Indonesia Government - 2004

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Indonesia
conventional short form: Indonesia
local long form: Republik Indonesia
former: Netherlands East Indies; Dutch East Indies
local short form: Indonesia

Government type:
republic

Capital:
Jakarta

Administrative divisions:
27 provinces (propinsi-propinsi, singular - propinsi), 2 special regions* (daerah-daerah istimewa, singular - daerah istimewa), and 1 special capital city district** (daerah khusus ibukota); Aceh*, Bali, Banten, Bengkulu, Gorontalo, Jakarta Raya**, Jambi, Jawa Barat, Jawa Tengah, Jawa Timur, Kalimantan Barat, Kalimantan Selatan, Kalimantan Tengah, Kalimantan Timur, Kepulauan Bangka Belitung, Lampung, Maluku, Maluku Utara, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Nusa Tenggara Timur, Papua, Riau, Sulawesi Selatan, Sulawesi Tengah, Sulawesi Tenggara, Sulawesi Utara, Sumatera Barat, Sumatera Selatan, Sumatera Utara, Yogyakarta*; note - with the implementation of decentralization on 1 January 2001, the 357 districts (regencies) have become the key administrative units responsible for providing most government services
note: following the 30 August 1999 provincial referendum for independence that was overwhelmingly approved by the people of Timor Timur and the October 1999 concurrence of Indonesia's national legislature, the name Timor Leste (East Timor) was adopted as the name for the political entity formerly known as Propinsi Timor Timur; East Timor gained its formal independence on 20 May 2002

Independence:
17 August 1945 (proclaimed independence; on 27 December 1949, Indonesia became legally independent from the Netherlands)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 17 August (1945)

Constitution:
August 1945, abrogated by Federal Constitution of 1949 and Provisional Constitution of 1950, restored 5 July 1959

Legal system:
based on Roman-Dutch law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts and by new criminal procedures and election codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:
17 years of age; universal and married persons regardless of age

Executive branch:
chief of state: President MEGAWATI Sukarnoputri (since 23 July 2001) and Vice President Hamzah HAZ (since 26 July 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President MEGAWATI Sukarnoputri (since 23 July 2001) and Vice President Hamzah HAZ (since 26 July 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president previously were elected separately by the People's Consultative Assembly or MPR for five-year terms; next election to be held 5 July 2004; in accordance with constitutional changes, the election of the president and vice president will be by direct vote of the citizenry
note: the People's Consultative Assembly (Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat or MPR) includes the House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat or DPR) plus 195 indirectly selected members; it meets every five years to approve broad outlines of national policy and also has yearly meetings to consider constitutional and legislative changes; constitutional amendments adopted in 2001 and 2002 provide for the MPR to be restructured in 2004 and to consist entirely of popularly-elected members who will be in the DPR and the new House of Regional Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Daerah or DPD); the MPR will no longer formulate national policy
election results: MEGAWATI Sukarnoputri elected president, receiving 591 votes in favor (91 abstentions); Hamzah HAZ elected vice president, receiving 340 votes in favor (237 against)

Legislative branch:
unicameral House of Representatives or Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR) (550 seats; members serve five-year terms)
election results: percent of vote by party - Golkar 21.6%, PDI-P 18.5%, PKB 10.6%, PPP 8.2%, PD 7.5%, PKS 7.3%, PAN 6.4%, others 19.9%; seats by party - Golkar 128, PDI-P 109, PPP 58, PD 57, PKB 52, PAN 52, PKS 45, others 49
note: because of election rules, the number of seats won does not always follow the number of votes received by parties
elections: last held 5 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2009)

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Mahkamah Agung (justices appointed by the president from a list of candidates approved by the legislature); note - the Supreme Court is preparing to assume administrative responsibility for the lower court system, currently run by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights; a separate Constitutional Court was invested by the president on 16 August 2003

Political parties and leaders:
Crescent Moon and Star Party or PBB [Yusril Ihza MAHENDRA, chairman]; Democratic Party or PD [Susilo Bambang YUDHOYONO, chairman]; Functional Groups or Golkar [Akbar TANDJUNG, general chairman]; Indonesia Democratic Party-Struggle or PDI-P [MEGAWATI Sukarnoputri, chairperson]; National Awakening Party or PKB [Alwi SHIHAB, chairman]; National Mandate Party or PAN [Amien RAIS, chairman]; Prosperous Justice Party or PKS [Hidayat NUR WAHID, chairman]; United Development Party or PPP [Hamzah HAZ, chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, CP, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador SOEMADI Brotodiningrat
FAX: [1] (202) 775-5365
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
telephone: [1] (202) 775-5200
chancery: 2020 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Ralph L. BOYCE
embassy: Jalan 1 Medan Merdeka Selatan 3-5, Jakarta 10110
mailing address: Unit 8129, Box 1, FPO AP 96520
telephone: [62] (21) 3435-9000
FAX: [62] (21) 385-7189
consulate(s) general: Surabaya