"Greenpeace has no NGO permit in Jakarta yet."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The two pairs of Jakarta gubernatorial candidates have expressed their commitment to take action against Greenpeace because the international non-governmental organisation has not yet complied with the nation`s laws and has refused to be officially listed.

Earlier on Thursday (September 13), Ashraf Ali, the chairman of the Jakarta chapter of Golkar Party, which supports the Fauzi Bowo-Nachrowi Ramli pair, expressed concerns about foreign NGOs, including Greenpeace, that were yet to be registered with the Nationality and Political Unity Agency (Kesbangpol).

"Currently, Greenpeace remains under the supervision of the provincial government and the regional parliament. The bottom line is that there is no tolerance for those who clearly have violated the regulations," he said.

"Greenpeace has no NGO permit in Jakarta yet, so we will have to re-evaluate its continued operations here, while the Bill of Community Organizations is adopted by the provincial parliament," Ashraf added.

"The provincial government has always opened its doors to cooperation in business or social sectors with foreign parties. However, they must be in compliance with our existing regulations," he pointed out.

Meanwhile, the Joko Widodo-Basuki Purnama pair, backed by opposition party Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), has decried the existence of a number of foreign NGOs in Jakarta that do not comply with the provincial regulations. If elected as Jakarta`s governor and deputy governor, the two said, they would start policing foreign NGOs immediately.

PDIP senior politician Aria Bima also expressed his support for the pair`s views, saying such foreign NGOs must be forced to abide by the existing rules.

"It is actually not difficult to bring foreign NGOs such as Greenpeace to book. Moreover, the Community Organization Bill that will be passed to become a law in October 2012 will further tighten control over such NGOs," he noted.

Ari said Joko and Basuki would "persevere" even if their efforts meet with resistance.

"This is not because of personal likes or dislikes, it is about the existing regulations," he explained.
(U.A050/INE/KR-BSR/F001)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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