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Indonesia News Digest 12 – March 24-31, 2008
Jakarta Post - March 28, 2008
Jakarta – Constitutional Court chief Jimly Asshiddiqie said
Thursday murdered human rights campaigner Munir deserves a
national heroes title for his outstanding contribution to
justice.
"I suggest the government grant such a status," said Jimly,
quoted by Tempointeraktif.com, at a ceremony marking the 10th
anniversary of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of
Violence (Kontras) Munir co-founded in 1998.
Asked, out of Munir and former president Soeharto, who was
entitled to hero status, Jimly said, "Every person has his or her
own role-model. I am not an expert on Soeharto, so I choose
Munir."
Munir, a staunch critic of military rights abuses during the
Soeharto regime, was poisoned to death on board a Garuda
Indonesia flight in 2004.
Ex-pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto was jailed for 20 years in
the murder widely linked to the State Intelligence Agency.
Jakarta Post - March 28, 2008
Jakarta – Public Order Agency officers Wednesday evicted dozens
of street vendors from Senen bus terminal, Central Jakarta and
planned similar evictions from Jl. Melawai, South Jakarta, the
administration revealed Wednesday.
In Senen, the agency deployed around 100 officers to tear down
dozens of kiosks and confiscate their carts. Vendors said,
however, they would continue to sell on the street.
"Not only is the eviction aimed to win the Adipura award, but it
is also a routine job to clean up the neighborhood and strengthen
public order," Senen district head Hidayatullah said.
South Jakarta municipality, meanwhile, told Beritajakarta.com
that residents on Jl. Melawai demanded the administration remove
street vendors from the area.
South Jakarta deputy mayor Budiman Simarmata said his office
would organize all street vendors in the area after holding
meetings with related agencies. "We'll organize the eviction as
soon as possible to prevent more street vendors coming to the
area," he said.
Demos, actions, protests...
West Papua
Military ties
Human rights/law
Labour issues
Environment/natural disasters
Health & education
War on corruption
Islam/religion
Elections/political parties
Regional/communal conflicts
Economy & investment
Opinion & analysis
News & issues
Munir a hero, says court chief
More evictions of street vendors
Indonesian prosecutors ask court to ban Jemaah Islamiah
Reuters - March 26, 2008
Jakarta – Indonesian prosecutors demanded on Wednesday a local court outlaw the Jemaah Islamiah Islamic militant group, which has been blamed for a string of deadly bombings in recent years.
It is the first time prosecutors have asked a court to ban the group, which has been blamed for a series of attacks in Indonesia including the 2002 Bali bombings in which 202 people were killed.
Police in several countries have linked JI to al Qaeda but Indonesian authorities have argued they cannot ban the group since since it is not an established, structured organization.
The demand to outlaw JI, which is listed by the United Nations as a terrorist group, was made during the trial of one of its suspected leaders, Abu Dujana, who was arrested in June last year.
"We demand the panel of judges... declare Jemaah Islamiah an illegal organization," chief prosecutor Payaman told the hearing at the South Jakarta district court.
A recent jailbreak by a JI member in Singapore has revived fears the Islamic militant group could plot attacks against Western interests in the region again.
Prosecutors asked the South Jakarta district court to sentence Dujana to life, saying he was guilty of involvement in a criminal conspiracy to carry out terrorism.
Prosecutors in a separate hearing sought a life sentence for Zarkasih, the chief of Jemaah Islamiyah. He was arrested in June.
The prosecution accused Dujana of authorizing the shipping of firearms and explosives to the Poso region on Sulawesi island where a conflict between Christians and Muslims killed about 2,000 people at the start of the decade.
The charge sheet also alleged that Dujana, who has confessed to leading JI's military wing in the past, harbored other fugitive militants and provided financial support for "terrorism."
Dujana has said that charges against him are false and that he is a victim of injustice. "This (trial) is not intended to prove truth, but on the contrary it demonstrates lies. I am not a JI member," he told the court.
Police arrested Dujana, 38, in a town in Central Java in June and at the time described him as their most wanted man.
Indonesia is the world's fourth-most populous country. While the vast majority of Muslims are moderate, the country has seen the emergence of an increasingly vocal militant minority.
[Writing by Ahmad Pathoni; Editing by Sugita Katyal.]
Jakarta Post - March 26, 2008
Jakarta – Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, has been ranked at the top of a survey of Asian countries for believing shopping is an alternative recreational family activity.
The survey, conducted by AC Nielsen, gave the number one ranking to both Indonesia and Hong Kong, with 93 percent of respondents from each country saying they mixed shopping with family recreation and entertainment. On a world scale, 74 percent of consumers considered shopping as entertainment, according to the survey.
"Shopping during the weekend and at end of the month is considered a family activity. The main enticements are comfort, security and a number of eating out and entertainment facilities," Yongky Suryo Susilo, AC Nielsen Indonesia's retailer service director, said Tuesday.
With few public parks available in most of Indonesia's big cities, families have no other option than to enjoy their free time in shopping malls, the number of which has grown unchecked in the past 10 years. "People are not only buying products but they are buying an experience too," said Yongki.
The AC Nielsen survey also highlighted the so-called "multi- channel users" behavior of Indonesian consumers, relating to their preference for cruising traditional markets also despite the rapid growth of modern retail outlets.
Based on the survey, AC Nielsen found in Jakarta 83 percent to 99 percent of consumers shopping in modern stores were going to both convenience stores and traditional markets.
"Consumers of modern outlets still depend on traditional stores because of their prices and proximity," said Yongky. According to the survey, consumers tend to shop in hypermarkets monthly, spending a large amount of money, in supermarkets for weekly needs at a medium or small amount of money, and at traditional markets for daily consumption.
"Young mothers prefer shopping from roving vendors than traditional markets for their daily consumption. They go to hypermarkets with their family for monthly shopping," said Yongky.
The survey also discovered 76 percent consumers were concerned about food safety. "Apart from considering the quality of the products offered, consumers need hygienic and clean places to shop," said Yongky.
Agus Pambagio, an observer of the protection of consumer's rights and public policy, said that Indonesian customers now had a stronger retail bargaining power.
"The increasing number of shops, both traditional and modern, has given customers more alternatives. This has raised their bargaining power," said Agus. He said Indonesian consumers were becoming more demanding because they were more aware of their rights. (rff)
Sydney Morning Herald - March 25, 2008
Jonathan Pearlman – Soaring food prices are threatening to destabilise countries in the region and have prompted the Federal Government to consider changes to its aid priorities.
A steep two-year rise in global food prices, which in Australia has triggered the Federal Government's inquiry into grocery prices, has taken a heavy toll on poorer populations, particularly in East Timor and Indonesia. Surging fuel prices, drought, changing diets and the use of arable land for biofuels have pushed average food prices up almost 40 per cent in the past year. Wheat prices have risen 80 per cent rise.
He Changchui, representative of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation for Asia and the Pacific, said food shortages had reached a "critical stage" and were likely to worsen.
"These sharp increases in international prices have serious concerns for food security and for social instability," he said from Bangkok. "Those who are directly suffering are vulnerable groups, particularly in food-importing countries."
The UN agency's latest report on food supplies named Indonesia and East Timor as having severe food insecurity. Bad weather and locusts in East Timor had caused increases of rice imports at a time of "exceptionally high" global prices.
"Timor and Indonesia we should watch very closely," Dr He said. "For the Timorese, we still need to unlock their agricultural potential." Climate change was causing enormous concern, he said.
The Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance, Bob McMullan, said he was likely to back increased funding for food aid and research. "Everyone involved in humanitarian assistance will have to adapt," he said. "It is bad news for the poor and something we will have to deal with."
He said the Government was likely to increase its aid to the World Food Program, currently about $33 million a year, and consider additional support for agricultural research.
"In future years we will have to look at whether the spending [for food aid] is sufficient," he said. "For the next decade or so the indicators are that the relative price of food will go up... It is not a crisis. We have the capacity to deal with it, but the more you spend on short-term humanitarian relief, the less you spend on long-term development assistance. It may involve some re-weighting of programs... The best thing we could do is to help people grow more food."
Australia's ambassador to the UN, Robert Hill, said the Government should increase its aid to the World Food Program as a first step in signalling its commitment to strengthening international co-operation.
"That is a simple way the Australian government could put more clout into multilateralism and achieve better outcomes on the ground," said Mr Hill, who visited Canberra last week.
Dr He agreed, noting food insecurity had caused social unrest in South America and Africa and could destabilise states in the Asia-Pacific.
| Demos, actions, protests... |
Tempo Interactive - March 31, 2008
Muhammad Nur Rochmi/TMC, Jakarta – According to information from the Metro Jaya regional police Traffic Management Centre (TMC) website, at least six protest actions will rock Jakarta on Monday March 31.
At 10am protesters from the North Maluku Social Alliance (AMMU) will be holding a demonstration in front of the State Palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta.
Following this, two foreign embassies will be targeted. At 10am protesters from the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) will hold a protest at the Dutch Embassy on Jl. HR Rasuna Said.
Between 1-3pm meanwhile, demonstrators from the Indonesian Society for Tibetan Freedom (MIUKT) will be protesting at the Chinese Embassy in the Mega Kuningan area of South Jakarta.
In addition to this, the Anti-Corruption Civic League (KMAK) will hold a protest at the Corruption Eradication Commission offices at 11am.
The Greater Jakarta Railway Division offices on Jl. Ir Juanda in Central Jakarta will also see a protest by the Greater Jakarta Railway Workers Union (SPKA) this morning at 8am.
Starting at 1pm, demonstrators from the Indonesian Civic Trade Union (SPMI) will hold a demonstration at the Horse Statue in Central Jakarta, which will be continued later at the Jakarta Public Hall.
[Translated by James Balowski.]
Detik.com - March 26, 2008
Ken Yunita, Jakarta – Traffic conditions in Jakarta appear set to worsen today, Tuesday March 26, with five protest actions enlivening different parts of the capital.
As reported on the Metro Jaya regional police Traffic Management Center (TMC) website, one of the actions that is likely to create traffic congestion is a protest in front of the State Palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta.
The action, which will start at 10am, will be joined by around 2 thousand people. "The Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) will be calling on the government to reduce the price of basic commodities and stabilise oil prices," reported the TMC website.
In another action, which will take place between 8am-4pm, the South Sulawesi Indonesian Islamic Students Movement (PMII) will be holding a demonstration at two locations, first they will gather at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout then move off in the direction of the House of Representatives building on Jl. Gatot Subroto in Central Jakarta. The action, which will be protesting against the Haj Plus quota policy, is expected to be joined by around 200 people.
The third protest, which will take place at 9am, is being organised by the Sukapura Cilincing Majlis Taklim (Koranic recital group). The action will be opposing the construction of stalls at the Cakung-Cilincing Nusantara Bonded Zone (KBN) and will be held at the offices of the State Minister for State-Owned Enterprises on Jl. Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta.
The next demonstration will be held in front of the Chinese Embassy in the Mega Kuningan area of South Jakarta between 10am- 1pm. The group Falun Gong Indonesia (FGI) will be calling for an end to the torture and murder of Falun Gong practitioners in China.
The last action is being organised by the Jakarta Islamic Student Alliance and Student Network (AMIJ-JM) and the Jakarta Depok Community (MDJ) at 12noon. Protest will take place at two locations, the Department of Religious Affairs on Jl. Lapangan Banteng and in front of the State Place. They will also be opposing the Haj Plus quota. (ken/ken)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
| West Papua |
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Jayapura – A majority of Papuan people still consume rain and river water since 70 percent of villages in the provinces have no clean water facilities.
Head of the irrigation section at the provincial public works agency Yusuf Yambe said 2,900 of the province's 3,300 villages lacked clean water facilities.
He said his office planned to build clean water facilities, including water pumps, in 60 villages in 11 regencies by 2015.
Yambe said the absence of clean water had left villagers vulnerable to diarrhea, lung infection and skin diseases.
He said the death of 23 villagers in Pegunungan Bintang regency in January related to the consumption of river and rain water and the unhealthy environment in villages in the regency.
He added that in observance of World Water Day, the local government organized the planting of 1 million trees on Mount Cykloop on Saturday to help ensure the water supply to Jayapura.
Jakarta Post - March 29, 2008
Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – A delegation of West Papua politicians has blamed Jakarta for the stagnation of special autonomy in Papua and West Papua, saying the two provinces could not properly implement autonomy without guidance from the central government.
"The special autonomy is not just a matter of money," West Papua chief councilor Jimmy Demianus said, "but rather a political commitment to address problems such as reconciliation, human rights violations, natural resource management, health, poverty, defense and security."
His comments came after he led the West Papua legislature delegation in separate meetings with the House of Representatives and Regional Representative Council leadership here on Thursday.
The delegation was here to pressure the central government to issue a regulation in lieu of law for the formation of West Papua province.
Jimmy said special autonomy had not been achieved as expected due to an absence of technical and operational guidance from Jakarta.
The law mandates seven government regulations, "but so far only a single regulation (that establishes the Papuan People's Assembly or MRP) has been issued," Jimmy said. "Consequently, both the MRP and the provincial government in Papua and West Papua can not work to make special and provincial bylaws."
The 2001 law on special autonomy mandates the issuance of at least seven government regulations as technical and operational guidance for reconciliation in Papua, the resolution of human rights abuses, natural resources exploration, population and protection of local cultures.
According to observers, justice and conflict resolution is dependent upon the proper implementation of special autonomy.
Jimmy warned Papua's problems would become more complex if Jakarta did not facilitate the implementation. In the past five years Papua has been under scrutiny for human rights abuses.
Papuans are confused by the newly proposed fragmentation of the two provinces. Students and activists in Papua, disappointed with the stagnation and the proposed formation of four new provinces, staged rallies in Jayapura this week, demanding a referendum on self-determination.
They said the proposed formation of new provinces would allow the Indonesian Military to bring in more soldiers and would damage local cultures.
Spacious Papua is three and half times the size of Java and is populated by 2.4 million people, 50 percent of whom are from Sulawesi, Java and Sumatra. It is home to many mining and forestry companies, including US-based PT Freeport Indonesia.
During recent meetings in Jayapura, Governor Barnabas Suebu admitted the government's progress in addressing social problems and maintaining political stability in the province was less than desirable.
"Despite huge special autonomy funds being allocated over the last seven years, most people are still living in poverty and are uneducated. A bigger part of the funds have been used to finance bureaucracy," Barnabas said.
Political observers from Cenderawasih University in Abepura, Papua, said the Rp 30 trillion allocated to the two provinces this year would not be spent in the public's interest in the absence of technical and operational assistance from Jakarta.
Jakarta Post - March 29, 2008
Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – A delegation of Papuan politicians has called on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to appoint a special envoy to improve Papua's image in the international world.
Speaking in separate meetings with the leadership of the House of Representatives and Regional Representatives Council (DPD) here on Thursday, the 10-member delegation representing the West Papua provincial legislative council, said the President could recruit the special envoy from career diplomats or from Papuan figures.
"The urgency of the special envoy is connected with the increasing 'black campaign' against Papua in international fora which has given an impression that human rights abuses continue in Papua," West Papua chief councilor Jimmy Demianus Ijie, who led the delegation, said during the meeting with the regional representatives.
He claimed the campaign against Papua was related to Indonesia's efforts to bar American Samoan Congressman Eni Faleomavaega from visiting Papua in July, 2007, and the failures of special autonomy in Papua and West Papua.
"We have been informed that the Germany-based World Churches Council just sent a letter of protest to the President on the accusation of continued human rights abuses in the two predominantly Christian provinces," he said.
After submitting to the US congress a bill asking Washington to look into human rights abuses in Papua, which was vetoed by President George W. Bush in 2006, Eni has campaigned against an Indonesian government he accuses of disregarding Papuan people's human rights and stealing its wealth.
Regional Representatives Council deputy chairman Irman Gusman expressed his deep concern over the "black campaign" and the poor condition of most Papuans, but said a special envoy would not settle the roots of the problem.
"Indonesian diplomacy should be boosted, without a special envoy on Papua, to have all friendly countries have a perception similar with ours on conditions in the two provinces," he said.
Irman said that in an informal meeting with the DPD leadership on Friday, the President showed a strong commitment to settling unresolved problems in the two provinces, including the immediate issuance of an emergency law on the formation of West Papua province.
He said it would be better if the President appointed a deputy foreign minister to improve the country's diplomacy.
Erwin Kawilarang, a regional representative and chairman of the ad hoc committee on Papua issues at the DPD, said the government should improve conditions in the two provinces if it wanted to improve international perceptions.
"The government will regain the Papuan people's confidence if the special autonomy aimed at settling the complicated Papuan issue go on effectively to make changes and improve the people's lives," he said.
Radio New Zealand International - March 28, 2008
The British Foreign Office has urged the Indonesian government and all Papuan groups to engage in a peaceful dialogue.
In its Human Rights Report 2007 launched this week, the Foreign Office says while peace was being maintained in Aceh, Indonesia continues to experience low level conflict in Papua.
The report says concerns remain about the human rights situation in Papua, in particular restrictions on access to the region by NGOs and journalists.
It also mentions allegations of violations by the Indonesian armed forces and regular reports of threats against human rights defenders.
The Foreign Office says it believes that the full implementation of Special Autonomy legislation would be an important step in resolving Papua's complex issues. However, it says there are still obstacles, and progress is slow.
The British government says it's working with the European Union towards greater engagement with the Indonesian government in support of human rights defenders.
Jakarta Post - March 28, 2008
Jakarta – The international environmental activist group Greenpeace called for Jakarta to strongly support the maintenance of Papua's log export ban despite recent logging industry pressure to loosen the regulation.
The log export ban, a joint initiative of the governors of Papua and West Papua, has been in place since Dec. 19, 2007. Under the ban, which has received strong support from Papuan people concerned about losing their forests, logs from Papua can only be used inside Papua.
However, at a March 17 meeting between governor Barnabas Suebu and 40 forestry investor representatives in Jayapura, the investors asked the governor to loosen the regulation, a call backed by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
The central government should uphold the commitment it showed at the Bali Climate Talks to protect Indonesian forests, Greenpeace said in a press release issued Thursday.
Globally, tropical deforestation accounts for approximately 20 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. Indonesia is the world's third largest emitter largely due to deforestation. If Indonesia's government is serious about saving its forests and tackling climate change, it should fully support the Papua log export ban.
"The Papuan government is one of the few local governments to have taken a strong stand to save its forests and to increase the welfare of the people who depend on them," said Bustar Maitar, Greenpeace Southeast Asia Forest campaigner.
"The central government should support the regulation to keep Papua's forests breathing as one of the world's lungs. The deforestation rate in Papua should be decreased gradually down to zero in a well-planned program with consideration for Papuan people's welfare," he said.
According to Bustar, Papua, forming the western half of New Guinea Island and comprising the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua, is one of the world's last remaining treasure troves of biodiversity.
New Guinea itself has been described as the last remaining intact forest tract left in the Asia-Pacific region. Papua's forests are Indonesia's last jewel, since other forests in Sumatra and Kalimantan have largely been destroyed by logging and large-scale forest conversion for palm oil plantation.
Allowing deforestation to escalate in Papua to the same level would not only be an environmental crime but also a crime against the people of Papua whose lives depend on keeping the forests intact, said Bustar.
Before the log export ban, logs from Papua's forests were shipped off the island in recent years with no benefit to local government and the community.
In April 2007, the governors of Papua, West Papua and Aceh in Sumatra, declared their joint commitment to save the forests, giving cause for optimism that Papua would not repeat the failed forest management of Sumatra and Kalimantan. The declaration was positively received at both national and international levels.
"The time for action is now, the expansion of clearing in the remaining intact forests must be stopped. Papua's forests must be protected and community-based sustainable forest use encouraged," Bustar said.
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2008
Nethy Dharma Somba and Lilian Budianto, Jayapura/Jakarta – Protesters from the Papua Students and Youths National Front (FNMPP) took to the streets again Tuesday demanding the Papua legislative council hold a referendum on the perceived government failure to implement special autonomy.
The protesters, demanding independence for Papua, waved banners with slogans such as "Special autonomy has failed, hold a referendum immediately" and "United Nations, send in your international observers to West Papua".
FNMPP spokesman Marthen Singgu told the media in Jayapura the petition for a referendum was due to people's accumulated disappointment with the implementation of special autonomy, which was intended to improve people's welfare in Papua.
"The government has failed to meet its mandate, in accordance with Law No. 21/2001, to protect and provide basic rights to native Papuans, and to realize the prosperity and the well-being of native Papuans," said Marthen.
Rally coordinator Markus Yenu said Papuan officials never attempted to improve people's welfare, rather they took advantage of their position for personal gain and in the interest of their cronies.
"Jakarta would not have sent large funds to Papua if the Papuans had not fought for independence," he said. "But after the funds were dispersed, only the officials have enjoyed them."
Markus said officials frequently flew back and forth from Jayapura to Jakarta and had turned a blind-eye to people's suffering.
Commission A chairman at the Papua legislature, Jance Kayame, greeted the demonstrators. He said he would convey their message to the House of Representatives in Jakarta. The legislature has no authority to revoke the special autonomy status nor to respond to the demand for a referendum.
"Each institution has their own respective authority. As the issue is under the jurisdiction of the House, we will hand it over to them," he said.
The FNMPP has been staging similar rallies, demanding a referendum, for the past month.
US congressmen Donald M. Payne and Eni Faleomavaega last month sent a letter to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to express disappointment with Indonesia for not making "substantial progress in implementing special autonomy". It said, "We note that the people of Papua... have declared special autonomy a failure".
Eni, who was allowed a brief visit to Papua late last year, has been outspoken about Papua and discourages Washington from increasing its military assistance to Indonesia.
Before any further action to increase military funding, the congressmen threatened in the March 5 letter to send copies of numerous photos and a DVD, taken during Eni's visit, to Congress showing "a pattern of (Indonesian) military misuse of force".
Lawmaker Djoko Susilo of the National Mandate Party (PAN) repudiated the letter Monday, saying it was "arrogant and insulting to Indonesia" and had a "dictating" tone.
Cenderawasih Post - March 25, 2008
Thaha al Hamid, secretary-general of the PDP (Papuan Presidium Council) has called on the MPR, the DPRP and the provincial administration of West Papua to stop talking all the time about PP77, the presidential decree about regional symbols.
'The Special Autonomy Law consists of many articles so it seems crazy for these bodies to be focusing on the regional symbols,' he said.
'There are many far more important substantial issues which should be discussed without making all this fuss about regional symbols, issues such as economic empowerment, education and the health situation, where Papuans have experienced no improvements.'
'We shouldn't let our women get soaked in the rain or sit in the blazing sun while shops and stalls are run by people from outside Papua selling their goods,' he said.
Education and health have not succeeded in a way that conforms with the provisions of Otsus, the Special Autonomy Law. Twenty percent of the budget should be allocated to education, while Otsus should get thirty percent. But none of this has been realised. This is evident from the figures in the budget, he said.
What we need now, he said, is for Papuans who fall ill to be able to go to a hospital or clinic and get treatment without having to pay for the medicine. There should be enough electricity for people to be able to study and for people to get involved in various economic activities.
Instead of talking about PP77, people should come together and discuss how to deal with corruption and the injustices contained in Otsus. 'As long as there is no prosperity here, we should continue with our resistance,' he said. The flag we must raise, he said, is the right to life and the need for welfare.
Speaking out in favour of PP77 was Colonel Burhanuddin Siagian, the district military chief, who argued that people fail to understand the meaning of PP77 which is not intended only for Papua but for other places across the country. He said that PP77 is not in violation of Otsus. The decree mentions regional symbols and songs but it does not recognise the Morning Star as the cultural symbol for Papua.
He said that whatever people may say, the Morning Star is a separatist symbol so there are no grounds to claim that it is a cultural symbol. 'Please go ahead and create a cultural symbol,' said the colonel. 'Anyone using the Morning Star will have to confront the law enforcement authorities,' he said.
[Abridged translation by TAPOL.]
Jakarta Post - March 26, 2008
Markus Makur, Timika – As much as 80 percent of Papua's population of about 2 million lives in destitution, despite the natural wealth of the province, according to an official in the Papua provincial administration.
Most of the poor, living in outlying, mountainous and coastal areas, have not been able to lift themselves out of poverty, second assistant to the provincial administration, Hendrik P. Kaiseppo, said.
The problem is aggravated by the lack of effective and accountable local administrations to serve the people, in addition to inadequate infrastructure and human resources, he said.
Speaking during the Papua Agricultural and Forestry Development Planning conference in Mimika regency earlier this month, Kaiseppo said that in the special autonomy era, Papua had the authority to address every issue faced by the people, especially poverty, which hampers development across the province.
Kaiseppo said Papuans were unable to fully exploit the natural reserves in the province, and thus were unable to improve their living standards.
He ascribed poverty in Papua to inadequate basic infrastructure, and said the provincial administration had made rural infrastructure construction, healthcare and human resources development its top priorities.
The administration, he said, has focused on sustainable programs such as people's economy empowerment, creating job opportunities, food and nutritional enhancement, healthcare and education, proper housing and clean water facilities.
Asked what the trillions of rupiah in special autonomy funds had been spent on, Kaiseppo said the administration remained focused on empowering the people, but limited facilities and infrastructure, as well as inadequate human resources, were the main stumbling blocks to development in Papua.
He said some people had benefited from special autonomy, but acknowledged a number of setbacks, including people's general lack of awareness of the programs.
He cited Mimika as a regency abundant with natural wealth but where poverty still prevailed. According to data, Mimika is home to 155,520 people, of which 29,000 families are registered recipients of the government's rice-for-the-poor program.
On Karaka Island in Far East Mimika district and in Kampong Asmat, both rich in natural wealth, the majority of residents still live below the poverty line.
Acting Mimika Regent Atanasius Allo Rafra said his office would earmark Rp 62 billion (approximately US$6.8 million) from its special autonomy funds and the regency budget to empower rural communities and initiate infrastructure projects.
The administration has disbursed funds to villages in remote and mountainous areas to improve people's living standards, he said.
| Military ties |
The Australian - March 28, 2008
Patrick Walters, National security editor – Australia is set to strengthen defence ties with Indonesia, expanding combined exercises, training and educational links.
The upswing in defence relations comes in the wake of the recent ratification of the Lombok Treaty on defence co-operation, which provides a surer foundation for closer defence ties.
Bilateral defence relations have been subject to sharp changes over the past decade. In the wake of the Australian-led intervention in East Timor in 1999, Indonesia tore up a defence pact negotiated by former prime minister Paul Keating and defence ties were all but severed for several years.
Nearly a decade later, both sides are committed to working more closely on common security issues including terrorism, piracy and disaster relief.
Visits by defence chiefs have become routine and Australia and Indonesia conduct an annual strategic dialogue involving defence and intelligence officials.
Both sides are proceeding cautiously on expanding the range of military-to-military exercises, which are chiefly focused on maritime security, peacekeeping and disaster management.
Indonesia's Defence Minister, Juwono Sudarsono, said yesterday he would like to see more training of young officers from Indonesia's defence force in Australia in management and IT in addition to traditional staff college courses. Last year, 110 Indonesian officers trained in Australia.
Dr Sudarsono poured cold water on any suggestion that Indonesia was engaged in any kind of arms build-up, describing the defence budget as a "shoestring budget without a shoe".
Dr Sudarsono told a seminar at the Australian National University that Indonesia's $US3.5billion ($3.81 billion) defence budget was smaller than than of tiny Singapore which had emerged as ASEAN's military superpower.
The key security challenge for Indonesia was economic rather than military, as 36 million people, or about 15 per cent of the population, lived below the poverty line. Dr Sudarsono stressed that poverty alleviation and employment generation were fundamental to Indonesia's long-term security.
Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon said yesterday his meeting with Dr Sudarsono had provided a timely opportunity to advance defence ties following the ratification of the Lombok Treaty.
Mr Fitzgibbon said the two sides would work on a series of joint understandings to identify areas for closer co-operation, including joint defence science and technology projects.
"The joint understandings will outline our mutual priorities for future defence engagement, including military training and post- graduate education, combined exercises and maritime surveillance and patrol," he said.
Agence France Presse - March 27, 2008
Canberra – Australia and Indonesia will strengthen their defence relationship on issues such as terrorism, regional security and piracy, Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon said Thursday.
Speaking after his first meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Juwono Sudarsono in Canberra, Fitzgibbon said the military chiefs of the two countries would work on practical measures of future cooperation.
The announcement comes just six weeks after a new security pact between the at times testy neighbours came into force.
Known as the Lombok Treaty, the agreement replaces an earlier pact torn up by Indonesia some eight years ago over Australian support for the independence of East Timor.
The new agreement includes a key Indonesian demand that Australia will not support separatist causes in its giant Muslim neighbour's sprawling archipelago.
"Australia and Indonesia have a confident and maturing defence relationship, based on a foundation of mutual respect and trust," Fitzgibbon said in a statement.
"We would like to deepen and expand (it) on matters affecting our common security interests such as terrorism, regional security and piracy." Military chiefs would develop joint understandings on mutual priorities for defence cooperation, he said.
These would include combined exercises and maritime surveillance and patrols as well as military training, postgraduate education, study visits and exchanges.
"We also explored mutually beneficial opportunities for defence industry cooperation and ways to support capacity building and management through, for example, joint science and technology projects," he said.
"The joint understandings will be guided by the Lombok Treaty and reflect the strengthening relationship between the two countries."
At the time the treaty came into force on February 7, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said the countries also agreed to renew for three years a separate agreement on combating terrorism.
A total of 92 Australians were killed in bombings by militant Islamists on the Indonesian resort island of Bali in 2002 and 2005.
Smith said Indonesia was central to Australian foreign policy under the government of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, which came to power in November elections.
| Human rights/law |
Jakarta Post - March 28, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The official website of the Communications and Information Ministry was hacked for several hours Thursday, apparently in reaction to the new online pornography law.
Early in the morning, the website was filled with a picture of a man whose bare chest read "March 26, 2008. Congratulations to the government... suit.. suit.
"We congratulate you on the passing of the law on information and electronic transaction and pornography. We would like to express our full support to the government. Prove this law is made not to cover up the government's stupidity. Cihuyyyyyyyyy."
Later, www.depkominfo.go.id could not be accessed, and would-be viewers were met only with the message, "Access has been denied".
The House of Representatives passed Tuesday a bill threatening to jail users and providers of pornographic websites. They will face a maximum of three years in prison or a fine of up to Rp 1 billion (US$107 million).
In pursuance of the law, the government announced it would shut down all porn sites.
The ministry of information and communication has offered the public software to block websites with adult content, available for download at the ministry's website. The ministry plans to begin blocking all adult sites starting April 1.
Telecommunication and cyber expert Roy Suryo, who played a key role in drafting the law, said the attack on the ministry's website was revenge from a porn-lover site.
"I predicted such a move from people opposing the law and the government's move to block the websites with adult content. That's why we need public participation to make the action a success," he told The Jakarta Post.
Roy warned the attack was only the first in a series of similar actions against other ministry websites or even more important ones, such as the official sites of the president and the vice president.
He said not only porn-lover sites but also many other people would try to hack the government's websites because those planning to use their blogs or websites to spread political agitation or misleading data could be affected by the law.
"That's why I urge police to investigate the case thoroughly to find the hackers. The police can apply the law... so they can deal a heavy punishment," he said.
Success in solving the case, Roy said, would send a warning for others planning to hack government websites.
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Families of victims of human rights violations on Wednesday received assurance from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono they would finally find justice.
During their meeting at the presidential office, Yudhoyono listened to grievances of the families, whose loved ones perished or disappeared in the violence in Talangsari, Trisakti University, Semanggi, and Tanjung Priok. Also discussed was the assassination of rights activist Munir in September 2004.
"The President expressed support for investigation into all human rights violations and violence cases," said Usman Hamid, coordinator of rights group Kontras which Munir cofounded 10 years ago. Usman accompanied the families in the meeting. He said the President was willing to see all the guilty parties receive appropriate punishment.
To show his support for the quick settlement of past rights abuses, the President said he would hold a limited Cabinet meeting with related officials, including Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Widodo Adi Sucipto, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Djoko Santoso, Attorney General Hendarman Supandji and National Police chief Gen. Sutanto to review the cases, presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said.
"The President really appreciates what Kontras has done. It is in line with our efforts to build a new civilization of nonviolence," Andi told reporters.
Usman said the President would also talk with Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono concerning the latter's call for several retired Army generals implicated in the Talangsari incident to skip questioning by the National Commission on Human Rights. The President, Usman added, deemed the call untenable. "He (Yudhoyono) said he would speak with Pak Juwono after he returns from Australia," Usman said.
Juwono has repeatedly defended the retired generals, including A.M. Hendropriyono, former chief of the National Intelligence Agency (BIN), former vice president Try Sutrisno and former Army chief Wismoyo Arismunandar, who defied the rights commission's summonses for questioning in connection with the Talangsari case.
The President would check with the Attorney General's Office regarding reports that many documents related to rights abuses had been lost, Usman said.
Andi said the President had instructed all related government institutions to support any investigation or examination into alleged crimes against humanity conducted by Kontras or the rights commission.
Regarding Munir's murder, the President expressed commitment to resolving the case immediately and bringing to justice those responsible for the crime, Usman said.
After so many years, the human rights violations involving high- ranking military officers remain unsettled. Twice the human rights court has heard cases involving military officers, and all the defendants finally walked free.
In the Munir murder, a former Garuda pilot and a former president director were convicted. The court's order for further investigation, including into BIN officials, has moved at a snail's pace.
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2008
Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – Thirteen marines went on trial at the Surabaya tribunal Wednesday on murder charges for their alleged involvement in the shooting to death of four villagers in Alas Tlogo, Pasuruan, East Java, last May.
During the trial, presided by Lt. Col. Akhmad Mulyana, military prosecutors in their indictment said the defendants had opened fire on a group villagers protesting the illegal appropriation of their land, leaving four dead and eleven others injured. The prosecutors said the defendants could be punished with up to 12 years imprisonment and dismissed from the military service, according to Military Codes.
The prosecutors said the 13 defendants – First Lt. Budi Santoso, Second Sgt. Wahyudi, Second Sgt. Abdul Rahman, Chief Corp. Lihari, Second Corp. Muhammad Suratno, Second Corp. Totok Lukistantoto, Second Corp. Warsim, Second Corp. Helmi Widiantoro, Second Corp. Slamet Riyadi, and Privates Agus Triyadi, Mukhamad Yunus, Sariman and Suyatno – did not heed orders from combat training center vice commander, Major Husni Sukarwo, and operation division officer, Major Umar Bakri, to avoid physical contact with the group of villagers.
The indictment, read by Major Achmad Agung Iswanto, described the incident occurring on May 30, 2007. According to the indictment, the 13 defendants received an order to conduct foot patrol around the complex wearing military fatigues and armed. Only one of them was wearing plain-clothes. They carried 10 SSK-1 assault rifles and two 9-mm FN handguns.
"When they were at the site where a backhoe was contouring land in the PT Kebun Grati Agung plantation, they were approached by local residents. They were engaged in negotiation," he said.
Platoon commander First Lt. Budi Santoso then yelled out, "Where's the village head, I'll kill him if I find him." One of protesters who were gathering, replied, "Sir, if you want a war, (it's) not here but in East Timor."
A clash ensued after a number of villagers tossed hard objects to the soldiers. Several marines fired warning shots using blanks. The marines later replaced the blanks with rubber bullets and then again with live bullets. They fired shots at the ground, which ricocheted and hit the victims.
Another military prosecutor said several of the marines fired the live bullets not at the ground but directly into the crowd, who were standing approximately two meters away. More than 50 rubber or live bullets are believed to be fired into the crowd.
"Based on autopsy results, blunt projectiles were lodged in the back of the heads of three of the four dead victims, while the other victim died from bullet wounds to his chest. The 11 injured were hit by projectile fragments," said prosecutor Major Achmad.
Ruhut Sitompul, who led a team of lawyers for the defendants, said, "This case is purely an incident which was not planned beforehand. It occurred suddenly and can not be categorized as a gross violation of human rights," he said. Surabaya Legal Aid Institute has condemned the incident as gross human rights crime, saying an ad hoc human right trial should be established to try the defendants.
The legal aids institute's executive director, Mochammad Faiq Assiddiqi, said before the shooting incident, human rights violations had taken place within the village. Threats were reportedly made against villagers in an attempt to prevent them from taking back the land, which has been rented by private companies.
Kompas - March 27, 2008
Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono met with Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) coordinator Usman Hamid and family members of victims of violence and human rights violations at the presidential offices in Jakarta on Wednesday March 26. The meeting was held at the Palace complex because the president was unable to be present at an event commemorating the tenth anniversary Kontras.
Following the meeting, one of the family members said that the protest actions would continue until the government's commitment becomes a reality. The "Thursday Actions" (one-hour protests held every Thursday in front of the State Place) would continue until the perpetrators are taken before a human rights ad hoc court.
"Our actions are actions to combat forgetfulness. We will continue to hold Thursday Actions until a human rights ad hoc court is established to [try] the Semanggi I, Semanggi II and [student activist] abduction cases", said Sumarsih (55) at the presidential offices.
Sumarsih is the mother of Wawan, an Atma Jaya Catholic University student who was killed during the Semanggi tragedy in 1998. In addition to Sumarsih, Kontras also brought family members of victims of the Talangsari case in Lampung to meet with the president.
"We also conveyed the hopes of victims of violence and human rights violations that efforts at a legal resolution and the search for justice be undertaken", said Hamid.
"With regard to the statement made by Deputy Attorney General for special crimes Kemas Yahya on the disappearance of the case files on Trisakti, Semanggi I, Semanggi II and the abductions, the president has instructed the cabinet secretary to check with the Attorney General," said Hamid.
Public mandate to resolved cases
Speaking separately yesterday, advocate Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara gave his views on the difference of opinion between Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono and the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) on the summoning of retired Indonesian military (TNI) officers implicated in various cases of human rights violations.
Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara said that the actions by Komnas HAM are protected under law. Moreover, what is being done by Komnas HAM represents the mandate of the public's consciousness.
"This mandate is in the form of the wishes or values that live within the soul of all citizens stating that responsibility must be taken for all human rights violations. The victims must be given justice", he said. Because of this therefore, it is unfair to claim that it is as if Komnas HAM seeking to create problems by summoning retired TNI officers.
Separately, National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas) Governor Muladi called on Komnas HAM to act persuasively and not be proactive concerning its efforts to fully resolve all of the cases of suspected gross human rights violations, particularly past violations related to former senior military officers. This proactive approach became apparent when Komnas HAM declared it would take on all suspect past human rights violations (INU/DWA/JOS)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
Jakarta Post - March 26, 2008
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – Failure to provide clear definitions in a new law banning online pornography will hamper its enforcement, the government is being warned.
Legislator Abdullah Azwar Anas of the National Awakening Party (PKB) said the government must clearly define the terms "immorality" and "pornography" contained in the law on information and electronic transactions passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
The law criminalizes the use, transmission and provision of pornographic websites. Abdullah said the government should also use the clear definitions for reference when issuing regulations to implement the new law.
The law only briefly states providers and transmitters of information or pictures with immoral content could face a maximum sentence of six years in prison or a fine of up to Rp 1 billion (US$107,000).
Abdullah said although the terms immorality and pornography were still debated between feminist activists and conservatives, there needed to be an exact parameter upon which the two disputing groups could agree.
"I think nudity certainly falls within the category of pornography," he said. "We can look for a position everybody can agree upon and avoid discussing controversial points that can draw us into a prolonged debate."
The lawmaker said the government had a one-year period to draft regulations to enforce the law and publicize it before it is implemented.
National Commission for Child Protection chairman Seto Mulyadi said clear-cut definitions of immorality and pornography were important to avoid controversy over the new law.
"I think pornography includes pictures or information that can arouse sexual desire. It doesn't necessarily mean nudity," he told The Jakarta Post. "In many cases, nudity can serve as an educational object, let's say for example in biology class, or as an artistic object."
Seto voiced support for the new law, saying his commission has been flooded by parental complaints about widespread and easy access to porn sites.
"The Internet of course is not the only media from which children can obtain pornographic pictures or information. And children might still find tricks to access porn sites," he said.
"However, we have to appreciate the government's attempt to protect children from Internet abuse. We all need to monitor its implementation to make sure it works out."
Writer and director of Women's Journal Foundation, Mariana Amiruddin, said women supported the government's move to protect children from porn sites. However, she expressed fears the new law would disadvantage women if there was a lack of understanding from censorship bodies.
"Censorship organizations might confuse education and art with pornography," she said. "I think it is very important the government clearly defines what they mean by immorality to avoid multiple interpretations that can trigger future disputes during its implementation."
Information and Communications Minister Muhammad Nuh told Reuters members of the public had asked the government to block sites with violent and pornographic content, out of concern about their negative impact as more Indonesians gain access to the Internet.
The number of Internet users in the country is expected to hit 35 million this year, a 40 percent increase from 2007.
Nuh's office has made available software to block websites with adult content. The software can be downloaded from the ministry's website. It plans to begin blocking all adult sites from April 1.
Jakarta Post - March 25, 2008
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – The House of Representatives is set to pass a bill today (Tuesday) that would jail users and providers of pornographic websites, despite fears the legislation could victimize receivers of unsolicited email containing adult content.
When the bill comes into effect, providers and users of pornographic sites will face a maximum of three years in prison or a fine of up to Rp 1 billion (around US$107 million).
"I agree if the bill is aimed at protecting children from accessing adult sites. But I am afraid the police will see it as a chance to extort money from people receiving spam porn emails," Zatni Arbi of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences said Monday.
He said the police could conduct raids before spam receivers had deleted the offending emails and accuse them of violating the law.
An information technology expert, Zatni feared the government's efforts to block obscene sites and emails would not work.
"The draft law may raise a good point but I am worried about the implementation. Censoring is not that easy, as violators can easily find tricks to access and provide porn sites," he said.
The Information and Communications Ministry has made available software to block websites with adult content. The software can be downloaded from the ministry's website. It plans to begin blocking all adult sites starting April 1.
Some observers have warned the government may use its declared war on online pornography as an excuse to take action against other information deemed detrimental to the regime.
The number of Internet users in the country is expected to hit 35 million this year, a 40 percent increase from 2007.
Vice president of the Indonesia Telematics Software Association, Richard Kartawijaya, once said about a half of new Internet users in the country admitted to being tempted to access pornographic sites. Adult sites rank among the top 10 most visited websites on various search engines.
Information minister Muhammad Nuh said the government would call on individuals, corporate users and Internet service providers to help block adult sites. "We expect to raise people's awareness of the need to minimize Internet abuse. We hope people use the software we have provided," he said.
He said the government had no intention to criminalize Internet users through the bill, but was seeking to educate people.
The draft law, which has been debated at the House since 2005, also spells out the standard legal grounds for all electronic transactions and stipulates overseas requirements the country's bank should meet for such transactions.
It also includes provisions criminalizing computer hackers and any activities that use others' Internet domains or change and delete information on certain sites.
Police are entitled to confiscate evidence from people suspected of violating the law, including their computers.
Those violating the provisions will face a maximum eight years in jail or a fine of up to Rp 2 billion.
Legislators said the bill was necessary to prevent Internet abuse and help meet the public demand for goods and services bought electronically. It will also help secure the trust of foreign investors and generate more inter-market transactions.
Jakarta Post - March 25, 2008
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has insisted on summoning retired Army generals for questioning in connection with the 1989 killings in the Lampung village of Talangsari, despite the government's opposition.
The rights body is considering issuing a second summons for the Lampung military commander when the incident took place, A.M. Hendropriyono, then armed forces chief Gen. (ret) Try Sutrisno and then Army Special Forces commander Gen. (ret) Wismoyo Arismunandar, who all skipped the first hearing earlier this month.
Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono has suggested the generals ignore the summons.
"The defense minister's objection shows a lack of understanding of our mission to uphold human rights," Ridha Saleh, the commission's deputy chairman, said Monday. "The government should not hamper our efforts to bring justice to the victims of the Talangsari incident."
Earlier in the day, Juwono told a House of Representatives hearing the rights commission had no authority to summon retired servicemen unless the House endorsed a law saying otherwise. He also denied the retired generals had deliberately avoided the questioning for fear they could be held responsible for the killings.
The Talangsari incident revolves around a dawn attack by a battalion of Army soldiers on the village, which was believed to be home to a group, led by one Warsidi, accused of attempting to establish an Indonesian Islamic state.
Officials said 27 members of the Warsidi-led Koran recital group were killed in the incident, but rights groups put the death toll as high as 246.
The military assault reportedly took place following the discovery of the body of Way Jepara military commander Capt. Sukiman in the village. The officer died of stab wounds and a poisoned dart in his chest.
Military and district officials suspected Warsidi of being a follower of Abdullah Sungkar, an Islamic figure who once lived in exile in Malaysia.
Survivors said the Talangsari tragedy not only claimed the lives of their family members, but also deprived them of their basic rights, such as access to electricity, which remains absent from the village until today.
Ridha said the retired generals would be questioned as witnesses. "It would be suspicious if they refused to answer the summonses, questioning our authority to call them," he said.
A 1999 law on human rights authorizes the commission to summon any witness for questioning after approval from the district court as part of its attempt to conduct a thorough investigation.
| Labour issues |
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono warned employers across the country Wednesday against resorting to layoffs whenever disagreement arose between them and their workers. The President urged businesspeople to instead open up dialogues to solve workplace disputes.
"Employers and workers need each other," the President told members of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) upon opening the organization's congress at the State Palace.
Yudhoyono said he was concerned about news reports of companies dismissing their employees.
"Every time massive layoffs occur, I cannot sleep, as many people gather outside the palace and a barrage of text messages floods my mobile phone to protest the dismissal," the President said. He called on both employers and employees to forge partnerships to avoid conflicts that could lead to layoffs, strikes and demonstrations.
Good relations between the two groups would also help the investment climate, which eventually could create more jobs, cut unemployment and alleviate poverty, he said.
If investment jumped in volume, Yudhoyono said, tax revenue would rise, allowing the government to manage the state budget better and improve people's welfare. "If investment increases in the country, it is a high and good deed. And people and I, myself, will be happy," the President said.
A recent survey has suggested foreign investors see frequent strikes and a labor law that favors workers as barriers to making new investment or continuing their current investment in the country.
The President's statement came against the backdrop of a global economic crisis due to soaring fuel prices and the US economic slowdown. Indonesia lived up to its economic growth target of 6.3 percent last year – albeit after revision – but the number of new jobs was less than expected.
Economic hardship facing businesses in Indonesia, in particular due to the 2005 fuel prices hike, has resulted in layoffs of up to 1 million workers every year, the Manpower Ministry said.
Apindo chairman Sofyan Wanandi said the organization's congress was aimed at enhancing partnership between employers and employees and workers' organizations.
"Politicizing and old paradigms to segregate businesspeople and workers should be left behind. It's time for a new paradigm. We realize that without workers business will not grow and businesspeople can't do anything," he said.
Yudhoyono asked businesspeople and state officials to support the government program to save fuel and conserve energy and telephone use, which he said had been wasted.
"If we fail in our efforts to promote efficiency, we will have to allocate more subsidies to poor people," he said.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla is scheduled to close the three-day congress on Friday.
| Environment/natural disasters |
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Activists welcomed a resolution on climate change passed by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Friday, expecting it to put pressure on the government to improve its efforts in dealing with the impacts of global warming.
"It is a serious warning for our government to take concrete action to address the climate change issue seriously. Otherwise, we may get a bad record for human rights issues," Fitrian Ardiansyah, director of the WWF-Indonesia on climate change, said Saturday.
"The resolution is also a positive move to force rich countries like the United States, which has intensively promoted human rights issues, to care more about climate change."
The resolution, submitted by the Maldives and passed without vote, states climate change violates human rights and that global action is required to solve the problem. It also says the poor tend to have limited resources in coping with the impacts of global warming. The Maldives, which consist of 1,200 islands, has long voiced fears of being submerged by rising sea-levels.
Climate change has occupied the top spot for environmental issues since UN climate experts released a finding that predicted severe impacts of global warming, including a rise in sea-levels of up to 59 centimeters by 2100 due to an increase in global temperatures.
The Indonesian government has said the 13,000 islands archipelago, which experiences an annual 0.8 centimeter rise in sea-levels, is very susceptible to such changes, and has cited coastline communities as particularly vulnerable.
The office of the state minister for the environment predicts a meter rise in sea-levels could swamp 405,000 hectares of the coastal areas and 2,000 small islands across the archipelago. Fitrian said many Indonesians would suffer the impact of such a disaster.
"Therefore, in light of the UN resolution, the government can no longer merely blame nature for disasters, including the recent floods which currently afflict the country," he said. "The government, as policy maker, must be responsible for coping with these disasters because taking no action is the same as violating human rights."
Climate expert from the Bandung Institute of Technology Armi Susandi said the resolution would help governments of vulnerable nations protect their people. "With the resolution in place, Indonesia can ensure the international communities of its vulnerability and ask them for extra resources, including funds to tackle the climate change," he said.
Delegations from 189 countries are set to gather in Bangkok on Monday for a three-day conference on climate change, to discuss, among others, the Bali roadmap on climate change, and to determine emission cuts.
Jakarta Post - March 25, 2008
ID Nugroho and Wahyoe Boediwardhana, Surabaya/Malang – Protesters from nine villages affected by the mudflow in Sidoarjo, East Java, blocked the Porong highway and railway tracks for over eight hours Monday to demand inclusion in the central government's compensation program. They plan to meet the governor today to put forward their demands.
The protest began at 8:30 a.m. when around 1,000 villagers, from Mindi, Siring Barat, Jatirejo Barat, Ketapang, Gempol Sari, Glagah Arum, Primbon, Kali Tengah and Gedang converged at four points along the highway, blocking traffic at the Porong turnpike, the Kuning Siring Monument, the intersection at the Brimob Training Center and the Porong Bridge.
Anti-riot and Brimob police units in full gear prevented onlookers from joining the protesters. The Brimob unit stopped those in Mindi from venturing out of their village. Police officers were pushed back to the end of the road from where they had to address the crowd.
At the intersection near the Brimob Training Center, demonstrators were forced by police to retreat. Some yelled obscenities at the police while others cried.
The protesters blocked traffic on the Porong highway and six train services were canceled. The massive rally prompted Sidoarjo Vice Regent Syaiful Ilah to speak to the crowd. He urged the demonstrators to end their protest. They initially refused and asked Syaiful to provide a solution to resolve the problem.
"We finally agreed to meet Governor Imam Utomo on Tuesday to find a solution and try and meet people's demands," said Syaiful, who was optimistic tomorrow's meeting would be fruitful.
Team coordinator of the nine villages Bambang Koeswanto said residents had agreed to meet the governor and added they would take to the streets again and block the road if tomorrow's meeting failed.
In Malang, spokesman for state railway company PT KAI's Surabaya Operation Division Sudarsono said the road and railway blockades in Porong and Tanggulangin districts Monday had paralyzed the railway line between Malang and Blitar to Surabaya.
"If residents continue blocking the railway line until nighttime, PT KAI could incur a loss of around Rp 200 million (US$22,200) in revenue," said Sudarsono.
Sudarsono said, however, only six trains were affected. "The disruption started at 8:30 a.m. and some train drivers returned to their departure stations because they couldn't continue their journey," said Sudarsono.
He urged the authorities to negotiate with the demonstrators so they could remove the blockade at Mindi village. "Please, do protest, but not at the expense of other people's interests," he said.
Sudarsono added train passengers who bought tickets but were unable to travel could collect refunds at the place of issuance. "We will fully reimburse the tickets and will provide new tickets for those who wish to reschedule their trip," he said.
Tempo Interactive - March 24, 2008
Rohman Taufiq, Sidoarjo – Thousands of Lapindo victims again blocked the road access to Jalan Raya Porong at five points this morning (24/3). The blocked areas were the former bridge of Porong Toll Road, Tugu Kuning Siring, the access in front of Porong PLN, at the Porong market, and Porong bridge.
The victims that blocked the access were those unregistered in the map area of mud impact. They come from the village of Siring Barat, Jatirejo Barat, Mindi, Ketapang, Plumbon, Kalitengah, Glagaharum, Pamotan, and Gedang.
They blocked the access at 9 o'clock this morning. By coming together, they blocked the access in their own area. This action happened in two places: Tugu Kuning and Porong market.
Jalan Raya Porong is the only access to the eastern part in East Java from Surabaya after the tollroad of Porong buried by mud two years ago.
"Our demand is only one. We want the governor or regent to give us the judicial certainty as to whether our land is still right to be lived on or not,"said Bambang Kuswanto, one of the coordinators in the demonstration. They also demanded compensation for entire rice fields that are buried by mud.
They showed several posters. One of them said: "The President should put nine villages on the map of the mud area. The regent has to be responsible, We are dying. Lapindo is cursed."
This action should be planned to continue until they hear from the regional government. "When we have certainty from regent and governor, we will act again to demand the central government to pay the damage," said Bambang.
| Health & education |
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, Jakarta – Female residents of Kampung Pulo, a flood-prone neighborhood in Kampung Melayu subdistrict, East Jakarta, banded together Thursday to determine the cause of their area's frequent floodings and lack of drinkable water.
The group of about 100 women, mostly comprised of housewives, put aside their daily activities for two hours and put their heads together to find a solution to the water crisis plaguing their poor, densely populated neighborhood.
"We're still mapping the problems and their doable solutions before another meeting next week, when we'll draw up a plan," said Neneng, 53, a mother of three who runs a kiosk selling cellular phones and phone credit vouchers.
Over the past two months, during the height of the rainy season, the neighborhood, which sits on the banks of the Ciliwung River, has been frequently submerged in floodwater between 50 centimeters and 1.5 meters deep.
The housewives at the meeting appeared to have all the answers to the problem. "It's either dredging the waste-clogged river or building embankment walls. Of course, no more throwing garbage into the river. But the main problem, we think, is neither the lack of money or tools to do it, but rather a lack of awareness among residents, especially men," Neneng said.
Thanks to Quadrant Utama, an NGO which has provided advocacy and education on water, sanitation and environmental issues since 2005, the 100 women who regularly attend the NGO's discussion classes have become aware of their right to clean water and proper sanitation.
The women have also taken action to mobilize residents to clean up the neighborhood before the rainy season starts and after flooding. Quadrant team leader Rossy said the women had started to question the role of the government in protecting their rights.
"They realized it was no use waiting around for the government to help alleviate the problem, so they agreed they would be better off taking matters into their own hands," she told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the discussion.
The meeting's attendees said there was a lack of clean, affordable water sources in the neighborhood.
Many of the women, those who work as clothes washers or snack sellers in front of their homes because their husbands are unemployed, can not afford tap water subscriptions and cited the alternative groundwater as oily and contaminated with household waste.
An alternative for them is to buy a 15 liter water container costing Rp 3,500 (US 30 cents) which can sustain a family for two days, and kerosene priced at Rp 5,000 per liter to boil the water.
"We have received the central government's free package of gas stoves and 3-kilogram cylinders of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), but most of the residents can not operate them for fear of a possible explosion, so we still rely on kerosene as cooking fuel," said Ade Effendi, a community chief in the neighborhood.
The government is phasing out the much-subsidized kerosene in households and micro businesses, replacing it with LPG.
"Fewer and fewer residents take water from the river to cook or to drink, while the number of occurrences of sanitation-related diseases, including diarrhea and dengue fever, has dropped," said Mohamad Yunus, another community chief in the area.
There is still a long way to go before residents can treat their own water sources for safe consumption.
"We haven't reached the point where they can take the initiative themselves to treat the water because one or two of them continue to bleach the river water they use to wash dishes and vegetables. But they are getting there," said Dewi, a Quadrant tutor.
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Jakarta – The government on Saturday launched the National Movement for Good Conduct, a program that aims to promote morality among school students.
The publication of 12 textbooks on morality for primary and secondary school students marked the launch of the movement.
Coordinating Minister for the People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie said the movement was in line with the 2006 law on national education, which mandates the country's schools participate in the moral development of students.
"The government greatly appreciates the publication of the textbooks," Aburizal said.
He said the movement would promote moral values that are universally accepted.
The launch of the movement comes on the heels of the latest findings by the Corruption Eradication Commission, that corruption remains widespread in government institutions, including law enforcement agencies.
International corruption watchdogs view Indonesia as one of the most corrupt countries in the world.
The new morality movement was initiated by the Good Conduct Society and is supported by the National Education Ministry, the Religious Affairs Ministry and the Puri Cikeas Foundation.
Irsyad Sudiro, head of the society, said the movement was a result of a discussion with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono two years ago.
Secretary-general of the National Education Ministry Dodi Nandika said the government would gradually introduce moral education into the school curriculum as a principal subject.
"All this time, moral education has been regarded as a marginal subject. We want it to become a primary subject like, say, mathematics," Dodi said. Moral education will also be introduced to teachers, he said.
The ministry is currently reviewing the newly published textbooks before making them mandatory for schools. "When the books are ready to use, the government will buy the copyrights and allow the public to reproduce them," Dodi said. (dia)
| War on corruption |
Jakarta Post - March 29, 2008
Jakarta – The country's fight against graft has been dealt a big blow after a survey Friday found the public sector and the general public alike condoned corruption.
Conducted by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) between August and October last year, the integrity survey discovered 30 government offices and state companies providing public services had low integrity scores, averaging only 5.33 on a scale of one to 10.
Responsible for law enforcement, the National Police ranked in the bottom five. Ironically, the Justice and Human Rights Ministry ranked last with a score of 4.15. The Religious Affairs Ministry, which deals with moral behavior, fared slightly better with 5.15.
"The average score is considered worse than the integrity levels of public sectors in other countries," KPK deputy chairman Moch. Jasin said about the results of the survey.
During the survey, KPK pollsters interviewed 3,611 participants who were direct users of 65 public service units and state companies across Greater Jakarta.
Despite mechanisms and systems in place to smooth service delivery, corruption among public officers has not changed. The survey found 31 percent of the participants said they were discriminated against by officers for not paying grease money, while 29 percent said the officers they dealt with were used to receiving tips, gifts or rewards.
"The corrupt behavior is supported by the lack of transparency and information related to delivery time and costs," Jasin said.
The situation is exacerbated by the general public's tolerance of corruption. The survey discovered the majority of participants considered rewards for public officers acceptable. Of the participants surveyed, 20 percent admitted offering tips, gifts and rewards for accelerated services. The highest reward recorded in the survey was Rp 150 million (US$16,480).
It was the first integrity survey ever conducted by the anti- graft body, which is currently investigating corruption cases involving the Bank Indonesia's governor and senior officials, House of Representative members, regents and a prosecutor.
Jasin said the survey would be held every year, with the upcoming one extended to 100 government offices and state corporations. The next survey will also look into bribery practices in the recruitment of state employees.
He said the survey would provide the government with the much- needed input for its drive against graft and raise public awareness to fight corruption.
"We hope the preventive measures against corruption will regain investors' trust and convince them the country is cleaning itself up. If corruption and illegal levies were eradicated, we wouldn't have such a high-cost economy," Jasin said. (ewd)
Jakarta Post - March 28, 2008
Jakarta – The South Jakarta District Court found Thursday the Supersemar Foundation guilty of misusing scholarship funds, but ordered it to repay only one fourth of the losses it caused to the state.
The foundation, set up by late former president Soeharto, was said to have caused state losses of US$420.6 million and Rp 186.1 billion (US$20.2 million).
The court asked for compensation of $105 million and Rp 46.4 billion and discharged it from paying the further compensation of a total of Rp 10 trillion for immaterial losses as demanded by the prosecutors.
Presiding judge Wahyono said the civil court was only able to declare the $105 million and Rp 46.4 billion as the government's money, while the sources of the remaining $314.4 million and Rp 139.7 billion were undetectable.
"There has not been any exact calculation of how much money came from either the government or the donations between 1975 and 2007," he said, adding that some Rp 600 billion had been used to provide scholarships.
Wahyono said the foundation had been proven to violate a 1976 government regulation stipulating that state-owned banks must set aside 5 percent of their profits for foundations, including Supersemar, for scholarships or charities.
"The foundation is required to use its funds for scholarships only," he told the court. "But the foundation instead misused the funds for companies managed by Soeharto and his cronies."
Wahyono cited examples that the foundation was proven to have given Rp 13.1 billion to airlines PT Sempati Air and Rp 10 billion to Kosgoro business group.
Juan Felix Tampubolon, one of Soeharto's lawyers, responded to the verdict by saying, "We will appeal."
He said the lawyers could not accept that their clients had to pay the ordered amount, 25 percent of the total demanded by prosecutors. "How could they calculate such an amount of money? It is just an estimate," he said.
He added the foundation received the money from donations, not from the government. "So, our clients shouldn't be required to provide any compensation," he told journalists after the court session, which was not attended by any of Soeharto's heirs.
D. Muchtie, one of the prosecutors, said he was satisfied with the court's verdict that the foundation was guilty. "But I cannot accept that the foundation only has to pay 25 percent of our total demand. That's too small," he said.
He added that prosecutors had yet to decide whether they would appeal. "We have two weeks to discuss the possibility of filing an appeal," he said.
In 1975, the government established the Supersemar Foundation to provide scholarships for poor students, athletes and foster children across the country.
During its development, Soeharto and his cronies misused the funds by diverting them to several of their companies, such as Kosgoro, Sempati, PT Bank Duta, PT Kiani Sakti and PT Kiani Lestari.
Soeharto's death on Jan. 27 saw a transfer of some of the legal rights to five of his children: Siti Hardijanti Rukmana, Sigit Harjojudanto, Bambang Trihatmodjo, Siti Hediati Hariyadi and Siti Hutami Endang Adiningsih. Soeharto's youngest son Hutomo Mandala Putra was not among the heirs. (ewd)
| Islam/religion |
Agence France Presse - March 29, 2008
Jakarta – Indonesian officials and Islamic leaders called production of an anti-Islam film posted on the Internet by a far-right Dutch MP "an irresponsible action" and "unethical", reports said Saturday.
Foreign ministry spokesman Kristiarto Legowo told The Jakarta Post that the film's content "is misleading and full of racism and we consider its production as an irresponsible action under the blanket of freedom of the press."
Dutch MP Geert Wilders' film "Fitna," which was posted online on Thursday, features violent imagery of terror attacks in New York and Madrid intertwined with Koranic texts.
Indonesia's foreign ministry had urged Wilders earlier this month to abandon plans to release the film, citing fears of a backlash by Muslims.
Din Syamsuddin, leader of Indonesia's second largest Islamic group, the tolerant Muhammadiyah, was quoted by state-news agency Antara as saying that production of the film was "unacceptable".
He said this "proved that the West is not serious in upholding democracy and tolerance. Freedom of expression that they create is unethical."
Earlier this week, a small group of hardline Muslims rallied outside the Dutch embassy in Jakarta over plans to release the film.
In February 2006, the Danish mission embassy in Jakarta had to close down for weeks following angry protests over controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed published in the European nation and reprinted elsewhere.
Indonesia, a former Dutch colony, is the world's most populous Muslim nation, where most Muslims practise a tolerant strain of the religion.
Jakarta Post - March 28, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Homosexuals and homosexuality are natural and created by God, thus permissible within Islam, a discussion concluded here Thursday.
Moderate Muslim scholars said there were no reasons to reject homosexuals under Islam, and that the condemnation of homosexuals and homosexuality by mainstream ulema and many other Muslims was based on narrow-minded interpretations of Islamic teachings.
Siti Musdah Mulia of the Indonesia Conference of Religions and Peace cited the Koran's al-Hujurat (49:3) that one of the blessings for human beings was that all men and women are equal, regardless of ethnicity, wealth, social positions or even sexual orientation.
"There is no difference between lesbians and nonlesbians. In the eyes of God, people are valued based on their piety," she told the discussion organized by nongovernmental organization Arus Pelangi.
"And talking about piety is God's prerogative to judge," she added. "The essence of the religion (Islam) is to humanize humans, respect and dignify them."
Musdah said homosexuality was from God and should be considered natural, adding it was not pushed only by passion.
Mata Air magazine managing editor Soffa Ihsan said Islam's acknowledgement of heterogeneity should also include homosexuality.
He said Muslims needed to continue to embrace ijtihad (the process of making a legal decision by independent interpretation of the Koran and the Sunnah) to avoid being stuck in the old paradigm without developing open-minded interpretations.
Another speaker at the discussion, Nurofiah of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), said the dominant notion of heterogeneity was a social construction, leading to the banning of homosexuality by the majority. "Like gender bias or patriarchy, heterogeneity bias is socially constructed. It would be totally different if the ruling group was homosexuals," she said.
Other speakers said the magnificence of Islam was that it could be blended and integrated into local culture. "In fact, Indonesia's culture has accepted homosexuality. The homosexual group in Bugis-Makassar tradition called Bissu is respected and given a high position in the kingdom.
"Also, we know that in Ponorogo (East Java) there has been acknowledgement of homosexuality," Arus Pelangi head Rido Triawan said.
Condemnation of homosexuality was voiced by two conservative Muslim groups, the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and Hizbut Thahir Indonesia (HTI).
"It's a sin. We will not consider homosexuals an enemy, but we will make them aware that what they are doing is wrong," MUI deputy chairman Amir Syarifuddin said.
Rokhmat, of the hardline HTI, several times asked homosexual participants in attendance to repent and force themselves to gradually return to the right path.
Jakarta Post - March 26, 2008
Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Ulema have agreed to promote civil nationalism within and outside their Islamic boarding schools (pesantren) to help protect all citizens from different religions and ethnicities.
They also agreed to foster the reinterpretation of Koranic verses that are often used by extremist groups campaigning for an Indonesian Islamic state to justify violence in the name of Islam.
The decision was made at a three-day seminar aimed at stopping religious-based violence, which ended here Tuesday. In attendance were around 35 leaders of traditional Islamic boarding schools affiliated with Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's largest Muslim organization.
"We call on clerics from all pesantren to refresh their nationalistic points of view," the participants said in a joint statement issued after the event which was co-hosted by the Wahid Institute and Spring Foundation.
"They should also study the history of the ulema, who struggled to establish and defend the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI)," the statement added.
The clerics, from major Indonesian islands like Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Sumatra, said they were resolute to conduct deeper studies into some Islamic terms commonly used to legitimize violence in the name of Islam.
They said such terms as jihad (Islamic holy war), dzimmi (non- Muslims living in Islamic states) and kafir (infidel) need to be reinterpreted so as to be in accordance with the current Indonesian context. The reinterpretations would help stop violence committed in the name of religion, the ulema said.
The world's largest Muslim nation has seen frequent attacks and violence against churches and mosques belonging to Ahmadiyah and several other Islamic groups declared "heretical" by the Indonesian Ulema Council.
The seminar also agreed to "include fiqh ad-dawlah (civic education) in the curricula" of Islamic boarding schools. Wahid Institute executive director Ahmad Suaidy said the inclusion of civic education with an Islamic perspective into pesantren's curriculum was urgently needed for Muslim students.
This move would provide students with an understanding of the rights and obligations of government and citizens, regardless of their religion or ethnicity, he said. "We need to elicit Islamic debate, which supports nationalism... and is not discriminatory," Suaidy said.
The clerics, he said, were looking forward to holding dialogs with Muslim hard-liners to discuss and examine some Koran verses and hadith (Prophet Muhammad's sayings and practices), which they have often used to justify religious violence.
The dialogs would also find the right interpretations of these verses, Suaidy said. "The clerics have sought, for example, to use the term jihad to answer challenges like poverty and backwardness that Indonesia is currently facing, and not to attack others." The clerics also urged the government to punish any groups involved in religious attacks.
Prominent cleric, poet and senior NU leader Ahmad Mustofa Bisri on Monday criticized pesantren for doing next to nothing to prevent such violence. The clerics gathered at the forum here "because they can't stand the stereotyping that ulema support violence", he said.
Mustofa blamed the Indonesian Ulema Council for fueling such attacks on mosques and the homes of several Islamic sects, with its fatwa declaring them "heretical". "The clerics attending the seminar didn't feel the MUI is representing them," he said.
| Elections/political parties |
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – The House of Representatives on Tuesday is set to pass a bill allowing independent candidates to contest local elections for governor, mayor and regent.
However, the nomination of independent candidates could be complicated by the tough and "discriminatory" requirements contained in the bill on regional administrations, observers said Sunday.
So far, independent candidates are only allowed to take part in the local elections in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam province.
The final draft of the bill was endorsed by the House's Commission II on political and home affairs last week.
It will come into effect after being signed into law by the President, or a month after being passed by the House, Commission II deputy chairman Sayuti Asyathri said Sunday.
Under the bill, independent candidates are allowed to contest regional elections if they can prove they have the support of between 3 and 6.5 percent of residents.
The bill says an independent gubernatorial candidate from a province with a population of between six and 12 million must collect a minimum support of 4 percent of the population, while those in provinces home to more than 12 million people have to get a minimum 3 percent support.
For mayoral and regency elections, independent candidates are required to show support of between 3 and 6.5 percent of residents in cities and regencies with populations of less than 250,000 to one million, respectively.
Candidates are required to demonstrate support by submitting signed petitions, along with copies of the identity cards of signatories.
Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro) executive director Hadar Navis Gumay said the requirements for independent candidates were too stringent. "The required minimum support is illogical," he said.
Hadar said the minimum support ranges should be lowered to between 1 and 3 percent, taking into account that not all residents are eligible voters. "The support calculations should have been based on the number of voters in a region, not on the entire population," he said.
Hadar also pointed out what he called "inconsistent calculations" in determining the support independent candidates must obtain. He pointed out the bill requires a higher level of support for a less populated province and lower for a more populated one.
Hadar said the bill also discriminated again independent candidates because they were required to pay a fine of up to 20 billion (US$2.1 million) if they withdrew their nomination after it had been approved by the local election commission.
The bill exempts candidates from political parties from any fine if they withdraw their candidacies. "This will discourage independent candidates from taking part in elections," he said.
Under the bill, only political parties or a coalition of parties with a minimum of 15 percent of seats in the local legislative council, or 15 percent of accumulative votes in the previous regional election, are allowed to nominate candidates.
Law professor Romli Atmasasmita criticized a provision in the final draft law that only bans criminal convicts with legally binding verdicts or five-year jail terms from running for office.
This provision, he said, contained loopholes that could trigger future conflicts between candidates and local election bodies. It also allows criminal suspects or criminal convicts awaiting their appeals to contest elections, he said.
"What if they are found guilty after they have been named candidates or they win the election," said Romli, a professor at Padjajaran University in Bandung.
He said the bill should ban all criminal suspects facing a minimum of five years in prison from taking part in elections. "A five-year jail term is a sentence for a serious offense. All people involved in serious crime should be barred from nomination," he said. "Candidates should be people with clean track records."
Jakarta Post - March 24, 2008
ID Nugroho, Surabaya – Political parties in East Java have recruited members from a dominant local Muslim organization in an apparent strategy to win the province's first-ever gubernatorial election in July.
The Golkar Party, which holds 15 of the 100 seats in the provincial legislature, has nominated chairman of the Nadhlatul Ulama (NU) provincial chapter, Ali Maschan Moesa, as running mate of incumbent vice governor Soenaryo.
The coalition of the National Mandate Party (PAN) and Democratic Party (PD) nominated chairman of the NU-affiliated youth organization, Ansor Syaifullah Yusuf, as running mate of the secretary of the provincial government, Soekarwo.
The NU-affiliated National Awakening Party (PKB), which formed a coalition with the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), has decided to nominate influential NU figure Achmady as a candidate for governor and is seeking a suitable figure to run alongside him. PKB holds 31 seats in the provincial legislature.
Minority parties have approached female NU member Khofifah Inda Parawansa to be running mate of their governor hopeful Djoko Subroto, former chief of the Brawijaya Military Command overseeing security in the province.
Political scientist Kacung Marijan of Airlangga University said it was a clever political strategy but it would not guarantee victory in the July 23 election. "The race will ultimately show which of the NU figures wins the hearts of the people," he said.
Kacung warned political parties not to misinterpret the changing political culture in the province, saying since NU returned to its 1926 nonpolitical khittah (principle) in 1984, NU members have not heeded their leaders in political matters.
"Nahdliyin (NU members) have become politically literate since this large Muslim organization pulled out of politics, because they have been able to separate religious matters from political ones. They know who they will vote for," he said.
According to Machmud Djujono, chairman of the Soenaryo-Ali campaign team, Ali will pick up votes in the governor race because he has a good track record in the province's politics, in addition to his influence among NU members.
Machmud said the pair made a suitable combination of nationalist-religious ideologies representing laymen and clerics.
Golkar hopes Ali will win a majority of votes from both party supporters and NU members, he said. According to data from the local NU office, 40 percent of the province's 33 million residents are NU members.
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which holds 25 seats in the provincial legislature, has not adopted this strategy. PDI-P has decided to nominate influential PDI-P figure Sutjipto, with Ridwan Hisyam, a local Golkar figure, as his running mate.
Sutjipto, who is a member of the home affairs commission at the House of Representatives and a senior figure loyal to PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri, is favorite to win the governor race. If so, the victory is expected to pave the way for the party to have Megawati win the 2009 presidential election.
Major political parties have been in fierce competition to win local elections in Java, home to almost 63 percent of the national population.
| Regional/communal conflicts |
Jakarta Post - March 25, 2008
Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – The situation in Atambua, East Nusa Tenggara, was returning to normal Monday in the wake of a clash between Timor Leste refugees and locals Sunday that left one dead and dozens injured.
Belu regency police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Mulyadi Kaharni said to restore order police had received back-up from two troops from the local military command and two Brimob mobile brigade platoons from the provincial police headquarters in Kupang.
Police have yet to officially disclose the motive behind the clash. "We are still investigating the case," said Mulyadi.
A number of witnesses said the violence was sparked by a misunderstanding during a celebration the previous day.
Mulyadi said Paulino Lopez, 19, who died in the violence, would be taken to Kupang for burial. Scores of others involved in the fight sustained serious injuries from sharp objects and rocks.
"At least seven houses were torched and dozens damaged by rocks," Mulyadi said. adding that he expected people not to be provoked into further violence as the predominantly Christian area was still celebrating Easter.
"Besides that, we will hold a direct leadership election in the next few weeks," he said.
Indonesian border security unit commander First Lt. Dharawan Setyo Nugroho said the situation in Atambua was returning to normal. "There are still groups of people loitering about, but the police, assisted by the military and Brimob members, are on full alert," he said.
There are at least 10,000 former Timor Leste refugees still languishing in shoddy shelters in Atambua. They wish to become Indonesian citizens and have refused to return to Timor Leste, their country of origin.
| Economy & investment |
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Novia D. Rulistia, Jakarta – Though rice prices are soaring in the global market, the country's rice production surplus must not be used for exports, analysts say.
The surplus should instead be managed to meet domestic demand and be able to withstand increasing threats from global climate change, they said.
Economist Bustanul Arifin said although it was predicted the country would enjoy a rice surplus this year, in the months of June and July a harvest failure was likely to occur due to bad weather. "It will be very unwise if the government is planning to export rice now," he said.
Indonesian Farmers Harmony Association (HKTI) committee member Rachmad Badjuri said he was more concerned about the impact of exports on the government's rice purchasing price, also known as HPP.
"We must manage the buffer stock carefully, so that we don't need to import rice anymore, which will also lead to a 'good' HPP," Rachmad said. A good HPP, he said, would benefit farmers as they would get higher selling prices.
The HPP for dried rice husks is now at Rp 2,200 per kilogram, while the international price of rice has reached around US$700 per metric ton.
Earlier, Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu said the government was considering making the state logistics company Bulog the only firm that could export rice of certain quality and by approval of the ministry and the Agriculture Ministry.
The Agriculture Ministry estimated the rice production surplus in 2008 would reach about 2.3 million tons per month.
"But the amount is not enough yet to reach rice supply self- sufficiency. The safe level is around 2.6 to 2.7 million tons per month," the ministry's director general for food plants, Sutarto Alimuso, said.
He said the current rice stock was only enough for domestic consumption during bad harvest months.
Deputy chairman of the House of Representatives' Commission IV overseeing agriculture, Hilman Indra, said it was not the right time for the government to export rice as domestic needs had yet to be met.
"If domestic needs have been fulfilled (with a contingency stock in the event) the country is hit by disasters or prolonged drought, then the government can talk about exports, as long as it is conducted by Bulog so the government can always keep an eye on the process," Hilman said.
He said the House would further discuss the current situation and would asked the government to review its rice export plan.
Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie supported the rice export plan. "I agree with the plan. If the domestic stock is adequate, then why don't we export it?" he said as quoted by Antara news agency.
Rice export, he said, should not harm farmers, so Bulog would play a significant role in buying the rice from farmers and exporting it.
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Jakarta – An expected fresh cash injection from windfall profits from oil exports will allow the government to afford a soaring allocation for fuel subsidies from the state budget, a minister says.
Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said over the weekend the country was expected to receive extra income of Rp 71 trillion (US$7.7 billion) because of adjustments to the oil price assumption in this year's budget revision.
The House of Representatives and the government have recently agreed to raise the oil price assumption to $95 a barrel from $60 a barrel.
Purnomo said the country would enjoy a profit of Rp 3.34 trillion for every dollar increase in global oil prices based on an assumption that a dollar is worth Rp 9,050.
He said income from oil exports would reach a total of Rp 270 trillion, up by almost 35 percent from the original estimate.
"State income from the energy sector will be around $30 billion this year, and half of it will be allocated for fuel subsidies," Purnomo said as quoted by Antara news agency.
The House and the government also recently agreed to allocate Rp 126.8 trillion for fuel subsidies in this year's budget revision, almost triple the current Rp 42.08 trillion allocation.
Despite continuing membership as an oil exporter in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, over the past couple of years, Indonesia has become a net importer of oil owing to rising domestic demand and declining production.
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2008
Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – While the global economic slowdown is not expected to greatly affect Asian economies, Indonesia's biggest challenge lays in subduing its inflation rate to protect public purchasing power, a discussion concluded Wednesday.
"Indonesia's biggest challenge is probably in keeping inflation rate under control in light of increasing commodity prices," Singapore-based Citigroup economist, Moh Siong Sim, said on Wednesday.
Over the past several months, Indonesia's has experienced a spiraling in price of key commodities, including rice, soybean, wheat, flour and cooking oil, accelerating an already hasty inflation rate.
Sluggish agricultural growth has caused companies to import foodstuff, forcing them to pay skyrocketing global prices, which in turn have driven up prices of foodstuff produced locally. "Rising food prices can cause riots because poor people are unhappy," Sim said.
On average the poor spend about 60 percent of their income on foods, according to macro-economic planning director of the National Development Planning Agency, Bambang Prijambodo.
Bambang said the government would strive to reduce inflation by stockpiling key commodities to help maintain stable prices.
He said the government would opt to provide hefty fuel subsidies, rather than raise fuel prices, in a bid to maintain public consumption power, the country's main source of economic growth. "We have decided to keep fuel subsidies in place in order to maintain consumption power and to ease inflation," he said.
The government is proposing fuel subsidies reaching Rp 130 trillion (US$14.16 billion) for a revision of the 2008 State Budget, almost three times higher than the Rp 45.87 trillion allocated in the current budget, based on an oil price assumption of US$95 per barrel.
Sim said in light of inflation worries, the central bank was unlikely to lower its benchmark interest rates. Lower rates are needed to propel banks to channel affordable loans for the expansion of the corporate sector.
"We expect Bank Indonesia's rates to remain steady throughout the year," said Sim. Currently, the central bank benchmark interest rate stands at 8 percent, while the US Fed rate is at 2.25 percent.
Sim said maintaining a favorable rupiah exchange rate against the US dollar was another way to stave off inflation. Bambang and Sim estimated the rupiah would hover between Rp 9,000 and Rp 9,200 per dollar this year. "A stable currency will ease inflation expectations," said Sim.
Citigroup have forecasted Indonesia's economy to grow by 6 percent this year, with inflation estimated at 7 percent. Last year the Indonesian economy, the largest in Southeast Asia, grew 6.32 percent, while inflation reached 6.59 percent, according to the Central Statistics Agency.
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The President should issue a new decree slashing corporate tax if the House of Representatives refuses to pass the income tax bill, the chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) said Wednesday.
"The corporate tax should be cut to allow us to be more competitive," MS Hidayat told reporters on the sidelines of the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) national congress at the State Palace in Jakarta.
Hidayat said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had room to cut the corporate tax rate because the law stipulated the current rate of 30 percent was the maximum allowed.
"It means he can reduce the tax to 25 percent or 20 percent through a presidential decree, as it doesn't violate the law. Later, the decree could be strengthened by a law," he said.
He said a discussion with the director general of taxation had indicated the move was viable. He also dismissed concerns a lower tax rate would cut state revenue even further, citing the successful experiences of other countries with lower tax rates.
"Singapore has a 19 percent tax rate while Russia's is only 15 percent. It is true that a low rate makes for higher compliance," he said.
The President, Hidayat said, had considered cutting the tax rate incrementally. "The President has asked whether we could do it in two stages, first from 30 percent to 28 percent, then later to 25. The government will also be tough on people evading taxation by jailing both businesspeople and officials," he said.
The income tax bill is currently being discussed at the working committee level at the House and is expected to be fully implemented next year.
Jakarta Post - March 26, 2008
Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The World Bank has criticized the government's continuing refusal to cut the onerous fuel subsidy despite evidence the allocation has only benefited wealthy people.
"The fuel subsidy has been poorly targeted; it only promotes consumption and does not help the poor," the World Bank's newly appointed country director for Indonesia, Joachim von Amsberg, said in a discussion Tuesday.
He said energy subsidies were two-and-a-half times higher than those for investment in social development. "These resources are sufficient to finance agricultural, infrastructure and social development," he said.
The government has persisted in not raising fuel prices to ease the subsidy burden, especially ahead of next year's general elections in which President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will run for a second term.
Assuming global oil prices hover around US$95 a barrel, the government will need to allocate about Rp 130 trillion (US$14.16 billion) for energy subsidies in the revised 2008 state budget, according to the House of Representatives' budget commission.
The allocation is nearly three times higher than the Rp 45.87 trillion currently allocated in this year's budget. According to the World Bank, at least 40 percent of the fuel subsidy has been enjoyed by rich people.
Standard Chartered Bank senior economist Fauzi Ichsan said the government would do better to raise fuel prices and allocate fuel subsidies to boost spending and infrastructure development – two key drivers for spurring higher economic growth.
"The government can have a counterpolicy to compensate for raising the fuel prices, such as increasing the amount of cash transfers for poor people to cushion the impact of higher living costs," he said.
In regard to this year's economic outlook, both the World Bank and Fauzi said the country was likely to prove resilient from the possible global economic slowdown because its economy was mainly driven by domestic consumption, not exports.
The country's trade composition is mostly concentrated in commodities, whose prices are expected to be relatively strong, said von Amsberg.
"The impact of the US recession on Indonesia through international trade will be limited; if there is any impact, it will be through the financial markets," Fauzi said.
The World Bank and Fauzi have forecast the country's GDP growth at 6 percent this year, lower than the government's 6.4 percent target and the central bank's estimation of 6.2 percent.
Fauzi said the inflation rate would be between 6.5 percent and 7 percent.
World Bank's Latest Overview on Indonesia
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| Opinion & analysis |
Jakarta Post - March 31, 2008
Rizal Sukma, Jakarta – After creating much controversy with the publication of her book, Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari is now visiting campuses to promote what she calls "the ideology of courage". She proudly tells students about her "struggle" against the World Health Organization, which she has labeled "neo- colonialist" and "unjust". She also calls on students to exhibit "the ideology of courage".
True, we need to stand up against injustice in this world. However, we should not forget injustice is common in this country too. In fact, it is in the domestic theater where "the ideology of courage" is needed most. Unfortunately, when we are faced with this reality, such courage seems nowhere to be found.
For example, we lack courage to address the persistent culture of impunity within the military. After a decade of reformasi, none of the past cases of human rights abuses involving military personnel have been resolved. On the contrary, Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono has encouraged retired Army generals implicated in such cases to ignore summons from the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).
Courage is also required in the struggle against corruption. It is true there have been some improvements in government efforts to eradicate corruption, but recent cases involving top officials from the Attorney General's Office clearly demonstrate more effort and greater courage are still needed.
We need courage to combat a lack of public order. Various incidents of violence by vigilante groups need to be dealt with firmly. The government, and especially law enforcement agencies, should have the courage to enforce the law to the maximum in addressing this problem. If not, advocates of violence will prevail and the image of Indonesia as a peace-loving society will dissolve.
Public officials need the courage to resign if they cannot do their jobs well. It is indeed a rare occasion in Indonesia when a minister tenders his or her resignation upon making a serious mistake. Every one of them would argue that "resignation is a sign of cowardice" because "it is a way to escape responsibility".
Indeed, this is a unique quality among Indonesian officials who prefer to continue holding onto positions of power despite their inability to fulfill their tasks.
However, there is no need to be pessimistic. There are still a lot of people and groups with admirable amounts of courage out there.
Kontras, a small NGO founded 10 years ago by the late Munir, is one of them. Despite all kinds of acts of terror and intimidation against them, including the murder of their founder, Kontras activists continue to symbolize the courage to fight injustice. They work hard, day and night, to seek justice for victims of violence, most allegedly perpetrated by the state.
The government needs courage to bring to light the murder of Munir. It needs to be more serious in investigating the real killer(s). The fulfillment of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's promise to bring the perpetrator(s) to justice would send a strong message to the public that courage does not go unnoticed.
The Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) is another such group blessed with commendable courage. Despite the magnitude of the problem, the ICW continues to highlight cases of corruption to the public. Without the courage of ICW activists, we might not know the extent of the problem, and the corruptors would continue to plunder the wealth of this nation. The work of the ICW has served as a deterrent to would-be corruptors.
Komnas HAM, under the able leadership of Ifdhal Kasim, is also worthy of praise. While some officials at the Foreign Ministry lack the courage to admit torture is still practiced by our security services, Komnas HAM courageously endorsed a recent report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture in Indonesia and called on the government to improve human rights.
The list of courageous persons and groups is certainly longer than this. Kontras, ICW and Komnas HAM are only three obvious examples. Many other individuals and groups are genuinely committed to fighting injustice. Their work demonstrates that, while standing up to injustice at the regional and global level is important, fighting the same problems in our own back yard is nobler.
Finally, we all should learn that admitting to and correcting our own failings is the highest form of courage.
[The writer is deputy executive director of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta.]
Asia Times - March 29, 2008
William Sparrow, Bangkok – Indonesia, with an estimated population of over 230 million, is the world's largest Muslim nation. As such, a morality debate has intensified in recent years regarding access to sexually explicit material, specifically as the Internet becomes widely available. Perceptions of so-called Western indulgence and moral decay have alarmed many Indonesians.
In the introduction to Jakarta Post journalist Maggie Tiojakin's article "Sexual Evolution" it was written, "The end of the repressive New Order regime along with greater accessibility to information in the cyber-age has opened the floodgates of sexual experimentation in the past decade. While not everybody is doing it, at least they are talking about it."
Recently, Indonesian media have also reported a number of scandals involving the Internet distribution of pornographic photos of local celebrities, including a Parliament member and ordinary citizens caught in the act on camera.
The Indonesian government has been quick to act, and this week announced a plan to outlaw Internet pornography. Jakarta's campaign is the latest of many developing nations which have sought to curb the allegedly damaging effects of "adult" pictures, videos and chatrooms.
On March 25, the Indonesian government passed a law banning the accessing and production of "immoral content" on the Internet. The law, which will come into effect on March 29, is one of the strictest in the world regarding adult content: a person found guilty faces six years in prison and a fine of 1 billion rupiah (US$110,000).
In rapid response, a group of hackers took over an Indonesian government website for several hours to protest against the new ban, the Information Ministry said on Friday. According to an Agence France Presse (AFP) report, "The protesters posted a message Thursday on the Ministry of Information website challenging it to 'prove that the law was not drafted to cover the government's stupidity'.
"The message seemed to be directed at the law that was just passed by Parliament," ministry official Ferdinandus Setu told AFP, adding the site was taken down for a period but is now back to normal.
Interestingly, the law – ostensibly aimed at protecting the moral virtue of the young generation – coincides with another government plan to extend free Internet to all high schools in Indonesia. According to the plan's proponents, the move will bring the country's total number of Internet users to over 40 million. There are additional plans to extend the free Internet to even younger students.
Information Minister Muhammad Nuh said the decision to censor porn sites was deliberately taken in conjunction with the launch of the high school Internet access campaign. According to Nuh, an estimated 1 million locally produced pornographic sites, as well as and all foreign sites that stipulate a minimum age of 18 to enter, would be blocked from March 29. He added that "common sense will determine what is allowed and what isn't. We have to protect the nation, particularly the young generation."
Industry specific "blocking" software will be made available from the Information Ministry for download, officials said. For now the software will operate from the user's computer, but there are plans to explore blocking it at the Internet Service Provider (ISP) level. David Burke, executive vice president of Telkom, the largest state telecommunications company, said blocking access to specific sites for Indonesian broadband users and those accessing the Internet through the country's two main gateways should not be difficult, but noted that there would be gaps.
"... Many Internet cafes obtain their bandwidth from satellites, which is much harder to control," said Burke. "So it's a huge job and there will always be cracks. It will depend on how much the government really wants to monitor and police this."
Blocking "immoral content" can be difficult. Australia for example, released similar software last year for parents and schools to use voluntarily. The project to create the software cost the government 84 million Australian dollars (US$77 million), but within an hour of being released had been hacked with a work-around by an Australian teenager.
In Thailand, at the height of the Thaksin Shinawatra government several years ago, it was rumored that "hundreds" of students worked as police informants to identify porn sites, which would then be blocked by the ISPs. However, authorities seemed intent on concentrating strictly on Thai pornography – or at least Asian pornography – because Western pornography remained fully accessible. Porn of all flavors returned with the 2006 coup, as the military took control of all ISPs, but now under the new government seems to be returning.
Indonesia will now have its try. In the Muslim country controversy over "pornography" is certainly nothing new.
In April 2006, Islamic extremists in Jakarta gave the publishers of Playboy's new Indonesian edition a seven-day ultimatum to pull it from shelves. Some violence, a burned office and a few death threats later and the publisher was forced to move his office to Bali. Yet the Indonesian Playboy contained no nude photos, not even partial or implied nudity. It was, in fact, more like fashion model spreads with attractive women. Nevertheless, the publisher was charged with distributing and profiting from indecent pictures. He was later exonerated.
Then, of course, there was the "Tiara Lestar scandal" that ended the young model's career amid angry howls in Indonesia. Lestar was featured nude in Thai and Dutch editions of Penthouse and Spanish Playboy. The images were subsequently seen in Indonesia via the Internet where they sparked outrage.
"This decision certainly wasn't popular in my own country. Heck, it was a huge disappointment for my parents, too. I regret that part of it. For that, I am sorry... But being on the cover of Playboy can be considered the peak of any model's career," Lestar said in an interview last year. "However... I appeared in a country that does not consider Playboy and nudity as taboo. My appearance was never intended for consumption in Indonesia. My pictures circulating on the Internet happened without my being consulted. Not offending my countrymen was one of the criteria of my decision-making process in appearing in [them]."
Lestar, it seems, didn't know much about the Internet or realize that the shots would inevitably get circulated. One might say that Lestar even agrees with the government: she loathes Internet porn.
Meanwhile, as Indonesia steps up its battle against online porn, some government ministers and Islamic hardliners seem to be overlooking the fact that Indonesia, like most Southeast Asian nations, has a bustling sex trade. From karaoke parlors, hostess clubs to bars with working girls – what's on offer within the sex trade is vast and diverse and caters to foreigners and locals alike.
So, with all this outcry and legislation against "indecency" – even of the decidedly "soft core" variety, like Playboy – one begins to wonder what the real problem is. In the world's most populous Muslim nation, it seems that gazing at scantily clad and half-naked bar girls – and having sex with them – is OK, but looking at pictures of people doing it on the Internet is a legal issue that could land you in jail.
[William Sparrow has been an occasional contributor to Asia Times Online and now joins Asia Times Online with a weekly column. Sparrow is editor in chief of Asian Sex Gazette and has reported on sex in Asia for over five years. To contact him send question or comments to Letters@atimes.com.]