Yogie blasts 'white group' irresponsible citizens
BEKASI (JP): Minister of Home Affairs Moch. Yogie S.M. waded into the increasingly acrimonious debate on people who refuse to exercise their right to vote yesterday, blasting them irresponsible citizens.
Yogie, who also chairs the General Elections Institute, warned the public against groups who tried to persuade people not to vote during the May 29 poll.
"Don't follow the wrong people. Follow the government. Those who do not vote are irresponsible," Yogie asserted. However, he did not say anything about the legal consequences people might face for refusing to vote.
Yogie was making his remarks after swearing in Kaliani A.R. as the acting mayor of Bekasi in West Java, 30 kilometers east of Jakarta.
Sacked legislator Sri Bintang Pamungkas, currently being detained by the Attorney General's Office, is facing subversion charges for allegedly encouraging people not to vote through Idul Fitri greetings cards sent to, among others, legislators and high ranking officials.
The Bishops Council of Indonesia said in a rare pre-Easter message last month that Catholics would not be sinning if they did not vote. A number of Catholics contacted by The Jakarta Post welcomed the message, saying it boosted their confidence to exercise their rights.
But Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Azwar Anas said in a gathering held by the South Sulawesi Families for Harmony on Sunday that antigeneral election groups are big sinners.
A Moslem group has also declared that not voting would be sinful.
The 1985 general election law says that casting a vote is a citizen's right, not an obligation. It does not regulate legal sanctions against those who do not exercise the right.
Over the weekend Southeast Sulawesi Governor La Ode Kaimoeddin hinted that teachers who refused to vote might be fired, saying that their negative attitude would influence their students.
Analysts predict that the percentage of non-voters, better known as Golput (literally the "white group"), will increase this year. A poll conducted by the Indonesian National Youth Committee in Malang, East Java, revealed that about 85 percent of youths in the region will abstain from voting in the coming election. (amd)