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Indonesia News Digest No 40 - October 13-19, 2003
Jakrta Post - October 18, 2003
Tiarma Siboro, Banda Aceh -- Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen.
Endriartono Sutarto said on Friday the Aceh operation would not
be halted during the fasting month of Ramadhan, as had been
demanded by rights activists.
Endriartono said there would be no suspension of military efforts
to crush the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) during the fasting month,
adding that a cease-fire would only give the separatists the
opportunity to regroup and rearm.
"It would be unacceptable if what we achieved during the five-
month operation was destroyed by a cease-fire. Instead, I hope
the rebels use the sacred [fasting] month as an opportunity to
return to the unitary state of Indonesia," Endriartono said after
visiting the province.
GAM also announced on Friday that it would continue fighting
during the fasting month, though it would restrict its actions to
self-defense. "We will go on struggling for independence, and if
the military insists on continue attacking us we will put up a
fight," Teungku Jamaika, GAM spokesman for the Pasee region in
North Aceh, said.
Muslims across the world will begin the fasting month at the end
of October. The Indonesian government has not yet set the
official date for the beginning of Ramadhan, but the country's
second largest Muslim organization announced the holy month would
begin on October 27.
Since its launch on May 19, the military operation in Aceh has
left over 1,000 people dead, either civilians, government
soldiers or guerrillas. Hundreds of schools have been burned and
thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.
The number of fatalities has raised concern among rights
activists from various non-governmental organizations, who
appealed to both sides to call a halt to the violence during the
fasting month.
"We hope that Ramadhan will provide the spirit for both sides to
strengthen their commitment to peace in Aceh. In this spirit we
urge both sides to exercise restraint and stop all violence
throughout the fasting month," the activists said in a joint
statement on Friday.
The activists came from numerous NGOs, including the Legal Aid
Institute in Aceh, the National Commission for Missing Persons
and Victims of Violence, and the Institute for Policy Research
and Advocacy.
Agence France Presse - October 18, 2003
Banda Aceh -- A court here on Saturday sentenced a separatist
rebel to 11 years in prison for his part in a long-running
independence battle in the oil and gas-rich province of Aceh.
Judges said Heri Nurmansyah, a member of the rebel Free Aceh
Movement (GAM) was guilty of "the act of treason with aims to
separate Aceh province from Indonesia". Nurmansyah, 22, had been
accused of taking part in bombing attacks on the residence of
Aceh's deputy police chief and a public bridge in 2000.
The court said Nurmansyah had also served as a GAM "fund
collector" since 2001. His lawyers said they would consider to
appeal.
Meanwhile, prosecutors at a separate trial on Saturday also
demanded university lecturer Irwandi Yusuf be jailed for 14 years
for treason. They said Yusuf, a lecturer with the state Syiah
Kuala University here, should be jailed because he had
participated in "activities connected to GAM's efforts to
separate Aceh" from Indonesia.
Yusuf had prepared a speech for GAM chief commander Muzzakir
Manaf used by rebel negotiators during peace talks with Indonesia
in Switzerland three years ago and acted as a deputy for rebel
top spokesman Sofyan Daud. Yusuf had been detained since May 23.
His trial continues next week.
West Papua
Reformasi
'War on terrorism'
Government & politics
2004 elections
Corruption/collusion/nepotism
Regional/communal conflicts
Human rights/law
Focus on Jakarta
Health & education
Bali/tourism
Islam/religion
Armed forces/police
Military ties
Economy & investment
Opinion & analysis
Aceh
War in Aceh continues despite fasting month
Aceh separatist rebel gets eleven years in jail
Five suspected rebels, three civilians killed in Aceh
Associated Press - October 17, 2003
Lhokseumawe -- Government troops gunned down 10 suspected rebels and three civilians were found dead in the latest violence in Indonesia's war-torn Aceh province, a local military spokesman said Friday.
Five members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) were shot dead in four separate gunbattles Thursday across the province, said Lt. Col. Ahmad Yani Basuki. Another five guerrillas were killed when soldiers raided a rebel hideout Thursday morning in western Aceh, he said. Troops also captured two rebels and confiscated weapons including machine guns and pistols, Basuki said.
Also Thursday, villagers found the bodies of two civilians in Pidie district, a rebel stronghold in northern Aceh, and an unidentified body in western Aceh, Basuki said.
He added that one of the victims in Pidie was shot dead at his home by a suspected rebel. Rebel spokesmen could not be reached for comment on claims by the military, which limits media access to rebel-held areas.
Jakarta abandoned a five-month truce with the rebels in May and launched a massive military offensive to crush the insurgency. It says more than 900 suspected guerrillas have been killed along with 46 soldiers and 16 policemen since then.
Financial Times - October 15, 2003
Shawn Donnan, Jakarta -- An international human rights watchdog on Wednesday identified at least six senior Indonesian military figures with histories of "gross" human rights violations who are now playing key roles in Jakarta's five-month-old offensive against separatists in Aceh.
In a new report, New York-based Human Rights Watch called for the immediate removal of the six men from the operation in Aceh, Indonesia's largest military venture since its 1975 invasion of East Timor.
Since imposing martial law in the province on May 19 after the breakdown of a ceasefire with the Free Aceh Movement brokered by international mediators, Indonesian security forces have been accused of widespread human rights violations in the province.
The government claims to have mounted an "integrated" humanitarian and military operation and to be respecting human rights. A government spokesman on Wednesday rejected the Human Rights Watch demands as "predictable." Diplomats, human rights activists, and independent analysts, however, believe hundreds of civilians have been killed since May, while Indonesia's own National Human Rights Commission has confirmed reports of rapes, kidnappings, and extra-judicial killings.
The latest Human Rights Watch report also raises new questions over the ability of Indonesia's civilian government to keep the powerful military, or TNI, accountable and over how much control President Megawati Sukarnoputri has over the military.
Diplomats believe that the TNI is now dictating policy on Aceh and that a six-month term set by Mrs Megawati for martial law in the province is likely to be extended after it expires on November 19.
Topping Human Rights Watch's list of human rights abusers engaged in Aceh is Major General Adam Damiri. He was sentenced to a three-year jail term on August 5 by a Jakarta court for crimes against humanity in East Timor.
"While awaiting the result of his appeal, [General] Damiri remains free and continues to be involved in assisting with military operations in Aceh," Human Rights Watch said. "Few in Indonesia believe he will ever serve a day in jail." Like two others listed, General Damiri has been indicted by UN prosecutors in East Timor as well. Indonesia has until now refused to hand over any of them.
The five others listed by the rights group include the military's current spokesman, Major General Sjafrie Sjamsuddin, and deputy spokesman, Brigadier General Suhartono Suratman. Also listed are a retired general now advising martial law administrators in Aceh and a lieutenant colonel charged with the massacre of 54 people in Aceh in July 1999.
Jakarta Post - October 15, 2003
Tiarma Siboro and Teuku Agam Muzakir, Jakarta/Lhokseumawe -- The government dropped on Tuesday the clearest hint of its intention to extend the martial law now in effect in Aceh, saying that security must be maintained in the province to enable the Acehnese to vote in next year's elections.
Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the final goal of the military offensive in Aceh was to restore security among the people. He doubted that the Acehnese would feel safe to go out or to exercise their political rights if the security situation remained uncertain.
Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto has spoken of plans to maintain 35,000 troops in Aceh "to make sure that all Acehnese people will be able to exercise their political rights".
Susilo asserted that the military would be given the authority to assess whether or not the emergency status should be extended, and that TNI leaders would go to Aceh in a few days to observe the latest developments.
He admitted that some critics had voiced their objections to the extension of the martial law in Aceh, for fear that it would affect the election process.
Susilo, who is in charge of the endorsement of the martial law, did not say which election date would determine the timeframe of the extension. Indonesia is to hold the legislative election on April 5, 2004, and the direct presidential election on July 5, with its run-off election set for September 20.
The martial law will expire on November 19 as stipulated in the presidential decree imposing emergency status in the resource- rich province. The decree also orders a major offensive against the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), and operations to enforce the law, empower local governments and provide humanitarian assistance. The president may order a six-month extension.
Jakarta has restricted the movement of journalists and foreign observers in the province since the imposition of the emergency status, raising fears that the elections there will be prone to irregularities.
Almost 1,000 suspected members of GAM members have allegedly been killed and more than 1,800 others have been arrested or have surrendered in since the operation to crush the rebels began on May 19.
Despite the great number of GAM members claimed to have been captured, the military has thus far confiscated only 380 weapons from the separatists.
GAM has said that its strength has not ebbed, despite the five months of military operation. GAM spokesman in Pasee, Teungku Jamaika, said that as of Tuesday, leaders of the separatist group were able to roam freely through the forests and command their troops to continue the fight.
In the latest violence in Aceh, spokesman for the military operation Lt. Col. Ahmad Yani Basuki said nine suspected GAM members and two civilians were killed in the past two days in a shoot-out, while the TNI also confiscated dozens of rounds of ammunition in a raid on a GAM hideout in Ulee Blang village, North Aceh.
He said two soldiers were wounded in a gunfight with rebels in a swampy area in North Aceh district at around 4 p.m., and were admitted to the military hospital in Lhokseumawe.
The military operation in Aceh has so far claimed 304 civilian lives, while 140 other civilians have been injured.
Yani also ruled out a cease-fire against separatist rebels in the Muslim-predominantly province during the fasting month of Ramadhan, but said the military offensive will be "adjusted" during the period.
"We understand that Ramadhan is a holy month that has to be respected," he said. "In principle, we will not stop hunting the rebels, but the pattern of the operation will be adjusted to fit the importance of the month."
Antara - October 15, 2003
Banda Aceh -- At least five suspected members of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) were killed in the country's restive province of Aceh on Tuesday, the Indonesian Military (TNI) said.
The rebels were killed in separate gunfights in the districts of Bireuen, Pidie, and North Aceh, TNI spokesman Ahmad Yani Basuki said in Lhokseumawe on Wednesday.
"Five rebels were killed in a gunfight when Indonesian troops raided their hideouts in the three districts," Basuki said, adding that six other rebels were arrested on the same day.
During the raid, he said, the military also seized two bags of hashish, a Baretta revolver, a grenade and ammunition. The government claims that some 900 rebels have been killed since a major operation began on May 19 to crush the separatist movement, while more than 1,800 others have been arrested or have surrendered in the operation. There figures cannot be independently verified.
Kompas - October 11, 2003
Banda Aceh -- The wheels of government in many sub-districts and villages in the province of Aceh are still not functioning properly. Of the 227 sub-districts in the province, only 151 are functioning while 76 others have been declared to not be functioning properly.
"Efforts to expedite and restore the wheels of government are still being carried out" said Colonel Laut Ditya Soedarsono, from the Information Centre of the Provincial Emergency Military Command (PDMD) in Banda Aceh on Friday October 10.
Although there are still government offices which are not function properly this does not mean their the services they provide to society have been interfered with. According to Ditya, social services continue to be provided at the maximum level. Previously there were 13 sub-districts which were characterised as "black", their statues has new changed after military officers (TNI) were appointed as sub-district heads.
Meanwhile, of the 5862 villages in Aceh only 3676 (62.7 per cent) are functioning normally, 1594 (27.2 per cent) are not functioning properly and 592 (10.1 per cent) are not functioning. There figures have experienced significant advances compared to before said Ditya.
Illegal street levies
The PDMD also held a meeting with public transport owners at the Kodam Iskandar Muda military command headquarters. The discussion touched on and discussed the existence of illegal payments in being collected in major thoroughfares.
Kodam Iskandar Muda military commander, Major-General Endang Suwarya, as the military commander in Aceh, said that illegal payments must be eradicated. What ever the case, he said that there is a need for cooperation between all parties, especially transport owners and their bus crews to not allow illegal payments to occur. PDMD will also work hard to eliminate the practice of illegal payments. (NJ)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
Agence France Presse - October 15, 2003
An international rights group called for Indonesia to ban officers accused of past abuses from involvement with the war against separatist rebels in Aceh province.
The deployment of "known human rights violators" in Aceh shows the government is not serious in claims it is cleaning up its armed forces, said Saman Zia-Zarifi, deputy director of the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch.
The New York-based group, in a briefing paper, named four current and two former officers whom it said committed serious rights violations in Indonesia or during East Timor's bloody breakaway from Jakarta in 1999.
Syamsuddin could not immediately be reached for comment but has previously denied involvement in abuses. Suratman told AFP: "We don't want to answer those allegations. Who is Human Rights Watch? We doubt their credibility."
The rights group urged the international community to stop providing military aid to the armed forces, "based on the past record of abuse by the military and the current deployment of known abusers in the campaign in Aceh."
Indonesia on May 19 launched its largest campaign for a quarter- century, to wipe out separatist guerrillas. Rights groups say hundreds of civilians have died since then, in addition to rebels, but authorities have restricted access to the province.
Radio Australia - October 13, 2003
Indonesia's top security official, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has listed terrorism and seperatist wars in the provinces of Aceh and Papua as the major security threats facing his country. And Mr Yudhoyono, who is Co-ordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs, says fighting separatist wars particularily in Aceh, is draining his country's struggling economy.
Presenter/Interviewer: Tricia Fitzgerald
Speakers: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono; Indonesia's Co-ordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs
Fitzgerald: On a speaking tour in Australia Minister Yudhoyono listed the two wars his government is fighting against separatist rebels in the provinces of Aceh and Papua as a major threat to Indonesia's national security.
Yudhoyono: "Two major sources of threat to Indonesia's national security are armed separatists and terrorism. We are trying to contain and subdue armed separatists within Indonesia, both through military and law enforcement methods, as well as by addressing the social discontent and injustice."
Fitzgerald: The retired general who now controls troop movements across Indonesia in his role as Security Minister, says he recognises that the wars in both Aceh and Papua can't be solved by military intervention alone. But he carefully defended Indonesia's military crackdown in the two provinces, saying although he regretted the loss of life the two rebellions had to be put down at the same time as political issues were being addressed.
Yudhoyono: "I have visited the province of Aceh and the province of Papua again and again. I conclude that there are actually two natures of the problems, one of course the separatists movement to be an independent state separated from the republic of Indonesia."
"But to be frank I have to admit there are also problems that through deep in the society both in the province of Aceh and in the province of Papua that is social discontent and economic injustice. So while we have to stop armed separatism, we have to deal with seriously -- social discontent and economic injustice to bring more peace, more justice and more prosperity to the people in Aceh and in Papua."
Fitzgerald: The Minister admitted that the long-running civil war in Aceh in particular is a major drain on Indonesia's fragile economy, and he signalled that his government was poised to take action in Aceh against what he said was the siphoning off of government funds to the rebel cause.
Yudhoyono: "And I have to be frank because of the unclear situation currently in Aceh the budget given to the province is often corrupted and some of the budget go to the elements of the rebels. So we have to be sure by bringing peace in Aceh by solving problems in Aceh peacefully and we will be united again to build better future of Aceh, then we could avoid unnecessary sources deployed in Aceh. It means it is for our overall economic recovery and economic reconstructions."
Fitzgerald: The Minister refused to put any date on possible troop withdrawals or an end to the conflict in Aceh, although he claimed conditions inside the troubled province was slowly returning to normal.
Yudhoyono: "We're able to reduce the advance of GAM's attack to the society and to the government apparatus, so we are now reviewing, evaluating the implementation of combined operations, and we might change the mode of the operation soon after we are sure that the imminent threat has been lifted and the security situation, the daily life of the people are going back to normal."
Fitzgerald: And despite reliable reports of an ongoing military crackdown in civilian areas at the other end of the country in Papua, the minister denied that a troop buildup was taking place there. Fielding queries over his government's failure to introduce promised political reforms in Papua, the minister blamed confusion over conflicting laws for the inaction.
Yudhoyono: "We are in the process of integrating, synchronizing all those legislations and the government cannot do it alone because it must go to the parliament and we need the parliament will also respond positively to find advice and proper solutions in the implementation of special autonomy status."
Jakarta Post - October 13, 2003
Jakarta -- The Indonesian Military (TNI) claimed on Sunday that it had killed another leader of Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Aceh province.
Military operations spokesman Lt. Col. Ahmad Yani Basuki said government troops killed Nurdin, whose nom du guerre was Saddam Hussein, during a firefight at Langkahan in North Aceh district on Saturday.
Nurdin, 45, was said to be the chief of the local military police for GAM. Troops had seized a Colt handgun from him. Basuki also said four rebels were arrested on Sunday but did not say where.
There was no confirmation or statement from GAM rebels, who have been fighting for independence for the resource-rich province since 1976. Over 10,000 lives have been lost since then.
The government put Aceh under martial law on May 19 and sent 40,000 troops and police after an estimated 5,000 rebels following the collapse of peace talks with GAM.
The military claims that more than 900 GAM rebels have been killed since then, along with 66 members of security forces. It also says that 1,800 have been arrested or surrendered.
Meanwhile, GAM warned Sunday of possible conflicts between Acehnese and non-Acehnese people in the province following an alleged move by TNI to establish militia groups to assist operations in the troubled province.
Teungku Mansor, GAM spokesman in Peureulek, East Aceh, said that possible conflict between Acehnese and non-Acehnese could materialize if TNI continued to allegedly establish militia groups in Aceh.
"We never hold non-Acehnese people in contempt, but what TNI has done so far could spark anger among Acehnese civilians as these militia groups, equipped with various sharp weapons, have tortured villagers from several villages, including M3, M4, Seunebok Simpang, Darul Aman and Idi Cut," Mansor was quoted by Agence France-Presse as saying on Sunday. All of these villages are in East Aceh.
"Accompanied by the military, dozens of militia members intimidated the villagers and forced them to tell of our whereabouts. They [the militia members] even burned several houses there," he added. Yani Basuki was not available for comment Sunday.
According to Mansor, TNI recruits members of the militia groups from Javanese employees who are working at state owned-PT National Plantation I, located at the Alue le Mirah area in Kuta Binjei subdistrict and Kara Inoung area in Ranto Peureulak subdistrict.
"The Jakarta policy to further develop the current conflict in Aceh as an ethnic clash is absolutely unacceptable because it is a crime against humanity," Mansor said.
Still in East Aceh, 3,500 teachers there pledged on Saturday their loyalty to the Indonesian government at the Merdeka Field, Langsa. They demanded the government continue military operations to crack down on GAM.
Separately, in Banda Aceh, some 30 wives of GAM members begged their husbands to come out of the jungle and surrender to TNI. Along with 500 villagers, the wives of GAM members searched for their husbands on Sunday in several locations where GAM members were believed to be hiding. "I hope my husband will come home as my children miss their father so much," one of the GAM members' wives said.
Aceh Besar regent Sayuti Is and Aceh Besar Military District Command chief Lt. Col. Joko Warsito briefed the group of villagers and the GAM members' wives before they began searching. However, the group did not find any GAM members during their search.
| West Papua |
Jakarta Post - October 17, 2003
Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura -- A court-martial here sentenced two soldiers on Thursday to up to 14 months in jail for their roles in events connected with a weapons raid last April on a military armory in Wamena regency, Papua province.
First Lt. Pilius Wenda was jailed for one year and two months and First Sgt. Sergius Jikwa for 10 months by the Jayapura military tribunal. Military prosecutors had sought one year and six months in the stockade for Pilius, and one year and two months for Sergius.
The convicted soldiers told Thursday's hearing in the Trikora Military Command's auditorium that they would not appeal the verdict. The panel of military judges, presided over by Lt. Col. A.R. Tambulon, said Pilius had been found guilty beyond all reasonable doubt of supplying ammunition to Papuan rebels.
The crime violated Article 1 (1) of Emergency Law No. 12/1951 as Pilius had supplied the ammunition to others, the court said.
The ammunition was apparently used in the April 4 raid on the Wamena armory, which left three people dead, including two soldiers. The theft was blamed on members of the Free Papua Organization (OPM).
The judges said Pilius gave eight rounds of SP2 ammunition, including five dud rounds, to OPM rebels led by Joni Murib at Melendik village, Tiom subdistrict, Jayawijaya regency, in 2001.
The rebels threatened to seize the M-16 AI and FN-46 rifles Pilius was in charge of if he refused to hand over his eight SP2 bullets, they said.
The defendant failed to report the incident to his superiors, although what he had done threatened the lives of his comrades, the judges added.
They said Pilius, who served as the Kurima subdistrict military chief, was guilty of dereliction of duty as he handed over the ammunition to an enemy of the state due to intimidation. "He did this only to save his own skin," Tambulon said.
Eight civilians arrested on charges of involvement in the armory raid reportedly claimed they had obtained eight bullets from Pilius. The eight civilians are currently on trial in the Wamena District Court.
Tambulon further said the defendant Sergius was guilty of dereliction of duty for failing to report the arms theft to his superiors. He was therefore guilty of violating Article 121 (1) of the Criminal Code, the presiding judge added.
Sergius showed the raiders the way to the armory, where they stole at least 13 M-16 rifles, 13 SP-1 rifles and three PM rifles, along with thousands of rounds of ammunition, Tambulon said.
Sergius had failed to immediately report the raid to the Jayawijaya military chief. Most of the stolen arms were recovered several days after the incident.
"The maximum penalty for these crimes is death. But based on the investigation and what has been said during the trial, it is clear that they only helped the OPM as they were under pressure," Tambulon said.
Army Chief-of-Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, speaking during a recent visit to Wamena, said that soldiers who were found guilty of betraying the state by giving weapons to the enemy should be sentenced to death.
Seven other soldiers were sentenced to up to seven months and 20 days for dereliction of duty in connection with the arms raid.
Laksamana.Net - October 14, 2003
Papua province's governor Jaap Salossa says the resource-rich territory will never secede because its people benefit by being part of Indonesia.
The governor on Tuesday said the Papuan people's "enjoyment of the fruits of development" for more than 40 years has made the province an integral part of the Indonesian republic.
"Papua remains in the frame of Indonesia, and its people have to understand well about the concepts of development here," he was quoted as saying by state news agency Antara.
But many Papuans tell a different story, complaining they are being marginalized in their own land due to the policies of the central government and military to profit from the province's abundant natural resources.
The have also protested strongly against the government's effort to split Papua into three new provinces -- a move that is widely seen as an attempt to boost exploitation of natural resources and quash the local separatist movement.
John Rumbiak, head of the Papua-based human rights organization ELSHAM, recently told the European Parliament that conflict in Papua has claimed an estimated 100,000 lives since the territory was occupied by Indonesia in 1963.
"The Indonesian military -- operating with impunity -- has carried out numerous operations in Papua, resulting in widespread human rights violations. Indeed, the Indonesian military has killed, wounded, raped, robbed, tortured, kidnapped, illegally detained and/or destroyed the property and livelihoods of tens of thousands of indigenous Papuans," he said.
| Reformasi |
Detik.com - October 18, 2003
Anindhita Maharrani, Jakarta -- Cleaning up the New Order [regime of former President Suharto] is truly a super difficult job. Basically, almost all of the political parties at the moment are leftovers of the New Order who more or less have the same mentality.
"Reformasi has been able to succeed in opening up the democratic space but it has not yet given birth to parties which are truly and genuinely reformist", said social and political observer Max Lane from Murdoch University in a discussion titled "The Battle to Win the 2004 Presidency", which was organised by Presidential Candidate Watch at a cafe in Kebayoran Baru in South Jakarta on October 18.
Max added that almost all of the parties and their leaders are sill influenced by the politics of the New Order. "As long as this is the situation, an election, whatever the electoral laws are, will not result in a government which is prepared to carry out reformasi", he said. Max raised the question about one of the requirements to be nominated as a presidential candidate, that they must be more than forty years old. According to Max, this is a form of prohibition since none of the generation who struggled against the New Order are able to become presidential candidates.
"I prefer the younger generation, [people] like Dita Indah Sari (chairperson of the People's United Opposition Party, POPOR). Her party failed the process of verification, but even if they had succeeded, she could not have become a presidential candidate because of her age", said Max.
Additionally, according to a survey of organisations which was carried out by Judilherry Justam, of those who are known as enemies of the New Order, only two political figures can be said to be untainted by the New Order, that is [parliamentary speaker] Amien Rais and [Bung Karno Nationalist Party leader] Eros Jarot. Meanwhile, although President Megawati Sukarnoputri and former President Gus Dur can be included as figures who are untainted by the New Order the were also members of the loyal opposition because they were members of the People's Consultative Assembly and People's Representative Assembly during the New Order. (nrl)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
| 'War on terrorism' |
Agence France Presse - October 17, 2003
Hundreds of militant Muslims shouting "Allahu Akbar!" (God is Greatest) attended the burial of Indonesian terrorist bomb-maker Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi in his home town, a family lawyer said.
Activists from the Big Family of Mujahideen (holy warriors) and the Indonesian Council of Mujahideen ran chanting behind the ambulance carrying the coffin to the cemetery, said Wirawan Adnan.
Al-Ghozi was killed Sunday by troops in the Philippines three months after he broke out of a Manila jail. His body was taken back to Kebon Sari in East Java's Madiun district for burial after an autopsy at a hospital in Solo.
The result "indicates that he was not killed during a shootout but in a secret execution" by Philippine soldiers, Adnan told AFP. The Philippine military said al-Ghozi, who had been involved in a series of deadly attacks by the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), was killed in a gunfight on the southern island of Mindanao.
Adnan said the autopsy findings supported an earlier examination by his team in the Philippines which found no traces on al- Ghozi's hand showing he had fired a weapon. But Indonesia's foreign ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said his office had obtained a result from the Philippine crime lab, which confirmed that al-Ghozi had indeed fired a gun using his left hand.
Al-Ghozi's body was buried without being bathed and shrouded, as is usual at Islamic burials, at a public cemetery next to his father because his family believes he had died as a martyr, Adnan said.
Some 150 members of the same mujahideen groups had given the corpse a hero's welcome when it arrived Thursday in Kebon Sari.
They carried banners reading "My choice: Live in dignity or die as a martyr," and "Al-Ghozi, whoever you were you are a martyr, Islamic hero." The Indonesian Council of Mujahideen is led by cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, who according to foreign governments leads the JI network blamed for the Bali bombings and a series of other attacks.
Al-Ghozi had graduated in 1989 from an Islamic boarding school founded by Bashir, who was jailed for four years in September for plotting to overthrow the Indonesian government.
Al-Ghozi had trained in Afghanistan and set up a JI terrorist training camp in Mindanao, according to a report from the International Crisis Group of political analysts.
When he escaped from a Manila police cell he had been serving a 17-year jail term for possessing explosives.
Shortly after he was convicted, al-Ghozi reportedly confessed that he used part of his explosives stockpile to bomb the Manila light railway, killing 22 people in December 2000.
He also reportedly said JI had planned to use the remainder for a bombing campaign in Singapore.
Prosecutors have said al-Ghozi also detonated a bomb at the Philippine ambassador's residence in Jakarta in August 2000, killing two people.
Philippine President Gloria Arroyo has denied that al-Ghozi was executed in cold blood to create a publicity coup before US President George W. Bush's visit.
Straits Times - October 17, 2003
Bali -- An Indonesian Muslim militant was jailed for life yesterday for his key role in last year's deadly bombings on this holiday island that killed 202 people.
Mubarok's sentence is the latest in a string of verdicts against Muslim radicals who blew up two nightclubs in Bali last October, killing mostly foreign tourists.
Judges at the Denpasar district court said they found Mubarok guilty of taking part in plotting the attack that put Indonesia and its minority of radical Muslims under the global microscope.
"The court declares the defendant legally and convincingly guilty in carrying out criminal acts as well as plotting and committing terrorism, and sentences the defendant Mubarok to a life sentence," said presiding judge Nengah Suryada.
The court has now handed down 26 verdicts over the Bali bombings, including three death sentences.
While he was not among the top tier of suspects, police say Mubarok, also known as Hutomo Pamungkas, was a key player. They say he held the funds used for the bombings in his account.
Mubarok is also a suspect in a separate case involving a car-bomb attack three years ago outside the Jakarta home of the Philippine ambassador which severely wounded him.
Reuters - October 16, 2003
Jakarta -- Indonesia is still "very weak" fighting terrorism because of soft laws and is just waiting for the next attack, the head of the government's anti-terrorism board said on Thursday, days before a visit by US President George W. Bush.
In frank remarks to foreign ambassadors, police general Ansyaad Mbai said soft anti-terror laws and a domestic media that gave excessive airtime to militants were chinks in the armour.
The world's most populous Muslim nation had been seen as the weakest link in the war on terror in Southeast Asia until the Bali bomb attacks one year ago, which killed 202 people.
Since then, Indonesia has arrested 100 Muslim militants over the bombings and other attacks, earning praise, although many analysts say it has much work to do, especially in waging a "war of ideas" against radicals.
"Has our success in the Bali investigations been able to ensure that we can stop terrorist actions in Indonesia? My answer is a clear no. We are very weak," said Mbai, who heads the Coordinating Board on Counterterrorism, tasked with straddling the main security agencies and the government.
"The legal support is very weak. Our law is too soft to combat terrorism. With this kind of situation, we are only waiting for another attack." Bush will meet President Megawati Sukarnoputri on Bali next Wednesday during a visit lasting several hours. Fighting terrorism will focus prominently.
Indonesia was vulnerable without laws that could root out attacks at the planning level, said Mbai. Jakarta issued anti-terror legislation after the Bali bombings, but it is not as draconian as that used by neighbours Singapore and Malaysia.
Mbai also blamed the domestic media for giving militants too much space to express their views. "Our press has been gullible in taking the opinions of these people. Our press always prefers the hot news, bombastic statements from radicals," said Mbai.
"Look at how they report Al-Ghozi as if it's the homecoming of a great hero from a battle," said Mbai, referring to coverage of the return of the corpse of Indonesian Muslim militant Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi, shot dead by Philippine troops on Sunday.
Scores of militant supporters unfurled banners idolising the self-confessed bombmaker of the Southeast Asian militant group Jemaah Islamiah when his body arrived at his East Java home before dawn on Thursday.
The Australian ambassador to Jakarta said the Indonesian media had largely ignored tough anti-terror comments from Indonesia's Chief Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at a memorial service marking the first anniversary of the Bali attacks on Sunday.
Yudhoyono called the Bali bombers "diabolical men". "You won't find those comments in the Indonesian media. That's a great pity. That sort of comment needs to be disseminated and given coverage," said David Ritchie.
"Let us not dignify these people with any sense of philosophy or representation of Islam. They're not Islamic people. These people are murderers, criminals. Nothing more."
Agence France Presse - October 16, 2003
Indonesia must show the world that its Muslim majority is moderate and peace-loving and not let a tiny group of "murderers" determine its direction, US President George W. Bush said in an interview.
"I think it is very important for Indonesia to make known the moderate nature of the Islamic community," Bush said in an interview in Washington with Indonesia's Kompas newspaper.
"Let it be known to the world that the vast majority of Muslims in that country respect democracy and wish to live in peace." Bush next Wednesday meets President Megawati Sukarnoputri, leader of the world's most populous Muslim nation, in Bali during his Asian tour.
The al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) regional terror group, which is based in Indonesia, is blamed for bombings on the resort island which killed 202 people in October last year. Police have arrested 35 people. Three have been sentenced to death and many others jailed.
Bush said he would tell Megawati the US did not wish Indonesia to be hijacked by a small group of people who "harbour hatred." "It is very important that we make concerted efforts ... to help Madam Megawati bring the remnants or those [terrorist] cells to justice," he said.
"Indonesia is one of very important countries, important because of the nature of its population. It is imperative that that country succeed." Bush said the war on terror would be a key topic with five Asian leaders during his tour and he would warn them that they were dealing with "cold-blooded murderers." The US president was to embark Thursday on the trip that will take him to Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and Australia.
Bush said the war on terror would be a long one. "I don't know how long it will take but most importantly countries should understand that it's a long-term effort. We must not relent and give up." In a separate interview with Indonesia's SCTV broadcast Wednesday, Bush gave no promises about access to top terror suspect Hambali, who is believed to be a senior figure in both al Qaeda and JI.
Hambali was arrested in Thailand in August and is now in US custody at an undisclosed location. US authorities have not granted Indonesian investigators direct access to him even though most of the attacks to which he is linked took place in Indonesia.
Asked how Jakarta could cooperate with the war on terror if not given a chance to question Hambali, Bush said that "right now the key is to find out as much as we possibly can and when we have that information we will share it with her [Megawati]." In the interview with Kompas, Bush said he would continue to pressure Myanmar to release pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been detained by the military junta since May.
"The Myanmar situation is lamentable. There's a leader in Myanmar who need to be treated respectably and the will of the people should be respected. We will continue to push for freedom in Myanmar," Bush said.
"Aung San Suu Kyi is a great leader. She is a heroic woman. This country respects her and we will continue to push for her freedom." The United States and some other nations tightened sanctions on Myanmar after Aung San Suu Kyi was detained at an undisclosed location following a bloody clash between her supporters and pro-junta demonstrators on May 30. She is now under house arrest.
Reuters - October 15, 2003
Bali -- Five Indonesian men were jailed on Wednesday for terms running from three to six years for helping to hide one of the top suspects for last year's Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people.
Judges at the Denpasar district court found the five guilty in separate trials of helping self-confessed bomber Ali Imron and accomplice Mubarok hide from a police hunt on a remote isle off the eastern coast of Borneo after the October 12, 2002 attacks on bars frequented by Western tourists.
Sofyan Hadi, a former student of Imron who was a Muslim teacher, received the harshest sentence -- six years.
"The defendant Sofyan Hadi is legally and convincingly guilty of helping hide a perpetrator of a terror crime," presiding judge Arif Supratman said.
In other trials, judges sentenced Mujarod and Sirajul Munir to five years each, while Imam Susanto got four. Syamsul Arifin, found only to have known the suspects' whereabouts, was jailed for three years for hiding key information from police. The court has now handed down 25 verdicts over the Bali bombings, including three death sentences to Muslim militants who plotted the attacks.
Ali Imron was sentenced to life in jail after he expressed remorse for his role in the atrocity, which Jakarta blames on Jemaah Islamiah, a Southeast Asian militant network.
Mubarok, accused of holding the money used for the bombings in his account, faces judgment on Thursday. Prosecutors have demanded a life sentence.
Reuters - October 13, 2003
Singapore -- Indonesia can do more to curb Islamic schools that served as a training ground for extremists who carried out some of the deadliest attacks since the September 11, 2001 strikes, a senior politician said on Monday.
Amien Rais, speaker of Indonesia's parliament, also told the World Economic Forum in Singapore that boosting intelligence services and cutting off the flow of illicit funds to groups intent on terror attacks were essential for security and to prevent Islam appearing in an unfavourable light.
Rais, former head of Indonesia's second-largest Islamic group, the 28-million-strong Muhammadiyah, said it was time to take another look at education in Indonesia and at the Islamic madrassah schools that have served as fertile ground for recruiting young men to terror networks.
"The government seems a bit hesitant to pinpoint schools as cells of spreading terrorism," he said, adding that the government of secular Indonesia could be afraid that a crackdown would result in a violent backlash.
Few analysts expect the government to do anything about the schools, especially before presidential elections next year when no politician wants to risk being branded un-Islamic in a nation which has the world's highest number of Muslims.
In Indonesia's East Java province, one school -- Al-Islam -- has come under the spotlight because of its links to three brothers arrested for the Bali bomb attacks on October 12 last year. A Bali court has sentenced two of the brothers to death and the third to life in jail for their role in the bombings, which killed 202 people.
Indonesia has blamed the Southeast Asian militant Muslim group Jemaah Islamiah for the Bali blasts. Some security experts say the group is Osama bin Laden's Southeast Asian wing.
Rais also mentioned Abu Bakar Bashir, the jailed cleric whom many Jemaah Islamiah members around the region have recognised as their leader but whom a court this year ruled as not being connected to JI.
"I don't know what to say ... I don't have solid proof," said Rais of the verdict. "From my logic, for sure, networks of terrorist groups are connected collectively or individually to Jemaah Islamiah (JI)."
The most famous Islamic school in Indonesia was al-Mukmin, said an August report by the Brussels-based International Crisis Group. It said the school was co-founded in the central Java city of Solo by Bashir.
Reuters - October 13, 2003
Jakarta -- A Muslim militant was jailed for 20 years by an Indonesian court on Monday for a 2000 bomb attack on the Philippine ambassador's residence which killed two people and badly wounded the Manila envoy.
The Central Jakarta District Court also found Abdul Jabar guilty of involvement in a series of Christmas 2000 church bombings. "The defendant is found legally and convincingly guilty of the bombing and the court sentences him to 20 years in jail," presiding judge Pramodana K. Kusumah said in the verdict.
The ambassador suffered severe injuries in the car bomb blast. Apart from the two dead, a total of 18 were wounded.
Indonesian police have said they believe the bombing was funded by Hambali, the top al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant captured in Thailand in August and now in US custody. JI is also blamed for last year's Bali bombings which killed 202 people.
A number of key Bali bombers, at least one of whom has already been sentenced to death for those blasts, have also been named as suspects in the embassy bombing.
Police said earlier this year that much of their information on the Jakarta attack came from self-confessed JI member Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi, who escaped a Manila prison in July but was shot dead by Philippine security forces on Sunday, according to authorities there.
Agence France Presse - October 13, 2003
Kuta -- Indonesia vowed yesterday to hunt down five Bali bombers who are still at large one year after the attack as more than 2,000 mourners held an emotional service to commemorate those killed.
"Make no mistake that those outstanding suspects will be hunted down," top security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told the crowd. "History will condemn them for ever."
The Al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah (JI) regional terror group, which is based in Indonesia, staged the attack on two crowded nightclubs, killing 202 people from 22 countries. Indonesian police, with crucial help from Australian investigators, have caught 34 people and put most of them on trial. Three have been sentenced to death by firing squad and others have been given long jail terms.
But Bali police chief I Made Mangku Pastika, who led the hunt, warned on Saturday that the five have built two more bombs and could be planning further attacks.
A Malaysian who built the Bali bombs, Dr Azahari Husin, and his Indonesian assistant Dulmatin are among those being hunted. Police say Dr Azahari, a former university professor, was involved in a Jakarta hotel bombing in August which killed 12 people.
Inspector-General Pastika said the new bombs are hard to detect by conventional metal detectors but he did not think the devices are in Bali.
"There are some suspects of the Bali bombing still out there and they have also become smarter. So it is the reality that we need to develop new tactics and strategy to catch them," he said.
"We have to realise that these bombs don't contain metal. All of them are plastic so our metal detectors are not very useful for us." He said the suspects have stopped using e-mail and telephones.
"Now they are using ... more conventional, traditional communication -- sending people. As long as they don't use electronic communication it is harder for us to catch them." But he said police doubled their intelligence squad and equipped it with more modern surveillance equipment.
"As we understand it, the JI cells in Indonesia are still in the community ... but this is not a formal organisation, so we don't have a list of members, the ID cards. So what I believe now is they are hiding themselves, keeping a calm, low profile," he said.
Apart from the Bali and hotel blasts, JI is also blamed for bombing attacks on churches and priests in Indonesia on Christmas Eve 2000 which killed 19 people and for a string of other attacks.
| Government & politics |
Straits Times - October 16, 2003
Devi Asmarani, Jakarta -- Mrs Megawati Sukarnoputri's critics said yesterday it is time the Indonesian President took responsibility for her administration's poor performance in key areas instead of blaming others for it. They were responding to off-the-cuff remarks made by the President recently in which she attributed her administration's ineffectiveness to the media and human rights groups.
Analysts said her outburst just showed the growing pressure on her leadership and the increasing unpopularity of her Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) ahead of next year's election.
For other critics, her remarks made during the 18th World Habitat Day in Bali last week gave them even more ammunition to lambast her, saying she lacked leadership and a willingness to listen.
Recent surveys have shown the public increasingly disenchanted with the way Mrs Megawati has dealt with corruption and law enforcement in Indonesia.
But she said she would have made more progress had it not been for the media and human rights group. For instance, she could not execute convicted corrupt officials as done in China as there would be an uproar.
"If I meet a corrupt official and immediately ... I shoot him, I am very sure that these people," pointing to members of the press, "will tomorrow write stories about how the Indonesian President has violated human rights." She also criticised a recent nationwide string of evictions in which hundreds of illegal settlers were driven off state and private land and left with nowhere to go just before the end of fasting month celebrations and at the start of the annual floods. Human rights groups condemned the timing.
But it was not her fault, Mrs Megawati said. It was the fault of corrupt regional administrators who had been bribed to look the other way, and when the build-up of squatters had reached an unacceptable level.
Anti-corruption activists condemned her comments, saying they were irrelevant to the problems they raised. Said prominent lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis: "Efforts to combat corruption and possible human rights violations are two different things."
The 1999 anti-corruption law provides a maximum sentence of death for convicted corrupt officials. The President has no problems with the death sentence, as apparent in her rejection of clemency requests from death-row drug convicts.
Analysts say that maybe the situation could improve if she spent more time listening to the Indonesian people and less time complaining.
From the previous regime which left her with too much homework, the lazy and corrupt bureaucrats, the overly powerful Parliament, the undisciplined and biased media to the greedy provincial leaders -- all have been the object of her blame in the past two years.
Political observer Sudjati Djiwandono said: "She is the nation's leader, meaning she is the most responsible in the country. If she is not happy to lead Indonesia, then she should step down."
| 2004 elections |
Jakarta Post - October 17, 2003
Muninggar Sri Saraswati & Tiarma Siboro, Banda Aceh/Jakarta -- Family members of Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel have been told to back presidential candidates who accommodate the institution's interests and are committed to maintaining the country's territorial integrity in the 2004 general elections.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu also called on family members of TNI personnel to exercise their political rights in 2004 and vote for contestants whose views were in line with TNI's aspirations.
"Active TNI [personnel] must be neutral. [But] family members of the TNI are free to vote for contestants in line with TNI's aspirations or Pancasila, the Constitution and the Unitary Republic of Indonesia," Ryamizard said.
The Army chief was briefing the media after holding a meeting with a number of retired Army generals, including Wiranto, Try Sutrisno, Edi Sudrajat, Rudini, Wismoyo Arismunandar and Raden Hartono at the Balai Kartini function hall in South Jakarta.
Ryamizard did not divulge any names but Wiranto and former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto are strong candidates in the Golkar convention to elect presidential candidates for the 2004 general elections Prabowo was absent from the meeting.
Indonesia will hold a legislative election in April 2004 and presidential elections in two stages in July and September respectively. Ryamizard's statement came barely two weeks after TNI Commander Gen. Endriartono Sutarto told soldiers across the country not to exercise their right to vote in 2004 to avoid conflict within the institution. Endriartono was in Aceh on Thursday to assess the latest situation in the troubled province.
The statement also came on the last day of Golkar's convention. Wiranto and Prabowo are among the seven presidential hopefuls who garnered the support of at least five provinces to contest in the next selection round for presidential candidates.
Golkar's central board members, provincial chairmen and regental heads will gather in Jakarta on October 20 and October 21 to select five of the seven aspirants as the party's presidential candidates. One of the five will be elected as Golkar's sole candidate either in February or May.
During the meeting at the Balai Kartini on Thursday, Wiranto briefed active and retired Army generals on the importance of retired military officers involvement in the upcoming elections, saying the nations cohesiveness had continued to deteriorate and that TNI must be able to perform their task of protecting the country seriously.
Ryamizard, however, strongly rejected suggestions that the meeting had any political underpinnings.
"Should I reject the visit of retired Army officers? I can't ask them not to be involved in politics. If I do so, I am violating their rights as citizens. Military [personnel] are not allowed to support them, but I think it's OK if we pray for each other," he said.
"I've told you there was no politics. If this [meeting was aimed at discussing political agenda], why didn't I stage it secretly at a hotel?" Ryamizard said.
Separately in Banda Aceh, Endriartono reiterated that the TNI would not support any presidential candidates in 2004, including retired military officers aspiring for the post.
"We do not extend our support to any contestant as we have decided to be neutral," Endriartono told reporters during his visit to evaluate the military operation in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam on Thursday.
Endriartono was scheduled to attend the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Malaysia on Friday.
He expressed optimism that whoever was elected president next year would support the TNI, which is currently facing various problems. "We don't support any contestants but we welcome any contestant who support the TNI," Endriartono said.
The TNI has agreed to end its presence in the House of Representatives in 2004 and the People's Consultative Assembly in 2009.
Jakarta Post - October 16, 2003
Kurniawan Hari and Ainur R. Sophiaan, Jakarta/Surabaya -- At least seven of Golkar's 19 presidential aspirants have secured a ticket to the party's preliminary convention to choose five candidates after winning the support of at least five provinces as required by the convention.
Of the 27 provinces that had reported their provincial convention results, 26 provinces have thrown their weight behind businessman Aburizal Bakrie, putting him in top position among the candidates. Trailing behind him are former military chief Gen. (ret) Wiranto and media baron Surya Paloh with 23 provinces each. Party chairman Akbar Tandjung comes fourth with 19 provinces, while Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla ranks fifth with 17 provinces.
Former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) Lt. Gen.(ret) Prabowo Subianto and Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengkubuwono X rank sixth and seventh, with 14 and six provinces respectively.
Theo L. Sambuaga was backed by three provinces, while Moehono, Marwah Daud Ibrahim and Haryono Suyono were backed by only one province each.
The other eight candidates -- Anwar Fuady, Kemala Motik Gafur, Muladi, Nurrulah Marzuki, Rivai Siata, Setiawan Djodi, Tabrani Rab and Tuti Alawiyah -- have not received support from any province. Only 30 of the country's 32 provinces participated in the convention. Provinces that have not reported their convention results are Jakarta, West Nusa Tenggara and South Sulawesi.
The party will choose five presidential candidates later this month before choosing its sole candidate in February or April 2004.
The preliminary result, however, does not necessarily reflect the final outcome of the convention as preferences of provincial and regental chapters may change in the national convention.
The seven qualified candidates will have to fight for 531 votes up for grab in the national convention -- 18 votes from Golkar's executive board, 10 votes from Golkar-affiliated organizations, 90 votes from 30 provincial chapters with each chapter allocated three votes and 413 votes from 413 regental chapters.
The five candidates that get the highest votes will be declared presidential candidates. One of them will be named the party's presidential candidate in April or May next year.
Convention deputy secretary Rully Chairul Azwar said last night there were irregularities in the convention results in some provinces. "We are not saying there is money politics. Possibly, the irregularities are because of a misunderstanding about the convention mechanism," Rully said.
Meanwhile, chairman of Golkar's East Java chapter Ridwan Hisjam said that the result of the convention would officially be submitted to the party's executive board during the party's leadership meeting scheduled for October 17 and October 18.
He said the province's result which put Akbar in first position had indicated that the party chairman was accepted.
There are some provinces that submitted different versions of the convention result. The final result will be announced after all provinces finish the convention.
Jakarta Post - October 15, 2003
Kurniawan Hari and Suherdjoko, Jakarta/Semarang -- The Golkar convention series to select its presidential candidate remains far from complete and nothing is sure except for the fact that chairman Akbar Tandjung has been made to labor.
Of 18 provincial chapters which have reported its regional convention results so far, Akbar failed to finish among the top five in six provinces: Central Java, Yogyakarta, South Kalimantan, East Nusa Tenggara, Southeast Sulawesi and North Maluku, which meant his presidential bid in those provinces was denied anyway.
Akbar is trailing former Indonesian Military chief Gen. (ret) Wiranto in terms of popular support as long as the regional conventions are concerned. The retired general Wiranto ranked first in seven provinces while Akbar topped the list in four.
Indeed, Akbar's exclusion from the top five in Central Java, one of Golkar's strongholds during the New Order, dealt the party chairman a big blow.
In the absence of Akbar, former chief of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto emerged the unlikely winner, followed by businessman Aburizal Bakrie, Wiranto, media mogul Surya Paloh and Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla.
The Golkar chairman is waiting to hear the Supreme Court's verdict of his appeal he filed after his conviction in a graft case by lower courts. He was sentenced to three years in jail, but remains free pending the Supreme Court's decision.
Akbar expressed on Tuesday his disappointment with the preliminary result of the convention, which overturned previous prediction that his influence as party chairman would do him a favor.
He said he had been touring regencies in Central Java to campaign. "The result does not meet my expectations," he said.
Earlier conventions in Golkar branches in 35 regencies and municipalities in Central Java showed that Wiranto finished among the top five in 34 branches, Akbar 30 branches and Prabowo 13. But at the provincial-level convention on Monday, Wiranto's support fell to 32 while Prabowo's rose to 45.
Responding to the phenomenon, Akbar said the supervisory board of the convention would clarify the data from the Golkar's provincial chapter. "If there is violation, the supervisory board will take immediate action," Akbar said.
Separately, convention chairman Oetojo Oesman said his team had sent a letter to all of Golkar's chapters in regencies and provinces to be consistent in selecting the presidential candidate. "They must consistently support candidates because they bear the mandate of the people in regencies," he said.
Convention deputy secretary Rully Chairul Azwar meanwhile said his team had received reports on the irregularities of convention results in Central Java. He, however, said he would request the organizers of convention in Central Java to provide detailed information of the irregularities before taking any action.
Rully emphasized the national convention committee had issued regulations, which also requires provincial chapters to accommodate and to fight for the aspirations of the branches in regency. "The regulation is expected to keep the party leaders in regencies and provinces consistent. This will also prevent money politics," Rully added.
Despite the poor result, however, Akbar has secured a place in the national convention to shortlist five presidential candidates later this month.
Jakarta Post - October 15, 2003
Moch. N. Kurniawan, Jakarta -- Bribery and blackmailing attempts have started to daunt members of the General Elections Commission (KPU) as supply procurement tenders worth millions of US dollars for next year's general elections are being processed by the commission.
KPU member Anas Urbaningrum revealed on Tuesday that an unidentified person recently phoned him to deliver money as part of efforts to win the voter registration paper tender. Anas, along with Hamid Awaluddin, is in charge of that tender.
"The person said he would send someone to me with something in a sealed envelope to help secure the tender," said Anas, adding that the person's phone number was withheld when he received a call on his cellular phone. Anas said he refused the bribe and called on the person to donate the funds to people in Aceh and other people facing hardships.
Another KPU member, Mulyana W. Kusumah, said bribery and blackmailing attempts were likely to become widespread as the KPU would carry out several goods procurement tenders in the next couple of months, worth over Rp 1 trillion (US$115 million). "As a country that is still suffering from economic difficulty, such a huge amount of money available via the KPU will trigger high- level business intrigue ...," he said.
Separately, KPU member Hamid Awaluddin emphasized that the KPU did not have a policy of asking for money from firms that participated in its tenders. According to him, that was essential, as a number of parties had misused the name of KPU to collect funds and blackmail firms taking part in KPU tenders with a promise of winning the tenders.
KPU has been carrying out tenders to provide Information Technology infrastructure, ballot boxes and voter registration papers. It will also put the preparation of ballot papers to tender.
Meanwhile, Chusnul Mar'iyah declared on Tuesday a consortium led by PT Integrasi Technology the winner for the time being of the tender to provide IT infrastructure. A consortium under PT Berca Hardaya Parkasa, and PT Asaba Computer Center, were identified as reserve winners, as KPU would allocate five days for any party to file objections to KPU's decision. If there are no complaints within five days, PT Integrasi will be declared the definitive winner of the KPU IT tender.
PT Integrasi quoted Rp 152.72 billion to provide IT infrastructure for next year's elections. PT Berca offered Rp 155.54 billion and PT Asaba bid Rp 164.25 billion. The technical specifications of the three bidders were quite similar.
Alluding to administrative verification for political parties, Mulyana said the Indonesian Catholic Democracy Party (PKDI) managed on Tuesday to pass KPU's administrative screening.
Therefore, of 50 parties registering with KPU, eight have passed the administrative screening and six have qualified for next year's election as they met the 1999 election's electoral threshold.
| Corruption/collusion/nepotism |
Jakarta Post - October 17, 2003
A historic agreement was reached Wednesday between the country's largest Muslim organizations, Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, on eradicating corruption in a nation that continues to rank among the most corrupt countries in the world. Indonesian Corruption Watch coordinator Teten Masduki shared his views with The Jakarta Post's Ati Nurbaiti on the issue.
Question: How do you view the new partnership by NU and Muhammadiyah to wipe out corruption?
Answer: The cultural approach that they are undertaking is very important, given the highly permissive attitude here towards corruption. NU and Muhammadiyah have great potential as religious-based organizations. But it is dangerous if the move is only symbolic without clear actions.
NU and Muhammadiyah are our last hope, they're the biggest organizations (they claim to have a combined total of 70 million members). So if they fail I fear it would lead to nationwide frustration, the feeling that corruption cannot be eradicated here.
The permissiveness seems to be encouraged by justifications like "Even the Prophet never rejected fortune (rezeki)" ... That is a manipulation of values, even when we find coins on the street we should ask who they belong to. Such justifications contribute to the thriving of corruption. In the eyes of many religious teachers and leaders, the punishment for thieves are quite clear compared to alleged corruptors, who are said to have only "slipped" in their misuse of wealth.
Corruption is much more dangerous than theft! Corruption in the banking system could bring down a nation's economy. It is far worse than a bank robbery.
The kyai (religious teachers) must start (to seriously address corruption), we must straighten the interpretation of corruption (from an acceptable act) because we're supposed to be a religious society.
In secular countries like Scandinavia where the country is clean, people are aware that bribes lead to the collapse of the law enforcement system. In Indonesia there is a combination of rationality, a strong sense of religion and patrimonialism (including the religious leaders that people look up to). Therefore religious leaders must be firm on corruption. They could start by rejecting any contributions to their boarding schools (pesantren) which sources are unclear. Earlier the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce or Kadin also launched an antibribe drive. Your comment?
This was in line with the common platform on antibribery of the International Chamber of Commerce. One part of the business community here comprises those who grew up under the facilities of the Soeharto regime, which saw the start of cronyism. This led to them being trapped in that culture; without it operating a business was difficult.
Another part of the business community is the independent businesses which are mainly exporters and whose capital did not depend on the state facilities. They also engage in paying levies to smooth business operation. But they are a smaller part of the business community. What an antibribery pact needs to be effective is a healthy independent organization which metes out penalties, in this case business sanctions, to members who violate the pact. So as Kadin does not issue penalties, a more effective framework for an antibribe drive would be the specific associations (textiles etc).
Now the government, the political elite and the business community are all weak while power is fragmented. Bribing used to be clear, you paid a bribe with a guarantee of getting what you need; now its getting to be irrelevant as one pays bribes to more parties with no guarantee of getting anything in return. Your organization also joined in the initial maiden announcement of the Bung Hatta Anti Corruption Award. There are all these private initiatives while people seem apathetic towards the planned set up of the new Anticorruption Commission. Your comment?
It is planned to have strong authorities so its strength will depend on the people (selected to sit on it). An anticorruption drive must indeed start from the legal approach to show that things have changed, to sow trust in the anticorruption drive. The legal approach is not enough but it's a start, look at China and South Korea; the punishments make the heart tremble.
With such an approach, then you could engage in the preventive approach, which is cultural. Here, we find that exposing big cases no longer works. The cultural approach is very important. The constraint is that we've seen that those in NU and Muhammadiyah have been very permissive, including their young politicians.
Jakarta Post - October 13, 2003
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- The cool response from the public with regard to the recruitment process for Commission for Corruption Eradication (KPK) executives indicates people's distrust in the government's move against corruption, observers have said.
"What do you expect from a speedy recruitment like that?" said Emmy Hafild, secretary-general of Indonesian Transparency International, over the weekend.
She doubted whether the government-sanctioned KPK selection committee would be able to select reputable candidates. "They have only 57 days from now to establish the commission. How could they expect to find reliable candidates if they have allowed only 20 days for the registration?" Emmy said, questioning the government's commitment to the commission's establishment.
People, she warned, might not be well informed about the recruitment due to a lack of public information from the selection team. The committee has advertised the recruitment through the print media for several days. As of Saturday, the committee confirmed that 66 candidates had applied for KPK leadership seats since recruitment opened on October 1. Most of the applicants were retired government officials.
Committee deputy chairman Abdulgani Abdullah is convinced that the committee will manage to select reputable candidates, despite the time constraint. "Do not underestimate the applicants. We also expect more people to have registered by the closing date of October 20," he said over the weekend.
Due to the cool public response, the committee has changed the requirements for the candidates. It permitted last week professional groups, non-governmental organizations and political parties to nominate candidates. Previously, the committee required candidates to nominate themselves.
Coordinator of Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) Teten Masduki said the muted public reaction might indicate its distrust in the recruitment process. He suggested that the committee not allow political parties to nominate candidates, saying that the KPK had to be free from any political influence in its attempt to eradicate corruption.
The KPK selection committee consists of 12 members, eight of whom are prosecutors, police officers and government officials, with the remainder lawyers and law experts. The law practitioners are Adnan Buyung Nasution and Todung Mulya Lubis and law professors Harkristuti Harkrisnowo and Loebby Loekman, both from the University of Indonesia.
The committee will select 10 candidates to sit on the KPK executive board, who will be screened for their credibility, integrity and track record. The team will have to submit the names of 10 candidates by December 5 to President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who will select five and submit them to the House of Representatives for approval. The commission is expected to start working by December 27.
According to Law No. 30/2002 on the commission for the eradication of corruption, the House must endorse the five candidates within three months of the president proposing them. Megawati approved only last month the members of the KPK selection committee, almost a year after the law on the commission was passed.
Several observers, who questioned the composition of the KPK selection committee members, have expressed doubt that the committee would establish a strong anticorruption commission with unquestioned independence and integrity.
KPK is dubbed a "super body," as its authority will include the investigation and prosecution of suspected corrupters, powers that are currently the privilege of the police and prosecutors.
The establishment of KPK has been postponed several times since 1999, due to the government's failure to comply with the law on corruption eradication.
| Regional/communal conflicts |
Reuters - October 18, 2003
Jakarta -- Indonesian police said on Saturday they had killed three men and arrested five suspected of involvement in a string of deadly attacks in Central Sulawesi province.
The suspects were captured after a gunfight near the town of Poso, about 1,600 km northeast of Jakarta, on Friday night, Central Sulawesi police spokesman Agus Sugianto told Reuters via telephone from Poso. "We arrested a total of eight men, three of who were killed in a gunfight last night," said Sugianto.
Ten people died and dozens of houses as well as a church were destroyed in attacks on four mostly Christian villages last weekend, raising fears of an upsurge in violence between Muslims and Christians in the region following months of relative peace.
Police said they had seized homemade rifles, pistols and ammunition at the scene. Sugianto said officials from Jakarta were heading to the site for further investigation.
Officials said earlier the recent violence had prompted authorities to order troop reinforcements into the area. Sugianto said police were hunting more suspects, but did not elaborate.
At least 2,000 people have died since the conflict erupted in 1999. About 85 percent of Indonesia's 210 million people are Muslim. The rest are Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, or animist.
Radio Australia - October 16, 2003
Indonesia has sent two thousand police and troops into the western island province of Sulawesi, to prevent violence between Muslims and Christians. At least 10 people have died in two separate attacks on four mainly Christian villages in Poso, Central Sulawesi.
Hundreds of terrified villagers who fled the attacks by masked men are reported to be slowly returning home.
Presenter/Interviewer: Kanaha Sabapathy
Speakers: Johan Kieft, Care Indonesia's program leader for disaster management; Jesuit Father Franz Magnis Suseno.
Sabapathy: Communal violence is not new in Poso ... in fact in 2000 when the Malukus and Sulawesi were engulfed in Muslim Christian violence, some thousand lives were lost in Poso itself. It's no wonder therefore that this time round the Indonesian authorities acted immediately ... sending in some 2,500 police and troops to stem any new flare-up of sectarian violence. But to date neither the police nor the military know who were behind the attacks ... and according to Jesuit father Franz Magnis Suseno it's still all speculation.
Franz: The Christian community does not believe that the local Muslim community is involved in this clash. No, I think they believe these are what we call in Indonesia provocateurs, which have their special interests.
Sabapathy: In December 2001 a government brokered peace pact was reached between the two communities. And according to Johan Kieft, Care Indonesia's program leader for disaster management the two communities have since been working out their differences and co-existing in peace.
Kieft: Based on our experiences in the field actually conditions have improved significantly over the last six months. Christians and Muslims are working well together. There have been some small incidents like by mid-2002, but particularly since September, October last year we have recorded no incidents whatsoever, and we've been able to progress our work very progressively.
Sabapathy: Top government officials including security minister Susilo Bambang Yudohyono believe this time round the attacks were initiated not from within the communities but by outsiders. Could it be Islamic militants? Unlike the Malukus where sectarian conflict was fanned by the militant Muslim group the Laskhar Jihad, the conflict in Sulawesi was the result of economic and political tensions. Laskhar Jihad was disbanded just hours before the Bali bombings on October 12th last year. But since then the al-Qaeda linked Jemaah Islamiah is spearheading Islamic militancy. According to a report by the International Crisis Group, Poso has been eyed by the JI as a potential training ground. Last April twelve JI members and associates were arrested in the Central Sulawesi capital of Palu. Others like Father Franz however ask if the conflict is linked to the military and its withdrawal from Poso just a few months ago.
Franz: One and a half years ago after the Maleno Two Agreement on Ambon you had in April last year some very bad attacks against Christian targets, later it came out that these attacks were done by a group of young gangsters led by a certain Berti who is a Christian but was under the guidance of the Kompassus. So it came from Kompassus but they wanted to make the impression that it came from Laskar Jihad at that time. We in Jakarta are wondering why things like in Poso now always happen after the military is pulled out?
Sabapathy: While the hunt for the attackers continue, Johan Kieft says the recent incidents are a setback to what have been achieved so far.
Kieft: It was very peaceful, things worked very well. Poso town has really come to life, the economy it's really picked up, people are doing well and the government has put all efforts and very supportive of all peace activities.
Sabapathy: And since the incident what's the situation like?
Kieft: Things have been going back to normal, it hasn't led to any fighting between Christians and Muslims at a wider scale.
Deutsche Presse Agentur - October 17, 2003
Jakarta -- Unidentified gangs on Friday attempted to set fire to houses in troubled Poso, Central Sulawesi province, where 13 people have died this month in a fresh outbreak of well-planned violence, police officials said.
Brigadier General Sunarko, spokesman for the national police, said the attack occurred early Friday morning in the town, 1,575 kilometres northeast of Jakarta.
The arsonists managed to set fire to a small hut used for wood processing and broke the windows of a nearly house, where kerosene was tossed in but failed to catch on fire, Sunarko told the Elshinta private radio station.
The incident caused no injuries. The perpetrators fled the scene before police arrived to arrest them.
Local police authorities have not yet determined whether Friday's pre-dawn incident was connected with recent violence in Poso, said Sunarko, who added an investigation was still underway.
An unidentified group of gunmen launched two pre-dawn raids on Christian-dominated villages in the Poso district on October 10 and October 12, leaving at least 13 people dead and dozens of others injured.
On Thursday, top security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said combat troops would be put on offensive in Central Sulawesi province to crush what he called the "security disturbance movement" in the area.
Poso and nearby areas experienced communal clashes between Moslem and Christian communities between 2000 to 2001 that claimed more than 1,000 lives.
Authorities have yet to identify the perpetrators of the recent attacks, but government officials claimed they were "well- trained", consisting of outsiders and jointly working with local residents.
Jakarta Post - October 16, 2003
La Remmy and Erik W, Poso -- Jakarta plans to increase security in Poso regency, Central Sulawesi, to prevent outsiders from perpetrating further attacks after the deaths of at least nine people in recent raids there, a senior minister said on Wednesday.
Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said three main security measures would be utilized to prevent more deadly violence blamed on "mysterious gunmen" in the past two weeks, which threatens to end the peace deal brokered in December 2001, which effectively put a stop to two years of Muslim-Christian clashes.
First, the security forces will intensify patrols in vulnerable areas across the religiously divided district to curb the intrusion of troublemakers from outside. Second, the authorities are determined to cut off communication between Sulawesi-based provocateurs and their accomplices living in other areas.
"The central government will strive to tighten security so as to hinder the free movement of outsiders in Poso by strengthening intelligence operations," Susilo told journalists on the sidelines of his visit to the town.
Third, the Indonesian Military (TNI) will station soldiers in remote areas that are not inhabited or home to very small communities.
Susilo said the deployment of military forces would be concentrated in jungles and mountainous areas. "This operation is to break up the bases of these troublemakers and detect their activities or training camps." He said the three crucial measures were decided as an analysis showed that the latest attacks in Poso and the neighboring regency of Morowali were perpetrated by trained outsiders in cooperation with some local residents.
They had formed paramilitary gangs recruited from the local population to launch raids on villages in a very well planned manner, the chief security minister added. However, Susilo could not specify the number of police and military personnel that would be needed in Poso.
On Sunday, masked gunmen launched dawn raids on three predominantly Christian villages; Saatu, Pantangolemba and Pinedapa in Poso Pesisir subdistrict, leaving nine people dead.
Two days earlier, similar attackers killed three others and burned houses and a church in Beteleme village, Morowali. A bomb blast rocked Betania village in Poso Pesisir on Monday evening, but caused no injuries.
The unexpected attacks prompted Susilo and officers from the TNI and the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) to fly to Central Sulawesi on Tuesday.
He visited Pinedapa, Saatu and Pantangolemba on Wednesday to assess the situation and spoke with victims there. In Poso, the minister was accompanied by Central Sulawesi Governor Aminuddin Ponulele and provincial police chief Brig. Gen. Taufik Ridha.
During the talks, local residents asked Susilo to deploy more security personnel to the attacked villages to restore peace and order.
"During Sunday's incident, I saw guns like those belonging to security officers who were once on duty here," said the unnamed head of Pantangolemba village.
Susilo also held a meeting with local religious and community leaders, as well as government officials at Poso's Torulemba building, where he told them to work together in a sincere way to contain any new conflicts or revenge attacks.
Separately on Wednesday, Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla, who brokered the 2001 peace pact, said there was no need for talks over the recent incidents.
"What has happened in Poso is not a conflict but purely an attack by a certain group, so there is no need for a dialog [among Muslim and Christian leaders]," he argued as quoted by Antara.
Kalla claimed that the situation in Poso had returned to relative normalcy because local people from both faiths were united in their opposition of the unidentified attackers.
Meanwhile, Taufik Ridha said a lack of cooperation on the part of local people was part of the police's difficulties in uncovering a series of recent attacks by mysterious gunmen in Central Sulawesi. Information from people was badly needed to help unravel those cases, he added.
Poso's Tadulako military chief Col. M. Slamet admitted that many local civilians still carried firearms and that his office and the local police would step up house-to-house raids and seize any sharp weapons from the villagers. The arms sweeps would also be done in jungle settlements as well, he added.
Jakarta Post - October 15, 2003
La Remmy, Palu -- A bomb blast rocked Betania village in Poso regency, Central Sulawesi, as police intensified the hunt for masked gunmen who killed at least nine people in recent raids in the violence-torn district.
However, police and residents reported no casualties on Tuesday after the bombing at around 8 p.m. on Monday. However, the explosion caused panic among local people who feared further attacks.
The bomb exploded outside a house in Betania, Poso Pesisir subdistrict, but it did not damage the building. The blast came ahead of the arrival of Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the religiously divided town.
The target was close to the three villages of Saatu, Pantangolemba and Pinedapa, where masked attackers killed nine people, mostly Christians, in simultaneous raids at dawn on Sunday.
"We were shocked upon hearing the strong blast. We thought it would be followed by gunfire, so we were prepared to flee for safety," local resident Lucky S. told The Jakarta Post.
He said local people stood guard in their mountainous village, even though scores of police officers were deployed there.
Spokesman for the Central Sulawesi Police Adj. Sr. Comr. Agus Sugianto confirmed on Tuesday the explosion in Betania, saying the bomb was a "low explosive".
After receiving a report on the incident, the police immediately sent personnel to provide security and investigate the case, he said.
Agus said that security conditions were largely improving in Poso after Sunday's attacks as activities in local government agencies and public places continued as normal.
Though roads into and out of Poso were tightly guarded by security forces, the traffic there was quite normal. Vehicular traffic continued during the night on the trans-Sulawesi highway.
"Classes at all elementary, junior and senior high schools throughout Poso are running smoothly like previous days," head of the regency's education office Suardin Ngewa was quoted by Antara as saying.
However, he admitted that several schools in Poso Pesisir had fewer students as their parents did not allow them to attend school for fear of further unrest.
On Tuesday evening, Minister Susilo arrived in the Central Sulawesi capital of Palu, along with officers from the military and the National Intelligence Agency (BIN), and held a closed- door meeting with Governor Aminuddin Ponulele.
Susilo declined to comment after the meeting. He will visit Poso, some 200 kilometers from Palu, on Wednesday morning to assess the situation and hold talks with local religious leaders.
Before flying to Palu, he said in Jakarta that outsiders rather than locals may have perpetrated the renewed attacks.
"Based on our analysis, apart from the local people, there are other elements from outside behind the attacks. They may have been living there for quite some time," Susilo said.
But the chief security minister could not identify the outsiders, who he said were familiar with Poso. It was also too early to uncover the motive behind the raids.
"Let our intelligence officers continue their investigation over the next five days to unravel the incident," Susilo added.
Meanwhile, refugees rendered homeless in the two years of sectarian fighting questioned the police's performance in providing them with security.
The police always blamed fresh attacks on trained gunmen but continued to fail to identify and arrest them, they said.
"Why are there more villages attacked? Why can't the police capture them [attackers]. Poso is only a small town, while in the Bali blasts, they have managed to arrest the bombers. Why?" refugee Agustina queried.
Another refugee Hengky said the renewed violence forced him and others to stay at the refugee camps in Poso. "With the latest incident, I increasingly believe that Poso is not safe yet." Poso was plagued by two years of religious conflict that began in 2000 but the violence largely ended in December 2001 with a government-brokered peace accord.
Earlier on Thursday, three people were killed when a similar group of gunmen raided Beteleme, a mainly Christian village in the neighboring regency of Morowali.
Jakarta Post - October 14, 2003
Tiarma Siboro and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- Noted religious leader Hasyim Muzadi blamed poor intelligence and political interests on Monday for the renewed violence in Poso, Central Sulawesi that has claimed at least nine lives since Sunday.
Hasyim, chairman of the country's largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), called on religious leaders there to be proactive in containing the violence to prevent the town from plunging into further conflict.
"I believe the fresh violence in Poso is closely related to the weakening intelligence capability. I observe that both the military and the police are only responding to requests for help without any intention of foreseeing and preparing for possible security disturbances across the country.
"Sometimes we cannot see the roots of the problems. Strong coordination between security bodies in this country is, therefore, badly needed," Hasyim said on Monday on the sidelines of a seminar on Islam and radicalism here on Monday.
Bloody sectarian conflict in Poso had first erupted in early 1999, claiming no less than 2,000 lives and forcing thousands of residents to flee the area.
In December 2001, the government sponsored a peace accord known as the Malino Agreement between Muslim and Christian leaders, but the fragile peace deal could shatter following the fresh violence there which killed at least nine people.
The fresh violence took place only months after reinforcement troops were pulled out of Poso as peace was largely restored there.
Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, meanwhile, said on Monday intelligence officers must intensify operations to seek the perpetrators behind simultaneous attacks on three Christian villages -- Saatu, Pantangolemba and Pinedapa -- in Poso and also neighboring Morowali regency.
"To the perpetrators ... I urge you to stop the violence which only sacrifices your people. And to police, I tell you not to hesitate to take stern measures against the people behind this clash, even if they are certain influential people from the past or even present," Susilo said during a press conference here on Monday.
Voicing similar concerns, rights observer Hendardi from the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Institute (PBHI), blamed the government on Monday for being half-hearted in enforcing law in the area. "The incident stems from the government's half- hearted efforts to revolve the Poso conflicts," said Hendardi, referring to the Malino Agreement.
Separately, Poso and Morawali Students Forum in Jakarta claimed certain political interests were behind the conflicts in Poso. "I wonder why violence occurs every time the government plans to withdraw its security personnel in Poso?" said Bernat Ndawu, who chairs the forum, during a meeting with the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) on Monday.
Bernat warned the government that the attack may revive the sectarian conflicts in Poso, which has only enjoyed peace for two years after the signing of a peace deal in December 2001.
"The victims were mostly Christian. It may create suspicions among Christians that the incident was committed by followers of another religion. I believe that certain parties were behind the incidents that benefit from the sectarian conflicts," he said.
Sydney Morning Herald - October 14, 2003
Matthew Moore, Jakarta -- Masked gunmen who slaughtered eight Christians in Central Sulawesi over the weekend may have timed the killings to coincide with the Bali bombing commemoration then due to begin just hours later.
However, Indonesia's Co-ordinating Minister for Welfare, Jusuf Kalla, did not believe the attacks on four villages in Poso regency, about 1500 kilometres north-east of Jakarta, signalled a return to the bitter fighting between Muslims and Christians that left some 2000 people dead in and around Poso between 2000 and 2001. At least 9000 more were killed in similar violence in neighbouring Maluku islands.
Mr Kalla, who in December 2001 negotiated the Malino peace accords which brought an end to the Poso violence, said the carefully planned attacks were not carried out by people who were engaged in the old conflict.
"It was carried out by an armed group who attacked the people while the people themselves remained united," Mr Kalla was quoted as saying on Detik internet news service.
He said there was a view that the killings in the Christian- dominated area may have been carried out by sympathisers of the hardline Muslims who carried out the Bali bombings and a later bombing last year in a McDonald's restaurant in Makassar in South Sulawesi.
"There are those who believe it is connected to the verdicts in the Makassar bombings and [the attacks] were at the same time of the one-year commemoration of the Bali bombing," he said. "Indeed, there are coincidences."
Church leaders in central Sulawesi province fear the attacks on Christians could lead to a return of the bloody religious violence. "There have been many victims from our side," Ferry Naray, of the Central Sulawesi Protestant Church Crisis Centre, said yesterday. "Christian communities here are frightened."
Faisal Mahmud, of the Sulawesi branch of the Indonesian Muslim Clerics Council, said the attackers were "irresponsible people whose goal is to recreate instability in Poso." He doubted, though, that the violence would escalate, Police have declined to speculate on who might be behind the killings -- the most serious violence there in two years.
The attacks, at 11.30 pm on Saturday, came just days after a similar attack on a Christian village that left two people dead and 27 houses and one church burnt to the ground.
The deputy police chief in Poso, Rudi Trenggono, said he believed the two attacks were carried out by the same group which had shot and stabbed people on both occasions. He did not know who was behind the attacks, but was certain they were not linked to any resumption of sectarian violence.
Police found 90 spent cartridges in the four villages attacked. He believed one house was burnt down to distract police and help the killers in other villages to avoid getting caught.
| Human rights/law |
Kompas - October 13, 2003
The greatest obstacle to upholding the law in Indonesia is located in the capacity and resoluteness of law enforcement agencies in the enforcement of legislation, rather than the need to compliment or clarify existing legal instruments. Although improvements to the legal system need to be made, improving the capacity and resoluteness of law enforcement institutions however, is the more pressing task.
This was the conclusion drawn from the results of a Kompas survey which focused on the poor condition of law enforcement at the moment and in relation to people's views on a number of proposed additional regulations in the Draft Criminal Code (RUU KUHP).
According to half (50 per cent) of respondents, the decline in the quality of law enforcement is a consequence of a lack of resoluteness and the capacity on the part of law enforcement agencies in taking action against various of violations in society.
Only nine per cent of respondents were of the view that the lack of clarity of legal instruments are an obstacle to law enforcement, while complementing legal instruments was a consideration for only seven per cent of respondents.
This was also reflected in a series of earlier surveys which concluded that the biggest problem is the lack of legal justice which is mainly is caused by the poor effort by institutions rather than existing regulations.
Nevertheless, there have been a number of social developments which certainly demand the accommodation of new issues in society's sense of justice. A number of national legal instruments such as the Criminal Code, the Civil Code, trade laws and procedural laws do not yet meet the new needs of society because they were adopted from a legal system during the colonial period which was more than a century ago.
Because of this, for 27 per cent of respondents in the survey, complementing legal instruments and their enforcement by legal institutions are issues which cannot be separated in the effort to enforce the law in Indonesia.
Aside from whether or not there is a need for a number of legal instruments to be improved, a number of facts indicated that in truth much of the legislation at the moment is still not able to be enforced effectively. The clearest example being regulations on combating corruption.
Various efforts by the government in the form of appeals to establish laws and anti-corruption teams, up until now have also not been able to wipe out such criminal acts. The reality is that the threat of a life sentence which is contained in Article 33 of Law Number 31/1999 on the elimination of corruption is like a paper tiger. The reality is that not a single person among the scores of big time corrupters have actually received such heavy sentences.
The irony is that these days, corruption is actually spreading even further. The results of a recent survey which was released by Transparency International Indonesia showed that in the last three years Indonesia has slipped to the position of the fifth most corrupt country of 113 countries which were evaluated.
In view of these conditions therefore, its is natural that most respondents (59 per cent) were of the view that corruption represents the greatest legal problem for this country and it should be the most pressing and most important issue to be resolved quickly.
Certainly, in many aspects, there are a number of obstacles in efforts to enforce the law in Indonesia. From the aspect of the efforts of the authorities for example, a number of peculiar problems emerge. The police, judges, prosecutors and lawyers are the dominate factor in enforcing the law and the reality is that they are seen as not being free from intervention.
Intervention can come from the involvement of control over their authority and from the court mafia within the law enforcement institutions themselves. In a Kompas survey last September, the generally bad picture or image of law enforcement was held by 72 per cent of respondents.
In relation to a number of new issues which it is planned will be regulated by the Criminal Code such as black magic, illicit sex and press freedom, the public's view can be seen as one of uncertainty.
On the issue of immoral acts for example, on the one hand society feels that the values which they live by are not in accordance with these acts, on the other hand however, the public is also not convinced that legally enforcing these issue can be done in an effective and democratic manner.
In spite of this, 53 per cent of respondents were convinced that new additions to the stipulations in the Criminal Code will reduce immoral acts in society, the other 40 per cent of respondents said was they were not convinced.
This attitude is also very different from what was indicated on the issue of including acts of black magic as a crime in the draft Criminal Code, which in the public's view, on the one hand accommodates the reality of social life and on the other hand raises a question mark for society.
Although the majority of respondents (69 per cent) stated that they believed that there black magic forces in society, they did not believe that acts of black magic could be later proven in court. The majority of respondents (66 per cent) did not believe that black magic can be proven legally.
The tendency for the publics assessment to be divided was also picked up in their attitudes towards press freedom and attitudes on the dissemination of Marxist and communist ideology.
In fact, this attitude which is full of uncertainty arose when they were presented with questions on the capacity of legal institutions in Indonesia to enforce new regulations in the criminal law. Moreover, more than half (53 per cent) were of the view that legal institutions at the moment do not have the resolve, whatever the new legal structure might be.
Aside from the issue of legal institutions, another reason which is behind the uncertainty in the public's minds is the character of acts in society itself which often become a contributor to the abuse of efforts to enforce the law. The findings of the previous survey also showed evidence of this.
[Toto Suryaningtyas/Litbang Kompas. Translated by James Balowski.]
| Focus on Jakarta |
Jakarta Post - October 18, 2003
Jakarta -- Dozens of vendors from the Senayan Vendors Association (HPSJ) staged a protest at the City Council on Friday, demanding that the management of the Bung Karno Sports Complex halt plans to evict them.
HPSJ secretary-general Deden M. Ilham said the City Council in May asked the management of the sports complex not to evict the vendors, "but apparently the management ignored this request as, in their last notice, they said the plan would proceed".
The management plans to evict the vendors from the eastern parking lot of the sports complex and plant trees in the area.
"Earlier the management wanted to evict us because of people illegally parking their cars there and the crime in the area, now they are using the environmental issue .... If the management insists on evicting us, small vendors, why do they allow the cafes to stay open?" Deden asked.
The eastern parking lot of the sports complex is a favorite gathering place, and there are at least 5,000 vendors working in the area.
Sydney Morning Herald - October 18, 2003
Matthew Moore, Jakarta -- Along the banks of Jakarta's dirty Muara Angke River, several thousand families are preparing for their first-ever appearance on television.
They are not sure when their big day will arrive, though today is looking likely. But they know what to expect, as they have seen it on the television news for weeks. And now it's their turn.
They know that soon after sunrise, a large group of police, Jakarta Government security officers, probably some soldiers and a numerous thugs hired for the day will take up positions nearby.
And they know that on a given command this throng, armed with tools and clubs, will move into their village and smash their houses to bits, plus any residents who might stand in their way. The invaders would normally bring a backhoe along to flatten the two-storey dwellings more quickly, but there is no room for machinery down by the river, so the four-kilometre stretch of flimsy houses will be torn down by hand.
These are fishing families and the plywood shacks they have built over the water almost seem part of their boats. When their houses go, they are wondering what will become of the vessels they depend on to survive.
This was just one of the things worrying Muliani, a mother of one who has lived all the 30 years of her life in the North Jakarta slum where her father built his house a half a century ago.
The other question she is struggling with is why, after so long have their houses been targeted for demolition now? Her cynical explanation seems as good as any: "It's the season for evictions," she said.
Clearing out slums is nothing new in Indonesia's provincial capitals, which have long attracted rural poor seeking a better living.
But in recent months Jakarta's Governor Sutiyoso has pressed ahead with an unusually intensive campaign to rid one of the world's most polluted cities of illegal dwellings. There has been no explanation for this latest campaign but it may be part of a general push to improve public order and to beautify the city that's recently seen the addition of statues and live deer to its centre.
Whatever the reason, the blood and tears that are part of these massive and routinely violent evictions have become a staple for the television news.
With the monsoon rains and the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan about to begin, there's now an extra urgency to get the fishermen out fast.
They all received letters from the North Jakarta Mayor's Office on September 19, and two more since then, telling them they are in breach of at least half a dozen planning laws, including one that bans riverside dwellings.
Those with identity cards carrying a Jakarta address have been promised the equivalent of $100 to find somewhere else to live; those without will get nothing.
A spokesman for the office said new accommodation would be built for the fisherman but he could not say where it would be or when it would be ready.
In the meantime, the houses had to go now, he said, as part of a plan to "normalise the river" and help reduce the annual wet season flooding that brings Jakarta to a halt. "It's up to them," he said when asked where the people should go.
For many of Indonesia's vast army of poor, such crises are a regular part of life.
When they happen, the usual response is to go back to the village of their birth, where family connections mean there is always someone to take them in and share their food. But men like Zacchariah, 69, said he has lived in North Jakarta for 30 years, so long that "I don't have any place in the village any more"
Jakarta Post - October 18, 2003
Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta -- The city has the money and its share of poor people, but the poor do not get to enjoy the money. The capital's health budget is Rp 74.45 billion (US$ 8.83 million) for 83,364 poor families.
The reason the money does not reach the poor, according to City Health Agency spokeswoman Evy Zelfino, is because most poor families do not register with subdistrict offices. "The funds allocated for this year have not been distributed smoothly to the poor because of administrative problems," she said on Friday.
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) records 83,364 poor families, or around 300,000 people, but by July the 262 subdistrict offices citywide had only 31,128 families, or 37.34 percent of the total figure, recorded. The huge difference made the agency order all subdistricts heads to enlist the needy who deserve the health service fund.
"We have renewed our data and the subdistrict offices have managed to register 54,877 more poor families in only three months. The total figure is now 86,005 families," she said.
But when 24-year-old Sumaryono -- who doctors started to operate on five months ago but failed to close the incision and left his intestine exposed due to his inability to pay the hospital bill -- submitted a letter from the subdistrict office confirming that he and his family were poor, he still could not get proper treatment.
The agency separates poor people eligible for free health services into three categorizes: first, poor people based on BPS data; second, people who live in city-run rehabilitation centers; and domestic migrants from outside Jakarta who have been recommended by the City Psychological and Spiritual Development and Social Welfare Agency.
Each family listed for free health services receive a Health Insurance for Poor People (JPK Gakin) card. To obtain a card, each family must present members' ID cards and their family card upon registering at their subdistrict office.
Evy said the health budget comprises Rp 54.50 billion from the 2003 city budget and Rp 19.95 billion from the central government fuel subsidy. Of the total amount, Rp 39.75 billion -- from the fuel subsidy and Rp 19.8 billion from the city budget -- is allocated for poor families based on BPS data. "So far, we have only spent Rp 2.5 billion," Evi said.
The amount of Rp 7 billion is directly distributed to four city- owned hospitals: Tarakan Hospital in Central Jakarta gets Rp 2 billion, Koja Hospital in North Jakarta gets Rp 2 billion, Budi Asih Hospital in East Jakarta Rp 2 billion and Duren Sawit Hospital in East Jakarta Rp 1 billion.
The remaining Rp 27.70 billion is earmarked as a "rescue fund", which targets poor people not listed with either the BPS or subdistrict offices. "We have effectively spent Rp 16 billion as subdistrict officers managed to reach the needy," she said.
Marius Widjajarto, head of the Indonesian Health Consumers Empowerment Foundation (YPKKI), criticized the health agency for its poor distribution mechanism. He said that subdistrict officers should have actively registered residents eligible for free health care instead of waiting for poor families to register.
"Registration could be carried out by chiefs of neighborhood units as they are elected by the residents and are better aware of the residents' circumstances," he said.
Jakarta Post - October 17, 2003
Jakarta -- South Jakarta public order officers bulldozed on Thursday three houses on Jl. T.B. Simatupang, Cilandak Barat, to make way for extensions to the Cilandak Town Square mall, despite an ongoing legal battle over the ownership of the land.
Having lived there for 37 years, Soenarno, Handoyo and Jemry Simatupang refused to comply with an order issued by the municipality's housing agency on July 12, 2003, which gave them a deadline to vacate the land on Wednesday.
Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) lawyer Gatot said they would file a report with the police over the incident, saying the agency had no legal right to evict the residents.
A clash erupted between the evicted residents and a group of unidentified men in red who were seen assisting the public order officers and police to tear down the houses. But the clash soon stopped as the house owners gave up. Jemry argued that the housing agency had mistakenly torn down their houses because the July 12 order was addressed to the house numbered 18A, while Soenarno lives in house number 30, Handoyo's house is number 32 and Jemry's is number 29.
"The particular house mentioned in the order had been torn down last year and the area is now a part of the Cilandak Town Square movie theater," said Jemry, who had tried to stop the eviction by reading out a copy of a court ruling verifying his ownership of the land. He was ignored.
Ten trucks were seen parked to remove the three families' belongings but none of them knew where the trucks went.
The three claimed they were the valid owners of the land, which is upheld by a ruling of the Supreme Court issued in 1997.
The case began in 1974 when housing developer PT Dasawarna sold the property to insurance firm PT Asuransi Jiwasraya, who is one of the shareholders of the mall.
PT Dasawarna had promised to have the land vacated and therefore paid compensation to 33 families in 1975.
But the three remaining families stayed. In 1980, they lost their case in the South Jakarta District Court, but the Supreme Court in 1997 ruled they had the legal title of land ownership.
However, the three did not realize that the land title was due for renewal in 1998.
It was in that year, according to Soenarno, that PT Asuransi Jiwasraya claimed to have the land certificate and had tried to expel them from the houses through the housing agency.
"As we traced down the issuance of the certificate, we found it was made based on a fictitious land title that was not registered either in Cilandak Barat subdistrict or Cilandak district offices," Soenarno said.
Based on their reports, the South Jakarta Land Agency froze the certificate owned by PT Asuransi Jiwasraya, while Jakarta Police issued a letter stating that the housing agency had no right to seize their land on October 8, 2002.
Jakarta Post - October 16, 2003
Evi Mariani and Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta -- The intensive evictions of illegal squatters across the capital is apparently related to city budget spending in the last semester by the relevant agencies in the city administration.
"It [the eviction] is one of the efforts of some agencies to escalate their spending," head of the Jakarta Public Order Agency Soebagio said on Wednesday.
The administration was criticized for its sluggish development programs as it was only able to spend around 25 percent of the total Rp 11.5 trillion (US$1.35 billion) city budget in the first semester.
Soebagio named the Jakarta Public Works Agency, among other agencies, that has demolished houses built along riverbanks to achieve its plan to convert the riverbanks into green areas. The Jakarta Public Works Agency had allocated Rp 32 billion to improve the condition of the rivers, including clearing riverbanks.
Soebagio said that the time was right to remove illegal occupants from the land as the eviction drive was scheduled to finish before the start of Muslim fasting month, which will fall at the end of October. "Evictions should not be done during the fasting month as physical clashes might occur and that is not good," he said.
Evicted people from East Cengkareng, Jembatan Besi and Kampung Sawah in West Jakarta and Teluk Gong in North Jakarta along with those on the list of coming eviction operations in Muara Angke and Muara Baru in North Jakarta demanded the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM) to form an independent team to probe human rights violations during the evictions.
"There was a fatality and an alleged rape during an eviction in Cengkareng. Komnas HAM has enough reasons to set up the team," said Azas Tigor Nainggolan, an urban activist who accompanied the residents.
Komnas HAM's vice chairman Solahuddin Wahid responded that the team would be set up if it could be proven that gross human rights violations occurred. He said that making people homeless was indeed a rights violation but not a gross one.
Komnas HAM has sent two warning letters to the administration on human rights violations that occurred in the eviction. However, the administration has its own agenda to finish the evictions by the end of this month.
"We haven't received any response from the administration. We will summon the governor over the rights violations during the evictions," said Solahuddin. He also called on city officials "to study human rights".
Separately, hundreds of families in Tegal Alur cemetery, Kalideres district, West Jakarta, voluntarily demolished their houses, complying with an order from the West Jakarta municipality administration to vacate the land.
Each of the 250 families was given Rp 500,000 in compensation. "The compensation is certainly not enough even to demolish our house and move to another rented house," complained a resident Sri Nuryati. "But what else can we do?" Suherman, an urban activist who accompanied the residents, said that he and the residents had persuaded the administration to distribute Rp 500,000 for each family instead of spending Rp 150 million for the Public Order officers allowance and to rent excavators and bulldozers.
Head of Kalideres district, Iskandar Ahyar, said when witnessing the demolition that the residents must clear the land by Thursday. Should there be any houses left standing, the officers will demolish them on Friday.
Jakarta Post - October 15, 2003
Evi Mariani, Jakarta -- Hundreds of fishermen who live along the banks of the Muara Angke River in North Jakarta did not go out to sea on Tuesday, instead staying at home to wait for the public order officers to come and try to demolish their houses.
Tuesday was the deadline for the fishermen to vacate their makeshift houses along the river, but the anticipated public order officers never arrived and there was no word if the deadline had been extended.
"We all decided not to go to sea today. We were worried the public order officers would come demolish our houses while we were away," said Cemplon, who is in his 40s and has lived along the river for about 20 years. "If the officers forced us to leave, we were afraid our children would fall into the river in a panic," Cemplon said.
About 750 families grouped in the Traditional Fishermen Union were seen hanging around their platform houses by the river on Tuesday, restlessly waiting for the worse to come.
The fishermen, most of whom have lived in the area for more than 20 years, have said they will not move because they have nowhere else to go. The residents refused the municipality's offer of Rp 1 million (US$119) in compensation to vacate their homes.
Blaming the residents for destroying the city's green belt, North Jakarta Mayor Effendi Anas issued a final eviction notice on Saturday, which stated that the residents had 72 hours to tear down their houses.
However, the fishermen are not the only one's occupying this former green area. There also are several apartment buildings, middle to upper-class housing complexes and office buildings.
The administration has revealed a plan to clear slum areas throughout the city, saying it is part of the effort to maintain public order.
Human rights and urban activists have criticized a recent string of evictions of poor people, which they say violated the people's basic right for shelter.
Next on the eviction list are about 250 houses that stand on a a graveyard in Tegal Alur, West Jakarta. Mayor Sarimun Hadisaputra said public order officers would clear the land on Wednesday. The residents have packed up their belongings but are still refusing to vacate their houses.
Jakarta Post - October 14, 2003
Evi Mariani, Jakarta -- Hundreds of fishermen living on the banks of the Muara Angke River in Pluit, North Jakarta, rejected on Monday an offer from the North Jakarta administration to compensate them with money as it plans to evict the fishermen from their makeshift houses on Tuesday.
The administration offered the residents Rp 1 million (US$117.65) each in compensation if they willingly demolished their houses.
But, Kajidin, chairman of the Traditional Fishermen Union (SNT) said, "We decided to stay here because we have nowhere else to go." His family has lived in the area for more than 20 years. Around 40 representatives of the fishermen visited the municipality office to meet Mayor Effendi Anas over the administration's plan to evict around 2,000 makeshift houses on the Muara Angke riverbank. The fishermen demanded that the municipality postpone the eviction plan until they could find another place to live.
"The municipality secretary met us today and said that if we leave our homes the city will provide us with low-cost apartments," Kajidin said.
The municipality secretary, Agus Salim Utut, did not provide the fishermen with details of the apartment's location nor when they would be available.
"So far we can only try to accommodate their demands. We don't have any deals with the residents," he said.
Kajidin said that the fishermen refused the offer because they did not know the exact location of the apartments.
"We have to live nearby rivers and the sea because we work from boats. I suspect the apartment offer is an empty offer as he [the secretary] couldn't tell us the location," he said.
The fishermen received a final notice from the administration on Saturday, warning them to vacate the area within 72 hours.
They also questioned the administration's policy which allowed the construction of two elite housing complexes, Pantai Indah Kapuk in the west and Pantai Mutiara in the east, on nearby water catchment areas.
Pantai Indah Kapuk was blamed for the flooding of surrounding areas in last year massive floods as it was built on a mangrove forest, while Pantai Mutiara was constructed on a reclamation area.
For Kajidin, the scheduled Tuesday eviction will be particularly hard. He explained, "As a child, my family lived in Ancol (North Jakarta) coastal area before the city administration evicted us to build the Marina." The family then moved to Muara Karang riverbank but were again evicted.
In 1977, Kajidin started his own family and moved to live on the banks of the Muara Angke river but he now faces eviction for the third time.
Jakarta Post - October 13, 2003
Evi Mariani, Jakarta -- Hundreds of fishermen living on the banks of Angke River in North Jakarta have decided to stay put despite an eviction notice from the North Jakarta administration, and are questioning the city administration's policy of allowing two luxury housing complexes to be built on a nearby water catchment area.
"As fishermen, we have to live on the riverbanks or the coast because we have boats to work with," Kajidin, one of the fishermen who has lived in the area for 20 years, told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.
"We don't mind being ordered to move by the administration. We would be quite happy to if they could provide us with a decent place to live. But don't kick us out." Kajidin said there were talks a few months ago by district and subdistrict officials about moving them to low-rent apartments in Marunda, a coastal area near Bekasi.
"Until now, we haven't heard any progress on the plan. I just heard that the administration has not even cleared the land for the apartments," he said.
The fishermen said they would willingly move to a place determined by the administration as long as it was on the coast. "Moving us away from the water would kill us," Kajidin said.
Around 2,000 families along the riverbanks received final notice from the municipality on Saturday warning them to vacate the area within 72 hours.
The final notice, signed by North Jakarta Mayor Effendi Anas and dated October 11, says that the reason for the eviction was based on a previous warning by the head of Penjaringan district. It also says that the eviction is part of the administration's efforts to preserve Jakarta's green areas.
The land occupied by the fishermen belongs to the Ciliwung- Cisadane Flood Project.
"If the reason is green area preservation, the administration should also demolish the big apartment block built on the very same riverbank," said fisherman Rijan, referring to Muara Indah Pluit Townhouse on Jl. Pluit Karang Barat, Pluit, North Jakarta.
The city bylaw stipulates that a building should be at least 50 meters from the edge of a river. The fishermen questioned the administration's policy of allowing the construction of luxury housing complexes Pantai Indah Kapuk west of their homes and Pantai Mutiara to the east.
"We were already here when Pantai Mutiara was built. We witnessed the process. They reclaimed the beach there. Why does the administration always blame us for the big floods that hit Jakarta?" Kajidin said.
Built in a water catchment where a mangrove forest used to stand in the 1990s, Pantai Indah Kapuk was blamed for flooding in surrounding areas and on the toll road connecting the city to the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport during major flooding that hit the capital last year.
Governor Sutiyoso admitted his administration's failure to anticipate the floods and agreed to demolish a golf course in the complex and turn it into a reservoir to control flooding.
The fishermen said they had tried several times to apply for land deeds but to no avail.
"The administration officers ping-ponged us from one person to the next. Maybe the law is made only to serve the rich," Kajidin said.
The fishing community, united in the Traditional Fishermen Union (SNT), staged a rally at City Hall last week to ask that their homes not be demolished. They will attempt to meet the mayor on Monday.
| Health & education |
Jakarta Post - October 18, 2003
Leo Wahyudi S. -- Many poor people say that hospitals, including those run by the state, offer them inferior services because they do not have the money to pay for quality health care. The Jakarta Post spoke with a number of residents about the issue.
Marius Widjajarta, 51, is a doctor and head of the Indonesian Health Consumers Empowerment Foundation. He lives in Bintaro, Tangerang, with his wife and son: I can't deny that many profit- oriented hospitals tend to exploit patients, maybe by offering health care packages.
I'm afraid all hospitals will become more profit-oriented with regional autonomy because they will be a source of income for the provinces or regencies/municipalities.
There is a basic principle that hospitals must not turn away patients in emergency cases, even if they do not have the money to pay for their care. But this does not work at all. Hospitals can act like the mafia because there are no regulations on medical services.
There needs to be some kind of cross-subsidy from the rich to allow the poor to have access to health care. But consumers are not aware of this because of the lack of a public campaign.
I think an improved health insurance system would curb this kind of exploitation because insurance companies would have to scrutinize the hospitals' claims.
Rita, 27, is a medical doctor at a clinic in Kalibaru, Central Jakarta. She lives in Salemba, Central Jakarta, with her husband: I disagree with the discriminatory practices of many hospitals nowadays. Patients should be the first priority and the financial negotiations can come after that.
The health of patients is far more important than their social status and financial standing. I cannot deny that many hospitals are like shopping centers, selling various treatments to make a profit. Hospitals have no reason to reject patients, even if they can't make a down payment. They can recommend the patients to another hospital, but don't refuse them. Every hospital should have a program to help the poor.
But the patients must also cooperate. If their condition is not an emergency, they must be understanding about getting slower treatment. Usually patients insist on being seen first even if there are other patients who are more critical.
Opi, 29, works for a company in South Jakarta. She lives in Tangerang with her family: When my grandmother was in the emergency room of a hospital in Central Jakarta, the nurses asked me to pay Rp 250,000 (US$29.41) for medicine every day. But they refused to show me the medicine or the prescription, even when I insisted. The administrative staff also refused to provide copies of the prescription.
I suspect that hospitals blackmail patients' families, who are already paying Rp 500,000 a day for their loved ones to be treated in the emergency room. During my grandmother's three-week stay in the hospital, we rarely saw any doctors coming to check on her. But the hospital charged us hundreds of thousands of rupiah for doctor examinations.
We paid Rp 40 million and my grandmother died the third week she was in the hospital. We had to pay the hospital bill even though it had exploited my grandmother to make money.
Jakarta Post - October 17, 2003
Leo Wahyudi S. -- The health services are supposed to be for all citizens, regardless of their social status. However, many people from the lower income brackets are reluctant to seek treatment in the hospital as they cannot afford the medical bills. Besides, being rejected by a hospital on account of lack of money is an exceedingly bitter pill to swallow. Some Jakarta people shared their experiences with The Jakarta Post.
Sri, not her real name, 40, is an employee who lives in North Jakarta: I will never forget the terrible treatment we received from a hospital in North Jakarta.
The doctor had diagnosed my sister as having kidney failure and she had to be hospitalized. When I tried to admit her to the hospital, I couldn't come up with the Rp 1 million (US$117.65) down payment.
After some tough negotiations with someone I knew in the hospital, they agreed to admit my sister to an economy ward.
During her time in the hospital, the doctor who had earlier diagnosed my sister's illness never showed up to check on her. Instead, the nurses just gave her blood transfusions, which did not help much.
When my sister vomited up blood, another doctor said that it was simply bronchitis.
On the third day, my sister died without receiving any proper treatment. The doctor who had earlier diagnosed her finally showed up and asked me to sign a form saying that the doctors had treated her properly.
I was terribly disappointed and upset. I often think that my sister was denied proper treatment because she was in an economy ward. I'm sure hospitals discriminate against the poor. Even when the poor are really ill, all that counts is money.
Dian, 32, is an employee in Salemba, Central Jakarta. She lives in Kayu Jati, East Jakarta, with her husband and daughter: I've had a real nightmare experience with a hospital.
It happened in March this year when my parents and my brother were seriously injured in a car accident in Cirebon (West Java). Due to a lack of the necessary medical equipment, the hospital in Cirebon recommended that they be moved to a private hospital in Central Jakarta.
I quickly booked beds for them. When they arrived here at 11 p.m., they were not treated immediately. The nurse shouted at me to get my parents and brother out of the room, saying that we were last in the queue and that the room was full. Surprisingly, there were other patients with lighter injuries being treated in the room. They could even walk.
My brother's face was badly cut by flying glass, my mother was unconscious and my father had broken his leg. And yet the nurse said they had to wait and follow procedures! It sucked! Why could such a reputable hospital not prioritize the patients' interests and be flexible with the procedures? Topik, 25, is a vendor who sells candies on public buses in Cawang, East Jakarta. He lives in Kalimalang, East Jakarta, with his wife and daughter: Frankly, I'm afraid to go to a hospital because a lot of my friends have had unpleasant experiences with the health services.
Life takes second place to money in our hospitals, and for poor people like me, getting hospital treatment is beyond our means.
I had planned to take my wife to a maternity hospital when she was about to deliver our baby. But I canceled the plan and took her to a traditional midwife instead.
If we get sick and need medical treatment, we just go to the nearest community health center, which is much cheaper.
I have to be very careful about my money. If I get sick or have an accident, it will be very expensive. We all know that hospitals are not for the poor.
Jakarta Post - October 16, 2003
Leo Wahyudi S. -- The recent case of a patient sent home by a hospital because he could not pay the full medical bill is indicative of the poor treatment low-income people receive from the health service. A number of people recounted their bad experiences when dealing with hospitals to The Jakarta Post.
Haryanto, 38, is a newspaper vendor who lives in Palmerah, West Jakarta, with his wife and three children: I have had some very bad experiences with hospitals.
When my son had an accident and his head was severely injured, a hospital in Central Jakarta refused to provide medical treatment because I didn't have enough money to make the down payment. The hospital wanted me to deposit Rp 5 million (US$588.24).
My son was ignored until I forced the man responsible for the accident to pay all the bills. I had to threaten to kill him in order to save my son's life.
During his time in the emergency room, the nurses required me to pay Rp 600,000 per day for medicine but they would not let me see the prescriptions or the medicine. It's ridiculous! Another nightmare was when my wife was having our youngest child. She was in a critical condition and was bleeding profusely.
Another hospital in Central Jakarta refused to treat her because I could not cough up the Rp 1.5 million down payment. I only had Rp 800,000 at the time but the hospital insisted that I pay the deposit.
We were fortunate as my neighbors lent us some money so both my wife and my baby's lives were saved. I have learned that the lives of the poor are worth less than animals. Hospitals and medical staff are merciless and they only exploit patients, particularly the poor ones.
David, 28, is a street newspaper vendor. He resides in Petamburan, Central Jakarta, with his wife and two children: I had a very humiliating experience when I brought my daughter, who was suffering from a high fever, to a hospital which is very close to our home.
When I was there, the hospital's doctors or clerical staff, I don't know which, forced me to pay Rp 300,000 for the down payment although I already told them that I only had Rp 200,000. I even begged the management to treat my daughter first and allow me to pay later, but they refused. They said they had to comply with the procedures. I felt like a beggar at the time.
Then I brought my daughter to another hospital in West Jakarta and the down payment there was only Rp 150,000, so my daughter received treatment. I'm really sad to have been born poor as we get nothing at all from the hospitals.
Sarip, 23, is a resident of Petamburan, Central Jakarta, who works as a hawker on public transportation vehicles: I think a patient coming to the hospital in a luxury car will get quicker medical treatment than one who arrives in a bajaj (three-wheeled taxi). I'm sure that hospitals don't want low income people like us. Money really matters if you want to get quick treatment. No money means no treatment.
Nobody in my neighborhood would ever go to a hospital to get treatment. We always face nightmares when dealing with hospitals. It's better to go to local community health center, which is cheaper, than going to hospital. And if we really don't have any money, then there's nothing else for us except death.
Jakarta Post - October 14, 2003
Damar Harsanto, Jakarta -- For Sumaryono, 24, and his mother, Iis Iswati, 45, hospital treatment is a luxury only for the rich.
Owing to their poverty, Sumaryono lives in pain; his intestine has been poking out through an incision on the right-hand side of his waist for five months since he was sent home from Jakarta administration-run Tarakan Hospital. The sole reason was that he could not pay the Rp 2.8 million (US$330) medical bill.
In his three-square-meter rented hut on a bank of the West Flood Canal in Bendungan Hilir subdistrict, Central Jakarta, Sumaryono shared his painful experience with the media, sometimes grimacing at the suffering he has experienced since May 29.
"Whenever I eat, the pain gets me. I feel that my intestine has a forced contraction," said the former construction worker. The pain has left him unable to stand up straight and prevents him from doing normal activities.
During the interview, Sumaryono showed his six-centimeter-long swollen and throbbing intestine, "protected" from the air by a dirty, black plastic bag. He also showed the 15-centimeter-long stitches on his stomach.
Sumaryono said that he was supposed to undergo surgery as recommended by a surgeon he identified as Dr. Rika. "Dr. Rika told me that I had a problem with my appendix but later she said that I also had a tumor in my stomach," he said.
"I told the doctor that I did not have enough money to pay for the surgery but the doctor insisted on it. She said the fee could be paid later on." His mother had obtained a letter from the subdistrict office and the City Mental and Spiritual Development and Social Welfare Office, confirming that she could not afford to pay the bill.
It said that she had made a down payment of Rp 425,000 of the total Rp 2.8 million surgery costs. "I told the cashier that I had only Rp 80,000 to pay the huge bill and he took all my money. But later in the day, the hospital told me to take my son home," said his mother, who works as a housemaid.
Iis said that she had taken Sumaryono to the hospital for a medical check on the wound and stitches but the doctor never showed up. "The nurses only cleaned the wound with cotton wool. They gave neither treatment nor medicine," she said.
The mother's and son's unfortunate circumstances moved their neighbors, who could not stand to see Sumaryono suffering. The neighbors reported his situation to the police, who were confused at what to do and called on the media to cover Sumaryono's story.
City Health Agency spokeswoman Evy Zelfino said that as the surgery had taken place some time ago it would be difficult to check the validity of the information.
"Just take him back to the [Tarakan] hospital. They will certainly treat him. If he can't afford the cost, he can request assistance under a subsidized government scheme aimed at low- income people," she said.
According to Evy, the patient might not have received treatment at the hospital originally, as no subsidy scheme existed at that time. "It was launched in July," she added.
Tarakan Hospital director Dr. Soekirman Soekin said that he had already received a report on Sumaryono's condition. He said that the incision on the right-hand side of his waist was intended for an artificial anus. "If the intestine is getting larger, it's because of the tumor," he argued, adding that the hospital should have given him a colostomy bag. Sumaryono's agony is likely to end soon, as a volunteer from Jakarta Police radio station 911 emergency assistance, Nano Suwarno, took Sumaryono later on Monday to the St. Carolus Hospital, Central Jakarta, for medical treatment.
"I simply received an order to take him to the hospital," he said, refusing to elaborate on who had given the order.
Reuters - October 14, 2003
Dan Eaton, Jakarta -- With the air of a trained librarian, the shopkeeper runs his finger along a shelf stacked with brightly coloured packages. Skipping over "Macho Man", his hand comes to rest on a bold red and white sachet, "Kuku Bima".
"Claw of Bima, yep. That's the one," says Ibrahim, a Jakarta taxi driver, handing over 2,500 rupiah, or $0.30, for a dose of Indonesia's herbal "Viagra". This is one of a vast array of products helping elevate the ancient Javanese art of herbal medicine from the housewife's kitchen to the corporate boardroom.
Wearing the skullcap of a Muslim believer, Ibrahim extols the virtues of the silicone-coated capsules bearing the effigy of a mythical Hindu superhero.
"Helps with erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, improves vitality, stamina, libido and fertility," reads the label on the drug, named for the wickedly curved thumbnail of Bima, a hero of the epic Mahabharata.
As Ibrahim leaves the wooden kiosk, a young man in jeans and black T-shirt asks for a packet of "Rhino Horn", named not for its contents but the effect the mixture of natural extracts is reputed to have on a man's sexual prowess.
Across Indonesia, more and more people of both sexes are turning to jamu, or traditional plant-based medicine, for health as well as to enhance sexual potency and physical appeal.
Indeed, the world's most populous Muslim nation ranks second only to South Korea in Asia in the importance its people place on sex, says a survey published last year by global pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. About 72 percent of Indonesians surveyed said they regarded sex as "very, extremely or moderately" important in their lives.
No mean feat when you consider the competition from third-placed Filipinos, at 71 percent. Thais registered just 52 percent, despite that country's reputation for sensuality, raunchy nightlife and a massive sex industry.
Skin creams to breast enlargers
All that might appear at odds with perceptions in the West that Indonesia is a conservative Muslim country, even though women in tight jeans and tank tops are almost as much in evidence on the streets of Jakarta as in Bangkok.
Compared to imported medicines, jamu is affordable for middle- and low-income earners, said Ruslan Aspan, deputy head of traditional medicines at the Health Ministry, with which companies plying the trade are required to register.
"Besides the cultural perception, Kuku Bima is known as a product to improve sexual ability, so it is always interesting for a couple who need strengthening in this matter," he said.
Jamu was once the domain of housewives and village medicine men. It now ranges from vitamins and minerals to skin creams, hair growth tonics, breast enlargers and slimming potions.
Ruslan said estimated annual sales of jamu in Indonesia were $200 million in 2002, up 10 percent on the previous year. "There are actually two groups of traditional medicines that are very popular, namely aphrodisiacs and slimming products," said Ruslan.
Not everyone is happy. The justice ministry, in consultation with Muslim leaders and experts in Islamic sharia law, is trying to tighten up Indonesia's fairly relaxed attitudes to sex, drafting rules that could outlaw sex before marriage, living together outside wedlock and homosexuality.
Islam and ancient beliefs
Arab traders brought Islam to Indonesia many centuries ago, but the religion has never been able to overshadow traditional beliefs, mingling with them instead. In much of Indonesia, Islam is tempered with animist and Hindu undercurrents and the more than 1,000-year-old Javanese tradition of jamu is flourishing.
Jamu has now become a multi-million-dollar industry, replete with glitzy television advertising spots rivalling those of Western cosmetics firms. It is sold everywhere from small kiosks to chic department stores and supermarkets.
Jamu became a a cottage industry in the 1980s and by the 1990s, lured by profits, the number of registered manufacturers had grown to 500. Health Ministry data show the number of jamu manufacturers grew 16 percent between 2000 and 2002. There are now 1,135 registered jamu-makers in Indonesia. Of these, 118 are regarded as large businesses, many employing thousands of workers and using techniques of mass production and strict hygiene regulations.
Despite the entry of big business, though, a common sight across the main island of Java remains women bent nearly double as they go door-to-door selling jamu from baskets slung over the shoulder with a sarong.
| Bali/tourism |
Melbourne Age - October 14, 2003
Tony Stephens, Kuta -- More than 90 per cent of Balinese communities suffered a fall in income and school drop-out rates were up to 60 per cent after the Kuta bombings, according to a report released yesterday.
Some Balinese children who stayed at school also had to work to help the family make ends meet, and some teachers, whose incomes were affected by unpaid fees, were also forced to work outside school hours.
The report, Bali, Beyond the Tragedy, was compiled by the World Bank, the United Nations Development Program and USAID, in association with the Indonesian Government. It is the most comprehensive assessment of the socio-economic effects of the bombings.
The report focuses on tourism, which the terrorists had targeted as Indonesia's largest foreign exchange earner after oil and gas.
It recommends that the Government and donors concentrate on security, economic diversification and community-based development to mitigate the crisis.
It also looks at the impact on other parts of Indonesia, notably Lombok and East Java, where goods are produced for Bali's tourist market. Bali's poverty rate last year was only 4 per cent, compared with a national figure of 16 per cent, but is expected to rise this year.
A statement released by the Co-ordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti, said the "doomsday scenario" predictions made immediately after October 12 last year were wrong and the Indonesian economy had proved resilient.
But the report offered a less optimistic outlook:
The report recommended grants or scholarships from the Government, private donors and local safety net programs.
Andrew Steer, of the World Bank, said that the overall effect on employment was a little less than expected but the effect on incomes was greater.
He said that fear of corruption was one reason why aid agencies were slow to get funds into communities -- they had to ensure that the money was well targeted. The World Bank was already helping 610 villages.
| Islam/religion |
Antara - October 16, 2003
Bandung -- Charismatic Indonesian Muslim preacher Abdullah Gymnastiar, popularly known as Aa Gym, said on Thursday he would not meet with US President George W Bush when the latter comes to Bali on October 22.
"My rejection of the US invitation to meet Bush is not an act of hatred but as a protest over the country's unfair treatment of other nations in the world," he said.
He said US military aggression against Iraq, which has continued, is one of the examples of Bush's unfairness towards other nations. "Bush should be more considerate in acting on anything based on facts and not on mere presumption," Aa said.
The US embassy in Jakarta invited Aa Gym along with a number of moderate Indonesian Muslim leaders to meet Bush in Bali. He said the official response to the invitation would be formulated in a meeting here on Thursday afternoon.
"In addition to responding to the invitation, a letter of protest to President Bush would also be arranged during the meeting," he added.
Straits Times - October 15, 2003
Derwin Pereira, Jakarta -- Terrorism will top the agenda during US President George W. Bush's visit to Indonesia.
As the most populous Muslim country in the world, observers said that his visit next week is also aimed at cultivating Indonesia's moderate Islamic ground at a time when US standing here and the Arab world is at an all-time low.
Mr Bush is expected to meet several key Muslim leaders for an "open and frank discussion" when he arrives in Bali on October 22.
They include Mr Hasyim Muzadi from the Nadhlatul Ulama (NU) and Mr Syafii Ma'arif from the Muhammadiyah, the two largest Muslim organisations in the country with an estimated 60 million members.
Washington is keen to do more to win over the moderate Muslim ground in Indonesia. The NU and Muhammadiyah are seen as a bulwark against religious extremism.
Before the October 12 Bali bombings, radicals were a small but potent and noisy force. They were strong enough for major political players to take notice. Religious zealots dominated discourse in Indonesian politics and grabbed the media spotlight. But after Bali and the Jakarta JW Marriott attack, the tide began to shift.
Diplomatic sources said that Mr Bush is likely to offer a "package of goodies" to groups like NU and Muhammadiyah in the form of education funds for religious boarding schools. This is in line with a panel report that recently called on the Bush administration to do more to improve its image in the Arab and Muslim world through greater funds for education and public diplomacy. Clearly the intention is to use the moderates as a counterweight to fringe radical groups.
President Megawati Sukarnoputri will welcome Mr Bush in Bali. Indonesian officials said a major focus of discussions would be efforts to combat Islamic militancy.
They refused to disclose any concrete plans that have been drawn up by both sides. But observers speculate that Jakarta might make a pitch for more funds to help security and intelligence agencies here.
One issue that will be raised by Ms Megawati is access for Indonesian police to interrogate terrorist Riduan Isamuddin alias Hambali. Hambali was captured in Thailand in August and is being held by the Americans in an undisclosed location.
While some are critical that Mr Bush is only spending a few hours in Bali -- his trip is of great significance to the Megawati administration. A diplomat explained: "It shows his support for the Indonesian government and how America wants to help Jakarta in the war against terrorism."
Agence France Presse - October 14, 2003
Jakarta -- The jailed head of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) urged Jakarta officials on Tuesday to shut down bars, discos and nightclubs during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan or face possible raids.
Muhammad Riziq Shihab, chief of FPI, said city officials "must be stern in carrying out the law" or they could face wrath from "people who will take matters into their own hands." "As long as my followers go out on raids to uphold the law and their faith, why should I stop them?" Shihab told AFP by mobile telephone from his jail cell in Jakarta.
He is serving a seven-month term for instigating violence during a series of vandalistic attacks on entertainment centers by FPI members in Jakarta last year. Jakarta governor Sutiyoso is expected next week to issue a decree ordering nightclubs, bars, discos, saunas, massage parlors and games parlors closed for the month, which will start in Indonesia around October 25.
Cafes, restaurants and live music halls are allowed to operate for reduced hours except on six days considered especially holy.
The decree does not explicitly order a ban on the sale of alcohol but says any violation of the closure order would cost businesses their licenses.
Shihab said he was pessimistic the decree would be heeded. "A mere decree will be useless. Police must have the guts to arrest and prosecute people who break the law during Ramadan," he said.
FPI has in the past raided bars and nightclubs in the city and made threats to expel foreigners following the US attacks in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Muslims must shun eating, drinking, smoking and sex each day from dawn to dusk during Ramadan.
| Armed forces/police |
Straits Times - October 14, 2003
Derwin Pereira, Jakarta -- Last week's celebration of the 58th anniversary of the Indonesian armed forces (TNI) was one of pomp and military muscle.
The newly acquired Russian Sukhoi jets screamed overhead as red beret troops engaged in special manoeuvres.
Amid this display of force in an organisation creeping to national ascendancy, TNI chief Endriartono Sutarto declared that the military would stay out of politics. Nothing new in this message. It reinforces the "new thinking" of the top brass, which decided after Suharto's fall in 1998 to leave national politics to the civilians.
What is significant is the timing -- and the target -- of that message. It was aimed at political parties seeking to enlist military backing -- and more importantly at retired generals running for presidency next year.
There are three of them: security czar Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, former commander Wiranto and Suharto's son-in-law Prabowo Subianto.
General Endriartono explained: "They are no longer within our structure. So there will be no obligation for us to support them." Analysts believe that his comment is underscored by three factors.
For one, it reflects the growing rift between the top brass and the retired generals who have been more critical of the military's failure to restore law and order in Indonesia. Secondly, it could be an attempt to dismantle the patron-client network between retired and active generals ahead of the election.
Historically, serving officers have been obliged to back their retired superiors. Many retired generals still draw on the allegiance of former army connections.
Gen Endriartono is also steering the TNI back on course for reform, which began in 1999 when the military dismantled its socio-political division and declared that it would not dabble in politics.
In 2001, it resisted former president Abdurrahman Wahid's bid to impose emergency rule to preserve his own power. But the reform agenda has wavered, most conspicuously demonstrated by a defence White Paper earlier this year.
It spelt out the TNI's inherent right to have special powers to "intervene" in state affairs when needed. The TNI has been able to assert itself over the last two years partly because politicians are unwilling to disaffect the military openly given its far-reaching influence.
Gen Endriartono may have laid out the OB markers for the TNI's role in politics. But he can only go that far. The onus is on civilian politicians and retired military officers to stop dragging the generals into the fray.
| Military ties |
Sydney Morning Herald - October 18, 2003
Marian Wilkinson Washington, Matthew Moore Jakarta -- President George Bush has announced he is ready to resume military aid to Indonesia and renew ties with its armed forces, in a statement that has stunned members of the US Congress.
Mr Bush made his remarks to Indonesian television shortly before leaving on his Asia-Pacific trip, during which he will meet President Megawati Soekarnoputri in Bali.
In Jakarta, government spokesman Marty Natalegawa said he was not surprised by the offer but refused to say whether a resumption of arms sales and military training with the US might now be on the agenda.
The US Congress had blocked the resumption of military ties until Indonesia fully co-operated on the investigation into the killing of two American teachers near the Freeport mine in West Papua last year. But Mr Bush, speaking about his forthcoming meeting with President Megawati, told Indonesia's SCTV: "We will discuss mil-to-mil [military to military] relations. For a while Congress put restrictions on it but now the Congress has changed their attitude and I think we can go forward with a package of mil-to- mil because of the co-operation of the [Indonesian] government on the killing of the two US citizens".
However, the widow of one of the victims, Patsy Spier, expressed outrage. "I am shocked and disappointed. I just don't understand. Who told the President there was co-operation? It wasn't the FBI, it wasn't the State Department. It's not the Congress. No one is saying what the President is saying." Both the US Defense Department and the Australian Government have been strongly urging the resumption of US military ties to Indonesia as part of the counter-terrorism effort there.
A preliminary Indonesian police report into the attack on the teachers near Timika, in West Papua, which wounded 12 others, found that Indonesian military forces may have been responsible. The military has denied any involvement and for the past year the investigation has stalled.
Last month, however, Indonesia's Security Minister, Bambang Yudhoyono, went to Washington and told senior members of the Bush Administration that Indonesia "will do all we can to investigate this incident". He said there would be a joint Indonesian police and military inquiry which would work with the FBI. But since then there appears to have been little progress.
A spokesman for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee told the Herald that it had contacted the White House seeking "clarification on the President's remarks and we'll withhold any judgement until we have an understanding for the basis of the statement".
Mr Natalegawa declined to say if Indonesia had been involved in discussions already with the US. "This is more an internal process within the US administraion and the Congress," he said. "We are not party to this process but as a potential beneficiary we have an interest to follow it closely." He said Indonesia was concerned that the offer to renew military co-operation could lead to a new round of criticism of Indonesia for past events.
"We are really, potentially, at the receiving end of such a program but what we are always really concerned about is we don't want to be a straw person that's being punched as this process drags on ... we certainly do not wish to have a well-intentioned process of assistance started which ends up giving rise to various controversies about the properness or otherwise of such assistance."
Agence France Presse - October 17, 2003
Jakarta -- The United States plans to resume cooperation with Indonesia's armed forces because the Jakarta government has assisted a US investigation into the murder of two American citizens in Papua province, President George W. Bush said in an interview broadcast on Wednesday.
"For a while Congress put restrictions on Indonesia but now the Congress has changed their attitude and I think we can go forward with a package of mil-to-mil [military-to-military] cooperation because of the cooperation of the Indonesian government on the killings of the two US citizens," he said in an interview in Washington with Indonesia's SCTV. Mr Bush was speaking just before leaving on a tour of several Asian countries, including a visit to Bali on October 22 when he will hold talks with President Megawati Sukarnoputri.
The US administration halted almost all military contact with Indonesia over the 1999 bloodshed in East Timor. It had said previously that they will not be restored until soldiers are made to account for abuses.
The US has pressed for answers to an incident in August last year when gunmen fired on a convoy of employees from the US-owned Freeport copper and gold mine in Papua. Two US teachers and an Indonesian died. Twelve others, mostly Americans, were wounded.
Police in Papua said that a witness linked Indonesian special forces soldiers to the killings. The military has blamed a group of separatist rebels. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents have visited Papua twice to investigate the case.
Earlier this year, the US House of Representatives voted to withhold funds for a military education and training programme until Jakarta cooperated with US investigators.
Indonesia is seen as an important partner in Washington's war on terror. But the Indonesian military has been accused of gross rights abuses in East Timor in 1999 and in the fight against separatist rebels in Aceh and Papua provinces.
ABC PM - October 13, 2003
Peter Cave: Well, the death of al-Ghozi may have been a small victory, but the continuing fight against regional terrorism has suffered a setback, it seems, with Australia and Indonesia at loggerheads over plans for closer defence cooperation.
The Australian Government has been keen to renew links between the Australian Defence Force and the Indonesian military's elite Special Forces Unit, Kopassus. The ties were severed in the wake of Australia's intervention in East Timor, but since then efforts have been underway to establish joint counter-terrorism exercises.
Those plans however, have already hit a major snag, with Indonesia refusing Australian requests to exclude members of Kopassus with a history of human rights abuse. Nick Grimm reports.
Nick Grimm: The Australian Government has confirmed it extended an invitation to the commander of Indonesia's notorious Special Forces Unit, Kopassus, to come to this country to observe security arrangements for the Rugby World Cup. But with those plans underway, the Australian Defence Force then objected to Major General Sriyanto coming here.
He's currently on trial for murder in an Indonesian human rights court, over his alleged involvement in an incident in 1984, which has become known as the "Tanjung Priok Massacre". It's alleged he ordered his troops to open fire into a crowd of civilians.
Nick Grimm: Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, speaking on The World Today.
Alexander Downer: In the end, it's inappropriate for the Australian Defence Force to be involved in training with people in the Indonesian military, or for that matter in the Indonesian system generally, who have been involved in and in some cases, charged with egregious human rights abuses.
Nick Grimm: But when Australia submitted a list of members of Kopassus it would rather not have to deal with, Indonesia's response was to withdraw from the planned trip to Australia altogether, on the grounds it would not have members of its military to be vetted by its neighbour.
Alexander Downer: The Indonesian military feel that it's not Australia's job to pick and choose individual officers who can participate in exercises -- not that that was an exercise, by the way. And that's been their position for quite some time.
Nick Grimm: Now plans for joint counter-terrorism exercises later this year, have been put on hold. For its part, the Federal Opposition has maintained firm opposition to renewing ties with Kopassus.
Shadow Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd.
Kevin Rudd: Well, the Australian Government's position's [was] untenable from the outset, because Kopassus of itself as an organisation still is problematic. Kopassus has a past history in the not too far distant past, of working with terrorist organisations on the ground in Indonesia, namely Laskar Jihad.
So, our policy all along is that you can't separate people out. The Government seem to have this, I think, delusional approach that you could say over here in one corner are the good Kopassus people and over here in the other corner are the bad Kopassus people.
Nick Grimm: Indonesia expert, Professor Harold Crouch, from the Australian National University is currently visiting Indonesia conducting research. He argues that human rights abuses have long been part of a deeply entrenched culture within Kopassus.
Harold Crouch: So, they have never shown themselves very restrained on human rights type issues. In fact, they often ... some of the soldiers who've been accused of human rights violation are treated as heroes by their colleagues in the Kopassus.
For example, there were several who were convicted actually not so long ago for killing the leader of the peaceful Papua Independence Movement. When they were convicted, the Army Chief- of-Staff, in fact, praised them and said it would be more proper to treat them as heroes rather than as convicts.
I mean, there's a slogan that the Kopassus is supposed to use; if one of their people get killed in an operation they will kill ten of the other side.
Nick Grimm: But others urge the Australian Government to stick to its guns and not relent to Indonesian pressure for its military's human rights abuses to be overlooked.
Sidney Jones is the Jakarta-based South East Asia Project Director with the International Crisis Group.
Sidney Jones: Well, it may jeopardise that restoration completely, but I think it's appropriate that the Australian Government refuse to allow Kopassus to dictate the terms of restoring relations.
Nick Grimm: Why is that?
Sidney Jones: Because you don't [want] to have people that have been responsible for serious human rights abuses being allowed into the country for additional training that would then perhaps enable them to do the same except with greater expertise.
Peter Cave: Sidney Jones from the International Crisis Group. Nick Grimm was our reporter.
Jakarta Post - October 14, 2003
Tiarma Siboro and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- The Indonesian Army has turned down Australia's invitation for some of its Special Forces (Kopassus) officers to talk about antiterrorism training in Perth.
Spokesman for the Indonesian Military (TNI) Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said on Monday the Army decided to decline the invitation following demonstrations by several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the neighboring country against the visit of Kopassus chief Maj. Gen. Sriyanto Muntarsan.
Sriyanto should have lead six Kopassus officers during the week- long trip upon the invitation of the Australian government to the Australian Special Air Service Regiment's Swanbourne base in Perth slated to begin on October 6.
"The Army's leadership has decided to postpone the trip to Australia due to the rallies," he told The Jakarta Post on Monday. "It is impossible for the team to leave without the commander. Therefore, the Army postponed the visit to avoid causing problems for the Australian government." Sjafrie did not identify the NGOs.
He said no arrangement had been set for the overseas training yet as the visit was only for "observation purposes" to learn the possibility of sending Kopassus members to the neighboring country. We have not received a response from the Australian government after we rejected the invitation, he added.
Sriyanto has been named a suspect in connection a trial over gross human rights violations in Tanjung Priok in 1984, which claimed at least 14 lives.
Australian daily Sydney Morning Herald reported that the objection came from the Australian Defense Force for Sriyanto to join the Kopassus team to attend the talks.
The daily quoted Australian Defense Minister Robert Hill as indicating last week possible problems resulting from the decision to provide training for Kopassus soldiers. Australian media had asked whether Hill could guarantee that the Indonesian soldiers would not use their new skills to act against civilians.
"That presents certain difficulties in light of the history of Kopassus and we have ... put restraints on ourselves in terms of individuals that we're able to deal with. We're still working through those issues, so exercises haven't yet started," Hill was quoted by the daily as saying.
The antiterrorism talks were supposed to be followed by the training for Kopassus members in Australia later this year, he added.
Australia has attempted to resume its military ties in accordance the global antiterrorism drive after a series of bombings, including the Bali bombings that claimed the lives of 88 Australians.
It had earlier cut its training for Kopassus soldiers following the secession of East Timor from Indonesia in 1999. Some military officers had been prosecuted for their involvement in the bloodshed. However, most of them were acquitted of all charges.
Agence France Presse - October 14, 2003
Sydney -- Australia's opposition slammed the government's plans to revive military links with Indonesia's special forces Tuesday, after the cancellation of a visit by its chief over alleged human rights abuses.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd said it proved the idea of reviving links with the Indonesian special forces, known as Kopassus, was "stupid". "You can't simply separate out into the green corner the good Kopassus guys and into the red corner the bad Kopassus guys. This is just dumb," Rudd told national radio.
The conservative government should have realized that before it announced the policy change in August, he said. "It is just stupid. Anyone could have told them that before they embarked on this little policy frolic of theirs."
On Monday Indonesia said it was calling off a trip by a Kopassus team led by its chief, Major Gen. Sriyanto Muntarsan, citing protests from activists in Australia as the reason. The team was supposed to observe security arrangements for the Rugby World Cup.
However, The Australian quoted Foreign Minister Alexander Downer as saying that the Australian Defense Force had objected to the visit. Downer said it was "inappropriate" for Australia's military to train with people implicated in human rights abuses.
Muntarsan has been named a suspect over the 1984 killing of Muslim protesters in Jakarta's port district of Tanjung Priok, when he was a captain. He is due to face trial.
Canberra announced in August a plan to resume ties with Kopassus, which were broken off in 1999 when it was accused oforchestrating mass violence in East Timor. Defense Minister Robert Hill argued that it was necessary as Kopassus provides Indonesia's main counter-terrorism capability.
Sydney Morning Herald - October 13, 2003
Matthew Moore, Jakarta -- The Australian Government has refused to allow the commander of Indonesia's Kopassus special forces to accompany his officers for anti-terrorism talks in Perth in a move that threatens the Government's plan to resume training Kopassus troops.
Major-General Sriyanto, 52, was to have led a group of about 10 Kopassus officers on a trip to the Australian Special Air Service Regiment's Swanbourne base in Perth last week, but the Indonesian Army cancelled the visit after the Australian Defence Force objected to him.
Sriyanto is on trial for murder in an Indonesian human rights court for allegedly ordering his troops to fire on a crowd in September 1984 in what is known as the Tanjung Priok massacres. As is normal in such cases, he remains free and in command of his troops.
The spokesman for Indonesia's armed forces, General Syafrie Samsuddin, yesterday confirmed a preliminary trip of Kopassus officers planned for last week had been cancelled and the training of Kopassus members in Australia, due to begin later this year, had been put on hold.
He said the army had been surprised when the Australian Defence Force rejected several names proposed for the preliminary visit.
General Syafrie said the first visit was only for "observation purposes" to learn the practicalities of the training, and no training had been planned. The army was "not angry" about the veto and had cancelled the trip to avoid causing problems for the Australian Government, he said.
Soon after the Bali bombings a year ago, the Minister for Defence, Robert Hill, suggested the threat of terrorism warranted the resumption of training of Kopassus soldiers that began under the Keating government but was cut over the involvement of Kopassus in massacres in East Timor.
Last week Senator Hill hinted that problems were emerging in resuming training when he was asked what guarantees he could give that Kopassus soldiers would not use skills learnt in Australia against Indonesian citizens.
"That presents certain difficulties in light of the history of Kopassus, and we have ... put restraints on ourselves in terms of individuals that we're able to deal with," he said. "We're still working through those issues, so exercises haven't yet started." General Syafrie said the Indonesian military had goodwill towards Australia but the relationship between the two military forces had to be one of "mutual benefit and mutual trust".
He blamed unnamed non-government organisations in Indonesia and Australia for pressuring the Australian Government to refuse to allow some Kopassus officers into the country. Senator Hill's office refused to answer questions about the vetoes.
Agence France Presse - October 13, 2003
Indonesia's chief security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called for a new defence pact with Australia, saying it was needed to promote the fight against terrorism.
Yudhoyono made the statement late last week in Melbourne before joining Australian Prime Minister John Howard on a flight to Bali for Sunday's commemorations of the Bali bombing, the Australian Financial Review said.
The former general, widely seen as a likely future president, said terrorist attacks had made a new pact necessary.
"In the age of 9/11 and Bali and Jakarta Marriott, security can best be promoted through co-operation," Yudhoyono was quoted saying. "This is leading us to change in our security culture. We can ensure our security only by sharing our intelligence with each other."
The previous Agreement on Maintaining Security was negotiated between former prime minister Paul Keating and former Indonesian president Suharto in 1995. It focussed on consultation, training and technical exchange, but did not impose a mutual defence obligation.
Indonesia cancelled the agreement in 1999 during the tensions over independence in East Timor, when Australia led an international intervention force to the territory.
Australia announced earlier this year that it planned to re-start joint training with Indonesia's special forces, known as Kopassus. Human rights activists oppose the plan, as Kopassus members are widely thought to have coordinated much of the East Timor bloodshed.
On Sunday, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said that new laws to be presented to parliament this week would mean specific approval from the foreign minister would be required for any training with Kopassus.
Defence Minister Robert Hill has argued that cooperation with Kopassus is needed as it provides Indonesia's main anti-terrorism capability. However, Indonesia is reportedly unhappy about Australia's desire for a veto over individual Kopassus members if they are suspected of involvement in human rights abuses.
| Economy & investment |
Jakarta Post - October 18, 2003
Jakarta -- Indonesia needs to increase economic growth by at least 7 percent in order to alleviate the state of poverty under which 38 million people live, the economic minister said on Friday.
Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Dorodjatun Kuntjoro- Jakti said economic growth should reach 7 percent annually to enable the country to absorb the new work force of 2.5 million each year.
However, he admitted that to increase the current rate of around 3 percent to 7 percent would not be feasible for several years, due to the size of the population and the economy, which has not yet recovered. "This year, we are going to reach 4 percent. Next year, if the world economy improves, we will be able to reach 5 percent," he said.
Besides increasing the economic growth rate, poverty could also be reduced by creating new employment opportunities, focusing on socio-economic policies, and adapting poverty eradication policies to reflect the real conditions in the regions.
Dorodjatun, speaking at the "Free from Poverty" forum, did not say what concrete steps the government would take to alleviate poverty.
Data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) shows that the number of people living in poverty reached 37.1 million in 2001 and increased to 38.5 million last year.
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), people living under the international poverty standard earn less than US$2 per day, which puts 110 million Indonesians under the poverty line.
Dorodjatun said once Indonesia managed to achieve the desired growth rate, the government and businesspeople should distribute growth fairly.
As for now, the banking industry should channel more loans to small enterprises, particularly those in villages, he said, while the stable macroeconomic condition should help businesses create jobs.
At the same forum, economist Revrisond Baswir from Yogyakarta- based Gadjah Mada University urged the government to seriously combat corruption and free up more funds for the poor. He also criticized the government for not taking serious measures against corruption.
Revrisond also lamented that the government had shifted the responsibility for reducing poverty to the market mechanism. "The government should channel more money to the agriculture sector so as to improve the income of the poor," he said. Trade union leaders shared similar views, saying the government should ease the process of providing loans to small enterprises and farmers.
Meanwhile, businessman Djimanto from the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) agreed that macroeconomic stability was a key factor to reducing poverty, as was improving the investment climate.
Friday's tripartite forum, sponsored by the ILO, was held to mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty and to discuss the Poverty Reduction Strategic Paper (PRSP).
The paper was drafted to meet requirements set by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund on 80 indebted countries, including Indonesia, in order to obtain more loans from international financial institutions.
The PRSP, which is expected to be finished in June next year, will outline the spirit of the government's programs in reducing poverty.
Asia Times - October 15, 2003
Bill Guerin, Jakarta -- Indonesia's macro indicators are probably better today than they have been at least since the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98 wrecked the economy. So, despite President Megawati Sukarnoputri's March declaration of 2003 as the Year of Investment, why aren't foreign direct investors beating a path to Southeast Asia's biggest economy, the fourth- largest country in the world by population?
A rock-steady rupiah, macroeconomic stability, substantial foreign-exchange gains, manageable inflation, reduced external debts and a shrinking budget deficit have not been enough to turn the tide. Ingrained perceptions of country risk or, more accurately, risks continue to haunt an administration facing elections next year.
Amid positive news, including a sovereign ratings upgrade, a planned bank sale and the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan disbursement, the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) extended gains last week to end at its highest in more than three-and-a-half years.
The government announced that it would offer 45 percent, not 30 percent, in its forthcoming public offering for shares of the country's fourth-largest bank, Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI).
Last week the IMF granted a US$493 million loan payment, the second-last payment under the $5.2 billion facility.
Key indicators in the 2003 budget have been surpassed. For example, the budget set an inflation target of 9 percent for this year, against 10 percent last year. But after peaking at more than 15 percent in early 2002, inflation is now running at an annual rate of 6.2 percent, the lowest in the past three years, and is predicted to fall to about 5 percent by year-end.
The rupiah, one of the best-performing currencies in the region this year, now trades at about 8,380 to the dollar, against an average 8,900 assumed in the budget despite significant declines in key policy interest rates and official exchange-rate intervention by the central bank. Interest rates are now reaching historic lows as the lower-than-expected inflation allowed Bank Indonesia, the central bank, to cut its benchmark one-month SBI interest rate to 8.53 percent. This year's budget forecast a rate of 13 percent.
So what's the trouble? In a word -- or several -- fiscal and corporate debt, unemployment, security and corruption, and a lack of government will to do anything about them.
A third of Indonesia's budget goes for debt service. The country's massive deficit, projected for next year at 77 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), is a fundamental problem dating back decades to the time when Megawati's father Sukarno was in power. It has left a legacy of inflation and robbed the country of development funds because of the necessity of debt payment.
The total national debt stands at almost $130 billion, with more than $70 billion owed by the government, and the rest by local companies. Successfully restructuring these billions of dollars of foreign debt without an IMF program will incur a significantly higher cost. Interest rates will be less favorable than could have been negotiated under the IMF umbrella.
The central bank has said total debt maturing this year alone will reach $18.5 billion, although some companies are still trying to roll over the maturities. Debt repayments of $5.16 billion in 2004 will exert pressure on the balance of payments. Interest charges for this debt badly impact on the country's finances. This interest cost wastes large portions of the taxpayer's money without producing a single thing: no goods, no jobs, and no infrastructure -- it is money thrown away.
The budget deficit last year was a mere 1.6 percent of GDP, but the deficit policy itself is often criticized.
When Sukarno was in power, excessive government spending led to hyperinflation of more than 700 percent annually. During Suharto's rule a balanced budget was government policy and the development portion was upped every year to support growth, though revenues from the fiscal sector were constantly insufficient to finance this need.
The deficit had to be covered, mainly by borrowing from donor countries in the Consultative Group on Indonesia, and the borrowing only sustained the relentless cycle of debt. The economy did not have enough capacity to generate sufficient output and revenue to service these debts.
The same is happening now. The government no longer has the money to support infrastructure development, so private-sector funds are increasingly vital. Though the financial sector and the capital market are recovering, most of what new money there is coming onshore is not direct investment (FDI), badly needed to stimulate the expansion of an economy that, though on a path of modest growth, has achieved an annual equivalent of only 3.8 percent so far this year. Indonesia was the only one of the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states to record negative growth in FDI inflow in 2002, while Malaysia, by comparison, achieved a record 478 percent jump in FDI inflow.
Indonesia's FDI inflows are thus not sufficient to deal with the massive unemployment problem. With some 9.1 million out of work and an annual influx of 2.5 million new entrants to the labor market, analysts say annual growth of at least 6 percent is needed. GDP growth of 5.4 percent is the average forecast for next year, and this will still depend heavily on domestic consumption, as has been the case since 2000. Domestic consumption contributes about 75 percent and investment 15 percent to the country's GDP, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).
While the attractions for foreign investors are an enormous labor force, still at the cheapest rates in the region, and an abundance of natural resources rich for exploitation, investors are frightened off by labor disputes that can result in the closure of a plant and by the ease with which they can lose court actions.
Part of that results from a controversial new labor law passed in June that not only managed to alienate most trade unions but also, more damagingly, was widely seen as one of the most anti- business acts in the region.
A warning came from Bank Indonesia last weekend via its latest report, which said that the consumer confidence index -- which measures the public's perspective on the economy -- declined in August to 76.3 from 81.8 the month before. The rising pessimism reflects people's declining confidence in the prospect of family income, the central bank said.
According to a recently released White Paper, the government will seek to reform the industrial and trade sectors and will attempt to improve the judiciary and law enforcement in cases involving corruption.
As regards corruption, the Berlin-based Transparency International has once again ranked Indonesia as one of the world's most corrupt nations and alongside poorer African countries in terms of investment climate. It cites widespread graft in the public sector and judicial system when ranking Indonesia almost at the bottom of a list of 103 corrupt countries, only slightly better than Myanmar, Angola, Cameroon, Paraguay, Nigeria and Haiti.
Indonesia's score of 1.9 out of 10 prompted Teten Masduki, coordinator of the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), to point out that all this was hardly surprising as "widespread corruption can be seen at every level". He said the country "desperately needs a leader who has a solid track record and high integrity".
The economic package outlined in the White Paper, a blueprint for a post-IMF future, sets out a series of time-defined targets for specific economic actions to be undertaken by the government. The targets under the IMF programs were quantifiable and easily measurable, but analysts say the lack of concrete targets to measure the success of the proposed actions casts some doubt that Indonesia will maintain the fiscal discipline needed to continue its recovery and improve its credit rating. They cite lack of clarity in the outlining of policies to boost investment, exports and employment.
Early signs are hardly promising. The government simply abandoned programmed subsidy cuts agreed with the IMF, in order to halt further fuel and electricity price hikes this year as election campaigns get under way.
Oil prices on the international market increased to an average level of $26.50 per barrel, compared with the budget assumption of $22 per barrel. This means higher spending on fuel subsidies, which, the government says, could increase to Rp25.6 trillion ($3.04 billion). Even with windfall profits from higher oil prices on the international market it still leaves a further deficit of Rp5.5 trillion.
Investors were showing serious interest in the mining, oil and gas, banking and telecommunications sectors before the bombing of the Marriott Hotel on August 5. Though the impact on the economy has been minimal, the effect on the investment climate is still uncertain.
Security problems, problems with legal reform, bureaucracy, corruption, political inaction, labor issues, and so on feed the negative perceptions of Indonesia in investors' eyes. Warnings that, as Al-Qaeda plans new suicide hijackings and bombings in the United States and abroad, Indonesia is a prime target because of its relatively lax security and the presence of radical Islamic groups badly affect sentiment.
However, the 2004 election, economists predict, will be great for the economy. An expected rise in money supply and likely high spending in the state budget during the early post-IMF period are expected to have a positive effect on the economy. A burst of consumption as political parties spend big money on their campaigns should boost consumer spending dramatically, as happened in the last election year. It was the single factor that kick-started the economy in 1999. Continued lowering of interest rates should also fuel private consumption.
Some analysts suggest that in the run-up to the election, investment inflows will come mainly from privatization of the remaining state banks and other state assets. Certainly the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) has made good progress in restructuring and selling assets the government took over in the wake of the regional financial crisis. But IBRA is winding down to the end of its tenure, and evidence suggests that the remaining weak state banks will eventually get a government bailout, come what may, adding more costs to the taxpayer.
Standard & Poor's (S&P) last week upgraded Indonesia's long-term foreign and local currency ratings slightly, reflecting fiscal performance but warned, "The ratings on Indonesia are constrained by political uncertainty." Nothing new there, though perhaps a tad unfair given that the Abdurrahman Wahid administration that preceded this one had been noted for frequent cabinet shuffles and slammed for lack of consistent policies.
The ratings boost followed a government announcement that it is planning to issue global bonds next year, the first since the crisis, to help finance the budget deficit, estimated to reach Rp24.9 trillion, or some 1.2 percent of GDP. Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Dorodjatun Kuntjoro Jakti, however, conceded that the new debt rating, five notches below investment grade, had yet to reach a level that would encourage significant investment,
Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) chairman Theo Toemion will propose a new investment law to the House of Representatives in December that would allow foreign investors to put their money in almost all sectors of the economy, apart from the defense sector, small and medium-sized businesses, and sectors related to religion. These sectors will be all that remains of the once- expansive negative list of areas forbidden to foreign investors.
Toemion said at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit in Bali last week that at as of October investment in the country had been $10 billion this year, of which $5 billion was foreign investment.
"We have concluded that short-term investment will be dangerous and without added value. But in FDI, they [investors] bring in the capital and build the factories so that they will not immediately flee when a crisis occurs," Theo said.
That, of course, is the point. Divestment of state-owned enterprises and restructuring of IBRA assets by new investors should result in a flood of new money into Indonesia, a boost in job creation and an improvement of corporate governance. Encouraging quality investors back in would also kick-start moribund industries and revive the industrial sector, as well as bringing badly needed management skills to protect their investments.
Some 576 new projects and 181 expansion projects worth $5.02 billion were approved, an increase of 23.4 percent from $4.07 billion over the same period last year. However, the reality behind these figures is that many of the projects were status changes from domestic investments to foreign investments (thus largely formalizing capital investment already approved).
Jakarta Post - October 17, 2003
Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta -- The World Bank praised the government's economic reform package laid out in a special White Paper as a program of impressive targets that promises to improve the investment climate and generate higher economic growth.
"The package lays out an impressive time-bound program of economic reforms that, if implemented, would ensure continued macroeconomic stability, lower interest rates and risk premiums, and higher investment and growth," the bank said in its latest report on East Asia's economies published on Thursday.
Progress of the reform programs laid out in the package, coupled with an absence of problems during the impending elections, should gradually improve the country's investment climate, which would in turn lead to more investment in the medium term.
"We expect [economic] growth to accelerate from 3.5 percent this year to 5 percent by 2006," the bank added.
To support its decision not to renew the International Monetary Program (IMF) bailout program, Jakarta last month issued a White Paper, which specifies the economic policies and targets to be met by the government over the next 18 months.
The IMF has been assisting the government in formulating its economic reform programs since 1999, to help it stand on its own feet after being crippled by the severe financial crisis. In return, Indonesia will have received some US$4.8 billion in loans to strengthen its external reserves. The program is slated to end later this year. While acknowledging that the government's decision had found acceptance inside and outside the country, the report reiterated the bank's support for the decision.
"The general perception is that Indonesia's macroeconomic conditions have improved enough to warrant the decision," it said.
The report also praised the government for pursuing a tight fiscal policy as part of its continued fiscal consolidation, although as a result, "the persistent under-spending of development expenditure is of concern." Although the fiscal consolidation has helped restore financial stability -- as shown by the external public debt which had fallen to 69 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) as of June this year from 158 percent in 1998 -- it limits the ability to create enough jobs through increased spending.
Despite continued macroeconomic stability, the unemployment rate reached 8.5 percent in February 2003 -- excluding conflict- affected areas such as Aceh, Maluku and Papua -- up from 8.1 percent in May 2002, the bank said.
"It suggests that the current moderate growth is not enough to improve an employment condition." Analysis by many economists have predicted that for the economy to be able to absorb some 2.5 million new job-seekers annually, it has to grow by at least 6 percent.
The World Bank is one of the country's traditional lenders with annual loans of around $400 million to help finance various development projects in the country.
Jakarta Post - October 16, 2003
Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta -- Coordinating Minister of the Economy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti insisted on Wednesday that foreign direct investment in Indonesia was on the rise, saying that the gloomy reports from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) did not represent the real situation.
"If we use the proper statistics, we can see the real growth in investment," said Dorodjatun on the sidelines of the International Conference on Population and Development on Wednesday.
He explained that BKPM had failed to present a comprehensive picture of the FDI situation, because it focused primarily on licenses awarded to investors in select industries. It did not cover investment in the oil, gas, mining and real estate sectors.
Furthermore, the agency ignored several other indicators commonly used in other countries to measure foreign direct investment growth. The indicators include the consumption of fuel and electricity, the sales of commercial vehicles and motorcycles. The sales of these commodities have been on the rise over the past several years.
Fuel consumption this year is expected to surge to 60.59 million kiloliters from 58.08 million in 2002 and 57.58 million in 2001, while electricity consumption, according to a report from Danareksa Research Institute, has been increasing by an average of 9.2 percent over the last five years.
Industry data shows sales of commercial vehicles, such as trucks and vans, increased by around 11 percent to 240,305 units in the first nine months of the year compared to the same period of last year. Motorcycle sales rose by 21 percent to 1.78 million units from 1.47 units in the first eight months of the year compared to the same period last year.
Dorodjatun said all these, which were ignored by the BKPM, indicated bullish economic activity in the country. "Many funding organizations said that investment growth in Indonesia was higher than many had expected," said Dorodjatun.
BKPM's reports say that in 2002, FDI inflow into Indonesia contracted by US$1.52 billion, meaning that the value of foreign-owned businesses that relocated out of the country was $1.52 billion greater than the value of businesses entering the country. In 2001, the FDI inflow had contracted by $3.28 billion.
Dorodjatun also criticized several economists who recently painted a gloomy picture of the country's investment outlook, saying funding organizations and stock market players have a different perception.
"There are economists saying the country's economic prospects are gloomy. Well, they can say that, but, as a matter of fact, there are many players in the stock market who do not share their opinion," he said.
Dorodjatun was apparently referring to the economists grouped in the University of Indonesia's Research Institute for the Economy and Society, who recently gathered and declared that the country's economy would still be in great difficulty until 2008 with domestic consumption remaining the main driver of the economy.
They said foreign investment, essential to revive the economy, was still lacking due to various problems, including legal uncertainty, labor unrest and corruption.
Dorodjatun said it was too early to predict the economic conditions up until 2008. "Frankly speaking, I am not bold enough to predict the state of the country's economy until 2008 because the inflow of investment is based on risk analysis which is hard to predict," he said.
Jakarta Post - October 16, 2003
Sari P. Setiogi, Jakarta -- The government painted on Wednesday a brighter outlook for the country's exports for next year, predicting exports to grow by 7 percent, higher than this year's growth target of 5 percent.
"I am optimistic that we will reach the 5 percent growth target this year and even 7 percent growth in 2004," Minister of Trade and Industry Rini M.S. Soewandi told reporters following the opening ceremony of the 18th Resource Indonesia (PPE) 2003 on Wednesday.
Rini said she was optimistic after seeing Indonesia's export performance over recent months, which was on the rise thanks to demand from Indonesia's nontraditional markets and the rise in the export of new commodities.
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has announced that Indonesia's non-oil and gas exports rose 5.7 percent in the first eight months of the year to US$31.47 billion. In the corresponding period last year, exports grew 3.12 percent to $29.77 billion year-on-year.
Rini said electronics, textiles, furniture and paper were the largest contributors to the country's exports this year. "Electronics exports are expected to reach $7 billion this year, while textile exports are seen to reach $6.8 billion," said Rini.
Buyers from nontraditional markets have made a significant contribution to the country's export performance this year. "Nontraditional markets, such as United Arab Emirates, Africa, China and Eastern Europe, have great potential and are in need of Indonesian products," she said.
Previously, Indonesian exports were focused on traditional markets such as the United States, Japan and Western European countries.
Rini said what was interesting was that exports of handicrafts, fishery products, cacao, glassware and ceramic products had been on the rise as their quality had improved.
Rini also said an exhibition such as PPE would give a significant contribution to the country's exports as it helped potential foreign buyers to find what they needed at one location. Separately, chairwoman of the National Agency for Export Development (BPEN), Diah Maulida, told The Jakarta Post this year's PPE was expected to record about $80 million worth of export deals, a 10 percent increase from $72.4 million recorded in the 2002 PPE.
A palm wax candle exporter, Prananto Nugroho, from PT Wax Industri Nusantara, confirmed that the fair was quite helpful for Indonesian companies, citing that of the company's 10 existing buyers, seven first approached the firm during the past PPE forum.
The 2003 PPE is open from October 15 to October 19 at the Jakarta Fairground (PRJ), Kemayoran, Central Jakarta. About 1,200 companies are participating in the expo, displaying cosmetics, consumer goods, footwear, furniture, agricultural and mining products, handicrafts and textiles at a total of 1,505 stands.
Potential buyers come from about 100 countries, including Japan, Algeria, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Eastern Europe.
Separately, Husin Bagis, commercial and industrial attache at the Indonesian Embassy in Japan, said a Japan trade mission of 49 people had came to see the PPE, looking for furniture, corn, gypsum and the medicinal fruit mengkudu (Morinda citripolia or java noni), which is believed to be able to cure diabetes.
Jakarta Post - October 15, 2003
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta -- The World Bank may not disburse the third and last tranche of the Water Resources Sector Adjustment Loan (Watsal), worth US$150 million, to Indonesia if the controversial water resources bill fails to meet a 1999 commitment on water resource policy reform.
Guy Alaerts, the bank's senior water resources specialist, said on Tuesday that the bank was confused about developments in the water bill deliberation. "We must discuss it with the government whether to continue the programs [or not]. If there are different thoughts with regards the policy, the funding may not continue," said Alaerts.
The House of Representatives (DPR) has put the bill's deliberation on hold, due to strong public reactions concerning the privatization of the water sector. The bill has also triggered debates on whether water was a commodity or a basic human right.
According to Alaerts, the water resources bill was "absolutely not in line with the loan agreement, the on-going projects nor the grant agreement". "Therefore, the investment would be useless because there may not be interests or benefits," he said.
Confronted with a severe economic crisis, the government agreed in 1999 to reform the country's legislation on water to allow the privatization of the water sector, in exchange for $300 million in loans. The first and second tranches were disbursed in June 1999 and 2001 respectively, totaling US$150 million.
Many analysts and non-governmental organizations have expressed their opposition to the existing draft water resource bill, as it considers water as an economic commodity, which they say threatens people with uncertainty over access to safe and affordable water.
The World Bank sponsored a similar program in Bolivia in 1999, but the program has been at the root of frequent protests over access to safe and affordable water.
Alaerts claimed that the bank and other donors had invested some $1 billion for various projects in water resource management reform in Indonesia, including Watsal. "If the Indonesian government and the House do not want to continue it, it would create problems not only to Indonesia, but also to donors," he warned. He said the World Bank and other donors had conducted an initial discussion with the government about the issue.
Alaerts rejected allegations that the water resources investments from the bank was a vehicle for multinational water companies to enter the country. "Some 95 percent of all funding from the World Bank has nothing to do with private companies. We're not interested in helping them ... no benefit," he said. "[The World Bank] only hopes for more equitable management of water resources so people would be assured access to water in the future." Legislator Amri Husni Siregar of the Reform faction said the House would not be hasty in deliberating the bill.
"We have no target. We are only concerned about making a legislation that is good and is accepted by the public," he asserted, adding that the House was scheduled to resume the deliberation later this month.
Amri, who is also a member of the House working committee for the bill's deliberation, said the House would accommodate public scrutiny of the bill.
Simon L. Himawan, director of water resources and irrigation with the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas), said the issue had become the government's concern. "[If they stop the disbursement], Minister [of Finance] Boediono will have a headache, as it will affect the state's financial balance," he said. He suggested the bank to understand that the deliberation was beyond the government's authority, as it was in the hands of the House.
Jakarta Post - October 13, 2003
Jakarta -- The consumer confidence index -- which measures the people's perspective on the economic situation -- declined in August, Bank Indonesia said over the weekend in its latest report.
The August index was lower at 76.3 from 81.8 posted the month earlier. The rising pessimism reflected people's declining confidence in the prospect of family income, the central bank said.
The report came amid improving macroeconomic indicators as inflation has eased, interest rates are down and the rupiah has strengthened.
Analysts, however, have said that the improving macroeconomic picture has yet to translate into higher investment activities. Investment is seen as crucial to help push economic growth to be able to generate more jobs for the millions of unemployed.
The high unemployment rate in the country is weakening people's purchasing power.
The Bank Indonesia report said that the index that shows the number of consumers who think that buying durable goods was now the right time also fell to 65.2 percent from the previous month's 70.9 percent, something that could weaken consumer spending.
While the report did not elaborate on what impact it could have on the economy, the decreasing consumer confidence would prove costly to the economy, which heavily relies on domestic consumption. The government expects the economy to grow by 4 percent this year, with domestic consumption as the main growth engine amid weak exports and investment performance.
The survey also revealed that people's expectations of the economy in the next six months to 12 months were lower, dropping from 107.2 in July to 90.5 percent in August.
| Opinion & analysis |
Jakarta Post - October 14, 2003
Max Lane -- Australia Professor William Liddle's article of October 6 in this newspaper appears to analyze the Megawati Soekarnoputri government's policies in a kind of reality vacuum. In the economic field, he asserts that the Minister for Economic Development Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti and the Finance Minister, Boediono, are "widely respected", with no analysis of widely respected by whom exactly.
This hides the issue of which interests view these ministers positively. Liddle appears to be simply assuming that the current economic strategy being implemented by Megawati, Dorodjatun, Boediono, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are the correct ones. This was the same mistake so many commentators made with the whole history of the New Order.
However there has been no return of either foreign nor, more importantly, domestic investment into the productive economy. Indonesia has entered a period of de-industrialization.
The economic growth experienced over the last few years has been driven by consumption. Recent data all show a decline in this consumption, both at the macro level and in such examples as drops in the retail sales of such indicator firms as the cigarette manufacturer Sampoerna, the department store chain Matahari and also Unilever.
The Megawati government has no economic strategy apart from accepting the advice of the IMF and World Bank that by liberalizing all aspects of the economy investment will eventually return. The World Bank's credibility in making economic assessments was shattered with the 1997 collapse of the "miracle economy".
On decentralization, Liddle states that it may have gone too far and asserts that the current minister is seeking a new balance. How? Or is he referring to the current policy of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) backing a string of former New Order generals for governorship positions against popular sentiment? Most amazing is the implication in his assessment of Megawati's policies towards Aceh and Papua that these are helping the cause of national unity. He cites the sending of the army to Aceh, when it is historically been the militarization of the political situation in Aceh which has generated pro-independence sentiment.
Megawati's policies of splitting up Papua into three provinces also defy majority opinion among Papuans. He also admits that her policy is in defiance of legislation.
His discussion of Megawati's foreign policy is also contradictory. He states "Megawati is a true-believing nationalist". This is clearly not the case, despite her rhetoric at home and overseas. Liddle earlier correctly stated, "She is dependent on the US for investments, markets and much else." Yet he makes no comment on her abject acceptance of this dependence and a complete absence of any serious search for nationalist alternatives.
Liddle's most significant praise of Megawati is his assertion that she has "created a democratically-elected government that can actually govern the country, formulate and implement policies and respond to domestic and international events." This, he says, is "more fundamental" than reforming the judiciary and reducing the role of the military in politics, both of which he notes Megawati has not been able to do. This is just mentioned in passing even though he describes these changes as essential "if Indonesia is to become a modern nation".
First, the creation of a democratically elected government was by no means due to Megawati but rather to the broad movement that was able to force Soeharto's resignation and establish ideological authority for a new democratic oriented political agenda.
There would have been no "free" elections without the street protest movement and ideological campaigns of 1989-1998. For a brief period (1996-1997), Megawati became a rallying point for this movement but never a real leader of it.
Second, Liddle ignores the total ineffectiveness of policies and responses to domestic issues. De-industrialization and rising unemployment and underemployment and socio-economic disruption in the villages as protection of agriculture is dismantled make a mockery of claim of any effective policy implementation. Liddle's whole analysis is obviously based on assessment that Indonesia is out of its economic and social crisis.
He emphasizes "her very normalcy as a working politician" rejecting any need for crisis leadership.
Megawati's "normalcy" has meant she has played no leadership role in fighting the biggest enemy of any kind of genuine democracy in Indonesia at the moment: "Money politics." Of course, "money politics" is a basic weakness of US and Australian politics where huge amounts of money are also necessary for effective participation in parliamentary politics.
In Indonesia where tens of millions of citizens do not have the money for even basic 21st century needs, the billions of rupiah -- obtained how? -- available to the parties make a total mockery of democratic pretenses.
The long struggle to unseat Soeharto which started with the student protests of 1974, and which many commentators refused to believe would ever succeed, brought into being a new political agenda within society that stands in direct opposition to the agenda, values and method of government represented by all the current parliamentary parties. This agenda, articulated in the documents and statements of NGOs, of the new embryonic mass organizations, of student organizations, and of some radical parties and in the press, has not yet found a united organizational vehicle or ideological banner.
When faced by even the most incipient confrontation from this quarter in the form of protests which defaced her photograph, Megawati gave public blessing for the arrest, trial and jailing of activists. Her initial responses to minor protest from opposition outside the ranks of the elite do not auger well for when she will face a real challenge -- assuming she survives past 2004 -- from a stronger opposition based on an alternative economic, political and social agenda. The arrest of and long jail sentences for peaceful campaigners for Acehnese independence also do not portend well.
[Max Lane is a Visiting Fellow from the Asia Research Centre, Murdoch University Perth, Australia.]