RPT-Q+A-Indonesia's election, risks from the voter lists uproar - Forbes.com
JAKARTA, July 6 (Reuters) - Two candidates in Indonesia's presidential election raised concerns about the reliability of the voter lists on Monday, just two days before a poll that looks set to hand President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono a second term.
However, analysts do not expect the last-minute complaints to derail an election seen as likely to set the pace of reform in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.
Here are some questions and answers about the possible impact of the voter list concerns.
WHY ARE THERE RENEWED CONCERNS OVER THE VOTER LISTS?
Concerns over the accuracy of the electoral rolls first arose in the run-up to the April 9 parliamentary elections, when duplicate and fictitious names -- as well as the names of the deceased -- were found on the lists.
When the elections took place, some voters found that they had not been registered and were therefore not eligible to vote.
The General Election Commission, or KPU, was ordered to sort out the problems in time for the presidential election on July 8, and about 5 million more names -- a number higher than the total population of neighbouring Singapore -- were subsequently added.
However, presidential candidates Megawati Sukarnoputri and Jusuf Kalla said they have still not received copies of the updated lists, as required, and therefore cannot cross-check names.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
The Constitutional Court has decided to allow voters to be identified using their identity cards, rather than by the formal letters issued by the KPU, at the polling stations.
This could potentially allow many more people whose names have not been registered to actually vote.
However, in Indonesia it is very easy for people to obtain more than one ID card, raising the risk of voter fraud. Voters have their fingers stained with indelible ink once they have cast their ballot, a measure intended to stop fraud, but some critics say the ink can be removed with water and handcream.
Given that the authorities only approve the printing of a set number of ballots, there is now also a risk that there may not be enough ballot papers at the polling booths, which could lead to protests or riots.
COULD THE ELECTION BE DELAYED OR CANCELLED?
This is extremely unlikely.
Some members of Megawati's team and of Kalla's team asked previously for the election to be postponed until they are satisfied with the accuracy of the updated voter lists.
However, analysts say most Indonesians do not want the election to be delayed because that would push back the timetable for a possible second round, which would take place on September 8, as well as delaying the inauguration, creating a power vacuum.
IS THERE ANY RISK OF VIOLENCE ERUPTING OVER THIS?
Yes. Both Megawati and Kalla picked generals who served under former president Suharto as their running mates.
Both Prabowo Subianto, Megawati's running mate, and Wiranto, Kalla's vice presidential candidate, are widely suspected of being behind protests in the past, allegations they both deny.
However, some Indonesians fear they could still use their considerable wealth and military connections if they wanted to disrupt voting or if they dispute the election results.
That said, the parliamentary elections in April went relatively smoothly, a sign that the world's fourth-most-populous country has been transformed into a stable democracy since the authoritarian Suharto was forced to resign in 1998.
Security has been beefed up in recent days in the capital, Jakarta, and across the country for the election, and at the KPU's office in Jakarta.
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