KEY PARTY IN GOVERNING COALITION TRIES TO STOP THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001541

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS
NSC FOR EPHU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/13/2018
TAGS: PGOV KDEM KISL ID
SUBJECT: KEY PARTY IN GOVERNING COALITION TRIES TO STOP THE
BLEEDING

REF: JAKARTA 1517 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Golkar party, the largest in Parliament
and a key member of the President Yudhoyono's governing
coalition, has announced internal changes in the way it does
business. The changes--focused on who will represent Golkar
in Parliament after the 2009 elections--are meant to make the
process more democratic. It is not clear whether the changes
will calm down elements of the party worried about its
failure in recent elections. Under pressure from opposition
and Islamic-oriented parties, Golkar needs to get its house
in order before the April 2009 parliamentary elections. END
SUMMARY.

GOLKAR MAKES CHANGES


2. (C) Golkar--a major political party in Indonesia--has
announced some key changes. Party representatives stated on
August 12 that the party--in a complicated process--would
allocate Golkar seats in Parliament based on how many votes a
candidate receives in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
In the past, the party leadership had basically distributed
Golkar's seats to candidates of its choosing. Vice President
Jusuf Kalla, who also serves as Golkar party chair, approved
the changes. The changes were announced as Indonesia's
political parties scramble to submit their lists of
candidates to the national election commission for the
parliamentary election, which is scheduled for April 2009.


3. (C) Golkar's changes are meant to make the whole process
more democratic. In the past, the Golkar leadership used its
ability to select who got into Parliament to favor those
candidates who were considered firm loyalists. Sometimes
Golkar candidates, who were quite popular and proven
vote-winners, were basically shunted aside in favor of party
hacks who were tapped by the leadership to serve in
Parliament.

REACTING TO A WAVE OF CRITICISM


4. (C) The move was clearly meant to help stem the tide of
problems that Golkar is facing. As reported in reftels, the
party has fared poorly in recent gubernatorial elections,
winning none of them. Moreover, the party is not doing well
in the much-watched world of opinion polling, often falling
behind the Indonesian Party of Democratic Struggle (PDI-P)
while not showing the momentum of the Prosperous Justice
Party (PKS). (Note: The re-energized, secular-oriented
PDI-P, led by former President Megawati, is the key
opposition party to President Yudhoyono. The PKS, which is
Islamic-oriented, has done well in recent elections. It is
doing well in the national polls, but is not close to PDIP's
or Golkar's level of popularity at this time.)


5. (C) Theo Sambuaga, a senior Golkar MP and head of
Parliament's foreign affairs committee, told Pol/C on August
12 that he hoped the changes would convince members of the
party that Golkar stood for "democratic reform and was not
retrograde." Sambuaga went on to note that "the party is
under a lot of pressure from members who are worried that the
party's leadership is out of touch and this new plan should
help restore confidence." Sambuaga added that Golkar plans
to emphasize the need for "change" and "new directions" as it
tries to appeal to younger voters. Reacting to the changes,
one member of Golkar was quoted as stating: "Golkar must
change as we have conceded defeats in a series of
gubernatorial elections. We hope the new policy can reverse
these trends."

TRYING TO GET ITS HOUSE IN ORDER


JAKARTA 00001541 002 OF 002



6. (C) Under pressure from both opposition (read PDI-P) and
Islamic-oriented parties (like PKS),Golkar needs to get its
house in order before the April 2009 parliamentary elections.
This move regarding candidates may help it to some extent.
That said, Vice President Kalla is not particularly popular
as a leader, and the party has to do more to appear less
hidebound and more energetic in a country in which there is a
considerable youth bulge. The party has time given that the
elections are months away. It also is said to have
substantial financial resources.
HUME