Surabaya Security Prompts Democrat Party Hold Congress There

Surabaya, E Java (Antara) - Security in Surabaya is the main reason behind the choice of East Java\'s provincial capital as the venue of the Democratic Party\'s congress scheduled for early April, a party executive said. \"General Chairman Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was amazed by the security and convenience in East Java. Development in all aspects of life ran quickly and sustainably,\" Democrat Party Deputy Chairman Soekarwo said here Thursday. Soekarwo said, Yudhoyono, who stepped down as the sixth Indonesian president in October last year, was also pleased with the fact that many foreign ambassadors and dignitaries had made the city one of the investment destinations. Yudhoyono told him that Surabaya was the venue of the party\'s congress shortly before he held a dialog with party cadres and a consolidation meeting with members of provincial and district/municipal legislative councils, Soekarwo, who is also the East Java governor, said. \"When Yudhyono was about to board a Yogyakarta-bound train he told me again that East Java is 99 percent the venue of the party\'s congress,\" he said. He would do his best to make the five-yearly meeting a success, Soekarwo vowed. The congress is aimed at electing the general chairman. Almost all of the party\'s provincial executive boards have expressed support for Yudhoyono\'s bid for his second term of office as party general chairman. (*)