Jakarta – State Minister of Women's Empowerment Meutia Hatta called on women to actively encourage their neighbors to register with the polling body Friday in an initiative to improve public participation in the upcoming presidential election.

"Our experience in the recent legislative election showed us that many people were not registered and subsequently lost their right to participate in the election," Meutia said at her office in Jakarta on Friday.

The legislative election on April 9 saw many complaints surface surrounding the voter lists after tens of millions of citizens did not register and thereby lost their right to vote.

The minister said the Women of Family Welfare Movement (PKK) would help speed up the renewal of voter lists through data they are collecting via current programs.

She encouraged women to inform as many people as possible to register with their neighborhood units. "Women are in the middle of society while housewives are in the midst of daily life," she said.

"We call for every public organisation, particularly those involving women, like Kowani, PKK, the Bhayangkari, the Dharma Pertiwi and religious organizations, to encourage women to register for themselves," she said.

Titi Djoko, a spokeswoman for Kowani, said they would soon invite the presidential candidates to present their views to Kowani's member organisations in a move to boost political education for women. "It will be similar to what we did before the presidential election in 2004," Titi said.

Another women's movement, Indonesian Women for Solidarity, took it one step further by claiming they would announce the names of legislative candidates living in polygamous relationships.

Yeni Rosa Damayanti, coordinator of the group, said, "This is just information for the public. The choice is still left up to them." "It's about time this polygamy issue was brought onto the political stage," she said to inilah.com news portal. (iwp)