Aceh

Three police injured in rebel skirmish in Aceh

Agence France Presse - March 15, 2003

Three Indonesian policemen were wounded in the latest skirmish with rebels despite a ceasefire agreement in Aceh province, police said.

Three Brimob paramilitary policemen were shot during an ambush by rebel members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in the Ujong Blang beach area at Bireuen district on Friday, said Bireuen district police chief Commissioner Laksa Widyana. He said the police had gone to the area for sightseeing and "not to look for fights" with GAM.

A GAM representative in the Joint Security Committee (JSC), Amri bin Abdul Wahab, confirmed the incident but accused Brimobs patrolling the area of provoking the confrontation.

The JSC includes security forces, GAM and foreign security monitors representing the Henry Dunant Centre, a Geneva-based humanitarian organisation which brokered the December 9 peace deal.

Wahab said seven of his men were shopping in a market when the Brimobs suddenly came out of an unmarked vehicle and attacked them. He said his men did not immediately return fire but eventually retaliated after being cornered by the Brimobs.

"In a cornered position, the GAM rebels returned fire to defend themselves while running to the woods. We had no idea that there were Brimobs injured in the incident," Wahab said.

Under a demilitarisation phase which began on February 9, rebels are over the course of five months due to place their weapons at locations known only to themselves and to the Henry Dunant Centre. The military should relocate its forces and change its role from a strike force to a defensive one.

An estimated 10,000 people have been killed in the 26-year conflict in the province on the northern tip of Sumatra island. Violence has greatly diminished since the peace pact, which is the first to be monitored by foreign observers.

Students on hunger strike to demand freedom of speech

Jakarta Post - March 12, 2003

Banda Aceh -- Eight Indonesian student activists said here Monday they have begun a hunger strike to demand freedom of speech in the restive province of Aceh. AFP reported the eight began their fast under a tent outside the office of the Joint Security Committee (JSC) which oversees a peace pact between the government and the separatist Free Aceh Movement.

The students, including one woman, demanded in a statement "that a guarantee be issued of freedom for the people of Aceh to take part in politics." They also demanded that all soldiers and police be withdrawn from "illegal" outposts, including in villages and inside campuses. The students also called on the JSC and the Henry Dunant Center, which mediated the peace pact, to order police to free all "political prisoners."

Earlier Monday, some 500 other activists from student and rights groups also protested outside the JSC office and police headquarters, demanding that police free Muhammad Nazar, the chairman of SIRA, a group seeking a referendum on independence for Aceh. Nazar has been detained since last month.

West Papua

Forces to be reckoned with

Sydney Morning Herald - March 11 2003

John Martinkus -- Forty kilometres from the Papuan capital of Jayapura, its border with PNG has become a no-go area for Indonesian police and human rights workers -- and home to Kopassus-run training camps for Laskar Jihad Islamic militants and Papuan militia.

Lawrence Mehui, from the pro-independence Papuan Presidium Council, says that since November Kopassus has been recruiting villagers. In January it began recruiting people in the large transmigrant settlements around Arso, south of Jayapura. "There is a direct connection between the Islamic groups and the military because all the weapons used are military standard," he says.

Johannes Bonay, the director of Elsham, Papua's only functioning human rights organisation, confirms that the situation has deteriorated.

Bonay's wife and daughter were seriously wounded on December 28 when the car in which they were travelling was ambushed by unidentified gunmen between the border posts of Papua and PNG. An Indonesian police investigation team was also shot at and forced to leave.

The preliminary police investigation has identified Indonesian military as being present when the shooting occurred. "If we analyse the reports made by the people and the investigation made by the police we can divine that Kopassus is behind this," says Bonay.

Death threats against Papuan leaders have become common. Thom Beanal, the successor to the Kopassus-slain Papuan Presidium Council leader, Theys Eluay, says, "We are getting used to the intimidation now. We get SMS all the time saying that we will be killed." The Kopassus operations extend to anyone they believe is linked to the independence movement.

Last October a tour guide was abducted by seven Kopassus members at Jayapura's main airport in Sentani. He was kept in a small room at Kopassus headquarters and given nothing but salt water for 14 days. Deep, barely healed scars cross his back where he was sliced with a bayonet. His interrogators accused him of having links with the Free Papua Movement, OPM. He said that as they were doing this, they said, "You cannot get independence. During 2003, 2004 we will kill all Papuan leaders for independence."

Last week the Jayapura daily, Cenderawasih Post, reported all 250 Kopassus personnel were withdrawing from Papua, but most believe it is a standard troop rotation.

Elsham was among the first to blame the military for the ambush on August 31 last year that killed two Americans and one Indonesian, employees of the Freeport gold and copper mine. It has also tracked the arrival of Laskar Jihad in Papua over the past two years, which began in the coastal town of Sorong where 12 training camps, guarded by the military, were identified.

Sorong is nine hours by boat from Ambon and as the sectarian conflict there subsided last year 3000 Laskar Jihad members were reported to have arrived.

Last month a Pakistani national was arrested by Indonesian police in Sorong in possession of 10 explosive devices. The arrest was just one in a string of discoveries of weapons and explosive devices there that began in 2001 when Laskar Jihad fighters arrived.

The establishment of Laskar Jihad and militia training camps on the border has increased clashes with OPM fighters.

A PNG police operation was carried out on January 29 to ensure OPM fighters were not using PNG territory as a base. The operation reported the camps on the PNG side of the border had been vacated and the leader, Mathias Wenda, has not been seen since.

[John Martinkus is a freelance journalist and writer who has reported extensively on Indonesia and East Timor.]

A Papuan free for all

Sydney Morning Herald - March 11, 2003

Craig Skehan -- Despite its natural splendours, cultural diversity and tragic history of decolonisation gone awry, Papua has not loomed large in world or regional affairs. But that's about to change. Papua has the potential to become as explosive an issue between Australia and Indonesia as East Timor.

Indeed, when John Howard was in Jakarta late last month, Indonesia's President, Megawati Soekarnoputri, told him that pro-Papuan independence activists in Australia were "hampering" the bilateral relationship.

Today, the issue of Papua is expected to be raised at an Australian-Indonesian ministerial meeting, and Indonesia has already flagged concern about Australian non-government organisations (NGOs) advocating independence for Papua.

"We know the Australian Government's view in support of our territorial integrity," said a spokesman for Indonesia's foreign affairs ministry, Marty Natalegawa. "At the same time we will make known our concern not to allow certain groups under the guise of democracy, free speech and the like basically to try to disrupt and disturb our national unity which we will defend, as would any other sovereign country."

Universities and colleges, NGOs and churches in Australia are all raising the level of public consciousness on our oft forgotten neighbour, formerly known as Irian Jaya. And a new book published in Australia, West Papua - Follow the Morning Star, detailing the history of Papua's long and bloody campaign for nationhood, opens a window on this mountainous land.

Pro-independence guerillas wearing penis gourds and traditional decorations peer out from these pages, some with the word "Merdeka", freedom, painted on their bodies. In a preface to the book, the Papuan human rights activist John Rumbiak cites investigations which put the number of Papuans who have died during 40 years of resisting Indonesian rule at 100,000.

"In the face of so much suffering, Papuans have committed themselves to pursuing a peaceful movement towards their goal; freedom," Rumbiak writes in the preface. "It is a struggle for everyone living or who will ever live in Papua."

The launch of the book two weeks ago, by Liz Thompson, Jim Elmslie and Ben Bohane, coincided with a Melbourne seminar on Papua and a fundraising concert. The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology has come under fire for pulling out as the seminar venue.

As well as a veiled Indonesian Government threat that the large number of Indonesian students studying at the institute could be withdrawn, seminar organisers believe there was behind-the-scenes pressure from Canberra.

The Indonesian Government also signalled displeasure at Australian Government funds going to aid organisations which it accuses of actively supporting Papuan independence.

In light of the bitter diplomatic breach that followed Canberra's belated support for an act of self-determination in East Timor, the Australian Government is trying to avoid a similar conflict in Papua.

But many of the same Indonesian military officers accused of creating and directing violent anti-independence militia in East Timor have now been deployed in Papua.

The Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, argues that the international community has no room to move because whereas East Timor was formerly a Portuguese colony, Papua was part of the wider Dutch colony which became the Republic of Indonesia.

Australian public opinion forced the Howard Government to drop its longstanding acceptance of Indonesia's invasion and incorporation of East Timor. It is yet to be seen whether so many Australians will come to feel as passionately about Papua as they did about East Timor.

However, events in the western half of the island of New Guinea are already demanding greater public attention and engendering humanitarian concern.

The arrival of thousands of Islamic militants -- mostly in the form of the Laskar Jihad among Muslim Indonesian migrants to the province -- is one portent of trouble ahead. More serious still is growing evidence indicating that some elements of the Indonesian military are backing the jihadists, including through training at camps along the rugged border with Papua New Guinea.

Senior officials in the Howard Government acknowledge that there are "informal" links, but a number of regional analysts point to high-level Indonesian military sanctioning of the Laskar Jihad and other militias in Papua.

Among the prime suspects in terms of such involvement are members of Indonesia's Kopassus special forces.

Despite such concerns, the Australian Government is renewing aid and other ties to Kopassus which were severed following gross human rights abuses by the elite force in East Timor during 1999.

The Australian Government, in the wake of the October 12 Bali bombings and wider fears over al-Qaeda-linked groups using the Indonesian archipelago to stage further terrorist attacks, is clearly worried about developments in Papua.

For example, there is the prospect that an Indonesian military crackdown on dissent, which has already involved summary killings, will intensify while the world is preoccupied with the looming war against Iraq.

And extremists, or military-backed agent provocateurs, have already demonstrated a readiness to incite communal strife elsewhere in Indonesia by such underhand methods as setting fire to churches or mosques.

Given past experience, it could be corrupt elements of the military - seeking to retain control of lucrative illegal logging operations or extortion rackets involving big mining projects -- who provoke unrest in order to justify the crushing of dissent.

Given that some 40 per cent of Papua's more than 2 million population consists of non-Papuans, mainly Muslim migrants from elsewhere in Indonesia, amid a Christian and animist majority, scope for widespread communal conflict is real.

Downer has on a number of occasions warned about the risk of a "bloodbath" in the Indonesian province if there is outside support for the independence campaign which has waxed and waned since the 1960s. Specifically, he has pointed to a danger of "civil war".

The Howard Government advocates continued international acceptance of Indonesian sovereignty in Papua, a recognition of Jakarta's insistence that the republic not be allowed to fracture into micro-states.

During a recent sweep through the South Pacific, Downer strongly cautioned Vanuatu against going ahead with a plan to allow the opening of a West Papuan representative office in its capital, Port Vila, this month.

Australia has also worked behind the scenes, not always successfully, to prevent Papuan activists from being included in several national delegations at the annual Pacific Islands Forum gathering.

In the past, Australia has pressed concerns on Jakarta's behalf with Papua New Guinea, even relaying requests for Indonesian troops to be allowed to cross over the border in "hot pursuit" of rebels.

With continuing pockets of popular support for Papuan independence in PNG, especially in border areas, Port Moresby has been squeezed by local sensitivities as well as by Jakarta and Canberra.

The PNG Government recently expressed fears that Islamic extremist militia in Papua could use the province as a base to strike Australian targets on the PNG side of the border.

In an attempt to avoid tensions with Indonesia, PNG has said this month it will repatriate more than 300 Papuans who have been at a refugee camp near the dusty border town of Vanimo for more than two years.

As happened when more than 10,000 Papuans crossed into PNG in the 1980s, the Catholic Church has come out strongly against such repatriations, to the annoyance of the Indonesian Government.

On the Papuan side of the border, there has been an Indonesian troop build-up during the past year or so from about 4,000 to more than 5,000 soldiers.

Professor Ron May, a regional specialist at the Australian National University in Canberra, told the Herald that after a period of attempting to pursue dialogue, Indonesian authorities had switched to a major crackdown on dissidents.

"If they put the lid on a boiling cauldron like that, there will be a point when the lid will blow," May said.

He said Australia needed to engage in open discussion about the problems and future of Papua, adding that other academic institutions should not follow the RMIT and bow to outside pressure. Likewise, he said the Australian Government should not attempt to curb academic freedoms in order to appease Jakarta.

Rumbiak, who is from the Papuan human rights group ELSHAM, says that rather than focusing on the danger of civil war, Downer should urge Indonesia to enter into meaningful talks with Papuan leaders.

"We are talking about a wise proposal that would take into account the interests of Papuans, Jakarta and the international community, including Australia," he said.

As well as discussion of Indonesia's plans to implement a package providing for greater autonomy, the issue of full independence would remain a "crucial question" to be addressed.

While a major pro-independence body, the Papua Council Presidium, has called for a "zone of peace" in Papua, there are elements of the Free Papua Movement (OPM) in remote hideouts who continue to call for more guns to pursue an armed struggle.

"That is because of frustration due to the international community remaining silent on the need for dialogue," Mr Rumbiak explained.

He added that it was clear that Australian communications intercepts in Papua, as well as intelligence information shared with Canberra by the United States, were providing evidence of human rights violations and links between the military and anti- independence militia (see breakout).

"As a member of the United Nations, Australia should not stay quiet -- it should take such material to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights," Rumbiak said.

Army chief denies he knew of US mine's kickbacks

Sydney Morning Herald - March 15, 2003

Matthew Moore, Jakarta -- The head of Indonesia's military, General Endriartono Sutarto, said he "didn't know" that an American mining company last year paid the military about $US5.6 million to protect its mine where 15 people were shot in an ambush.

More than six months after three of its employees were killed and a dozen injured at its copper mine in Papua, the Freeport-McMoran company has finally disclosed some details of the secret payments, which many people have long believed it has regularly made to the Indonesian army (TNI).

Although the TNI has been a prime suspect in last August's attack on mainly US school teachers, General Endriartono said yesterday: "So far I don't think we have been transferred money by Freeport. What I know is the kids stationed in Freeport receive meal money and pocket money, other than that I don't know."

General Endriartono's assertion that he knows nothing about the payments comes after his repeated claims the TNI has conducted three investigations into the shootings and found no evidence of any military involvement.

Disclosure of the payments could see the FBI investigate whether deadlocked negotiations between the TNI and Freeport last year sparked the attack on the convoy.

Several FBI agents began investigating the shootings earlier this year after US President George Bush told Indonesia's President Megawati Soekarnoputri he wanted foreign agents to be used in the investigation, as had happened after the Bali bombing.

TNI chief admits to perks from Freeport

Jakarta Post - March 15, 2003

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta -- Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Soetarto said on Friday some 600 troops stationed at the Freeport mine in Papua to protect the company's assets receive daily allowances and lunches from the United States-based company.

Endriartono said the money was given to soldiers in the field, but he did not know how much each soldier received.

"The boys at the mining site receive daily allowances and lunches, but I do not know if Freeport also donates additional money to the TNI," Endriartono said.

He did not say whether the TNI allocated money from its own budget for the protection of the company's assets.

Speaking to reporters after swearing in the new commander of the Presidential Guards, Brig. Gen. Agung Widjajadi, who replaces Maj. Gen. Nono Sampono, Endriartono said he would seek clarification on whether Freeport Indonesia provided additional money to the military.

Endriartono was commenting on a news report that TNI received US$5.6 million from the American-based company to protect its employees. Freeport-McMoran Copper and Gold Inc. disclosed this figure in a confidential document sent to the New York City comptroller's office and to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, according to the report by AFX Global Ethics Monitor.

The report said these payments had been made since 2001, with $4.7 million provided for 2,300 troops at the site to cover their housing, fuel, travel and vehicle repair expenses.

In a Freeport document to its shareholders, the company also said another $400,000 was disbursed in 2002 for "associated infrastructure" in Indonesia.

The giant mining company has been operating in the country since the late 1960s, but its presence in Papua has become increasingly controversial of late, with critics linking it to human rights abuses and graft.

An ambush last year that killed two American teachers and an Indonesian employed by Freeport is one major case concerning the company. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation is helping in the investigation into the ambush.

"Historically, the limited resources of the Indonesian government and the remote location and underdevelopment of Papua have resulted in PT Freeport Indonesia being requested to provide logistical and infrastructure support, for both the civilian government and the military/police," Freeport wrote in the document.

Endriartono reiterated he had never heard of or received the large amounts of money mentioned by Freeport in the confidential document. He said all he was aware of was the free lunches and allowances the company provided for the 600 soldiers at the site.

"I will talk to Freeport immediately. The company has never publicly provided such a report or said to whom they give this money," the general said.

Freeport paid TNI US$5.6m in 'protection money': report

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Jakarta -- The US Freeport company paid the Indonesian military (TNI) about US$5.6 million last year to protect employees of its giant copper and gold mine in Papua province, according to a report released Thursday.

The TNI, which is combating a sporadic and low-levelseparatist revolt in Papua, has been accused of widespread abuses in the province, including the killing of pro-independence leader Theys Eluay.

Freeport-McMoran Copper et Gold Inc disclosed the figure in a confidential document sent to the New York City comptroller's office and to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, said the report by AFX Global Ethics Monitor, a new service fromAFP.

Freeport also said that in 2001 it paid the military $4.7 million for the employment of about 2,300 "Indonesian government security personnel".

The money covered costs for housing, fuel, travel and vehicle repairs for the military, Freeport wrote in the document.

It also paid 400,000 dollars in 2002 for "associatedinfrastructure" in Indonesia, according to the document.

It said Freeport filed the document in response to a shareholder resolution filed by a group of New York's public pension funds earlier this year. This requests more information about Freeport's presence in Indonesia because of allegations of human rights abuses by the military.

West Papua - Still struggling for freedom

An Phoblacht/Republican News (Ireland) - March 13, 2003

Sem Karoba is a student leader and representative of the West Papua Presidium Council (West Papua's alternative to the Indonesian government) who is on his second visit to Ireland, lobbying for international support for his people.

More than 100,000 West Papuans have been killed in the last 41 years. For all these years, people in West Papua have fought for the right to self-determination. However, their struggle and their rights have been ignored not only by the media, but also by the leaders of the international community, who worry more about how the possible "Balkanisation" of Indonesia would affect their economies than about the lives and future of West Papuans.

The fact that West Papuans are sitting on some of the world's richest deposits of oil, copper, gold and silver does not help. In fact, that is a large part of the reason they are suffering now.

Everything started back in the 1950s, when the Netherlands -- which ruled West Papua since 1883 -- recognised the Papuan right to self-determination in accordance with Article 72 of the Charter of the United Nation. Had not Indonesia interfered, West Papua would have achieved self-determination by 1970 -- as happened to the eastern part of the island, Papua New Guinea, which gained full independence from the British in 1975.

But Indonesia wanted to integrate West Papua into its territories, and in 1961, Indonesian president Sukarno chose armed conflict to force the issue at a time when the first parliament had already been installed in West Papua and the national anthem and Papuan flag had been introduced. The Dutch government agreed with the US and Indonesia -- with the support of the United Nations -- to transfer sovereignty to Indonesia. After years of terror and repression, a fraudulent 'referendum was held in 1969, when 1,025 people voted under duress, on behalf of a population of a million, to join Indonesia.

Since then, West Papuans have suffered genocide while the country's resources have been taken away by US Free Port, mining gold and copper and by Britain BP's gas projects. Their land and culture is under threat as the Indonesians keep implementing a very aggressive transmigration policy -- with many similarities to the Plantation in Ireland.

For West Papuans, the so-called democratisation of Indonesia has not meant any change. The governments of Sukarno, Suharto, Wahid or Sukarno's daughter's, Megawati Sukarnoputri, have only brought them increasing suffering and repression.

But West Papuans feel that their time have come. They rely on the East Timor experience to know it is possible to break away from the Indonesian colonial power, but again, the international community's role is crucial for their plans. This is the reason why Karoba is back in Ireland.

An Phoblacht: The last time you visited Ireland, in the summer of 2001, Wahid was president of Indonesia. Since then, he has been deposed and Megawati Sukarnoputri has taken the reins of the country. How has this change affected West Papua's situation?

Sem Karoba: The presidency of Megawati is like Suharto's. The military are the main players in politics. However, they have changed their ways: they would ask Parliament to approve their bills, as some of their activities in Aceh and West Papua need parliamentary sanction. However, there are many army representatives who sit in parliament. They have money and power, and the reason they use to justify their actions is that this is the only way to preserve Indonesia as it is. This is the way of nationalism. So, the politicians do not have the strength to argue with them. Even Megawati cannot take any action against those members of the army who were behind the attack against her office in 1997. The army officer in command at the time of the attack is now on his second term as governor of Jakarta city.

AP: In 2001, you mentioned that there were possibilities of advancing the situation while Wahid was in power, as he was more of a negotiator. What about Megawati?

SK: Now the door is closed. They are not talking any more. Since the last time I was in Ireland, Theys Eluay, the leader of the West Papuan Presidium Council, has been killed (the Institute for Human Rights Study and Advocacy reported that he had been abducted, tortured and assassinated). I left Ireland in October 2001 and I was still travelling when news of his death reached me in November. Another elder from the area I am from was also poisoned after attending a meeting on sustainable development in Bali.

Finishing off the leaders was the policy after Megawati came to power. She actually proposed this policy to Wahid -- we have gotten hold of this document recently -- who opposed it. As soon as she took power, she started killing the leaders in Aceh and West Papua.

Due to pressure from the international community -- who are pushing for the idea of autonomy -- she had to order the withdrawal of the Indonesian Special Forces from West Papua at the beginning of the month. This was due to their many mistakes, like the killing of two US citizens last year. So now, officially the Special Forces are not present in West Papua, but they are still there, and the militia is still there.

AP: What are West Papuans doing at the moment?

SK: What we are trying to do is bring our situation to the attention of the international community. The Indonesians are not interested in dialogue, so we need international pressure. They go to London, New York and Canberra to ask for opinion and these three countries are telling them that Indonesia should keep West Papua. If Indonesia took over West Papua when the Dutch left it was not only because they wanted to do it, but because the international community allowed them to do it. So now we are going to the international lobby to ask them to force Indonesia into dialogue.

AP: The problem is that the international community is now too focused on what is happening in relation to Iraq to actually worry about West Papua.

SK: Our strategy is to lobby quietly now, so when out time comes we will be ready. We have increased the number of our grassroots supporters in England, for example, and I expect to do the same in Ireland, so we can send a clear message to the politicians in relation to the situation in West Papua.

AP: How has 9/11 and the new international scenario of war affected the situation of West Papua?

SK: Indonesia is the biggest Islamic state in Asia. Many members of the Muslim Jihad and Muslim extremists have gone into hiding in Indonesia. I have personally come across some of them in West Papua and in Indonesia. Examples of their activity are the bombing in Bali and the increased killings in West Papua. Now, in the name of Islam, they are giving guns and coverage to all these people, telling them that to defend the integrity of Indonesia is the same as defending Islam, that is the message they are sending. Maluku and West Papuans are Christians and the Indonesian government is sending all those Jihad troops to these areas. So, this is one of the reasons why the international community is listening more to us.

The support of the international community for our cause it is not clear yet, because most of the international powers have important business dealings with Indonesia.

AP: You have met several politicians here in Ireland. What has their reaction been?

SK: Their reaction has been positive, because they have a historical knowledge of why independence is so important. They welcome our presence; they support our cause as long as we defend it in a democratic way. But to make it work we need their support.

Indonesian politicians do not even reply to our approaches, but they will listen to international opinion.

I am here to learn about the Irish process and the Good Friday Agreement negotiations. I want to listen to those who were involved in the negotiations and I want to meet those who worked behind the scenes. A process of this kind is very difficult, but they started it and they are on the way to completion. We want something similar to take place in West Papua.

It is difficult, and many people in my country, and mostly in the area I am from, would not support any kind of dialogue with Indonesians, and that is what I want to learn, how to deal with all these situations.

Papuans protest new provinces

Jakarta Post - March 13, 2003

Jayapura -- A crowd of some 100 students demonstrated on Monday before the provincial legislature against Jakarta's move to split Papua into three provinces, arguing it would attract more migrants to the natural resources-rich, yet sparely populated region.

Calling themselves the Mid-Mountain People's Care Forum, the protesters, mostly students, argued that dividing Papua in three provinces benefited Jakarta but would harm locals.

They feared an influx of migrants, reasoning Papuans were unlikely to fill all the new posts needed to run the two new provincial governments.

Locals have long complained about discrimination by migrants since the region came under Indonesian rule during the 1960s.

Poverty and unemployment remains a problem in Papua despite its advanced exploitation of natural resources. As education has been lacking, most of the higher-paid jobs have been filled by outsiders.

Monday's rally was the third since President Megawati Soekarnoputri approved the addition of two new provinces to Papua last January.

The move is aimed to bring better public services to the 2.4 million Papuans who live in a region about three times the size of Java.

Anti-war movement

Indonesian Muslims join mass peace rally

Agence France Presse - March 10, 2003

A prayer rally in the province of East Java in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-populated country, attracted hundreds of thousands of Muslims to pray for peace and a non-violent end to the Iraq crisis.

An open field across from the provincial military command in provincial capital Surabaya teemed with people gathered for the two-hour "national" mass prayer organised by the country's largest Muslim movement, the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU).

Crowd estimates varied, with witnesses putting the numbers at between 100,000 and 500,000 and a policeman on guard who identified himself as Agus said there were more than 500,000 people in attendance at the prayer meeting in the NU stronghold, which opened and closed without incident.

NU Chairman Hasyim Muzadi briefly addressed the gathering and called on Washington to refrain from attacking Iraq. "This is for international interests. It would be better to leave this to the United Nations to handle," Muzadi said.

The aim of Sunday's rally, he added, was to seek counsel from God to help ensure the safety of the nation and "prosperity" for the world. A new "National Repentance Movement" launched by the NU would be "the start of introspection for the leaders and the nation of Indonesia," Muzadi said.

Popular young cleric Abdullah Gymnastiar, meanwhile, attracted a congregation of thousands to the Istiqlal main mosque in the capital Jakarta for a sermon in which he preached non-violence and the need for honest government.

Gymanstiar had told journalists this week that following Sunday afternoon prayers he, escorted by a legion of supporters, would hand-deliver an open letter to US President George W. Bush asking that he refrain from attacking Iraq to the US embassy about a kilometer down the road from the mosque.

Gymnastiar did not elaborate on the contents of the two-page letter to Bush and acknowledged he did not expect a reply.

"Let Mr. Bush ask his deepest conscience whether he really represents the people of the United States," he said.

"I really fear the negative impact of war. As a human, I am worried at the dangerous attitude of Mr. Bush, who so far has refused to listen to the people of the world." Some 700 policemen joined another 700 military personnel, NU youth guards and members of the organising committee in overseeing the Surabaya event, which also included prayers for peace in the Middle East and in the restive Indonesian province of Aceh. There were no disruptions reported.

Present at the rally were Foreign Minister Hasan Wirayuda, Religious Affairs Minister Said Agil Husin al-Munawar, Defence Minister Matori Abdul Jalil, Army Chief General Ryamizard Ryacudu and former president Abdurrahman Wahid.

Also present were the ambassadors of friendly countries, including Iraq, Iran and Kuwait, as well as a representative from Palestine. Among the some 300 clerics onstage were 50 clerics from the staunchly Muslim province of Aceh at the tip of Sumatra island.

"Hopefully, the prayers of humankind can be heard by Washington. Hopefully the ears and the eyes of the US leaders can be opened by this prayer," Wirayuda said late Saturday.

Close to 90 percent of the Indonesian archipelago's 214 million people practice Islam.

Indonesia has said it supports the presence of UN weapons inspectors in Iraq but opposes any unilateral action against Baghdad.

'War on terrorism'

Government to submit new bill on terrorism

Jakarta Post - March 12, 2003

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta -- The government plans to submit a new bill as part of an addition to the set of antiterrorism bills, one of which was endorsed by the House of Representatives last week, to reduce to a minimum the authority of the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) in dealing with terrorism.

Justice and Human Rights Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said after a meeting with President Megawati Soekarnoputri at the latter's office that the newly endorsed bill had several things that needed to be fine tuned to avoid misinterpretations in its implementation.

"For example, Article 26 of the bill which says intelligence reports could be used as evidence in terrorist cases could be interpreted wrongfully, so we want to prevent BIN from abusing the ruling," he said.

The bill's article allows the use of intelligence reports as prima facie evidence and would thus be submissible in a court of law.

The House of Representatives endorsed the temporary government regulation in lieu of a law (Perpu) No. 1/2002 last week, while at the same time a special committee of the House was still reading the government-sponsored antiterrorism bill which was put forth to replace the perpu on a permanent basis.

The Perpu, although constitutionally legal, is nevertheless uncommon, because usually the House only needs to approve the regulation, which was issued in a time of emergency.

The Perpu was issued by President Megawati Soekarnoputri just a week after the Oct. 12 Bali terror attack, as the country had no laws which dealt with terrorism.

The government's move is considered by many observers as a waste of time and inefficient because the House will now have to spend even more time deliberating the latest bill, which was scheduled to be submitted within one month after the endorsement of the Perpu.

Yusril said that the government had never requested that the House deliberate on the Perpu in the first place, they are normally meant to simply endorse it.

"The government has never asked the House to deliberate the Perpu anyway as it is temporary. We are asking for a fast deliberation of the antiterrorism bills so we can have permanent laws," the minister said.

"However, the House said that they did not have enough time, so the President will send an official letter, asking the House to stop deliberating the antiterrorism bill which was submitted two months ago," said Yusril.

He added that aside from Article 26, the new draft law will regulate that witnesses' testimony through teleconference facility will be accepted as legitimate. "Currently such practices only happen in a court, but with the draft law, it could be done during the investigation," Yusril said.

This is not the first time Yusril blocked BIN from acquiring greater authority in dealing with terrorism acts, as he also refused it during the deliberation of the Perpu with the House.

Certain groups have argued that greater authority by BIN, led by Hendropriyono, would be a serious threat to Muslims and Yusril, part of a Muslim-based party, has always tried to reduce that possibility.

Government & politics

Coalition angst

Laksamana.Net - March 13, 2003

Indonesia's top political parties -- all of which are regarded as corrupt -- are busy contemplating possible coalitions ahead of next year's general election, keenly aware that no party will win an outright majority.

President Megawati Sukarnoputri's incumbent coalition government already contains a broad mix of the country's various political forces, including nationalist parties, Islamic parties and the military.

The political bodies represented in the government are: Megawati's nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P); Vice President Hamzah Haz's Islam-based United Development Party (PPP); ex-president Suharto's former political vehicle Golkar Party; Justice and Human Rights Minister Yusril Izha Mahendra's Islam-based Crescent Star Party (PBB); People's Consultative Assembly speaker Amien Rais' National Mandate Party (PAN); Defense Minister Matori Abdul Djalil's splinter faction of the National Awakening Party (PKB); and of course the military, which has four cabinet portfolios.

When Megawati came to power in July 2001, there were concerns that political differences would render the government ineffective and lead to the break-up of the seven-member coalition, but this has not been the case.

It has been a slightly different story in parliament though, with a few disgruntled and disillusioned legislators resigning to form new parties. In January 2003, some small left-wing and nationalist parties joined forces with various social groups to form the so-called National Coalition.

Among the members of the National Coalition are: the People's Democratic Party (PRD); the National Bung Karno Party (PNBK); the Social Democratic Labor Party (PSDB); the People's Struggle Party (PPR); the Indonesian National Front for Labor Struggle (FNPBI); and the Indonesian Workers Prosperity Union (SBSI).

It seems unlikely this small coalition will be able to put much of a dent in the power of the incumbent political elite, despite widespread public disaffection with the status quo.

If any of the major parties try to go it alone, they could well find themselves in the political wilderness next year, assuming the other parties were to form a strong alliance.

As has long been the case in Indonesian politics, personalities carry more weight than policies, so the top parties may well manage to continue sacrificing certain principles -- such being as anti-corruption or pro-Islamic law -- for the sake of staying together to maintain their grip on power.

Swapping partners?

Future coalitions are likely to be based on partnerships between presidential and vice-presidential candidates from different parties.

PDI-P is considering extending its coalition with certain Muslim parties and Golkar, but is yet to decide on a running mate for Megawati. The party on Thursday ended a three-day leadership without any announcement on who will be its vice presidential candidate.

Earlier reports said PDI-P had been considering four names: Nahdlatul Ulama Muslim organization chairman Hasyim Muzadi (linked to PKB), Vice President Hamzah Haz (PPP), Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (military), and Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla (Golkar).

Chairman of the Golkar faction in the House of Representatives, Marzuki Achmad, on Thursday said his party was open to a coalition with PDI-P. He said a permanent coalition between the two parties would guarantee strong parliamentary support for the incumbent government.

"A coalition between PDIP and Golkar is an objective alternative with a strong foundation to carry out the government's tasks smoothly," he was quoted as saying by state news agency Antara.

PAN deputy chairman A.M. Fatwa said Thursday his party has decided to nominate its leader Amien Rais for the presidency. "However, our party is still searching the field for the right figure for vice president... We are still weighing the right figure to be paired with Amien Rais," he said.

Educational ploy

Suharto-era finance minister and business crony Fuad Bawazier, who these days is a member of PAN, on Thursday proposed a list of presidential criteria that would, if accepted, effectively prevent Megawati and former presidents Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid and Suharto from vying for re-election.

Bawazier said future presidential and vice presidential candidates should have a university level education; be physically capable; and not be embroiled in any legal cases.

Megawati doesn't have a university degree. Neither does former president Suharto, who these days is said to be brain-damaged, presumably to avoid trial for corruption. Gus Dur, who was educated in Indonesia, Egypt, Iraq and Canada, is clinically blind.

Under Bawazier's criteria, Vice President Hamzah Haz would still be in the running, as he was smart enough to buy his degree. Not surprisingly, PAN leader Amien Rais, who was educated in Yogyakarta and Chicago, would also be eligible.

Bawazier said the multi-dimensional problems facing Indonesia are so complex that future national leaders must have strong mental capabilities. He pointed out that almost all professional positions require a university-level education.

PBB on Thursday rejected Bawazier's call to include "university graduate" as one of the criteria for presidential and vice presidential candidates.

"As the president will be elected by direct popular votes, the nomination of presidential and vice presidential candidates should be given the widest leeway. The qualifications should be made not too restrictive," said PBB secretary general M.S. Kaban.

He said the education criteria should refer to the law on general elections, which stipulates that "high school graduate" is the minimum educational requirement for legislative candidates. Bawazier's demand to exclude non-university graduates from the presidential race seems targeted mainly at Megawati. Opposition politicians in the past tried to thwart Megawati's presidential aspirations by saying it was unacceptable to Islam that a woman be president.

PDIP fails to choose running mate for Megawati

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta -- The national meeting of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) ended on a low note on Thursday as party executives left chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri to choose her own running mate for the 2004 presidential election.

Although the meeting failed to announce any names, it recommended the criteria for selecting vice presidential candidates, a practice which always preceded the presidential election during the past regime of former president Soeharto. PDI Perjuangan requires that candidates for Megawati's running mate support the integrity and plurality of the country and be committed to the eradication of corruption, collusion and nepotism.

In her opening remarks on Monday, Megawati encouraged party members at the grassroots level to select her running mate.

Four names were mentioned during the national meeting as possible choices for the party's vice presidential candidate: Nahdlatul Ulama chairman Hasyim Muzadi, incumbent Vice President Hamzah Haz, Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Coordinating Minister for Peoples' Welfare Jusuf Kalla, who is also a Golkar executive.

PDI Perjuangan's failure to settle on a running mate for its presidential candidate, Megawati, further indicated the party's unreadiness to contest the first ever direct presidential election. Party executives are expecting the vice presidential candidate, who is almost certain to come from outside the party, to boost Megawati's chances at winning the presidency.

To make matters worse, the party's secretary-general, Soetjipto, said it was too early to disclose which party PDI Perjuangan would coalesce with to win the presidential election.

"We will decide the coalition when the time is right as we need to find a suitable partner for Megawati in order to win the election," Soetjipto said during a news conference after the closing ceremony.

Many doubt that the largest party could notch up a second straight win in the general election, due to its fragmentation and Megawati's withering popularity. PDI Perjuangan won almost 35 percent of the vote in the 1999 election.

The decision to provide impunity for corruptors in the Indonesian bank liquidity assistance cases, the reelection of Sutiyoso as Jakarta's Governor and efforts to prevent political moves against Akbar Tandjung, the Golkar party chairman who was sentenced to three years in jail for graft, have sparked widespread public distrust in Megawati.

Disappointment with Megawati has also led PDI Perjuangan members to challenge her policies or quit the party and form their own.

Political observers, meanwhile, said that overtures being made by political parties to ex-military leaders to become running mates in the presidential and vice presidential elections could hamper the development of democracy and civil supremacy in this country.

Bambang Widjojanto from the Center of Electoral Reform (Cetro) and Ifdal Kasim from the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM) noted that the move by political parties to nominate retired generals indicated that civilian politicians were considered inferior to run the country.

Among the ex-military leaders mentioned by some political parties are Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Minister of Transportation Agum Gumelar, State Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief A.M. Hendropriyono and former Indonesian Military commander Wiranto.

"If this trend continues, it will stunt the political maturity of civilian leaders," Bambang told The Jakarta Post here on Thursday.

Ifdal emphasized that Susilo, Agum, Hendropriyono and Wiranto grew up with military tradition. "Their mind-set is one of authoritarianism and it is difficult to change that," Ifdal said.

Golkar leader Akbar Tandjung has also mentioned Susilo, Wiranto and Agum Gumelar as potential nominees.

Political analyst Rizal Malarangeng said it would be hard for political parties to nominate their own members to contest the presidential election.

Coalitions will be needed, Rizal said, because only a coalition government could help create a stronger executive branch.

Corruption/collusion/nepotism

Indonesia still Asia's most corrupt

Laksamana.Net - March 11, 2003

Indonesia remains the most corrupt country in Asia, according to a new survey. The latest Asian Intelligence Report found Indonesia was regarded as the most corrupt of 13 Asia-Pacific countries listed for the sixth consecutive year.

Corruption flourished in Indonesia under former president Suharto, who ruled the country with an iron fist for more than 32 years. Successive governments have proved to be largely incapable of dealing with the problem.

Despite some corruption convictions over recent years, graft remains rampant in most state institutions. Pay-offs are allegedly required to secure approval from parliamentary commissions, while courts are regarded as auction houses, handing down verdicts to the highest bidders.

The Attorney General's Office is seen as being endemically corrupt, leaving the media to seek out the facts in graft cases. But there are increasing signs the government and top politicians are becoming intolerant of press freedom.

The chief editor of the popular Rakyat Merdeka newspaper is currently on trial over a caricature of convicted parliament speaker Akbar Tanjung.

Prosecutors earlier this month told a Jakarta court that Karim Paputungan, chief editor of Rakyat Merdeka, "had convincingly attacked Akbar's reputation and image" in the caricature published in January 2002.

Analysts say Tanjung's reputation and image were already irretrievably bad -- precisely because he is a convicted criminal and his first appeal against his conviction was rejected. However, he remains free pending a second appeal.

Indonesia has long been rated as one of the world's most corrupt countries by Transparency International.

Asian Intelligence's survey said the Asia-Pacific's most corrupt countries are: Indonesia, followed by India, Vietnam, Thailand, China and the Philippines.

Singapore was rated the least corrupt country in the region, followed by Australia, the US and Hong Kong.

Pertamina and Suharto's modus operandi

Laksamana.Net - March 13, 2003

The emergence of a corruption case involving state-owned oil and gas Pertamina has created a new threat not only to former Mines and Energy Minister Ginandjar Kartasasmita, but also to other Suharto cronies and the former president's children.

Despite growing public skepticism over the seriousness of the government of Megawati Sukarnoputri in uprooting high-profile Suharto-era financial scandals, Emir Moeis, chairman of the special committee to investigate corruption at the state oil and gas company, has sent different signals.

A report submitted to the plenary meeting of the House of Representatives (DPR) has named Suharto and his four children, Sigit Harjojudanto, Bambang Trihatmojo, Siti "Tutut" Hardijanti Rukmana, and Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra.

Tommy Suharto is implicated in deals over Perta Oil and the Cepu oil field, Bambang and Tutut in the Java oil pipeline network, while eldest son Sigit is also implicated in the Cepu case.

Ginandjar is not the only Suharto minister implicated in the Pertamina corruption case. Former Coordinating Minister for Economics, Finance and Industry Radius Prawiro and former Mines and Energy Minister and OPEC secretary general Subroto also win mentions. Former President B.J. Habibie is named in the pipeline case.

From the private sector, Bob Hasan, Aburizal Bakrie, Yoseph Dharpa Brata and Rosano Barrack achieve ranking status.

Despite the largesse of Pertamina that found its way to the Suharto gang, its members also inflicted enormous damage to Indonesia's economy, running up massive total debts of Rp43.4 trillion.

Companies owned by Tommy and Bambang account for the largest chunk of bad debt transferred to the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA). Tommy's Humpuss Group, with 16 debt-laden subsidiaries, had "troubled" loans of Rp6.76 trillion, while the bad debts of Bambang's Bimantara Citra and Apac-Bhakti Karya, with their 23 heavily indebted subsidiaries, totaled Rp4.36 trillion.

This is a family whose combined wealth and reported fortunes vary depending on who is telling the story.

Forbes Magazine estimated the Suharto's were worth $16 billion, while Newsweek guessed $30 billion. Asiaweek, in 1998, reckoned their wealth at a measly $8 billion, and the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) said $30 billion. Nearer to home, the Indonesian Business Data Center said the clan was worth $20 billion.

How they did it

If the DPR special committee is serious in investigating the Pertamina cases, the modus operandi of the family and cronies may finally be fully revealed.

The Suharto children could command rights to any government project almost undisputed.

The Arab-led boost in oil prices in 1973 put massive additional resources at the disposal of Suharto and enabled him to consolidate and strengthen his power.

In 1974, the oil price surge produced a revenue windfall of $4.2 billion for Indonesia, then equivalent to about 18% of gross domestic product. Indonesia during the oil boom was like a man who has won first prize in a lottery. In the hands of a regime that was unaccountable to the people, the temptation of misusing this windfall was totally uncontrollable.

In the 1970s, when Suharto and former head of Pertamina Ibnu Sutowo shared control over the state-owned oil and gas monopoly, they used part of this windfall to complete the transformation of the company into a business empire that went far beyond oil production.

Sutowo was eventually fired by Suharto following revelations that Pertamina had run up debts of $10.5 billion, approximately 30% of Indonesia's GDP.

Sutowo's departure provided Suharto with the opportunity to seize total control of Pertamina and turn it into his personal money machine.

The position of minister for mines and energy became very strategic. Allegations of Ginandjar's involvement in the Balongan case demonstrate one element of the business conspiracy between Suharto and his minister.

British role

The detention of Pertamina operations director Tabrani Ismail revealed a link with British contractor Foster Wheeler.

Evidence of a deal between Foster Wheeler and Suharto surfaced when, on August 4, 1989, Suharto issued Presidential Decree No. 42/1989 on Joint Ventures between Pertamina and Private Business Agents in the Oil and Natural Gas Processing Sector.

In his position as Suharto's key minister, Ginandjar was in the right place to push Pertamina to speed up the Balongan deal.

In 1987 Foster Wheeler offered to construct the oil refinery for $3.5 billion, but Pertamina rejected the bid as far too high. Pertamina's estimate of the value of the work was only $1.623 billion.

In 1989, negotiations between Pertamina and Foster Wheeler reached an impasse. The British company turned to Suharto, and from this point Pertamina was locked out of the process.

Finally, under Ginandjar's instruction on August 10, 1989, Pertamina signed a contract for the Balongan Exor I project for $1.823 billion, a mark-up of approximately $200 million.

As stated by Tabrani Ismail in an interview with Tempo (March 10), Suharto and Ginanjar should be held responsible. "As Pertamina's director of operations, I could only make a decision if the value of the project was under Rp1.3 billion. That's why all results of such meetings were conveyed to my superiors."

"Looking at the project negotiations," added Tabrani, "the Minister of Mines and Energy and Former President Suharto are the ones who made the decisions."

The private sector figures allegedly involved in the Balongan deal were Tutut Rukmana and Rosano Barrack, the partner of Bambang Trihatmojo in Bimantara Citra.

Ustraindo

In the case of the technical assistance contract on oil production involving Pertamina and PT Ustraindo Petro Gas, worth $23.3 million, the role of Suharto and Ginandjar again comes into the limelight.

Application of the contract caused significant financial losses to the government. Ginandjar has denied he was involved, saying that when the contract took effect, he was no longer a minister, although he admitted the signing of the contract occurred under his watch.

Examination of the case shows that a technical assistance program was converted from its original goal of raising output and efficiency within Pertamina, and that Ginandjar as the minister who signed the agreement, cannot avoid responsibility.

A private company such as Ustraindo Petro Gas should not have been involved in a program involving a productive field in the first place. Such programs are only allowed in inactive fields.

The head of Pertamina at the time, Faisal Abda'oe, and then Mines and Energy Minister I.B. Sudjana have conveniently passed away, making the effort to reveal the case much harder.

BBG group

Other evidence suggests that the relationship between Suharto and Ginandjar was not as solid as it initially seems. At times they found themselves competing for business.

In 1988, with Ginandjar back in charge at Mines and Energy, he began to reinforce his own cronies, independently of Suharto. His main aim was to neutralize the grip of Pertamina over oil-related industries such as petrochemicals.

In March 1990, three of Ginandjar's allies, Aburizal Bakrie of the Bakrie Group, Fadel Muhammad of Bukaka Teknik Utama, and Imam Taufik of Gunanusa Utama Fabricators, set their sights on the design and construction contract for a giant export-oriented oil refinery, Exor 4.

They formed a consortium named BBG, and opened talks with two international engineering firms, Fluor of the United States and Mitsui of Japan. BBG, with Ginandjar's strong backing, intended to be the main domestic contractor in the $1.8 billion project.

In the meantime, a second consortium of indigenous-owned companies was making progress on a second petrochemical project. The CNT group, which consisted of Agus Kartasasmita and Ponco Sutowo (the son of former Pertamina head Ibnu Sutowo), was to be the main local partner of Mitsui and Toyo engineering of Japan in a $1.7 billion project to construct a residual catalytic cracking plant in Cilacap, Central Java.

The unit would produce naptha and high grade fuels from crude oil. In the negotiation process, it was decided that CNT would absorb about $400 million of the project cost.

Then Suharto interfered. He ordered Ginandjar to make two ethnic Chinese tycoons -- Liem Sioe Liong and Prayogo Pangestu -- the principal domestic partners in the projects.

Ginandjar was outraged, but finally had no choice but to implement Suharto's instruction, while trying to ensure that the indigenous groups would at least retain significant sub- contracting roles.

Other cases involved allocations of crude and other petroleum- related products by Pertamina to markets overseas or for distribution within Indonesia.

The controversial $1.6 billion Chandra Asri Petrochemical Center was a leading example of the partnership between Bambang Trihatmodjo and Prayogo Pangestu.

Former Chandra Asri CEO Peter F. Gontha, at a British business lunch in Jakarta last year, blamed "the founders" for enormous cost overruns that ended up leaving the government with the bill for the entire original project cost.

Where the buck stopped

The main conclusion is simple: in every contract to be awarded, Suharto was always consulted. State enterprises such as Pertamina, the state electricity utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara, the telephone company Telkom, and the national logistic board Bulog -- were his principal providers of patronage funds.

Entering the 1990s, a fall-off in the price of oil and heightened competition in the regions for new foreign investment made it harder for Suharto's cronies to subsidize their money-losing enterprises.

Suharto instead turned to new avenues. State-owned companies were an easy target to be hijacked. The television and airline monopolies were broken and the children were usually the first to be awarded licenses.

Once the licenses were issued, the children then cashed out a proportion of their shareholdings. Various infrastructure projects, including toll roads and power plants, were classics of the genre.

In the end, Suharto's house of cards collapsed, but not until his children and friends had been greatly enriched by his political patronage and power over the centralized bureaucracy.

Questions surround school renovations

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Multa Fidrus, Tangerang -- Local officials have allegedly marked up the cost of the projects to renovate and build school buildings here by as much as 100 percent.

The Tangerang municipal administration has allocated Rp 37 billion from its 2003 budget to rebuild or renovate a total of 71 decrepit schools spread across 13 districts in the municipality.

A building contractor, however, estimated that the projects would cost less than half of the allocated fund.

Bambang Sumitro, director of PT Bestindo Sakura, a local building contractor, told The Jakarta Post that the maximum cost required to build a square meter of a school building in Tangerang is only Rp 750,000.

"Of course, such a maximum cost is required to construct a new building with the highest quality of materials. But contractors usually use middle of the range quality for schools and that would mean only Rp 500,000 for every square meter," he said.

The fund allocated to rebuild junior high school SLTPN 1 is more than Rp 465 million. It measures 351 square meters, meaning that each square meter will cost over Rp 1.3 million, a markup of nearly 3 times the cost for an average school building.

Under the calculation made by Bambang, Rp 263 million would be required to build the school with high quality materials, while a building using standard quality materials would require Rp 175.5 million.

Another indication of irregularities is seen in the Rp 737 million allocated to rebuild the 558-square-meter building of elementary school SDN 5 Pasar Baru.

The real cost of the project with high quality materials is only Rp 418.5 million, while the cost with standard quality materials would be Rp 279 million.

It is no secret that most state school buildings are built with low-quality materials. Many of them are now in poor condition because of that. Part of the roof and walls of at least one elementary school here collapsed recently.

Chief of the municipal education agency Harry Mulya Zain told the Post that his agency just collected data on damaged school buildings and then submitted that data to the planning agency, which later conducted surveys at schools and totaled up the costs required.

An official at the municipal planning agency, Iid Mahidin, denied any alleged irregularities in the projects. "We need a lot of money due to the increasing prices of building materials," he said.

This year, there are 62 elementary schools, seven junior high schools, one high school which will be renovated or reconstructed. The projects are scheduled to start this month.

None of principals of the schools, however, were informed about the renovation funds provided for their respective school.

"As of today, I don't know how much the administration had provided to renovate this school building," Yuyun Wahyuningsih, principal of elementary school SDN 2 told the Post.

Both Yuyun and Aryo, principal of elementary school SDN Cikokol 1, said that they were just told by the municipal planning agency officials who visited to take pictures last month, that their school buildings would be renovated in March.

"It is March now, but there is no sign of any work being done here. When it rains, I always ask the teachers and students to leave their classrooms because I am afraid that the school roof will collapse and crush them to death," Yuyun explained of the decrepit condition at his school.

Indonesia loses 30 per cent of foreign loans to graft

Straits Times - March 14, 2003

Robert Go, Jakarta -- Pressure is growing on the Indonesian government to reduce its dependence on foreign loans, with critics saying that as much as 30 per cent of donors' funds is being lost to corruption and inefficiency.

This comes at a time when analysts and regional surveys are increasingly describing Indonesia as the most corrupt place in Asia to do business.

The latest such survey, done by the Hongkong-based Political and Economic Consultancy Risk, gave Indonesia its worst score yet on the corruption scale since 1995.

Well-known economist Faisal Basri said on the sidelines of a seminar on Wednesday that the costs of borrowing money are too great, given the amount of corruption.

"Of all foreign loans, around 30 per cent get corrupted. The state loses, as it has to pay back that money. Why are we still reliant on foreign loans, then?" More criticism came in from outspoken minister for state development Kwik Kian Gie, who had said that the government has failed to maximise the benefit of having foreign loans.

He said the projects are poorly planned and there is a lack of technical expertise in most parts of the country -- both of which are factors that aid corruption.

Now, there is now a growing debate within the country on the issue, with those who wish to see Jakarta take on less foreign loans emphasising that it does not make sense to keep borrowing as long as embezzlement persists.

Indonesia's outstanding loans have ballooned from US$54 billion in pre-crisis 1997 to US$72.4 billion, and economists are anxious about the payout to service this debt.

Its current debt-servicing ratio -- the amount spent on repaying the debt as a percentage of export earnings -- hovers around 30 per cent, far higher than the norm of 20 per cent.

This means that a third of the country's hard-earned hard currency is going towards simply paying off creditors instead of being spent on anti-poverty efforts or development projects.

But analysts believe that curtailing borrowing may not be the solution. If the government were to stop borrowing, poor communities would plunge deeper into poverty.

The good news is that donors have recognised the problem and are working out ways to keep on lending while reducing the level of corruption affecting funds.

World Bank country director Andrew Steer told The Straits Times that the bank, a main lender to Indonesia, has tightened its lending procedures. "There is evidence that World Bank projects are affected by corruption. As a result, now our projects are designed specifically to cut down the chances of corruption," he said.

In addition to international-standard accounting procedures and conducting checks on all allegations of misappropriation, the World Bank has instituted more monitoring activities and made the lending process more transparent to the public. It's up to the government and officials handling the loans to do the rest, analysts say.

Media/press freedom

Indonesian magazine fights for its life - again

Asia Times - March 14, 2003

Bill Guerin, Jakarta -- The legendary Tempo magazine, which began life in March 1971 by copying Time's style and format, is a national institution in Indonesia. Pithy satire and outrageous caricatures and cartoons have spiced up hard-hitting investigative reporting on topical issues, and made Tempo the darling of the middle class.

Banned twice in its three decades of existence, Tempo has been dealt many a rough hand but, unlike the past oppression by various administrations, it is now under attack from a different class of enemy.

Tempo this week stands accused of slander and character assassination after a report in its March 3 edition that implied a link between high-profile businessman Tomy Winata's plan to renovate the Tanah Abang textile market in Central Jakarta and the recent fire that destroyed it on February 19.

Tempo said Winata, an ethnic-Chinese tycoon, stood to gain from the fire that destroyed the market. The magazine cited an architecture contractor as claiming that Winata had made a proposal for a business center project worth Rp53 billion (US$5.9 million) on the land where the market stood.

Winata, the magazine said, had proposed the renovation project to the Jakarta city authorities three months prior to the fire.

The writer said the proposal raised suspicions that the market, the biggest of its kind in Southeast Asia, had been intentionally burned down. Losses have been estimated at Rp8 billion but Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso has said the fire was accidental. Sutiyoso has since condemned the intimidation of Tempo as anarchy and denied ever having received a such a proposal. Winata, 45, strongly denied to Tempo that he had made a proposal.

However, around noon on Saturday some 200 demonstrators, from the Artha Graha Group and the Indonesian Young Bulls (BMI), a youth organization within President Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, descended on Tempo's office and tried to force their way in despite the presence of a cordon of anti-riot police.

This was a day after Tempo had received a written complaint and the parties had agreed to a dialogue or legal recourse to settle the matter. Representatives of the protesters were eventually allowed to meet the writer of the article after threatening to burn the premises down.

The level of violence and intimidation was clearly aimed at stopping Tempo in its tracks. The protesters who made it inside argued loudly with editors and reporters, demanding that they reveal their source.

A statement from editor Ahmad Taufik circulating in press circles describes a level of verbal and physical assault akin to terror and a hands off attitude by senior policemen. Even at Jakarta police headquarters representatives of "Tomy's men" continued with a torrent of abuse against Tempo's chief editor Bambang Harimurti.

Harimurti and leaders of the protesters had been invited "back to the station" by police who feared further violence. Several protesters allegedly beat Bambang and editor Taufik as they waited for a meeting with the protesters.

Winata and his lawyer Desmond Mahesa have accused Tempo of character assassination and demanded that the weekly admit it made a mistake by calling the tycoon a "big scavenger" in the article. They want Tempo to publish an apology in several national newspapers and to show evidence over its allegations that Winarto had made such a proposal.

Mahesa admitted most of the protesters work as security guards at the Artha Graha Group and that his client knows them. One of the protesters, identified as Hamid al Hamid, said they were making the protest because "we live on Pak Tomy's money".

A statement by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) said the attack on Tempo was a setback to press freedom and freedom of information as stipulated in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights as well as the Law on National Press that says, "in conducting their profession, journalists have legal protection".

AJI asked the police to protect the Tempo journalists from threats and intimidation by hired thugs, and denounced the practice of hiring groups of thugs to intimidate others into settling disputes. On the same day the National Commission of Human Rights (Komnas HAM) held a meeting with a number of journalists over violence against the press.

The 1999 press law threatens those who prevent journalists from disseminating information to the public with a maximum two-year jail sentence or Rp500 million fine but police, though present during the attack on Tempo's office and staff, have made it clear they will only investigate if Tempo files a complaint.

"The incident occurred under their [police] noses. They must not allow it," the Indonesia Legal Aid and Human Rights Association said in a statement.

Late Tuesday National Police Chief General Da'i Bachtiar finally ordered an investigation into the incident. "The police have begun to enforce the law" regarding the attack, Da'i said after a meeting with scores of public figures who demanded strong measures against those involved in the attack.

Ahmad Syafii Maarif, chairman of the second-largest Muslim organization, Muhammadiyah, human-rights lawyers Todung Mulya Lubis and Luhut M Pangaribuan, legislator Dwi Ria Latifa, rights activist Hendardi, and former finance minister Mar'ie Muhammad all joined in the chorus of protest at police HQ.

Todung said during the meeting with Da'i that although Tempo might have made a mistake in its report, violence is not the answer.

Instead of attacking the press, people could "choose from exercising their right to respond to the article, settling out of court, suing the media or even boycotting it," said Todung, citing the recent settlement of the dispute between the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the Washington Post newspaper over a report on the military's alleged involvement in an attack on Freeport employees last year. The Post later clarified the report, admitting to having no real evidence to back up its story.

The Indonesian Press and Broadcasting Community (MPPI) said violence against the press and journalists posed a threat to press freedom. They called on the press community to unite in opposing all acts of violence and threats, and not to allow these acts to go uncontested legally.

The incident has created shockwaves and a level of public concern rarely seen though such abuses by preman (thugs) are commonplace. The failure of the police to stop the violence has spooked the press community, who fear unchecked mob rule against the media is the highest danger faced by media under attack on many fronts.

When Tempo was shut down by the Suharto regime in 1994, the ban was denounced worldwide as an assault on press freedom. This frenzy of activity and support for the new Tempo shows that the media industry sees the incident as an attack against the profession as a whole, though it is just the latest in a long line of assaults against journalists.

In 2002 no fewer than 70 cases of intimidation and violence against the Indonesian press were reported to the police, though there was little action taken. Police themselves frequently assault journalists and just as often support those who intimidate the press.

Violence and intimidation ensue when statements they deem as unfair or inaccurate offend individuals. Weak law enforcement and the ease with which police can be persuaded to turn a blind eye has encouraged those of a violent nature to fight the pen with the sword.

On the other hand, the Indonesian media need self-discipline and a professional code of ethics, which would go some way to encouraging respect for their profession. Rampant corruption by way of "envelope journalism" is widespread and feeds the perception that good or bad publicity, ie press, can be bought or sold just like a commodity.

Tempo's biggest headache will be the demand to identify its source. In an interview aired on El Shinta radio station, Winata said "with the article Tempo created a killing machine that might mobilize all of the victims of the Tanah Abang market fire to take revenge against me". He added, significantly, that Tempo must publish and identify the source of its information.

Given the propensity to settle grievances by violence and instant street justice he had a point, except that this is no ordinary victim of slander and certainly not likely to be set about by aggrieved "little people".

Winata is a major co-shareholder of the Artha Graha Group together with the powerful military conglomerate, Yayasan Kartika Eka Paksi. He is also a close friend and alleged financier of Yorris Raweyai, executive chairman of the pro-Suharto paramilitary organization, Pemuda Pancasila.

Anecdotal evidence has it that Winata was the go-between for the the feared Kopassus forces and a group of Chinese-Indonesian conglomerate leaders. Funds raised by Winata were alleged to have been used for anti-Chinese operations by Kopassus on May 13-15, 1998.

At the time the ethnic-Chinese tycoons were reported to be enraged at Winata's fundraising for activities that caused the deaths of fellow Chinese and the rape of Chinese women.

Artha Graha has accused Tempo of "character assassination" and "journalistic hoodlumism" in a tit-for-tat-style press release, after the widespread condemnation of Saturday's incident.

Tempo senior editor Fikri Jufri said the magazine would not bow to the mob's demands, despite the attack.

"They can destroy our assets but not our idealism. There is only one word for such an action, 'fight!'" he said, adding that Tempo would settle the case in court. Tempo will run a "correction" in its next edition, which will go to print on Saturday.

The Tempo incident may revive, in some circles, the charge that Indonesia media have abused their freedom from decades of self- censorship by engaging in reckless journalism and irresponsible reporting. Other battle fronts await.

A week earlier the chief editor of Jakarta-based Rakyat Merdeka daily Karim Paputungan went on trial accused of defaming convicted felon and Speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR) Akbar Tanjung. Karim could be jailed for 16 months for publishing a front-page caricature featuring a shirtless, sweating and "sad" looking Tanjung, on January 8, 2002.

Rakyat Merdeka has a circulation of some 100,000 copies and courts sensationalism. Fonda Lapod, the paper's "artistic manager", rejected his first attempt, which showed a rope around Tanjung's neck and settled on the one that has caused all the fuss. Lapod's caricature used an image of a homosexual having a bath and superimposed the Golkar leader's head. Lapod said: "If I had used a Superman costume or a figurehead of Rambo perhaps the response would have been different."

Tempo also offended Tanjung by publishing a front-page caricature of him with a long Pinocchio nose, but oddly enough this was not taken to court.

Freedom of expression and speech are far from being pillars of democracy in Indonesia and media professionalism is vital to fight those who would impose control over such freedoms.

President Megawati Sukarnoputri said last month on National Press Day that she would like the community to join her in taking a critical attitude against the press for doing their job arbitrarily, irresponsibly and unprofessionally. It would be too costly, the president said, if just because of the irresponsible attitude of a small part of the press community, the entire national press would be tainted.

Megawati had earlier accused the press of being "unbalanced" in reporting the public reaction against the government's decision to hike the prices of basic utilities at the start of the year.

Tempo positions itself as being part of a never-ending struggle. This credo will be put to test in the coming weeks as the publication faces not an authoritarian regime and legislature that fought out in the open but powerful sections of the elite who have been stung by the written word.

The collective intolerance of press freedom by hoodlums, the government and certain top politicians represents the biggest challenge for the media.

Once again Tempo will need to carry the baton of a free Indonesian press still trying to make its mark in a society waiting for real democracy and freedom of speech.

More condemn 'Tempo' attack

Jakarta Post - March 12, 2003

Jakarta -- Dozens of journalists rallied near the State Palace on Monday to protest against the recent attack on the offices of Tempo newsmagazine.

The protesters, representing Solidarity for Press Freedom, condemned the attack by 200 people demanding Tempo retract an article in its March 3 edition insinuating links between businessman Tomy Winata's plan to renovate Tanah Abang market and the fire that destroyed it. The journalists called on the police to investigate the case thoroughly.

The 1999 press law threatens those who prevent journalists from disseminating information to the public with a maximum two-year jail sentence or Rp 500 million fine.

Bayu Wicaksono of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), who led the protest at the State Palace, told reporters the attack on Tempo was an attack on press freedom.

Later in the day, the National Commission of Human Rights (Komnas HAM) held a meeting with a number of journalists over violence against the press.

Komnas HAM established a special team to monitor violence cases against journalists in January. Anshari Tayib, who heads the team, said it would do its best to help Tempo settle the case legally.

During the meeting, Tempo senior editor Fikri Jufri said the magazine would not bow to the mob's demands, despite the attack. "They can destroy our assets but not our idealism. There is only one word for such an action, 'fight!'" he said, adding that Tempo would settle the case in court.

Separately, noted non-governmental organizations Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), Transparency International (TI), TI's Indonesian chapter and the Indonesian Transparency Society (MTI), condemned the attack in a joint statement, saying the attack could undermine press freedom.

"The violent protest showed clearly that the protesters were arrogant, anarchic and ignored the supremacy of the law," said Emmy Hafild, an executive at TI's Indonesian chapter. She demanded the police bring the perpetrators to justice. TI chairman Peter Eigen said the authority's failure to address the case would deter foreign investment.

He said that if the police did not act swiftly to solve the case, foreign investors could think that the supremacy of law was absent in Indonesia, discouraging investors from coming here.

The Indonesia Legal Aid and Human Rights Association criticized the police for doing nothing to prevent the incident. "The incident occurred under their noses. They must not allow it," it said in a statement.

A member of the House of Representatives' commission for information affairs, Djoko Susilo, concurred and urged the authorities to investigate the violence. Djoko said police should act immediately without waiting for a complaint from Tempo.

He said he would question Minister of Communications and Information Syamsul Mu'arif in relation to the issue during its next hearing, the schedule of which had not yet been set.

The police were present when Tomy's supporters attacked Tempo's offices and injured a journalist. The magazine's chief editor, Bambang Harymurti, and editor Ahmad Taufik were beaten by several protesters as they waited for a meeting with the protesters at Central Jakarta Police headquarters. The police insist they will only investigate if Tempo files a complaint.

Meanwhile, Yusuf Yazid, commenting on behalf of Tomy, defended the mob's action, saying the incident was in response to the article, which quoted sources regarding Tomy's Rp 53 billion (US$5.9 million) bid to renovate the market. He also alleged that Tempo never interviewed Tomy for the article.

Bambang dismissed the accusations, saying its reporters interviewed Tomy by phone. Tempo published Tomy's interview next to the article.

Tomy said earlier that he had no idea about the attack and it was simply the idea of his men, who were members of his Artha Graha Group and the Indonesian Young Bulls (BMI), a youth organization belonging to President Megawati Soekarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle. However, he later said that he had attempted to stop his men from protesting outside Tempo.

Tomy is known for his close relationship with several high- ranking officials in the country.

Violence against journalists threatens press freedom

Jakarta Post - March 12, 2003 Jakarta -- The Indonesian Press and Broadcasting Community (MPPI) issued a statement on Monday protesting violence against the press and journalists, which the organization said posed a threat to press freedom.

The statement was read by the chairman of the Press Council, Atmakusumah, at the office of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM). Also in attendance was Anshari Thayib, a member of the Komnas HAM team monitoring violence against journalists.

The MPPI is made up of journalist organizations such as Media Watch, the Association of Indonesian Journalists and the Alliance of Independent Journalists.

In the statement, the MPPI called on the press community to unite in opposing all acts of violence and threats, and not to allow these acts to go unanswered legally. It also urged law enforcers to take action against those threatening members of the press.

The MPPI statement was issued following last Saturday's incident in which a group of people stormed the offices of Tempo news magazine in protest of an article the magazine ran about businessman Tommy Winata.

Human rights/law

BP panel warns of risk to human rights in Indonesia

The Guardian (UK) - March 12, 2003

Terry MacAlister -- United Kingdom BP has been warned by a panel of experts led by the US senator, George Mitchell, that it could trigger human rights abuses if it proceeds with a $2bn gas scheme in Indonesia.

Concern centres on the role of the military which could be brought in to guard the Tangguh LNG facilities to be built in the Papua region. Senator Mitchell's team is also worried that an influx of 5,000 construction workers next year could bring HIV and other infectious diseases to local villagers.

There is also the potential for BP to damage the local economy -- which is based on shrimp fishing -- and be viewed as a de facto alternative government there. The immediate area is a large, untouched bay containing possibly the world's largest mangrove forest.

Despite this, the American politician, who helped broker the Belfast peace accord, said yesterday the massive financial benefits of the scheme outweighed the problems. Around $225m (pounds 140m) annually could flow from Tangguh to the local government and villagers are campaigning for advance funds.

"There is enormous potential for good but also a potential for an adverse ef fect, and this must be handled carefully," explained senator Mitchell at a first public briefing since delivering a report to BP.

BP established the panel last year and is keen to avoid the kind of difficulties that have intermittently closed ExxonMobil's operations in Aceh province.

Another adviser, the Reverend Herman Saud, said there was among many Papuans widespread "distrust and fear" of the army. "This was caused by experiences in Freeport McMoRan [gold and copper mining operation] where many Papuans were treated inhumanely," he said.

Experts have advised BP to establish a local, community based security force so military involvement can be kept to outlying areas. The report, commissioned by BP chief executive Lord Browne, says: "BP must avoid the extremes of becoming too closely associated with the TNI [the army], that is, being used as a weapon by political forces against the TNI.

"The panel believes that an early understanding with senior security, military and police officials is the best way BP can implement some form of community based security and avoid surprises or unwelcome demands." The report argues BP should avoid any requests for direct financial support being made to the military and suggests the oil company should consider helping to modernise the local fishing fleet to mitigate any "dislocations".

Senator George Mitchell says massive financial benefits outweigh the scheme's problems.

Focus on Jakarta

Jakarta police battling claims they serve rich

Straits Times - March 15, 2003

Robert Go, Jakarta -- The police force is under fire again, this time for allegedly mishandling a dispute between one of Indonesia's richest men and the country's most respected weekly news magazine.

The scandal is erupting at a bad time for the police. Allegations that officers may be on the payrolls of rich men and will do their bidding at the expense of their duties as law enforcers could roll back the gains the force has made since the breakthroughs in the Bali bomb blast case.

Hints that members of the force remain corrupt, despite ongoing programmes to raise professionalism within it, could also hamper efforts to secure more aid money -- funds for further reform projects -- from foreign donors.

It all began with a story in Tempo's March 3 edition insinuating that tycoon Tommy Winata, whose empire is said to include banks, casinos, real-estate and other projects, could have had a hand in last month's fire at Tanah Abang textile market. The report claimed that Mr Winata already submitted a redevelopment plan for the market area with the city government, even before the fire which gutted 5,700 kiosks and drove shop-owners out of business.

The headline for the story read "Was Tommy behind Tanah Abang?" and reporters also suggested that Mr Winata would charge tenants much more than they are currently paying.

But Mr Winata vehemently denied to Tempo that he had made such a proposal, while Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso made it clear that the fire was accidental.

Last Saturday, thugs claiming to represent Mr Winata raided Tempo's offices and demanded the magazine print a retraction of that story and apologise to their boss. After a standoff lasting several hours, the henchmen and several Tempo editors went to a nearby police station to try to resolve the dispute.

Now, a victim's account by Tempo writer Ahmad Taufik claims that he and the paper's editor were beaten and verbally abused by Mr Winata's representatives while they were all in the presence of senior police officers.

Mr Ahmad also recounted how "Mr Winata's right-hand man" boasted that he has a good relationship with Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, and top police officers. Through all this, police officers reportedly did nothing to stop the intimidation process and even advocated Tempo editors capitulate to the thugs' demands.

Governor Sutiyoso, distancing himself from the scandal, said: "My relationship with Tommy Winata is the same as my relationship with any other major businessman." Police Chief General Da'i Bachtiar, who has been campaigning lately to project how the force is improving itself, said that investigators are looking into the issue.

But Indonesian journalists, who are often victims of "premanism" or intimidation by thugs sent out by parties who are displeased by media coverage, are saying enough is enough.

A few years ago, for instance, supporters of former President Abdurrahman Wahid similarly visited a newspaper office in East Java to protest the coverage given their leader.

Legislators and other public figures are anxious the Tempo-Tommy Winata case is investigated.

Cleric Hasyim Muzadi, head of the country's largest Muslim organisation Nahdlatul Ulama, said: "The police better investigate this thoroughly. If not, we can assume that cops are under the influence of rich thugs." Lawmaker JE Sahetapy, a well-known anti-corruption crusader, said: "The police have to do more than just promise investigations."

'Tempo' case reveals the dark side of Jakarta

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Marco Kusumawijaya, Jakarta -- Many Jakartans have just seen the movie The Gangs of New York. However, the real reason why they are not at all overwhelmingly surprised by the act of violence at Tempo magazine's office is that for a very long time there has been a "public secret" about the operational existence of mobs and thugs behind the not-so-well-masked public facade of the city's business, police and military environments.

Ahmad Taufik of Tempo magazine noted in his minutes of Saturday, March 8, that "David", reckoned to be a Tomy Winata man, said that the businessman had paid for Sutiyoso's bid for the governorship, had bought the entire police force, and had paid even for the installment of the lamps of the Central Jakarta Police Headquarters, during the arguments there with the editors.

What is really surprising, ironically, is that none of this information is new to us! We have heard all about it before in one guise or another.

Indeed, David also called up the Jakarta Police chief, as well as the businessman Ciputra, amid the arguments with Tempo editors.

Maybe the only thing that is really a surprise is that this is the first time there have been recorded words by persons so close to a "Godfather", and in a manner so public.

Suddenly people are awake: What we have been hearing after all these years may not be hearsay after all! Everything also appears to be so logical now: All those army and police generals living in comfort, despite continuous complaints about limited budgets.

The official cars of the police top brass, for example, seem always to be new every year, in contrast, for example, to the old Volvos of ministers.

What about the other "public secrets" about which we have also been hearing? About, for instance, the fisheries businesses controlled by the Navy, etc. Could they be real too? For those who are thinking positively suddenly there is a faint hope: Is this a window to really probe into those rumored business links with authorities, and so cleanse the city of them? Everywhere in the world, cities always have their dark sides. These have inspired the gloomiest scenarios in many comics and movies -- for instance the Gotham city of Batman. For the real cities, you can name New York, Hong Kong and Bangkok in the league of those known for their underworld.

But can we do anything about it? The conditions within developing countries have been consciously and constantly used to justify the dependence by military and police operations on private, extra-budgetary funding. The conditions are real. But the justification sounds more and more like convenience for individuals instead of real desperation in the system. Some countries in Africa are now very disciplined in accounting for all funding in official budgets, including foreign aid. They have begun to show success in mitigating corruption, in poverty alleviation and other programs.

Bogota, a city in Colombia now famous for its public transportation system, also had to fight gangs and mobs before it achieved what it has now. One major problem that Jakarta has to face sooner or later, in order to improve its transportation system, is to deal with similar issues. Jakartans, especially those living in the outskirts of the city, know very well how public transportation in the suburbs is controlled by gangs and mobs.

What we can do depends on what we do with respect to "public authority", and not degrade it into "private ownership". Public authority depends on the integrity of its offices and its officials, its leaders most obviously. I am afraid we cannot depend on those foreign, donor-driven programs on "good governance" for that matter, because it is about our choice of elected officials, not just about structural changes and capacity-building programs. Ironically, all those programs on good governance look like dust blown in the wind by the simple privatization of public authority by the "Godfather". We just have to remember that during every one of the next elections, as one writer has put it, "in a democracy, we do not vote for decisions, but merely individuals to make decisions for us." After they are elected, nevertheless, there is one more thing we might want to do: Unite, refuse to be intimidated, and keep the pressure on.

[Marco Kusumawijaya is an urban development consultant in Jakarta.]

News & issues

Aceh, Papua, Ambon still closed to foreign researchers

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Jakarta -- The Indonesian provinces of Aceh and Papua, as well as Ambon city in Maluku province, are still closed to foreign researchers for security reasons, an official said on Friday.

"Although some parts of those provinces no longer have a security problem, they have yet to be declared safe," Ridwan Jacob, head of the Science and Technology Cooperation and Promotion Bureau at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), was quoted by Antara as saying.

Ridwan made the statement as a number of foreign researchers into orangutans had recently made enquiries about why they were still not allowed to work at Ketambe research station in southeastern Aceh.

He explained LIPI had issued permits to foreign researchers after consultations with 15 other relevant government institutions, including the National Intelligence Agency (BIN),institutions, including the National Intelligence Agency (BIN), the home ministry and the immigration office.

Those institutions had to consider the foreign researchers' proposals, personal backgrounds and the security situation in the country.

Security considerations were being given top priority as Indonesia did not want to take the risk of unforeseen incidents happening to foreign researchers, he said, adding, "Likewise, we would blamed for issuing permits for research in conflict areas".

According to Ridwan, LIPI received 15 to 20 research proposals from foreign parties every month.

Police say arson was behind fire at ministry

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Damar Harsanto and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- The police confirmed on Thursday that the fire that razed the sixth floor of the finance ministry building and destroyed records of state assets last Tuesday was an act of arson.

"As a result of our on-site investigations, the police forensic laboratory has concluded that the fire was started deliberately," said National Police deputy spokesman Sr. Comr. Didi Rochyadi.

The statement contradicted an earlier statement by police that the cause of the fire was a short circuit in the air-conditioning system.

Didi revealed that the police had found a mixture of kerosene and another kind of chemical substance from debris taken from the scene. He did not specify the type of the chemical substance.

"The discovery [of kerosene] is somewhat odd, given that the office kitchen doesn't use kerosene," Didi said, adding that the kitchen used liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) instead.

He also said police had identified four locations suspected to be possible sources of the fire: the office for accounting staff, the computer room, secretaries' room and the kitchen. "We are still investigating the possible motive for the arson," said Didi.

Suspicion has been rife among the public that the arson was intended to destroy records stored in the office that could have been used as evidence in corruption investigations.

Teten Masduki of Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) said earlier that similar incidents in the past had also occurred at other government buildings housing important documents linked to high- profile corruption cases.

The fire, which gutted the sixth floor of the Ministry of Finance, occupied by the State Accounting Agency, was the second of its kind. The first occurred in 1997, when it was claimed at the time that the cause was a short circuit in the air- conditioning system.

It is not clear yet which corruption cases might be linked to both fires but there are still many awaiting investigation.

The Attorney General's Office is in the process of investigating graft within state-owned oil and gas firm Pertamina and in the forestry sector.

The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) also revealed recently massive irregularities in the use of state and local budgets over the past two years. According to the agency, the Ministry of Finance was one of the most corrupt government departments.

Health & education

Most Indonesians have no access to clean water

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Moch. N. Kurniawan, Jakarta -- At least 80 percent of Indonesia's 215 million population have no access to piped water, according to a country report prepared for the third World Water Forum (WWF) in Kyoto, a copy of which was obtained by The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

The report also says Indonesia will propose US$321.89 million in debt-to-nature conservation swaps for developed countries as part of the effort to resolve the country's water problem.

"The country report reflects the gravity of our water problem, something we have to tackle in various ways, including debt-to- nature swaps," Director General for Water Resources Roestam Sjarief told the Post Thursday.

An Indonesian delegation, led by Minister of Resettlement and Regional Infrastructure Soenarno, will attend the third WWF in Kyoto, Japan, from March 16 through March 23.

According to the report, piped water supplies reach only 51 percent of Indonesia's urban population, which accounts for 20 percent of the country's total population, and 8 percent of the rural population.

It also says Indonesia needs investment worth Rp 5.1 trillion (US$570 million) every year over the next 12 years in order to provide piped water supplies to at least 40 percent of the country's population by 2015.

The report says the government plans to seek US$120 million in debt swaps with Canada, France and Germany to construct homes and improve rural roads, drainage and sanitation in 17 provinces. Some $34 million in debt swaps with Canada, Germany, France and Spain will be sought to improve and rehabilitate rural irrigation, it says.

"We have conducted preliminary meetings with various countries to arrange debt swaps. So we hope we will be successful at the WWF," Roestam said.

The report also reveals that sanitation services only reach 10 percent of the country's urban population.

The enormous problems regarding safe and clean water supplies are accompanied by other problems such as securing water for irrigation, and managing and controlling floods and various other water-related disasters.

On irrigation, most of the country's 7.1 million hectares of irrigated rice fields are still susceptible to unfavorable weather as only 10 percent of them are served by reservoirs. At least 35 percent of irrigated rice fields still need rehabilitation.

"Considerable investment is still required in agriculture to increase productivity," the report says.

On water related disasters such as floods, erosion, sedimentation and droughts, the report says the number of critical watersheds increased from 22 in 1984 to 59 in 1999.

Water pollution in rivers lakes and other water bodies has reached a level that endangers human and other living creatures, it says At least 600 out of the 5,590 principal rivers in the country can cause significant detrimental flood hazards and pose continuous threats to about 1.4 million hectares of flood-prone zones consisting of residential, industrial and agricultural areas, as well as transportation facilities. "To handle this flood problem, 30,000 kilometers of dikes and their associated appurtenances, and 15,000 kilometers of river normalization are required," the report says.

At present, the Indonesian government is only able to develop 2,600 kilometers of dikes, or 8 percent of the total required, and carry out 1,500 kilometers of river normalization, or 10 percent of the total required, according to the report.

"With the current limited budget from the government, it is estimated that it will take 100 years to protect all susceptible areas," it says.

The report points out that to date the government has been covering all costs as regards public water resources, including irrigation, water supplies, flood control, water pollution treatment, etc.

As the government budget is limited, many investments and maintenance works for water resources have been postponed, it says.

Therefore, adjustment of the prevailing laws and regulations is required to accommodate the need for water users and beneficiaries to play a significant role in ensuring the sustainability of water resources' infrastructure, according to the report.

At present, water policy reform by the government is underway in the form of new bill on water resource that will allow a greater role for the private sector in water resources management.

Highlights from Indonesia's report to WWF

• About 80 percent of the population does not have access to running water. Investments totaling Rp 5.1 trillion (US$570 million) per year are needed to supply water to 40 percent of the population by 2015.
• Rice production is under threat due to the conversion of 15,000 to 20,000 hectares of irrigated rice fields every year for nonagricultural use and breakdowns in irrigation systems. Considerable investment is needed to boost rice production.
• The number of critical watersheds increased to 59 in 1999, and the level of water pollution in rivers, lakes and other sources of water has reached a level that is endangering the health of humans and other species. Consistent law enforcement is needed to correct this situation.
• Some 600 rivers out of a total of 5,590 rivers are deemed a significant flood hazard and pose a continuous threat to 1.4 million hectares of residential, industrial and agricultural areas. More flood control measures are necessary.
• Adjustments to laws and regulations are required to ensure the sustainability of water resource infrastructures.
• The government is seeking $321.9 million in a debt-for-nature swap related to water conservation with developed countries.

Servicemen requested to help curb spread of HIV/AIDS

Jakarta Post - March 14, 2003

Religious leaders have requested members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) and National Police to stop backing prostitution and drug trafficking to help reduce the spread of HIV.

Leaders from the Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI), Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Muhammadiyah and the Communion of Churches in Indonesia, as well as Catholic and Buddhist leaders declared on Thursday that the HIV/AIDS problem was a "national threat" and they were ready to fight it.

They agreed to encourage other religious leaders to promote family unity among their followers, thus reducing extramarital affairs and drug use among them. However, they conceded that they could not work alone in addressing the problems.

"I know that people still listen to ulemas, but most people do not take in what they say," Ma'ruf Amin, the head of MUI's commission of fatwa (religious edicts), said at an open dialog hosted by the offices of the Coordinating Ministry for People's Welfare and the National AIDS Commission.

Therefore, they also asked police and military officials to control those members who have backed illegal activities that contribute to the spread of HIV/AIDS.

"I just read in a newspaper that a lot of police and military members are involved in these illegal activities, which are the source of the spread of HIV/AIDS," said Mardiatmaja, a Catholic leader. "It would be better if the commission also invited them to this dialog." According to data presented by Farid Husain, the secretary of the commission, 12 million to 19 million people in Indonesia are at high risk of acquiring HIV/AIDS.

They are sex workers, drug users and those who frequent prostitutes as well as their spouses.

Armed forces/police

Cash-strapped military recipe for corruption

Asia Times - March 15, 2003

Tony Sitathan, Jakarta -- Adhong is a former junior officer from the Indonesian Army. He recalls the Suharto era when he was deployed in Irian Jaya (now West Papua) and Nusa Tenggara, where sectarian clashes and rivalries between religious groups was nothing unusual. "Those were difficult times and we were considered the first crack troops that [were] relied upon by the government to suppress any form of social disorder," he recalled. After his early retirement from active service, he is now gainfully employed as a security "advisor" to a nightclub in the heart of Chinatown in East Jakarta.

However, his ties to the military, he revealed, have not been permanently severed. He relies on former and active marines and Kopassus (special forces soldiers) to provide the muscle needed to maintain law and order in the nightclub. Also, since the nightclub acts as a massage parlor that offers sexual services, security on the premises has to be tightly controlled. He recalled a recent incident where he had to prevent the neighborhood police from muscling in on army turf.

G Hutagalong, a former security advisor to popular nightclubs such as Tanamur, which is well known in Jakarta as a hotspot for tourists, reveals an intricate web of alliances and shakedowns that permeate the nightlife in Indonesia. "Each nightclub or discotheque or even massage parlor has an elaborate payment system in place for the collection of monies or monthly dues ... paid to either the police or the armed forces in return for protection from organized crime syndicates or unknown external threats. It's a system that has proved effective in Indonesia and something almost necessary in maintaining the peace and order of that area," he said.

It seems a high price to pay for security that should be guaranteed by the police who have been sworn to uphold the law. It has been estimated that larger nightclubs and discos such as 101 Nights and Tanamur have to pay almost 30 percent of their gross revenues per month for such shakedowns.

In Indonesia, where the average salary for mid-ranking soldiers ranges from Rp550,000-Rp900,000 (US$60-$100), while high-ranking officers earn about Rp2 million to 6 million ($225-$675), the pay is hardly sufficient to cope with inflation rates of 8 percent or more. Illegal activities, then, account for a large percentage of soldiers' allowances.

A D Asep, a former colonel in the strategic reserve command based in South Sulawesi, says the army has been involved in underground racketeering and other black-market activities such as distributing narcotics, working with mafia-type warlords and smuggling electronics goods, providing young girls for prostitution as well as a host of other activities. "I would estimate that at least one-third of accounted army funds are derived from such activities, although there are also legitimate business fronts that are led by capable businessmen who act on behalf of the armed forces," he said. Not all their business activities are established in the gray areas.

There are also several business fronts run by private businessmen such as Tommy Winata, the owner of the Artha Graha Group. The group has diversified interests in property development, logging and plywood plants, real-estate development, information technology, banking and finance, aside from general trading. There are more than 40 registered businesses and several dozen other affiliated companies under the Artha Graha umbrella.

The Artha Graha Group and, more notably, the Artha Graha Bank made media headlines recently with the uncalled-for detention of two high-flying Indian executives from Polaris Software Lab Ltd (see India ruffled over Indonesia's heavy hand, December 19, 2002). It was over a commercial dispute that can be considered a breach of contract between the bank the software company. Its heavy-handed use of force in detaining and later placing the executives under lock and key proved to the public and the international community just how powerful a stranglehold this business entity has on the military and the police in Jakarta.

Also when Tempo, the weekly business journal, wrote in one of its editions that the Artha Graha Group stood to gain from the fire that burned down a garment wholesale center, after it revealed a plan to rebuild the center for about Rp52 billion, force was used against the journalist who wrote the story and the magazine's headquarters. "As many as 200 people stormed the Tempo office and hurt several journalists as well as ransacking the office, despite the police watching on the sidelines," complained Teguh Indrawan, a reporter for a rival business magazine. "This goes to show the callousness of the authorities that should have immediately arrested such perpetrators for crime instead of defending them," Teguh asserted.

Such flagrant abuse of the law has far-reaching repercussions, especially since the army has always depended on the goodwill and support of its people for its very existence. With the General Assembly still deliberating on increasing state funding for the armed forces and cutting back its business involvements, President Megawati Sukarnoputri has sent strong signals to the army to rely less on its function as a commercial business facilitator and more on its role of safeguarding national interests.

Although it's a hotly debated issue, since the military budget officially accounts for less than 40 percent of its required budget, the Indonesian government has to find ways to balance the books before setting a motion to cut the army's role in business. Indonesia's military budget is a little more than $1.4 billion, as compared with Singapore, which has earmarked more than $4.6 billion, Thailand has kept aside $2.3 billion, and even Malaysia has reserved about $1.8 billion to shore up its defense capabilities.

With Indonesia's population standing at 230 million while Singapore's is about 4.2 million, it is a defense-budget mismatch by any standards. So in order to make up for the budget deficit, the Indonesian army has prided itself on running its own businesses and being self-sufficient ever since the days of president Suharto. He is credited with founding self-funding army-linked companies back in 1955, when he began to work closely with the likes of Bob Hasan and Sudomo Salim, better known as Liem Sioe Liong, in the import of agricultural commodities, which later extended to controlling mining areas, logging interests, property development, even banking and finance.

"The army in the Suharto period had its hands in many different economic pies, and now with his departure, there are still sizable businesses that are being channeled under the military," said Edward Suryanto, a well-known human-rights activist and lawyer in Jakarta. "There are close to 300 funded yayasans [charities] set up under the armed forces to date as well as several other businesses that have international branches."

Dr Harold Crouch has spent several years in Jakarta as the head of an international crisis group, and he describes an Indonesian military still active in making its own rules. "The army gets only one-third of its budget from the Indonesian state. The other two-thirds of the budget is raised by the military itself -- from business enterprises and from corruption, and the largest source of military finance is actually from extortion and illegal activities. Wherever there is illegal mining, illegal logging, illegal fishing, cattle rustling and even smuggling, you'll be bound to find military elements," he said.

It is ironic to find that the rank and file of the army are still discontented despite the army's business overtures. The money that it rakes in never seems to reach those in the lower echelons of the military, but only the top brass. "The majority of those in the army are moonlighting to earn a living," said Adhong. "With living costs in Jakarta escalating by the day, its no wonder that several of my former colleagues have to work as security members or resort to even driving taxis on their off- duty days." It seems being taken for a ride is a way of life for those charged with defending their nation.

TNI to step up security in Papua, Aceh

Jakarta Post - March 13, 2003

Tiarma Siboro and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- Leaders of the Indonesian military (TNI) have agreed to pay more attention to sea security and secessionist movements in Papua and Aceh provinces in 2003.

"Separatism remains our concern this year, particularly in Aceh and Papua," TNI spokesman Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Syamsoeddin told a press conference marking the end of a two-day military leaders' meeting in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Sjafrie, however, fell short of explaining the new security measures that could be introduced in Papua and Aceh, saying only that the military would follow government policies on separatism issues in both provinces.

"The military will not deploy more troops in both conflict-torn provinces," he said, but added that the military would increase the salary of the troops currently serving a tour of duty in those areas.

This year, the TNI will also focus on the defense of Indonesia's water territory by increasing the Navy's budget allocation. According to Sjafrie, the country's Navy would receive Rp 700 billion, or Rp 100 billion more than received by the Army and the Air Force, in a bid to improve its performance to guard the national territory from growing threats such as illegal logging, poaching and people smuggling.

"The improvement of military professionalism must be in line with equipment improvement," he said.

Sjafrie said the budget allocation would be used to purchase several patrol ships as most of the Navy's ships are not seaworthy. He did not specify further, but added that the Navy was currently negotiating with a "local producer". The Navy currently has 117 ships, but only 30 percent are seaworthy.

The Army and Air Force would buy new helicopters this year, Sjafrie also said without elaborating.

The government slightly increased the budget for the TNI to Rp 13.9 trillion. Last year, it got Rp 11 trillion. However, TNI's budget was heavily burdened by soldiers' salaries. The TNI headquarters allocated Rp 11.5 trillion in wages alone.

The military usually allocates more for the Army. Earlier this year, the Ministry of Defense said that it would release a white paper on defense strategy that would give a greater role to the Army to handle security disturbances and internal threats over the next decade.

However, analysts have said that the government should build up the Air Force and Navy instead as TNI's main role is to deal with external security threats mandated by the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) decree No. VII/2000, under which the TNI surrendered most of the domestic security affairs to the National Police.

Currently, Indonesia has some 297,000 active military members with 400,000 reserves. The Army has 230,000 members, the Air Force 27,000 members and the Navy 40,000.

The meeting was attended by several state officials, including Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno, Coordinating Minister of Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Minister of Defense Matori Abdul Jalil and Minister of Finance Boediono, who presented their recommendations to the military, Sjafrie said

Unlike last year, the military chief would not officially report this year's programs to the president, Sjafrie said.

Military claims its reform slow due to lack of money

Jakarta Post - March 13, 2003

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- A retired military officer has admitted that reforms are moving very slowly within the Indonesian Military (TNI) but put the blame on the government's failure to provide adequate funds to achieve change within the institution.

Former Army deputy chief Lt. Gen. (retired) Kiki Syahnakri said here on Monday that it was difficult to change the Military but severe lack of financing had made it hard for TNI to reform itself.

"There are challenges to reform the software, personnel and hardware of the Military," Kiki said during a book launch at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).

Kiki, considered a reform-minded Army general, was referring to the Military's orientation, manpower, and equipment.

"TNI cannot afford to hire enough trainers for its officials and to buy military equipment," Kiki said.

Kiki cited as an example the Army, which has only 300 trainers, far below the required number of 6,000. The Army has around 230,000 personnel.

The government allocated Rp 11 trillion (US$1.4 billion) to the Military in 2003, up from Rp 9.5 trillion in 2002.

In terms of the Military's orientation reforms, Kiki predicted that it would take at least 15 years due to lack of government funding to implement reform programs, especially training in human rights and humanitarian issues. Kiki said Military reforms started in 1993, long before the calls for reform of the Military from civilians.

Military observer Ikrar Nusa Bhakti of LIPI concurred with Kiki that Military reform was moving at a snail's pace but argued that this was due to opposition by "conservative officials" within the Military itself.

"These people basically do not want to relinquish the Military's role as the only guardian of the state," said Ikrar, adding that there was fragmentation between conservatives and reformers within TNI. However, he predicted that the conservatives outnumbered the reformers.

Kiki, in contrast, denied that Military reform had been slow due to friction between TNI members.

"There are no such frictions," he said, adding that reform within the Military was an ongoing process.

Ikrar said the Military had recorded some progress in its reform programs, as clearly indicated by its agreement to accept civilian authority.

"But there was a setback within the last two years in connection with Military reform as a result of the recent security situation in the country," he said, referring to the terrorist attacks in Bali.

The slow pace of reform was exacerbated by incompetent politicians who failed to settle social and political problems, Ikrar added.

"The Military wants to leave politics formally in 2004 but its idea to continue its role in politics will not disappear," Ikrar said, pointing to the recent debate over controversial article 19 of the draft Military bill.

During the 32-year New Order regime, the Military played a major role in the country's political, security and defense affairs. Its role declined following former president Soeharto's downfall in 1998.

In 2000, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) limited the role of the Military to defense affairs only, with the issuance of decree No VII. In 2002, the MPR agreed to end the Military's political role by 2004.

Economy & investment

Moody's paints positive outlook for Indonesia

Jakarta Post -- March 14, 2003

Jakarta -- International credit rating agency Moody's Investors Service has maintained its positive outlook for Indonesia, on the back of the country's political stability and continued commitments to reform.

"This [positive outlook] is due to a diversified economy that helps check volatility, increased -- though not perfect -- political stability, and progress in reform that has been achieved since the election of President Megawati Soekarnoputri in 2001," Moody's vice president Steven Hess said in the agency's annual report, as reported by Dow Jones.

The US-based agency said the country had made some progress in several key areas of its reform program, especially in its asset sales, including crucial privatization and divestment of government shares in recapitalized banks.

Despite constant public pressure against selling national assets, Indonesia has been making some headway in the two programs. Only recently, the government sold its stake in the country's second largest telecommunications firm PT Indosat. The government has also started the divestment process of Bank Danamon.

Moody's also pointed to a stable fiscal performance as another reason for the encouraging note on Indonesia. "The government's fiscal performance is also better," said Hess. "The budget deficit target was met in 2002, and the government's revised fiscal targets for 2003 appear achievable, although the margin for error is not great."

Nevertheless, the agency also noted some areas the country needed to address. It said that Indonesia's B3 country ceiling for foreign currency debt reflected the continued fragility of its external finances due to a lack of investor confidence, continued weakness in the banking sector and high public-sector debt.

It also warned of a possible worsening of the country's financial condition next year, when it terminates the existing role of the International Monetary Fund in designing reform programs.

The economic ties between Indonesia and the IMF, which was started in 1999, ends at the end of this year.

However, debates have already been intensified over the need for the country to quickly split from the IMF, with critics saying that many of the IMF's programs have played a part in pushing the economy deeper into crisis.

"Statements from some in the government concerning relations with the IMF are causing us to look closely at the country's financial position next year," Hess said.