Voter registration begins

JAKARTA (JP): The General Elections Commission (KPU) appealed to the nation on Sunday to register for the June 7 general election, touted as the country's first democratic poll in over three decades.

"I call on all citizens to sincerely and enthusiastically spare the time to register with the appointed officers," KPU chairman Rudini said in a televised speech.

Rudini said people's participation in the election would serve as evidence that Indonesians were politically mature.

Registration, which is voluntary, begins on Monday and will continue through May 4. An estimated 130 million people are eligible to vote, 5 percent of whom are first timer voters. In 1997, when registration was compulsory, there were some 124 million voters.

The poll is restricted to citizens at least 17 years of age and those who are younger than 17 but are married. To register, people must produce some form of identification, including identification cards (KTPs), driver's licenses, marriage certificates and school diplomas.

This will spare people from having to return to their home villages to register as in the past.

Local committees, comprising representatives of the 48 political parties contesting the general election and the government, have been set up in every village and subdistrict to facilitate the registration process.

The local committees also will help mobilize people to register, Rudini said.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the National Elections Committee, Jacob Tobing, was quoted by Antara as warning people against registering more than once, a criminal offense punishable by one year imprisonment. Anyone who votes more than once in the June election will face up to six years in prison, he added. (emb/amd)