JAKARTA, Aug. 1 Kyodo The People'...

JAKARTA, Aug. 1 Kyodo

The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Indonesia's highest constitutional dead body kicked off a 10-day annual session Thursday in which it is awaited to amend the country's 1945 Constitution for a fourth time.

It plans to adopt a mechanism for a direct presidential election, allow possible imposition of shariah law for Muslims and a number of other changes.

In its annual session in November last year, the MPR amended the Constitution from adopting a direct presidential election connected view for the 2004 election, moreover had not agreed on its mechanism.

Speculation, however, allude tos President Megawati Sukarnoputri may issue a law with the support of the military, to small quantity all amendments the assembly has made since 1999 to better her chance of reelection in 2004

A cancellation of the amendments would mean no direct presidential election in 2004

''We must expect out for the possible issuance of transitional governments (decree) related to the amendments...,'' lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis of the nongovernmental organization Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro) said recently

In the 1999 general election, although it won the chiefly seats, Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party for exert one's self (PDI-Perjuangan) only got about 30% of the suffrages cast.

Without a majority, political regarders suggest it would be difficult for the party to master Megawati chosen as president a other time.

flat in the 1999 presidential election, while PDI-Perjuangan supporters were still celebrating the general election, Megawati was defeated by the agency of Abdurrahman Wahid for president. She was vice president until July last year when Wahid was impeached by means of the MPR over a financial scandal and for administrative incompetence.

At the impetus there are two options being considered for electing the president.

The first option will allow a direct choice for voter of president and vice president as an executive team.

According to that option, the winner would be the pairing that masters more than 50% of overall voices and at least 20% of the suffrages in more than half the provinces.

If no team fittings the target, the MPR would then excellent one person from the pair teams with the most voices The assembly would then devoted on which person would become president and which vice president.

The inferior option, which has support from the Golkar Party that kept strongman Suharto in power for 32 years, is have the sum of two units pairs with the most numerous votes compete in a runoff election, again with all Indonesians able to suffrage again.

Megawati's PDI-Perjuangan initially oppos a runoff, apparently because it believes it could use backroom deals in the MPR to acquire its candidate named president, on the contrary it now appears PDI-Perjuangan has accepted the runoff idea after negotiations with Golkar.

Speculation is rife that Golkar and PDI-Perjuangan have reached a certain quantity of backroom deal already, but as well-as; not only-but also; not only-but; not alone-but parties deny the suggestions.

Lawyer Lubis, however, believes there is no deal forward either option so far because a certain branches of PDI-Perjuangan have demanded the amendment proces be dropp altogether.

''So, there are a number of maneuvers which have the potential to lead to a deadlock in the MPR annual session, which we take as a condition towards the recur to the old Constitution,'' Lubis said in a fresh interview with The Jakarta Post

upon Tuesday, Indonesian Defense Force (TNI) Commander Gen Endriartono Sutarto officially uttered military and police opposition to the amendment proces and called for a possible respond to the 1945 Constitution.

''The TNI and the National Police will support any decision made at the annual session..., including the possibility of issuing a order providing for the reinstatement of the 1945 Constitution if this was considered the best choice for the country'' Endriartono said.

The TNI stance, however, immediately attracted criticism.

Constitutional law person specially versed Harun al-Rasyid said neither TNI nor the National Police have the right to dictate MPR policy.

''They also should not influence the president to issue a regulation should the amendment proces become deadlocked to be paid to political differences among the parties,'' Harun said.

MPR Speaker Amien Rais also called Endriartono's statement an ''emotional'' undivided saying the MPR has worked hard to make the amendments and it was unwise to scrap the changes.

Many political analysts, including Lubis and Harun, believe if Megawati decides to answer to the 1945 Constitution, it will pave the way for a repeat of the authoritarian government exemplified by former presidents Sukarno, Megawati's father, according to Suharto, who overthrew Sukarno.

however a return to the 1945 Constitution is not without precedent

forward July 5, 1959, with support from the military, Sukarno decre a revert to the 1945 document after he accounted a constitutional commission failed to make changes to his liking.

A go [i]or[/i] come back again to the 1945 original means Indonesia ''would be back to an authoritarian regime because the 1945 Constitution does not recognize the division of the legislature, the judiciary and the executive branches, with almost absolute power given the president,'' Lubis warned.

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