Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Colonized by the Dutch, occupied by the Japanese and led by authoritarian leaders for several decades, Indonesia has entered the final phase of its transition into the world's third-largest democracy in a series of direct local elections or pilkada that will see authority finally devolved from the central government in Jakarta.

While some volatile areas such as Aceh and Papua have postponed the devolution of power, leaders in a third of the country's 33 provinces and half of its 400 regencies or districts are scheduled to be elected in 226 local elections this year. Some 186 local administrations, including seven provinces, will hold elections this month, with another 40 regions scheduled to hold polls between July and December, and the remainder some time, as yet to be determined, during 2006.

The landmark elections started last week in East Kalimantan, where voters went to the polls in the country's first direct local leadership election to choose the regent (bupati) and deputy regent of one of the country's richest regencies, Kutai Kartanegara. Previously regents were appointed by local councils – a process known to be open to corruption and vote buying.

About 376,000 voters were eligible to vote in Kutai Kartanegara. With a 73% turnout, incumbent regent Syaukani and his running mate, Samsuri Aspar, won 61% of the vote. Syaukani, who heads the nationwide association of bupatis, has used the regency's wealth for the benefit of the local community – improving the infrastructure, delivering free education and providing small interest-free loans to help locals start small businesses.

In light of the elections, Ishack Iskandar, head of the Local General Elections Commission (KPUD) in the province, said, "We now can act without being hassled any more by the central government."

Local leaders seized the momentum after Suharto's downfall in 1998 and pressed for more authority and a share of income from natural resources that had previously gone to Jakarta. The central government then drew up the 1999 Regional Autonomy Law that transferred a greater share of revenue to local governments and allowed them to make many of their own laws and control their budgets. The law put local elections under the jurisdiction of local governments and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Problem issues

One concern is that several issues not present in the 2004 general elections could adversely affect the long, drawn-out series of local elections. Current local election laws, for instance, could encourage fraud and election violations.

International observers commented on the efficiency and integrity of the country's first-ever direct presidential poll in 2004 and attributed this to the determination of the government and the people to hold fair and peaceful elections. Unfortunately, by April this year much of the confidence and optimism gained from those elections, by the government and voters alike, had evaporated with the exposure of a high-profile corruption case involving allegations of kickbacks from companies that won contracts to provide materials for the elections, despite the fact that everything had gone through a tender system.

The arrest of General Elections Commission (KPU) member Mulyana W Kusamah by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) set off claims of widespread, systemic corruption and fiscal abuse from top to bottom within the echelons of the KPU. Mulyana was allegedly caught trying to bribe the Supreme Audit Agency into turning a blind eye on graft. KPU chairman Nazaruddin Syamsuddin was later declared a suspect and three other senior KPU members were arrested over the scandal.

Notwithstanding the shock and shame generated by this graft scandal, the 2004 elections benefited greatly from strategic planning and implementation by the KPU and the government, assisted by donor countries, non-governmental organizations, international agencies such as the United Nations and the European Union, as well as independent monitoring agencies. For local elections, however, the key institutions are only the KPUD and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The KPUD is in charge of the overall strategic planning of election activities and takes up the role of the KPU. The Ministry of Home Affairs provides only technical guidance and logistical support for the KPUD. Pre-election activities, such as information dissemination and voter registration, candidate registration and verification, the printing and distribution of ballots, organizing of campaign schedules, and monitoring of the elections for violations is all the responsibility of the KPUD, which is accountable to the local legislative body (DPRD).

The Ministry of Home Affairs has removed the requirement for the printing of ballots through a tender system. This increases the opportunity for corrupt practices in the printing of ballots and ballot boxes, just as happened in the general elections.

A local election supervisory commission (PANWASDA) was established by the DPRD and is accountable to the KPUD. The commission will receive and investigate complaints of election violations or fraud, seek to resolve disputes, and pass on credible allegations of criminal violations of the law to the police. As PANWASDA members are appointed by the DPRD, reported violations and cases of fraud could be suppressed or manipulated in the interests of particular political parties.

The low electoral threshold could also encourage fraud. Local election laws presently allow candidates to be declared winners if they receive at least 25% of the vote, unlike in the presidential election, where the candidates needed to win at least 50% of the vote.

Delayed devolution

Devolution of power, which is expected to help dampen separatist tensions, will be delayed for the resource-rich provinces of Aceh and Papua, but not for Central Sulawesi, where the marginalization of Christians in Poso, particularly the local administration, in which Muslims control the strategic posts, has given rise to increasing Christian resentment.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has granted postponements for areas that have suffered as a result of the tsunami of late last year and recent earthquakes. Elections in Aceh and Nias have been postponed until the early rehabilitation and reconstruction phase of the relief operations are completed, thus allowing election activities such as voter information and registration to begin. Aceh was scheduled to have 14 elections, including one for a new governor to replace Abdullah Puteh, who has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for corruption.

The elections have also been postponed in Papua, where Jakarta is striving to limit the authority of the Papuan People's Assembly (Majelis Rakyat Papua, or MRP). The Special Autonomy Law for Papua No 21/2001 stipulates that the Papua Legislative Council (DPRD) needs the approval of the MRP before inaugurating elected officials. However, Article 139 of that law states that consideration and approval from the MRP must be sought only on one issue: that candidates for election are native Papuans. The government is proposing that the DPRD go ahead and inaugurate elected officials, particularly the governor, should the MRP fail to give its consideration and approval within seven days.

In Poso, where blasts blamed on Islamic militants killed 22 people in a local market recently, the five pairs of candidates lining up for the job of regent and deputy regent are a Muslim and a Christian, in each case. Campaigning there will begin within two weeks and the polls will be held on June 30.

Problem provinces

The government has identified 23 regions that face obstacles in holding local elections, ranging from disputed candidacies to internal rifts in political parties. The duplication of several party executive boards has led rival camps to nominate their own candidates. Split tickets based on agreements by the central boards of political parties in the capital will perpetuate Jakarta's political influence in many local polls.

Challenges to the screening of candidates approved by the KPUD has already sparked violence in several local jurisdictions, including Banyuwangi (East Java); Rejang Lebong (West Java); South Tapanuli, Asahan and Indragiri Hulu (South Sumatra); Solok (West Sumatra); West Halmahera (North Maluku); Eastern Seram (Maluku); and Gowa (South Sulawesi). Disputes over the eligibility of candidates have taken place in Tanah Toraja (South Sulawesi), Sula (North Maluku), Bima (West Nusa Tenggara) and Kebumen (Central Java).

Independent candidates have been barred from the polls after a last-minute ruling by the Constitutional Court on June 2 that unanimously agreed that Law No 32/2004 on regional administrations was consistent with the constitution in requiring candidates to win support from parties in order to run for top executive posts in regencies, municipalities and provinces. The court judges said that allowing independent candidates to contest regional elections would discourage efforts to help political parties mature.

In addition, the exercise in democracy may be grossly underfunded. The Minister of Home Affairs, Mohammad Ma'ruf, has estimated that funding for local elections requires Rp1.25 trillion (US$130.6 million). The regional budget will bear 50% of the cost, while the other half will come from the state budget.

The Ministry of Finance has so far approved from the state budget an allocation of only Rp344.3 billion for regions that will hold local elections. Similarly, from the Rp142 billion in operational funds requested by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Finance has provided only about Rp20 billion, leaving many provinces, regents and cities financially unprepared for the elections.

Despite a lack of funding for their organizations and their activities, several independent election monitoring organizations, such as the Indonesian People's Network for Voter Education, the Indonesian Committee for Independent Monitoring and the Independent Election Monitoring Network, that actively monitored the 2004 general elections, have pledged to monitor the local elections to the end.

Elections give political legitimacy to the people's representatives. Whether or not the officials and councilors voted in this year will be truly accountable to those who elect them is another question, but the legitimacy of the local elections will depend largely on how the KPUD carries out its duties.

Any repeat of the KPU members' crimes by members of the KPUD, or widespread abuse of funds intended for the democratic process, as seen in the general elections, will not only shatter Indonesians' confidence in their dreams of a legitimate democracy but also further damage the image of the country.

[Bill Guerin, a Jakarta correspondent for Asia Times Online since 2000, has worked in Indonesia for 19 years in journalism and editorial positions. He has been published by the BBC on East Timor and specializes in business/economic and political analysis in Indonesia.]