Jakarta  - Leaders of Indonesia's political parties on Monday kicked off their nationwide campaigns for the April 9 parliamentary elections, to be followed by presidential elections in July.

Electoral authorities have registered 38 parties to contest 128 seats in the upper house and 560 seats in the lower house.

In Jakarta, representatives of dozens of parties gathered at an exhibition hall to sign a joint declaration for a peaceful campaign.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged all political parties to abide by regulations during the official campaign period, which runs through April 5.

"To all political parties participating in the 2009 general elections, let's undertake the process of democracy well and undertake the campaign in an orderly manner," Yudhoyono said.

About 171 million voters are eligible to elect almost 12,000 provincial and district legislators across the country as well as the national parliament.

Under new election rules, eligible voters would vote directly for candidates at the national, provincial and district levels for the first time. Previously, voters selected only parties.

Yudhoyono, who also heads the Democratic Party, is scheduled to kick off his campaign Friday in Jakarta. Vice President Jusuf Kalla, the chairman of the Golkar Party, is to begin his campaign Tuesday in central Kalimantan.

No street rallies were scheduled on the first day of the campaign.

Only parties or coalitions that win 20 per cent of the seats in the House of Representatives, or 25 per cent of the popular vote, may field presidential candidates, which could turn minor parties into powerbrokers as the main parties try to put together coalitions.

Indonesia's police chief, General Bambang Hendarso Danuri, ordered all officers across the country to stay neutral during the campaign. Hundreds of thousands of police have been deployed to ensure security. (dpa)