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Indonesia News Digest 27 – July 16-24, 2008
Agence France Presse - July 24, 2008
Kuala Lumpur – The youth wing of Malaysia's opposition Islamic
party on Thursday slammed an upcoming concert by an Indonesian
songstress, saying her hip-swivelling dance moves were "too sexy
and immoral".
Kamaruzaman Mohamad, Kuala Lumpur PAS youth chief said party
workers would distribute about 20,000 pamphlets to discourage
youths from watching Inul Darastita's concert on Sunday at the
Bukit Jalil sports stadium south of the city.
"This concert not only promotes un-Islamic values, it is also a
very immoral showmanship and even non-Muslims would agree with
me," he told AFP.
"Just watch her videos on YouTube website and you will see what I
mean. It is too sexy, erotic even and not suitable for
Malaysians," he said.
PAS youth has in the past opposed performances by Gwen Stefani
and Beyonce in Malaysia, saying they promoted a "very, very
immoral" culture among youngsters.
"We are experiencing a moral decay in society so we should work
to promote a cleaner culture, not one that is sinful.
"We are not denying public rights to have a concert but please,
Indonesia has a host of very good, classy artists so why can't
they bring them instead?" Kamaruzaman said.
Songstress Inul is well known for her "dangdut" song and hip-
swivelling dance routines which she performs in form-fitting,
sexy attire.
Last week her concert in southern Johor state was cancelled by
the state government, with no reasons given. Inul reportedly
fainted in distress upon hearing the news, reports said.
PAS, which rules the northern state of Kelantan, has had
ambitions of turning mainly-Muslim Malaysia into a theocratic
state under Islamic rule.
But in recent years it has begun introducing reforms designed to
tone down its hardline reputation and woo young voters.
Jakarta Post - July 18, 2008
Desy Nurhayati, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on
Thursday reiterated the government's commitment to prioritizing
women's empowerment and gender issues in development programs,
and called on Indonesian women to develop their potentials.
"Women, as well as children, are the top priorities in our
development. The government has always been the vanguard to
protect women and children from violence, crimes and hardship,"
he said at the opening of a national meeting on women's
empowerment and child protection at the State Palace.
"Women have the right to proper livelihoods, and the government
is committed to improving their quality of life, especially
through greater access to healthcare and education."
Yudhoyono called on Indonesians to continue supporting and
empowering women in all aspects of development, including in
economics and politics. "I expect women to continue performing
well in various fields, and giving their best for the country,"
he said.
A government quota calls for women to occupy 30 percent of
government positions. Yudhoyono said he was confident this could
be achieved in the 2009 general elections.
"We are glad to see more women at the House of Representatives
and in regional councils nationwide. Hopefully there will be more
women serving as governors, regents and mayors," he said. "But
men should not feel threatened by this. We still have a long way
to go."
State Minister for Women's Empowerment Meutia Farida Hatta said
Indonesia had experienced an improvement in women's quality of
living over the past few years, as indicated by a rising Human
Development Index (HDI), Gender-related Development Index (GDI)
and Gender Empowerment Measurement (GEM).
"The national HDI increases each year, and we are now ranked
107th out of 177 countries. Our GDI, measured by improvements in
education, health and economy, is also on the rise, and we are
ranked 94th out of 177 in this aspect," she said.
"On the GEM, measured by women's participation in economics,
politics and decision making, we continue to see improvements and
are currently rated 62.2."
She added the quota of 30 percent of women in legislative and
political positions would be safeguarded with the enactment of
two recent laws on political parties and general elections.
Meutia said she expected the national meeting to bring about
concrete actions to improve institutions' abilities to support
women in all aspects of development throughout the country.
Demos, protests, actions...
West Papua
Human rights/law
Labour issues
Environment/natural disasters
War on corruption
Islam/religion
Elections/political parties
Armed forces/defense
Opinion & analysis
News & issues
Malaysian Muslim youths slam 'sexy' Indonesian singer
Women empowerment, gender issues top development list
Demos, protests, actions...
Housewives protest privatisation, demand free school books
Detik.com - July 24, 2008
Ari Saputra, Jakarta – Rather than satisfying parents, the free downloading of school books from the internet appears instead to have resulted in around 50 housewives demonstrating at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in Central Jakarta on Thursday July 24. They were demanding the free distribution of school books.
The housewives brought a number of posters containing the demands on the government such as "Books are expensive these days, we're tired okay" and "Free books would make us smile".
They also unfurled two 10x20 metre white banners filled with hundreds of supporters' signatures and the demand "Revoke National Education Ministerial Decree Number 2/2008 that legalises the privatisation of books for education".
The protesters said that the free downloading of school books will not be able to be accessed by all layers of society and will be ineffective and demanded that the sale of books, particularly school books be made free.
"Only 7 percent [of the people] have access to the internet. That is students in urban areas. This does not reach remote villages," said one of the action coordinators from Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW), Ade Irawan, at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout on Thursday.
According to Irawan, privatisation will only kill off small-scale publishers. The education sector should also not become deregulated because small-scale publishers are already monopolised by the big publishing companies. This conflicts with the spirit of school autonomy", added Irawan.
Following the protest action at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout, the demonstrators plan to hold speeches at the Department of Education office in (ptr/ana)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
Detik.com - July 21, 2008
Irwan Nugroho, Jakarta – Five protest actions will enliven Jakarta for the start of the week with the potential for traffic jams to occur at a number of points in the city.
According to data from the Metro Jaya regional police Traffic Management Centre (TMC) for Monday July 21, the first action will take pace at the Mayasari Bhakti Pool on Jl. Raya Bogor in East Jakarta between 8.30am and 3.30pm.
Protesters will also descend upon the General Elections Commission (KPU) office on Jl. Imam Bonjol in Central Jakarta at 9.30am although the identity of the demonstrators and their demands are not known.
Likewise with an action in front of the Attorney General's Office on Jl. Sisingamaraja in South Jakarta, which will also take place at 9.30am.
The Finance Department located on Jl. Lapangan Banteng in Central Jakarta will also be the target of protest actions today.
Finally, a protest by a group of demonstrators will start at the Jakarta City Hall then move on to the House of Representatives building and then on to the Department of Home Affairs on Jl. Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta. (irw/irw)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
| West Papua |
Bernama (Malaysian National News Agency) - July 21, 2008
Jakarta – Indonesian police have detained six people for raising up separatist flag in easternmost province of West Papua in Indonesia at the weekend, National police spokesman Sulistyo said Monday.
The spokesman said that the six out of 46 people questioned by the police on Saturday, had been detained and allegedly involved in the hoisting of the flag known as "Bintang Kejora or Morning Star" in the province.
"The six persons were accused of involving a subversive act, by raising the flag," Sulistyo told China's Xinhua news agency on Monday.
On Saturday, the provincial police confiscated the flags and a number of traditional weapons including arrows and big knives, he said.
The separatist group Separatist Free Papua Movement, or OPM, has long engaged in rebellious activities in the easternmost of Indonesia. The group has used both guerrilla and diplomatic ways to achieve their goal.
The rebel claimed that it got independence in 1961, when the process of decolonization from Dutch rule had begun and the people first raised their own flag and sang their own anthem, it said.
The flag is banned for raising by the Indonesian government for the reason that it could spark and boost separatism.
Papua is now under the program of so called "a new deal for Papua" which is considered as the biggest chance for political stability, reform and progress, Indonesian state spokesman Dino Patti Djalal has said.
The Indonesian government already provided US$1.9 billion for Papua in 2006 and US$2.3 billion in 2007, said Dino.
Jakarta Post - July 20, 2008
Indonesia – Police have detained 41 people in Fakfak, 890 kilometers west of Jayapura, for allegedly hoisting the Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag on Saturday.
Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Agus Rianto said three of detainees hoisted the flag in front of the former people's self- determination vote (Pepera) office. All 41 are former political prisoners.
Agus said police had seized the flag and several documents, written in a local dialect, as well as several sharp weapons as evidence. "The police will conduct an investigation to obtain further information," he added.
Under Article 106 of the Criminal Code, the detainees can be charged for plotting a coup. The charge carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment.
The flag has long been a symbol of the region's separatist rebellion, with the Papuan Tribal Council urging the government to recognize the flag as a cultural symbol for Papuans.
Wilhelmina Woy, secretary of the council's Fakfak office, said the flag-raising had been engineered by other parties, and called on the police to arrest the real culprits and release the innocent detainees.
The Economist - July 17, 2008
Jakarta – The separatist conflict in Indonesia's Papua region – formerly known as Irian Jaya and once one of the world's great liberal causes – has become relatively quiet in recent years. Small groups of protesters still occasionally gather to wave the Morning Star independence flag and get arrested for it.
But decades of repression by the Indonesian security forces, combined with the granting in 2000 of partial autonomy from Jakarta, have sapped the separatists' ranks. However, according to a recent report on the region, there is a risk that the separatist conflict may be rekindled or replaced by religious strife because of the arrival of new and more muscular forms of both Islam and Christianity.
Broadly speaking, indigenous Papuans – who are dark-skinned Melanesians, like their kin next door in Papua New Guinea and Australian aborigines – tend to be Christians or animists, whereas the many migrants to the region from elsewhere in Indonesia are mostly Muslim. In recent years fundamentalist Christian groups, some started by American and Canadian preachers, have been proselytising among indigenous Papuans. Their success has also prompted the development of fundamentalist streams in the established Protestant churches.
Among the Islamic radical groups to arrive in Papua with the migrants is the Indonesian chapter of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, an organisation started in Jerusalem, which seeks to unite Muslims worldwide under one government or "caliphate". But there are also a few indigenous Papuan Muslims, some of whom have recently returned from studies in the Middle East, bringing back fundamentalist ideas.
The report, by the International Crisis Group (ICG), a think- tank, says rising religious tension has already come close to triggering violence between Muslims and Christians, as is already common in the nearby, mixed-faith province of Maluku. In Kaimana district, for example, members of the two religions had long lived together harmoniously. But in December locals came close to blows over the erection of an iron tower shaped like a Christmas tree, topped with a Star of David – often used by charismatic Christian groups but best known as a symbol of Judaism.
The new Christian groups have raised Muslims' hackles by boasting (sometimes falsely) of their conversions of Muslims. Muslims, in turn, have become increasingly vigilant against any perceived threats either to their faith or to Indonesian sovereignty. Some Islamic radicals are prone to conspiracy theories about plots to prise Papua away from Indonesia, often involving America and its majority-Christian regional allies, Australia and the Philippines.
Increased fundamentalism has sharpened each ethnic group's fear of domination by the other. The Indonesian government has discontinued its programme of transportation to Papua and elsewhere to relieve overcrowding on Java. But migrants are still flooding in. Official figures show that in 2004 Muslims were 23% of the region's 2 million-odd population, up from 6.5% in 1964. In reality the proportion of Muslims is thought to be much higher, probably over half now – but the government has not published accurate updated figures.
Christians believe this is a cover-up to hide the truth: that migration has made Papuans a minority in their homeland. They also fear that the government in Jakarta is increasingly endorsing Islamic orthodoxy at the expense of Indonesia's non- Muslims.
The Muslims, in turn, agree that they are now the majority in Papua – a local Hizb-ut-Tahrir leader recently claimed that Papua is 65% Muslim – but they feel that Papuan autonomy could lead to them being discriminated against or even expelled from the region.
There are some moderating influences: last year, mainstream Muslims set up a new body, the Papuan Muslim Council, to put the case for tolerance. Some of the charismatic Christian groups, far from inciting separatism among ethnic Papuans, argue for accommodation with the Indonesian powers-that-be (render unto Caesar and all that). Even so, argues the ICG, there is a danger that continuing migration, combined with the radicalisation of both main religions, could re-ignite the dormant separatist conflict.
If the heightened religious tension is not to become a catalyst for violence it would help if there was a sense of urgency about improving the dismal quality of life of almost all Papuans, whether indigenous or migrants. Autonomy has had a feeble start: central-government ministries have been reluctant to cede control to local Papuan authorities; where they have, money has been misspent, including by newly recruited Papuan bureaucrats struggling with responsibilities for which they lack skills. Last year President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered his officials to speed up development programmes for Papua. As usual, his orders fell on deaf ears.
| Human rights/law |
Jakarta Post - July 24, 2008
Apriadi Gunawan, Slamet Susanto and Panca Nugraha, Medan, Yogyakarta, Mataram – Two NGOs in Medan, North Sumatra, blamed government ignorance Wednesday for the city's highest ranking city for child abuse cases in the city.
In observation of International Children's Day, the Pusaka Indonesia Foundation (YPI) and the Center for Child Protection and Studies (PKPA) said the child abuse cases, reporting mainly violence against children and sexual exploitation, occurred primarily at the workplace and owed much to economic problems and the widespread influence of modern technology such as television and the Internet.
According to data collected by the two NGOs, 182 incidents of child abuse took place from January through July 2008, 80 percent of which occurred in Medan. Of the total, 120 involved sexual exploitation and 15, violence against children. Sexual exploitation incidents was reported in Langkat (12 cases), Deli Serdang (10) and violence against children was reported in Pematang Siantar (eight cases) and Deli Serdang (six).
YPI chair Edi Ikhsan said the sexual exploitation victims were girls aged 2-17 and the violence victims were aged 5-13.
"The sexual abuse was committed by employers at the workplace. Most of the victims were being illegally trafficked to Malaysia. The violence against children cases were committed for the most part by their parents in their home," he said, citing poverty and the negative impact of watching TV as culprits.
PKPA executive director Ahmad Sofyan said the prevalence of violence against children was related to high stress levels among poor families. "Many parents have encouraged and even forced their children to do work they were not supposed to be able to do."
He said many children had to go to Malaysia to seek jobs but in reality they became trapped in a human trafficking syndicate and employed as sexual slaves in the neighboring country.
"Besides being treated inhumanely, they were also underpaid," he said," adding PKPA provided legal assistance in 37 child trafficking and sex abuse cases in 2006, 28 cases in 2007 and 12 cases in the past seven months.
The head of the child correctional section of the Tanjung Gusta prison, Siswanto, expressed concern over juvenile delinquency, saying the prison has gone beyond its capacity with 874 inmates under the age of 17. "They are in jail for drug abuse, theft, murder, gambling and torture."
All three criticized the government for giving no attention to the issue of children's welfare through social rehabilitation, education and health programs.
"The government cannot turn a blind eye to children's problems if we want to lay the country's future on the younger generation's shoulders. It should take concrete measures to stop violence against children and give them opportunities to build their future," said Sofyan.
In Yogyakarta, some 50 street children staged a theatrical protest pointing out the government's diminished attention toward children, saying they were not only denied access to education and healthcare but were also deprived of living a normal life.
Suyadi, who manages a home for the homeless in the city, said he received 50 kilograms of rice and Rp 1.5 million (US$164) annually from an anonymous donor to take care of 15 street children.
"But it's not enough to pay their monthly school fees," he said, adding hundreds of street children had been abandoned in the city.
Muryanto, 16, said he had to go back to the streets to earn a living and save money to go back to school. "I have to drop out because I have no money. I beg at the Sentul market."
In less developed East and West Nusa Tenggara, poverty has subjected poor families to numerous problems affecting children such as a high child mortality rate, malnutrition, child labor, gender bias and school dropouts.
Malnutrition alone claimed 23 lives in East Nusa Tenggara and 20 in West Nusa Tenggara in the past seven months.
Radio Australia - July 21, 2008
Indonesia is to revisit another violent chapter of the Soeharto regime with an investigation into a campaign of extra-judicial killings by the Indonesian military between 1983 and 1985.
As many as 8,000 people may have been killed during the operation, which President Soeharto sanctioned as necessary to purge the nation of criminal elements.
Presenter: Katie Hamann
Speakers: Lita Handayni, singer and student; Bathi Mulyono, a song writer and self-styled human rights activist; Hesti Armiwulan
(Lita Handayni singing)
Hamann: Born in 1983 Lita Handayni was too young to remember seeing dead bodies in the streets of Jakarta. She also has no memories of her father, Bathi Mulyono, who was driven from his home and hunted by the military and police. It was ten years before father and daughter met for the first time. Fifteen years on, Lita a singer and student and Bathi a song writer and self- styled human rights activist have collaborated to produce an album about this gruesome period in Indonesia's history known as the 'Mysterious Shootings' or Petrus, a campaign of state sanctioned vigilante justice.
(Singing)
Hamann: A member of the ruling Golkar party, Bathi Mulyono trained factory workers, farmers, unemployed young men and ex- cons in the art of political disturbance until he too became a target of the Soeharto regime.
Bathi: I was hunted down. People came with guns to my house, my family's homes, my parents' looking to kill me. But not only me. Many people were killed; hanged on a tree, dumped on the streets or in front of the victim's house. Some people were even killed in front of their wives and children. We didn't know where to go because we knew that it was done by the government.
Hamann: Professor Adrian Vickers is a historian at the University of Sydney. He says the killings were the government's way of cleaning the ranks of provocateurs that assisted with their re- election campaigns.
Vickers: The group that was being killed was actually criminals that had been used by the Suharto regime to get into power and, if you like, beat everyone else in to line. So Suharto had this very clever intelligence chief Ali Murtopo, who was also the designer of the East Timor invansion and he'd assembled these members of criminal gangs and used them to nullify the political parties but the killings were a way of also saying to the criminal gangs 'the Suharto regime is in control'. So it was a way of putting them in the place, getting rid of people who might have otherwise been destabilising to the regime because some of these people were quite powerful.
Hamann: Local human rights group Kontras estimates that between 4000 and 6000 people were executed across Indonesia between 1983 and 1985.
Their findings have been presented to the National Commission on Human Rights or Komnas HAM, which last week launched an investigation into the killings. Lasting six months the investigation will seek evidence of gross human rights violations and, says the commission's Hesti Armiwulan, if this can be proven the agency will seek to prosecute those responsible.
Armiwulan: Yeah, I think we will try to get evidence for Petrus cases in many many places.
Hamann: And do you think after this investigation there could be prosecutions? Even if there are very high level people involved?
Armiwulan: Yeah, I think Yeah.
Hamann: Bathi Mulyono has few expectations of justice. Indonesia is too corrupt he says and like the former President Soeharto many of the leaders responsible for the killings have passed away. His focus now is salvaging a lost decade with his daughter.
| Labour issues |
Koran Kaltim - July 24, 2008
Samarinda – The struggle by workers to seek revisions to the provincial minimum wage (UMP) recommenced yesterday, Wednesday July 23. Hundreds of workers from the Workers Challenge Alliance (ABM) and the National Liberation Front (FPN) demonstrated in front of the East Kalimantan governor's office on Jl. Gadjah Mada in the provincial city of Samarinda.
The groups were calling on the East Kalimantan provincial government to revise a decree on the 2008 provincial minimum wage, increasing it to 1,389,560 rupiah per month.
Although this is the eighth such action by workers, so far however their demands have yet to be met. "This is our eighth action, but it as if the government doesn't want to listen to workers' demands", said action coordinator Phitiri Lari.
Lari said that they are calling on East Kalimantan governor Tarmizi A. Karim to immediately revise a 2008 decree on the provincial minimum wage before worker actions become anarchic. The workers are determined to continue fighting for these demands until they are granted. "Don't wait until workers become anarchic and only then issue a decree", he said.
According to Lari, the action will be continued on Thursday July 24 with the mobilisation of around 5,000 factory workers. Last night, they stayed overnight in front of the governor's office in preparation for the mass action. "Five thousand factory workers will descend upon the East Kalimantan governor's office tomorrow (today - Ed.)," he explained.
The protests were triggered by a decision by the government and employers on Monday July 21 to postpone the approval of a revised minimum provincial wage on the grounds that they want to reassess the size of the wage increase. The only thing agreed to at the meeting was the formation of an ad hoc team to reassess the 2008 regional minimum wage which will become a reference for the revision process.
The East Kalimantan regional minimum wage for 2008 had previously been set at 815,000 rupiah per month. Workers however have rejected this because they consider it to be too small and unreasonable considering the current cost of living. Workers are demanding an increase of 70 percent to 1,389,560 rupiah per month.
According to Lari, the figure being demanded by workers is based on a number of factors including the price of basic commodities is a flow on from the recent increase in fuel prices. The fuel price hike resulted in the cost of living in East Kalimantan jumping by 100 percent. (kh)
[Translated by James Balowski. Koran Kaltim - the East Kalimantan Daily.]
Jakarta Post - July 17, 2008
Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – State-owned labor insurance firm PT Jamsostek is set to expand its membership among "high-potential" workers in the informal sector, departing from its traditional focus on formal sector workers.
Jamsostek president director Hotbonar Sinaga said Wednesday the company aimed to insure 280,000 new members from the informal sector this year, a jump from the 84,729 it had in 2007.
The company has launched several "breakthrough" steps to achieve the target, he said, including establishing partnership with government institutions and other state enterprises, and using part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) program funds as a lure for prospective new members.
"The main problem with enrolling informal workers is the absence of umbrella organizations (to pay the premium). The only such organizations for them are the associations, most of which are weak, leading to interrupted (premium) payments.
"We can establish partnership with, for example, PT Permodalan Nasional Madani (PNM) and Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), both of which could act as umbrella organizations for the informal sector workers they work with," Hotbonar told reporters on the sidelines of a one-day seminar on Jamsostek reform.
He said that giving the workers "bait" by, for example, paying their premiums for a certain period with Jamsostek's CSR funds, could encourage them to continue to pay the premium themselves thereafter.
Since the endorsement of the 2004 law on the national social security system, Jamsostek is no longer exclusively for formal sector workers. The law says the company's insurance programs should cover all workers, regardless of sector.
In 2007, the number of informal workers throughout the country reached 66 million, more than double that of formal workers at some 31 million.
But formal sector workers have better access to Jamsostek, whose numbers stood at 23.7 million from over 159,000 corporate/employers by 2007, or 76 percent of all members.
Hotbonar said Jamsostek also targeted gaining 2.5 million new formal sector members in 2008.
Indonesian Prosperity Labor Union (KSBSI) leader Rekson Silaban said in the seminar that Jamsostek needed to pay better attention to informal sector workers as global trends show a continuous increase in the number of formal sector workers turning into informal ones amid the current global economic conditions. Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) chairman Sofjan Wanandi highlighted the issue of fund and profit management within Jamsostek during the seminar.
He said employers had a "negative perception" of workers' social insurance, with "most of the money we've paid having gone to the pockets of the government and Jamsostek directors". "Employers and labor unions haven't felt the benefits (of Jamsostek programs)," said Sofjan.
Sofjan and Rekson said Jamsostek should be managed by a tripartite body representing the government, employers and employees (including those self-employed), as stipulated in the 2004 law, and that profits should not go to the government's pocket in the form of dividends.
"This is our money, but the shareholders are other people (the government). That's funny," said Rekson, referring to Jamsostek's annual profit having always gone to the government in the form of dividends until this year.
Koran Kaltim - July 14, 2008
Samarinda – Hundreds of workers from the East Kalimantan National Liberation Front (FPN) in the provincial city of Samarinda plan to take to the streets again to day, Monday July 14, to demand that the regional minimum wage be raised to 1.3 million rupiah per month. They will also be demanding that the government reduce the price of basic commodities (sembako) and fuel.
The action will be held at around 9am today and mobilise 587 people from 32 trade unions, student movement groups and social organisations. They will begin the demonstration by gathering at the Karang Asam soccer field on Jl. Slamet Riyadi then organise a convoy to the East Kalimantan Regional House of Representatives building in Karang Paci Samarinda.
"Our action is still demanding a [new] decree on the provincial minimum wage and a reduction in the price of basic commodities and fuel. We will not stop holding actions until our demands and the struggle for workers' rights are met," said East Kalimantan FPN action coordinator Romanus when speaking with Koran Kaltim yesterday.
The labour organisations that plan to take part in the action include the Indonesian Independent Trade Union (SBMI), the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions (KSBI), OSKM Sumalindo, the Trade Union of Struggle (SBP), the Chemical, Entergy and Mining Trade Union (SP-KEP), the Politics for the Poor-Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggle (FNPBI-PRM), the All Indonesia Trade Union-PPM, the Indonesian Trade Union Congress Alliance (KASBI), the Workers Challenge Alliance (ARM) and the Working People's Association (PRP).
Meanwhile the student groups that plan to be involved in the action include, among others, the Politics for the Poor-National Student League for Democracy (LMND-PRM), the Polnes Student Executive Council (BEM), the Samarinda PC Indonesian Islamic Students Movement (PMII), the Uwigama BEM, the Mulawarman University Faculty of Social and Political Science BEM and the State College of Islamic Religious Studies BEM.
Also planning to take part in the action is the Urban Poor Grouping (KMK), the East Kalimantan Urban Poor Union (SRMK), the the Residential Councils Social Forum (FMWM), the United Forum of Sudut Sungkai Residents (FPWSS), the Bamboo House Community (KRB), the Odah Etam Street Traders and the Perempuan Mahardika (Independent Women's) National Network (JNPM).
"As many as 32 trade unions and social organisations together with student groups have committed themselves to fight for workers' rights and entitlements, particularly the minimum regional wage that must be raised from 815,000 to 1.3 million [rupiah per month]," said Romanus.
In addition to this, workers will also be demanding the dissolution of the East Kalimantan Provincial Wage Council (DPP) and its replacement with a Council of Workers. This is because the DPP has failed to fight for or represent the interests of workers. "We consider that the system used by the DPP is out of date," Romanus asserted.
Romanus explained that the demand for a higher minimum provincial wage is based on the Proper Necessities of Life (KHL) standard in accordance with inflation data from the East Kalimantan Central Statistics Agency. The groups will continue consolidating their campaign with workers in the factories, the mining sector and shopping centres (malls) and will be calling on them to take strike action if their demands are not met. (ca)
[Translated by James Balowski. Koran Kaltim -East Kalimantan Daily Newspaper.]
| Environment/natural disasters |
Jakarta Post - July 23, 2008
Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Experts doubt the government will be able to realize its plan to shift to renewable energy to reduce its dependency on depleting oil reserves and to deal with soaring global oil prices.
The barriers to developing renewable energy still exists despite the government having already launched the energy mix policy two years ago, said Zuhal, professor of electricity engineering at the University of Indonesia (UI).
"We are still facing financial and market barriers and other barriers like cheaper technology, as well as the tough problem of the people's reluctance to move on to renewable energy," he said at a renewable energy workshop here on Tuesday.
The three-day workshop – jointly organized by Darma Persada University and UNESCO – is aimed at finding ways and means for innovatively financing the renewable energy program.
Zuhal said biofuel development is half the Energy Ministry's responsibility and half the Agriculture Ministry's, but the ministries have different plans for land that could be used to plant Jatropha. "The Finance Ministry has not lifted the import tariff on clean technologies for the renewable energy," he said.
The 2006 presidential decree stipulates Indonesia to use, out of its total energy consumption, 5 percent biofuel, 5 percent geothermal, 5 percent biomass, nuclear, hydro, solar and wind, and 2 percent coal liquefaction by 2025.
"But there's no clear policy and road map on how to reach these targets. The commitment can't be implemented because the ministries are egocentric," Zuhal, who is also rector of the University of Al Azhar Indonesia, said.
Some countries have intensified the use of renewable energy to cope with the soaring global oil price that hit US$130 per barrel and as an effort to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions to tackle climate change.
Indonesia has pledged to cut emissions by 17 percent from energy consumption through the use of renewable sources.
Zuhal said the government should set clear incentive policies for the use renewable energy. Indonesia, formerly an oil exporter, has become an oil importer in the past few years. Indonesia is currently facing an energy crisis.
The government has issued some policies to cut the use of electricity including shifting manufacturers' working hours to weekends and slashing operational hours of state offices and shopping centers.
The government also launched the so-called energy self-sufficient village program to enable the country's remote areas to access electricity services.
The World Bank said that more than 70 million Indonesian do not have access to reliable and affordable electricity services.
"We set up biofuel-based energy self-sufficient villages in 100 areas nationwide in 2007. We hope to build such facilities in 1,000 more villages next year," said Ratna Ariati, directorate general of electricity and energy use at the Energy Ministry.
Sri Endah Agustina, deputy chairwoman of Indonesian Renewable Energy Society (METI), acknowledged the government's poor coordination to promote the use of renewable energy.
"It's just like a music concert without a conductor to control the performance. All players go at it on their own. Indonesia has lots of experts and renewable sources, but has no leadership to push the idea into reality," she said.
Jakarta Post - July 23, 2008
Fadli and Slamet Susanto, Batam, Yogyakarta – Authorities in Karimun regency, Riau Islands, have revoked the operation permits of seven sand export companies, saying mining activities severely harmed the area's environment and fishing conditions.
Karimun Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Djoko Rudi told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday the police had asked Karimun Regent Nurdin Basirun to make a decision in compliance with the 2002 government ban on sand mining across the Riau archipelago.
The government has banned sea sand excavation after finding it severely damaged the marine ecosystem and led to sand smuggling overseas, especially to Singapore, where its price is higher.
"We have sealed off the seven companies operating in Karimun and asked the regent to cancel their permits," said Djoko.
According to Djoko, Nurdin issued licenses to the seven companies several months ago. However, it was unclear the volume of sand they mined.
"The issuance of the licenses was intended for local sand demand. We have told them it was illegal. Only mining land sand is permissible," said Djoko.
Police, added Djoko, had also referred to the trade ministerial decree on the banning of sand, soil and top soil export issued Jan. 22 and put into effect Feb. 6, 2007.
According to the ordinance, sea and land sand are banned for export; however, the potential of sea sand export overseas is greater than land sand.
Djoko said police had mobilized the Riau Islands water police unit, based on Kundur Island, to conduct surveillance to prevent sand smuggling, especially to Singapore.
"The Indonesian Military (TNI) is also equipped with patrol boats to counter sand smuggling," said Djoko.
According to data from the Riau Sand Exporters Association (Hipepari), sand shipments from Riau Islands to Singapore reach 300,000 tons annually, compared to 100,000 tons for the domestic market.
Singapore has grown from its size in 2000 thanks to the rush of sand imported from the islands partly through the black market. The illegal sand business in the province has reportedly involved politicians from Jakarta and military officials.
Elsewhere, a group farmers in Kulonprogo, Yogyakarta, opposed a planned land reclamation project involving the prestigious Gadjah Mada University (UGM) and a private company, saying it would affect their farmland.
More than 1,000 coastal farmers on Monday demanded (UGM) rector Sudjarwadi sign an agreement not to be involved in any form of cooperation with sand mining activities.
The farmers, from 11 villages along the coast of Kulonprogo, arrived at UGM at around 9:30 a.m. by truck, car and motorcycle after learning that UGM's forestry school would be involved in scientific studies by working with an investor, PT Jogja Magasa Mining, and the Kulonprogo regency administration in a reclamation project valued at Rp 1.2 billion (approximately US$133,300).
UGM is slated to conduct research on the coastal area after the reclamation project has been completed.
"We will reject the plan at all cost and oppose anyone involved to our last drop of blood. Even if we have to wage a war, I'm ready to die," said protest coordinator Tukijo.
Tukijo said sand mining would have an adverse impact on the environment, especially on the local community, because more than 6,000 families depend on farming on the disputed 100-hectare plot of sandy soil.
"More than 30,000 lives eke a living from growing vegetables and side crops on the coastal farmland. What would we eat if the sand was mined?" Tukijo said.
The sand mining project, which commenced in 2005, would be carried out on a coastal area stretching 25 kilometers long, 1.8 km wide and 14.5 meters deep.
"Thousands of homes would be evicted. Where would we stay? Even if they relocated us, what would we do for a living?
"It could resemble the Lapindo devastation. We will lose our homes and livelihoods as well," a protester, Tukimin, said.
Jakarta Post - July 21, 2008
Indah Setiawati, Jakarta – Two little girls, no more than 8 years old, with bare feet and messy hair, took turns picking up pieces of litter while carrying a red plastic sack almost as big as their thin bodies.
Every now and then they would turn an envious stare toward Surapati Park in Central Jakarta where hundreds of excited children in uniform merrily drew pictures, played games and enjoyed refreshments.
By some quirk of fate they too might have been on the other side of the park, spending the Sunday afternoon with children from 26 kampungs, many of whom also usually spend their days as scavengers.
What better way to raise environmental awareness, organizers thought, than getting 430 children from the slums to portray, through a drawing competition, the grind of surviving in a filthy environment?
"We want them to express their views about the environment they live in," said Azas Tigor Nainggolan, chairman of the Jakarta Resident Forum (FAKTA), which organized the event.
The aim, according to Tigor, was to provide a living catharsis of the children's perspective: "What they see and what they expect."
Perhaps the children did not understand – perhaps they just wanted to escape from the hardship of their daily realities – but most drew idyllic pictures of mountain views or city houses.
There were no drawings of polluted riverbanks or piles of garbage. Not a single crayon mark depicted the 6,000 tons of waste produced each day by Jakarta residents.
Nevertheless, Tigor was proud of the children's efforts, notably that of Ica, a fourth-grader who drew her flooded house in Kampung Penas, East Jakarta.
Despite the environmental theme, for these young residents living in the shadows of skyscrapers it was a day of escapism, when they could act like 'normal' children as they listened to storytelling and music.
They also had a rare chance to spend time with Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo, who stopped by to chat, spreading the message to keep their surroundings clean and throw garbage in the right place.
At the end of the day, the organizers gave the children plants, including mango trees, in plastic bags. "Plant it in your house, OK," they said while handing out the plants.
For the children, the symbolism was lost on them, as they instead fretted about which plant they wanted to get.
As Jaya and Chandra, two children from Kampung Ujung in East Jakarta, wandered with their heavy plants, their happy expressions quickly faded to looks of innocent puzzlement. Stopping near The Jakarta Post reporter, they asked: "So what do we do with these plants?"
As they left the park to end the day with smiles and heavy plants, the children left little mementos on the ground: trails of litter – name tags, used lunch boxes – throughout the park.
The governor's message was so quickly forgotten. As the organizers packed up, the two little scavengers playfully poked the ondel-ondel that had amused the children earlier.
But they had only a moment to giggle, before they quickly turned their attention back to the garbage left behind after a day of environmental awareness.
Jakarta Post - July 19, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Two years after the Sidoarjo mudflow disaster forced 12,000 families from their homes, the Attorney General's Office is still showing no signs it will accept a police dossier on the case.
Police insist human error was to blame for the mudflow, following testimony by geologists and other experts. However, the AGO said the dossier contained conflicting statements from experts on whether the disaster was really caused by human error.
AGO spokesman B.D. Nainggolan said experts were divided over whether the mudflow was triggered by a subterranean volcanic eruption, following a strong earthquake in Yogyakarta, or by drilling for gas by private company PT Lapindo Brantas, owned by the family of welfare minister Aburizal Bakrie.
"We are still waiting for a unanimous decision on the cause of the mudflow. The police have no case if the experts contradict each other on this point," he said.
But the police rebuffed this statement, saying they were certain the gas drilling carried out by Lapindo unleased the mudflow.
"The prosecutors were the ones who insisted on including the findings of Lapindo's experts in the dossier after we had completed it. That's the only reason we now have contradictory statements," National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira said.
Prosecutors returned the dossier to the police for the fourth time last month.
Abubakar said the AGO should have helped strengthen the case against Lapindo, instead of weakening it, by leaving Lapindo's arguments out of the dossier.
"Their version can be presented at the trial. Let's just take the case to court first," he said.
Many observers have said a court verdict was the only way to hold Lapindo entirely responsible for compensation for victims of the mudflow.
Emha Ainun Nadjib, secretary of the Lapindo Mudflow Victims Movement (GKLL), said it was unfair to ask Lapindo to compensate the victims for something the company was not responsible for.
Fifteen villages were declared unfit to live in after being hit by the mudflow and noxious gases. A 2007 presidential decree required Lapindo, through its subsidiary PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya, to provide compensation to residents of four villages.
But with more villages being affected, the government was forced to issue a revised presidential regulation to compensate the other villages with money from the state budget rather than from Lapindo. Rafendi Jamin of the Human Rights Working Group said under existing environment laws, the government could hold Lapindo responsible without the need for a court decision.
"All we need is the political will to declare that," he said.
"But it's too bad the President does not have the guts to make the decision. We tried to urge members of the House of Representatives to do something but they also ignored our pleas."
Lawmakers said the Lapindo issue was not their concern, but rather that of the government and the company.
| War on corruption |
Jakarta Post - July 24, 2008
Suherdjoko, Semarang – Corruption is widespread and commonly committed by high-ranking officials in 33 out of 35 regencies and municipalities across Central Java, says an anti-corruption official in Semarang.
"Central Java consists of 35 regencies and cities, but it doesn't mean the other two regencies are free of corruption allegations. The regional heads could stand as witnesses, suspects or even be incarcerated," Central Java Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) secretary, Eko Haryanto, told The Jakarta Post in Semarang on Wednesday.
He noted a number of regents have been sentenced by district courts, up to the Supreme Court, for corruption. They include former Tegal regent M. Zakir, who received a two-year sentence and former Temanggung regent Totok Ary Prabowo, sentenced to four years for embezzling Rp 520 million (US$57,700) from election funds.
Kendal regent Hendy Boedoro was sentenced by the Supreme Court for seven years for misappropriating Rp 16.7 billion of public funds for the 2003-2004 period, while Semarang regent Bambang Guritno was given two years for pilfering Rp 5.8 billion of school textbook funds.
Eko added a number of former regents were currently standing trial at district courts, among them former Demak regent Endang Setyaningdyah, for distributing council funds to help her nomination bid as regent and former Surakarta mayor Slamet Suryanto, who was sentenced by the district court, but later appealed to a higher court. Former Wonosobo regent Trimawan Nugroho was incarcerated for his involvement in the markup of fire engine procurement, as well as incumbent Karanganyar vice regent Sri Sadoyo.
A number of regional heads have died whilst under investigation, such as Salatiga mayor Totok Mintarto, Klaten regent Haryanto Wibowo and Blora regent Basuki.
Eko disclosed that regional heads have allegedly committed offenses in the procurement of goods and services, involving budget markups, by collaborating with council members and business connections.
"Semarang regent Bambang Guritno, for example received fees from publishers, amounting to Rp 600 million, for the procurement of school textbooks. This payment is considered corrupt and illegal," Eko said.
Central Java Prosecutor's Office head Kadir Sitanggang acknowledged his office was hampered by lack of personnel to handle corruption cases.
"I hope this can soon be overcome, especially by the presence of prosecutors who are taking part in the selection to become members of the anti-corruption task force. However, they will only be shortlisted in December. As many as 46 prosecutors are taking part in the selection and not all will be accepted. Ideally, a region should have at least three prosecutors to handle corruption cases," Kadir said.
He emphasized that the selection process must be carried out very carefully. "They are not only judged by their experience and ability, but also on their morality and behavior," he said.
Kadir was aware the prosecutor's office was currently in the public spotlight, especially when dealing with graft cases, and appealed for patience.
"The prosecutor's office must follow the steps which have been set, for example, getting presidential approval if a case involves a regional head," he said.
The provincial prosecutor's office is waiting for Presidential approval to examine Batang regent Bambang Bintoro for allegedly misappropriating Rp 800 million and Purworejo regent Kelik Sumrahadi for misusing Rp 2.7 billion in budget funds.
The office is also waiting for approval to examine Semarang mayor Sukawi Sutarip for alleged involvement in distributing communications funds from the 2004 city budget to legislative members, incurring a loss of Rp 5.5 billion to the state.
Jakarta Post - July 24, 2008
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Wednesday announced the personal wealth reports of three public officials, including Bank Indonesia Governor Boediono, whose wealth increased by Rp 5 billion over the past two years.
Boediono, formerly a chief economics minister, reported assets worth Rp 18.66 billion (about US$2 million) and US$10,000 as of May 31 this year. In his previous report on Feb. 24, 2006, his assets were valued at Rp 13.61 billion.
Supreme Audit Agency chief Anwar Nasution (photo left) also declared his wealth, which amounted to Rp 10.3 billion and $745,565 as of April 1, 2007, up from Rp 7.35 billion and $501,960 as reported six years ago.
The KPK revealed Constitutional Court judge Moh. Mahfud M.D. was Rp 1.66 billion richer than he was in July 2006. Mahfud, formerly a member of the House of Representatives, reported assets worth Rp 6.21 billion and $72,133 on May 9, 2008. His wealth on July 1, 2006, stood at Rp 4.55 billion and $72,854.
State officials are required to declare their wealth before and after taking office. The KPK said it would verify and analyze the wealth reports, and urged the public to keep an eye on assets left unreported.
Mahfud said while serving as a House and People's Consultative Assembly lawmaker, he made Rp 86 million per month in take-home pay, excluding travel allowances, which amounted to Rp 64.2 million per year, and a legislative allowance that reached Rp 18 million a year.
Jakarta Post - July 24, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Lawmakers, officials and anti-graft activists have thrown their weight behind calls for the implementation of death penalty for some forms of corruption, while also saying current criteria and procedures for imposing the sentence lack clarity.
Speaker of the House of Representatives Agung Laksono said he fully supported capital punishment for those found guilty of major corruption to deter other people from engaging in graft.
"In other countries where corruption is widespread, there was a drastic decline in the number of graft cases after the death penalty came into effect," he said.
Agung, a seasoned Golkar Party politician, said graft convicts deserved the death penalty because the crime damaged not only one or two families but all society.
Corruption has remained widespread in the country a decade after political reform, which mandated eradication of corruption as one of its main priorities.
In the past six months alone, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has arrested six active House lawmakers and scores of high-ranking officials including a former Bank Indonesia governor. A number of governors and former ministers have been jailed for graft since the creation of the KPK in 2004.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has encouraged public discussion of the death penalty for graft convicts, despite objections from human rights groups.
KPK deputy chairman for prevention Haryono Umar also expressed support for the death penalty for some of those found guilty. "I think we must be tough on extraordinary corruption," he said.
Senior lawmaker Gayus Lumbuun of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said the KPK law opened the possibility of seeking the death penalty for corruption, adding it was necessary for the state to create clearer regulations.
"Article 2 of the law on the KPK states those found guilty of corruption can be subject to capital punishment in cases of war, natural disasters and crises. But I think a judge needs clearer guidance for meting out such a punishment," Gayus said.
He said capital punishment could be restricted to those who adversely affect the people by stealing state money, such as corruption in a time of natural disaster or embezzlement of education and health funds for the poor.
Firdaus Ilyas of Indonesia Corruption Watch said that although the death penalty remained controversial in such cases, he said judges had the power to do impose it. "To avoid arbitrary judgment, I think the criteria should take into account the scale of impact on the people," he said.
Jakarta Post - July 21, 2008
Jakarta – Ten years into the reform movement, many businesses in the country are still engaging in corruption to ensure their financial success.
Money for bribes remains a variable in a company's production costs, spent to ensure safe and timely delivery of goods, obtain business permits or win government projects, business players claim.
At a workshop hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on governance problems, noted businessman Noke Kiroyan admitted such practices were considered "business as usual".
"The most common practice is bribing government officials to win bids for projects," Noke said.
Spending capital on bribery, he said, directly affected the company's finances and led to lower production capacity and quality. "Private companies such as these tend to provide low quality services and goods, because they have already used much of their resources to bribe officials," he said Friday.
However, he added, those accustomed to the practice were now awake to the increasing number of bribery cases uncovered by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) through its ability to tap into phone conversations.
The most recent example was on July 10, when the KPK detained lawmaker Bulyan Royan, a member of the House of Representatives Commission V, which oversees infrastructure and transportation, for allegedly accepting bribes worth Rp 120 billion (US$13 million) in a patrol boat procurement deal for the Transportation Ministry.
The next most common practice, Noke said, was bribing customs officials to ensure safe and timely delivery of goods through national ports. "I hope all officials accepting bribes are punished like those at the customs office in Tanjung Priok port," he said.
A raid by the KPK on the Tanjung Priok customs office on May 30 reportedly resulted in a 90 percent downturn in activity at the port the following week.
During the crackdown, the KPK found several envelopes, each containing Rp 500 million. The Finance Ministry followed up on the KPK's findings and demoted four custom officials responsible for verifying documents.
John Prasetyo, vice chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce, told The Jakarta Post Sunday that bribery stemmed largely from the lack of clarity in the country's regulatory system, clearly manifested in the many conflicting central and regional regulations.
"There are indeed some improvements 10 years after the reform agenda started in 1998 following the fall of Soeharto, but some of the systems in place now also produce new corruptors," he said.
Subjecting everyone to the KPK's investigations, he said, was not the solution to combating corruption. "The culture of corruption is still there, it can vanish only when the rule of law and the regulatory quality reaches a certain level," he said.
Frenky Simanjutak of Transparency International Indonesia said the government should also be on the lookout for corruption between private companies and corruption in the relationships between companies and their shareholders.
"Complications arise if company executives misuse shareholder funds for their own personal benefit," he said.
He added such a case occurred at US-based energy company Enron Inc. in 2001. "The company made a fictitious financial report to attract more investors to buy its shares. When the executives had already collected a great amount of funds, they used them for their own interests," he said.
He urged the government to begin focusing on eradicating these kinds of practices to protect the public interest. (ewd)
Jakarta Post - July 21, 2008
Andreas D. Arditya, Jakarta – The revised Corruption Court bill is likely to trigger intense debate during its deliberation, with many experts and activists saying its contents could undermine the fight against graft.
The most contentious issue is the government's proposal to allow district court chief judges to determine the composition of the panel of judges.
Under the existing law, any panel hearing a corruption case must consist of two career judges and three ad hoc judges. This ratio was prompted by public distrust in career judges and the judiciary, which has long been associated with a "court mafia".
The draft bill states the Corruption Court will have to be established in 450 district courts across the country, thus putting an end to the current ad hoc Corruption Court.
But the bill shows the government is seeking to gain greater control over the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), according to Benny K. Harman, a lawmaker from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party and a member of the House of Representatives' Commission III on legal affairs.
"There is a certain fear about the KPK because of its tremendous work against corruption. The proposal will surely lead to as many ad hoc judges as possible being removed from the panel that hears corruption cases, thus weakening the KPK's position," he said Sunday.
To date, the Corruption Court has convicted all suspects brought to trial by the KPK. "In fact, we need more ad hoc judges," Soeripto of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) said. "The public is there to evaluate them. They know which courts are transparent and which are not."
Critics and anti-corruption activists said the government's revised draft was premature, because the district court chief judges were not ready to assume authority for forming a panel of judges to hear corruption cases as they were themselves recruited and appointed under a corrupt system.
Among those supporting the bill is Gayus Lumbuun, a lawmaker from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), who said the bill had been drafted in accordance with the judicial system.
"The government is on the right track, because according to the general courts principle, the head of the district court has the authority to appoint the panel of judges," he told The Jakarta Post. Gayus also disagreed that more ad hoc judges should be assigned to hear corruption cases.
"Ad hoc judges lack (judicial) experience, they were not trained to be judges. It is necessary, therefore, to have more career judges," he said.
The House must pass the new Corruption Court bill soon, after the Constitutional Court gave the government until December 2009 to form a new court, finding that the current Corruption Court violated the Constitution because it was established under the 2002 law on the KPK rather than under the law on judicial power.
Jakarta Post - July 19, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The numerous executions carried out of late by the Attorney General's Office (AGO) have been criticized as attempts by the body to publicize its functionality as it fights off a host of corruption cases.
"It is too much to execute so many people in only one month and especially when the AGO is coming under attack for corruption cases. There is a strong sense that the office is using the executions to show they do something," Indra J. Pilliang of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said.
The AGO said Friday they would execute two more convicts on death row in Surabaya on Friday night, although they did not mention the exact time. The convicts are Sumiarsih and her son Sugeng, who were found guilty of the 1998 assassination of a marine family of five.
"That's what I heard," Junior Attorney General for Intelligence Wisnu Subroto said.
Junior Attorney General for General Crimes Abdul Hakim Ritonga confirmed the AGO would execute the two convicts as soon as possible.
Sumiarsih and Sugeng will be the fourth and fifth convicts to be executed before a firing squad within the space of a month. The execution spree began when the AGO executed two Nigerian nationals at the Nusa Kambangan prison on June 26, the same day as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Last week, serial killer Ahmad Sarudji was executed in the North Sumatra capital of Medan.
The AGO has now executed as many people in four weeks as it had previously in the last three years. However, Ritonga said the high number of executions in such a short time frame was because a large number of death row convicts had recently exhausted all legal possibilities of evading their sentences.
There are now 112 convicts on death row, including three accused of taking part in the Bali bombings. Since 1979, the AGO has executed 53 people.
The trio of Bali bombers – Amrozi, Imam Samudra and Ali Ghufron – face imminent execution. Attorney General Hendarman Supandji said the execution would take place immediately, as the court on Thursday rejected their final appeal. "Legally, we can execute them now. But we must prepare the security matters. That's why I can't tell you when we can perform the execution," he said.
Human rights activists and non-governmental organizations have frequently demanded the death penalty be abolished, citing its ineffectiveness at deterring crime. They have also called on the government and the House of Representatives to revise all laws that carry the punishment.
"The death penalty is against the Constitution and human rights. That's why we demand President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stop the executions and revise the law," Poengky Indarti of the Indonesian Human Rights Monitor said.
She said government data showed that drugs cases in Jakarta had increased to 6,600 in 2006 from 4,400 in 2005 despite the fact that the crime carries a maximum penalty of death.
| Islam/religion |
Jakarta Post - July 19, 2008
Andra Wisnu, Jakarta – Conservative and extremist leaders have insinuated their way into major Islamic organizations, leaving these groups unable to counter rising radicalism and religious violence in Indonesia, a forum concluded Thursday.
Muslim scholars, speaking at the discussion in Jakarta, criticized Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, the country's two largest Islamic organizations, for failing to bring peace among followers of different religions and beliefs.
They said conservative and extremist leaders supporting the movements and activities of hard-line and radical groups, such as Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia and the Islamic People's Forum (FUI), have been taking control of NU and Muhammadiyah, as well as other moderate Muslim organizations.
Hizbut Tahrir and the FUI were behind the campaign against the Jamaah Ahmadiyah minority sect, which recognizes a prophet in Islam after Muhammad – a belief defying the mainstream faith.
Human rights advocates have condemned the campaign, claiming Hizbut Tahrir and the FUI used militant groups, such as the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), as proxies to commit violence against Ahmadiyah followers.
The scholars said there was an apparent lack of resistance from major Islamic organizations to these efforts.
They said about 30 incidents of violence targeting Ahmadiyah followers by various public groups occurred in Java following a 2005 fatwa issued by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) urging the government to ban the sect.
No major Islamic organization protested this MUI declaration, the scholars said.
Bowing to pressure from extremist groups, the government issued a joint-ministerial decree last month banning Ahmadiyah from spreading its religious beliefs.
Kautsar Azhari Noer, a professor at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University in Jakarta, accused Muhammadiyah chief Din Syamsuddin of silencing moderate voices in his organization.
"I know for a fact that since Din began leading Muhammadiyah, moderate Islamic figures have had a hard time entering the organization's leadership structure," he told the discussion.
Fuaduddin PM, a researcher at the ministry of religious affairs, said FUI and Hizbut Tahrir members who have joined major Islamic organizations were behind the lack of resistance. "That is why these groups have not been very vocal in condemning the recent ban on Ahmadiyah," he said.
Abdul Mu'ti, a widely known moderate Islamic scholar from Muhammadiyah, said the rising power of extremism could not be easily curbed. "It's simply a consequence of democracy. These people are elected to their positions," he said.
He said that to fight radicalism, moderates must help open the minds of Indonesian Muslims.
"It's a known phenomenon that Islamic pesantren (boarding school) students tend to do well in their own schools but not in the outside world. That could have the psychological effect of pushing that person over the edge," Mu'ti said.
"It's important to teach people values outside Islam," he told the discussion, aimed at improving the peace-building capacity of pesantren and Islamic organizations.
Jakarta Post - July 17, 2008
Andreas D. Arditya, Jakarta – The government is reviewing 37 sharia-based local regulations in force in several regions across the country. The 37 bylaws are among a total of 700 bylaws currently under review.
The bylaws are discriminatory and violate higher existing laws, Janiruddin, head of law examination and evaluation at the Home Ministry, said Tuesday. "We have told the respective regions to consider deliberating the bylaws again or to redraft the bylaws," he said.
Among the sharia-based bylaws are those that require Koran literacy for students and brides and a Muslim dress code for women, as well as biased prostitution rules.
"The bylaws on prostitution, for example, are clearly discriminatory because they regulate only the women but not the men. There's a lack of gender equality there," he said, in reference to a public order ordinance in Tangerang.
The ordinance has been widely criticized for its unclear definitions of prostitutes and "immoral behavior".
Critics have said many of the bylaws were drafted by unqualified people without transparency or public participation.
According to Janiruddin, the ministry faces legal obstacles in revoking sharia-based bylaws. "The Home Ministry only has authority over bylaws on taxes, levies, spatial regulation and regional budgets," he said.
He also said most of the bylaws had been reported to the ministry long after they were passed, but the Supreme Court would only consider revoking bylaws that were reported as violations less than 180 days after their deliberation. "What makes it worse is that it is hard to monitor 500 regions across the country," he added.
Regional autonomy has led to an increase in the number of bylaws passed over the past decade. However, Janiruddin said, many of the bylaws were made solely for the regions to gain more revenue and violated the legal hierarchy.
"Out of 8,000 bylaws spread across the country's 500 regions, 3,000 are problematic potential bylaws and they regulate redundant taxes that have deterred investment in the regions," he said.
The ministry has revoked 973 problematic potential bylaws to date and plans to annul 250 more.
Bomer Pasaribu, a lawmaker and head of the regional and suburban planning experts association, said most of the questionable bylaws were made without a strong enough foundation.
"The regions should have conducted academic studies before even drafting the bylaws. To the best of my knowledge, there isn't a single bylaw preceded by such a study," he said.
| Elections/political parties |
Jakarta Post - July 22, 2008
Indra Harsaputra and Wahjoe Boediwardhana, Surabaya – The five pairs of gubernatorial candidates have failed to adequately address the issue of the devastating mudflow in Sidoarjo, East Java, raising suspicions of bribery.
The family of Coordinating Minister for the People's Welfare, Aburizal Bakrie, partly owns Lapindo Brantas Inc. The family has been widely blamed for the mudflow that started gushing out of its gas exploration well in May 2006, displacing more than 13,000 people.
"The news that the candidates have received funds from Lapindo is no longer a secret, but it is difficult to prove the flow of money from the Bakrie family," Bambang Sulistomo, Movement to Shut Down the Lapindo Mudflow secretary, told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
He said he was offered by the campaign team of a candidate pair to become their vote getter.
Bambang instructed that the pair make the mudflow their campaign's number one priority. The pair initially accepted his demand.
However, the campaign team later canceled their political deal with Bambang due to "pressure" from a certain side, Bambang said without elaborating.
A similar statement was made by a member of a special committee on the mudflow at the East Java legislative council, who declined to be named. The councilor did not rule out the possibility that some candidates had received campaign donations from Lapindo or the Bakrie family.
Activists fighting for the rights of the mudflow victims said they had also received unconfirmed reports that all the gubernatorial candidates may have received funds from Lapindo. They said they are investigating the reports.
The accusation was flatly denied by Lapindo spokesperson Yuniwati Teryana, who said the Bakrie family had never provided funds to the election candidates. "We have never assisted all gubernatorial candidates in the regional election. Let the people judge and vote for them," she said.
In Sidoarjo, many mudflow victims said they were disappointed with the five candidate pairs for failing to come up with solutions during their campaigns to address the problems associated with the disaster.
"Now almost 50 percent of the victims have stated they will abstain from casting their votes because of their disappointment with the candidates," said Pitanto, an executive with the communication forum for victims in Sidoarjo.
He said that all the candidates refused to sign a political contract with the victims ahead of the election to be held on Wednesday.
The contract, prepared by the forum, requires the elected candidate to the victims' aspirations and includes an agreement to review the regulated compensation scheme.
Under the existing scheme based on a presidential decree, victims' families receive 20 percent of compensation as a down payment, while the remaining 80 percent is be paid in installments.
Most of the victims have rejected the scheme because the 20 percent down payment is not enough to buy a new house after being displaced by the mudflow.
"The mudflow victims consider that many politicians, lawmakers and gubernatorial candidates who have come to them made promises without taking concrete actions to resolve their problems. "Many of the victims are now apathetic towards political parties and their candidates," Pitanto said.
At a public debate earlier this month, all five pairs – Khofifah Indar Parawansa-Mudjiono, Achmady-Suhartono, Soekarwo-Saefulah Yusuf, Sutjipto-Ridwan Hisjam and Soenaryo-Ali Maschan Moesa – focussed their programs on the issues of poverty, education, farmer empowerment and the environment. The mudflow disaster was not raised at the event.
Jakarta Post - July 22, 2008
Andi Hajramurni, Makassar, South Sulawesi – In an attempt to attract female voters, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has vowed to increase the number of its female legislators to 15 from the current three.
Speaking at the sidelines of the party's national congress in Makassar on Monday, party chairman Tifatul Sembiring said the party had decided to allocate 15 seats at the House for women in the 2009 election. The party only placed one female legislator in the House of Representatives in 1999 and three in 2004.
"We will give women more chances to become House members. We will also allocate 36 percent of our legislative candidates to women both at the regional and national levels, for next year's election," he said.
The target will exceed the minimum quota for women legislators of 30 percent as set by law, PKS head of the women's section Ledia Hanifah said.
Aside from giving more room for women, the party, which reiterated a target of gaining 20 percent of votes in the upcoming election, also said it welcomed people from outside the party to become legislative candidates as long as he or she met party requirements.
The requirements include understanding PKS's vision and mission, agreeing on the party's platform and possessing an excellent track record within society.
The party gained over 7 percent in the 2004 election, placing 45 lawmakers in the House.
Tifatul said PKS also prioritized young people in becoming legislative candidates, with the party allocating 80 percent of them being between 30 and 50 years, 10 percent below 30 years and over 50 years, respectively.
He said more than 80 percent of PKS legislative candidates hold a bachelor's degree.
The party's national congress, which will last until Thursday, will consolidate steps and discuss strategies to achieve the target.
Jakarta Post - July 19, 2008
Desy Nurhayati and Andra Wisnu, Jakarta – The Supreme Court has dealt Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid and his supporters a heavy blow that will expel him from the party he helped found in 1998.
In a hearing Thursday, the court turned down an appeal filed by Gus Dur's National Awakening Party (PKB) against Muhaimin Iskandar and Lukman Edy, respectively the elected party chairman and secretary-general in the 2005 national congress in Semarang, for holding an extraordinary congress last May.
The extraordinary meeting dethroned Gus Dur as the party's chief patron and his daughter Yenny Wahid as the secretary-general. A rival congress held by Gus Dur's camp just a few days earlier had dismissed Muhaimin and elected Ali Masykur Musa as his replacement while retaining Yenny as the secretary-general.
"Thank God. The truth has come and surely the bad will be eliminated," said Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, a House of Representatives lawmaker loyal to Muhaimin, responding to the court's verdict.
Last month, Gus Dur lost the legal battle to Muhaimin and Lukman as the South Jakarta District Court declared the latter's dismissal by Gus Dur illegitimate. The court said Muhaimin and Lukman should be reinstated as the party's chairman and secretary-general.
The Supreme Court's ruling confirms the legitimacy of Muhaimin and Lukman as the party leaders and allows them to consolidate the party ahead of the elections.
The dual leadership has disrupted preparations of the PKB, the nation's third-largest party in terms of popular vote, for the elections. The PKB is among 34 parties eligible to contest the polls next year.
Muhaimin said last week the Supreme Court's decision would settle the dispute beyond doubt. He added that if the court rejected Gus Dur's appeal he would lead the party to recovery.
Gus Dur had reportedly threatened to boycott the elections if the court turned down his appeal. Many observers still consider Gus Dur the most influential figure in the PKB. He founded the party upon request of influential Nahdlatul Ulama clerics in 1998.
In response to the Supreme Court's ruling, General Elections Commission member I Gusti Putu Artha said the poll body would wait for a decree from the Justice and Human Rights Ministry before taking measures concerning the PKB's participation in the 2009 polls.
Artha said that in accordance with the political party law, the PKB had to report its legitimate board of executives to the ministry based on the Supreme Court's ruling.
"The ministry has seven days to issue a decree approving the legitimate board of executives. The KPU will then complete the process (to ensure the entry of the PKB under Muhaimin in the election)," Artha said.
The legitimate party chairman and secretary-general will have the right to approve legislative candidates to be submitted to the KPU, according to the election law.
"In this case, it is Muhaimin and Yenny that should give the approval. If one of them turns down the party list, the PKB's legislative candidates could be disqualified," Artha said.
The KPU recognizes Muhaimin and his rival Yenny as PKB chairman and secretary-general respectively.
| Armed forces/defense |
Jakarta Post - July 21, 2008
Dicky Christanto, Denpasar – Learning from the experience that following orders without question has led several soldiers to face a bleak future of life behind bars, many soldiers have started taking a more critical approach to orders.
"A good soldier should be able to quickly analyze any order given by his superior and determine whether it is an order based on the personal interests (of the superior) or indeed a valid order from the institution," Second Sgt. Bambang (not his real name) told The Jakarta Post recently. Bambang serves in an elite Army unit stationed in Bali.
"We will follow orders from the institution without question. But an order based on the personal interests of our superiors, well, we have no obligation to obey it. In fact, we could question that order," he added.
But Bambang admitted the strict military hierarchy meant it was an unwise move to flatly refuse to carry out an order. "Of course, it is not wise to start a confrontational argument with the superior officer, so we should argue with him politely."
The "polite" way Bambang and his fellow soldiers usually adopt involves asking the superior to present them with a written, signed order.
Bambang said he was once ordered by a superior to do something he found unethical. He refused to give details of the order, only saying that his superior instructed him to gather several soldiers to track down and secure an individual.
"It was a simple order actually but since my superior couldn't show me a written order, I refused to do it. I told my superior I would gladly carry out the order if he could produce an official, written order," he said.
He said he realized this kind of situation could often put soldiers in a tough spot.
"But we still need to do that (asking for a written, signed order) because I personally won't take responsibility for any consequences of an order that is based solely on the superior's personal interest or ambition," he said.
He acknowledged the development of the Internet had done a great service for him and his military colleagues as it provided a way for them to gather information on the nature of various orders and how to deal with them.
"Learning about the experiences of our military colleagues all over the world has enabled us to see a few critical issues with a clearer perspective. We are of the same opinion that being a soldier is not equal to being a robot, which will follow any instruction its owner gives," he said.
Bambang, who graduated from a petty officer course around 10 years ago, has built his military career moving from one military operation to the other. He served in critical operations in Ambon and Aceh, after which he was transferred to Bali.
As an army second sergeant, he is paid Rp 2.3 million (US$304) per month plus 28 kilograms of rice, he said.
When asked whether the monthly salary was sufficient, Bambang was silent for a minute, before saying, "Of course my salary covers all my daily needs but I don't dare to dream of having more than just daily needs."
Although he has a plan for his family, he said he would not risk destroying his military career by making mistakes such as providing protection for gambling dens or prostitution rings.
"Some soldiers are still involved in those kinds of business because the revenue is attractive," said the father of one. "But I would rather go to war with the pride of a soldier than to be a bouncer for such dirty businesses."
| Opinion & analysis |
Far Eastern Economic Review - July 21, 2008
Sahil K. Mahtani – Unlike his predecessors, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono can hardly be accused of shooting from the hip. He almost never appears in public without prepared remarks and has a reputation for choosing his words carefully. Tempo, the Indonesian political magazine, called his style "well-disciplined," even down to "coordinated body movements."
That trademark precision was on full display last Tuesday when Mr. Yudhoyono accepted a report from the Timorese and Indonesian joint Commission on Truth and Friendship that posited Indonesian governmental complicity in atrocities committed in East Timor nine years ago.
Given Jakarta's previous reluctance to own up to human rights abuses, the president's admission was notable for the ease with which it was delivered and received. Mr. Yudhoyono, in masterful political fashion, managed to defuse a potentially damaging political situation by simultaneously satisfying the Timorese, placating his domestic audience, and garnering international praise. In the process, he may have even hobbled several of his major political opponents for the general election in 2009.
It began with his speech. In accepting the report, Mr. Yudhoyono used the phrase penyesalan sangat mendalam, meaning the deepest remorse, whereas one might have expected him to use meminta maaf, literally to beg forgiveness, or apologize.
Newspapers did not know what to make of Mr. Yudhoyono's statement, yielding headlines with diametrically opposite messages. Some papers ran with "No apology coming for Timor abuses," (the Chicago Tribune) while others opted for "Indonesia admits guilt over Timor" (the Sydney Morning Herald).
So did Mr. Yudhoyono apologize or did he parry? It seems almost churlish to ask the question while the Timorese are prepared to accept the remarks. "What's the difference of apology and remorse? How do you measure this?" asked Timorese Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao after the ceremony. "He apologized."
Yet this is precisely what he didn't do. The day before the report was released, Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono foreshadowed Mr. Yudhoyono's speech by telling parliament explicitly, "There will be no apology; it is only about remorse, which is deep regret by both parties, from both governments."
This is as clear an indication as one will get of the government's intent in phrasing its words in that way. Jakarta did not intend to apologize and Mr. Yudhoyono's words reflected these intentions precisely.
Still, the president's carefully crafted statement satisfied several constituencies and, in doing so, defused a potential debacle.
The fervently nationalist domestic audience, for whom the independence of East Timor is still remembered as a huge blow to Indonesian sovereignty, may not have been entirely happy with the outcome. Already an influential member of the nationalist PDI-P (Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle) has called for the army (TNI) to reject the recommendations of the Commission on the reasoning – if it can be called that – that Indonesia cannot be accused by a country as small as East Timor. Another parliamentarian criticized the attribution of "moral punishment" to the Indonesian people. Nevertheless, by not using the term "apologize," Mr. Yudhoyono dodged a groundswell of nationalist reaction.
The second constituency Mr. Yudhoyono probably hoped to satisfy was his international audience, which will see the any rapprochement with Dili as further positive evidence of Indonesia's post-Suharto transition and of the increasing role the world's largest Muslim country could play in promoting peace internationally. This could be done, for example, by mediating the recent talks between Palestine and Israel-Indonesia does not officially recognize Israel but maintains extensive unofficial ties with the Jewish state.
The third and final aspect of Mr. Yudhoyono's decision-making involved his own prospects in the general election of 2009. His political opponents, retired General Wiranto and career military officer Prabowo, now presidential candidates, both receive a measure of blame in the commission's report. The latter was accused of human rights abuses in Jakarta in 1998 and in East Timor in 1999. As for Gen. Wiranto, just last week former Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer claimed that "as the defense minister [he] absolutely knew what was going on" in East Timor, though "he simply didn't have the strength to stop it."
Gen. Wiranto in particular has been scoring points off SBY with recent advertisements in the Indonesian media-a striking illustration of Indonesia's new vibrant political culture-accusing the president of having "violated his promise" to keep fuel prices low. This may have contributed to the upsurge in Gen. Wiranto's popularity in recent weeks-his approval rating has moved to about 9% in June from 4% in January according to figures from local pollsters Indobarometer and Lembaga Survei Indonesia, respectively. President Yudhoyono, meanwhile, has suffered a corresponding decline in popularity; where previously he was in the lead, now he oscillates between first and second place with Megawati Sukarnoputri.
The commission's report could put a damper on Gen. Wiranto's momentum. Marcus Mietzner, a lecturer at the Australian National University in Canberra who spent a decade in Jakarta working on military reform issues, said that the Timor atrocities issue haunts Gen. Wiranto time and time again. For instance, he briefly held the post of Coordinating Minister of Defense & Security in 2000, until the United Nations Serious Crimes Unit in Dili called for an international tribunal to try him. In 2004, while he was running for president, the issue again came to the fore.
Moreover, another retired general, Hendropriyono, now closely linked with former Jakarta governor Sutiyoso's presidential campaign, was also mentioned in the report. The commission's report is a potential game-changer in the way it hobbles not just one but several of Yudhoyono's high-profile political opponents.
But, as Agus Wijoyo, a retired Indonesian general and member of the 10-man commission, emphasized to the Review, "those are never new names." He explains, "Our task was not to investigate but to research. Our priority was that our report be credible to both sides rather than agreed fully by one side and rejected fully by the other."
That took some finessing. As part of the effort to preserve bilateral credibility, the core of the commission's report itself does not mention any names, concerning itself less with individual responsibility than with institutional responsibility. Names are only mentioned in the document review at the beginning and the appendix of interviews at the end. "It may be an elegant way, mentioning people not in the report but in the testimony attached," said Mr. Mietzner, the lecturer.
By all accounts, Yudhoyono and the commission succeeded in their delicate balancing act, generating a triad of Timorese acceptance, international praise, and domestic quiescence. Not only have they defused any potential political fallout, they may have even improved Mr. Yudhoyono's electoral chances for next year while creating space for domestic reform within.
TNI chief Gen. Djoko Santoso, who was appointed in February 2005 as a replacement to his more brash and outspoken predecessor General Ryamizard Ryacudu, has already accepted the Commission's report, acknowledging "TNIs responsibility" and saying he will "wait for whatever action the government considers taking next."
"I think it is in line with SBY's general direction in pushing for general reform in Indonesian institutions," says James Fox, a distinguished anthropologist of Indonesia and the former director of the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the Australian National University. But he adds, "Institutional responsibility without individual responsibility leaves things up in the air." Mr. Fox notes the lingering ambiguity the report leaves behind: "While claiming to put an end to these issues, it opens the book to the next chapter."
[Mr. Sahil Mahtani is a Bartley Fellow at the Far Eastern Economic Review.]
Jakarta Post Editorial - July 21, 2008
Amid the growing number of legislators arrested for corruption allegations, House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono has accepted the public criticism against the legislative body for its poor performance.
Statistics show that the lawmakers have been unable to meet their own legislation targets year after year since taking office in 2004.
Up until today, as the House goes into a one-month recess, the lawmakers have passed only 119 bills, or just 40 percent of 284 bills they have to deliberate during their five-year term. This means they will face the Herculean job of debating 165 bills in the remaining 16 months of their tenure.
With the elections topping the national agenda, the House legislators will devote their resources to helping their respective parties win both the legislative and presidential elections and, to be honest, to retaining their seats.
Political bickering confronting the House and the executive power over both the fuel price hike and the anti-graft crusade targeting legislators will sap more energy from the lawmakers, further dashing people's hope of seeing urgent legislation passed and taking effect.
So what was the point of voting for them in 2004, in the election which the international community dubbed the most democratic polls the country has ever held?
Indonesia's transition to democracy took a new twist in 2004, when voters for the first time were given a chance to choose their representatives by name. In practice, however, the parties held the prerogative to select their preferred candidates to the House. The system has not changed for the 2009 election. This means the same story about the underachieving House is likely to drag on.
Some observers say the country's transitional period has moved too slowly, if not stagnated, partly because of the poor recruitment of political party members who were seated in the legislative bodies, both in the national and regional levels. The political parties tend to prefer loyalty over competence.
Deputy chairman of the House's legislation body, Ferry Mursyidan Baldan, blames the lack of competence in the law making process for the frequent challenges to the laws at the Constitutional Court. Many of the laws were declared flawed and needed revising, with some of them even requiring a complete overhaul.
The Court last ordered a revision of the 2008 Elections Law (No. 10/2008), which has allowed nine political parties failing to meet the electoral threshold to contest the 2009 polls. This was deemed a contradictio in terminis as the law itself clearly sets the threshold.
Court battles over disputed laws have sparked controversy over whether the Constitutional Court should share the legislative power with the House in a bid to curb the number of defective laws. The idea will deconstruct the division of power the country has upheld since its birth in 1945, but it needs to be understood as the public's loses hope in the lawmakers.
House leaders have also complained about the lack of budget for the law making process, despite it having nearly triple the funding from last year, from Rp 560 million to Rp 1.5 billion, plus another Rp 500 million for a bill passage.
Early this year, the House leaders paid each lawmaker Rp 39 million as an incentive to endorse bills in 2007. With each legislator receiving at least Rp 50 million in monthly take-home pay, financial constraints appear to be an unconvincing excuse for the House's failure to conduct its legislative jobs.
In some cases, the House needed years to endorse a bill, as in the case of the freedom of access to information draft law which was passed four years after its first reading. But there was a time when the House managed to work fast, as in the case of the Aceh administration bill which took the lawmakers only two weeks to pass.
The problem, it seems, rests more with the political will of the lawmakers than the budget or financial matters. That the House factions put their political advantages behind the public's or national interests is more evident in the bill deliberation process, which often involve backroom dealings.
Political motives are most visible in the House's support for formation of new regencies and provinces, despite the government's decision to put a halt to regional division moves. In fact, six out of 15 bills the House endorsed in the first semester of 2008 formalized the creation of new regencies. This excludes the House's approval of the revision of the 2001 law on special autonomy for Papua, which confirms the right of West Papua province to the special status.
The nine-month election campaign will provide voters ample time to learn the track records of the current lawmakers, most of whom will seek reelection. The more accessible the records to the public, the more unlikely the voters keep their faith in the lawmakers, who have wasted their mandate.
Jakarta Post - July 20, 2008
Aboeprijadi Santoso, Contributor, Jakarta – "Did the Nazi Party and its supporters give Indonesian nationalists a chance to accelerate the process toward independence? Or did they have to cooperate with the colonial power to evict the Nazi Party and its supporters, thinking fascism was far more dangerous than colonialism?"
This quote comes from the back cover of historian Wilson's new book Orang dan Partai Nazi di Indonesia: Kaum Pergerakan Menyambut Fasisme (The Nazi Party and its supporters in Indonesia: How Indonesia's national movements welcomed fascism), Komunitas Bambu, Jakarta, 2008). It reflects the dilemma the independence movements faced from the 1920s until independence. Wilson has done a great service by describing fascist ideas and movements as part of this nation's past, a little-known subject that turns out to be part and parcel of our struggle toward independence.
How did it come about? Wilson traces people and organizations which supported fascist ideas in the then Dutch East Indies by studying the nature and development of Indonesia's political movements. He examines Dutch capitalism, which brought about state structures that imposed racial classifications as the colonial administration introduced modern education. It gave rise to both the national awakening movement and a broad spectrum of political movements.
The laws of the Dutch East Indies grew increasingly repressive as popular movements, notably Sarekat Islam, became radicalized after the early 1920s. The governor general acquired extraordinary rights enabling him to expel political enemies and the administration was allowed to arrest persons who distorted rust en orde (tranquility and order). In the end, state control was most effectively exercised by the Dutch intelligence agency, the Politieke Inlichtingen Dienst, or PID.
Indonesian fascism should be understood within the context of the global impact of the Great Depression of the 1930s and its consequences, namely the rise of fascism in Europe which provoked World War II. The weaknesses of Indonesian political movements vis-a-vis the colonial regime became evident once the communist rebellion of 1926-27 was defeated. This, Wilson argues, led to some members of Indonesian popular movements being impressed by national-socialist ideas as propagated by the German Nazi Party (p. 67).
These new attitudes were soon visible. The Nazi Party's national-socialist ideas were translated, published and advertised.
Many were impressed by Hitler's 1933 electoral victory. His spirited propaganda for the hegemony of "Greater Germany" inspired similar ideas of "Indonesia Mulia" (esteemed Indonesia) and "Indonesia Raya" (great Indonesia) in Bandung. A fascist party was thus born: the Partai Fasis Indonesia (PFI). Wilson chose for the book's front cover a unique photo of people greeting Javanese dignitaries with the well-known Nazi salute.
Anti-fascist responses developed earlier when Partindo (1925) and Gerindo (1937) arose and leaders like Tan Malaka became prominent. But others, such as the newly established Indonesian National Party (PNI), were confused: they considered fascism a danger that somehow could turn into a "new hope".
On balance, however, popular movements with a clear anti-fascist stance seemed weak.
Pramoedya Ananta Toer suggested in a 1997 interview only a few leaders such as Tan Malaka, S.K. Trimurti and Amir Sjarifudin realized the importance of the struggle against fascism. Historians Onghokham and Anton Lucas concurred in a Radio Nederlands 1997 documentary. Onghokham contrasted Indonesia's national struggle and other popular movements in Burma, Vietnam and China. Led respectively by General Aung San, Ho Chi Minh and Mao Zhe-dong, these movements were clearly inspired by anti- fascist ideology.
Reluctance among Indonesian nationalists to cooperate with the Dutch in order to fight the fascists (see the quote at the beginning of this article) indicated the weakness of antifascism in Indonesia.
The discussion at the launching of Wilson's book (ironically held at the former home of Prof. Soepomo, a freedom fighter whose ideas had inspired Soeharto's New Order values) raised issues about potential neofascism. Unfortunately, the discussion was clouded by a few taboos.
One suggestion during the discussion that Soekarno had fascist potential prompted criticism and was set aside as if it were taboo. In fact, Soekarno did admire Hitler's Third Reich and its vision of happiness for all: "It's in the Dritte Reich that the Germans will see Germany at the apex above other nations in this world," he said in 1963.
Soekarno was also charismatic and populist, two characteristics associated with fascism. Crucially, he created the Sekber Golkar, the joint secretariat of civil servants. Later transformed into the New Order's Golkar, this entity became a partner to Soeharto and to the military in building a hegemonic state with totalitarian and fascist aspirations.
At the roots of this neofascism is a close but difficult relationship between nationalism and fascism. It's a love-hate relationship since irrational patriotism and irredentism, which idealize the nation's past greatness, are aspects of fascist values. Only when manifested among popular movements championing democracy could nationalism become the antithesis of fascism.
In this sense, the wars in East Timor (1975-99) and Aceh (1976- 2005) may serve as examples of the state's fascist projects that clashed with local nationalisms. For, contrary to the rhetoric of the unitary state, neither conflict had anything to do with attempts to keep the nation united; rather they were the state's attempt to exercise control over people and territories through methods similar to those the Japanese fascists applied in the 1940s when they established military structures deep in both urban centers and the countryside.
The Indonesian Military did likewise by seizing the local heads and their constituents in East Timor, and by controlling local chiefs, religious leaders and villages in Aceh.
It is unfortunate that this militaristic concept of the unitary state – like Soekarno's potentially problematic nationalist fascism – were not discussed at the book launch, since Wilson's book has, rightly, provoked discussions that should heighten public awareness of neofascist potential which could endanger our new democracy.
Fascist ideas once grew in our own soil. They were a marginal matter once the national movements achieved their main aim of independence.
However, neofascist aspirations under certain circumstances could arise again; indeed it succeeded in influencing state policies during the three decades of Soeharto's New Order. That certainly is a big deal.