Yogie plays down PPP's protest

JAKARTA (JP): The General Elections Institute's chief, Moch. Yogie S.M., played down the United Development Party's (PPP) decision yesterday not to campaign here and in Yogyakarta.

"What's good about not campaigning?" Yogie, also the Minister of Home Affairs, told reporters. He said the government would ask the PPP to reconsider its decision.

Yogie said the PPP had the right to decide whether to campaign. "If they want to stay away from campaigning, go ahead. No problem."

The PPP has stopped campaigning in the ancient city of Yogyakarta to protest the attacks by Golkar supporters on two of its offices there Wednesday.

Yogie said the attacks should not be "exaggerated" because they were minor incidents involving Golkar supporters who could not control their emotions.

The PPP also canceled its campaign here yesterday because the authorities have refused to let it hold outdoor rallies.

In Yogyakarta, no PPP supporters rallied in the streets. But in Jakarta thousands of supporters jammed the streets because they did not know about last night's boycott decision.

Yesterday afternoon the party dispatched its security officers on the streets of Jakarta to tell supporters to stop rallying and go home.

Massive traffic jams happened in Tomang, Slipi, Mampang and Pasar Minggu where thousands of supporters in trucks and on motorcycles filled the main streets.

Shops along Jl. Buncit in South Jakarta closed when the crowd swelled. The shops reopened at about 2:30 p.m.

PPP chief Ismail Hasan Metareum denied allegations that the campaign boycott in Jakarta and Yogyakarta aimed to win public sympathy.

"In Jakarta, we did not campaign because the authorities refused to issue permits," he said at his home in Jakarta.

PPP Jakarta chapter chief Rusjdi Hamka said the South Jakarta police had refused to issue a permit for an outdoor rally and the East Jakarta police had withdrawn its permit.

The police would only issue permits for small rallies featuring little-known campaigners. The other chapters in the capital then decided not to campaign out of solidarity, he said.

"We cannot campaign at the subdistrict level because we do not have representative offices there," he said.

The PPP earlier withdrew from a campaigning agreement it had signed with the government, Golkar and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

Jakarta Police chief Maj. Gen. Hamami Nata said that for now rallies should be held in and for individual subdistricts and that large outdoor rallies, as requested by the PPP, had to be banned.

"Mass rallies may be held in the next stage," he said. "They (PPP officials) have unilaterally canceled a consensus on campaigning without prior consultation with the other parties and the Election Supervision Committee."

Jakarta governor Surjadi Soedirdja regretted the PPP boycott.

"I deeply regret it. Every party should seek the best solution for any problem with the other parties," he said.

Yogie said the PPP boycott was "very normal" and that he would not summon the party's leaders to discuss it.

Asked if the boycott was a blow for him as the Election Supervision Institute's chairman, Yogie tapped his cheeks and said: "Not at all. Look, there are no bruises."

Yogyakarta remained tense yesterday as PPP supporters put up more posters condemning the attacks on the party's offices.

Supporters of the PDI's ousted leader, Megawati Soekarnoputri, hung a large poster, which read "We Megawati supporters share your grief," in front of the PPP Yogyakarta branch office.

On Jl. Timoho in Central Yogyakarta, the authorities rounded up a convoy of youths, on 32 motorcycles and in vans, and escorted them to the police headquarters.

Dozens of security officers forcibly dispersed about 300 PPP supporters protesting Thursday night in the party's stronghold of Kauman, near the town's center. The protesters burnt tires and blocked the streets.

Police chased the protesters into alleys and have since been patrolling the streets.

In Jakarta, Armed Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Slamet Supriyadi called on PPP and Golkar supporters yesterday to stop fighting in Yogyakarta. (aan/ste/pan/imn/23/38)

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