Political Parties Offer Free Circumcisions Ahead Of Election

[matcom]

<snip>

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- Walking past open sewers and crowded tenements, the campaign organizer for President Megawati Sukarnoputri pointed to a glistening white and beige mosque, boasting that her party spent $1,600 to renovate it.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle has also handed out rice, instant noodles and fish in this impoverished north Jakarta neighborhood, Kaprawai said proudly, and plans to offer free circumcisions, a tradition in this Muslim nation but often too expensive for the poor.

The gifts show Megawati's "character," said the 53-year-old party activist said. "She is concerned with the little people. That's why we support her."

But critics have another word for Megawati's tactics. They say the Indonesian leader, who is up for re-election on July 5, is bribing the electorate.

Anti-graft activists complain that Indonesia's transition from a dictatorship to a democracy has opened the door to a lucrative market in money politics.

http://www.wftv.com/newsofthestrange/3472568/detail.html

[pagerbear]

1. More later on these important tips