EU Presidency declaration on Legislative Elections in Indonesia

The European Union has followed the legislative elections in Indonesia for several representative bodies on 5 April last with great interest. The elections were among the largest ever organized anywhere in the world and the organisation was a monumental logistical task for the National Electoral Commission (KPU) as more than 650 million ballot papers needed to be prepared and distributed and voting for 4 representative bodies took place at almost 600,000 voting stations.

Although the official results of the elections will not be known for some time, the European Union takes the opportunity to congratulate the people and the government of Indonesia on the generally peaceful and competitive way in which the pre-election process and polling have taken place, and hopes that the coming presidential elections can be conducted in the same positive manner.

More than 200 independent EU observers were stationed in the country to follow the election process. The European Union expresses its great appreciation for the work of the EU Election Observation Mission, led by Mr. Glyn Ford, which provided a comprehensive statement on the electoral process in Indonesia. The European Union, through the continued efforts of the EU EOM, will continue to follow the coming presidential elections with great attention as well.

The European Union notes with great satisfaction that the elections have taken place in a positive spirit. Overall the elections appear to have been a success, although the preparations were marked by shortcomings and delays, especially in the production and distribution of ballot papers, and on Election Day there were a few delays and postponements in isolated parts of the country. The process appears to have been conducted peacefully, except for some incidents reported from Aceh.

Regretfully it was not possible for observers to observe fully in the province, so that information on Aceh's elections remains scarce. The European Union expresses the hope that during the coming presidential elections its observers will be able to observe fully the election process.

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• EU Presidency declaration on Inauguration of New President of Indonesia (20/10/2004)