Hotli Simanjuntak, Banda Aceh – The Aceh legislative council finally passed a sharia bylaw on regional elections during a plenary session on Friday.
The passage of the qanun (sharia bylaw) on the elections should have been enacted last year to form a legal umbrella for the organizing of the Aceh election, which was supposed to have been carried out at the end of last year. However, approval had been impeded by quarreling over a independent candidates clause between the executive and the legislature.
The legislature's initial draft failed to accommodate independent candidates as they were no longer regarded as needed due to the presence of local political parties. The draft qanun was protested against by the executive, led by Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf, who is seeking re-election. Irwandi refused to endorse it.
The dispute went as far as the Constitutional Court, which ruled that independent candidates be allowed to take part in the election under a new qanun.
"The ratification of the qanun does not mean that the ongoing election process will be adjusted because the new qanun is not retroactive," said Aceh Party member Abdulah Saleh, who is a member of Commission A at the Aceh legislature.
The newly approved election qanun has accommodated the independent candidates who triggered the disagreement between Aceh's executive and legislature. "The transitional law stipulates that independent candidates have been accommodated," Abdulah said.
In the latest meeting of factions at the Aceh legislature, the Aceh Party, which had originally opposed the inclusion of independent candidates, eventually accepted the clause.
"The Aceh Party accepts the presence of independent candidates in the Aceh elections because it is part of the Constitutional Court's decision, which we must implement," Aceh Party member Erly Hasyim said.
Independent candidates were accommodated in the election following the peace treaty, when Aceh Freedom Movement (GAM) combatants lacked the ability to form a party. With the approval of the new qanun, it is expected that there would no longer be disputes between institutions that impacts on election processes.
"As an institution, the Aceh Election Independent Commission (KIP) is very happy and pleased with the qanun enactment, meaning we can work in peace without any more problems in later days," said Aceh KIP deputy head Ilham Syahputra.