Indonesia Raya, the national anthem, is played at every state ceremony, but on Friday during the House of Representatives General Assembly to commemorate Independence Day, it was noticeably absent.

At the assembly, which started at 9 a.m., President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla entered to the applause of 395 House members and honorary guests, including foreign ambassadors.

After the president and vice president were seated, the assembly proceeded with silent prayers. House Speaker Agung Laksono then delivered the opening speech, covering subjects ranging from terrorism to the Anti-Corruption Court Bill.

At the end of his speech, Agung noted that the national anthem had not been played.

Following heated protests by legislator Panda Nababan and People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Deputy Chairman AM Fatwa, Agung apologized for the fact that the national anthem had been forgotten at the start of the meeting.

"It's very disgraceful," said Tjahjo Kumolo of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). "This is a very serious mistake. It has only happened once and should be really embarrassing for the House."

In the future, he said, the House and the State Palace needed to work together to ensure that the mistake was never repeated. "If the House forgets, the State Palace should remind it," Tjahjo said.

Exiles in Jakarta announce proposal for democratic reform

Jakarta Globe - August 13, 2009

Ismira Lutfia – After enduring a police raid on Wednesday, exiled Burmese pro-democracy leaders in Jakarta managed to meet again on Thursday and agree on a proposal for reconciliation and democratization in the military-governed country.

The Movement for Democracy and Rights of Ethnic Nationalities, an alliance of Burmese groups opposed to the country's ruling junta, was forced to meet at the offices of the National Commission for Human Rights.

On Wednesday, the Jakarta Police essentially shut down the group's meeting at the Sari Pan Pacific Hotel, telling its members to leave voluntarily or be removed. At least one lawmaker claimed the move was made at the request of the Foreign Ministry, which was concerned the meeting would damage relations with the Burma.

On Thursday, the group issued a communique stating that "national reconciliation is a primary requisite for advancement toward democracy and development."

The 23-page reconciliation proposal included measures for building trust, reforming security infrastructure and affairs, and social and economic reforms – all conditions for implementing a constitutional dialogue aimed at achieving the recognition and protection of the rights of minority ethnic groups.

"The 2008 Constitution is full of provisions that are contrary to democratic principles," said Bo Hla-Tint, foreign minister of the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, a self- proclaimed government in exile.

"We are aiming for a real democratic transition in Burma and we have to stick to democratic principles."

Bo said the group intended to circulate its proposal among world leaders in the coming months.

"We need the international community to use our proposal [as a basis] for talking to the regime and facilitating the dialogue that we need," said Khin Ohmar, of the Forum for Democracy in Burma. She also called for an international arms embargo against the regime.

Sein Win, the prime minister of the government in exile, criticized the sentencing earlier this week of Burmese pro- democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi to 18 additional months of house arrest for allegedly breaking the terms of her house arrest. She was charged after allowing an American intruder to remain in her home for two days in May.

"Without her release and that of all other political prisoners, the process of national reconciliation cannot begin, nor can the planned 2010 elections be credible," said Sein, who is a cousin of Suu Kyi.

Bowing down to junta pressure a setback for Indonesia

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – Civil groups, legislators and experts expressed regret over Indonesia's decision to cancel a meeting held by members of the Burmese government in exile in Jakarta, saying it has hurt the country's democracy credentials by bowing to the junta's pressure.

"Indonesia has bowed to Myanmar's military regime at the expense of its democracy and sovereignty," Indonesia's Solidarity for Burma said Thursday in a statement.

"The ban was in contradiction to the government's calls for Myanmar to release Aung San Suu Kyi and to restore democracy... Indonesia has fallen back on its commitment to push for reforms in Myanmar."

The solidarity comprised nine groups: Human Rights Watch, Kontras, Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation, Imparsial, Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation, Padma Indonesia, Hikmahbudhi, Arus Pelangi and INFID.

On Wednesday, Indonesian police ordered Burmese government members in exile to cancel a meeting to seek international support for reforms in the junta-led Myanmar. The junta has refused to acknowledge the victory of Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) party in the 1990 elections.

Members of parliament elected in 1990 and Burmese ethnic groups living in exile had planned to launch a proposal for a national reconciliation during the Jakarta meeting. The meeting itself had been attended by dozens of diplomats from Western countries.

The proposal features requests for a review and/or an amendment to the 2008 Constitution, the release of all political prisoners, including Suu Kyi, and reforms in security and social security affairs.

Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said Wednesday the ban was due to Indonesia's recognition of only one Myanmar government, and could not allow any political activities by members of its government in exile.

Indonesian Institute of Sciences senior researcher Dewi Fortuna Anwar said although it was understandable Jakarta could not recognize the government in exile, it should have not banned the meeting, aimed at wooing support for the release of Suu Kyi.

Suu Kyi was sentenced to another 18 months of house arrest after being found guilty of allowing a US citizen to stay at her home.

"The government could have issued a statement saying it has nothing to do with the activity or the conference they convened," she said. "They shouldn't have banned it as it will only have an adverse impact on our democracy credentials and backfire on the government."

Eva K. Sundari, a legislator and member of the ASEAN Inter- Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC), said the police had claimed the government in exile was an illegal group that might pose a threat to Indonesian-Myanmar diplomatic ties.

"We reported the meeting in May and there was no objection from the police," she said. "Two days ago, they suddenly informed us about the cancellation in response to objections from the Myanmar Embassy to the meeting."

Legislator Marzuki Darusman, also from the AIPMC, said the ban was a big Indonesian failure at the international stage, considering Jakarta had always thrown its weight behind democracy in Myanmar at regional and multilateral forums.

"We do understand the sensitivity of the Myanmar issue, the objection from the Myanmar Embassy and the position taken by the Foreign Ministry," he said.

"However, as a democracy, the government's ban should not take place. They could have helped by finding solutions to have the meeting go on without having to insult the Myanmar government."

Indonesia bans meeting of exiled Myanmar activists

Associated Press - August 13, 2009

Anthony Deutsch, Jakarta – Indonesia's government has stopped a group of exiled Myanmar opposition activists from holding a conference in the country, officials said Thursday, a day after the president voiced support for "credible" elections in the military dictatorship.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said police had prevented the conference from taking place Wednesday because it was inappropriate.

"We will not allow a group claiming to be a government-in-exile from whatever country to hold their activities in Indonesia," Faizasyah said, noting that Myanmar is a legal state recognized by Indonesia and other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

On Tuesday, a Myanmar court found pro-democracy leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of breaching the terms of her house arrest. She was sentenced to 18 months of further confinement.

In response, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono issued a statement on Wednesday saying Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party should be allowed to take part in "inclusive and credible" elections in Myanmar.

Suu Kyi's detention will keep her from participating in the junta's planned elections next year, the first polls since 1990, when her party won overwhelmingly but was barred from taking power.

The Jakarta conference was organized by a group called The Movement for Democracy and Rights for Ethnic Nationalities, an alliance of ethnic and pro-democracy parties, both exiled and within Myanmar, who say on their Web site that they want to push for quicker democratic reform.

The conference delegates included exiled parliamentarians from Suu Kyi's party and six other organizations dedicated to the rights of woman, youth and ethnic minorities.

Bo Hla Tint, a member of Suu Kyi's party living in exile, accused Myanmar's military rulers of exerting behind-the-scenes pressure on Indonesia to scrap the conference.

"This shows the real interference of the military junta. They don't want interference from other ASEAN members," he said in a telephone interview Thursday, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Bo Hla Tint accused Myanmar's neighbors of "double standards" by supporting the international community's calls for democratic elections while at the same time turning a blind eye to human rights abuses.

Suu Kyi's conviction drew sharp criticism from world leaders and human rights groups, as well as promises of new European Union sanctions against Myanmar.

"There is a clear and stark contrast between the public statements of the Indonesia government with its actions," said Roshan Jason, a conference organizer and executive director of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus.

Police ban Burmese activists' meeting in Jakarta

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Lilian Budianto and Mustaqim Adamrah, Jakarta – The police on Wednesday banned an international meeting organized by members of the Burmese (Myanmarese) government-in-exile in Jakarta despite Indonesia's call for ASEAN to question the military junta's action against Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

On Tuesday, a Myanmar court handed down a verdict stipulating Suu Kyi must undergo another 18 months of house arrest after being found guilty of allowing a United States citizen to stay in her house.

The two-day meeting is aimed at seeking international support for reforms in Myanmar, who refused to acknowledge the landslide victory of the National League for Democracy (NLD) in the 1990 elections.

But Foreign Ministry spokes-man Teuku Faizasyah said Indonesia did not recognize any government in exile and the ban was not made upon the Myanmar Embassy's request.

"We cannot issue permits for political activities of the government in exile in our sovereign area... whoever it is. It is the matter of principle and not made upon request of the embassy."

Thaung H. Tun, the representative of the Burmese government in exile at the UN, said he did not think the Indonesian government would issue the ban, considering that Indonesia had supported efforts to restore democracy in Myanmar.

While responding to the military junta's action, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called on the ASEAN to question the Myanmarese government over its decision to extend house arrest to pro- democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

"As part of Myanmar's promise of a road to democracy, I say Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) should be part of an election process (next year)," President Yudhoyono told reporters Wednesday at the State Palace.

"The world will definitely question (a court verdict on Suu Kyi), and it will be hard to understand if that (verdict) is Myanmar political's decision."

Yudhoyono said Myanmar's 2010 election would be deemed "democratic, inclusive and credible" only if Suu Kyi and the NLD took part.

Therefore, he said he was asking the ASEAN chairman and Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to organize a foreign ministerial meeting to discuss this issue.

"ASEAN members have signed and ratified a new ASEAN Charter. It is very clear that (the charter stipulates that) ASEAN people respect the values and practices of democracy.

AGO targets literature with a leftist message

Jakarta Globe - August 11, 2009

Heru Andriyanto – Although mention of "the communist threat" has disappeared from government propaganda since the downfall of long-serving President Suharto in 1998, prosecutors are still keeping a close eye on leftist and sectarian writings they think have the potential to cause conflict.

According to a document from the Attorney General's Office, at least five such books are currently being examined and could be banned for reasons of security and stability.

The five, all written in Bahasa Indonesia, include two left-wing books, titled "The September 30 Mass Killing and Coup by Suharto" and "Lekra Doesn't Burn Books."

Three religious books are also being examined: "The Church Voice for the Suffering People: No More Blood and Tears in West Papua," "Six Ways to God" and "Uncover the Mystery of Religious Diversity."

Jasman Panjaitan, a spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, refused to provide any specific reasons why those books were being targeted.

"The question is too difficult to answer today," he said when contacted for comment. "Banning publications requires interagency work, it's not just the AGO."

The police can propose a ban on writings if they are considered harmful to public order, but the decision can only be made following a joint meeting involving prosecutors, police and the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs.

During his 32-year grip on power, Suharto, who died in January last year, banned the publication and distribution of any left- wing books, based on a 1966 decree by the People's Consultative Assembly.

The decree states that the spread of all communist, Marxist and Leninist teachings, in all forms, is strictly banned in the country.

Suharto took the presidency in 1966 after a failed coup attempt blamed on the Indonesia Communist Party (PKI). According to an AGO regulation issued in 1998, prosecutors may ban books that could "erode the government's authority or cause public disorder."

Despite the presence of this regulation, sectarian and extremist books continue to make their way into stores and enjoy healthy sales.

These have included a book written by Imam Samudra, who was executed last year for his leading role in the 2002 Bali bombings. Samudra's book, "Me Against Terrorists," appeared in several bookstores in 2005 and quickly sold out.

Actions, demos, protests...

Students stage protest against Unsoed rector

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Purwokerto – Hundreds of students at the University of Soedirman (Unsoed) staged a demonstration on their campus on Thursday against their rector.

They demanded Prof. Soejarwo resign as rector of the state-run university in Purwokerto, Central Java, for "failing" to protect the rights of students. "Out! Out! Rector! Now!" the protesters yelled in front of the rectorate building.

They rejected the university's decision to charge between Rp 5 million and Rp 180 million for its "Education Operational Fund" (BOPP) for new students. According to the demonstrators, the policy posed a burden on some 2,000 new students.

Around 20 percent of new students who passed the national selection test refused to re-register enrolment with Unsoed because they could not afford the fund, protest leader Helmy Shoim said. "So far the university has yet to explain what it will use the BOPP fund for," he said.

The protesters set fire to their posters at around 11:30 a.m. and provided fake banknotes to security guards and employees before leaving peacefully.

13 demos today, Medan Merdeka Barat and Rasuna Said the busiest

Detik.com - August 12, 2009

Shohib Masykur, Jakarta – Thirteen protest actions will be held in Jakarta today. As usual, it seems that traffic jams will be unavoidable, particularly on roads such as Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat in Central Jakarta and HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta, which will be the most frequent targets of the protests.

Based on information from the Metro Jaya regional police Traffic Management Centre for Wednesday August 12, the first demonstration will be held at the central offices of the company PT Bambi on Jl. Balikpapan and then the Jakarta city hall on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan at 8.30am.

Then at the Cipinang penitentiary in East Jakarta, the Indonesian Women's Coalition (KPI) will hold a protest action between 9am and 2pm. At around the same time, the People's Democratic Fortress (Bendera) will hold a demonstration at the Constitutional Court building on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat.

The forth protest action will take palace at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle at 9am. An hour later, again at the Constitutional Court, a second group of demonstrators calling themselves the Anti-Narcotics and Gang Violence Movement of Concern (GAPENTA) will also be demonstrating there.

The sixth action will be held at the office of the Ministry of Labour and Transmigration on Jl. Gatot Subroto by the Indonesian Migrant Workers Union at 10am. At the same time meanwhile, the Indonesian Youth Communication Forum (FKPI) will hold a demonstration at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building on Jl. HR Rasuna Said.

Also at 10am, the central office of the company PT Sinar Mas at the Bank International Indonesia building on Jl. Thamrin in Central Jakarta will be the target of a demonstration by the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi).

At the same time, the offices of the Department of Transport and Communication on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat will be the target of an action by the Transport Safety Monitoring Committee (KPK-T).

For the tenth protest, at 11am it will be the turn of the PDT offices on Jl. Abdul Muis in Central Jakarta to be the target of a protest by the Anti Corruption Youth Network (JAMAK). Following this they will move off to the KPK offices. Also present at the KPK will be another group of protesters from the Nahdliyin Youth Caucus (KMN).

A twelfth action will be held at the Century Tower building on Jl. HR Rasuna Said by the PT Mitra Bangun Griya Trade Union at 11.45am. Finally, the offices of the Upstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BP Migas) on Jl. Gatot Subroto will be the target of a demonstration at 12noon. (sho/mpr)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Students stage protest over Talakar incident

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Makassar – Some 50 students from the Makassar Solidarity for Polongbangkeng Residents group staged a protest on Tuesday before the office of state plantation company PT PTPN XIV, demanding the firm return the land it has rented for years to local residents.

The students began their demonstration in front of the turnpike gate, making speeches and trying to get the public's attention, before marching to the PTPN office, which they were unable to enter because of tight security.

"We demand that the firm return the land it has rented for 27 years in Talakar to the local people," Amir Mappalawa, the protest coordinator, said.

He urged the government to revoke the business utilization permit on the land issued to PTPN, saying it was the source of conflict in Talakar.

The students regretted the brawl that occurred between police and local people in Talakar, which injured 10 people. "Stop the violence, intimidation and terror," Amir said, adding that the local police chief should be held responsible for the incident.

Aceh

Rain forests damaged by Aceh relief

Jakarta Globe - August 12, 2009

Arti Ekawati – More than 200,000 hectares of Aceh's rain forests were cut down between 2006 and 2008 for use in the province's post-tsunami reconstruction, an environmental lobby group said on Wednesday.

Elfian Effendi, the executive director of Greenomics Indonesia, said reconstruction efforts were estimated to have used some 4.2 million cubic meters of timber for infrastructure projects.

The mass logging, he said, damaged 200,329 hectares of natural rainforests across the province, including on Simeulue Island and in Gunung Leuser National Park, which together with the Bukit Barisan Selatan and Kerinci Seblat national parks form a Unesco World Heritage site.

Greenomics estimated that the harvested areas included 56,593 hectares along Aceh's west coast, 44,422 hectares from Simeulue and 67,479 hectares from Gunung Leuser.

"The timber is thought to be the result of illegal logging since it was traded without official documentation," Elfian said.

The direct losses from the logging are estimated at up to Rp 7.5 trillion ($757.5 million), but Elfian said future losses for Aceh could be even more significant.

"The forest damage released at least 50.08 million tons of carbon into the air, leaving the province to bear the potential loss of about $551.3 million a year from missed carbon trading transactions," he said.

Elfian called on international NGOs that worked in the region after the tsunami to now address the damage they helped cause.

"We are not blaming them since what they did was for the humanitarian mission," he said. "But considering the conditions in the field after reconstruction, I think leaving ecological damage from humanitarian projects is not wise."

The peace dividend in Aceh

Jakarta Post - August 11, 2009

Michael Vatikiotis, Singapore – To visit Aceh today is to experience something the world rarely sees; the dividends of peace.

Five years ago when I last visited the capital Banda Aceh, it was like walking through a war zone. Piles of blackened, stinking debris and the ruins of destroyed buildings were virtually all that was left of the city a month after the devastating tsunami that killed more than 200,000 people across the province.

Ordinary Achenese, already suffering from more than thirty years of low intensity conflict, were broken and dispirited. How would they recover from so much death and devastation?

To find out, just pay a visit to the newly opened Tsunami Museum. The remarkable structure shaped like a basket, has been open barely a year, and crowds of Acehnese still throng its modern, spiraled hallways.

Through paintings, photographs and cleverly designed chambers which convey a terrifying sense of what it was like to face a roaring torrent of black water several stories high, Achenese recall the horror that tragically transformed their lives.

They visit the memorial park that has been designated around the 2,000 ton generator ship that was hurled with all the force of the wave several kilometers from its anchorage onto a small group of houses inland. In another location, the city is designing a small museum around a fishing boat still sitting atop a building, commemorating the 59 lives saved by that ship on the day of the tsunami.

Welcome to the tsunami tourist trail. What is so striking about the different ways the Acehnese are memorializing their tragedy is that at every turn they are reminded of the peace and security that accompanied the recovery and reconstruction effort.

It's hard to recognize downtown Banda Aceh as an Indonesian provincial capital, with its wide unbroken streets, tree lined avenues and orderly roundabouts.

Gaily painted concrete shop houses are sprouting everywhere, and the talk in one local coffee shop was about an expected scarcity of land as Achenese and immigrants from other parts of Indonesia flock to the regional capital, which has experienced a construction boom.

But even if there are growing complaints about the huge amounts of money contributed to reconstruction of the province running out, no one doubts the other major contributing factor to the province's new found security, which is peace.

Many Acehnese still find it unbelievable that just five years ago you could be arrested for not displaying an Indonesian flag in your vehicle, and now the man who sits in the Governor's office and the majority of local government officials are former separatist leaders. "All this is because of peace, not just money," says Iwan Samsuar, a local driver.

The most remarkable aspect of Aceh's transformation is that it remains very much a part of Indonesia. The visitor searches for signs of the particularism and distinctiveness that you might expect from an autonomy arrangement that is unique under Indonesia's unitary state framework.

Yet ahead of Indonesia's National day on Aug. 17, the city is a sea of red and white Indonesian flags, symbols of the President's Democrat party are everywhere, but I only saw one sign for the Partai Aceh, the new incarnation of the Aceh Freedom Movement or GAM.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who took the decision shortly after the tsunami struck in December 2004 to re-start the stalled peace process, garnered 90 percent of the vote in the province in last July's Presidential election, a higher percentage than he won anywhere else in the country.

Billboards across the city welcomed him to Aceh on a recent visit to inaugurate a new international airport.

In a province where people once reviled the Javanese who dominate the military and bureaucratic ranks of central authority, a Javanese president is now wildly popular.

The conflict in Aceh may not have been all that intense in a purely military sense, but the decades of enmity between the Acehnese and the apparatus of Indonesian authority, spawned a deeply entrenched independence movement, whose adherents and supporters now find themselves with a considerable measure of control over Aceh's future.

The process of accommodation and integration of the two sides was always going to be the chief risk to the peace process, and this has largely been achieved because of the successful democratic political process implemented since the peace agreement was signed in August 2005.

Few believed that Jakarta would allow the GAM to freely establish their own political party without massive interference from the center; fewer still imagined that the GAM would be satisfied with winning an election without using its victory to press the case for independence. Yet this is a conflict that has always had its roots in the sharing of spoils.

That's why the reconstruction of Aceh so evident today, and the expected returns in terms of revenue and investment are probably the most important dividends of peace. For if the Acehnese sense any betrayal of the economic promise of autonomy, old feelings of enmity and the threat of conflict will surely resurface.

As the Dutch learned after nearly a century of war with the Acehnese, subjugation leaves a legacy of hatred and mistrust.

What the government in Jakarta has achieved through the twin policies of reconstruction and autonomy stand out as a beacon of what peace and reconciliation can achieve.

[The writer is the Asia Regional Director of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, which mediated the first Cessation of Hostilities Agreement in Aceh in December 2002.]

West Papua

Police strengthen security following shooting near Freeport mine

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Jakarta – Papua Police have intensified security measures along a road connecting Timika and Papua following three shooting attacks on the road Wednesday.

Sr. Comr. Agus Rianto, spokesman for the Papua Police, told tempointeraktif.com that police had closed the road and launched investigation at the shooting sites.

"Starting today, we will be guarding mine workers as they move between sites," he said in a text message to the news portal.

Gunmen fired shots at a bus, which had been used to carry employees of PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) early Wednesday morning, while it traveled along the road leading to the Grasberg mine in Tembagapura, Timika, Papua.

The second attack occurred at around 9:35 a.m. Wednesday when a PTFI security car was passing along the same road.

Shots were also fired at two vehicles carrying a military-police joint team around noon. The team fired back at the attackers. No one was injured in all three incidents. (dre)

Papuan activist wants to lobby US over ongoing military abuse

Radio New Zealand International - August 13, 2009

A West Papuan human rights activist is in New Zealand this week to lobby support for international dialogue on issues surrounding Indonesia's Papua region.

Australia-based Paula Makabori, who is a member of the Institute for Papuan Advocacy and Human Rights, says Australia and New Zealand could play a vital role in addressing the deteriorating situation in her homeland.

While Jakarta granted Papua special autonomy provisions in 2001, implementation has been poor and most West Papuans reportedly continue to live in a climate of fear and poverty.

Ms Makabori says Australia and New Zealand cannot remain silent on ongoing human rights abuses at the hands of the Indonesian military and the recent upsurge of violence in Papua.

"For us West Papuans, we are not Asians, we are Melanesians, we are Pacific Islanders. And West Papua is not the Middle East, it's just there at the backyard of Australia and New Zealand and we would like to see that these two big brothers can pull Indonesia and convince them to come to the peace dialogue table."

Papuan activist praises NZ retailers who've stopped selling kwila

Radio New Zealand International - August 13, 2009

A West Papuan human rights activist visiting New Zealand has thanked local outdoor furniture retailers who have stopped selling products made of illegally-sourced kwila, or merbau, hardwood from Indonesia's Papua region.

Paula Makabori from the Institute for Papuan Advocacy and Human Rights, says Australia and New Zealand could play a vital role in addressing the deteriorating human rights situation and recent upsurge of violence in her homeland.

Ms Makabori says the two countries also shouldn't remain silent on the rampant deforestation underway in Papua, much of which is illegal.

But she has singled out praise for the New Zealand-based Indonesia Human Rights Committee which has successfully lobbied some retailers to stop selling products with kwila.

"At this time, I think I would like to thank too retailers in Auckland who support the campaign to stop buying kwila, or merbau log (from Papua). Because for West Papuans, log or forests is not about business luck or bad luck, it's about your life and death."

Stop linking military with Freeport attacks: Commander

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Nethy Darma Somba, Jayapura, Papua – Papua military commander Maj. Gen. Azmyn Yusri Nasution called on the public Thursday to stop speculating about the involvement of the Indonesian Military (TNI) in a series of attacks on US-based gold miner PT Freeport Indonesia.

"It is easy to accuse the TNI of perpetrating the attacks. Such baseless speculation should stop immediately. People know it is not just the TNI that provides weapons training," Nasution said.

Security remains fragile in the Freeport mining area in Mimika regency following the latest shooting incident targeting Freeport employees Wednesday.

He said there were rumors the military had been seeking payment from Freeport, one of the world's biggest gold miners, for security.

"Whose money is at stake? If we could choose, we would rather stay with our families than conduct security operations in Freeport area, where the weather can sometimes drop to 5 degree Celsius," Nasution said.

For ongoing operations in the regency, soldiers receive Rp 25,000 and officers Rp 30,000 plus three meals every day each, Nasution said, with the costs covered by the TNI.

West Papuan activist urges ban on kwila

New Zealand Herald - August 11, 2009

Lincoln Tan – A West Papuan activist is leading protests in Auckland to ban imports of kwila, an endangered tropical hardwood used in decking and outdoor furniture.

Paula Makabory, a joint-2006 Nobel Peace Prize nominee as part of "1000 women for peace", says Western demand for kwila has led to illegal logging – resulting in the destruction of "thousands of lives" in the Indonesian controlled-West Papuan region.

"Kiwis enjoying the summer sun on their kwila decks at home are simply not aware of how many people's lives have been destroyed," Ms Makabory said.

Recent campaigns have stopped several big stores from stocking kwila, including Harvey Norman, BBQ Factory, Farmers and the Warehouse.

Ms Makabory was joined by several members of the Indonesia Human Rights Committee and Green MP Catherine Delahunty in visiting retailers of wood products in the Wairau Park area yesterday.

Last year, the Government agreed in principle that all kwila imports should carry a label saying whether the supplier can verify if the wood is legal, but Ms Makabory, who lives in exile in Melbourne, said only an outright ban would contain the problem.

"As long as it is not illegal, outsiders will continue to come and take away the kwila forests which our indigenous Papuan people rely on for their very survival," she said.

"Over the years, our people's lives have been turned into hell because of Western demand for the wood and other things from West Papua."

Last month, the region was thrown into the spotlight after a series of killings, including of an Australian technician, which Indonesian police say was part of a dispute over control of access to lucrative illegal mining operations.

Papua is the scene of a long-running separatist insurgency by local guerrillas and where there is general discontent over rule from Jakarta, which took control of the western Papua region in 1969 in a United Nations-backed vote widely seen as rigged.

Maire Leadbeater, of the Indonesia Human Rights Committee, says her group is supporting Ms Makabory in lobbying the Government to push for Indonesia to have a "peaceful dialogue" with the people of West Papua to resolve longstanding grievances.

Freeport dismisses Papua tribe lawsuit as 'baseless'

Jakarta Globe - August 10, 2009

Heru Andriyanto – US mining giant Freeport McMoRan has criticized a lawsuit filed by Papua's Amungme people, who are seeking $30 billion in damages over the company's 40-year mining operation in the region, saying the action lacks legal credibility.

"Previous lawsuits against Freeport making similar baseless environmental and human rights claims have been dismissed in both Indonesian and United States courts due to the inability of the plaintiffs to present facts to support their allegations," the company said in an e-mail to the Jakarta Globe over the weekend.

The statement came after lawyers for the Amungme attended the South Jakarta District Court on Thursday to present their demands: compensation for the loss of their land and environmental devastation.

The plaintiffs said PT Freeport Indonesia, the local unit of US- based Freeport, with the help of government troops had forced the eviction of the Amungme when it started to build the infrastructure for the mine, and that the 1967 work contract that granted land concessions for Freeport was made without the approval of tribal communities in the area. These claims were immediately denied by the company.

"We have reached several land rights agreements with the Amungme and Kamoro tribes, traditional inhabitants of our area of operations, and these agreements go beyond what is required by law," said Budiman Moerdijat, a spokesman for Freeport.

"Some of these programs are ongoing and have provided many millions of dollars in community benefits to villages including housing, schools, student dormitories, medical clinics, places of worship, community buildings, roads, bridges, water wells, electrical power and support for small businesses."

The miner claimed it had established land rights trust funds in 2001 for the Amungme and Kamoro tribes and contributed $27 million to those funds through 2008, with a plan to make contributions of $1 million annually.

Titus Natkime, a lawyer for Amungme, said earlier that the tribe had never received the promised trust money and that the work contract between Freeport and the government should not usurped the tribal communities's rights to their ancestral lands.

"All the agreements were made at a time when the political situation and the state law were against us," the lawyer said.

Australian Labor Party calls for action on Papua from Canberra

Radio New Zealand International - August 10, 2009

The Australian Labor Party's National Conference has adopted a motion recognising that West Papuans in Indonesia are experiencing serious human rights abuses.

The Conference has urged Australia's Government to raise concerns about the human rights situation in Papua region and Papuan Special Autonomy with the Indonesian Government.

The Party says Canberra should seek assurances that any aid or training provided to Indonesia's Military under the Lombok Treaty Agreement between the two countries, will not be directed against West Papuans.

The convener of Sydney University's West Papua Project, Jim Elmslie, says through the Treaty, Australia is assisting the military in its repression of West Papuans.

"There's a fairly wide range of information available that indicates that there's widespread human rights abuses and that the military occupation is deepening and extending so I am concerned that the Lombok Treaty draws Australia into what is a human rights mess."

Meanwhile, Papuan groups have expressed disappointment that the Pacific Islands Forum leaders summit in Cairns last week failed to officially discuss West Papua.

Vanuatu PM says simply no time to discuss Papua at Forum

Radio New Zealand International - August 9, 2009

Vanuatu Prime Minister, Edward Natapei says there simply wasn't time to raise the issue of West Papua at the Pacific Islands forum meeting.

Edward Natapei says NGOs, like Amnesty International and Red Cross, have illustrated what is happening in Papua.

"There was no need for us to raise it again here In the interest of time, we in fact at the leader's summit ran out of time, the time period given, so we were able to deal with what was on the agenda and but nothing other than that."

Edward Natapei says a fact-finding mission by the Melanesian Spearhead Group may still go ahead.

Pacific Island Forum again disappoints West Papuans

Southeast Asian Times - August 10, 2009

Cairns – West Papuans in Cairns to lobby the two-day Pacific Islands Forum for observer status and a response to the abuse of human rights in the Indonesian province have been disappointed.

Neither of its requests is recognised in the official communiqui issued at the end of the forum – the 40th.

West Papua National Coalition for Liberation deputy president Dr Otto Ondawame immediately issued a statement saying: "This is hypocrisy.

How could they concern themselves about human rights and democracy issues in other parts of the world but ignore what is happening next door? By not protesting or even mentioning the violence in West Papua you are infect encourage it to continue."

The Pacific Islands Forum clearly stated its concerns about the situation in West Papua during its 37th forum meeting in Fiji.

"We would have hoped that the PIF be consistent with its concerns because the situation is not improving at all. Regardless of this setback our Coalition will continue to work for a peaceful and dignified solution to the West Papuan issue."

The coalition's secretary general Rex Rumakiek said: "We will never stop until once again we become part of the Pacific community as we were when we were a member of the South Pacific Commission from 1947-1962."

Australia West Papua Association secretary Joe Collins said before the forum began that the gathering had previously responded to such request by listing its concerns about human rights in West Papua in its official communiqui.

But pressure from the Australian and Indonesian governments has recently kept the issue off the forum's agenda, she said. The Australia West Papua Association wants the forum to send a fact finding mission to West Papua to investigate the complaints.

The Pacific Islands Forum – formerly the South Pacific Forum – consists of 16 independent and self-governing Pacific States. Its members are: Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Nauru, New Zealand, Tonga, Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Niue, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

New Caledonia and French Polynesia attended the formal session as associate members. East Timor, Tokelau, Wallis and Futuna attended as observers.

West Papuan representatives have regularly attended the forum in an effort to have the participants raise their complaints with the Indonesian government.

They have also asked that genuine representatives of the West Papuan people be granted observer status at the forum in the way it has been granted to several other non-self governing territories of the Pacific.

The forum's final communiqui highlights the threat of climate change to the Pacific islands and the consequences of the global economic contraction but without providing specific remedies.

Human rights/law

No need to worry about state secrecy bill, ensures Juwono

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Jakarta – Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono says the public need not worry about the State Secrecy Bill, citing democratic progress.

"There will always be a countervailing force from civil society groups and the media," he said Thursday at a discussion at the Press Council.

The bill has met with heavy opposition from NGOs and the media, who say its definition of state secrets is vague. The Press Council reiterated demands that the passage of the bill be delayed or that a large part of its content be heavily revised.

Controversial contents include article 6, which includes as a state secret "information regarding the allocation of the budget and its spending, and the appropriate government assets for the purpose of national security".

The article also says information on "details of the structure" of the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the deployment and salaries of its members are state secrets, but not export data and information on weaponry.

"I'm intrigued about whether the state is allowed to keep such information confidential," Agus Sudibyo, a researcher on press issues, said at the discussion.

The United Nations rules that any information on export and import of weaponry is to be made transparent, he added.

Juwono said the bill was urgent, given today's continuous, cross-border traffic of communication.

Apart from security affairs, state interests also include economic competition, he said, pointing out that under the bill, documents of trade negotiations would also be classified as state secrets.

One business editor pointed out that with "studies conducted by the government for the specific purpose of national economic interest" to also be classified as state secrets, the media would not even be able to quote data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

In response to criticism that the articles were subject to different interpretations, Juwono said laws must cater to all interests.

The University of Indonesia professor said the modern state was less powerful than media moguls. And given advances in technology, he said, "We hold no illusions that we can keep all things secret."

Agus said several groups had urged the government to return to the earlier draft on state cryptology, initiated by the State Cryptology Agency of the past New Order regime, or draw up a new bill limited to "strategic information".

Press Council deputy chairman S. Leo Batubara said the bill contradicted President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's pledge to fight for clean governance.

Legislators said last month the bill was unlikely to be passed before the end of their term on Sept. 30. But in two weeks, the House managed to speed up its deliberations. (hdt)

Online law can be used as tool of repression, warn activists

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Jakarta – The Information and Electronic Transactions Law may become a tool of political censorship, journalists and lawyers attending a regional seminar organized by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) concluded Thursday.

"I believe there will be many 'free riders' on this law, which is meant to ensure the protection of online and electronic business transactions," said the AJI's Kurie Suditomo.

She defined free riders as those who could misuse the law to repress freedom of expression.

Prominent lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis said the law, passed in 2008, was actually necessary. He said it stipulated that printed material from the Internet and electronic media could be used as evidence in court, which was very helpful for the business community.

"However, the law was made by incompetent and corrupt lawmakers who have mixed defamation into a law that supposedly regulates only business transactions," he said. "To make things worse, the law enforcement officials implementing the law are equally incompetent and corrupt."

Jim Nolan, legal consultant for the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), warned the law could be used as a political censorship tool.

"This has happened in authoritarian countries where governments have made online defamation laws because they were worried about the free political discussions on the Internet," he said.

He warned that under the law, a story published in print media could land the writer 12 months in jail, while the same story online could carry a separate six-year sentence. This could cause trouble for Indonesian publications with both print and online editions, he said.

Bayu Wicaksono, co-founder of the Press Legal Aid Foundation, said the law had not initially been drafted with censorship in mind.

"One of the legislators who drafted the law said it had been recommended by Bank Indonesia, which wanted to protect electronic business transactions," he said.

"My institution is worried this law will cause trouble for journalists. However, there's been only one journalist charged under this law." Bayu added at least six people had been charged with online defamation under the law. The most notorious case is that of Prita Mulyasari.

"Most of the defamation cases are linked to personal insults posted on networking websites," he said.

The problem with the law, he went on, was that it was open to several interpretations: the specific article on defamation has a very limited explanation of its usage, and does not differentiate between the various kinds of defamation.

Nolan said the law was draconian because it had a very dramatic effect on individuals. He said it was not fair to jail people for expressing opinions, no matter how wrong their opinions might be.

Nolan quoted Communication and Information Technology Minister Muhammad Nuh, who said, "The media and bloggers only have the right to electronically publish information that does not defame others or offend tribal affiliations, religion, race or societal group status."

"As the minister's comments would suggest, mere 'offense' is sufficient to be charged under this law," he said. (mrs)

Press Council deems state secrecy bill 'ironic'

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Jakarta – The Press Council says the current State Secrecy Bill is an ironic twist on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's election commitment to uphold democracy and the rights of all citizens.

"We see that in recent times, both the government and the House of Representatives have been doing nothing but deliberating bills, such as the State Secrecy Bill, that have the tendency to charge the press as criminals," the council's deputy chairman, Sabam Leo Batubara, told a discussion Thursday.

Civil society groups have opposed the bill due to vague definitions surrounding the status of confidential material, which they claim is prone to abuse.

One of the bill's most controversial clauses concerns the death penalty for anyone found guilty of leaking confidential information.

However, Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono said the media and civil society groups should not get so worked up over the content of the bill.

"Ambiguity of clauses is the essence of democracy, because in democracy, there are many interests that need to be served. If there is no ambiguity, then it means that we are in an authoritarian era," he said. (hdt)

Rights body accuses police of abusing villagers

Jakarta Post - August 11, 2009

Makassar – The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) said Monday that police officers had committed human rights violations during a clash with local residents over a land dispute with a state plantation company in the South Sulawesi regency of Takalar.

The Sunday brawl in a sugarcane field belonging to State Plantation Company (PTPN) XIV, injured six residents and four police officers.

Commissioner Dedi Askari said his fact-finding mission discovered that the police had used disproportionate force in their handling of the incident, by firing on protesters at close range.

Two local residents, Jupri Daeng Tona, 30, and Haris Daeng Naba, 28, underwent surgery Sunday to remove bullet shrapnel. Witnesses said the clash started when villagers banned PTPN XIV workers from doing their jobs at the firm's plantation field in Timbuseng village, North Polongbangkeng district, claiming they owned the land.

10 hurt as villagers clash with police in South Sulawesi

Jakarta Post - August 10, 2009

Takalar – A clash between local residents and police at a sugarcane plantation in Takalar regency, South Sulawesi wounded 10 people on Sunday.

The plantation is run by the State Plantation Company (PTPN) XIV. Six of the injured people were civilians and the rest were police officers.

Witnesses said the brawl began when villagers banned PTPN XIV workers from doing their jobs at the firm's plantation in Timbuseng village, claiming that they owned the land. Police then arrived on the scene to break up the conflict.

However, the situation changed rapidly when someone threw a stone at the local residents, provoking them to respond by throwing more stones at the police.

Police then chased the residents who ran to the nearby residential areas. The residents then regrouped, returned to the plantation field and fought against the police.

PTPN XIV spokesman Bahrun said the Takalar regency administration had approved of a land usage permit for the plantation company until 2024. "So if anyone claims that they own the land, they should take legal action."

Labour/migrant workers

Unions call for definition of core businesses

Jakarta Post - August 15, 2009

Jakarta – The government needs to define the core businesses of companies in order to regulate the kinds of jobs for which workers can be outsourced, labor unions say.

Odie Hudiyanto from Labour Working Group, an NGO focusing on laborers' education, said Friday it was high time the government put an end to Indonesia's outsourcing chaos through better management. "The outsourcing system could turn catastrophic for companies."

He argued July 17's bombings of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels could have been prevented if the hotels had not outsourced staff. An outsourced florist at the Ritz-Carlton named Ibrohim was suspected to have smuggled explosive materials into the Marriott.

"Outsourced workers have less emotional commitment to the companies, making them suitable candidates for terror activities," Odie told The Jakarta Post after a meeting with high level officials at the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry.

"The government should see this tragedy as a wake up call, to remind us of the danger of outsourcing."

The unions submitted their proposal to define the core businesses of companies to the ministry's director general for industrial relations and social security, Myra Maria Hanartani, who promised to pass it on to Minister Erman Suparno.

Defining the core businesses, Odie said, would help curb rampant outsourcing practices, which had been misused to reduce labor costs.

The ministry's data shows that the country is home to more than 200 outsourcing companies.

The 2003 Manpower Law stipulates that companies cannot outsource staff for their core businesses.

However, Odie said, no one had ever defined the core businesses specifically for each company. "This has allowed companies to outsource as many staff as they like."

Labor unions have been fighting to eradicate or at least curb the practice of outsourcing in the country. An effort was made back in 2004 to contest the Manpower Law that legalizes outsourcing, but the judicial review request was dismissed by the Constitutional Court.

"That's why we have now come up with a new approach. If the law is not to be nullified then the government must provide a better explanation as to how it should be implemented," Odie said.

He added outsourced staff were mostly underpaid and without allowances or separation pay.

"We urge the government to raise their wages. Outsourced workers must be paid more than permanent employees with less than a year's working period," he said, adding that higher wages are to compensate for the worker's uncertain future.

The unions also demanded the workers be given separation pay when their contracts are over. (adh)

Most SEZ workers live in slums

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Fadli, Batam – Over 90 percent of the 350,000 workers employed in Batam, Bintan and Karimun Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in the Riau Islands province have no access to adequate housing and live in slum areas.

Head of the provincial manpower agency Azman Taufik said most workers could not afford to rent apartments, as the rent would take up their entire monthly income.

"They live in boarding houses or rental places in slum areas, as the monthly rent for adequate housing in Riau Islands is beyond their reach. The solution is to build low-cost apartments for them," Azman said on the sidelines an inauguration ceremony for two new low-cost apartment blocks in Batam.

Public Housing Minister Yusuf Ansyari said he had asked the local Industrial Estate Association to provide land to build more low- cost apartments for workers.

"The association has in principle agreed to our request. We are considering whether to draft a regulation to make it legally binding," Yusuf said.

He said his office would spend Rp 400 billion on building low- cost apartments for workers, students, the Indonesian Military and police personnel across the country. Part of the Rp 400 billion fund has been allocated for the construction of four twin blocks of low-cost apartments in Batam.

Mustofa Wijaya, chairman of Batam Industrial Development Authority (BIDA), said his office had only managed to build low- cost apartments for 4,500 workers.

1.23 million jobless in Central Java

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Suherdjoko, Semarang – There are 1.23 million people in Central Java unemployed says a manpower agency official.

Siswo Laksono, head of Central Java's Manpower, Transmigration and Population Agency, said this year only 15.46 million out of 16.69 million people will have jobs.

"We have tried to resolve the problem but we cannot meet targets. The number of job seekers is more than the number of job opportunities," he said.

The Central Java administration has allocated Rp 70 billion (US$7 million) to regencies and mayoralties to deal with unemployment.

Siswo said if people were looking for work they should find out about job vacancies. "We are holding a job fair Tuesday and today," Siswo added.

Thirty-seven companies are participating in the job fair including those in the banking, textile, printing, hospitality, retail, insurance, catering and automotive sectors. It expects to recruit 2,291 new employees.

Activists urge Indonesia to ratify convention on migrant workers

Jakarta Globe - August 10, 2009

Ismira Lutfia – Several prominent women's activists are spearheading a campaign aimed at securing government ratification of the International Convention on Migrant Workers, which they say would protect the rights of workers and their families.

The activists involved in the campaign are Azriana from the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), Manna Maria Nababan from the migrant worker task force of Komnas Perempuan, Umi Farida and Yohanna of the Women's Legal Aid Foundation (LBH), and Apik and Nanda Takarai of Solidaritas Perempuan.

"The government included the plan to ratify the 1990 convention in its 2004-2009 National Human Rights Action Plan [Ranham], but it still hasn't acted on it," Azriana said during a visit to the Jakarta Globe office on Monday.

She said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights had expressed support for the convention's ratification, but the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, as the main institution tasked with the issue, had been reluctant to ratify the convention.

Azriana said the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry was not interested in ratifying the convention because it would oblige the government to protect the rights of foreign workers in Indonesia.

"But we all know that the majority of foreign workers in Indonesia do not fit the definition of migrant workers in the convention," Azriana said.

She added that even if there were such foreign workers in the country, they were still far outnumbered by the Indonesian migrant workers employed in countries around the world.

Azriana said there had been numerous reports of Indonesian migrant workers, particularly maids, being abused by their foreign employers, and the government had often found itself powerless to help them.

The activists said that by ratifying the convention, Indonesian migrant workers would be protected by the principles laid out in the document.

"By ratifying the convention, the government would also have to bear responsibility for undocumented or illegal [Indonesian] workers," Umi Farida said, adding that it would also ensure that the families they left behind would be protected.

"That would also mean that the families would receive remittances in full," Umi said.

Azriana said the Philippines was the only country in Southeast Asia to have ratified the convention, while Indonesia has been a signatory to the convention since September 2004.

She said that another objection raised by the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry was that the ratification would allow foreign workers here to own assets such as land and houses in the country, though she added that could be regulated by an accompanying law.

New labor group to fight for rights of workers abroad

Jakarta Globe - August 10, 2009

Anita Rachman – The government said it would throw its weight behind a newly launched coalition of labor unions that hopes to help migrant workers who would otherwise lack representation while employed abroad.

Voluntary Services Overseas (VOS), which is composed of seven unions from 18 regions across the country, officially began working as a coalition on Monday.

Jumhur Hidayat, head of National Agency for the Placement and Protection of Overseas Labor (BNP2TKI), said the government was willing to support the effort.

"VOS will collaborate with labor unions in the destination countries. And that's legal," he said. "What is illegal is for Indonesians to gather and form their own organizations overseas."

Muhammad Rodja, a spokesman for the new group, said it would work with existing overseas unions to help meet migrant workers' needs.

Rodja, who also serves as president of the Reformed All Indonesian Workers Union, said the group was needed because labor unions in the country "are not really strong. So we need to work with those in destination countries to protect our workers there."

Jumhur said a handful of Indonesian migrant workers started the collaborative effort. He cited as an example tens of thousands of Indonesian plantation workers in Malaysia's Johor who worked with the Malaysian labor organization National Union of Plantation Workers. Similar steps had been taken by Indonesian workers in Korea and several other destination countries.

"They will get good protection, because the labor laws apply to them and they can report to the labor union in case something happens," Jumhur said.

He said that by uniting, workers would gain leverage and boost their bargaining power.

He said with a better negotiating position "no single party exploits another," a phenomenon that often happens in the destination countries. "Labor unions there work with the countries' ministries of manpower," he said.

He said that, unfortunately, overseas labor protection in the most common destination countries did not extend to domestic workers, which make up 55 percent of the total of 6 million migrant workers overseas.

Domestic workers, Jumhur said, were not regulated by law in destination countries such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan or Malaysia.

Jumhur added that the BNP2TKI is working on efforts to establish shelters for domestic workers so that they are not forced to stay at employers' houses.

Environment/natural disasters

Activists condemn dropping of Lapindo charges

Jakarta Globe - August 13, 2009

Fidelis E. Satriastanti – Activists on Thursday said that a decision by the East Java Police to withdraw criminal charges against energy company PT Lapindo Brantas over the Sidoarjo mudflow disaster smacked of collusion and conspiracy.

The police on Friday said that they were dropping the case and absolving 13 Lapindo executives and staff of blame in the mudflow, which began in 2006 and has since submerged hundreds of hectares in the East Java district and left more than 15,000 people homeless.

"We have gone back and forth to [the police] and gave them recommendations of experts who might be able to help them with the investigation," said Taufik Basari, a lawyer for the mudflow victims. "However, none of those independent experts have been questioned."

In March 2006, mud began flowing from a crack near a Lapindo gas drilling well, allegedly caused by Lapindo's negligence. The company, however, blames an earthquake in Yogyakarta, hundreds of kilometers from Sidoarjo.

Lapindo is linked to the Bakrie group, which is controlled by the family of People's Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie.

In three years of legal battles over the disaster, police submitted their case dossier four times to East Java prosecutors, but it was repeatedly returned due to insufficient evidence.

Taufik said that if law enforcers' intentions were good, they should have just let the case go to trial and awaited the result.

"We also are aware that the investigation process – especially concerning the testimony of experts – seems to have benefitted the company much more," he said, adding that police appeared to have determined the facts in the case based on the quantity of opinions, rather than quality.

"There were only three experts saying that [the mudflow] was caused by drilling activities," he said, "but there were nine experts saying that it was caused by the earthquake in Yogyakarta."

Bambang Catur Nusantara, East Java director of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), cautioned that Lapindo might see the move as justification for not paying further compensation to mudflow victims, which President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered in 2007.

"Even with a presidential decree arranging a compensation mechanism for the villagers, things haven't gone smoothly," he said. "And now they have an even stronger reason to delay things further."

Meanwhile, East Java Police spokeswoman Pudji Astuti said officers were doing their best and had made use of all witnesses.

"We did ask lots of experts in this case. But police can't bring the case before the court because that's the prosecutors' job," she said. "The files have been returned to us by the prosecutors four times because they wanted physical evidence that could prove a connection between the drilling and the eruption."

Government weaker than Lapindo, says activists

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Jakarta – Human rights and environmental activists deem the government as powerless when it comes to dealing with big corporations after the police stopped its investigation against Lapindo Brantas Inc.

The company is widely believed to be responsible for the mudflow that displaced thousands of residents in Sidoarjo, East Java.

"I believe there is a conspiracy behind the decision to drop the investigation," the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) executive director, Berry Furgon, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday. "The East Java Police do not have any solid reason behind their decision."

The East Java Police detectives chief dropped the probe through a decision letter signed on Aug. 5. The police said that a lack of evidence was the reason they halted investigation into Lapindo, a private oil and gas company partly owned by the family of the Coordinating Minister for the People's Welfare, Aburizal Bakrie.

"The police claim is nonsense. We have many experts who are ready to testify that the mudflow was caused by Lapindo's drilling activities, not a natural disaster," Berry said.

"The worst part is the government showing no commitment at all and becomes more of the problem than the solution. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono himself is seemingly incapable of pressuring Lapindo."

Berry said as the government was powerless, Walhi was now trying to continue the fight by submitting demands to the National Commission for Human Rights.

One of the commission's member, Kabul Supriadi, told the Post that a special investigative team had been established in response to Walhi's request.

"The team's first job is to gather solid evidence on the possibility whether there is a gross violation of human rights or not in the case of Lapindo mudflow issue," said Kabul, who leads the team.

If the commission manages to find solid evidence of a gross violation of human rights practice, then the case can be brought to the International Court in The Hague.

The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) chairman, Patra Zen, said that there was no need to search for more evidence regarding the possibility of a gross human rights violation in the Lapindo case.

"The evidence is clear. It is a fact that a drilling by Lapindo was taking place at the mudflow site. It is also a fact that world class geologists agree that the mudflow was caused by the drilling activities, not by natural disaster.

"The main question now is whether the government 'wants' to do something to Lapindo, not whether the government 'can' do something on the company."

Patra also said that the East Java police had behaved totally unprofessionally.

"The police said that they could not fulfil the demand of the prosecutors for more solid evidence in the case dossiers. Such a statement reflects the police being unprofessional. The police let the mudflow victims suffer for their incompetence."

The YLBHI and Walhi are the initiators of a criminal probe request against Lapindo.

The police submitted the case dossiers to prosecutors on Oct. 30, 2006. However, prosecutors returned the dossiers due to lack of hard evidence.

The police then completed the case files and re-submitted them to the prosecutors only to be rejected again by prosecutors. The last time the prosecutors returned the dossiers to the police was on April 6, 2009.

Assistant to the East Java chief prosecutor for general crimes, Eddy Rakamto, confirmed his office had returned the case files against Lapindo because of, again, a lack of evidence. (hdt)

Inconsistent policies accelerate forest destruction: NGOs

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Environmental groups said Wednesday inconsistency in government policies had played an important role in forest destruction, leading to continual forest fires and deforestation across the country.

The statement was made jointly by Greenpeace, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) and Indigenous People's Alliance-West Borneo (AMAN). Greenpeace Southeast Asia forest campaigner Bustar Maitar said government policies issued this year were systematically destroying the country's forests. "Such inconsistent policies have an impact on forest fires and deforestation in Indonesia," he told reporters on Wednesday.

He said the government had issued a policy to stop illegal logging in Riau in December 2008. "But, in March 2009, the government issued annual clearing permits for Riau, which then lead to forest fires and deforestation," he said.

He said in January 2009, the government issued a policy to extend the pulp and paper industry's time frame to use natural forest timber until 2014.

In addition, under the 2009 ministerial decree, the clearing permit decision-making process was taken over by the central government from the provincial administration. "The issuance of new plantation permits has triggered forest fires, like in Riau, Sumatra and Kalimantan," Bustar said.

Greenpeace detected 161 hotspots in Riau alone, 532 in Sumatra and 2,012 in Kalimantan on Aug. 4.

Activists from the three organizations staged rallies in concession areas belonging to the country's oil palm and paper company, Sinar Mas, around Sentrarum Lake National Park in West Kalimantan last week in protest the government's inaction in stopping the continual forest fires and ongoing deforestation.

"This sensitive region is one of the largest wetlands in the world, the water source for Indonesia's largest and longest Kapuas river and the main source of protein for West Kalimantan's 4.5 million people," Bustar said.

Representatives of Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), a subsidiary of the Sinar Mas Group, also attended the press conference at the Greenpeace office on Wednesday and distributed a official statement from APP regarding the forest fires.

"It is misleading and plainly illogical to suggest that APP and its pulpwood suppliers are the cause of forest fires in Indonesia. In fact, APP has a strict 'no burn' policy. Forest fires are damaging to our investments, our pulpwood suppliers' plantations, and to protected conservation forests.

"We work hard to avoid, detect and contain them," the statement said, adding that the company spent US$2 million annually on fire management, for pumps, helicopters and fire-fighting training.

In July, it identified 213 forests fires on land belonging to the pulpwood suppliers, 199 of which were caused by illegal forest encroachment by local communities and 14 by illegal logging activities.

The Office of the State Ministry for the Environment found hotspots spread across concessions belonging to 77 companies in Riau in the first seven months of the year.

Greenpeace renewed calls on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to prioritize forest protection to save the forests and help alleviate global warming.

"His promise to the international community to reduce hotspots by 50 percent by 2009 to deal with global warming could fail if President Yudhoyono does not take strict action now," Bustar said.

Military to be deployed to fight illegal miners

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Suherdjoko, Semarang – Military officers will be deployed to monitor the closure of an illegal mining site on Mt. Merapi, Central Java, a legislator said Tuesday.

The move is to ensure that local miners do not cause any more damage to the environment, he said.

"Central Java Governor Bibit Waluyo has asked the legislative council for funding to shut down illegal mining operations, which are damaging the environment," legislator Kamal Fauzi said.

"Local miners who now find themselves unemployed will be trained in farming," he said.

There were some 3,000 local miners whose livelihoods depended on the mining site, Governor Bibit said as quoted by kompas.com.

In February, Bibit shut down an illegal mine in Kertek, Wonosobo, which was the primary source of income for 719 miners.

After four days of dialogues with the local administration, several miners from the villages of Kapencar, Candiyasan, Candimulyo and Pagerrejo agreed to take up farming, while others were offered jobs in an oil palm plantation in Central Kalimantan.

The dialogues were facilitated by an environment task force assigned by the local administration to anticipate and deal with the environmental and social impacts of the closure.

Kamal said it was difficult to prevent local villagers from continuing to mine the area, because mining provided them with a source of income.

Areas already damaged by the illegal mines will be restored by Wonosobo regency administration, with the involvement of local residents and investors who had often bought construction materials such as sand, rocks and gravel from illegal miners.

But because of increasing demand for materials for construction projects in Wonosobo, the regency administration plans to issue a decree to allow mining at the same site.

The decree would follow up on a bylaw on mining permits, which was issued by Wonosobo administration in 2007.

Councilor Kamal further said that to restore land in certain areas of Central Java, to prevent landslides and flooding, was a difficult job for authorities, because such moves often faced resistance from local villagers.

Kamal cited the area of deforested land in the Rahtawu mountainous area in Kudus regency.

"Local residents always grow corn plants there despite frequent landslides. They refuse to grow hard plants to prevent such disasters.Their reasoning is always the same: because if it is not corn, what will they harvest for food?" Kamal said.

The damaged land belonging to state-owned forestry company PT Perhutani would not be difficult to restore because the firm has an established land regeneration program, Kamal said.

Ecotourism takes toll on environment

Jakarta Globe - August 12, 2009

Candra Malik, Solo – There's an environmental drawback, after all, to the rising trend toward ecological tourism, where nature lovers flock to pristine natural sites.

Soehartini Sekartjakrarini, executive director of Innovative Development for Eco Awareness, said people's interest in these types of areas were no longer a passing fancy but were now a part of a new lifestyle.

This promises much for the development of tourism, but at the same time poses a threat to the environment, largely because of careless management by tourism operators. "Once an area develops as a tourist site, then negative side effects can also take place," Soehartini told the Jakarta Globe.

She said forests, coastal areas, small islands, villages, customary hamlets and old cities that were developed for tourism would often be flooded by related development projects – not all of them friendly to the environment. Soehartini called on the government to tightly monitor the development of tourism areas and to take firm action to prevent operators and developers from causing damage to the natural environment.

"The concept of ecotourism in protected areas, half-protected areas and cultural conservation areas should be well integrated," Soehartini said.

She outlined five components of sustainable tourism development: conservation efforts to protect the environment being developed for tourism, the participation of surrounding communities, the use of the local culture for education and entertainment, a positive contribution to the local administration, and strong controls to prevent any negative impacts from the development in the area.

A precautionary approach was also the key to developing and managing a new tourist site, she said. "Hastiness and negligence in managing the environment will only lead to the death of tourism there itself."

Ecotourism has already damaged natural resources, Thamrin B. Bachri, from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, said in a national seminar on the development of environmentally oriented tourism here.

"One example is Bunaken National Marine Park, which now draws fewer tourists than before, because the reefs have suffered damage as a result of tourism," Thamrin said.

Other tourist sites to have suffered a similar fate are the Borobudur Temple in Central Java and the Jatijajar natural cave in Central Java, he said. "Ecotourism is promising, but at the same time worrying," he said.

A member of the World Tourism Code of Ethics committee, I Gede Ardika, said that the development of tourist sites should avoid or reduce the use of nonrenewable natural resources such as water and energy, and avoid causing pollution through waste or garbage.

"Tourism infrastructure and activities should aim to protect the ecosystem and the natural diversity; it should assure the protection of endangered animals, rare species and their environments," he said.

Ardika added that the "how much money did you spend" approach to tourists should no longer be the main concern. The government should now work on encouraging the international community to help save, safeguard and protect the environment, he said.

Rights body wants Lapindo charged over mudflow

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – The National Commission on Human Rights will go ahead with its lawsuit against the President and PT Lapindo Brantas Inc, despite police having suspended their investigations into the Sidoarjo mudflow.

The disaster has caused more than 10,000 families to lose their homes and work places.

A member of the commission's task force for the Lapindo mudflow, Syafruddin Ngulma Simeuleu, said that in October his office would interview a number of witnesses comprising members of the public, displaced victims, the President and his subordinates involved in the mudflow mitigation efforts in Sidoarjo, as well as the management of PT Lapindo Brantas.

"We have been working (on this case) since last year and have gathered a number of expert witnesses and scientific documents from foreign experts showing that the hot mudflow was closely related to the oil and gas exploration work conducted by Lapindo Brantas Inc." Syafruddin told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

Based on witness testimonies, Syafruddin's team had determined Lapindo Brantas Inc. was an extraordinary crime suspect because it had carried out drilling activities that had caused the mudflow that displaced thousands of people and caused them to lose their rights to a proper living and education.

"Lapindo has apparently disbursed Rp 6.1 trillion (about US$61 billion) for social work, mudflow mitigation and compensation for displaced residents, but it doesn't mean Lapindo has already done its best. As of now, only 20 percent of the compensation payments have been completed, as mandated by the President, while the displaced victims are still waiting in uncertainty for the remaining 80 percent."

"I have approached victims on several occasions. They still live in misery and hundreds are still living in makeshift tents next to the site of the old Porong turnpike," he said.

Syafruddin added that his team had also determined the state, in this case President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, was also a suspect in the gross human rights violation for issuing a number of policies in mitigating thousands of victims who had lost their homes, jobs, livelihoods and access to education.

"The state should have protected its citizens, but in the hot mudflow case in Sidoarjo, the state failed to carry out its duty by disregarding the fate of 60,000 people," he said.

The commission had targeted to complete its investigations within three months, after which it would hold a plenary session to determine whether or not the President and Lapindo Brantas Inc. had violated human rights, and subsequently hand over the case to prosecutors, Syafruddin said.

Calls for police to re-open Lapindo mudflow case

Jakarta Globe - August 10, 2009

Amir Tejo, Surabaya – Police should revoke their recent order for cessation of investigations into who was responsible for the Lapindo mudflow disaster, the East Java chapter of the Forum for the Environment said on Monday.

Monday's action followed a police announcement on Friday that police had issued a letter known as an SP3 that formally closed the investigation and absolved 13 executives and other staff of energy company PT Lapindo Brantas of all blame for the mudflow disaster that began in 2006, leaving 15,000 people homeless.

The forum, known as Walhi, said it was prepared to work with geological experts to produce new evidence if the investigations were resumed.

East Java Walhi chapter executive director Catur B. Nusantara told a press conference "we're ready to give new evidence in collaboration with the Engineering Drilling Club."

He said Walhi believed police had influenced public opinion over the investigation by claiming there were no witnesses who could confirm a correlation between the mudflow and drilling activities at the company's Banjar Pandji I well.

The police had cited the lack of witnesses as one of the reasons why the case could not go to court. "If the police had done a thorough investigation, the witnesses could have presented data on the drilling incident so conclusions could have been drawn," Catur said.

Catur said it was not necessary that witnesses had to have actually seen the drilling that resulted in the mudflow. He cited as an example the 2004 assassination of rights activist Munir Said Thalib, saying the case had been taken to trial despite a lack of a witness who could to testify that they saw the actual murder.

"In the Munir case, the [alleged] murderer was found through a logical and objective analysis of cause and effect," Catur said. "The same method should have been employed in the Lapindo case."

Catur said Walhi believed that in addition to misleading the public, the police had also watered down Lapindo's responsibility in the matter.

By concluding that Lapindo was not to blame for the mud disaster, the company could not be sued for material and other damages. "In the end, it's the state and the people who have to pay for the loss," Catur said.

Walhi also criticized Friday's police statement that the order to cease the probe into the Lapindo case had been issued with regard to the Jakarta High Court and Supreme Court rulings in the class-action suit against Lapindo.

The class action lawsuit – a civil case – and a criminal lawsuit are two different things, it said.

In three years of legal battles over Lapindo, the police have submitted the case dossier four times to East Java prosecutors.

Each time, the prosecutors office returned the files to the police, citing insufficient evidence to go to court and demanding that the police complete the files concerning evidence the police claimed they had difficulty producing.

Lapindo mudflow threatens infrastructure

Jakarta Globe - August 9, 2009

Amir Tejo, Surabaya – More than $30 million worth of infrastructure relocated because of the three-year-old Lapindo mudflow in East Java may be once again under threat, this time from an expanding underground fissure, the Sidoarjo Mudflow Mitigation Agency said on Sunday.

Achmad Zulkarnain, a spokesman for the agency, also known as BPLS, said a subterranean-penetrating radar device had detected an increase in the dimensions of a crack caused at the time of the Lapindo mud flow disaster in Porong, Sidoarjo. The fissure is reportedly extending towards an area previously claimed to be safe and where the infrastructure, which includes a toll road and railway, had been relocated.

This latest crevice opened up in Pamotan village, 500 meters from where a new section of the Porong toll road was being constructed because the original road had been engulfed by the mud. "The crack is growing rapidly every day. Given time, it could reach the new toll road," Zulkarnain said.

Data collected by the radar device in 2008 had convinced the BPLS that the fissure would not reach Pamotan village and disrupt the construction off the relocated toll road, railway track and other thoroughfares.

However, similar measurements this year are telling another story. "The fissure is approaching the infrastructure relocation site, which has already cost Rp 300 billion for land and building acquisition," Zulkarnain said.

The BPLS chairman, Sunarso, said his agency could only report the finding to the government. "As an executive body, we don't have the authority to make any decision about moving the infrastructure relocation site," he said. "That authority lies with the government."

Sunarso said he predicted the government would find it hard to secure another site, since the current area had been prepared far in advance. "Construction of the new infrastructure is under way even now," Sunarso said.

BPLS plans to send a team of geologists to check the magnitude of the threat brought on by the fissure and land subsidence in Pamotan. The team's findings will be attached to a BPLS monthly report to the government.

"BPLS will submit data on the subterranean damage in Pamotan," Sunaro said. "Whether or not the infrastructure relocation will continue at the same site depends on the government."

The replacement infrastructure consists of a 7-kilometer arterial road and 10 kilometer of toll road and railway track stretching from Tanggulangin in Sidoarjo to Gempol in Pasuruan, past Pamotan village.

The total road and railway is 120 meters wide – 50 meters for the toll road and 20 meters for the railway track, which are flanked by two arterial roads, each 25 meters in width.

The damage caused by the mudflow, which has been devouring land and homes in Sidoarjo district since May 2, 2006, has been estimated at about $4.9 billion and growing.

The mud volcano has so far buried 12 villages, killed 13 people, displaced more than 42,000 residents and wiped out 800 hectares of densely populated farming and industrial land.

Curtin University of Technology's Dr Mark Tingay, who visited the disaster site in June this year, said about 100,000 people remained under threat from subsidence three years after the volcano first erupted.

"The high flow-rate may only continue for two to three years, or it might continue for hundreds of years," Tingay said. "And like other mud volcanoes, it will probably be in existence for thousands of years, even if its flow-rate subsides," he added.

Plantation firms behind forest fires in Riau: Minister

Jakarta Post - August 9, 2009

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – State Minister for Environment claimed that several plantation firms operating in Riau were behind the massive forest fires that caused dangerous levels of air pollution across the province last week.

He said that his office would submit its findings on forest fires cases to national police to take legal action.

"We will file lawsuit against the plantation firms this week," he told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.

Minister Rachmat and his Malaysian counterpart Douglas Unggah Embas flew over forest in Riau to watch the fires.

"The forest fires remain in place and uncontrollable. I see some forest fires are in the plantation firms." The 1999 environmental law authorizes civilian officials to investigate environmental- related violations.

Article 40 of the law says civil investigation officials may examine people accused of crimes in relation to violations.

The civilian investigators are also allowed to seek explanation and evidence from individuals or legal bodies in connection with criminal violations of the environmental laws.

The results of investigations can then be submitted to the police, who can then choose to arrest suspects based on the investigations.

Violators can face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a Rp 500 million fine.

Health & education

Nurses call on House to ratify health bills

Jakarta Globe - August 11, 2009

Candra Malik & Febriamy Hutapea, Yogyakarta – Aggrieved nurses from around the country are expected to demonstrate outside the House of Representatives in Jakarta and in other city centers next week to demand the immediate ratification of the health care and nursing bills, the University Student Nurses Association said on Tuesday.

Heru Adi Prasetya, spokesman for the Yogyakarta branch of the association, said the House's failure to enact the nursing bill and the health care bill, which had been seven years in the making, threatened the jobs of the nation's 500,000 nurses, in light of the Asean Framework Agreement on Services, which allows, among other things, foreign nurses to practice in Indonesia starting next year.

Kirnantoro, head of the Yogyakarta branch of the National Nurses Association (PRNI), urged the House to pass the bills before the terms of the current House legislators expired in September.

"If the bill is not passed in the near future, Indonesian nurses won't have the legal framework to practice on an equitable footing with foreign nurses from Asean countries," he said.

Heru said the adopted law should include ethical standards, qualification standards, standard operating procedures, legal protection and welfare guarantees for nurses.

"Without all of that, nurses won't be able to work in a comfortable environment due to the issues they would have to face without the support of the state," Heru said.

However, legislator Mariani Baramuli, a member of House Commission IX overseeing health, said the bill had not yet been discussed because it was not categorized as a priority under the current National Legislation Program.

"The draft bill is still with the legislation body, and we have not formed any committee to discuss it," Mariani said.

She said the nursing bill was not a priority because the commission was still focused on settling other more important bills linked to health such as the hospital and drug bills.

"We want to finish those bills first, but I hope that the nursing bill will be made a priority in the new House term," she said.

Kirnantoro said nurses were only covered by a Health Ministry decree on Nurse Registration and Practice, which did not provide concrete operational standards for nurses, particularly those in remote areas working under far from ideal levels of supervision.

"If the bill is not passed immediately and improved medical services and standard operational procedures are not implemented soon, nurses will find it difficult to survive," he said.

Bondan Agus Suryanto, the head of Yogyakarta's health office, said the Asean agreement should act as a spur for local nurses to improve services. "Nurses should follow internal development programs and join various seminars and workshops," he said.

Bondan said the nurses here were sufficiently trained to compete with foreign staff, but acknowledged they needed the legal protection that would be afforded them under the nursing bill, adding that other countries had such laws.

Youth groups make stand at ICAAP

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Luh De Suriyani, Nusa Dua – A number of youth groups at the International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP) made a stand today for the rights of young people living with HIV/AIDS.

The move came as experts predicated the province would be treating 4,000 people for the disease by the end of 2009. There were already 3,000 reported cases of HIV/AIDS in Bali as of May this year.

"We are only able to reach out and assist 500 people living with HIV/AIDS in Bali. There are many more out there," Putu Ayu Utami Dewi, director of Bali Plus, said Tuesday. Bali Plus assists people living with HIV/AIDS.

Established in l994, Bali Plus supports eight groups including the transgender community, gay community, commercial sex workers, family support groups and others across six regencies in Bali. "We are trying hard to rebuild their self-esteem as well as increase people's awareness of HIV/AIDS to enable those living with the disease to improve their quality of life," Utami said.

"It is important to gain support from young people and the community in general. The community and administration of Bali should take some real steps to assist people with HIV/AIDS."

During an event Tuesday at ICAAP, a number of young participants announced a joint commitment named the Bali Youth Force. This integrated alliance of local and international youth organizations from across the Asia-Pacific region came together to advocate for the rights of young people.

The alliance issued a number of recommendations derived from a month-long online survey of more than 50 people from across the Asia Pacific, along with the experiences and input of around 130 youth delegates who attended a two-day conference held prior to ICAAP.

The first recommendation called for young people to push for meaningful participation in policies that affect their lives and programs about youth issues.

"Those making decisions and outlining policies must foster partnerships between youth and adults at a local, national and international level," said Elfira Nacia, a youth representative from Bali.

"Governments must respect, protect and fulfil young people's sexual and reproductive rights, including the right to comprehensive sexual education. This enables them to make informed decisions about their lives," said Rachel Arinii, General Secretary of the Indonesia Independent Youth Alliance.

Other recommendations called for the sexual rights of young people to be comprehensively protected, such as the right to access condoms, health services, safe abortions, emergency contraceptions, voluntary counseling, testing for HIV/AIDS and treatment for sexually transmitted infections.

Data from the Bali Health Agency showed that nearly half of the 1,400 people diagnosed HIV positive were in their 20s, while 35 percent were in their 30s.

Papua better protecting women against HIV/AIDS

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Nusa Dua, Bali – Papua has intensified its campaign promoting the use of female condoms, after reports emerged of an increase in HIV/AIDS infections among residents.

Papua HIV/AIDS Commission (KPA) chairman Constant Karma said his organization had worked with local NGOs and large corporations to distribute female condoms to more than 265,000 women. Recipients had included women from high-risk groups including sex workers.

Mothers and housewives were targeted, because there had been an increase in HIV/AIDS infections among housewives over the past two years, Constant said at a press conference on the sidelines of the 9th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP), here Tuesday.

"We will continue working in the domestic sector as we do in entertainment centers and red-light districts – by promoting the use of female condoms. "Otherwise the province will face an AIDS explosion within the immediate future," Constant said.

The KPA has no recent statistics on HIV/AIDS in Papua, but according a 2006 survey, 2.4 percent of the province's population of 2.2 million were HIV positive at that time.

Previous campaigns to promote safe sex had largely targeted sex industry workers, and subsequently now there was an increase of HIV infections among people outside that group, Constant said.

According to the same data, Papua had the second highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS, after West Java.

A number of observers have said that the real number of people living with HIV/AIDS was in fact higher than official data suggests, since many people were ashamed to admit they were living with HIV/AIDS.

Constant, who is also the former vice governor of Papua, thanked the provincial government and Governor Barnabas Suebu for their efforts in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Constant said in Papua the gender gap was largely to blame for the spread of HIV/AIDS, because under Papua's feudal traditions men are allowed to do anything, including infecting women.

Alcoholism and unsafe sex among younger generations had also contributed to the spread, he said.

Victor C. Mambor, the coordinator of Stop AIDS Now! Papua group, which works to provide advocacy for people living with HIV/AIDS, said the gender gap made it difficult for women, including housewives, to uphold their sexual rights.

"The weak promotion of women's rights leaves them with no bargaining power in facing men, and this has contributed to the increasing prevalence (of HIV/AIDS) among housewives. "That is why we have started to involve men in our anti-AIDS campaign," he said.

Jayapura Social Development Foundation (YPDM) director Tahi G. Butar-butar said his organization was working was encouraging the involvement of men in an effort to close the gender gap and dispel myths that HIV/AIDS was transmitted by women alone.

"The promotion of female condoms among sex workers and housewives will give women more bargaining power... while simultaneously reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS," he said.

"The anti-AIDS campaign and sex education will also be included in the education curriculum at high schools and universities," Tahi said.

Indonesian health system on life support: Experts

Jakarta Globe - August 9, 2009

Indonesia's health care system is failing to provide even the most basic care to vast swathes of the population, specialists say.

Many who cannot afford doctors' fees often receive no treatment at all, while the wealthy fly abroad just for check-ups.

The system is plagued by under-funding, decentralization, lack of qualified staff, rising medical costs and outdated equipment, according to insiders.

"The health system desperately needs improvement," said Kartono Mohammad, a senior doctor and former chairman of the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI). "There are no laws that protect the patient," he said.

In June, the system's failures were the focus of nationwide debate when Prita Mulyasari was sued by Omni International Hospital in Tangerang after she sent e-mails to friends complaining about the allegedly poor care she received there.

In 2008, she had checked into the hospital, where doctors allegedly misdiagnosed her with dengue fever. It later emerged that the mother of two actually had the mumps.

Omni sued Prita for defamation, but even after an outpouring of public support, including from the House of Representatives, and a virtual U-turn by the hospital last week, the lawsuit may still go ahead. "Doctors are very protective of each other. It is a conspiracy of silence," Kartono said.

But for most of the country's 230 million inhabitants, even the lowest quality health care is often inaccessible.

Access to health facilities across Indonesia's 6,000 inhabited islands varies greatly. Although cities usually offer a range of services for most medical problems, in remote areas such as the easternmost province of Papua, it can take several days to reach a doctor.

In addition, many low-income earners or the unemployed avoid going to a doctor, said Ajriani Munthe Salak, from the Legal Aid Institute (LBH). "They stay at home, hoping the illness will disappear. They are afraid of bills and the bureaucratic system."

Critics say a new health insurance scheme for the poor, known as Jamkesmas, launched by the government in early 2008, was too complicated, requiring patients to provide documentation on income, identity, hospital registration, family records and a doctor's referral notice.

The Health Ministry has spent seven years drafting an ambitious new universal health care bill, but it has faced delays, budget problems and technical hurdles, such as a lack of a common definition for malpractice, said Mariani Akib Baramuli, a Golkar Party lawmaker.

House members hope the bill will pass during the current term that expires in October, but say there is a huge backlog of other work to be done. (IRIN)

Corruption & graft

Time running out for antigraft bill, experts say

Jakarta Globe - August 11, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea – Experts and activists have warned that the country's fight against corruption will suffer a serious blow if the House of Representatives fails to pass the antigraft court bill into law before the end of next month.

According to a 2006 ruling by the Constitutional Court, the country must have a new law on the Anti-Corruption Court by Dec. 19 or risk losing the legitimacy of the current court.

The Anti-Corruption Court, which has convicted several high- profile officials, including legislators from major political parties, was established under a law that also established the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). The Constitutional Court ruled, however, that a separate law was needed to give the Anti- Corruption Court the proper legal basis.

Bivitri Susanti, who chairs the Center for Indonesian Law and Policy Studies, said the bill had little chance of being passed into law by the December deadline if its deliberation was not completed before the new batch of lawmakers was sworn into office in October.

She said if the current lawmakers failed to wrap up the deliberations before their term ended in late September, the new lawmakers would have to start discussing the bill from scratch.

Based on past experience, Bivitri said, the next House will start working in October to determine priority bills and will only start discussing bills next year.

"So, the country has no choice but to endorse the bill in the current House period," she said.

Bivitri said she believed lawmakers were dragging their feet in endorsing the bill because many of them were involved in corruption cases.

"Six factions in the House support the government's stance to have more career judges rather than noncareer judges on the planned antigraft court," she said.

Bivitri said career judges were more likely than noncareer ones to be tainted by the culture of corruption in the country's judiciary.

Zainal Arifin Mochtar, a lecturer at Yogyakarta's Gadjah Mada University, said he doubted the antigraft court bill would be endorsed by next month.

He said one of the snags was the proposal in the bill to establish antigraft courts in each district in the country. "It's better to think of establishing antigraft courts in 33 provinces rather than discussing building a court in each of the country's 400 district."

Emerson Yuntho of Indonesian Corruption Watch said the bill had been watered down by the House. "The draft has gone far from the initial spirit to fight corruption."

"It's better if the president prepares for a government regulation in lieu of law [perpu]," he said. "There's no guarantee the bill will be passed in time to strengthen efforts to eradicate corruption, if we're looking at the current draft of the bill."

ICW claims former KPK chief committed violations

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Jakarta – Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) issued a report Tuesday alleging that suspended Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Antasari Azhar committed a series of ethical violations while at the head of the graft watchdog.

The ICW report was filed by staff at the KPK, including the current supervisor and advisor.

ICW deputy coordinator, Emerson Yuntho, told a press conference that Antasari violated 17 articles within the code of ethics when he was active chairman of the KPK.

Emerson, accompanied by ICW legal researchers Febridiansyah and Ilian Deta Artasari, met with KPK advisor Abdullah Hehamahua and KPK deputy supervisor Handoyo Sudrajat before the press conference.

The violations included an arranged meeting with Anggoro Widjaya in Singapore where money illegally changed hands.

Antasari also paid Rp 2 million to Nasruddin Zulkarnaen for providing information to the KPK about corruption within the business community and gave a false testimony when he claimed to not know Rani Juliani.

He also paid KPK deputy chairman M. Jasin US$10,000 (Rp 100 million) while he was in hospital.

District courts lenient on graft defendants

Jakarta Post - August 9, 2009

Jakarta – A study by Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) has found that around 70 percent of corruption defendants were freed by district courts in the first semester of 2009 whereas the Corruption Court, largely made up of appointed judges, sent those accused of graft directly to prison.

The finding has thrown President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's commitment to combat corruption into question, as it was his administration that insisted the future corruption court be made of up more career judges (those who have risen through the ranks) than non-career judges (who are directly appointed).

"Our research shows that 222 corruption defendants went on trial at district courts, high courts and the Supreme Court in the first semester of 2009," ICW coordinator on law and court monitoring, Illian Deta Artasari, said during a press conference in Jakarta on Wednesday. "More than 150 of them were freed without charge," she said.

The research also showed that defendants who were found guilty by the district court only served an average six months in jail. "Only one suspect was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison," Illian said.

Of all the district courts, the data showed that the Makassar district court freed the most corruption defendants, releasing 38 suspects in the first semester of 2009.

The Supreme Court, which is currently facing heavy criticism for its interference in the general election disputes, comes in second, having freed 13 defendants. All of those trials were handled by career judges.

"The condition is completely different when compared to cases that were handled by the Corruption Court," Illian's fellow ICW coordinator, Febri Diansyah, said.

"In the Corruption Court, all 32 corruption defendants were sent to jail. On average, they will serve almost five years behind bars." The heaviest punishment fell on Urip Tri Gunawan, a district attorney who accepted bribes during his handling of the Bank Indonesia Direct Subsidy (BLBI) scandal. Urip was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

The cases at the Corruption Court were handled by three ad hoc judges and two career judges.

The Corruption Court is under threat of dissolution as the government and the House of Representatives have not met eye to eye on certain measures during deliberations on the bill.

A ruling from the Constitutional Court in 2006 found the Corruption Court had violated the 1945 Constitution because it was established under the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) law instead of the law on judicial powers. It mandated that a new law on the Corruption Court must be passed by December 2009, otherwise that court would lose its legal standing.

Anti-corruption activists have expressed concern that the government's draft of the bill currently being discussed at the House could severely weaken the fight against graft because it calls for the corruption court to be made up of a majority of career judges.

The draft has also caused a stir because it calls for the court to be overseen by the district court, and not run independently as it has in the past.

"We believe there has been an attempt from both the government and the House of Representatives to weaken the Corruption Court," Febri said.

"This can be seen through the government's draft bill, which is trying to instate career judges in the corruption court when what is really needed is ad hoc, appointed judges," he said.

In the midst of efforts by the House's special committee overseeing the corruption court bill to pass the draft into law before the end of their term in September, the government suddenly submitted another bill on corruption.

The Golkar Party's Dewi Asmara, chairwoman of the special committee deliberating the corruption court bill, said the sudden submission of this new bill had done nothing but stall proceedings on both bills. (hdt)

Police told to focus on Nasruddin murder case

Jakarta Post - August 9, 2009

Anti-graft activists urged the police to focus on investigating Nasruddin's murder case instead of following up on the written testimony of suspended chief of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Antasari Azhar.

The activists argued the testimony was baseless, and would only further weaken the KPK's fight against corruption.

"If the police insist on investigating Antasari's written statement then most likely it will disrupt the KPK's daily performance. And if this kind of situation emerges, then most likely the graft commission would not be able to carry out its duty in fighting graft," Teten Masduki, Secretary General of the Transparency International Indonesia chapter, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Handwritten notes, reportedly Antasari's testimony, detail the alleged bribery, and mention an anonymous letter that says one of his then deputies had received a bribe from Anggoro Widjojo, a KPK graft suspect. Speculation is rife that Antasari is referring to M. Jasin.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Chrysnanda Dwi Laksana confirmed Wednesday Antasari had filed a report on the alleged bribery.

Teten said if the KPK was unable to function properly this would provide opportunities for those who had waited to crush the anti-graft commission. "These people will seek justification so they can paralyze the KPK's authority or even get rid of the KPK for good."

Antasari's written testimony was taken from data that was stored in his laptop. A source close to the KPK said that KPK investigators also had a complete recording of Anggoro's discussion with Antasari.

"In fact, in the complete recording, Antasari could not manage to find further clarification about the bribes from Anggoro, who is famous as a person who likes to bluff. So if the police insist on following up the testimony then they should find new evidence that strengthens the statement, or else it would be useless," said the source, who spoke under anonymity.

Emerson Yuntho, deputy coordinator of the Indonesia Corruption Watch, said the testimony could be treated as evidence to support Antasari's report.

"The Anti-Graft Commission Law clearly prohibits KPK members from meeting the parties implicated in graft cases being investigated by the KPK. So the recording containing Antasari's discussion with Anggoro is already a clear evidence of violation, and could lead to five years of imprisonment for Antasari."

Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Nanan Soekarna said to four men had been questioned by the police regarding Antasari's testimony. However Nanan refused to elaborate further.

"I was just informed that four men were questioned regarding this case. I was not informed about the result of the questioning. It is within the authority of the investigators."

War on terror

Jakarta arrests hundreds in ID raids

Jakarta Globe - August 14, 2009

Arientha Primanita – The city administration launched a string of raids against people without valid identification cards on Thursday, as part of efforts to improve security following the deadly twin suicide bombings in South Jakarta, an official said.

"The raids aim to free the city of people who don't have valid identity cards," said Edison Sianturi, head of the population and civil registry agency, which is in charge of monitoring and controlling the capital's population.

Edison said the raids, which netted 851 violators in five municipalities, were routine operations but they have become critically important following the JW Marriot and Ritz-Carlton bombings on July 17 that killed nine people and injured 53 others.

At least 580 officials were deployed for the raids. Aside from the population and civil registry agency, the administration also enlisted the help of the public order agency, immigration office, housing agency, social affairs agency, the police and judges.

Petra Rosanti Purba, an official from the population and civil registry agency, said that of the 851 people nabbed in Thursday's raids, the biggest number were in East Jakarta with 328 violators; West Jakarta, 156; South Jakarta, 144; North Jakarta, 124; and Central Jakarta, 99.

According to Petra, most of those flagged in the operations were released after their family members showed their identification cards while others were tried on the spot and fined between Rp 25,000 ($2.50) and Rp 50,000.

A city bylaw stipulates that residents who cannot produce valid identity cards are fined up to Rp 5 million or imprisoned for three months.

Edison said four foreigners from China, the Netherlands, France and Saudi Arabia were also caught in the raids. "The foreigners stayed in rented rooms. They failed to report their presence to local authorities," he said, adding that the immigration office would deal with them.

He said the city administration also urged local community heads to be aware of visitors in their area and to teach local residents about the importance of having identity cards.

When asked about people taking bribes from residents applying for new ID cards and from those renewing their old ones, Edison said people should report such incidents to the municipality.

"We will take firm action against them," he said, adding that his agency would first evaluate Thursday's raid before resuming in September. He also said the agency would conduct five more raids until the end of this year as part of a routine security campaign.

BeritaJakarta.com, the city's official news portal, reports that there have been 246 operations registered in the civil registry from 2004 to 2008. From these raids, the agency netted 49,664 people, of whom 23,490 people were found to have no IDs, collecting Rp 415.6 million in fines.

Yudhoyono vows to fight poverty, terror

The Australian - August 15, 2009

Indonesians must unite to root out the "poverty and backwardness" that led an 18-year-old to carry out the suicide bombing at a luxury hotel last month that ended a four-year pause in terrorist attacks in the country, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said yesterday.

In his annual Independence Day address, he said the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation "must not, and cannot, be defeated by terrorism".

It was Dr Yudhoyono's first major policy speech since twin bombings on July 17 killed seven people and wounded more than 50 at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta, and the first since police said they uncovered a terror plot to assassinate him.

One of the hotel bombs was set off by an 18-year-old high school graduate, and Dr Yudhoyono said steering young people away from extremists was a key to a terror-free future.

"Let us protect our citizens and youth from misleading and extreme ideas that may lead them to commit acts of terrorism," he said.

He said government programs would be implemented to alleviate "poverty, backwardness and also injustice" used by militant Islamists to recruit volunteers in a misguided jihad, or holy war.

Last month's hotel attack has been blamed on the same terrorist networks behind four earlier bombings that together killed 250 people, many of them international tourists on Bali.

Police have stepped up their manhunt for Malaysian terror mastermind Noordin Muhammad Top, said to have orchestrated all the bombings since 2003, many of them with al-Qa'ida funding. Those include an earlier attack at the JW Marriott Hotel in 2003, another on the Australian embassy in 2004 and a triple suicide bombing in Bali in 2005.

Three militant suspects have been shot to death during recent raids, while several other key suspects, including Top, remain at large, police say.

During their hunt, police allegedly uncovered a plot by Top and his associates to use a car-bomb to assassinate Dr Yudhoyono, who was re-elected to a second five-year term just days before the Jakarta hotel blasts.

A former commander of Jemaah Islamiah, the group behind the first Bali bombing that killed 202 people including 88 Australians in 2002, said yesterday that new militant volunteers continued to pose a threat to Indonesia's security.

Top no longer needs to find new members himself because "recruitment has been carried out by his followers and supporters", said Nasir Abas, who left the network years ago and assists with a government de-radicalisation program.

Top manages to elude capture thanks to a tight-knit support network that enables him to resettle, take new wives and plot attacks, Abas says in a new book, Fighting Terrorism and the Hunt for Noordin M. Top, that was released this week.

Noordin plots more bombings on the run

Sydney Morning Herald - August 15, 2009

Tom Allard, Jakarta – As the frantic chase for Indonesia's most wanted man Noordin Mohammed Top moved into overdrive, Indonesian police came upon two men at a motorcycle repair shop in Temanggung in Central Java.

The men, Aris Susanto and Indra Arif, were, police believed, the terrorist bombmaker's look-outs. And they had valuable information to share. Noordin, the man allegedly responsible for the bombings of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels on July 17 – and terrorist attacks stretching back to the first Bali bombings – was hiding at a nearby farmhouse.

So began the 17-hour siege involving hundreds of heavily armed members of the police's elite Detachment 88 anti-terrorism and mobile brigade units. After countless rounds of automatic weapon fire, the detonation of explosive devices and use of high-tech robots, police hauled out a body last Saturday. They were giving each other high fives as camera crews recorded the celebrations.

There was only one problem. It wasn't Noordin. Rather, it was Ibrahim, the florist who worked at the two hotels and played the key role in smuggling explosives into the hotel.

Ibrahim's demise was an important scalp. But he was the only man in the house and he did not return fire during the siege. An unexploded bomb was reportedly recovered from the house after the siege. Questions are being asked as to why such a massive display of firepower was necessary. Could a nuanced operation have led to his capture alive, providing authorities with intelligence on Noordin?

Noordin's ability to avoid capture once again has highlighted the ongoing terrorism threat in Indonesia, and reveals something of his methods of evasion and the loyal servants who will do anything to protect him.

There are two possible scenarios behind his escape. He was in the house but managed to evade the huge police dragnet, with Ibrahim remaining behind to take on police and lay down his life. Or, more likely, he was never there and his look-outs gave false information to police to throw them off the trail.

Noordin is understood to travel with look-outs who are expert in creating diversions. They act as outriders, and the motorcycle helmet provides him with the perfect cover. According to Nasir Abas, the former Jemaah Islamiah leader who trained Noordin at the Hudaibiyah terrorist camp in the southern Philippines, Noordin is a master of disguise who relies on a wide network of sympathisers to hide him. "Noordin hides by constantly moving from one place to another," Nasir told the Jakarta Globe. "He takes advantage of people's friendly nature, and [sometimes] he wears a veil and a burqa."

As Agus Widjojo, a security adviser to the Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, puts it: "It's a Tom and Jerry game. The question is, is there the capability to cover off all of his avenues of passage? The answer is no. Indonesia is an easy place to hide."

Asked if Noordin had friends in the police who were tipping him off, Mr Widjojo rejected the notion. "I don't agree with that. He is the highest priority target. It's not something anyone in the police would risk."

Indonesia's police have made significant headway in the past month. As well as Ibrahim, they have killed or captured eight others believed to be part of Noordin's network.

They have also uncovered an apparent plot to blow up Dr Yudhoyono this month with a car bomb, after a raid in Bekasi, near Jakarta, last Friday. As well as hundreds of kilograms of explosives, police uncovered detonators and a suitcase full of ball bearings and bolts that would have become deadly shrapnel. The plot, according to police, was conceived after the hotel bombings, as retribution for the execution last year of the three Bali bombers, who Noordin idolised and may have visited when he was incarcerated on the prison island of Nusakambangan.

The intelligence came from Amir Abdillah, the man who checked into the JW Marriott's Room 1808, the nerve centre of the July 17 hotel bombing operation. He told police the car bomb plot was hatched at a meeting with Noordin at a safehouse close to Jakarta a few days after the hotel bombings. The fact that a plan to kill Dr Yudhoyono could apparently be organised so quickly highlights the ongoing risks.

Noordin still has the core of his group operational. His premier bombmaker, Reno (aka Tedi), has not been caught, along with several other key members.

In a nationally televised address yesterday, Dr Yudhoyono called on Indonesians to join together to fight terrorism. "Let us protect our citizens and our youth from misleading information and extremism... and help security officers by giving information about terrorism actors who are hiding in our society," he said.

Anger as Indonesian extremists 'honored'

Jakarta Globe - August 14, 2009

Anita Rachman & Candra Malik – A hero's burial accorded by hard- line Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir for two suspected terrorists shot dead in a recent police raid was dismissed by many observers as not reflecting the sentiments of the vast majority of Indonesians.

Bashir, once alleged to have been the spiritual leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror network, led the funeral for the two men – Air Setiawan and Eko Joko Sarjono – at the "Khusus Orang Shalat" ("Only for People Who Pray") cemetery in Sragen near Solo in Central Java.

Respected Muslim intellectual Azyumardi Azra said what happened there was unique to the Solo region and would not have happened in other regions in the country because the terror attacks had filled the majority of Indonesians with anger.

"I think this is unique to Solo, as Abu Bakar Bashir is there, with his Islamic boarding schools. We know this is a more hard- line area. The funeral is hardly surprising," said Azyumardi, who is also a professor at a state Islamic university in Jakarta.

He was referring to the Al Mukmin Islamic Boarding School in Ngruki, Sukoharjo, Central Java, co-founded by Bashir. The school has had several of its alumni involved in bombing attacks, including the 2002 Bali bombing, which was responsible for the deaths of more than two hundred people.

"The burial in Solo is an anomaly," Azyumardi said. He said the demographics of the region, home to various groups of Muslims, including hard-liners and fundamentalists, made such an event possible.

Anies Baswedan, another Muslim intellectual and chancellor of the Paramadina University in Jakarta, said the burial in Solo was not reflective of the situation elsewhere.

He said many of those present at the funeral were there simply because they were curious, not because they condoned terrorism or supported the burial.

"People flocked to see the burial mainly out of curiosity, just to see what it's like," Anies said, adding that "I actually feel that the level of anger across the nation against terrorism is now higher than it was several years ago."

Anies pointed out that the home village of Ibrahim, a man accused of active involvement in the twin Jakarta hotel bombings who was shot dead in a raid over the weekend on a house in Temanggung, Central Java, had refused to have his body buried there.

His family also shunned the burial, later held at a public cemetery in Jakarta where the unknown and unclaimed are usually buried.

Residents around the cemetery in Sragen had also opposed Bashir's funeral service. After the bodies were lowered into the graves, those burying the bodies could not find hoes or shovels and had to fill the pits using their hands and feet.

"Rejecting a burial is something quite extraordinary," Anies said, especially given it was a collective action.

Syafi'i Maarif, a former chairman of the country's second largest Islamic movement, Muhammadiyah, agreed with Anies, saying the majority of Indonesians were deeply upset at what terrorism had done to their country.

He said those who still admired terrorists "needed enlightenment," adding that although those people "feel they are on the right path, in reality, they are misguided."

Air and Eko were shot dead on Saturday during a police raid on a house in Bogor, where 500 kilograms of explosives were found.

During the burial, interspersed with yells of "Allah Akbar" from the crowd of more than 100, Bashir urged the police to repent and apologize to the families of the victims. "They were not terrorists, they were Mujahideen who died in the path of Allah," Bashir said in his oration at the cemetery.

Near the house of Air and Eko in Solo, 20 kilometers away, a large banner said "Welcome Islamic Martyrs... Jihad still continues."

Municipal law and order officials were later involved in a scuffle with locals after they attempted to take down the banner.

Bashir's blessings for pair plotting Yudhoyono attack

Sydney Morning Herald - August 14, 2009

Tom Allard Herald, Jakarta – The radical Islamic cleric Abu Bakar Bashir presided over the funerals yesterday of two men linked to the terrorist cell that bombed the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta last month.

Air Setiawan and Eko Joko Santoso were killed in raids one week ago, shot as they threatened to throw improvised pipe bombs at police.

"Hopefully they will be given a reward. They are Islamic warriors because they fought for Islamic sharia," Bashir was quoted as saying by the detik.com news portal.

Bashir's address was made to hundreds of supporters near Solo, Central Java, some carrying banners proclaiming the men martyrs and "heroes of Islam". One banner said, in English, "The jihad still continues..."

Bashir was a spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah, which launched the first Bali bombings in 2002, and his boarding school in Ngruki, near Solo, has produced at least a dozen terrorists.

But neither Setiawan or Santoso went to his school, said the terrorism analyst Sidney Jones. Indeed, no terrorists have graduated from the closely monitored school in a decade.

Opinion is divided about what kind of threat Bashir poses. Some terrorism analysts see him as merely a publicity-seeking rabble- rouser. Others view him as a still dangerous ideologue intent on whipping up hostility to Westerners and fostering intolerance which terrorist organisations exploit to turn non-violent militants into mass murderers.

"I'm not sure we know for sure," said Ms Jones, of the International Crisis Group. "His new organisation [Jama'ah Ansharut Tauhid] is above ground but one of the members of its executive council, a man named Ubeid, was involved in the Australian embassy attack and had a very close association with Noordin," she said, referring to the fugitive terrorist leader Noordin Mohammed Top.

Setiawan, 28, was also involved in the Australian embassy bombing in 2004, rejoining his mentor, Noordin, upon his release from prison.

With Santoso he had been allegedly planning to launch a terrorist attack on the Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

At least 100 kilograms of explosives and a car modified to be used in a suicide attack were found in the raid in Bekasi, near Jakarta, that resulted in the two men's deaths.

The car had been bought in Solo and taken to Bekasi by Santoso, police believe. The funeral service stands in contrast to the perfunctory burial of Ibrahim, the florist who played a leading role in planning the attacks on the luxury hotels where he worked.

He was buried on Wednesday in Jakarta after his family from West Java disowned him. Only police and media were present.

Meanwhile, another counter-terrorism raid in Bogor yesterday snared chemicals used in explosives, but police made no arrests.

Police, TNI want tougher laws against terrorism

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Dicky Christanto – Authorities have said the recent hotel bombings and subsequent police raids in Temanggung, Central Java and Jatiasih, Bekasi, were evidence that terrorist groups represent an escalating threat.

With the country's most wanted terrorist, Noordin M. Top, still on the lose and dozens of his supporters across Java apparently able to keep him hidden, another bomb attack from his Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) faction remains a serious threat.

Police and Indonesian military (TNI) officials said Thursday that the fight against terrorism needed stronger legal framework and the increased involvement of the military.

Human rights activists, however, have slammed the authority's proposal – which would give the police and the TNI the right to arrest people at will and detain them for as long as they want – saying they allow for serious violations of human rights and hark back to the repression of the New Order era.

The Anti-Subversion Law was routinely used during the Soeharto era by intelligence officers and the military to apprehend people suspected of being involved in "terrorism".

National police spokesman Insp. Gen. Nanan Soekarna said here Thursday that Indonesia should have regulations that authorize security officials to apprehend and detain anyone who has colluded in any way with terrorist groups.

Although current laws allow the police to detain terror suspects for up to seven days without an arrest warrant, police are frustrated as they can not arrest clerics like Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, leader of the Ngruki boarding school, who police said has clearly incited violence.

Nana then cited the fact that neighboring countries like Malaysia and Singapore, which have such strong laws, have managed to eradicate terrorism. "The terrorists don't have the opportunity to live in their countries," he said recently.

Malaysia and Singapore are seen to have been quite successful in ridding their backyards of terrorism, thanks to the Internal Security Act (ISA), which allows their security officers to apprehend people they believed have links with terrorism.

TNI chief General Djoko Santoso went even further, saying the military would intensify anticipatory measures against terrorism right down to the village level.

"We have adopted three strategies to fight terrorism, namely early detection, preventive measures and action," he said Tuesday, adding that territorial commands in each region will handle the tasks.

Right activist Hendardi, however, rejects the idea that terrorists still operate because Indonesia lacks strong enough laws to stop them, saying that it was an old song played by security officials whenever their failure is publicly spot lighted.

"Improve the intelligence squads by empowering them with the skills needed to fight terrorism in the future. This is more important than amending regulation that in the end will only spark human right violations," he said.

A man killed in police raids last week turned out not to be Noordin, as the police had originally thought.

Meanwhile, police confiscated Wednesday morning 12 kilograms of chemicals used to make bombs in Cimahpar village, Bogor.

Terror raid violated human rights: Komnas HAM chair

Jakarta Globe - August 14, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – A human rights watcher on Friday criticized police and media for their actions during last weekend's raid on a suspected terrorist hideout.

Ifdhal Kasim, chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights, or Komnas HAM, said that the raid in Temanggung, Central Java, which was screened for 18 hours by one television station, had deprived suspects of their human rights.

"In the euphoria of the anti-terrorism push, we should also respect the rights of the suspects as well as their families," Ifdhal said.

Last week, special police forces had been sent to capture a man who was believed to be fugitive Noordin M Top. However, police found out later that they did not target the right person and instead killed another terror suspect, Ibrahim, during the raid.

Ifdhal said that the action of the law enforcers during the raid was legal. However, he said that it was wrong to turn the raid into a violent television drama.

Ifdhal said that even though the commission supports police efforts to eradicate terrorism, it should be done in a respectful way to human rights.

"We want police to improve their professionalism," he said. "We also want them not to give access for the media to show 18 hours of violence against a 'powerless' terrorism suspect."

Ifdhal also warned that mass media should not preemptively label suspects as being guilty.

"We should uphold the presumption of innocence," he said. "The media should not publish misleading news while the police force itself is still collecting the evidence."

"Media should also be able to restrain itself from screening the violent actions of the state officers. Children also watch the shows, not only adults. The media should consider this before screening such shows."

Top may hide himself in headscarf and burqa: Former JI head

Jakarta Globe - August 13, 2009

Farouk Arnaz – Indonesia's most wanted terrorist, Noordin M Top, may disguise himself by wearing a women's Islamic headscarf and a burqa, a former head of Jemaah Islamiah (JI) said during a book launch on Thursday.

The statement was made by Nasir Abbas, a JI head who now assists police, during the launching of his book "Memberantas Terorisme, Memburu Noordin M Top" ("Fighting Terrorism, Chasing Noordin M Top") in East Jakarta.

"Noordin hides by constantly moving from one place to another," Nasir said. "He takes advantage of people's friendly nature, he wears a veil and a burqa and he married local women."

The latest release is Nasir's third book about JI and his books are widely referenced by counterterrorism experts because of his background.

Nasir is one of Noordin M Top's former instructors at the Hudaibiyah terrorist camp in the Southern Philippines. His sister was married to Mukhlas or Ali Gufron, one of the Bali bombing masterminds.

Now, Nasir actively assists Indonesian police in attempts to persuade his former JI 'colleagues' to change their hardline ways.

In 2008, Nasir told the BBC that he had received an official letter from the United Nations to state that he was no longer considered a terrorist.

DNA shows body of slain militant not Noordin Top

Associated Press - August 12, 2009

Anthony Deutsch, Jakarta – A suspected militant slain during a 16-hour siege with counterterrorism forces last week was not Indonesia's most-wanted militant Noordin Muhammad Top, police said Wednesday.

Tests comparing the body's DNA with members of Noordin's family came back negative, said Eddy Saparwoko, head of the national police victim identification unit.

Noordin, a Malaysian, has been blamed for a series of deadly al- Qaida-funded attacks in Indonesia since 2003 and is the prime suspect in twin suicide hotel bombings in Jakarta on July 17 that killed seven people.

Last month's attacks ended a four-year lull in terrorism in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation. Bombings have killed more than 250 people in Indonesia since 2002, most of them on the resort island of Bali, where a 2002 attack killed 202 people.

"The DNA test didn't match with Noordin's family," Saparwoko told a nationally televised press conference Wednesday.

Local media had reported that Noordin, a self-proclaimed al-Qaida commander who has eluded capture in Indonesian and Malaysia since 2001, was slain in a gunbattle with security forces.

But Saparwoko said the man who died in the shootout at a farmhouse in central Java on Saturday was a florist, identified only as Ibrohim. He made floral arrangements at the J.W. Marriott Hotel and Ritz-Carlton, where suicide bombers attacked last month during breakfast, killing themselves and wounding more than 50 others.

Chief national police spokesman Nanan Sukarna identified Ibrohim as "a planner and arranger of the bombings" and said that five other suspects in the blasts remain at large, including Noordin.

Ibrohim, who worked in the hotels at least two years prior to the July bombings, began scouting the targets three months in advance and smuggled explosives in through a basement cargo dock a day before the strikes, Nanan said, showing newly-released security camera footage.

The grainy images show a lone man driving a small pickup truck into the J.W. Marriott Hotel and unloading what police said were three containers of explosives, apparently after skirting all security checks.

The video also showed Ibrohim leading the suicide bombers, one of them an 18-year-old high school graduate, through the hotels on July 8, apparently in a rehearsal for the attacks plotted from two rented safe houses on the outskirts of the capital, Jakarta.

"We know him. He worked as a third-party florist," said Allan Orlob, head of security for the US-owned J.W. Marriott and Ritz- Carlton 5-star hotels.

Ibrohim resigned the morning of the bombings, Orlob told The Associated Press on Wednesday, and left only a letter to his employer in which he asked that part of his last pay check be used to repay several people who loaned him money.

Portrait of a bomber: nice, but he was easily led

Sydney Morning Herald - August 11, 2009

Tom Allard, Barung (West Java) – Dani Dwi Permana was a conscientious, basketball-loving young man, a solid student from a troubled family who, nonetheless, seemed to have a lifetime of promise to fulfil.

Yet weeks after graduating from high school and aged only 18, Dani walked into a meeting of executives at the JW Marriott hotel and detonated two bombs, killing himself and murdering five others, including the Australians Craig Senger, Garth McEvoy and Nathan Verity.

Friends, neighbours and worshippers at his mosque yesterday said Dani – almost universally described as "very nice" – was the unlikeliest of mass murderers, albeit someone who was easily persuaded.

And, like Indonesian police, they believe that an ustad, or cleric, at the As-Surur mosque – Saifuddin Jaelani – was responsible for persuading Dani to give his life and take others for the cause of violent jihad against the US and its allies.

"He was very nice, very polite. I can only think he was completely brainwashed," said Aida, who lived across the road from Dani in the Telaga Kahuripan housing complex, a once-prestigious gated community about an hour's drive south of Jakarta.

"When I was pregnant and I couldn't start my motorbike, he said 'hey, let me do it'. He walked it a kilometre [to the repair shop]."

Harno, a regular at the mosque, said Dani loved basketball. "We would always talk about sport," he said.

Another elderly man at the mosque, who declined to be named, said: "If we asked him to fetch us food, he would always do it. The other teens would only help if it was a special occasion, like a neighbourhood clean-up. But Dani was always very helpful. "Maybe because Dani was so helpful, it made it easier for him to be manipulated. It's true, he was easily persuaded."

The son of a security guard at the complex, Dani lived in a small house with his brother Jaka and his father. His mother lived in Kalimantan after a messy divorce. Things got worse when his father was imprisoned about a year ago for robbery.

It was then that Dani seems to have fallen under the spell of Saifuddin. "Ustad Saifuddin usually spent time with the caretakers [young devotees] at the mosque. Usually they would gather here after evening prayer," said Harno. "Sometimes he would go out with them camping. But that didn't seem to be suspicious because that is what an ustad should do."

Even so, Dani had clearly become radicalised. According to a school friend, he talked openly of waging jihad, the Islamic notion of struggle that is typically a peaceful pursuit by the devout but is twisted by terrorist groups to justify mass murder.

"I ask him what he wanted to do [after graduation]. He said he wanted to go to do jihad," Yulianto, the friend, told TV One.

Aida said Saifuddin had not raised widespread concern at the time, even if he was known for his anti-US rhetoric. "We now know that [Saifuddin] was trying to brainwash many young people here. He told these youngsters that American was bad."

Saifuddin is believed to have groomed up to 10 men from the area. According to Indonesian counter-terrorism sources, Saifuddin is suspected to be one of Noordin Mohammed Top's most trusted talent spotters. Noordin is thought to have organised the Jakarta bombings on July 17. On the weekend Indonesian police believed they had killed him in a siege but were mistaken.

Doubts grow about Islamist's death in Indonesia

Agence France Presse - August 10, 2009

Stephen Coates – Asian terror suspect Noordin Mohammed Top is probably still at large in Indonesia despite reports of his death, police said Monday, even as the net closed around his extremist network.

Fingerprint analysis confirmed that a man killed by police special forces in a raid on a suspected Noordin hideout on the weekend was not the Malaysian Islamist, a police source involved in the investigation told AFP.

"It's not him. We know from his facial structure as well as his fingerprints," the source said, requesting anonymity. "We're continuing to track his whereabouts."

Noordin's death has not been formally ruled out, however, and police are publicly sticking to the line that DNA tests are required. "Whoever the man is, it should be proved in a scientific way," national police spokesman Nanan Soekarna said.

Photographs of the bullet- and shrapnel-riddled body dragged from the remote farmhouse in Central Java at the end of a 17-hour siege on Saturday morning do not resemble Noordin, police sources and independent experts said.

"The picture of the guy doesn't bear any resemblance," said Jakarta-based security analyst Sidney Jones, of the International Crisis Group.

Noordin, 40, is wanted for multiple suicide bombings against "iconic" Western targets in Indonesia since 2003 which have killed around 50 people and injured hundreds.

He is the self-proclaimed leader of "Al-Qaeda in the Malay Archipelago", an offshoot of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) regional terror group responsible for the 2002 Bali attacks which killed more than 200 people.

The twin suicide blasts at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta on July 17, which killed nine people including six foreigners and the bombers, are believed to be his first major strike since 2005.

It was unclear whether Noordin was ever in the Central Java house that was besieged overnight Friday, but the counter-terrorist police source indicated that the Malaysian might have escaped before the police arrived. "We were not as quick as him," he said, without elaborating.

Soekarna said two men arrested in the nearby village of Beji on Friday had told police that Noordin was in the house, and someone inside was heard to call out "'Yes, I'm Noordin Top'" during the siege.

Noordin escaped two earlier armed assaults on his hideouts, and his legend will only grow among his disciples and on Islamist websites if he has slipped away again.

Pressure will also mount on US-trained counter-terrorism forces to track him down before he can do further damage to Indonesia's hard-earned image as a stable and moderate Muslim-majority country.

"It's a huge disappointment – the police were convinced they had Noordin in that house," Jones said, adding, however, that they could take heart from other recent arrests and the discovery of a major bomb factory outside Jakarta.

Five of Noordin's alleged accomplices have been arrested in recent days, and two men described by police as would-be suicide bombers were killed Saturday in a raid on a house in Bekasi, outside Jakarta, packed with bomb-making material.

Police said the would-be bombers were planning to detonate a truck rigged with explosives at President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's main residence, which is a 12-minute drive away.

The attack, timed around Indonesia's Independence Day on August 17, had been ordered by Noordin during a meeting on April 30 as revenge for the execution of three of the Bali bombers late last year, they said.

One of the men killed in Bekasi was identified as Air Setiawan, a Noordin acolyte who was involved in planning the suicide truck bombing of the Australian embassy in 2004.

The two men who blew themselves up at the Jakarta hotels on July 17 had also been identified, while another alleged Noordin accomplice was arrested on July 24 as he prepared a follow-up attack.

Information on the Bekasi cell and the Central Java safe-house was gained from Amir Abdillah, arrested last Thursday and suspected of helping to carry out the hotel attacks.

Police said they were also seeking four other Noordin followers, including one identified only as SJ who was the network's chief recruiter.

Shot by camera but Noordin Top slips the net

The Australian - August 10, 2009

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta – Indonesian police were so close to catching fugitive Malaysian terrorist Noordin Mohammad Top that they even managed to photograph him outside a Jakarta safe house last Thursday.

But after a tension-filled weekend, including live-television coverage of a country farmhouse being blown up by police bomb squad and snipers, the discovery of hundreds of kilograms of explosives stashed in Jakarta and a truck bomb ready to go off in an apparent plot to assassinate President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, three alleged terrorists killed and several more arrested, there is just one thing missing.

That, it seems, is Top himself.

Only DNA testing will prove whether a man with half his head blown off after a 17-hour siege in remote Central Java ended with elite police storming his hideout is Top. However, indications are firming that it was someone else.

If that is so, it will be just the latest narrow escape for the region's most wanted, and most elusive, terrorist.

It was the arrest last Wednesday of one of Top's trusted lieutenants that gave police their first big break in the investigation into the July 17 Jakarta hotel bombings, which Top is believed to have planned.

Nine people died in those attacks on the J.W. Marriott and Ritz- Carlton hotels, including two suicide bombers, coincidentally named at the weekend as 18-year-old Dani Dwi Permana and an older man of unspecified age, Nana Ikhwan Maulana. Dozens more were seriously injured.

According to national police chief Bambang Hendarso Danuri, the arrested man, Amir Abdillah, revealed to investigators a plot to assassinate Dr Yudhoyono, possibly as soon as next week.

Mr Abdillah also told police of a safe house in Bekasi, a satellite city southeast of the capital very close to the President's private residence, and of another hideout near the town of Temanggung, Central Java. Simultaneous raids were launched on the two locations late on Friday, although it was the Temanggung house where Top was initially thought to have been hiding out.

Exchanges of gunfire there echoed through the night, shattering the rural idyll, after police confirmed with two young men they arrested in a nearby market that a character inside bore a resemblance to Top.

The siege reached its bloody conclusion about 10am on Saturday, when snipers in hills above the cottage took a break from peppering it with automatic rifle fire and bomb squad police inserted an explosive device, using a long bamboo pole to place it as far into the building as possible, protecting themselves as they did so with large anti-blast shields.

Then they turned and fled for their lives, detonating the bomb a few seconds later. Tiles flew off the roof of the small house, which sits in the middle of picturesque rice, corn and tobacco fields. Those windows not already broken in the previous onslaught shattered outwards.

The body of the dead man, who was found in the bathroom with the back of his head blown off, was flown to Jakarta for DNA testing. A lawyer for the woman thought to have married Top several years ago in the southern Central Java city of Cilacap, Arina Rahmah, said last night she had not yet been asked to identify it.

In Jakarta, meanwhile, a raid on the safe house in Bekasi had produced two more dead bodies and a cache of explosives and other bomb-making materials. One of the dead men, Air Setiawan, had previously been questioned in connection with the 2003 J.W. Marriott hotel bombing but released without charge.

That blast was Top's first major attack on a Western target, which he followed up with attacks on the Australian embassy in 2004, the second Bali bombing in 2005 and, it is believed, the latest atrocity.

Setiawan and his companion, Eko Joko Sarjono, were apparently killed by police as they tried to set off grenades.

According to police chief General Danuri, the house had been used as a meeting place for Top and his acolytes sometime after the July bombings, possibly as recently as a week ago.

A Mitsubishi truck, intended to be used in a suicide bombing attack as soon as next week, had been driven to Jakarta from the Central Java city of Solo and had already been fitted with a bomb.

General Danuri claimed the arrested man, Abdillah, had also told investigators about an April 30 meeting in the West Java town of Kuningan where Top outlined his plans for follow-up attacks to the July bombing.

These included, General Danuri said, assaults on Dr Yudhoyono's home and at the state palace in central Jakarta.

Analysts agreed yesterday that, if true, this would mark a significant shift in the terrorists' strategy. "Is it true that the Noordin M. Top group would carry out political assassinations, or is this just because the President himself has previously mentioned himself as being a target?" asked academic Anak Agung Banyu Perwita, a security issues expert.

Dr Yudhoyono attracted criticism for holding a press conference the afternoon of the Jakarta bombs linking them to domestic political opponents.

Top's target has always been, essentially, Western democracy and capitalism, dressed up in religious clothing. The idea of him singling out Dr Yudhoyono, whose personal military security detail is the most efficient and disciplined in Indonesia, seems unlikely but it is always possible that, for Top, it is now payback time for the executions almost one year ago of the three Bali bombers.

Top idolised Mukhlas, alias Ali Ghufron, who was executed by firing squad along with his brother Amrozi and third bomber Imam Samudra on the Nusakambangan prison island off southern Java.

If he has escaped this latest police dragnet and a new bombing campaign is planned, it could easily be linked to his love for the young preacher.

It is no coincidence that the city where Top has most recently been hiding – and where he took Arinah Rahmah as his third wife, had two children with her and sought protection – is Cilacap, just across the water from Nusakambangan island. Police will now be investigating the likelihood that Top visited the trio in jail.

Kevin Rudd phoned Dr Yudhoyono yesterday for a personal explanation of how Indonesian police came so close to capturing Top and yet still appear to have missed their target. According to an aide, Dr Yudhoyono briefed the Prime Minister on the latest intelligence.

Military says happy to assist police, but wants role spelled out

Jakarta Globe - August 10, 2009

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Military Chief Gen. Djoko Santoso said on Sunday that coordination between military and police commanders in conducting antiterrorism operations was running well, despite the absence of a law on the matter.

Speaking to journalists in Jakarta, Djoko said the military wanted the government to endorse the national security bill, which would specifically task the military, also known as the TNI, with working with the police and State Intelligence Agency (BIN) to deal with terrorist threats.

Currently, the Antiterrorism Law stipulates that the police have the primary responsibility for antiterrorism operations. Police can ask for the military's help if they see the need.

"At the level of regional military commanders and provincial police chiefs, good coordination has been established, although at the level of the national headquarters, we have yet to endorse any legal umbrella," Djoko said.

As an example, Djoko said that any intelligence data and analysis obtained by personnel from each agency were shared between the local commanders. "So the cooperation [between the military and antiterrorism police] is working," Djoko said.

The military's decision to assist police in conducting antiterrorism operations has been criticized by a number of nongovernmental organizations.

The NGOs stress that the military and police operate differently, with the police working in a more transparent manner. Critics also said the involvement of soldiers would not guarantee that antiterrorist efforts were any more effective.

They said it would also cause confusion among the military and the police because both institutions already had their own guidelines in place.

But Djoko said the military would continue to assist the police in detecting any terrorist threats. He said the military would take a number of steps, including the deployment of intelligence officers, to build stronger ties with citizens to prevent infiltration by terrorists.

Maj. Gen. Darpito, head of the Jakarta Military Command, said all parties must be responsible for security in their specific areas, which meant the military should also play a role in detecting and countering any security threats.

Darpito said the military, as well as local administration and citizens, must cooperate with and assist the police to make Jakarta a safe area.

"We are committed to the principle of helping the police. I cooperate and work well with the Jakarta Police, from the top to the level of the village guidance boards," Darpito said.

Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono said last week that the national security bill would regulate the military's involvement in the nation's internal security, which is the turf of the police.

"The military remains a support for the civilian apparatus in dealing with any terrorist threat, but that doesn't rule out the possibility that it could be in the forefront," Juwono said.

Reports of escape add to growing legend

Sydney Morning Herald - August 9, 2009

It appears Noordin Top has eluded capture in a third police raid, Tom Allard writes in Jakarta.

Whoever it was who died in a lonely brick house in Temanggung, central Java, on Saturday, he met a grisly end. Cut down by a hail of automatic gunfire and an explosive device planted inside the house during a 17-hour siege, the man's body was riddled with bullets, his head reportedly split in half.

He was, contrary to early reports, the only victim and, it appears, not Noordin Mohammed Top, the terrorist leader that Indonesian police were convinced they had finally killed after six years of close calls and near misses.

Proof of the victim's identity will have to wait for DNA testing, which will likely take a week. But photos of the victim, disfigured as the corpse is, clearly do not resemble Noordin, the Malaysian-born leader of Al Qaeda for the Malay Archipelago.

If reports of Noordin's death prove to be wrong, it bodes ill for Indonesia's fight against violent Islamic extremism.

Noordin's alleged demise was given blanket coverage in Indonesia on Saturday. Confirmation of his escape will mean, as the International Crisis Group's Sidney Jones puts it, "the legend grows."

Noordin has used his ability to elude capture – he has escaped two earlier armed raids on safe houses – to create an almost mythical persona that is thought to be extremely potent in recruiting fresh faces willing to blow themselves up, a key ingredient for plotters.

The others are bombs and targets. The list of the latter is almost endless, and recent raids across Indonesia indicate that bombs and explosives are not hard to come by either. "Bomb making is not a difficult art and it's not that difficult to access explosives," Ms Jones said.

A raid on Noordin's wife's home in central Java uncovered one bomb, while another at the weekend near Jakarta uncovered hundreds of kilograms of explosives and a car being converted into a suicide vehicle.

According to police, the car bomb was being prepared to ram into the nearby home of the President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The plan was ready to be executed within weeks.

Ms Jones said there was no doubt Noordin was involved in attacks on the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott hotels in Jakarta last month that killed nine people, including three Australians.

His reported escape will embarrass the police deeply. They initially said three or four people were in the house, raising the possibility that Noordin could have slipped out during the firefight, much of which occurred at night.

Ms Jones said there were some positives to be taken from the weekend's police actions. As well as thwarting the plot against the President, police arrested a number of people allegedly involved in the hotel bombings.

Amir Abdillah, arrested on August 5, was the man who booked into the room at the Marriott where the bombs were put together. Abdillah talked freely to the police, pointing them to the house in Bekasi, near Jakarta, where the car bomb was located, as well as revealing other Noordin safe houses.

Fresh photos of Noordin and one of his apprentice bomb-makers were uncovered, along with bomb-making equipment. Four others have been arrested and three alleged terrorists killed, one in Bekasi and the others in central Java.

"They are systematically going after the network," said Ms Jones. "I expect there will be more arrests."

Among those confirmed dead is Air Setiawan, who spent five years in prison for his role in the Australian embassy bombing in 2004, also believed to be orchestrated by Noordin. "After he's released he's active again," Indonesia's police chief, Bambang Hendarso Danuri, said. "We are still hunting many perpetrators. This is a never-ending operation."

The analysts Noor Huda Ismail and Carl Ungerer recently warned that some prisoners released after serving time for terrorism offences had not been reformed and were at risk of joining Noordin.

Their warnings have proved to be sound, but it is Noordin's ability to convince recruits to sign up for mass-casualty attacks on civilians that is most concerning. If he has escaped once again, history shows, Noordin will be singularly devoted to twisting minds and plotting more attacks.

Identity riddle to Jakarta bombing fugitive

The Australian - August 9, 2009

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta – Indonesian police will today intensify their attempts to determine whether a man who identified himself as the terrorist Noordin Top, and who was killed in a raid in Central Java yesterday, is in fact the fugitive they believe to be responsible for the July 17 Jakarta bombings.

The Malaysian-born al-Qa'ida and Jemaah Islamiah-linked attacker has been named as the mastermind behind the attacks on the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels, in which nine people including two suicide bombers died, and dozens were seriously injured.

In a more than 17-hour raid on a remote rural house near the town of Temanggung in Central Java starting on Friday afternoon, elite Detachment 88 anti-terror police killed a lone man who is reported to have yelled at them that he was Top.

The siege followed the arrests of two men at a marketplace in Temanggung, who are believed to have told police Top was at their uncle's house.

However national police chief Bambang Hendarso Danuri admitted late yesterday he was "not yet prepared" to say whether the man killed was indeed the radical, who has been blamed for previous bombings at the Jakarta Marriott hotel in 2003, the Australian embassy in Jakarta in 2004 and in Bali in 2005.

Pictures that began circulating several hours after the raids suggested the corpse flown to the national police hospital in Jakarta yesterday afternoon did not resemble police photographs previously published of Top.

The crime scene photographs showed a man whose upper head had been blown away but with a jawline and lower face strikingly different to that of the official Top images, which depict a very moonfaced character.

The dead man's skin also appeared to be of a much darker hue than Top's in his wanted pictures.

DNA samples taken from the children of a woman Top is believed to have married under an assumed name in Cilacap, Central Java, will be used in an attempt to verify the corpse's identify.

Terrorism experts believe one of Top's strategies has involved marrying several women in Malaysia and Indonesia to guarantee his protection by a small group of hardliners who are fighting to bring down the Jakarta government and replace it with an Islamic caliphate.

Sidney Jones, a Jakarta-based senior analyst with the International Crisis Group and amongst the most respected commentators on the Islamist terrorism issue in Indonesia, said last week she believed Noordin's group of terrorist fugitives and plotters probably numbered no more than 30 people.

Malaysian police were also last night offering assistance in the forensic quest to identify the body retrieved from the farmhouse.

Live television footage of the raid throughout Friday night and into Saturday included images of its dramatic climax, where Detachment 88 officers planted a bomb through a window of the structure and then ran for their lives while colleagues detonated the device.

Police were then reported to be high-fiving and handshaking in jubilation at their success, after a seven-man sniper squad aimed a prolonged volley of bullets at the building and a secondary unit followed up with a direct attack on the structure, including pouring gunfire through the windows.

The lone man inside the small house was found dead in its bathroom, news reports said. Earlier reports suggesting up to three more people were also inside appear to have been wrong. The building was late yesterday sealed with zinc sheeting in order to preserve it as a crime scene.

The terrorist Top is a former associate of the master bomber Azhari Husin, another Malaysian killed in a police shootout in East Java in 2005 from which Top escaped at the last minute.

Police chief General Danuri also claimed yesterday that two men shot dead on Friday night in Bekasi, on the southeastern outskirts of Jakarta, were involved in a plot to bomb the nearby home of President Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono.

The pair were killed in an attack on a building alleged by police to be a "safe house" where the bombs used in the Jakarta attacks three weeks ago might have been stored and which police had apparently been monitoring for several days.

However General Danuri offered no direct evidence for his claim of the conspiracy other than that the "safe house" in Bekasi was a few minutes away from Dr Yudhoyono's rural home in Cikeas, also to Jakarta's southeast.

Police have come under increasing pressure since the attacks to make a breakthrough, with General Danuri unexpectedly offering the surprise detail yesterday of the two July 17 bombers' identities.

He said they were 18-year-old Dani Dwi Permana, from the city of Bogor south of Jakarta, and a man named Nana Ikhwan Maulana. He did not specify Maulana's age or origin, and refused to answer further questions.

Dr Yudhoyono claimed several hours after the Jakarta bombing that he had evidence he was also a terrorist target, although there is no reason to believe Noordin or others are interested in political assassinations and there has been criticism that the President, who was reelected in a landslide several weeks ago, was manipulating information on the tragedy for his own ends.

Police say Noordin M. Top aimed to assassinate president

Jakarta Globe - August 9, 2009

A leading Southeast Asian terrorist suspect reportedly killed Saturday in a gun battle with police at a village hide-out was planning a suicide car bomb attack on Indonesia's president, the national police chief said.

But, police said they could not confirm that the body recovered from the house in central Java was that of Noordin M Top until DNA tests are complete.

"We could not yet disclose the identity of the killed man," National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri said at a news conference. "After the DNA test, we will announce it, based on facts, not based on speculation."

Bambang said Noordin and other militants had been plotting to bomb the home of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Police on Saturday also raided a house on the outskirts of Jakarta where they killed two suspected militants and seized bombs and a car rigged to carry them, the police chief said. The house is five kilometers from the president's residence.

He said the decision to attack Yudhoyono was made at an April 30 meeting led personally by Noordin because of the government's decision to execute the three convicted Bali bombers.

Yudhoyono told reporters he had been briefed about an ongoing operation "to uphold law and to eradicate terrorism," but made no mention of Noordin. "I extend my highest gratitude and respect to the police for their brilliant achievement in this operation," he said.

Noordin is also suspected of planning last month's suicide bombings at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta that killed seven people and ended a four-year pause in terror strikes in Indonesia.

Officers surrounded the Central Java house late Friday after making arrests in a nearby town. At one point, they sent remote- controlled robots into the isolated building to search for bombs.

Local TV stations reported that Noordin was killed in the 16-hour siege. The remains of a man thought to be Noordin were flown from the location to Jakarta for an autopsy.

"If Noordin M Top was captured or killed, this would be extremely good news and a huge step forward for Indonesia's struggle against terrorism," said Jim Della-Giacoma, Southeast Asia project director for the International Crisis Group think tank. "Whether or not the risk of further attacks declines depends on who else is arrested or killed with Noordin."

However, Al Jazeera television has reported that the body was not Noordin.

"He's not yet dead, in fact DNA tests prove that the body that was recovered was not of Noordin Mohammed Top," Rohan Gunaratna, the head of the Singapore-based center for violence and terrorism, told Al Jazeera.

"But it is very likely that he will be hunted down in the next few days," he added, citing police sources.

A leading expert on terrorism, Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group, said she doubted local reports that Noordin had been killed. "What we do know is that the police intercepted this likely attack, and they get incredible kudos for that," Jones said, referring to the assassination attempt.

But as to the raid, she said: "What I'm pretty convinced of is that the person inside the house was not Noordin Top and the person who was killed was not Noordin Top."

Noordin is also believed to have orchestrated an earlier attack on the JW Marriott Hotel in 2003 and a massive suicide truck bombing outside the Australian Embassy in 2004 which together killed dozens and wounded hundreds.

Those early attacks were blamed on the regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah and funded by al-Qaida, but Noordin later broke away to form a more violent offshoot that supported targeting civilians. His foreign connections have since became uncertain. (AP, New York Times, JG)

Indonesia not out of danger

Agence France Presse - August 9, 2009

Jakarta – The death of Malaysian terror mastermind Noordin Mohammed Top would be a huge blow to his network but would not mean the end of Islamist suicide bombings in Indonesia, analysts and officials said.

Senior anti-terror official Ansyaad Mbai said even without Noordin, his cells may continue to kill innocent people in the name of defending Muslims everywhere – from Iraq to the Philippines – from perceived oppression.

"It would therefore not be correct to assume that with his death, his entire terror network has been paralysed," he told state-run news agency Antara.

Noordin was reported killed in a violent raid on his hideout in Central Java by US-trained counter-terrorist forces on Saturday, possibly bringing the biggest criminal manhunt in Indonesian history to a bloody conclusion.

But security and terrorism analysts agreed that his death, if confirmed by DNA analysis in the coming days and weeks, would not cripple the network of cells he has worked hard to recruit, finance and train since 2002.

"The people who idolise Noordin as a mujahid (holy warrior) are still out there," Indonesian expert Noor Huda Ismail, of the Institute for International Peacebuilding, told AFP. "They have their own ideology about becoming martyrs and reaching heaven. The path for that dream will always emerge."

Noordin, a 40-year-old former accountant, has terrorised the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, and the Western tourists and business people who visit it, with a series of suicide bombings dating back to 2003. His latest suspected attack came on July 17, when two suicide bombers pierced the airport- style security of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta and blew themselves up, killing seven people, mainly Westerners.

But it was the wholesale slaughter of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) network's 2002 blasts in Bali, which killed 202 people including 88 Australians, that set Noordin on the road to becoming one of the region's most feared extremists.

Regional security analyst Sidney Jones, of the International Crisis Group, said Noordin was not directly involved in the Bali bombing but tried to emulate its impact in subsequent attacks on "iconic" Western targets.

The first venture for his JI splinter group – which he ambitiously dubbed "Al-Qaeda for the Malay Archipelago" – was the 2003 suicide truck bombing of the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta which killed 12 people and injured 150. Backed by expert bomb-maker and operational planner Azhari Husin, another Malaysian, the Noordin group's next major job was the 2004 suicide truck bombing at the Australian embassy in Jakarta, which killed 10 people.

A year later his network, also dubbed the "Dare-to-Die Brigade", returned to Bali and launched three suicide bombers into crowded tourist restaurants, killing 20. Police finally caught up with Azhari, killing him in a volley of gunfire later in 2005 on Java island after a prolonged standoff – much as Noordin reportedly died on Saturday, three days before his 41st birthday.

Analysts said Azhari's death helped to silence Noordin for a while, along with improved police work and the arrests of hundreds of Islamic extremists and senior JI leaders between 2005 and 2007.

But with protection from sympathetic relatives and Islamists, some of whom did not agree with his violence but would not turn him over to the police, he was able to rebuild.

Noordin Top death deterrent for attacks in Indonesia

Bloomberg - August 9, 2009

Naila Firdausi and Achmad Sukarsono – The reported deaths of Noordin Mohammad Top, suspected of masterminding a series of bombings in Indonesia, and two of his associates may reduce risk of future attacks in the Southeast Asian nation, analysts said.

Anti-terror police yesterday killed a militant thought to be Noordin in a house 360 kilometers (224 miles) east of Jakarta, local television channels including TVOne reported. National Police Chief Bambang Hendarso Danuri said it may take a week to positively identify the dead, adding that two terrorists were killed near Jakarta, while five have been arrested in various places on the island of Java. The bomb attack plots included President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's residence, Danuri said.

"There are radicals out there that are determined to create violent jihad, but the loss of such an important figure in such an effective way will work to deter others from launching attacks," Keith Loveard, a security analyst at Jakarta-based Concord Consulting, said in a telephone interview.

The police raids that began Aug. 6 may help Yudhoyono, who was re-elected last month, keep his pledge of ensuring security in Asia's third-most populated nation. Noordin's arrest or death may "significantly" reduce the risk of future attacks, said Sidney Jones, a security analyst at the International Crisis Group.

"Without Noordin Top, the group will become disoriented and lose focus for the moment," A.M. Hendropriyono, Indonesia's former intelligence chief, said in an interview with Metro TV. "Group members will be suspicious of each other as they wonder who leaked information to the police."

Bakasi raid

Noordin, a former member of a terror organization linked to al- Qaeda, is suspected to have been involved in the July 17 suicide bombings at the JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton hotels in Jakarta.

Indonesian police also raided a house in Bekasi, 20 kilometers east of Jakarta, thought to have been a safe-house for Noordin, Danuri said. Terrorists used the house to assemble bombs, he said. Two militants were killed in the raid.

Authorities discovered "hundreds of kilograms" of material to be used to make bombs similar to the explosive device found at the Marriott last month, a pick-up truck to be used as a car bomb and bullets, police said.

Highest leader

"If we did not unravel this, in two weeks our highest leader would have been a target," Danuri said at a briefing in Jakarta yesterday. The police have also arrested five people in the past month, including a guest in room 1808 of the Marriott, where the police found and defused an unexploded bomb, he said.

The Malaysia-born Noordin is suspected to have been involved in attacks that killed about 290 people since 2000, including 202 people in Bali seven years ago.

He allegedly was involved in a 2003 bombing at the same Marriott hotel that killed 12 people and a 2004 blast outside the Australian Embassy in Jakarta that killed at least nine, and another attack in Bali in 2005 when three suicide bombers killed themselves and 20 others.

"His group may be weakened but not exactly paralyzed," Dudon Satyaputra, former head of police forensics, said in an interview yesterday. "He has recruited many cadres" and they need to be captured, he said.

Some doubt

Some analysts expressed doubt the man killed in Temanggung, Central Java during a raid yesterday was Noordin.

DNA tests show the body recovered from the house in Temanggung was not that of Noordin Top, Rohan Gunaratna, the head of the Singapore-based International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, was cited as saying by Aljazeera on the news agency's Web site.

Gunaratna was not immediately available for comment, while Eddy Saparwoko, chief of the Indonesian police's victim identification unit, didn't respond to calls and text messages to his mobile phone.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation added Noordin's name to its "Seeking Terrorism Information" list in 2006.

Noordin split from Jemaah Islamiyah and formed a group to carry on attacks after leaders of the Southeast Asian terror organization were caught or killed by Indonesian counter-terror agency Detachment 88. Authorities in 2005 killed Azhari Husin, Noordin's accomplice. Noordin escaped during that raid.

"The terrorists are practically on the run," Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said in an interview on July 24. "Many of their leaders and members are held in prisons. Their organizational structure and setup are no longer like they used to be in early 2000s."

Abu Dujana, one of Jemaah Islamiyah's suspected leaders, was arrested in 2007. The three terrorists convicted for the 2002 Bali bombings, Amrozi, Imam Samudra and Ali Ghufron, were executed by a firing squad in November last year. Riduan bin Isomuddin, also known as Hambali, the suspected leader of al- Qaeda in Southeast Asia was captured in Thailand in 2003.

Noordin planned the attack on Yudhoyono in April to avenge the death of the three bombers executed last year, Danuri said.

Attempts by authorities to break up the terrorism network in part helped Yudhoyono keep Indonesia free of terror attacks for the past four years and boosted the president's popularity. Yudhoyono won 60.8 percent of the votes in July 8 elections.

Islam/religion

Islamic boarding schools declare antiterrorism

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Nana Rukmana, Cirebon – Hundreds of pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) located in the northern coastal area of West Java have declared an anti-terrorism movement in an effort to prevent radical groups from using such schools as terrorist hotbeds.

Hundreds of Pesantren leaders and thousands of students from about 500 pesantren attended the declaration on Wednesday evening, which was led by leader of West Java chapter of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the country's largest Islamic organization, Maman Imanulhaq Faqih at Gedung Negara building, Cirebon.

"The emerging of violent terrorism, including the bombing that claimed lives showed a misleading religious movement," said Maman, the leader of Al Mizan Islamic boarding school, Majalengka.

"A very small number of pesantren were often used for the wrong movement. This antiterrorist pesantren movement is an active way to combat such acts of terrorism."

He said 1,000 small and big Islamic boarding schools spread across Cirebon regency and city, Majalengka, Indramayu, and Kuningan regencies supported the movement.

"We don't want the schools to be used as farms by terrorists to plant their seeds of terror. Our movement is fully supported by all pesantren in the northern part of West Java."

Separately, NU scholar Nuruzzaman said it was possible the pesantren in northern coast of West Java could be used as terrorist hotbeds due to their strong cultural roots.

"Most of those pesantren are NU schools which are moderate and respect local cultures," said Nuruzzaman, also a lecturer at Gunung Jati state Islamic University, Cirebon. He said the four biggest pesantrens: Buntet, Babakan Ciwaringin, Kempek and Gedongan, were "the keepers" of moderate and cultural religious movements that had a strong influence across the country.

However, he admitted a small number of pesantren in the province were affiliated with radical Islamic boarding schools in Central Java. "The number is small. We could count them on our hands. Though they are few, we have to watch them tightly to avoid violent actions."

Meanwhile, Kuningan Police declared red alert status in the regency following the disclosure that the man who was shot death in Temang-gung, Central Java, was Ibrohim, a resident of Sampora village, Cilimus district, Kuningan regency.

Kuningan Police chief Adj. Comr. Nurullah said the red alert status was declared to increase alertness against terror action potential. "We do not tolerate any terrorist acts. We will continue hunting terrorists who are still at large, including Noordin M. Top."

Almost all media reported earlier that the man who was shot dead during a dramatic raid in Temanggung was Malaysian most-wanted terrorist Noordin. But after conducting DNA tests on the body, police announced it was Ibrohim aka Boim.

Hundreds of police officers were deployed on several border points considered prone and potential to be used for the terrorist movement.

The officers also guarded several strategic places, such as the local office of state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, a cigarette factory of PT. BAT (British American Tobacco), state- gas company PT Gas Indonesia and cement producer PT Indocement Tunggal Perkasa (ITP) in Palimanan, and star-rated hotels, where many foreign tourists were staying.

Vehicles, including their passengers, passing in and out of the regency were carefully checked. Police also deployed officers, uniformed and plainclothes, around the house of Ibrohim.

The deployment was made to avoid a possible clash after villagers refused Ibrohim body to be buried in the village. Ibrohim's family finally decided to bury the body in Pondok Rangon public cemetery, East Jakarta, on Wednesday.

Police have revealed that Ibrohim, a florist at Ritz-Carlton Hotel, had a significant role in the bombings on July 17 bringing the bomb through the back gate of the hotel. The man was also believed to have brought the suicide bomber, Dani Dwi Permana, into the hotel.

Nine people, including two suicide bombers, died in the bombings at Ritz-Carlton and J.W. Marriott hotels in Jakarta.

Congregation finds it hard to worship and pray in peace

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Tangerang – Praying is meant to be a simple act, but not in Indonesia, which proclaims itself the world's biggest God-fearing democracy, and refuses to be called a secular nation.

This means undergoing the mind-numbing bureaucracy inherent in processes like getting a driver's license or renewing a passport.

And even then, the freedom to worship is not guaranteed, as medieval-style pitchfork-wielding mobs give vent to the insecurity of their "majority religion".

In Pisangan Jaya, Tangerang, Banten, congregation leader Bedali Hulu has lived in anxiety for the past two months ago, as dozens of members of Islam organizations confront him each time his congregation holds a Sunday prayer.

Even though the extremists have yet to turn violent, their actions have intimidated Bedali and the 40 members of his Jakarta Baptist Christian Church (GKBJ), leading them to pray under pressure.

"How can we pray properly if there are a bunch of people screaming threatening words outside our church while we hold Sunday prayers?" Bedali told The Jakarta Post recently.

Bedali's church is a small house whose walls are shared with its neighbors located at the Sepatan Residence housing complex.

He says it was in 2005 when the protests against his congregation's activities began to erupt. "We were in another place then, still in the same village," he said.

"Several members of Muslim groups ordered us to move because they didn't want us praying there. So we moved to keep them happy, but then another group of activists came and ordered us to move once again, and here we are now.

Asun, who lives across the street from the church, told the Post on Thursday he feared the protesters more than the churchgoers. "They come every Sunday, brandishing sticks and yelling 'Allahuakbar'," he said. "If a brawl breaks out and our homes are damaged, who'll take responsibility?"

Asun added most residents in the neighborhood were not bothered by the church's presence, but were rattled by the anger it had raised.

"We agree the church should move elsewhere, because we don't want any violence here." Pisangan Jaya village head Sa'adudin, however, disagreed. "It was the local residents who told us they didn't want any Christian-related activities in the area," he told the Post at his office.

He added homes were not meant to be used as places of worship. "It violates housing rules," he said, adding the congregation should move far away from the village, and not to a residential area.

Bedali denied the congregation was violating building statutes. "We're not actually a church, we're a group from the same church who pray together here because the nearest GKBJ church is in Cengkareng [in West Jakarta], which is quite far away," he said. (bbs)

Increase welfare to fight terror: Islamic scholars

Jakarta Globe - August 13, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – To fight terrorism fight poverty, Islamic scholars said on Thursday.

Speaking at a panel discussion called "Terrorism in Modern Society" at the Sultan Hotel in Central Jakarta, leading Islamic scholars called on the government to increase welfare programs to uproot extremism.

Syekh Ahmad Babikir, an Islamic scholar who preaches at London Central Mosque, said people living in poverty were more susceptible to being recruited by militants.

"When our countries have societies with people living on less than one dollar per day, it will become a center of radical schools," he said.

Bachtiar Effendy, another Islamic Scholar, said Indonesia should expand government social welfare programs to curb extremist beliefs. "Terrorism is not just a theological problem," he said. "We cannot solve it just by issuing statements denouncing terrorism."

Bachtiar blamed the government for the poverty gap in Indonesia. "If [the government] cannot provide people's basic needs then terrorism will grow easily," he said. "It becomes the terrorist's reach out program."

While it may seem obvious that poverty leads to terrorism, academics disagree on whether it is true.

Some argue that rapid economic development draws people away from terrorism by offering them other paths to fulfillment. But others have found there is little statistical correlation between poverty and terror, and that factors such as geography and the level of political freedom in a country are more significant.

MUI says 'debus' haram

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Jakarta – The Java and Lampung chapters of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) have issued a fatwa that debus, the Banten traditional martial art, is haram or forbidden under Islamic law if magical things are used during the performance.

The verdict was decided after 150 members of the organization gathered in Serang for a two-day meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Head of the MUI's Banten chapter overseeing international and public affairs Aminuddin Ibrahim said that debus and other similar martial arts would be categorized as haram should they use magic spells and help from devils.

"But we will allow traditional martial arts that are practiced for reasons of health or fitness which do not involve magic," Aminuddin told Antara state news agency.

He added the decision was not aimed at eliminating debus as an icon of Banten specifically, as the rule would be the same for similar martial arts in other regions across the country. (ewd)

Elections/political parties

Early congress for Golkar as Bakrie strengthens leadership claim

Jakarta Globe - August 14, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea & April Aswasdi – The Golkar Party on Thursday agreed to hold its national congress, which will be critical in deciding the party leadership for the next five years, in Pekanbaru, Riau, in early October instead of December as initially scheduled.

Golkar chairman Jusuf Kalla confirmed the decision after the conclusion of a two-day meeting of the party's provincial chapters. Kalla said the party leadership would be decided at the provincial- and district-level meetings that followed the congress.

Four party members have already declared their candidacy for the chairmanship: advisory board member and Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie, advisory board chairman and media mogul Surya Paloh and two up-and-coming young Golkar members, Yuddy Chrisnandi and Ferry Mursyidan Baldan.

An October congress, analysts say, will give Bakrie the advantage because he has already secured the backing of most of the of provincial chapters, while the other candidates do not have enough time to drum up support for their bids.

Kalla said that as long as the current administration was in office, until Oct. 20, Golkar will continue to remain a government supporter, but after that "there will be new leadership that will determine the party's stance."

Following the party's heavy losses in this year's legislative and presidential elections, Golkar is under pressure to decide whether it will continue to support the government or join the opposition.

Analysts say that under Bakrie, Golkar will remain firmly behind the new government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Bakrie has denied speculation that his early bid for the chairmanship was to give Golkar leverage in negotiating cabinet positions with Yudhoyono.

"On negotiations with the government, that is still far away," he said, adding that such negotiations would only be carried out if Yudhoyono initiated it.

Yuddy speculated that the national congress was brought forward because of personal political interests, saying there was nothing to warrant such a move.

"I do not see a party agenda or the interests of the organization. It is only personal interests at the moment that has precipitated the holding of the congress," he said.

Kalla, had earlier remained adamant that the congress be held as scheduled in December, but he later agreed to hold it around the party's anniversary on Oct. 20.

It's official: SBY finally declared the winner

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono secured his re-election Wednesday after the Constitutional Court issued a verdict dismissing allegations of electoral fraud filed by the losing candidates.

However, as yet, losing hopefuls Megawati Soekarnoputri and Jusuf Kalla have not congratulated Yudhoyono on his re-election. Both Megawati and Kalla conceded that they would accept the court's ruling.

The General Elections Commission (KPU), the defendant in the electoral fraud lawsuit filed separately by the campaign teams of Kalla and Megawati, hailed the court's decision, saying the commission could now focus on preparing the inauguration ceremony for Yudhoyono and his running mate Boediono in October.

"The ruling shows there is no evidence of the alleged electoral fraud or other violations during the presidential election," KPU member Andi Nurpati told reporters at the court. "We now can focus on preparing for the ceremony to inaugurate the elected President and Vice President."

On July 25, the KPU officially declared Yudhoyono and Boediono, nominated by the Democratic Party, as winners of the July 8 election with 60.80 percent of the votes.

Megawati from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and her running mate Prabowo Subianto of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) came in a distant second with 26.79 percent.

Incumbent Vice President Jusuf Kalla of the Golkar Party and Wiranto from the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) could only garner 12.41 percent of the votes.

However, Megawati and Kalla accused the KPU of having rigged the election with about 28 million names incorrectly included on the electoral roll.

The court said that no evidence had been presented to support the allegations. Constitutional Court chief, Mahfud MD, said the claim by the losing candidates that Yudhoyono had received additional votes while they had received less votes were also "legally baseless".

"The alleged criminal violations and other violations in the election can still be investigated but will not alter the result of the election," Mahfud told the hearing.

Short after the ruling, Megawati held a press conference at her house on Jl. Teuku Umar, also attended by Prabowo and PDI-P secretary-general, Pramono Anung.

"Though the verdict is not in line with our hopes, we can understand the court's verdict, with some reservations," Megawati, herself a former president, told reporters.

She admitted that the position of the Constitutional Court was vital to the country's legal system as it was the last "door" for anyone who wanted to struggle for better democracy in Indonesia.

A lawyer representing Megawati's team, Mohammad Assegaf said the court's decision was final and binding. "Like it or not, it (the ruling) must be accepted," he told reporters.

Megawati and Prabowo asked hundreds of their supporters, who were disappointed with the ruling, to remain calm in response to the verdict and avoid violence.

Hundreds of Megawati's supporters, riding motorcycles and cars, marched to the court to hear the verdict directly. They unfurled banners that read "reject the election violations".

A lawyer for Kalla's team admitted that the team had to accept the court's ruling.

"We accept and respect the ruling. It is final," Chairuman Harahap, the head of Kalla's legal team, said. "But many of the arguments raised by the court's judges remain in question."

Court rejects lawsuits from Megawati, Kalla

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Jakarta – The Constitutional Court unanimously dismissed on Wednesday the complaints of Megawati Soekarnoputri and Vice President Jusuf Kalla over the July 8 election.

Both Megawati of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle and Kalla of Golkar Party gave it a final shot to push for a second round of the election, filing a lawsuit with the court immediately after election organizer, the General Elections Commission (KPU), declared Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's landslide victory with 60.8 percent of votes.

Presiding judge Mohammad Mahfud MD told a hearing at the court's office in Jakarta that Megawati's and Kalla's claims that the commission had committed violations and fraud, in turn costing them a large number of votes "lack a legal basis".

"We found no systematic, structural and massive violations on the General Elections Commission's part. As a consequence, the election was not void or illegal." He also said the plaintiffs had failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove their allegations that the commission had manipulated the election result.

"[The commission] did commit various violations regarding the registration of eligible voters. However, the electoral roll fiasco did not significantly change the result of the election."

Alleged criminal violations and other violations in the election could still be investigated but would not alter the result of the election, he added.

Kalla's team had later filed a lawsuit calling for the election to be annulled after alleging that there were 47 million errors on the electoral roll including duplicate names. It also said a decision to close 69,000 polling stations had prevented 34.5 million people from voting.

Megawati's legal team had alleged that 28 million votes had been miscounted for a variety of reasons and incorrectly given to SBY, meaning a second voting round was required.

The court's ruling, according to Refly Harun, an expert from of the Center for Electoral Reforms, "was appropriate". He said it was hard for the plaintiffs to prove their claims that there had been a discrepancy of millions of votes in the commission's recap.

"To push for a second round, the votes for Yudhoyono, which reached 60.8 percent, must be reduced to 50 percent; that's cutting 11 to 12 millions votes. To prove that, they had to present mountains of evidence, and even doing that does not make the evidence solid," he told The Jakarta Post.

Based on the result issued by the commission, Megawati came second in the election with 26.79 percent of votes, while Kalla trailed behind with 12.41 percent.

"It's also hard to prove if any violations or fraud conducted by the commission had affected the result," Refly said.

He, however, added it was undeniable that the commission had committed violations in organizing the electoral roll, and that it had taken sides to some extent.

"But the violations were not massive. It's exaggerating to say that the violations had been organized by a single power when we have three candidates competing in the election.

"The Constitutional Court, however, has no authority to sanction the commission. It's the duty of the election watchdog, the police, the House of Representatives, or the president."

The losing candidates' decision to contest the election result, Refly said, was "extraordinary".

"Election results are not supposed to be settled in court rooms; they must be settled through the process of the elections themselves." (adh)

Constitutional Court ruling in presidential election dispute

The General Elections Commission did commit various procedural faults, but these were not structured, systematic or massive violations. The faults were technical in nature and did not make the election void or invalid.
Future elections need more professional organization, both in the drafting of laws and in carrying out the commission's duties.
While the violations conducted in the election did not significantly affect the result, they are subject to further legal actions.
Megawati and Kalla's claims of vote discrepancies were based on assumptions and were not supported by solid evidence.

Court rules against Mega, Kalla in election dispute

Jakarta Post - August 12, 2009

Jakarta – The Constitutional Court issued a verdict on Wednesday against losing presidential candidates Megawati Soekarnoputri and Jusuf Kalla and their respective running mate Prabowo Subianto and Wiranto in the July 8 presidential election dispute.

Constitutional Court Chief Mahfud MD read the court verdict, saying there were no evidences that the General Elections Commission (KPU) had rigged the election as accused by the plaintiffs.

The Court said that violations indeed occurred in the election, but those were not committed systematically.

Following the Constitutional Court ruling, incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is now certain to win the election.

Yudhoyono and running mate Boediono were declared the winner of the presidential election by the KPU with more than 60 percent of votes. Megawati and Prabowo came second, while Kalla and Wiranto were in the last position. (adh)

Legislative seats stay, Constitutional Court rules

Jakarta Globe - August 9, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – There should be no change to the current allocation of legislative seats for the new House of Representatives, the Constitutional Court ruled on Friday.

Its decision to maintain the status quo strengthens the power of the General Elections Commission (KPU) and cuts across the recent Supreme Court ruling that would have seen seats given to smaller political parties reduced.

Chief Justice Mahfud MD said the court upheld the provisions in the 2008 Election Law on so-called second-round seat allocation as conditionally constitutional, thus siding with the plaintiffs.

The plaintiffs, a group of four political parties – the People's Conscience Party (Hanura), Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the United Development Party (PPP) – had filed for a judicial review at the same time the Supreme Court ruling invalidated the second-stage allocation as interpreted by the KPU.

The ruling in effect leaves the current proportional allocation of seats intact, with parties given seats according to their vote share after meeting a minimum threshold of the popular vote.

KPU member I Gusti Putu Artha said the court had vindicated the commission's interpretation of the law. "There are institutions or people saying we were wrong in calculating the votes for the second round of seat allocation," Putu said. "The Constitutional Court has corrected the record."

Putu said the Supreme Court should not have gotten involved in the first place. "When we interpreted the law, we had already consulted lawmakers," he said. "So our interpretation is right, and now it is proven by this ruling."

The Supreme Court ruling, if not superseded by Friday's action, would have reduced the number of seats for many small parties by applying a different formula. The action prompted howls of protest from a number parties, but the Constitutional Court appears to have rendered the issue moot.

The two courts have different jurisdictions, with the Supreme Court overseeing laws and regulations and the Constitutional Court ruling on matters pertaining to the charter.

In its ruling, the court said articles 205, 211 and 212 of the 2008 Election Law are all conditionally constitutional.

Article 205 was interpreted by the KPU as ruling out a second round of seat allocations for the House, which could have involved a complex calculation and removing smaller parties from seats in some instances. Articles 211 and 212 covers similar rules for provincial and district legislatures.

The four parties filing the judicial review argued the lawwas open to interpretation, with the KPU and the Supreme Court seeing it differently. They wanted the law annulled or declared conditionally constitutional.

The Constitutional Court refused to annul the articles, but the conditional status strengthens the KPU's power to interpret the law. The court said the ruling must apply to the 2009 election results.

Regional/communal conflicts

Religious conflict over but violence continues in Maluku

Jakarta Globe - August 12, 2009

Putri Prameshwari – Despite the official peace agreement and apparent calm in Maluku, violence has continued to bubble beneath the surface of the province over the past eight years, a World Bank official said on Wednesday.

However, Patrick Barron, a World Bank's social development specialist, said the root causes of the violence and its effects had evolved since the religious conflict that broke out in 1999.

Barron said that while violence rose from 150 recorded events in 2000 to 300 in 2008, deaths over the same eight-year period fell from 400 to just over 50.

"A similar trend was found in North Maluku," he said. "The number of violent incidents went up from around 25 in 2000 to above 90 in 2008, with the number of deaths remaining below 10."

Barron was speaking at a preliminary public presentation of a World Bank report on conflict in Maluku and North Maluku.

According to the report, the two major issues behind the violence and deaths from 2000 to 2008 were group identity and popular justice. The report, however, shows the underlying causes behind the violence also changed over the eight years studies.

Sana Jaffrey, a political scientist from the University of Michigan, in the United States, said that group identity included religious and ethnic conflicts, and was a factor in 33 percent of the deaths.

"Yet most of these deaths occurred between 2001 and 2002, still a lingering part of the 1999 breakout conflict between Muslims and Christians in Maluku and North Maluku," she said.

Jaffrey said popular justice – which included deaths resulting from taking offense, vigilante reactions to theft, sexual indiscretions and assault – accounted for almost 50 percent of the violence and 25 percent of the deaths. "Even insults or brawls after football matches often resulted in deaths," she said.

The report suggests that religious and ethnic conflict has softened in recent years but that violence is still seen as a way of solving problems.

The religious conflict in Maluku and North Maluku broke out in 1999 between Muslims and Christians, killing thousands of people and displacing hundreds of thousands of others. Houses of worships were destroyed, and the conflict continued for several years.

Regional autonomy

Indonesia to review regional autonomy policy

Jakarta Globe - August 14, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – The Ministry of Home Affairs on Friday said it was examining the effectiveness of decentralization and preparing new rules on how regions should manage their finances.

The announcement comes amid rising concerns about the impact of giving greater autonomy to regional authorities. The Law on Regional Autonomy, adopted by the government in 2004, provided the legal basis for local authorities to manage their own budgets, as part of efforts to accelerate development in the regions.

More regions are trying to benefit from the policy, which has led to the establishment of 205 new regional administrative entities, including provinces, districts and municipalities.

However, the policy has come under fire following the claims of some officials that it has failed to spur regional development.

Former Home Affairs Minister Ryaas Rasyid, one of the architects of regional autonomy, recently said that the prosperity promised to many regions had failed to materialize. "Poverty rates have not dropped significantly and the unemployment rate has increased," he said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono also indicated his displeasure over decentralization during his budget presentation to the House of Representatives this month, when he called for a moratorium on the establishment of new regions.

Further, the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) this week told the government that only eight of 500-plus autonomous regions had produced positive financial reports.

Ministry of Home Affairs spokesman Saut Situmorang said on Friday that the government now planned to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy in the newly created regions.

"Based on the results of that evaluation, the ministry will offer them training and supervision, especially in financial management," Saut said.

He also said the ministry would review demands for autonomy from several proposed regions. "We're developing a master plan on the ideal number of regions in Indonesia for the next 15 years," he said. "It will take into account economic, geographic, social and cultural factors."

Saut said that the ministry also planned to issue regulations on financial management in newly established regions.

Bambang Brodjonegoro, dean of economics at the University of Indonesia, said on Friday that demands for regional autonomy should be temporarily put aside until the government finished evaluating all of the country's newly established regions.

He said this would give the government enough time to evaluate the current policy. "Take a break for five years to evaluate whether the regions can be managed properly," he said.

Bambang said that older provinces, districts and municipalities should also be reviewed.

"If they have not performed well, the regions must not be divided again, or they should be [dissolved]," he said. "Budget allocations need to be reviewed. They should be reviewed by local people to determine if their needs have been met."

Financial management is a problem, he said. The government should evaluate public services at the regional level, he added. "There should be minimum standards for public services,"he said.

Sofjan Wanandi, chairman of the board of trustees for Regional Autonomy Watch (KPPO), said that regional autonomy had been a failure. He said that declining regional economic growth simply highlighted these failures.

"According to our survey, only 10 percent to 15 percent of about 500 districts and municipalities have developed successfully," he said on Thursday.

The central government should work together with regional authorities to help meet the objectives of regional autonomy, Sofjan said.

Regional autonomy has so far failed: Watchdog

Jakarta Globe - August 13, 2009

Anita Rachman – Regional autonomy has been a failure, with just 10 percent of about 500 districts and municipalities in the country having developed successfully since the policy was introduced eight years ago, an autonomy watchdog said on Thursday.

Sofjan Wanandi, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Regional Autonomy Watch (KPPO), said the failure was reflected by sharp drops in regional economic growth since decentralization in 2001. "According to our survey, only 10 percent to 15 percent of about 500 districts and municipalities have successfully developed," he said.

Quoting research based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) conducted by Iwan J. Aziz, an Indonesian professor based at Cornell University in the United States, Sofjan said that regional economic development had decreased by 4.88 percent from 2001 to 2007, compared to growth of 8.13 percent between 1993 and 1996.

He said that the worst hit region was Papua, where average growth between 2001 and 2007 reached a meager 0.66 percent, in stark contrast to growth of 14.19 percent between 1993 and 1996. Even, Greater Jakarta suffered a more than 3 percent drop, down from 8.99 percent to 5.71 percent.

Sofjan said he was not surprised when Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati gave all regional financial statements a disclaimer warning. "Whereas, prior to regional autonomy, all regional financial statements were good [unqualified and qualified opinions]," he said.

But to meet the objectives of regional autonomy, Sofjan said the central government should work together with regional authorities to set higher targets.

Bambang P.?S. Brodjonegoro, an economics expert from the University of Indonesia, said future government policies should not revert to centralization, but instead put regional development the core of national development. "It is the same old story. The central government must invite regional governments to work together for development," he said.

Bambang said that the poor growth figures in regional areas should be questioned and addressed by district and municipal leaders.

"Why only 10 percent success from 500 districts and municipalities?" he asked. "Regional autonomy succeeds if they have good leaders."

Armed forces/defense

Military won't press Yudhoyono on defense minister

Jakarta Globe - August 11, 2009

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The military would not try to influence President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in any decision he made to choose a new defence minister, Military Chief Gen. Djoko Santoso said on Tuesday.

Whoever serves as minister is "the prerogative of the president," he said when asked by journalists about the possibility of being replaced when Yudhoyono selects his new cabinet.

Speaking on the sidelines of a medal-presentation ceremony, Djoko declined to comment on whether the military had proposed specific criteria for a new minister, such as whether the post should go to a civilian or to a retired military officer.

The exchange followed speculation in military and Defense Ministry circles that Yudhoyono was considering asking incumbent Minister Juwono Sudarsono to retain the post in his next cabinet.

A military source has insisted Yudhoyono needs to keep Juwono on, at least for the next year, to finalize defense programs and plans.

The 67-year-old Juwono has signalled several times that he wanted to return to academia, most recently as a professor of international relations at the University of Indonesia, rather than continue working at the ministerial level.

Although most of his ministry subordinates are aware of the signals, there are high expectations that he will remain. "He is a good minister who creates a good working environment and always treats us well," a middle-ranking civil servant in the ministry told the Jakarta Globe on condition of anonymity. "We really hope he will remain our minister."

Meanwhile, rumors abound in the ministry as to who might replace him if he does leave. Names touted for the position include two members of the Golkar Party – Muladi, the governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas); and Theo Sambuaga, chairman of the House of Representatives Commission I, which oversees defense and foreign affairs.

Others mentioned as possibilities included former military chief Marshal (ret.) Djoko Suyanto and Adm. (ret.) Widodo Adi Sucipto, who is the coordinating minister of security, political and legal affairs.

Juwono himself, who has not served in the military, remained tight-lipped about possible replacements.

Meanwhile on Tuesday, Juwono and 70 high-ranking military officers received medals of honor awarded by Yudhoyono for service to their country. Juwono was granted the Yudha Dharma Utama medal, honoring his service in improving the quality of the Armed Forces.

"Over the past five years as Defense Minister, he has kept supporting us and motivating us to do our jobs as well as possible," Djoko said.

Police/law enforcement

350 officers dismissed annually for rights violations

Jakarta Post - August 10, 2009

Jakarta – The National Police has dismissed between 300 and 350 officers annually over the past few years due to human rights violations, a senior officer says.

Head of the police's legal division, Insp. Gen. Aryanto Sutadi, told a seminar in Makassar on Monday that police had recorded 5,000 cases of rights violations involving officers, out of which 300 had been sentenced.

He said the National Police chief had issued a regulation earlier this year on human rights guidelines for officers on duty.

"As a state apparatus responsible for the protection of citizens, public services and law enforcement, the police need guidelines to show commitment to the promotion of human rights," Aryanto said as quoted by Antara state news wire.

The police force has a total of 374,526 personnel, 90 percent of whom are petty officers. Aryanto said petty officers were more prone to human rights violations than middle and high-ranking officers.

Economy & investment

Banking sector fails to boost real sector despite low BI rate

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Mustaqim Adamrah, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia's key rate is yet to affect lending rates despite its drop by 300 basis points to 6.5 percent since late 2008, says the House of Representatives.

"Despite optimism prevailing in certain circles, in reality, the BI rate, which is currently 6.5 percent, has not affected bank loan interest rates that are still above 12 percent," House Speaker Agung Laksono said Friday in a speech he delivered at the plenary session.

"(As a result) lending rates remain high and have failed to positively impact the movement of the real sector, comprising small and medium businesses."

Thus, the House asked the banking sector to determine their actual lending rates in accordance with the BI key rate, Agung concluded.

Industrial output slowest in Q2

Jakarta Post - August 14, 2009

Mustaqim Adamrah, Jakarta – The second quarter of this year saw the manufacturing sector grow at its slowest rate since the start of the crisis, regardless of the increase in domestic spending spurred by the general elections.

Out of eight specific product categories monitored by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the wood- and forestry-based products suffered the most, with the value of output contracting by 3 percent in three months, prolonging an earlier 3.6 percent slump in the first quarter.

Its sister product category, paper and printed goods, also grew at a snail's pace, by 1.4 percent as opposed to the 10 percent growth recorded in the first quarter.

Among the product categories that saw a steady although minimal acceleration, was base metal iron and steel, with growth inching slightly higher to 3.2 percent after registering a 2.9 percent growth in the first half year. The food and beverages category also grew, 1.42 percent higher than in the first quarter.

With the ninth product category – other types of manufacturing products – contracting by 7 percent in the second quarter, the total output of the manufacturing sector grew by 1.85 percent to Rp 327.7 trillion (US$33.1 billion), relative to the total value in the first quarter.

Assuming the slump in global demand for Indonesian manufacturing products is already bottoming up, the industry ministry expects the third quarter to witness an accelerated growth albeit modest.

"The third quarter of this year is expected to see industrial growth of 2.2 percent," Industry Ministry secretary-general Agus Tjahjana told reporters on Thursday.

He said three industries would support the 2.2 percent growth forecast in the next quarter, namely the food, beverage and tobacco industry, the fertilizer, chemistry and rubber-made goods industry and the transportation, machinery and tools industry. The three categories control, on average, 69 percent of the total output value each year.

Another growth contributing factor in the third half year will be the fasting month of Ramadhan, which is renowned for causing increases in domestic demand for various types of products, beginning Aug. 22 and ending July 22.

"On the external side, the unemployment rate in the United States, which has already begun to recover, will also boost national exports to that country," Agus said.

To boost growth, the ministry also plans to accelerate its budget spending. The government has so far only spent 40 percent of the Rp 1.7 trillion allocated in its 2009 state budget as of July. "We will see higher spending in September as we begin to disburse funding for the machinery revitalization program," he said.

Manufacturing industry quarterly growth (in percentage)

Sectors	Q1	Q2
Food, beverage and tobacco	1,04	1,42
Textile, leather products and footwear	3,42	2,77
Wood- and forestry-based products	-3,6	-3,08
Paper and printed goods	10,17	1,37
Fertilizer, chemistry and rubber products	-0,01	1,89
Cement and non-metal mining products	-5,13	4,07
Base metal iron and steel	2,92	3,18
Transportation, machinery and tools	-3,39	1,82
Other goods	2,24	-7,16

Source: The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) processed by the Industry Ministry

Economy tipped for slower Q2 growth on exports drop

Jakarta Globe - August 9, 2009

Muhamad Al Azhari – The economy grew at a slower pace in the second quarter of 2009 compared to the previous quarter largely due to lower private consumption and an anticipated contraction in exports due to weaker demand from global markets, according to the consensus among analysts from a number of domestic and overseas institutions.

But the economists said the slowdown in private consumption was not as bad as expected, which prevented the economy from sliding significantly.

"We estimate that the economy grew 3.5 percent year-on-year in the quarter, slower than the 4.4 percent recorded in the first quarter," said Gundy Cahyadi, an economist at financial analysis firm IDEAGlobal in Singapore. He added that the slower annualized pace was mostly caused by the high base effect produced in the second quarter of 2008, when global commodity prices were at their peak.

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) is set to announce the quarterly GDP figures today. Earlier figures from the agency showed that the economy expanded 4.4 percent in the first quarter from the year-earlier period, slowing from 5.2 percent in the last quarter of 2008. Despite the slowdown, the country still ranked among the best performers in Southeast Asia.

In the first quarter, strong private consumption helped to offset slowing exports, which shrank by 19.1 percent from the year- earlier period. The central bank has cut its key interest rate by a total of 275 basis points since December last year in a bid to provide a conducive environment for private consumption to grow, although commercial banks have responded slowly.

Gundy said private consumption, which he predicted grew by 5 percent year-on-year in the second quarter, should have provided underlying support for the economy against the expected contraction in exports.

Although consumer spending grew by 4.8 percent year-on-year during the first three months, IDEAGlobal says the economy is still on course to expand in a 4.2-4.5 percent range in 2009.

In a research note, Helmi Arman, an economist at Bank Danamon in Jakarta, tipped the economy to have grown by 3.52 percent in the second quarter.

"Indicators such as cement consumption, commercial vehicle sales and imports of capital goods also indicate a recovery. However, the high base effect from last year will still result in a lower year-on-year figure," Helmi said.

More optimistic were HSBC and Citigroup, who predicted that the economy grew at 3.8 percent and 4 percent, respectively, during April through June.

Their figures reflect those in the central bank's quarterly report, which said the economy was likely to have slowed further in the second quarter, growing on an annualized basis by 3.7 percent to 4 percent.

The central bank also said that the economy has been hurt by slumping exports, which had led to weak production-capacity utilization and postponement of investment plans.

The report also said the contraction in exports was believed to have slowed slightly in the second quarter to about 17 percent.

However, household consumption, which accounts for about 60 percent of the domestic economy, is predicted to have expanded by between 3.8 percent and 4.5 percent in the second quarter, down from 4.8 percent in the first.

Foreign investors back to rule the stock market

Jakarta Post - August 10, 2009

Ika Krismantari, Jakarta – The latest data from the Indonesian Central Securities Depository (KSEI) shows that foreign investors controlled 66.1 percent of assets in the local stock market, signaling a return of foreign investor confidence.

As of Aug. 6, figures from the KSEI stated foreign investors held Rp 715.97 trillion (US$72.31 billion) worth of assets – shares and bonds – while local investors only owned Rp 368.27 trillion worth of assets.

The KSEI data also included paper-less trading at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX), which accounts for about 60 percent of total trading.

KSEI director Trisnaldi Yulrisman said foreign investors' total asset value and ownership of securities in Indonesia had grown steadily in the past five months, as they expected the global economy crisis would bottom out this year, thus increasing their appetite for assets in emerging markets like Indonesia. "We hope this trend will continue until the end of year," he said.

KSEI data indicates the market has returned to its pre-crisis level. Total asset value in July stood at Rp 1,171 trillion – close to last year's total asset value of Rp 1,202 trillion – mostly as a result of foreign investors owning more shares in that period compared to last year.

The total value of shares recorded this July was Rp 1,057 trillion, compared to last July's Rp 1,089 trillion.

July and August 2009 KSEI data showed that foreign investors owned beyond 60 percent of total assets, higher than the 59 percent of total assets they owned in the same period this year.

The KSEI data therefore demonstrates foreign investors have returned to the Indonesian market, after fleeing it last year when the Jakarta Composite Index plunged by more than 10 percent.

After the crash, the value of total assets recorded by the KSEI dropped to Rp 726 trillion, with the total value of shares at Rp 632 trillion.

With the Indonesian economy remaining solid and continuing to grow this year, many analysts believe investors will still be confident enough to invest here.

The better-than-expected earning results of companies in the first half of this year have also injected a more positive sentiment into the market, encouraging investors to re-enter the local market.

The latest data from the IDX shows foreign investors bought more shares than they sold in between July 27 and July 30, with share purchases reaching Rp 8.3 trillion, compared to Rp 4.4 trillion in sales of shares.

The Jakarta Composite Index has risen more than 70 percent since the beginning of this year, making the IDX the second best performing bourse in Asia.

Analysis & opinion

Terrorism fight must tackle recruitment at Islamic schools

Jakarta Globe - August 9, 2009

Joe Cochrane – Noordin M Top has certainly lived by the sword, so it would have been fitting if he had met his demise amid a hail of bullets and bomb explosions inside a farmhouse in Central Java over the weekend.

It seems certain that the alleged mastermind of the July 17 twin suicide bombings in South Jakarta – as well as other attacks in the capital and on Bali – is still at large. Aside from his fanatical, extremist interpretations of Islam and willingness to kill scores of civilians in pursuit of his goals, Noordin is considered even more dangerous for his ability to recruit pawns to carry out attacks, in particular young suicide bombers.

It was likely his followers would attempt to carry on his work in the event he was captured or killed. "His legend would rise. It would be a great recruiting tool," said Ken Conboy, author of "Inside Jemaah Islamiyah, Asia's Most Dangerous Terrorist Network."

Tracking down and rolling up Noordin's network – and the man himself given that DNA tests are expected to come back negative – is the job of Detachment 88, the National Police counter- terrorism unit. But analysts say the central government must take a long-term view of the country's terrorism problem and begin tackling it at its source.

Terrorism's roots, they say, lie within the country's Islamic boarding schools. According to Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group, about 50 pesantrens are believed linked to Jemaah Islamiyah, the regional terrorist network of which Noordin was once a key member.

"The schools are still important, less for what they teach than for the connections made there," said Jones, a JI expert. "It's not so much 'massive' recruiting that's the problem, but more that I would place the santri [orthodox Muslims] at these schools near the top of vulnerable populations for recruitment. And it only takes a visit by one extremist to bring a couple more on board."

Indonesia has as many as 45,000 Islamic boarding schools, Jones said, but only about 15,000 are registered with the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Analysts have criticized the ministry for not overseeing the schools' curriculums, which could be blinds for private study sessions for handpicked students with extremist teachers.

Despite the difficulties the government would have intervening in Islamic schools, Nasaruddin Umar, the Religious Affairs Ministry's director general for mass guidance on Islam, said expanded oversight was inevitable. "We have to control the curriculums of all the pesantrens. I have found many, many problems," he said.

Breathe life into KPK

Jakarta Post Editorial - August 10, 2009

In May, The Jakarta Post wrote in this column that many parties were gunning for the demise of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). The House of Representatives, responding to the arrest of KPK chairman Antasari Azhar in early May, demanded that the corruption watchdog suspend its investigations. In a bold move, the KPK responded by nabbing three House members and charging them with corruption.

Three months have passed since then and attempts to dissolve the KPK could not be more passionate. The police said last week that the suspended KPK chief, who has been detained since May for his suspected involvement in a murder, had filed a report alleging his two deputies received bribes from KPK suspects.

The report states that Antasari left for Singapore to confirm details of the scandal and now had a recording in which the accused businessmen admitted to bribing KPK officials.

KPK deputy chairman Bibit Samad Rianto responded by accusing Antasari of joining in the smear campaign to undermine the commission. Bibit said it made no sense that KPK officials had been bribed because they continued with the investigation regardless.

Bibit's response made no effort to hide which group exactly was out to crush the KPK. It is understood that the police have been furious with the KPK even since its recent investigation into a high-ranking police official allegedly connected to a bank scandal.

The tension between the police and the KPK is no subtle or hidden fact: the President has come out and pledged to arbitrate it, though this has not come to fruition.

Established in 2003, the KPK has a 100 percent success rate. Not a single case investigated by the corruption watchdog has fallen flat once it has reached the courts. Their investigations have penetrated high-profile institutions like the House of Representatives, Bank Indonesia, the Attorney General's Office and the General Elections Commission (KPU).

The list of those plagued by corruption only shows the wide reaching moral damage suffered by these vital institutions.

The KPK fiasco aside, the government submitted a new corruption bill to the House last month, just two months before the current legislature ends its term. The bill is likely to undermine the KPK's authority as it stipulates that there should be no minimum punishment for corruptors, and paves the way for whistle-blowers to possibly face criminal charges.

On the other hand, the House is racing against time to pass this bill into law, a crucial move considering the court has been instrumental in bringing corruptors to justice.

In 2006 the Constitutional Court found that the corruption court had violated the Constitution when it was founded under the KPK law, not the law on the judiciary. The Constitutional Court ruled a proper legal basis for the Corruption Court had to be passed by December 2009, or it would be dissolved.

The fact the KPK is facing such an uphill battle should not come as a surprise to anyone, particularly the KPK itself. This is a country which is consistently rated as one of the most corrupt in the world. If the President appears indecisive on the issue the people will stop supporting the embattled KPK leaders. Those who wish to see this country take a meaningful stride toward good governance and transparency need this organization to remain afloat.

The legacy of Rendra for Indonesia

Jakarta Post - August 9, 2009

Eka Budianta, Cikarang (West Java) – The leading Indonesian poet and playwright, W.S. Rendra was buried in his very own backyard in Citayam, a relatively poor hamlet, near the town of Depok, West Java on Friday afternoon, Aug. 6, 2009. He is survived by his third wife, Ken Zuraida, 11 children and 10 grand children. Thousands of his friends, including ministers and the Indonesia vice president to be, Boediono, attended his funeral. The nation has lost their "peacock" – the most flamboyant author ever born in the archipelago.

Rendra was 73 years old. He is widely known not only for his poems, plays and cultural essays, but also his social and political activities. When the country was in trouble during "the age of reform" in 1998, Rendra and his supporters were noted as leading humanitarian activists. They distributed basic supplies, food, medicine and clothes to the needy. They advocated peaceful changes and defended the environment from the bad effects of development and modernization.

For more than five decades Rendra was a voice for the Indonesian voiceless. He has spoken for and about millions of uneducated children, oppressed workers, and the hungry and marginalized grassroots. From the 1950s his poems and plays became the heartbeat of the Indonesian struggle toward the freedom of expression and the aspiration of the powerless. He underlined the rights and just treatment for prostitutes, pickpockets and other unfortunate compatriots.

In his thirties, during the late 1960s, he led "Kaum Urakan" – literally The Uneducated – as a symbolic attack of the establishment. He and his group produced cultural and political criticism that made regular headlines in the 1970s. Although he developed and modernized Javanese gamelan music as the main orchestra of his performances; he remained critical of Javanese feudalism.

As a result of his courage and creativity he was banned from performing in Yogyakarta and that gave birth to his fame. Daulat rakyat di atas daulat tuanku – people power above the ruler's power, was widely understood as the core of his struggle. Rendra encouraged the young generation to think, to judge and to select traditional values. He promoted equality among the rich and the poor, teachers and students, the powerful and the powerless. He even said that fortune and disaster are the same – bencana dan keberuntungan sama saja.

Rendra broke a record of paid poetry readings when he received US$10,000, – in a single two-hour performance in 1976. He and his group 'Bengkel Teater' (Theatre Workshop) created a self- proclaimed world record by performing Bertold Brecht's Caucasian Chalk Circle at Jakarta's main sports hall, Istora Senayan. The show ran for six hours and was attended by more than 3,000 people.

Undoubtedly Rendra was the giant not only in Indonesian poetry, but also on the stage of South East Asian performing art through the 1970s and 1980s. He and his group also traveled to the US and Europe to perform his plays Struggle of the Naga Tribe and Children of King Salomon. Rendra pioneered the contribution of modern Indonesian plays abroad, and trained many actors as well as directors that flourished in hundreds of theater club at home.

His 'Bengkel Teater' – Theatre Workshop became the leading alma mater for many Indonesian playwrights, including Chairul Umam, the late Arifin C. Noer, and Putu Wijaya. His poems inspired the development of narrative poetry and ballads. He called his protest poems puisi pamphlet addressed to the authoritarian government. When Soeharto imprisoned hundreds of students in the late 1970s, Rendra was also among them.

Rendra was very proud that he and his group were purely supported by local resources, instead of international funding commonly identified as the source of (in his words) "frustrated" NGOs. He also believed the stigmatized novelist, Pramoedya Ananta Toer, had received much more foreign support than he did. On many occasions Rendra appeared as a great patriot, more than just a simple nationalist who blindly loved his country. For example, he launched a press conference to attack the British humanitarian activist, Bob Geldoff, when he criticized the Indonesian public for pirating his music.

Rendra defended the rights of the poor more than the interests of the recording industry. "The peacock of Indonesian literature" has left his countrymen with the courage to fight for the poor and the right to live in dignity. He was born into an aristocratic family in Solo, Central Java that was once ruled by Pakubuwono X, the emperor of Java. His mother, Ismadilah was a royal dancer, while his father Suwandi Broto was a school headmaster. Rendra was raised traditionally and educated as a devout Javanese Catholic. Some of his earliest poems are still used in church and school prayers.

He lived a dynamic and colorful life, based on a clear vision of the importance of love and fairness. He hated hypocrisy and lived an honest life. He followed his self conscience more than any teaching and any other influences. Thus, the most important legacy of Rendra to his people and country is a strong sense of morality and being honest. He has proven that a member of once feudalistic and old fashioned family could lead the movement of the uneducated, the Kaum that rebelled against the establishment.

Shortly before he died, Rendra expressed his regret and sorrow for what he saw as the current self-centered political fights. He was unhappy to witness that most Indonesian political figures fought only for power, instead of serving the people. To his close friend, Bakdi Sumanto, he recently said, "We must pay more attention and help our powerless friends".

[Eka Budianta is a poet and an adviser at the Jababeka Multicultural Center, in Cikarang, West Java.]

Book/film reviews

New book sheds light on gay groups in Indonesia

Jakarta Post - August 13, 2009

Ni Komang Erviani, Denpasar – Society still strongly refuses to accept the lifestyle choices of gay men in Indonesia, causing many to lead double lives, a US scholar says.

Tom Boesllstorf, a professor of anthropology at the University of California, launched his book Monday titled The Gay Archipelago at the Queer (Q) film festival in Denpasar. Though the book has been in circulation in English since 2005, the recently reprinted version is in Indonesian.

The professor meticulously studied the origins and history of gay communities in Indonesia, and details the lives of several individuals struggling against social prejudices.

"Many gay men in Indonesia marry a woman they do not love just to meet the pressing demands of society," he said.

It is very difficult for many homosexual men to reveal their true sexual orientation in Indonesia, he said, because they know their choice may not be accepted by their conservative families, friends, workplaces and the community in general.

"Often they (homosexuals) marry women as proof to their parents and families that they are 'normal' and straight. But within a few years, they come to realize they cannot keep up the false marriages and end up geting a divorce," he said.

"I came across a gay man living in Sumatra who was married and divorced on the same day," he said. Sumatra is one of Indonesia's most devoutly Islamic and conservative areas.

Boesllstorf said he did not believe marrying women simply for the sake of social acceptance and security was the right way for a gay man to counteract any feelings about possible discrimination.

"Women should not be misled in this way. One must be honest and brave enough to reveal who they really are, and not marry without genuine love. That is unacceptable and deceiving," he said.

The professor said a large number of gay men often left smaller rural areas for larger cities, where the "gay community live within their own circles".

The book was based on research and study of gay communities in a number of cities including Makassar, Jakarta, Denpasar, and Yogyakarta.

Dede Oetomo, founder of Gaya Nusantara, the first organization which openly provided a forum for gay men in Indonesia, said he agreed with the content of the book. "We are facing a strong wall of tradition when trying to open up about our real identities," said Oetomo, a lecturer.

For gay communities in Aceh, Indonesia's western-most province which strongly enforces Islamic syariah law, homosexual encounters can result in extreme punishments, he said.

"The punishment is very extreme (100 lashes with the rattan cane) and fines are around 2 kilograms in gold. Most people still link homosexuality with dangerous diseases, and believe it can be cured with a 'normal' marriage," he said.

Sardjono Sigit, a gay activist, said he knew he was gay from a young age and at first tried to deny the truth. On his 30th birthday he told his siblings he was gay, but not his parents. "I do not think they are ready yet," Sigit said.

Despite being comfortable personally with his homosexuality, Sigit said he was still not entirely happy living in a heterosexual society that demands certain customs.

"There is still always questions about when I am going to get married, and they make me quite nervous," said Sigit, who left his job at a construction company to join the gay organization.