UI students convey their concerns to ABRI faction

UI students convey their concerns to ABRI faction

JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces faction in the People's
Consultative Assembly (MPR) met with student representatives of
the University of Indonesia (UI) yesterday following several days
of protests by students over the dire economic situation.

The faction's chairman, Yunus Yosfiah, received 20 students
clad in their traditional yellow jackets at the MPR complex on
the sidelines of the fifth day of the Assembly's General Session.

The students delivered a petition to the faction, which was
the only one of the five in the Assembly willing to meet them,
demanding major reform of the legal and political systems and the
economy.

They also said that President's Soeharto's accountability
speech delivered Sunday during the opening of the General Session
was unacceptable.

"We, the students of UI, take a political stand and reject
Soeharto's accountability speech," the senate's chairman Rama
Pramatama said. "Our concern grew out of the fact that political
factions hastily deliberated their acceptance of the
accountability speech."

Rama said the students demanded reform of the country's legal
system, succession of the nation's political leadership and a
return of public offices' main function to being to serve the
people.

"The changes we are asking for are substantive, not
artificial," he said, adding that they were adamant changes would
be sought peacefully.

Yunus said he was pleased to see the enthusiasm and idealism
shown by the students but reminded them not to make hasty
judgments.

"We must try to evaluate the situation with crystal clear
judgment," he said during the hour-long meeting.

He reminded them that the cabinet had developed the country
successfully during the four-and-a-half years prior to the
economic turmoil which began last July.

Poverty

But the student delegation countered Yunus' argument saying
that Soeharto's accountability speech neglected to mention that
87.5 million people still lived in poverty, according to World
Bank data.

In his address Soeharto maintained the number of poor numbered
22.5 million.

Rama further noted that the current monetary crisis had
slashed the per capita income by about 70 percent to
approximately US$300.

The students then asked for stricter measures against
corruption, collusion and nepotism in the economy.

Yunus responded by saying that eliminating graft was a major
concern of all five factions in the Assembly.

"However, as you all will know when you live in the real
world, reforms are not easy to undertake," he said, adding that
they had to be done gradually.

UI students have held rallies at either or both of their
campuses in Salemba and Depok every day since last week.

Rama said students from the university would continue voicing
their concerns regardless of who the next president was.

He said the students still respected the Assembly members as
the representative of the people, despite a growing pessimism
over the effectiveness of the congress.

But he noted that it would be a waste to spend Rp 45 billion
(US$4.5 million) on organizing the General Assembly if "the
Assembly members only waited to listen to the gavel closing the
meeting, and followed it with long applause." (byg/das/imn)