ENSURING A PEACEFUL, SMOOTH AND SAFE ELECTORAL PROCESS ON APRIL 17

Selasa, 16 Apr 2019 21:51

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah
Jakarta, 16/4/2019 (Antara) - Indonesia, the worlds largest archipelagic nation with some 17 thousand islands, has been holding relatively peaceful and smooth general elections since its Independence in 1945.

This year is a little different as Indonesia, the worlds fourth largest democracy, is preparing for its biggest and most complex one-day simultaneous legislative and presidential elections on April 17.

A total of 90,779,969 eligible voters across the country will flock to polling booths to cast their ballots for their representatives at the House of Representatives (DPR), Regional Representatives Council (DPD), as well as provincial and district/city legislative bodies. They will also vote for their preferred pair of presidential and vice presidential candidates.

In addition, 2,086,285 Indonesian nationals overseas are also eligible to exercise their voting rights during the electoral process from April 8-14 in various countries. However, the ballots will be counted along with the votes in Indonesia's 34 provinces on April 17.

Chairman of the General Election Commission (KPU) Arief Budiman recently noted that the commission had set up 809,699 polling stations across the country.

The 2019 race will be a re-play of the contentious 2014 presidential election that exposed the nation's divide, as Joko Widodo (Jokowi) faced retired general Prabowo Subianto. Incumbent Jokowi has picked well-known cleric Ma'ruf Amin as his running mate, while Subianto has paired with successful, young businessman Sandiaga Uno.

Vice President M. Jusuf Kalla has forecast that the 2019 elections will record a voter turnout exceeding 75 percent, or more than 69.8 percent in the 2014 election, and some 70 percent in 2009.

INDONESIAN DIASPORA ENTHUSIASTIC OVER ELECTORAL PROCESS OVERSEAS

Rabu, 17 Apr 2019 00:06

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah
Jakarta, 17/4 (Antara) - Indonesians were very enthusiastic to exercise their voting rights during the electoral process held in various nations from April 8 to 14, 2019, ahead of the national election day on April 17.

Based on data of the General Election Commission (KPU), there are a total of 2,086,285 eligible Indonesian voters comprising 902,727 males and 1,155,464 females overseas, compared to 90,779,969 eligible voters inside Indonesia.

There were three methods of voting overseas going to polling stations, mailing, or mobile ballot boxes. A total of 783 polling stations were set up in 130 cities overseas. The Overseas Electoral Committee also served 2,345 mobile ballot boxes, and 429 postal services.

The diaspora cast their ballots for their preferred pair of presidential and vice presidential candidates, and their representatives at the House of Representatives (DPR). The ballots will be counted on April 17, along with the counting of votes in Indonesia's 34 provinces.

Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of Indonesia had assured everyone that the overseas election committee would maintain the utmost integrity while collecting the votes of overseas Indonesians.

"The foreign election committees are formed by Indonesian citizens living abroad. All matters relating to the general election will be conducted impartially," noted MOFA's Director of Indonesian Citizen Protection Lalu Muhammad Iqbal here on April 1, 2019.

Malaysia has the most number of Indonesian voters at nearly one million.

FIXING VOTER LIST CRUCIAL FOR LEGITIMACY OF 2019 ELECTIONS

Jakarta, 29/3, 2019 (Antara) - With less than 20 days to go before over 192 million Indonesians are expected to cast their votes in the 2019 legislative and presidential elections, discrepancies have cropped up yet again in the Official Voter List (DPT).

The national campaign team (BPN) of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto had complained to the General Elections Commission (KPU) several times about irregularities noticed in the list since last year.

In July 2018, a coalition of parties supporting Subianto had discovered some 25 million duplicate voters in the Temporary Voter List (DPS).

On September 5, 2018, the coalition received the final DPT, and still found 8,145,713 duplicate names in the list. The KPU at that time promised that they would correct the list by November 2018.

On March 29, 2019, BPN representatives visited the KPU headquarters again to discuss the problem. The delegation was led by BPN Director for Media and Communication Hashim Djojohadikusumo, who was accompanied by BPN spokesman Habiburokhman. The closed-door meeting was held in the office of KPU Chairman Arief Budiman.

Earlier, the Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno campaign team had demanded that the Commission fix the invalid or incorrect DPT, which included the discovery of 17.5 million names on it.

"The KPU headquarters should not only conduct research, but also an on-field validation and verification of the DPT data as soon as possible. If there is a will, there is a way," Agus Maksum, chairman of the team in charge of information and technology, stated at the Parliament Building in Jakarta, on March 26, 2019.

The team reported its findings to the KPU on March 1, 2019, but flaws were still found in the DPT, which the KPU promised would be fixed, he noted.

ENTERING A NEW ERA OF THE INDONESIA AND SOUTH PACIFIC RELATIONSHIP

Jakarta, 28/3, 2019 (Antara) - Just a day after hosting a High-Level Dialogue on Indo-Pacific Cooperation themed "Towards a Peaceful, Prosperous, and Inclusive Region", the Indonesia-South Pacific Forum (ISPF) 2019 was organized in Jakarta on March 21, 2019.
The ISPF, themed "Connecting Peoples for Sustainable Growth", was aimed at strengthening economic cooperation in the region and saw the participation of representatives from the private sector from Indonesia and the South Pacific countries.
The meeting was attended by officials from the South Pacific countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Micronesia, Fiji, New Caledonia, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga and Tuvalu.
South Pacific is not only geographically close to Indonesia, but Indonesia also comprises at least 11 million people of the Melanesian race spread across the provinces of Papua, West Papua, Maluku, North Maluku and East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), he said.
Indonesians and the people of the South Pacific countries belong to one family. We call the Pacific Ocean our home. And our cooperation in developing the South Pacific will define the future that we want to create together for our next generation, Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno LP Marsudi said in her address entitled New era of Indonesia-South Pacific engagement. 

Indonesia and the South Pacific countries face common challenges that directly impact the communities in the region and range from the rising sea levels to the pursuit of welfare through economic development.

RENEWING CONCRETE INDO-PACIFIC COOPERATION AND TRUST BUILDING

Jakarta, 27/3, 2019 (Antara) - Indonesia is the worlds largest archipelagic nation that strategically straddles the Indian and Pacific oceans in the Indo-Pacific region. Comprising 260 million people or the worlds fourth largest population, it aims to become a peaceful and prosperous region based on mutual trust, respect, and the spirit of cooperation.
The nation initiated a High-Level Dialogue on Indo-Pacific Cooperation themed "Towards a Peaceful, Prosperous, and Inclusive Region", in Jakarta on March 20, 2019, which was attended by delegates from 18 key countries of the Indo-Pacific regions.
The dialogue, which included debates under three themessustainable development goals, maritime cooperation, and infrastructure and connectivitywas aimed at enhancing cooperation and building trust in the Indo-Pacific region, leading to mutually beneficial cooperation based on the principles of openness, inclusive transparency, and respect for international laws.
The meeting was Indonesia's concrete contribution to strengthening the dialogue within the framework of ASEAN for a deeper and more inclusive cooperation within the bloc.
Among those who attended the dialogue were Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne, Brunei Foreign Minister Erywan Pehin Yusof, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters, and Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi as the host.
China, India, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam were represented by their vice foreign affairs ministers.
In his opening remarks, Indonesian Vice President M Jusuf Kalla said cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region is crucial to maintaining peace, stability, and economic sustainability amid geo-economic and geo-political developments.

Easing congestion to reduce air pollution in Jakarta by Fardah

Jakarta, March 25, 2019 (ANTARA) - Jakartans have been very enthusiastic in welcoming the country’s first subway called Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Jakarta, which was inaugurated by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) in the capital city on March 24, 2019.

The long-delayed MRT Jakarta is expected to ease the notorious traffic congestion in the capital city and suburban areas that has caused annual losses amounting to some Rp65 trillion to Rp100 trillion.

The first stage of the construction work of the MRT project, which was initially mooted in the 1980s, began on October 10, 2013, with a total investment worth Rp16 trillion. It serves a 15.7 km-long route connecting Lebak Bulus in South Jakarta and the Hotel Indonesia (HI) Circle in Central Jakarta in 30 minutes.

The second phase of the MRT construction, connecting the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle to Ancol in North Jakarta, is expected to begin early next year, parallel to the East-West MRT line, connecting Bekasi in West Java and Tangerang in Banten.

Bad traffic jams in the capital city are a major cause of air pollution. Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan had decided to apply the odd-even policy as a way to limit the number of cars entering Jakarta.

According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO) last year, Jakarta’s air pollution was worse than that of Bangkok, but better than Manila.