The Usual Delays...

Once again the Indonesian media is wringing its hands in despair because of delays in the election preparations. With long-winded moans about unprinted, yet alone distributed, ballot papers and despair over uninformed voters, they fill column inches with their wails of despair. Again.

A time traveler landing in Indonesia could be forgiven for thinking that the above intro was about the 2004 or 1999 elections, not 2009. In an editorial in March 2004, a month before the elections, Tempo magazine went so far as to call for the elections to be postponed in some areas because of lack of ballot boxes and polling booths

And back in 1999, Kompas newspaper reported on 3 May that most voters did not want that year's election delayed. Three days later it published a cartoon showing the members of the General Elections Commission being too busy fighting amongst themselves to notice the impending election. And there were calls for a delayed vote in some areas because of problems with voter registration and damaged ballot boxes.

Yes it's all being left until the last minute. But that's the way this country works. Very little happens for months and months, then in a final flurry of activity it all gets sorted out. The 1999 and 2004 elections went ahead with no major problems, and Pemiloopy is confident that the last-minute panic will ensure the same happens this year. Have a little faith in your own people guys...