testify against the defendant.

Mukhlas is also standing trial for his alleged role in last October's bomb attack on Bali, which left 202 people dead, mostly foreign tourists.

Like Samudra, Mukhlas is being charged with planning and organizing the bombings, a crime that carries the death penalty under the new antiterrorism law.

A legal battle ensued that, curiously, pitted the lawyers against the judges, instead of against the prosecutors. Judge Sugawa countered the lawyers' move by citing the Supreme Court's decision dated March 21, 1990, to admit exceptions to Article 168.

However, the lawyers, quoting Supreme Court Practice Direction No. 1174/1994, insisted on keeping Mukhlas from testifying.

"We reject the lawyers' objections. Therefore, the witness is instructed to take the oath and present his testimony," Sugawa said.

Mukhlas was adamant, and when Sugawa repeated his order, the witness simply shook his head and said "No!".

Previously, Mukhlas had also refused to testify against his younger brother, Amrozi. Mukhlas was among eight witnesses summoned to the trial on Wednesday.

Chief prosecutor I Nyoman Dila later intervened, asking the judges to admit Mukhlas' police interrogation file as evidence in place of oral testimony.

The judges accepted the prosecution suggestion and asked Dila to read the summary of the file before the court.

In the file, Mukhlas admitted that the idea to carry out the bombings came from Samudra. The defendant also ordered Amrozi to purchase explosives, Mukhlas to provide the funds and appointed himself the field coordinator for the bomb attacks.

Earlier in the day, the lead prosecutor in the Mukhlas trial, Banjar Nahor, demanded that the trial continue despite the defendant's attempt to retract the statement he had given to police.

Claiming that he had been under severe physical and psychological duress during the interrogation, Mukhlas retracted his statement in Monday's session.

Referring to the alleged duress, Banjar Nahor stated that as it took place in an area outside the Bali Police headquarters so it could not considered to have taken place as part of the formal investigation.

"The defendant was always accompanied by his lawyers during the interrogation, so the file was compiled in a way that was in accordance with the law," Nahor told the court.

The court will present its ruling on the matter next Monday.

5. UU10 (2 X 20)

House plans to revise population, welfare law

The House of Representative (DPR) Commission VII on Health and Population plans to revise the law No. 10/1992 on population growth and welfare family development.

Several main reasons was considered on the amendment plan. Chairman of the commission, Posma Tobing, told The Jakarta Post the main reason was that the recent law no longer fit with the new decentralization system implemented in the country.

"The law No. 10/1992 was drafted when the centralization system was there, so most policies are using the centralized approach," he said.

After the implementation of regional autonomy, with such approach, according to Posma, the chance for a regional administration to ignore the population issue became very high.

He gave an example of the role of the National Family Planning Coordinating Agency (BKKBN) at the regional level which now reduced as their program was once set centralized.

"However, the new law on the population issue should not oppose the autonomy system," said Posma. Population is a national issue and should become concern of every regional administration in the country.

Other reasons mentioned was that the recent law has also not yet covering the new global issues, like gender issue, male participation, reproduction rights and infertility.

"Our country is committed with several recommendations on global issue from international forums on population, like the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo 1994 and the Millenium Development Summit in New York 2000," said Posma.

The absence of a focused institution and officer who should be responsible with the population and family planning issue was also considered as the lack of the recent law.

The draft will be formulated by several experts on the population issues, like the deputy of Family Planning and Reproduction Health BKKBN Siswanto Agus Wilopo, chairperson of the Demographic Foundation Srihariati Hatmadji.

Also chairman of the Medical Legal Committee, Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) Herkutanto and vice president of the Center of Population Study and Policy Sukamdi.

In the meantime, while waiting for the revision, the Commission VII expected the awareness of the regional top officers on the importance of the issue.

"We are no longer able to have any law enforcement, except later if the law revised," said Posma, on behalf of the commission, "But since it is a national issue, so all region participation is highly expected".

According to the executive secretary to the Indonesian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (IFPPD) Ermalena, population issue should be center of a country's development.

"Population issue relates with many other factors, like economy, health, education as well as environment," she said. As an example, she said the recent haze problem was also related to the environment issue.

Indonesia is now ranked as the 110th country on the quality of life, which considered by three main factors: education, health and family finance.