U.S. calls for changes in RI political system
U.S. calls for changes in RI political system
WASHINGTON (Reuter): The United States has called for changes
in Indonesia's political system as Golkar confirms its rule with
a landslide election victory.
"The United States believes that parliamentary elections are
tightly controlled by the government of Indonesia," State
Department spokesman John Dinger said Friday.
"The electoral system severely limits political competition."
Dinger said the Independent Election Monitoring Committee had
stated that, while Thursday's election proceeded smoothly, there
were reports of multiple voting, intimidation of party
scrutineers, discriminating treatment of voters and other
procedural irregularities.
The committee had found that the entire election process
lacked transparency, Dinger said.
"We do hope the government of Indonesia takes steps to
investigate those allegations and takes corrective action if
needed," he said. "More broadly, we also believe Indonesia should
move toward a political system in which the will of the people
can be heard."
An Asian-based human rights group issued a report Saturday in
Jakarta which criticized the election, saying glaring
irregularities had undermined the right to vote.
The Bangkok-based Asian Forum for Human Rights and
Development's delegation, which had observed the election, had
basic concerns over irregularities in the electoral process.
The delegation's coordinator, Evelyn Balais-Serrano, said the
delegates from Thailand, the Philippines and Cambodia had been
surprised by the level of military presence in and around polling
booths.
"We think there can never be a clear and fair election in an
atmosphere of fear," Balais-Serrano told a press conference to
release a three-page statement on the election.
The statement said that some of the delegation's seven
members, who visited different regions, had seen people vote
without their names being checked off registration lists. It also
said there had been no mechanism to ensure that people voting
outside their districts did not vote more than once.
The report criticized of the tight restrictions on campaigning
in villages, where most of the country's more than 200 million
people live.
"Observations, interviews and reports showed that... Golkar
had full access and control over the villages as each village
head was a member of Golkar. How can the people have free and
fair choice under such circumstances."
The delegation was also concerned by the pressure on the more
than 20 million first-time voters.
"Interviews with young voters and their parents in Jakarta and
some other areas, showed with glaring frequency, fear among the
young that failure to vote for Golkar would mean reprisal by
their superiors in school involving their academic work, such as
a failing mark, for instance, in their final examinations," it
said.
The delegation urged the Indonesian government to set up an
independent election body and a transparent electoral process
that was free of harassment and intimidation.