The minimum quorum needed by the House of Representatives to officially begin any meeting will now be based on legislators' physical attendance.
This is one of the new stipulations regulated in the latest House internal regulations introduced since newly elected legislators took office.
Previously, a quorum could be met based on legislators' signatures on an attendance list. This raised many concerns from civil society groups over the quality of laws produced at the House, since often meetings deliberating laws were attended by only a handful of legislators.
"To make sure legislators attend meetings, we also plan to use fingerprint scanners," House Secretariat legal affairs chief Johnson Rajaguguk told The Jakarta Post at his office in Senayan, South Jakarta, on Wednesday.
These new attendance requirements are stipulated in Clause No. 243 of the new regulations.
However, the previous House term revealed that even if legislators attended meetings to start off with, a large number tended to walk out to chat or smoke with peers outside meeting rooms.
When asked whether legislators should be locked in to meeting rooms until their meetings concluded, Johnson said such a measure was not necessary yet.
The new regulations also forbid House legislators from eating, smoking or using cell phones during meetings. Previously, legislators smoking in meetings was a common sight.
Another breakthrough in the regulations is limitations on how long legislators can speak for in meetings.
Legislators can now only speak for up to three minutes during meetings, while party spokespersons can talk for up to five. This limitation is stipulated in Clause No. 251 of the regulations.
During the previous House term, legislators faced no limitations on how long they could speak for in meetings. This meant most House meetings, especially those dealing with sensitive issues, lasted for hours.
"As you can see, most of the breakthroughs are in the procedure of House meetings, because we wanted to make sure future meetings would be conducted properly and with the best practice possible," Johnson said.
The new regulations also stipulate sanctions for legislator violating Clauses 282 to 285, with punishments ranging from verbal or written warnings, to dismissal from the House in more severe cases.
An expert on the legislative body, Ismed Hasan Putro, said that while the new regulations contained several breakthroughs, they would not work unless legislators had the integrity to uphold them.
"I expect the new House - filled with activists and new, fresh blood - will uphold the regulations," Ismed said.
Separately, a number of party elites said their parties had begun introducing the new internal regulations to their members. (hdt)
