INDONESIA
The Jakarta Post-June 5
For the fourth time since 2004, communities in the remote highlands of Papua will cast their ballots in the gubernatorial election through representatives they appoint by agreement. In endorsing that voting system — called noken — the local poll body has sacrificed the democratic principle of one man one vote. More than that, it shows that, over the last 14 years, the state and other stakeholders have barely taken any efforts to help democracy flourish there.
Only in 2009 the Constitutional Court ruled that the traditional balloting system, named after the Papuan traditional woven bag, was legitimate, considering the difficult terrain that would make it difficult, if not impossible, for eligible voters in far-flung isolated regions to exercise their voting right. On the other hand the General Elections Commission (KPU) lacked the human resources and facilities to ensure the whole election process ran on time.
Read more at: http://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2018/06/05/no-to-noken.html
First published in: The Jakarta Post
