IRI Sponsored Multi-Party Youth Conference

July 23, 2002

In June, IRI sponsored a multi-party youth conference in Medan, North Sumatra. The conference was attended by 61 North Sumatran youth from the seven main political parties and nine Acehnese youth leaders, marking the first IRI training program to incorporate Acehnese youth.

The attendance of the Acehnese youth leaders was inspiring to the other participants. They were invited to attend the training because meeting together is too dangerous in Aceh.

Although initially reluctant to voice their views in front of Westerners, the Acehnese participants discussed the problems their parties face. IRI will provide further technical assistance and advice in preparation for the province's first-ever direct elections. While the date has not been officially set, it is anticipated that they will be held within the next year.

American and Turkish trainers Alan Peterson and Emre Ergun shared their experiences in youth political organizations discussed their political experiences. The youth participants talked about their parties' principles and priorities. Other topics discussed included the perception of youth in politics and how to work with elected officials.

The group identified land reform, internal party splits, and party finance as areas where parties needed to devote more attention. Participants were enthusiastic about meeting their counterparts from different parties and regions of Indonesia. Most plan to share what they learned with their local party youth organizations.

Although most attendees said they felt they had made progress by having an opportunity to openly raise their concerns, some remained suspicious of the training. Nonetheless, IRI found that having a Turkish-Muslim trainer, with significant experience developing grassroots youth political movements, proved useful for training in a conservative Islamic region.

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