TNI stance raises Megawati hopes

JAKARTA (JP): The military has said it does not discriminate between men and women for the presidency, fueling the hopes of Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) supporters for their president-elect, Megawati Soekarnoputri.

On Wednesday, high-ranking Indonesian Military (TNI) officers followed-up the support earlier made by Minister of Defense and Security/TNI Commander Gen. Wiranto. In jest, Wiranto corrected his reference to the presidential criteria, from the best putra (child or son) to the best anak (child).

Controversy has arisen over the gender of the next president, which PDI Perjuangan claims is a maneuver to bar Megawati from the presidential race. The United Development Party (PPP) has recommended that only a male Muslim candidate be eligible for the presidency.

PDI Perjuangan has been criticized as "insensitive" for naming several non-Muslim legislative candidates.

TNI chief of Territorial Affairs Lt. Gen. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono reiterated on Wednesday that the next president would be the nation's best putra -- "either a man or a woman".

TNI's deputy spokesman Brig. Gen. Sudradjat told Reuters the military would use its political weight to push democracy and protect the country's unity.

"We do not discriminate between men and women in terms of our leader, as long as the people agree to elect her and as long as the election is democratic, transparent, free and fair," he said.

Also on Wednesday chairman of the National Mandate Party (PAN) Amien Rais said he had buried his dreams of becoming president and implied the president's gender was not of concern to PAN.

When pressed for a preference between Megawati and the Golkar Party's candidate, President B.J. Habibie, Amien said he would seek confirmation with both candidates concerning their commitment to reform measures.

Addressing the foreign press, Amien said Megawati had to prove her commitment to amend the 1945 Constitution, phase out the Indonesian Military's dual function and bring former president Soeharto to trial.

While PDI Perjuangan has stated a commitment to a unitary state, Amien said Megawati should be open to the concept of federalism, an issue which has led to fears of disintegration of the nation.

Amien said PAN would concentrate on the drive for total reforms through the House of Representatives. Though disappointed with his party's showing in the polls, he said PAN's achievement was remarkable for a nine-month-old party. It ranks fifth in official provisional results with 3.21 million votes as of 10:30 Wednesday.

Amien acknowledged there had been conflicts within party chapters at various levels. PAN was even overtaken by Golkar in West Sumatra, where the Muhammadiyah Muslim organization, formerly chaired by Amien, attracts a strong following.

As of late Wednesday, according to the General Elections Commission (KPU), Megawati's party was still leading with 17.8 million votes, followed by PKB with 8.97 million, Golkar with 8.05 million and PPP with 4.57 million.

Unofficial results from the Joint Operation Media Center has over 70 million votes counted. PDI Perjuangan is also on top, but Golkar is in second place, trailed by PKB, PPP and PAN.

Instead of gathering pace as expected, the flow of KPU's results from the regions slowed down on Wednesday. By 5 p.m., only 46.4 million votes had been counted, or an increase of just over 3 million over 24 hours. Total votes counted represented about 40 percent of the registered 117 million voters.

The KPU has yet to even release the voter turnout figure.

Jakarta, West Nusa Tenggara and Southeast Sulawesi failed to update their data on Wednesday, while Aceh, East Timor, Maluku and Irian Jaya are yet to send a single entry. Bali and East Java were ahead in vote counting, reaching 85 percent and 71 percent of registered voters respectively.

Alternative candidates

Amien also said he would oppose putting forward alternative presidential candidates, if the General Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in November ended in a deadlock.

"I know that Military chief Gen. Wiranto, Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid and Yogyakarta's monarch (and governor) Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X have been tipped as alternative presidential candidates," he said. However, he said such a move would be "undemocratic".

He said if a non-party candidate were appointed, he or she could blame the MPR for any criticisms directed toward their presidency. On Tuesday, in Yogyakarta, political lecturer Cornelis Lay spoke of efforts toward an "extra electoral process" in the presidential election.

Amien said his recent meetings with President Habibie, Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung, PPP chairman Hamzah Haz and Wiranto were to "learn more" of the current political settings.

Also on Wednesday, Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung said Golkar's own vote tallying would ultimately put the party in second place. Golkar estimated that as of 1:10 p.m. on Wednesday, over 90 million of around 117 million votes had been counted.

PDI Perjuangan surged ahead with over 31 million votes, almost 10 million clear of Golkar which had gained 21.3 million. (imn/rms/emb/amd/anr)