Tourists watch ballot counting

Tourists watch ballot counting

JAKARTA (JP): At two o'clock sharp ballot counting had begun yesterday. Jl. MH Thamrin in Central Jakarta was a bit cheerful as many tourists and residents curiously watched ballot counting there.

Tourists bringing along cameras said they found the election "very interesting".

"I'm very curious to know the results, but I'm sure Golkar will win," a Dutch tourist said.

Another tourist named Christer Nielsson said, "I just arrived last night from Sweden, but I already knew that there would be an election here."

The two tourists carefully watched the unique competition between PPP and Golkar.

The tally for the House of Representatives at the station near the Sari Pan Pacific Hotel was 175 for PPP, 205 for Golkar and four for PDI. "At last there's some opposition," a woman in a blazer said.

People clapped loudly for PDI saying in an amused tone, "At last there's a PDI."

At other polling stations the outcome was too predictable as Golkar dominated the tallying.

"The political system in Indonesia is completely different from the one in my country," the Dutch tourist said. Nielsson shared her opinion, saying that there was also a great difference in policy making between Indonesia and Sweden.

CNN was one of the foreign media covering the event. (ste/10)