aceh, indonesia: governor and district elections … · between the government of indonesia (goi)...

NORDEM Report 03/2007

ACEH, INDONESIA: GOVERNOR AND DISTRICT ELECTIONS

DECEMBER 2006 – MARCH 2007

Report by

Kris Ann Riiber

Copyright: the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights/NORDEM and Kris Ann Riiber.

NORDEM, the Norwegian Resource Bank for Democracy and Human Rights, is a programme of the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights (NCHR), and has as its main objective to actively promote international human rights. NORDEM is jointly administered by NCHR and the Norwegian Refugee Council. NORDEM works mainly in relation to multilateral institutions. The operative mandate of the programme is realised primarily through the recruitment and deployment of qualified Norwegian personnel to international assignments which promote democratisation and respect for human rights. The programme is responsible for the training of personnel before deployment, reporting on completed assignments, and plays a role in research related to areas of active involvement. The vast majority of assignments are channelled through the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

NORDEM Report is a series of reports documenting NORDEM activities and is published jointly by NORDEM and the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights.

Series editor: Hege Mørk

Series consultants: Turid Wulff Knutsen, Kenneth de Figueiredo, Christian Boe Astrup

The opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher.

ISSN: 1503–1330

ISBN 978-82-8158-042-8

NORDEM Report is available online at: http://www.humanrights.uio.no/forskning/publ/publikasjonsliste.html

Preface As part of the Aceh peace process, elections were held on December 11 2006 for governor of the province of Aceh together with elections for mayor in four cities and regents in 15 districts.

The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) arrived in Aceh on 30 October 2006, following an invitation of the Government of Indonesia and the Independent Election Commission (KIP). The Mission was led by Glyn Ford, Member of the European Parliament.

In addition to the Chief Observer, the Mission’s Core Team consisted of seven experts who were deployed on 30 October 2006. For the first round of elections the mission deployed 32 long-term observers (LTOs) to cover all districts of Aceh. They were joined by another 30 short-term observers (STOs) who arrived one week prior to election day. On election day, the Mission deployed all together 88 observers throughout all 21 districts of the province. From Norway Hans Christen Knævelsrud and Kris Ann Riiber joined the EU EOM as STOs and were deployed in respectively Aceh Barat Daya and Kota Langsa. On election day, EU observers visited 310 polling stations in all districts.

The EU EOM remained in Aceh until 10 January 2007. Should a second round be necessary the EU EOM was committed to continue to follow the process.

The mission returned to Aceh on 12 February 2007 to observe the second round elections of 4 March 2007 in the districts of Aceh Barat and Aceh Barat Daya where the candidates for regent and vice-regent did not obtain the votes necessary to be elected in the first round.1 The mission deployed 14 international LTOs to the field, 10 from the EU member-states, two from Norway, one from Switzerland and one from Canada. The two LTOs from Norway, Toril Lund and Kris Ann Riiber, were deployed in respectively Aceh Barat and Aceh Barat Daya.

With six LTOs in three teams deployed in each district, it was agreed upon to divide the Area of Responsibility (AoR) geographically and by subject. Each LTO team covered two sub-districts; Toril Lund covered two districts.in Aceh Barat, with gender and internally displaced persons (IDP) as thematic responsibility. Kris Ann Riiber covered the sub-districts of Babah Roth and Kuala Batee (both rural areas) and was assigned to observe the political environment on district level.

There were no STOs arriving to observe the second round of elections, so the LTOs worked as STOs on election day.

On election day the observers visited 67 polling stations, or 10 per cent of the polling stations in the two districts (8 per cent of the 461 in Aceh Barat, and 15 per cent of the 200 in Aceh Barat Daya) to observe the opening, voting, closing and counting.

The Norwegian Centre for Human Rights / NORDEM University of Oslo June 2007

1A second round of district elections will also be held in Aceh Tamiang but due to severe floods which destroyed most of Aceh Tamiang’s infrastructure, the second round will be held at a later stage.

Contents Preface

Contents

Map of Country

Introduction ............................................................................................................................1

Political background ..............................................................................................................2

The Legislative Framework...................................................................................................3

Governor and local elections, first round..........................................................................3

Local elections second round ............................................................................................3

The Electoral Administration ................................................................................................4

The Independent Election Commision, KIP-Aceh – provincial level.............................4

KIP-Kabupaten / Kota – district level...............................................................................4

Subdistrict (PPK), village level (PPG) and polling station (KPPS) levels .....................4

Election Supervisory Committees (PANWASLIH) ........................................................5

Voter Registration ..................................................................................................................5

Candidate registration ............................................................................................................6

The Election campaign ..........................................................................................................6

The Media...............................................................................................................................8

Observations on the Polling Day...........................................................................................9

Observation on 11 December 2006, first round ...................................................................9

Election Day Observation Report by STO Hans C. Knævelsrud....................................9

Election Day Observation Report by Kris Ann Riiber ................................................. 12

Observation on 4 March 2007, second round.................................................................... 14

Election Day Observation Report by Toril Lund.......................................................... 14

Election Day Observation Report from LTO Kris Ann Riiber in Aceh Barat Daya... 16

The review of Complaints Process..................................................................................... 17

Conclusions and recommendations.................................................................................... 18

Appendixes.......................................................................................................................... 19

Appendix 1: List of abbreviations.................................................................................. 19

Appendix 2: EU EOM Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006 ............................. 20

Appendix 3: EU EOM Preliminary Statement 6 March 2007...................................... 20

Map of Country Insert map picture here

ACEH: GOVERNOR AND DISTRICT ELECTIONS 2006 - 2007 1

Introduction

The December 2006 elections were the completion of the Aceh peace process, as agreed between the Government of Indonesia (GoI) and the Free Aceh Movement (Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM) in the Helsinki Memorandum of Understanding.

The EU EOM concluded in its preliminary statement that “Election day was peaceful and orderly, with voters turning out in large numbers to elect for the first time their governor and district mayors and regents.” The statement further noted that “all evidence to date indicates the elections and the inclusive process have given the people of Aceh the candidates they voted for.” 2

For the second round elections in March 2007, the EU EOM gave a similar positive view of the general conduct of the elections, although military interference and denial of access to observers were noted: “Election day was generally peaceful and orderly. Voters, particularly in rural areas, turned out in relatively high numbers, with a turnout only slightly lower than for the first round. There were no reported problems in Aceh Barat Daya. In Aceh Barat, there was interference by elements of the military on election day and accusations of intimidation by both the military and supporters of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in the run up to polling day. EU EOM observers were not allowed to observe the activities in some polling stations in four sub-districts in Aceh Barat, in violation of the agreements signed with the provincial electoral authorities.”3

This report is limited in its own observation due to a number of facts: Firstly, Norway sent only short-term observers during the first round of elections. Furthermore, for the second round, the long-term observers in effect functioned more as mid-term observers in that they were only deployed in the field for three weeks. Lastly, due to the thematic division of the field operation, this LTO focused mainly on the political environment at the district level. Where it is relevant the EU EOM LTO Manual and the preliminary statements are abbreviated or referred to and marked in the footnotes. The chapter on political background draws on articles from International Crisis Group, East-West Center Washington and own observations. For election day, the two STO reports from the first round and the two LTO reports from the second round are included. Chapter 11 The review of complaints process is written by LTO Toril Lund who has also contributed to chapter 12 Conclusions.

2 EUEOM Preliminary statement, 12 December 2006 3 EUEOM Preliminary statement, 6 March 2007


Political background

On 15 August 2005 the Indonesian Government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding, ending a conflict that had cost over 9,000 lives since 1976.

The last peace agreement of December 2002, The Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (CoHA) collapsed five months later in May 2003, leading to the imposition of a state of emergency. The peace process of 2002 broke down because the two parties were unable to agree on the fundamental issues dividing them: whether Aceh would become an independent nation or remain an integral part of the Indonesian state.

According to International Crisis Group, both GAM and the Indonesian authorities appeared genuinely committed to making the agreement work in August 2005: ”GAM gave up its position on Aceh becoming an independent state and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Yusuf Kalla were so deeply involved, particularly Kalla, that they had a personal investment in the agreement's success. GAM was seriously weakened by the military offensives conducted by Indonesian forces during the state of emergency, beginning in May 2003. Combat fatigue and decimation of its middle ranks appeared to have made the prospect of an exit strategy more attractive. Although efforts to restart the peace process began well before, the December 2004 tsunami brought Aceh into the international spotlight. This made it politically desirable for both sides to work toward a settlement, offered ways of linking the reconstruction effort and peace process, and ensured the availability of major donor funding outside the government budget.”4

On 11 December 2006, local and governmental elections took place in Aceh as part of the MoU (Chapter 1.2 Political participation). As part of the peace process, GAM now faced the challenge of transforming the organisation from one of armed struggle to become a political movement.

International Crisis Group state in their report of 20 Nov. 2006 Aceh’s Local Elections: The Role of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), that in the run-up to the December elections, a rift appeared within GAM between the old guard leadership based in Sweden throughout the conflict against younger figures who stayed in Aceh and fought. It erupted in mid-2006 as the organisation sought to set a political strategy and decide on candidates for the elections. In Aceh, unlike other parts of Indonesia, candidates without party affiliation are allowed to run, enabling GAM members to stand as independent candidates. The old guard supported the party-backed candidate Humam Hamid and Hasbi for governor and deputy governor, while the younger leaders backed Irwandi Yusuf as governor and Muhammad Nazar as deputy governor who ran as independent candidates.5

As part of the peace process and to represent ex-GAM fighters, a new body was created, Aceh Transition Committee (KPA) which in structure exactly replicated the organization of the armed wing of GAM, with presence in every district and well established roots in local communities. This committee selected the candidates for the regent/mayor

4International Crisis Group, 15 Aug. 2005: Aceh. A New Chance for Peace, page 1 Overview 5International Crisis Group, 20 Nov. 2006: Aceh’s Local Elections: The Role of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), page 1 Overview


elections, designed campaign strategies and recruited thousands of village based campaign workers. Together with Muhammad Nazar’s pro-independence organization called Information Centre for a Referendum on Aceh (Sentrum Informasi Referendum Aceh, (SIRA), GAM created an effective and motivated network of villagers for the political campaign.6

The Legislative Framework

Governor and local elections, first round The local elections in Aceh are regulated by Law No. 11 of 2006 Regarding Governing of Aceh (LoGA), adopted on the 11th of July, 2006. The LoGA builds on the MoU between the Indonesian government and GAM, and prescribes the framework for a ,new constitutional arrangement between the central government in Jakarta and Aceh (MoU Chapter 1 Governing Aceh). In order to bring the provincial electoral framework in line with the LoGA, Qanun No. 7 2006 was introduced. For the sake of simplicity, references to various Qanuns will hereafter be written as Q/(Number).

For the provincial elections, pairs of candidates contested for provincial Governor and Vice-Governor. On district level they were running either for Regents (Bupati) and Vice-Regents or Mayors and Vice-Mayors which are the respective heads of ‘local’ government. As defined by the LoGA/65, all heads of local government are elected for a five-year term and may run for re-election once.

The electoral system applied is similar to the ‘first past the post’ (FPTP) system, with the characteristic feature that if no contesting pair gains the absolute majority of valid votes then the pair which at least receive ’25 % + 1’ of the votes will be elected. Should no pair pass this hurdle, a second round between the two most successful contesting pairs are to be held at least 60 days after the announcement of the result from the first round. The winning pair is then the one which gains simple majority in the run-off. Initial results are established immediately after polling has determined on polling station level. Then, aggregation and tabulation of results is conducted gradually within a period of 21 days after polling day.

Local elections second round In accordance with the election legislation, the Independent Election Commission (on province and district levels - Komisi Independen Pemilihan – KIP-Aceh) adopted in early 2007 two decrees, regulating the modified campaign process and the re-opening of voter registration for the run-off elections.

6International Crisis Group, 22 March 2007: Indonesia: How GAM Won in Aceh


The Electoral Administration

The Independent Election Commision, KIP-Aceh – provincial level The Indonesian Constitution determines that elections are organized by permanent and independent election management bodies Komisi Independen Pemilihan (KIP). Its members are proposed by the district assembly, approved by the national election commission of Indonesia, Komisi Pemilihan Umum (KPU), and inaugurated by the Governor (Q7/4/5).

KIP-Aceh’s responsibilities included the duty and authority to plan and organize all electoral phases; to establish respective procedures; to define the election day and deriving periods and deadlines for candidate nomination, campaign periods and other electoral activities etc.; to verify candidate nominations; to audit campaign funding; to process, verify and announce election results; and finally, to fulfil other duties stipulated by law. KIP-Aceh could also delegate various duties and authority to election commissions established on lower administrative levels (i.e. KIP- district (Kabupaten) or city (Kotas) or to sub-district (PPKs) or village level (PPGs). All steps of election preparation, conduct and verification are explicitly outlined in an electoral calendar, which was to be adopted by KIP-Aceh.

For the elections KIP-Aceh had 11 members, of which 8 represented civil society and the remaining three were from the national election commission. Although headed by a chairman and two deputies, all decisions were to be made in plenum where policy decisions were taken by simple majority.

KIP-Kabupaten / Kota – district level The KIPs on district level conducted autonomously elections of Regents (Bupati) and Vice-Regents or Mayors (Walikota) and Vice-Mayors and at the same time facilitated the gubernatorial elections. Its five members were proposed by the district parliament, approved by national election commission (KPU) and inaugurated by the respective Regent or Mayor (Q7/4/6).

The district election commissions were responsible for conducting the election at district level and were accountable to KIP-Aceh, which also regulated the procedures and relations with the provincial KIP.

Subdistrict (PPK), village level (PPG) and polling station (KPPS) levels At sub-district, village and polling station level, the respective election commissions were formed by the KIP-Kabupaten/Kota. The five-member sub-district election commission implemented the assignments given by KIP Kabupaten/Kota, formed election commissions on village level (PPG) and polling stations (KPPS), and coordinated their work.

The duties of the sub-distict level (PPKs) consisted of a) conducting assignments given by district KIP, b) forming village election bodies (PPGs c) coordination of the


implementation of village election bodies’ duties and authorities; and d) forming polling station officials (KPPSs) based on the village level’s suggestions. The sub-district election bodies were accountable to the district KIP, which decided over the sub-district level’s procedures.

The village election body named the voter registration officers and polling and counting staff (KPPS). They coordinated the registration of voters, polling and counting. After aggregation of results, the polling station officials reported them to the sub-district level.

The EU EOM found that “The Independent Election Commission and its subdivisions at district, sub-district and village levels generally enjoyed public credibility and confidence, and at all levels efforts were made to assure an efficient and transparent electoral process.” However, EU EOM also observed uneven performance of the various commissions: “…the election commissions performed differently in each district facing different problems ranging from financial constrains to logistical difficulties, and co-ordination among the different intra-district levels suffered from excessive decentralisation”. 7

Election Supervisory Committees (PANWASLIH) Election Supervisory Committees (Panitia Pengawas Pemilihan, PANWASLIH) were established by the National Election Monitoring Committee at provincial, district and sub-district level. The five members were from the police, the provincial prosecutor’s office, academia, the media and civil society. They were assigned and inaugurated by the Provincial Regional People’s House of Representatives and assisted by the KIP Secretariat of the respective level.

Their role was to oversee the policy and performance of the electoral stakeholders, including the various election commissions, contestants and others. Its most crucial function was solving electoral disputes or forward unsettled disputes to the respective public authorities. However, the EU EOM concluded that the PANWASLIH was “under-funded and lacked effective powers of enforcement. While it dealt adequately with formal complaints received, with rare exceptions, it failed to monitor the process.”8

Voter Registration

Election commissions on sub-district level carried a door-to-door registration at village level through the respective village election commission by voter registration officers. The preliminary voter lists were then announced and exhibited by the election commission.

For the second round, eligible voters were asked to actively come to the village election commission to be entered into to the voters list. In Aceh Barat 179 additional citizens were registered while in Aceh Barat Daya 2 762 new voters were added to the registry.

7EUEOM Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006, page 5 8EUEOM Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006, page 2


As stipulated in Q7/29ff, an eligible voter must be an Indonesian citizen, who is 17 years old or is legally married; who has been residing in the constituency for at least six months until the voter registration started; who has not been denied of her/his voting right by a final court decision; and who has been registered as a voter. There are no provisions for out-of-country, postal or absentee voting.

Candidate registration

Article 67 of the LoGA sets out the general requirements for the right to stand as candidate, such as age, nationality and education.

In addition to these requirements, Q7 also introduced the requirement that all Muslim candidates are required to submit to a Koran reading test. For the first round election this generated the largest number of complaints to the PANWASLIH and resulted in the exclusion of the greatest number of potential candidates. Among the rejected candidates were the only two female candidates for the governor elections who failed to pass the required Koran reading test. According to the EU EOM, discrimination on the basis of level of education is contrary to commonly accepted international principles.

The EU EOM regards the requirements to be problematic due to their subjective nature, in particular the LoGA’s requirements regarding the practice of candidate’s religion, loyalty to the 1945 Constitution, candidates to be physically and mentally healthy and free from narcotics and drugs (to be supported by the a medical report), as well as being familiar with their region and well-known by the community in their region.

In addition to the requirements above, independent candidates must obtain signatures of at least 3% of the total number of residents spread out in at least 50% of the total number of regencies/cities for the gubernatorial election and 50% of the total number of districts for the election for the regent/deputy regent or the mayor/deputy mayor. The EU EOM regarded these requirements to be both onerous and expensive, putting an unreasonable burden on independent candidates.

The Election campaign

The EU EOM’s Preliminary Statements of 12 December 2006 and 6 March 2007 conclude that the pre-election and campaign period for both rounds “were conducted in a generally open environment, in which freedoms of expression, association and assembly were largely respected.”

For the first round it was added that the candidates “campaigned intensively in the districts and were able to move freely throughout Aceh without restriction or interference.” 9

9 EUEOM Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006, page 2


For the second round the EU EOM found the campaign to be free “albeit what might be considered an unduly restrictive format.”10

On 10 January 2007, KIP Aceh adopted Decree “Number 1 Year 2007” for the second round elections. In article 2.e of the decree, KIP Aceh defines the campaign period to be only three days, followed by a three days campaign silence prior to election day. Therefore, the campaign had to be conducted from 26 to 28 February 2007.

In contrast to the first round, campaigning was allowed only “in the form of limited meetings in confined places” (article 2.h). KIP Aceh’s chairman Jaffar further defined this provision, stating that only indoor gatherings were to be permitted.

For the second round there was a lot of deal-making in both districts in attempts to secure the support of those who lost in the first round. In Aceh Barat Daya, the two remaining pairs of candidates , H. Sulaiman Adami/H.Munir H. Ubit and Akmal Ibrahim/Ir. Syamsurizal, both needed to secure the support of GAM which none of them had gained in the first round. In Aceh Barat there was no rift within GAM over the rivalling candidates Ramli and Iskandar, since the support given to Ramli in the first round of election was sustained for the second round.11

In the run-up to the elections both candidates in Aceh Barat Daya claimed to have received the support of GAM, both having profiled local ex-GAM members speaking at their rallies. The support of GAM appeared to be decisive in giving legitimacy to the campaign and the candidature. As on provincial level, GAM did not come across as a cohesive political force giving support to one of the candidates. In a reported meeting held on 22 January 2007, KPA, the political wing of GAM, agreed to back H. Sulaiman Adami and H. Munir H. Ubit while at another reported meeting held on 15 February, a fraction of ex-GAM fighters decided to support Akmal Ibrahim and Ir. Syamsurizal.

As to alliances with defeated candidates and political parties in Aceh Barat Daya, H. Sulaiman Adami and H. Munir H. Ubit had the support of the Islamist party The National Awakening Party (PKB) and the nationalist Independence Party (PM) in addition to the support of almost all the defeated candidates from the first round. Akmal Ibrahim and Ir. Syamsurizal had the support of one party, the moderate Islamist party National Mandate Party (PAN) and the support of one of the defeated candidates who also spoke at their rallies. During the political campaign, Ibrahim and Syamsurizal were profiled as independent candidates and expressed in several interviews with the team that the electorate had little confidence in political parties.

In Aceh Barat, GAM-affiliated candidate Ramli claimed to have the support of all eight former candidates, while Iskandar claimed to have support from three out of the eight. Nevertheless, none of candidates were looking for direct party support as they interpreted the results from first round to be a clear indication of the voters distrust in political parties.12

In Aceh Barat Daya both candidates were campaigning beyond the stipulated three-day campaign period. The rallies took place in the courtyard of private houses or in football fields under a tent. There were no distinction in how the campaigning was conducted inside or outside of the campaign period, the unauthorized campaigning was said to be

10 EUEOM Preliminary Statement 6 March 2006, page 2 11 LTO report no. 1 from pre-election period second round in Aceh Barat 12LTO report no. 1 from pre-election period second round in Aceh Barat


‘community dialog’ or ‘socialization’. However, no complaints were lodged on this matter.

The main topics in the rallies were development of agriculture and the fishing industry; improvement of schools and a general promise of supporting the villages with more funds. Gender was not a topic in any of the rallies the team attended and was not on any of the candidates agenda when asked directly by the team.

Accusations of ‘money politics’, i.e. vote buying, was expressed explicitly in meetings with the team by both of the candidate pairs. The accusations were addressed more indirectly in the rallies by using the motive of the Thief and robber.13

Aceh Barat faced other and more severe problems in the run-up to the elections. The LTO team with Toril Lund observed a meeting 26 February were local military leaders had invited village heads in Pante Ceremeun sub-district on “how not to vote”.

The Media

The national media showed only limited interest for the second round elections, while the local radio stations and the printed press offered a thorough reporting on the elections and the candidates. Most of the coverage was conducted by the two local private radio stations, followed by the provincial dailies – both giving a balanced and professional coverage. However, one of the local weekly newspaper Seuramoe Aceh was very unbalanced in its coverage. Akmal and Saymsurizal in Aceh Barat Daya had approximately twice as much coverage (71%) than their opponent Sulaiman Adam and Munir H. Ubit (29%). Seuramoe Aceh also showed a clear bias in favour of the candidates Akmal Ibrahim and Syamsurizal M.14

Even though Seuramoe Aceh has a small circulation and only comes out once a week, the biased coverage could have an impact on the outcome of the election as the margins of the results were relatively tight.15

13The speaking candidate claiming to be the thief who enters your house quietly at night without doing any physical harm, while the contesting candidate is the robber that violently takes your money at broad daylight. 14EUEOM Preliminary Statement 6 March 2007 15Akmal/ Saymsurizal won the second round with a margin of 7 762 of a total of 58 994 votes


Observations on the Polling Day

Observation on 11 December 2006, first round

EU EOMs Preliminary Conclusions in the Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006 states that: “Voting procedures were generally well followed by polling station staff and the secrecy of the vote was well maintained. There were no actions observed that might compromise the impartiality of the polling station officials. Candidate agents (witnesses) were present in a large majority of polling stations visited and domestic observers present in almost half of them.

Counting procedures were also generally well followed in the polling stations observed, and candidate agents were present at all polling stations observed. However, in almost 65% of the polling stations visited, copies of the results were not publicly posted in spite of electoral regulations.”16

Election Day Observation Report by STO Hans C. Knævelsrud

Area of responsibility Aceh Barat Daya is situated on the South-western Coast. The district was created in 2002 when district Aceh Selatan was split in to three districts. Aceh Barat Daya has six sub districts. The team’s AoR were the three sub districts Blang Pidie, Mangeng and Tangan-Tangan.

According to the census of 2003 the regency had an estimated population of 117 464 with 74.204 registered voters. The main source of income is farming, fishing or trading. 99,7 % are Muslims.

Election Day The team had been informed that the election committees would start their work at 07:30, and that the polling stations would open at 08:00 and close at 14:00. The team had been asked to leave early on election day and to observe if there were any instances of the tradition of distributing money early in the morning before polling. The team arrived 07:25 at polling station no 2 in Kedei Town in Manggeng. It had 345 people on the final voter list (FVL). The team did not see any money distribution along the way.

Observation of the opening The polling station was in a courtyard outside a governmental building. The polling station was fenced, and had tarpaulin on the top. All polling stations had a layout which was in accordance with the prescribed layout. This facilitated a smooth flow of the voters

16EUEOM Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006, page 3


through the polling station, and ensured the secrecy of their vote. Another polling station was also situated nearby. Armed officials were standing a distance from the polling stations in a non- intimidating manner. Neither in this polling station or any of the other polling stations did the team observe intimidation or disruption outside or inside the polling station. A lot of people where standing outside the polling station, and the mood appeared to be good. The election committee started their work on time, and it seemed to be done in an orderly manner. The opening of the ballot boxes, counting of the ballot papers and sealing of the ballot boxes where delayed due to the late arrival of one of the witnesses. There were witnesses both for the governmental and district elections. A representative from PANWASLIH was present. KIP and a domestic observer organization were also present. No essential material was missing in this or the other polling stations visited later on. We introduced ourselves to the chairperson and got all the services we wanted except that they did not want us to enter the fenced area/polling station. The team did not press this issue because we were able to see everything that happened inside, talk with the relevant people and get the documentation requested. As an afterthought, we maybe should have pressed this issue. Voting started 08:15. The most prominent people in the area seemed to vote first. They had to identify themselves. The team did not observe any action by the chairperson or the staff in this polling station, nor the other polling stations that compromised impartiality.

Observation of the polling The next polling station was in Meunasah Tuengoh in Manggeng. It had 453 in the FVL, and 43 had already voted. This was the only place where the team observed that the entry area of the polling station was overcrowded. There were witnesses both for the governmental and district elections. There were neither domestic observers present, nor from PANWASLIH. The team did not see any voters with inked fingers trying to vote, and all voters were obliged to ink their finger before they left the polling station. The team did not observe any cases of family voting. This applies to all the rest of polling stations that were visited. It was difficult to determine how the voters were identified because it seemed that all letters of invitation or voters card had been collected in the beginning, and then they were called up one by one to enter the polling stations. This procedure was implemented in all the polling stations that were visited.

The third polling station was in Suka Damai in Manggeng. It had 322 on the FVL, and 48 had already voted. The voters were marked off the voter list. There were witnesses both for the gubnernatorial and district elections. PANWASLIH representatives were present. There were no domestic observers present.

The fourth polling station was in Suak Nibong in Tangan-Tangan. It had 430 on the FVL and 333 had already voted. No one was waiting to cast their votes, and no voter came while the team was present. There were witnesses both for the gubernatiorial and district elections. PANWASLIH representatives were present. There were no domestic observers present.

The fifth polling station was in Padang Kawa in Tangan-Tangan. It had 447 on the FVL and 307 had already voted. There were witnesses both for the governmental and district elections. A representative from PANWASLIH was present. KIP and one domestic observer was also present. A few voters cast their votes while the team was observing.

The sixth polling station was in Gunung cut in Tangan-Tangan. It had 391 on the FVL and 297 had already voted. No one was waiting to cast their votes, and no voter came while we were waiting. There were witnesses both for the gubernatorial and district


elections. PANWASLIH was not present, but KIP and one domestic observer in the polling station.

The seventh polling station was in Blang Pidie in Blang Pidie. It had 467 on the FVL and 413 had already voted. No one was waiting to cast their votes, and no voter came while the team was present. There were witnesses both for the governmental and district elections. A representative from PANWASLIH was present. KIP and one domestic observer was also present. This STO talked with other LTO observers after the election, and many had the same experience that most of the voting was done within two-three hours.

Observation of the closing and counting The polling station chosen by the team for closing and counting was in Kutahb in Blang Pidie. It had 210 on the FVL, and 202 had voted. The team arrived 13:30 and waited until counting started. No new voters came while we were waiting. Counting started at 14:00. The district ballot box was opened first. The governor ballot box should have been opened first. Spoilt and unused ballot papers were set aside, but not marked with an x, as they should have. They did not reconciliate all the ballot papers before they started to count. The counting was done open to the public, by showing each ballot paper to the public. The tally sheet (form C2-KWK) was in full display. There were witnesses both for the gubernatiorial and district elections. PANWASLIH representatives were present, as well as one observer from KIP. The reconciliation of used, spoiled and unused ballots matched. The stacks of valid ballots for each candidate were sealed and signed. The ballot box with all the ballot papers, forms etc. was sealed in public. The results of the valid ballots were announced in public. No complaints were raised, and the witnesses signed the complete certificate of vote count results. The same procedure was repeated for the governor ballot box. The first count did not match with the total number of cast votes. The second count did match. Both ballot boxes were driven to the election HQ in Blang Pidie on motorcycles at 17:40. The team followed them and witnessed the formal delivery of the ballot boxes. No aggregation was done that evening.

Comments on Gender No women ran as candidates in the governor elections, nor in the three sub-districts we observed. No women were head of the election committee (KPPS) in the polling stations we visited. The total number of people in all the KPPS we visited was 51, 39 men and 12 women.

Observation of the aggregation and verification of results17 In Aceh Barat Daya two candidates for regent, Akbal-Syamsul from PAN (the moderate Islamist party National Mandate Party) and Sulaiman-Munir from PKB (the Islamist party The National Awakening Party) in coalition with Partai Merdeka, received respectively 21.90% and 20,92% of the vote. The KPA/GAM candidate came in third place with approximately 16.04% of the vote and was consequently not standing for the second round elections.

Irwandi and Nazar received 49,76% of the vote in the gubernatorial elections.

17LTO Kris Ann Riiber


Election Day Observation Report by Kris Ann Riiber

Area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AoR) was the urban district Kota Langsa south on the east coast of Aceh. Kota Langsa counts 133 000 inhabitants of which 88 000 are eligible voters. The district contains the three sub-districts Langsa Barat , Langsa Timur and Langsa Kota.

Prior to election day the team visited the Mayor of Kota Langsa, the election administration at district level (KIP), and the Head of PANWASLIH, the supervising body of KIP. The team also had a meeting with one of the major NGOs, JPPR and visited the local prison to observe voter’s education taking place there.

Observation of the opening Opening procedures were due to start at 0700 hours. The team was present at a polling station in a village in the sub-district of Kota Barat at 0645 hours were the polling staff started to turn up at around an hour later. The procedures of opening ran late and the polling did not start until 0830, half an hour late.

The actual opening procedures were carried out according to the regulations and there were no disturbances or irregularities observed. Possibly due to rain during the opening, there were few people waiting in line to cast their vote.

Observation of the polling During the opening hours 0800 to 1400, the team visited six polling stations.

Three out of six polling stations were not using the Final Voters List (FVL) to check if the voters were registered upon their arrival. Instead, the voters’ names were written down in a note book or on a sheet of paper. Upon asking, the team learned that all the stations had actually received the Final Voters List for the polling station but it was stored away together with the forms for opening and closing.

At the polling stations, representatives for both KIP and PANWASLIH were present without correcting the polling station staff (KPPS). During the day, the team ran into the Head of KIP, who explained that the names were taken down to be cross checked towards the FVL later on. The team did not observe that the cross checking was done while the voters were at the polling stations or later.

In the team’s opinion, this showed lacking understanding of the voting procedures, but probably not sufficient to affect the outcome of the poll.

On a general note the team did not observe intimidation or disruption in or outside any of the polling stations, campaign material was not observed within 200 m around the polling stations, nor was there overcrowding inside any of the stations.

At all the stations the required five polling staff members were present. None of the heads of the KPPS were women. The women representation in the KPPS was approximately 1/5.

Witnesses representing the candidates were present at all the stations. More than half of the witnesses were women. Domestic observers were present at less than half of the polling stations and none of these represented the expected organisations (JURDIL/LSM


Forum, JPPR and KIPP). KIP and PANWASLIH were present at most of the polling stations (4 out of 6).

The layout of all of the polling stations secured the secrecy of the vote and allowed for an easy flow of voters. Traces of ink were checked upon the voter’s arrival and all voters were inked when the vote was cast. The team did not observe that anyone was allowed to vote without a voter card or a letter of invitation, even though the documents were not checked towards the voters list.

There was no observation of family/group voting.

Observation of the closing and counting The team observed closing and counting in a village in the sub-district of Kota Langsa. At 1400 hours there were no voters in line and the head of the KPPS announced the closing of the poll. The polling station being open aired allowed the closing and counting to be open to the public who, together with candidate witnesses, observed the process. Neither domestic observers nor KIP/PANWASLIH were present.

After putting up the tally sheet for the results, the head of KPPS almost directly went on to opening the ballot boxes and counting the ballots, the ballots for the Mayor first – all contrary to the regulations. There was no consolidation of the voting material by counting of used and unused ballot papers, filling out the designated form (C1-KWK) or separating the valid from the invalid ballot before counting. The validation of the ballots was done simultaneously with the counting that was conducted by the entire KPPS. Also contrary to the regulations, a witness stepped forward after some time and took actively part in the counting process without any objections from the polling staff or the other witnesses.

The actual counting and validation of the ballots was done in a transparent manner.

The counting was finished and the results announced just before dark at around 1900 hours. It was only then that the KPPS started filling out the various forms.

In the team’s opinion the entire process showed a lack of understanding of the closing and counting procedures, but probably not sufficient to affect the outcome of the poll.

Observation of the aggregation and verification of results The aggregation on sub-district level was only to start when all the ballot boxes with the ballots and voting material had been received from all the polling stations. The aggregation started in the morning the day after election day.

The KIP on sub-district of Kota Langsa showed a good understanding of the aggregation procedures and conducted the process in an orderly and transparent manner.

In Kota Langsa, Zulkifli Zainon and Saifuddin Razali from the Golkar party won the race for mayor with 40,95% of the vote; Irwandi and Nazar received 27,32%.

On provincial level the GAM affiliated candidates Irwandi Yusuf and Muhammad Nazar won a substantial victory in the governmental elections on 11 December 2006 with 38.2% of the vote, while the closest rival, Ahmad Humam Hamid and Hasbi, received 16.62% of the votes in the eight-candidate race.


Observation on 4 March 2007, second round

On a general note the second round elections were peaceful, with the exception of the reported interference of the Indonesian military forces in Aceh Barat.

EU EOM’s Preliminary Conclusions in the Preliminary statement 6 March 2007 states that “Voting procedures were generally well followed by polling station staff and the secrecy of the vote was well maintained. There were no actions observed that might compromise the impartiality of the polling station officials. Candidate agents (witnesses) were present in all polling stations visited by the observers.

Counting procedures were also generally well followed in the polling stations observed, and candidate agents were present at all polling stations observed. However, in most of the polling stations visited, copies of the results were not publicly posted in spite of electoral regulations.” 18

Election Day Observation Report by Toril Lund The sub-district Aceh Barat with its main town Meulaboh, was severely hit by the 26 December 2004 earthquake and the following tsunami. More than two years after the disaster a lot of reconstruction of houses and public buildings has been done and is still going on. Many internationals working for UN or NGOs are residing in Meulaboh and the many projects have created an employment boom for the local people. In fact, Aceh Barat is a place where Indonesians from all over Sumatra and even from Java have found employment opportunities.

In Aceh Barat the people further inland are making their living from traditional farming and the main sources of income here are the production of coconut oil and rubber. In the rural areas one of the two candidates, Mr. Ramli, had the strongest support. Although running as an independent candidate, Ramli was known to be a member of a non combatant division in GAM. The other candidate, Mr. Iskandar, was supposed to run on behalf of the Golkar party, but due to his lack of funds, Golkar nominated instead another candidate for the first round and Iskandar run as an independent candidate.

In the first round the KPA/GAM-affiliated candidate received 24.3%, just short of the 25% required to prevent a second round. In second place came the Iskandar-Chudri pair running as independents. Irwandi and Nazar received 41,14% of the vote for the governor elections.

Observation of the the opening The Q54 stipulated that the polling should take place between the hours 08.00-14.00. The team observed that the opening procedures started one hour later, at 09.00. Most of the polling station (PS) preparations were done by the unarmed security force, LINMAS (Perlindungan Maskyarakat – People’s Protection (‘neighbourhood watcher’), who were numerous in AoR. KPPS members started to open the material bags just before 09.00 and the indelible ink was missing. There was no queue of voters and no military or police activities in or around the polling station.

18EUEOM Preliminary statement 6 March 2007, page 3


Observations of the polling The polling took place in an orderly manner. The voters all presented their Letters of Invitation and the procedures were followed as prescribed for in the polling manual. The FVL (Final Voters List) was not in use in most of the polling stations observed. The team observed 12 polling stations and only one polling station used the FVL to control the names or tick out the voters name before they cast their votes.

No domestic observers were present in the PSs observed, nor the election supervisory committee PANWASLIH. The candidate witnesses however, were numerous and present in all polling stations observed. No complaints were filed in any of the polling stations observed.

The team was denied access into the polling station area in two polling stations. KPPS members told the team that they thought this was in accordance with the election law. The two other EU EOM teams faced the same problem in Aceh Barat in the morning, but KIP in Banda Aceh solved the problem and as of 10.00 a.m. the team had access to all PSs.

Observation of the closing and counting The polling station closed at 14.00 and most of the voters had already cast their votes by noon. The polling station observed conducted the counting in an orderly manner, but had to seek some help from the next election administration level, the PPG. The candidate witnesses were present and signed the PS certificate.

The GAM affiliated candidate Ramli got 249 votes out of a total of 403, Iskandar 91, a result which was much in line with the final results in AoR.

Observation of the aggregation and verification of results A total of four sub-districts were observed. The day after the election the observers learned that two of them had already conducted the aggregation process the same night.

Article 65, 2 stipulates that the voting boxes are to be sent to the sub-district level (PPK) one day after the polling.

Article 66 stipulates that PPK has to conduct the aggregation within three days after the voting. The team was able to observe one PPK conducting the aggregation as prescribed for in the Quanun, but all the four sub-districts verified their results before this time limit.

In the morning before the EU EOM observers left Meulaboh, KIP announced the Aceh Barat results: Ramli got 76,2 % of the votes, Iskandar 23,8%. Turnout: 76,4 %.

On polling day, the Mission observed and photographed military personnel interfering in the election process by collecting electoral material after closing of polls at the sub district election commission (PPK) of the sub-district of Samatiga in Aceh Barat.19

19 EUEOM Press release 9 March 2007


Election Day Observation Report from LTO Kris Ann Riiber in Aceh Barat Daya Ache Barat Daya was among the regions affected by the tsunami, but the damage was not as severe as in Banda Aceh.

The economy is based on agriculture and trade. Trade is an important sector because of the regency’s strategic location in the middle of the west coast of Aceh.

The prolonged conflict also affected this regency as the southwest Aceh had to provide shelters for people seeking refuge from military operations deployed for hunting down combatants of GAM.

The team was assigned to the sub-district of Babah Roth and Kuala Batee, both rural districts with respectively 9 086 and 1 249 in the FVL for the second round.

Observation of the opening When the team arrived at 07.30, the KPPS were setting up the polling station. The opening procedures were conducted in line with regulations, and the poll opened on time.

Observation of the polling The team visited nine polling stations for the voting and only found what was considered minor problems. In breach of Q7/57 in two stations, the final voters list (FVL) from KIP was copied in handwriting to separate male and female, reportedly to simplify the process of identifying the voter as he or she arrived at the polling station In one polling station the names of the voters were written down as they arrived, the names to be crosschecked towards the FVL at a later stage. The team did not observe the crosschecking being done. The team did not observe any voters being checked for ink when arriving at the polling station but everyone was duly inked when leaving.

Witnesses for the running candidates were present in all the polling stations, while domestic observes were absent, except in one.

After 12.00hrs there were no voters in any of the polling stations the team visited. In some polling stations most of the polling staff had left for lunch and prayer. At two polling stations counting started at 13.15 in violation of Q7/54.

Observation of the counting In the polling station were the team observed the counting, the closing procedures started on time at 14.00 hrs. In violation of Q7/62/(4), the counting of votes started without counting the total number of ballots in the ballot box before counting the votes for the candidates. Instead of counting the total ballots received, used, unused and spoiled, they calculated those figures by subtraction while filling the official forms.

During the counting the results were displayed, but then taken down when the polling station was dismantled, contrary to the electoral regulations.

The closing and counting was finalised at 16.30hrs whereupon the ballot box was brought to the sub-district level for aggregation. Q7/65(1) states however that the ballot boxes should be sent to the sub-district level one day after the polling.


Observation of the aggregation Q7/66(1) gives PPK three days to aggregate the results on sub-district level. The aggregation at PPK in Kuala Batee was finished at 18.00hrs on election day.

At midnight on election day all the ballot boxes and sensitive voting material from all the PPKs were delivered to KIP on district level. The aggregation started on 7 March at 08.00 hrs and the results were announced at 12.00hrs the same day, well in line with regulations.

KIP started the aggregation on 7 March and had the results by mid day. During the aggregation there were no witnesses for what appeared to be the loser candidate present, even though they had been duly invited to observe the process. The head of KIP was not concerned about this as there were plenty of other observers to approve the result. The campaign team of H. Sulaiman Adami and H. Munir H. Ubit told the LTO team that they planned to organize a demonstration against the results, but stressed that this would be conducted in an orderly manner. The team left the AoR before any demonstrations was carried out.

Candidate pair No 3, Akmal Ibrahim and Ir. Syamsurizal won the election with 33 378 out of 58 994 votes, while the loser candidate pair H. Sulaiman Adami and H. Munir H. Ubit received 25 616 votes, giving the winning candidates a margin of 13%.

The review of Complaints Process

Complaints during voting may be made to PANWASLIH supervisors, who should be present in almost every polling station. However, they do not have right to resolve these complaints and they must pass them to the sub-district level PANWASLIH.

Witnesses, i.e. candidate representatives, may make a complaint about counting irregularities, including the validity of a ballot, which must be considered by the chairman of the polling station. Voters may make a complaint through the witnesses.

Each complaint must be recorded and reconsidered by the Sub-District Election Committee.

In addition, witnesses have the right to complain to the Regencies/Municipalities KIP and if the complaint is upheld, a recount must be ordered.

Article 74 of the LoGA prescribes the procedure for legal challenges by candidates to the results once certified by KIP. These must be submitted to the Supreme Court within three working days after the certification of results of the election. The Supreme Court must decide within 14 days of the receipt of petition and its decision is final and binding.

On 6 March, when the unofficial results in Aceh Barat Daya predicted Akmal Ibrahim and Ir. Syamsurizal to be the winner, the campaign team of the defeated candidate lodged a complaint to PANWASLIH on ‘money politics’ supported by photocopies of 20 statements (including photocopies of 20 000 Rph notes) from alleged receivers of the money. There were also undocumented accusations of the winner candidate giving money to some hundred villagers as pro forma salary as campaign team members.


PANWASLIH was to investigate the case and submit the complaint to the police for further investigation as vote buying is considered being a criminal offence.20

Conclusions and recommendations

For the governor elections both the GAM affiliated candidates, Irwandi Yusuf and Muhammad Nazar and Ahmad Humam Hamid and Hasbi (H2O), won a landslide victory (receiving 38.2% and 16.62%) with a total of 54,8 of the votes. Irwandi and Yusuf who ran as independent candidates had a margin of 21,6% on H2O, who had the support of a political party, PPP.

For the second round in Aceh Barat the candidate with GAM affiliation Ramli, received 76,2 % of the votes, a comfortable lead of 52,4% to the defeated candidate Iskandar (who received 23,8% of the votes). Akmal Ibrahim and Ir. Syamsurizal, the apparently independent candidate pair, but with the support of a fraction of GAM, won the election with a margin of 13% or 7 762 more votes.

The outcome of both the governor and local elections demonstrates clearly that GAM’s position in Aceh is deeply embedded. Furthermore, the political campaign and the outcome show that the Acehneese has a strong distrust in national political parties. Considering also the intimidation taking place in Aceh Barat, the peace in Aceh still needs the goodwill of all parties to stabilize the process. A part of this will be to transform GAM into a political party enforcing the democratic and peaceful development of Aceh.

Procedural shortcomings such as the failure to use the voters register (FVL) properly; the lax implementation of checking for inked fingers and no posting of election results was observed in both rounds of the elections in Aceh as well as in the elections in Indonesia in 2004.

Overall, the election provided for the will of the people to be expressed through the casting of their ballots on election day. Much responsibility for the peaceful atmosphere lays with the election committees in the villages in AoR. By their way of handling election-related issues like voter registration, handing out Letters of Invitation and facilitating the practical installations on election day, they have shown a commitment to turn the election into a success.

Some minor shortcomings could be observed, especially with regard to the aggregation of results at PPK level. Article 65 and 66 in the Quanun with regards to the time frame for when the ballot boxes are to be sent from KPPS to PPK and when to conduct the aggregation, needs to be specified. Likewise, the regulations and the manual regarding the registration process and the use of FVL in the TPSs should also be more specific.

20With the winning candidate having a lead of 7 762 votes to the defeated candidate the alleged buying of votes could hardly have an effect of the outcome of election. However, if proven and convicted in court the matter could affect the candidate’s possibility to stand for the 2009 election as he would fail to fulfil the requirements in Q33/2/i.

In EUEOM’s recommendations in the Final Report for the elections in Indonesia in 2004 it is stated that more attention should be given to the possible bribing of election officials and the alleged role of corruption in determining political positions since corruption at this level has a greater potential impact on the democratic process.


Taken into consideration that Aceh Barat is in a transition period from a state of civil unrest to a peace agreement, it will take some time before AoR has reached the stage where the election environment could be declared free from intimidation of the electorate. The presence of the Indonesian armed forces in certain areas and in certain circumstances is not in accordance with international standards for an election environment free of intimidation. However, the impression is that this fact has not influenced the voters who were able to cast their votes according to their hearts.

Appendixes

Appendix 1: List of abbreviations

DPRA Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Aceh – Aceh People’s Assembly of Representatives

DPRK Dewan Perwasilan Rakyat Kabupaten/Kota – Regency/Municipality People’s Assembly of Representatives (district parliament)

EUEOM European Union Election Observation Mission

FPTP ’First past the post’

FVL Final Voters’ List

GAM Gerakan Aceh Merdeka – Free Aceh Movement

GoI Indonesian Government

H2O Ahmad Humam Hamid and Hasbi, candidate pair standing for the governor election, backed by KPA

KIP Komisi Independen Pemilihan – Independent Election Commission (on Province and district levels)

KPA Komiti Peralihan Aceh – Transitional Committee of Aceh (political wing of GAM)

KPPS Kelompok Penvelenggara Pemungutan Suara – Polling Station Officials

Linmas Perlindungan Maskyarat – People’s Protection (‘neighbourhood watcher’)

LoGA Tentang Pemerinthan Aceh – Law on Governing Aceh

LTO Long-Term election Observer

NAD Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam – Nation of Aceh – ‘House of Peace’ (arab.)

MoU Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement on the 15th of August 2005

PAN Partai Amanat Nasional – National Mandate Party

PANWASLIHPanitia Pengawas Pemilihan – Election Supervisory Committee


PPK Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa – National Awakening Party

PPK Panitia Pemilihan Kecamatan – Sub-district (Kecamatan) Election Commission

PPP Partai Persatuan Pembangunan – United Development Party

PPS Panitia Pemungutan Suara Kelurahan – Village Election Commission

Qanun/Q Qanum – Provincial legislation

Rph Indonesian rupiah

STO Short-Term election Observer

TNI Tentara Nasional Indonesia – Indonesian Armed Forces

TPS Tempat Pemungutan Suara – Polling station

Appendix 2 (not published in the web edition): EU EOM Preliminary Statement 12 December 2006

Appendix 3 (not published in the web edition): EU EOM Preliminary Statement 6 March 2007

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