All eyes are focused on the DPD polls, especially in view of the introduction of the Single-Member Non Transferable Vote electoral system under which individuals compete as independent candidates rather than running on political party tickets. Opened by Mr Hartadi of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the workshop included experts like Mr Alan Wall of the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES), Professor Christina Murray, a South African constitutional expert, and Dr Chusnul Mar’iyah, an Indonesian Election Commissioner. Representatives of parliament, political parties, civil society and academia attended the conference. Members of the regional chamber, DPRD I, governors and female DPD candidates participated in the event, which was covered by the country’s major newspapers and television network.

The second part of the event sought to provide female candidates in the DPD election with information and training on campaign strategies. This included an introduction to the ‘gender perspective’ and to research, budgeting, fundraising and logistics needed to mount a successful campaign. The training was conducted in cooperation with the local organizers. Experienced Indonesian trainers and facilitators from CETRO, the ICWIP and the GPSP helped to make the materials relevant to the Indonesian context.