Batam – Muslim legal arbiters in this Riau Islands city on Tuesday rejected a recently floated idea to levy a tax on prostitution to increase the local government's income.

"Such taxation would create the impression that prostitution was legal. Of course we strongly reject it," said Usman Ahmad, the head of the Indonesian Ulema Council in Batam.

Riki Syolihin, a member of Batam's legislative council, had said that the island, a popular weekend destination for visitors from nearby Singapore, could make Rp 6.4 billion ($685,000) in additional revenue every year if prostitutes were charged a 10 percent income tax.

Riki, a lawmaker from the National Awakening Party (PKB), suggested that the income tax be applied to prostitutes at rehabilitation centers, which he claimed functioned as brothels.

He referred specifically to the Sintam Rehabilitation Center in the Teluk Pandan area, which he said was home to about 40 bars, with about 30 prostitutes working at each bar.

Prostitutes are placed in the center after being arrested, but Riki said many of the women at the center continued to work. He suggested that the 10 percent tax be applied to each "short-term transaction."

"If the tax is Rp 150,000 times 1,200 prostitutes times 30 days for 12 months, the revenue could reach Rp 6.4 billion," Riki said, adding that the money could be used to develop the region.

Usman said the suggestion was unthinkable. "Whatever the reasons are, prostitution is not good for the public, and the ulema refuse to accept public tax revenue from prostitution," he said.

Chablullah Wibisoniyang, chairman of the Riau Islands branch of Muhammadiyah, the country's second largest Muslim organization, said the proposal would be tantamount to legalizing prostitution.

Since prostitution is illegal, the money that comes from it is also illegal, he said. However, he agreed with the idea of Batam's government levying regional taxes on related services in areas where prostitution takes place.

"It is alright if the government taxes restaurants, hotels and taxis operating near the area," Chablullah said.

Yudy Kurnia, another Batam legislative councilor, said Riki's suggestion was "insane." "If we applied income tax to prostitutes, we would be legalizing adultery. I think the idea is insane. It's very wrong," Yudy told Berita Lampung Online.

Imam Nahrowi, the head of the PKB's central executive board, said he did not know anything about Riki's proposal. "We don't have any policies regarding the matter. We will confirm with Riki and find out what the motive was behind the idea," Imam told detik.com on Tuesday.

Located near Malaysia as well as Singapore, Batam is notorious for its nightlife. On almost every corner there are karaoke or disco bars where many prostitutes make their living. (JG, Antara)

Pro-SBY group accused of attacking rival

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Jakarta – Democracy activists have accused a group affiliated with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party of attacking the office of Bendera, a rival group associated with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

Ferdi Semaun of Bendera said he believed the attacks had a connection to his group's criticism of Yudhoyono and Democratic Party politicians during a recent street demonstration marking the coalition government's first 100 days in power.

The police statement that the attack was a "purely criminal incident" was misleading, he said.

"We believe people behind the attacks were closely related to one of the Democratic Party supporter organizations, (namely) the Nusantara Network," he said Sunday, adding that he personally recognized one of the assailants as a member of that organization.

Nusantara Network activists dismissed the claims as "baseless". "We're sorry about the incident but we know nothing about who did it. We don't resort to violence to resolve any problems," Nusantara Network deputy coordinator M. Fachrudin said.

Bendera activists had accused several top figures close to the President of having received funds from the troubled Century Bank.

A group of allegedly drunken men attacked Bendera's office on Friday night, seeking two Bendera activists by the names of Ferdi Semaun and Mustar Bonaventura. The assailants then began throwing rocks and beating people after they failed to find their targets.

Jakarta Obama statue taken down

Agence France Presse - February 15, 2010

A statue depicting US President Barack Obama as a boy was Sunday removed from a park in Indonesia's capital, officials said.

The two-metre bronze was removed from Menteng Park and taken to nearby Menteng One primary school, which Obama attended in the late 1960s, vice-principal Akhmad Solikhin told AFP.

"Workers hired by the school, local government and alumni spent an hour removing the statue with electric equipment," he added. "We'll need another two to three days to place the statue at the compound near the school gate so the public can see it when they pass by," Solikhin added.

The decision to move the statue comes after more than 57,000 people joined a page on social networking website Facebook calling for the statue to be removed and replaced by a memorial to an Indonesian identity.

"There were people who opposed it. For us, we'd like the statue to be in the school to inspire the children to have big dreams like Obama," Solikhin said.

The statue of "Little Barry" – as Obama was known to his Indonesian school friends – was designed by Indonesian artists and depicts the boy Obama dressed in shorts and a T-shirt with a butterfly perched on his hand.

Obama, who was born in Hawaii, lived for four years as a child in Jakarta from 1967 after his divorced mother married an Indonesian.

The White House announced in early February that Obama and his family will visit Indonesia in March.

The trip has been eagerly awaited in the world's most populous Muslim-majority country since Obama's inauguration, which has been welcomed in Indonesia as the start of a new era in US diplomacy.

Aceh

In Aceh Indonesia, Islamic police take to the streets

Christen Science Monitor - February 19, 2010

Kathy Marks, Banda Aceh – "Excuse me," says Iskandar, as his mobile phone beeps for the umpteenth time in the past half hour. It's another anonymous tip-off, alerting him to a young couple who have been seen spending time together alone.

Iskander is head of the Wilayatul Hisbah, a special police unit that enforces Islamic law, or sharia, in the Indonesian province of Aceh. Teams of his officers patrol the Acehnese capital several times a day, looking for unmarried couples, women in close-fitting clothes or not wearing an Islamic headscarf, and anyone drinking alcohol or gambling.

Aceh – known as the "Veranda of Mecca" because Islam entered Indonesia there centuries ago – has long been the most devout spot in the world's most populous Muslim nation.

But the energy with which the 1,500-strong Wilayatul Hisbah – or Wi-Ha, as they are known – are carrying out their job has alarmed some Acehnese, as well as human rights groups, politicians, and businessmen.

Islamic law makes inroads

The province, on the western tip of Sumatra island, home to about 4 million people, won the right to implement Islamic law in 2001, after being granted semi-autonomy as part of efforts to end a decades-long separatist war. Sharia has been enforced with increasing vigor since the 2004 Asian tsunami, which many people interpreted as a divine warning, and last September the provincial parliament approved a new penalty for adulterers: stoning to death.

Aceh is not alone. Across Indonesia, dozens of local governments – given wide scope to enact their own laws under a decentralized system – have adopted Islamic regulations on dress and behavior. In parts of Central Java and South Sulawesi provinces, female civil servants are now obliged to wear headscarves or risk losing their jobs.

While the trend threatens to undermine Indonesia's reputation for having a relaxed approach to Islam, it does not appear to have wide support. At national elections last year, the share of the vote won by Islamic parties plummeted.

In Aceh, many people say they abhor the stoning penalty – yet to be signed into law – although few will criticize it publicly for fear of being branded bad Muslims. But enforcers of a stricter approach to Islam appear to be gathering momentum. Public canings have been carried out, and earlier this month women were banned from wearing tight trousers in one district of Aceh.

In his dilapidated office in Banda Aceh, Iskandar applauds the crackdown. "In our religion, it's forbidden to wear tight clothes, because they can show the body shape and arouse men's desire," he says. "It's all about protecting women and increasing respect for them."

Busting up tjte-'-tjtes

On a recent afternoon, 12 of Iskandar's officers – six men and six women, their olive uniforms crowned by baseball caps and scarves, respectively – headed out to Banda Aceh's harbor area, where young people often congregate.

Taking a softly-softly approach said to be typical of Wi-Ha's tactics, they advanced on a couple sitting in the shade. One officer inquired: "Are you married?" Shame-faced, the boy and girl shook their heads. The officers examined their identity papers, then ordered them to leave. They rode off on their motorbike, flush with embarrassment.

Kuzri, the patrol leader, said he had given them a stiff warning. "It's preventative action, to make sure nothing else happens," he said. "We told them that to be together in a romantic way, if not married, can lead to bigger things and on to adultery." (Adultery, in Aceh, means any sex outside marriage.)

A little further on, a girl and boy took off as soon as the squad arrived. "Actually we're brother and sister, but we were leaving anyway," said the boy. Another couple, fishing off some rocks, said they were married. Kuzri believed them.

"You can tell," he said. "First the location: married people don't need to find a secluded place. Unmarried couples will try to find a place out of sight. Also, they sit very close. People who are married don't do that."

Enforcement raises concern

While the officers only handed out warnings that afternoon, the force made dozens of arrests last year, mainly for adultery and drinking alcohol. Nevertheless, many Acehnese – particularly young people – appear to regard them mainly as an irritation. "We leave when they arrive, then we come back when they've gone," says one man. "They're annoying."

Others dispute whether the Wi-Ha are really role models themselves – a question highlighted this week when three male officers were accused of gang-raping a female detainee in a police cell.

Critics say the way Islamic law is being enforced discriminates against women and poor people (since rich couples can go to a hotel), intrudes into private lives and encourages vigilantism. Acehnese businessmen fear it will harm attempts to attract investment to the province, which is rebuilding its economy following the tsunami.

In Aceh's rural villages, which are socially conservative, some approve of the stricter codes of behavior. But they also have reservations. Lindawati, a seamstress, says: "Women are dressing more modestly now, which is good. But as for the stoning regulation, I don't know how I would feel if one of my family had to suffer that kind of punishment."

Craig Thorburn, an Indonesia expert based at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, believes a radical Islamist minority is currently punching above its weight class. "There is a creeping Saudization taking place all over Indonesia, but it doesn't have wide support, and I believe it's a passing phase," he says.

Ulemas condemn Miss Transvestite pageant

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Hotli Simanjuntak, Banda Aceh – Participants were met with applause, but also taunts when they stepped on the catwalk during a Miss Transvestite Aceh pageant on Saturday evening.

The pageant, held at the Radio Republik Indonesia building and organized by transgender rights organization Putro Sejati Aceh, was aimed at selecting a representative for the national contest as well as campaigning on transgender issues.

"Transvestites are marginalized. We demand equal rights," Sherly, who chairs Putro Sejati Aceh, told The Jakarta Post. She said people in Aceh despised them and discriminated against them for their gender identity.

This was a burden on transvestites who subsequently lost confidence in expressing themselves, especially in education, she added. "Many people are antagonistic and call us 'sissies'. We are afraid to go to school or university to study," Sherly said.

The implementation of Islam sharia law in Aceh, she said, placed them in a difficult position.

An event to select the Acehnese Social Envoy 2010, the pageant featured 40 participants wearing the traditional costumes of their respective regencies. Zifana Letisia from north Aceh won the contest.

"The winner will be sent to the national event," Timmy, head of the organizing committee, said. "We hope the event raises awareness among Acehnese about transvestites," she said.

Timmy said organizers obtained consent from sharia officials to run the event. "I believe the event was successful because of public support. The fact that it ran without incident is testament to that support."

Rini, a member of the judging panel, hailed the event as a positive retort to those angered by transvestites. "This is an opportunity [for transvestites] to show their creativity and prove they have equal rights," she said, adding that many Acehnese saw transgenderism as sinful. "Sin is a personal affair with God. We can't judge someone a sinner because they are a transvestite," she said.

However, the road ahead for transvestites is rocky as Ulemas criticized the contest. "We condemn the pageant. It has tainted sharia in Aceh," Tengku Faisal Ali, the secretary-general of Aceh Ulema Association (HUDA), was quoted as saying Sunday by Antara news agency.

Criticism also came from provincial leaders, with legislator Darmuda saying, "We can't tolerate transvestite pageants. This violates the values of the majority of Acehnese who are Muslims."

West Papua

Obama has the power to help the 'weak man' under Indonesian rule

Jakarta Globe - February 21, 2010

Andreas Harsono – In Jakarta in the late 1960s, a young Barack Obama noticed his stepfather's great unease and silence about his one-year military service in New Guinea. Lolo Soetoro, his stepfather, did not like to talk about his time there. He did tell young Barack about how leeches got into his boots in New Guinea's jungles.

"They crawled inside your army boots while you're hiking through the swamps. At night, when you take off your socks, they're stuck there, fat with blood. You sprinkle salt on them and they die, but you still have to dig them out with a hot knife." The leeches created a series of indented scars on Lolo's legs.

In his book "Dreams From My Father," Obama asked Lolo, "Have you ever seen a man killed?" Lolo was surprised by the question.

"Have you?" Obama asked again. "Yes."

"Was it bloody?"

"Yes."

Obama thought for a moment. "Why was the man killed?"

Lolo answered, "Because he was weak. That's usually enough. Men take advantage of weakness in other men. They're just like countries in that way. The strong man takes the weak man's land. He makes the weak man work in his field. If the weak man's woman is pretty, the strong man will take her." Lolo paused, then asked his young stepson, "Which would you rather be?"

Obama didn't answer the question. Lolo finally remarked, "Better to be strong."

Philosophers around the world could devote volumes to that simple question. But as Obama prepares to visit Indonesia in March, some facts are worth pondering.

Fact No. 1: Barack Obama, the little boy who used to live in Jakarta, is one of the most powerful men in the world. Obama now lives in the White House, not the little house in Menteng. And he is going to revisit the home of his youth to sign a "strategic partnership" with Indonesia.

Fact No. 2: New Guinea is now called Papua. Its western part is legally a part of Indonesia since the controversial UN-approved Act of Free Choice in 1969, in which 1,054 Papuans, hand-picked by Jakarta, voted unanimously to join Indonesia. Papua, to use Lolo's words, is still the weak man under Indonesian rule.

Human rights abuses by Indonesian security forces remain common. Peaceful protesters continue to receive long prison sentences. Papua is off-limits to most independent outside observers. And it remains poor and underdeveloped, despite the fact that it has abundant natural resources, including natural gas, minerals and timber. Papua has the worst poverty in Indonesia, with more than 80 percent of households living below the poverty line. Papua has the biggest HIV problem in the country, with infection rates 15 times the national average.

Fact No. 3: Indonesia's president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, also has a close connection to Papua. Indonesia's military commander in Papua in the late 1960s was Brig. Gen. Sarwo Edhie Wibowo, who had previously led a bloody military campaign against Indonesian communists in Java. He would later become the father-in-law of a young Army captain named Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The human rights situation in Papua remains poor. Human Rights Watch has for many years urged the Indonesian government to stop prosecuting peaceful Papuan protesters. We have asked the government to open Papua to international journalists, human rights researchers and other independent observers. If all is well in Papua, as the government claims, why do the Indonesian police and military require a surat jalan, or "walking permit," for any foreigner visiting Papua?

Since the 1970s, political tensions and abuses by the Indonesian security forces have helped create a climate of fear in Papua. This continues to the present. Impunity remains a huge problem. For example, in November 2001, the Indonesian Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) kidnapped and killed Papuan separatist leader Theys Eluay in Jayapura. The then-commander of Kopassus in Papua, Lt. Col. Hartomo, denied involvement in the murder. But international outrage prompted the Indonesian Military Police to investigate.

In 2003, a court in Surabaya found seven Kopassus soldiers and officers, including Lt. Col. Hartomo, guilty of mistreatment and battery leading to Eluay's death, but crucially not of murder. Sentences served by the seven ranged from two to three and a half years. But Hartomo was not discharged from the Army. Instead, he is now Col. Hartomo, the head of Kopassus Group 1 in Serang, just a three-hour drive from Jakarta.

More than 130 people are currently imprisoned throughout Indonesia for peaceful expression, particularly in Papua and the Moluccas. Some have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms, including Papuan activist Filep Karma, who is serving a 15-year sentence for raising the Papuan Morning Star flag in December 2004 in Jayapura. School teacher Johan Teterisa is serving 15 years for raising the Southern Moluccas Republic flag in June 2007 in Ambon.

For decades, the Indonesian authorities have treated the raising of the Morning Star and Southern Moluccas Republic flags as a crime because they are pro-independence symbols. Article 6 of Government Regulation No. 77/2007 prohibits the display of the Morning Star flag in Papua, as well as the South Maluku Republic flag in Ambon, and the Crescent Moon flag in Aceh. But these prosecutions and the laws violate internationally protected rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly codified in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Indonesia ratified in 2006.

As one who knows Indonesia, the long history of conflict in Papua, which impacted his stepfather, and how important basic freedoms are to the struggle of a minority for equality and access to political power, President Obama is the right man at the right time to ask the Indonesian government to release all prisoners who have peacefully exercised their rights to freedom of expression and assembly and to repeal laws that criminalize speech. He can explain how tolerance of dissent is fundamental to a democracy.

If Obama doesn't act on Papua, perhaps it will be because young Obama grew up in Jakarta, not in Papua. If he had, he would likely see the Papuan question from the point of view of the "weak man," of a victim. But if Obama does act, maybe then in Indonesia there will be a recognition that a strong man is one who assists the weak.

[Andreas Harsono is an Indonesia consultant for Human Rights Watch.]

Police pursue actors behind Papua police shooting

Jakarta Post - February 18, 2010

Jakarta – National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Edward Aritonang said a group of officers from Papua Police were deployed to pursue actors behind the recent shooting of an officer there.

"We suspect the Free Papua Organization (OPM) may be responsible the killing. But we still have to wait to see whether this initial assumption is true," Edward said Tuesday.

Second Brig. Sachrul was shot to dead while escorting a gas truck in Mulia, the capital of Jaya Wijaya district, in Papua on Monday. According to witnesses, up to four people attacked Sachrul and then shot him dead.

Pride of warriors

Al Jazeera - February 16, 2010

Jono van Hest – With strictly limited international media access to West Papua, Australian filmmaker Jono van Hest decided that he wanted to help West Papuans tell their own stories.

The four remarkable stories that ensued provide unparalleled access and a strikingly personal insight into the West Papuan resistance filmed by the West Papuans themselves.

My first encounter with West Papua came with the arrival of 43 refugees in Australia in 2006. They had built and manoeuvred a traditional wooden canoe from their homeland 250km away.

They became arguably Australia's most famous group of refugees, causing a political row that eventually saw Indonesia withdraw their ambassador to Australia.

When the 43 were granted temporary protection they all came to settle in Melbourne, and over time I got to know some of them quite well. For me it was fascinating to hear stories of their journey but also of the country they had left behind.

Most of the Papuans in the group were linked to the West Papuan independence struggle, and all of them had legitimate reasons to fear persecution if they ever returned to Indonesia.

Yet even in Australia, one of West Papua's closest neighbours, not much was known about what was happening there.

Telling their story

One day Herman Wainggai, the leader of the group of refugees, showed me a video tape. It contained footage that he had filmed on their journey to Australia. For me, as a filmmaker, it was also what ultimately prompted me to make this film.

It gave me the idea that instead of being in West Papua myself, I could get local people to be my eyes on the ground, documenting events I could never gain access to. I just had to provide them with a means to do so.

So I decided to try and help the West Papuans tell their stories by giving them the tools to do so – video cameras. With a good friend I put together a series of camera kits and, totally unsure of what to expect, set off for West Papua.

The feeling of being there is hard to describe. It could be summarised as the cultural experience of a lifetime, Melanesia with a hint of Asian flair, overshadowed by fear and mistrust that permeated every facet of society – Indonesian and West Papuan alike.

As I was travelling I had to report my movements regularly to the local Indonesian police intelligence officers. Most rural roads were dotted with military checkpoints, with many areas closed off completely – even for local Papuan villagers.

As I was interested in the resistance movement, I had to meet many of the West Papuans amidst much secrecy, under the cover of darkness, in cars with tinted windows, or at random safe houses.

The majority of people I spoke to had personal stories of intimidation and persecution to tell and often I received messages that people I had been seen talking to had been interrogated about me.

The kidnapping and torture of Yane Waromi

On this first of two trips to West Papua, I met Edison Waromi and his family. Edison had close connections to the 43 Papuans in Australia. He is also one of the key political figures of the West Papuan independence movement.

Leaving a camera with him was mainly a gesture of respect and he offered to lend the camera to some of the student groups active in Jayapura. Never did I expect something as shocking as the kidnapping of his daughter Yane to happen, or that the family would capture the aftermath on camera.

I was in West Papua on my second trip when I received the message about the brutal abduction. When I came back to Jayapura, I visited the family. Seeing Yane that day is still one of the most traumatic memories for me.

I hope that given time her scars will heal, and I am deeply grateful to her that she made the painful choice of agreeing for me to tell her story.

Edison Waromi believes his daughter was abducted because of his political beliefs and the fact that he refuses to be silenced in his call for independence is testimony to the determination and desperation that many West Papuans feel.

The cultural struggle of Matias Bunai

While these events were unfolding in Jayapura, I was in the highlands meeting up with a contact who filmed the Pugodide villagers and their chief, Matias Bunai.

Sitting in a small mountain hut, with five Papuans crowded around, they told me of their dream to fight against the loss of their culture, and to use their culture to fight back against what they see as Indonesian imperialism unjustly forced upon them.

Sitting there with these village men, proudly watching the video of them ceremoniously butchering a pig and wearing nothing but their penis gourds, really personified the contrasts between West Papuan and Indonesian society – societies whose values are worlds apart but which have somehow been thrust together by the process of de-colonisation and forced to coexist.

However for Matias Bunai and his people time is running out. Far removed from the decisions made on the world political stage, for them it is a matter of stopping their tribe's culture and their language from literally becoming extinct.

The guerilla struggle of General Tadius Yogi

The story of Tadius Yogi also takes place in the vast central highlands. He is one of the commanders of the OPM-TPN, the West Papuan resistance army.

Active since the 1960s when the Indonesian military first landed in the region, they have led a small but persistent guerrilla campaign for independence. For years Indonesia had completely closed off the region due to extensive military campaigns against him.

My first impression visiting Yogi and his fighters was overwhelmingly one of awe. Awe at the mixture of military and traditional warrior dress, at their passion and determination and the pride they placed on their ceremonies and parades.

On second inspection however it became strikingly obvious how under-resourced and ill-equipped they really were.

As Yogi says: "Since the time we fought for independence we have just used traditional weapons – spears, bows and arrows, bush knives and axes. But this is not equal to the modern weapons the military use."

I was encouraged by the sense of importance they placed on actually meeting me and they had a deeper and more important new message to communicate. The rebels were prepared to call a truce in return for peace.

Levina Bisay's dance

I first heard about the dance performed by the Sampari dance group when I visited a family on Biak island, during my second trip to West Papua.

After that I noticed photographs of Levina Bisay, the dancer from Sampari who caused a sensation when she held up the banned West Papuan Morning Star flag, in living rooms across West Papua. So when I got to Manokwari, the home town of Sampari, I asked about her. She reluctantly agreed to meet me.

Late one evening I was picked up by a car and taken to meet Levina and the group's choreographer, Noak Baransano. They told me about their dance, about their desire to have the freedom to creatively express themselves through performance.

The dance was about a massacre that had occurred on Biak, and about a little boy learning that his father had been killed.

They performed the dance in front of an emotional gathering of indigenous West Papuan leaders, and the Indonesian press made it front page news.

The dancers were immediately branded as separatists, a serious crime for anyone in Indonesia. Both Levina and Noak were repeatedly interrogated and threatened by the police after the dance, each pressured to speak out against the other.

For me it was incomprehensible that something as innocent as a dance performance, a creative cultural expression, could be seen as a crime.

During my time in West Papua I travelled from the westernmost tip close to Indonesia proper to the eastern border to Papua New Guinea, from the coastal mangrove swamps in the south to the magnificent central highland valleys and the tropical islands to the north.

For the West Papuans I met it is a clear argument. They feel they have been wrongly occupied by Indonesia and they want the international community to help them gain an independent future on peaceful terms.

The Indonesian government was asked to comment on claims that West Papuans continue to be persecuted under Indonesian rule but they declined.

[The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy.]

Policeman shot dead in Papua province

Associated Press - February 15, 2010

Police are investigating whether separatists are responsible for the fatal shooting on Monday of a policeman who was guarding a gas station in the restive Indonesian province of Papua, a report said.

Four gunmen shot Sgt. Sharul, who used only one name, and stole his gun in the town of Mulia near the Freeport gold and copper mine, the Antara news agency quoted Puncak Jaya district police Chief Aleks Korwa as saying.

Police are investigating whether the gunmen were activists seeking independence for Indonesia's easternmost province, Korwa said. Papua police spokesman Col. Agus Rianto could not be immediately contacted for comment.

Last month, gunmen ambushed a convoy of vehicles from the mine, wounding at least seven people, including four police officers and an American.

It was the latest in a string of ambushes on the road linking the mine with the town of Timika that have claimed eight lives since July 2009, including an Australian technician.

The mine, run by a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc. based in Phoenix, Arizona, has been repeatedly targeted with arson, roadside bombs and blockades since production began in the impoverished province in the 1970s.

The region is the scene of a low-level insurgency and police routinely guard businesses such as gas stations.

Human rights/law

To Cijantung they went in search...

Kompas - February 20, 2010

On Friday February 19, there was something different taking place at the Army's Special Forces or Kopassus headquarters in Cijantung, East Jakarta.

The Kopassus headquarters, which is known as being "angker" (ghostlike, eerie, terrible), was visited by around 30 protesters. They were family members of the victims of forced disappearances in 1997-1998 accompanied by activists from the Indonesian Association of the Families of Missing Persons (Ikohi) and the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras).

Riding in an executive bus, they arrived at the elite forces headquarters carrying a woven basket filled with snacks that they planned to share out among their friends and family members who are still missing and believed to be held at the headquarters. "The last time I met with Petrus Bima (one of the missing victims) was here," said Ikohi chairperson Mugianto, who was also a victim of the abductions and finally released.

In addition to Mugianto, also visiting the Kopassus headquarters was Sipon, the wife of Widji Thukul, Petrus Bima's father Utomo, Yani Afri's mother Tuti Koto and several other family members of the victims.

Kopassus headquarters detachment commander infantry Lieutenant Colonel Kartika Adi Putranta and Kopassus Deputy Assistant for Intelligence Lieutenant Colonel I Nyoman Suparta refused to accept the basket of food.

They claimed not to have serving at Cijantung in the period 1997-1998 so they did not know the whereabouts of those who are missing. "They came here meaning well, and we received them accordingly also," said Kopassus Deputy Commander Brigadier General Wisnu Bawa Tenaya.

The action ended peacefully, but with the protesters leaving the Kopassus headquarters without any assurances. But they will not tire of searching.

They are also still awaiting the issuance of a presidential decree to shed light on the case. "I've waited for 13 years now. The president must implement the DPR's recommendations", said Tuti Koto.

In late 2009, the House of Representatives (DPR) recommended the formation of an ad hoc human rights court, a search for the 13 people declared still missing by the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM), the rehabilitation of and the provisions of compensation to the families of the disappeared and the ratification of the UN Convention on Forced Disappearances.

Kontras coordinator Usman Hamid said that the important thing is seeking certainty about the fate of the missing people, whether they are alive or dead. Hamid also confirmed that he had met with the president's special staff member for social affairs, Andi Arief. "We spoke about a planned presidential regulation on the search for the missing people and planned compensation", said Hamid.

In the eyes of the victims however, material assistance is not the priority. Mugianto insisted that he would not pawn justice for the sake of material compensation... (EDN/AIK)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Yudhoyono urged to resolve missing students case

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – If he wanted to, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono could clear up the mystery surrounding the alleged murders and disappearances of 13 activists during the turbulent years leading to the downfall of Suharto.

That was the message on Friday from the families of the missing activists, who were believed to have been kidnapped, tortured and murdered by the military's infamous Special Forces unit, also known as Kopassus.

The family members, who visited the Jakarta Police headquarters and Kopassus headquarters on Thursday, were convinced the fates of their loved ones could be revealed if the government had the will to do so, said Mugiyanto, chairman of the Indonesian Association of Families of the Disappeared (Ikohi).

"These meetings are our message to President Yudhoyono. If he really wants to look for our family members, then he should start doing something about it immediately," he said.

Yudhoyono's human rights record, which is expected to be thrust into the limelight ahead of US President Barack Obama's visit to Indonesia next month, has already been heavily criticized by rights campaigners.

On International Human Rights Day in December, thousands of activists railed against the president for failing to properly address past and continuing rights abuses.

The number of abuse cases reported to the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) last year increased to 4,900, up from 4,482 cases in 2008.

Lt. Col. I Nyoman S, head of Kopassus's legal division, welcomed the families of the missing activists to the unit's headquarters in Cijantung, East Jakarta, on Thursday.

Speaking after the private meeting, Mugiyanto said they had told Kopassus that they were searching for bodies of their missing family members, including three activists who were known to have been taken to Cijantung before they disappeared.

"The Kopassus official said none of them were there," he said, adding that they had in fact denied even knowing about the existence of the missing activists.

"We then told them that the families of the missing activists hoped Kopassus would be open and help them by supplying information – even if it was conducted behind closed doors."

Although they did not uncover any information on Thursday, Mugiyanto said the families were heartened that they had even been allowed to meet with Kopassus given its reputation for being secretive and uncooperative, as was previously reported by Komnas HAM and the Attorney General's Office when investigating the matter.

"We are now curious as to whether [Komnas HAM and the AGO] undertook the investigation seriously or not, because we were able to meet [Kopassus] easily and in an amiable atmosphere," he said.

Mugiyanto said the families were willing to help Kopassus repair the bad image it received because of past human rights abuses, but Kopassus first had to publicly reveal what had happened to the activists.

As part of efforts to find the missing activists, the group plans to establish a center for information and solidarity for the victims of enforced disappearances, located at the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) office in Menteng, Central Jakarta.

"If anyone knows any information about our missing family members, we hope that they will file a report at the center," Mugiyanto said.

In one of its final acts before new lawmakers were sworn in last year, the House of Representatives passed a motion urging Yudhoyono to issue a presidential decree to establish an ad hoc human rights tribunal to try those allegedly involved in the disappearances.

In addition to recommending the president establish the ad hoc tribunal, the House also urged the government to form new teams to investigate exactly what happened to the activists.

The government was also called on to provide compensation and rehabilitation for the surviving victims and their families.

At least 22 pro-democracy activists disappeared between 1997 and 1998, nine of whom resurfaced with harrowing accounts of torture at the hands of the military.

NGO asks Obama to pressure Indonesia for justice in Munir case

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Muninggar Saraswati & Camelia Pasandaran – Indonesian human rights activists have used a meeting with US President Barack Obama in Washington in the hope that he will push for a resolution to the murder of human rights campaigner Munir Said Thalib during his visit to Jakarta next month.

Choirul Anam, deputy executive director of the Jakarta-based Human Rights Working Group, said HRWG executive director Rafendi Djamin had met Obama at the White House for a human rights summit organized by Human Rights First and Freedom House. The summit was attended by the Dalai Lama and 22 activists from around the world, he said.

"We suggested that Obama pay attention to the murder conspiracy because the settlement of this is very important to the democratization process, law enforcement and law reform, and protection of human rights in Indonesia," Choirul said.

He said Rafendi also stressed that there were strong indications of a systemic effort to weaken the judicial process and attempts to find the brains behind the operation, allegedly spearheaded by the State Intelligence Agency (BIN).

He noted that the Indonesian justice system had failed to resolve the case, despite the attention given to the murder by the international community.

Munir was a staunch critic of the military's human rights abuses. He founded the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras). Munir died after his drink was poisoned with arsenic while on an Amsterdam-bound flight on Sept. 7, 2004.

In the indictment, prosecutors said Muchdi Purwoprandjono, a former top intelligence official, had used his influence at BIN to avenge his ouster as chief of the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus). It said Muchdi blamed Munir for his ouster because the activist had fiercely criticized him over the alleged kidnapping of students and activists by Kopassus members.

Muchdi was charged but a district court ruled on Dec. 31, 2008, that such a motive could not be proven. The Supreme Court upheld the acquittal in June.

"We told Obama that this case was proof that reform of the Indonesian judicial system and its security services had gone nowhere," Choirul said.

Separately, Haris Azhar, deputy chairman of Kontras, said Indonesia had a special relationship with the United States, which meant the US government had an important role to play in supporting democracy in Indonesia. He said one of the major challenges democracy faced was the murder of Munir.

"It is one of the big factors why the US and Obama must give attention to this case – to pressure the Indonesian government to commit to efforts to minimize human rights abuses," Haris said.

"The murder of Munir and failure of the judicial process shows there are still many people in Indonesia who are very powerful and... who are opposed to human rights principles," he said.

Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha could not be reached for comment. The Supreme Court said recently that it was open to the idea of a case review of its verdict in the Munir murder.

Police officers get 'lenient punishment' for firing on protesters

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2010

Khairul Saleh, Palembang – A police tribunal in Palembang, South Sumatra, has ordered detentions ranging from two to three weeks for 22 members of the police's Mobile Brigade who shot farmers with rubber bullets during a recent demonstration.

South Sumatra Police spokesman Snr. Comr. Abdul Gofur said Friday the ethics tribunal had ruled the officers had used excessive force in trying to disperse the protesters.

Eleven residents of Renggas village in Ogan Ilir regency were wounded when members of the Mobile Brigade and provincial police fired on them in an attempt to quell a riot on Dec. 4 last year.

The riot grew from a protest against state plantation company PTPN VII, which the farmers alleged had illegally expanded its lands. The protesters set ablaze the company's heavy machinery, trucks and office.

Gofur said the offending Mobile Brigade officers had been remanded at the Bukit Besar detention center.

"They were found to have violated regulations by firing rubber bullets at the farmers during the incident," Gofur told The Jakarta Post on Friday. "Their action was deemed a violation of human rights and dishonorable to the police force."

Mobile Brigade chief Waluyo was ordered to serve 21 days in detention, wile the rest were given 14 days.

Gofur dismissed calls for the offenders to stand trial in a civilian court, saying there were no indications of criminal violations and the offense was not liable to criminal charges.

He added the incident would serve as a lesson for the police. "We're now looking at options for crowd control were we don't deploy the Mobile Brigade," he said.

The Palembang Legal Aid Foundation's Yophie Barata expressed disappointment at the relatively lenient punishment handed down by the tribunal, saying the officers should have been tried in court.

"The punishment is far too lenient," he said. "The tribunal should have done more, such as demote the officers, of instance. The case should have gone to court because it smacked of criminal violations," he went on. "Plus, the police are technically civilians."

Renggas villager Sonedy Ardiansyah said justice had not been done, and called on the police to consider the psychological scars left by the shooting. "It's a travesty of justice," he said.

In a related incident, thousands Renggas and Lubuk Bandung villagers rallied at the Ogan Ilir regency council to demand the land agency not issue title deeds for the disputed area.

Environmental activist Anwar Sadat, accompanying the protesters, said PTPN VII only had deeds for 6,000 hectares, but had laid claim to 20,000 hectares.

Incidents of violence involving Mobile Brigade units countrywide are common. One person was killed and three injured in Papua when officers opened fire on them last June.

In Riau, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) concluded officers had committed rights abuses in a clash with residents in Bengkalis regency in December 2008.

In early 2007, two teenagers accused of stealing used wire from a timber company in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, were shot by a Mobile Brigade officer, leading to a violent backlash and vandalism of the company's building.

Action urged on 1997-98 missing students case

Jakarta Globe - February 18, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The families of students and activists who disappeared during the 1997-98 political unrest stepped up pressure on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Wednesday to form an ad-hoc tribunal to hear the cases.

They said that the formation of the tribunal had been suggested last year on recommendations by the House of Representatives.

Mugiyanto, chairman of the Indonesian Association of Families of the Disappeared (Ikohi), speaking at a press conference in Jakarta, criticized president Yudhoyono for failure to act on the proposal.

He said that the September 2009 recommendations contained four points that the government should have followed up on, but so far none of them had been carried out. "Until now the government has done nothing," Mugiyanto said. "At least, please establish the ad hoc tribunal."

Besides pushing for the establishment of an ad hoc court to hear cases related to the disappearances, the House also directed the government to order state officials to continue the search for the missing students, to compensate their families and to ratify the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons From Enforced Disappearance.

Mugiyanto said that the House's proposal was the only option remaining to the families of the missing activists in their search for justice and effort to determine the true fate of their loved ones.

Suyandi, whose brother Suyat went missing during the volatile period, said, "we have a weapon and it is the only one: the House's recommendation." He said Yudhoyono or whoever else might in the future hold the presidency could not shirk the responsibility to resolve the cases.

"We will always keep pressure on the government to discover the fate of our family members who are still missing. It is the responsibility of the state, the president's responsibility," Suyandi said.

During the troubled last years of the long rule of former President Suharto, at least 22 pro-democracy activists disappeared. Nine of them resurfaced with harrowing accounts of torture at the hands of the military, but 13 still remain missing.

Military spokesman Air Vice Marshal Sagom Tamboen, responding to the House recommendation, had already said that the Armed Forces would wait for direction from the president and would abide by his decision.

Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha could not be immediately reached for comment on the case, and text messages sent to his mobile phone were unanswered.

Police urged to solve journalist murder case

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Sri Wahyuni, Yogyakarta – The Yogyakarta branch of the Alliance of Independent Journalists' (AJI) has called for the reopening of the murder case of journalist Fuad Muhamad Syafruddin, popularly known as Udin.

They voiced their demands over the weekend in a meeting where they elected Pito Agustin of Koran Tempo daily and Masjidi of Hidayatullah magazine as the new chairman and secretary, respectively, for the 2010-2013 term.

"We have given the police numerous leads, but none seems to have been followed up. It's been 14 years. They have had plenty of time to solve the case," outgoing branch chairman Bambang Muryanto said.

Udin, a journalist with Bernas daily, was beaten unconscious on Aug. 13, 1996, reportedly because of his critical reports on various misappropriations implicating local administration officials and figures. He died three days later.

The case will expire in 2014, 18 years after the incident. The police had named Dwi Sumaji as a murder suspect but he was acquitted by the Bantul District Court, which cited a lack of evidence. The trial itself drew controversy, with critics calling it fixed.

Since the trial, no significant development has been made in the case. The police have insisted that unless new evidence was presented, they could not continue the investigation.

AJI has challenged the police assertions, saying that there have been abundant findings that the police could use to solve the case.

"They cannot just wait for new evidence to emerge. It's too long [since the murder] to expect new evidence to emerge. Why don't they just use the existing leads to bring the case to light," AJI member Heru Prasetya said.

Other outcomes of the AJI conference, held every three years, included a call to mass media publishers in Yogyakarta to provide their journalists with a minimum monthly salary of Rp 2,728,483.

"Based on a survey we conducted at the end of 2008, this is the reasonable salary for a single journalist living in Yogyakarta. For those who have families, the amount is certainly higher," Bambang Muryanto said.

The conference also demanded mass media publishers improve their journalists' professional skills, fulfill their rights for holidays and promote the establishment of press workers' associations in their respective companies.

"We also urge them to create a gender-sensitive milieu in the workplace and provide sufficient knowledge and skill to cover events with minimum security standards," conference participant Masduki said.

In relation to the upcoming regional elections, AJI's Yogyakarta branch called on journalists and mass media companies to maintain independence and play a controlling role to help create fair and just elections in the province.

AJI chairman Nezar Patria supported the chapter's call in the Udin case, saying that AJI was the last bastion in the struggle for press freedom in the country "so let us continue the struggle".

NGOs seek to scrap law on coastal management

Jakarta Post - February 16, 2010

Pandaya, Jakarta – The 2007 Coastal and Islet Management Law is yet to be functional, but an alliance of activists are already seeking to shoot it down.

An alliance of NGOs have filed for a judicial review with the Constitutional Court to have the law revised or even scrapped as they claim it will see the state surrendering its sovereignty to capitalists.

The group says the law gives business entities the right to manage a particular area and share the profits with the local government, which will effectively rob indigenous po-pulations of their ancestral homes and livelihood.

"The law will only create legal certainty because in some ways the law is in conflict with the Constitution, which gives the right to control natural resources to the state to ensure the well being of the people," said Taufiqul Mujib from the Indonesian Human Rights Committee for Social Justice.

The law the House of Representatives passed in 2007 is intended as an umbrella for the existing 20 or so lower regulations pertaining to the management of coastal and minor islands.

It also aims to help improve the livelihood of customary communities and islanders who have been living in the area for several generations.

Even though the law allows public participation in developing and managing the coast and islands, it requires bureaucratic procedures that only powerful capitalists can afford.

The concession holders are entrusted with a high degree of autonomy to manage and profit from the project. The activists agree that it is good that businesses are required to fulfill various obligations in relation to environmental protection, but argue that experience has shown that such contracts usually end up with bureaucrats bowing to the will of capitalists.

The government has given concessions to tourism businesspeople to develop and manage such places in Jakarta, Bali and a Tukangbesi Islands in Southeast Sulawesi.

Although the government is yet to make regulations and implement the law, activists warn that conflict between locals and businesspeople has already been brewing in many areas.

In Southeast Sulawesi, a simmering conflict has erupted between a pearl company and fishery communities who lost their fishing areas, which are now controlled by entrepreneurs.

Similar conflicts are also common along the coast between Surabaya and Banyuwangi in East Java, Taufiqul said.

In Togian Islands, Central Sulawesi, and Tukangbesi Islands, the economic welfare of fishermen has been on the decline after local administrations granted concessions to tourism operators, the NGOs noted.

In Tukangbesi, the indigenous popoulation has been barred from catching fish from coral reefs – something they have done all their life – after the tourism investor claimed the territory as theirs, said M. Riza Damanik, the secretary-general of Kiara (the People's Coalition for Justice in Fishery).

"As compensation for the lost fishing area, the businessman set aside Rp 5 million a month for the locals and Rp 50 million for the local administration a year from its estimated Rp 5 billion in annual income," Riza said.

In Ancol, a famed beach resort in North Jakarta, he said that no fisherman could even pass the area without putting up sails provided by the Ancol tourism management as a candid way of promoting the spot and the beach that is closed to the non-paying public.

Labour/migrant workers

Underage labor violates child rights: Watchdogs

Jakarta Globe - February 21, 2010

Nurfika Osman – Two national rights commissions have expressed concern over the number of underage children working in the country, classifying it as child abuse.

"This is categorized as abuse of children as they are still under 18 years old," Masruchah, an official at the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), told the Jakarta Globe on Sunday.

"They are children and their rights should be protected by the state and working is not their main job."

She said that it was a complicated problem because it was tied to widespread poverty throughout the archipelago.

"It's hard for low-income families as they need money," she said. "And the bargaining position of the children with the parents is low, so [the children] are pushed into a corner. It's a matter of relative power."

Seto Mulyadi, chairman of the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas Anak), told the Globe on Sunday that there were currently five million underage children working as domestic help or in the entertainment and mining industries.

"This is a cause of serious concern as it means that the rights of children have been violated," Seto said.

He added that labor unions, neighborhood units [RT], community units [RW] and domestic worker agencies should strive to stop children's rights from being violated.

"There should be strict and direct monitoring by community unit heads regarding the presence of underage maids in homes," he said. "They need to get their education and they also need rest. [The community] should guarantee that underage children receive what they should receive," he said.

Indonesia has a regulation to control children's working hours through the Manpower Ministerial Decree No. 115/2004, which states that children can work according to their talents and interests without being forced by anyone, with the work expected to boost their creativity. However, this regulation is aimed at children in the entertainment industry.

The decree also states that children should work a maximum of three hours per day and 12 hours per week, and they should only work after school hours.

In an attempt to reduce the risk of exploitation, the decree also states that parents should accompany their children while they work.

Lawmakers from the House of Representatives Commission IX, overseeing labor issues, have promised to pass a law this year to protect the rights of the nation's four million domestic workers.

The National Network for Domestic Workers Advocacy (Jala PRT) has been calling for a law to protect domestic workers since 2004.

From 2005 to 2009, the network received 472 reports of domestic workers allegedly being subjected to abuse in cases that included sexual harassment by employers, delayed wages and excessive workload.

Repatriation not enough, activists say

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2010

Jakarta – Activists dismissed the government's claim of having achieved "success" in taking home thousands of migrant workers who were experiencing problems abroad.

They said that protecting and demanding those workers rights could be considered an achievement, but taking them home would not be considered so.

"Taking them home is not an achievement because its only a part of the government's obligation," Anis Hidayah from the Migrant Care organization told The Jakarta Post. She said the government should consider bigger problems that needed solving, such as the deaths of migrant workers overseas and the delayed ratification of the conventions on basic migrant workers' rights.

"Also, they should ensure whether the ones who returned to the country have resolved their problems in the countries where they worked," Anis said.

Many migrant worker problems involved violence or unpaid salaries, which are hard to resolve once workers have arrived back in Indonesia, she said. "Sometimes taking those workers home can result in hampering case settlement," Anis said.

There are currently more than 6 million migrant workers, including illegal ones, living overseas. They are estimated to contribute around Rp 6 trillion (US$6.4 billion) to the country's economy each year, national portal website www.indonesia.go.id claimed.

Last month, the Foreign Ministry claimed that since October last year it had succeeded in taking home 2,116 migrant workers from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Jordan. The repatriation had been part of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono Cabinet's 100-day program.

According to Teuku Faizasyah, the ministry's spokesman, the repatriation process had not been easy. "There were many workers who had problems in their work places and approached the country's representative offices. We have eased the burden for those offices," he said.

Teuku said that the ministry had employed several strategies and efforts to take back workers, such as booking an airplane previously used to fly passengers undertaking the haj in November last year to take workers back on its way home.

"We always try to take (migrant workers) who are in trouble back home, but not in such great quantities," he said.

Teuku said his office also bailed out workers who were in prison and processed the payment of workers who were deprived of salaries while providing shelter for those workers in representative offices.

The return of the last batch, consisting of 340 workers in need of aid and other Indonesians living overseas, in January was said to be a noted event, with Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa attending the occasion at the Soekarno Hatta International Airport.

Other figures, such as the women's empowerment and child protection minister, the manpower and transmigration minister and head of the Indonesian Labor Placement and Protection Agency (BNP2TKI), Jumhur Hidayat.

Sri Palupi from the Institute of Ecosoc Rights said that the government should improve the country's system to prevent poverty and provide more work for its people if it wants to prevent more migrant worker issues.

"They should also increase the quality of the country's human resources (for overseas)," she said. (dis)

Employers, unions unite in fear of imports

Jakarta Post - February 19, 2010

Mustaqim Adamrah, Jakarta – A common interest to ensure resilience to China's growing domination over the Indonesian market has brought big employers and labor unions together in a previously unlikely partnership.

The Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) announced Thursday that the grouping of Indonesian manufacturers were joining labor unions in a National Bipartite Forum, aiming to come up with joint strategies to counter potential impacts of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement.

The move is the latest attempt by related stakeholders after demanding the government request to postpone the full implementation of the FTA. The government has sent a formal letter to Beijing requesting a renegotiation, but stakeholders fear this will be fruitless.

"We will work together to face the presence of Chinese goods [on the market] to save each industry and protect [workers] against dismissal," Apindo chairman Sofjan Wanandi said Thursday at a press conference. "It will be hard for us not to be united in facing the FTA because [China] is big."

Indonesian Labor Union for Prosperity (KSBSI) deputy president Sulistri said the forum was developed in response to anxiety among workers over potential dismissals the FTA would cause.

State enterprise workers' union secretary Suripto Sabardi also said state enterprises were "restructuring" their management, particularly those who were about to retire, in response to the implementation of the FTA.

Sofjan urged employers to consider alternatives to restructuring and dismissals. Workshops would be provided for workers by both employers and workers, to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian manufacturers.

Signed in 2004, the FTA has eaten up part of the market for early harvest fruit and vegetable produce since it came into effect one year later. Local manufacturers fear they will become victims to the zero tariffs on 6,682 tariff lines in 17 sectors, including 12 in manufacturing, at the beginning of the year.

Apart from attempts to compete with Chinese products, Sofjan said the forum would also work to resolve disputes between employers and workers.

Workers' unions having trouble should report immediately to the forum for advocacy, Sofjan said. "I will also talk to employers [to look for] win-win solutions," he said.

Sofjan said the forum would also work on revisions to manpower- related laws including the 2003 Law on Employment, the 2001 Law on Workers' Unions, the 1992 Law on Social Security for Workers (Jamsostek), the 2004 Law on the Social Security System, the 2003 Law on Industrial Relations and the 2004 Law on Industrial Dispute Settlement.

Aiming to reach a win-win solution for employers and workers, the forum needed to amend "a few articles" in those laws, including two contentious issues of outsourcing and severance pay, he said.

The forum had asked the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) to investigate which manpower-related laws and articles needed to be revised, Sofjan said.

Reinstate workers fired without talks, firms told

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2010

Putri Prameshwari – Employees who were recently laid off by several companies without prior discussion must be taken back, Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Muhaimin Iskandar said on Tuesday.

Muhaimin called on management and workers at the companies in question to be more cooperative with each other. "I call for companies to hold meetings with their employees first to look for a solution," he said.

He said every company must have a workers' union as a bridge of communication.

Muhaiman said companies that laid off employees included private TV station Indosiar, Papandayan Hotel in Bandung, West Java, the Jakarta International Container Terminal, and Berita Kota, a Jakarta-based daily newspaper.

However, Muhaimin said, the cancellation could be applied only to companies still in process of dismissing workers, such as Indosiar.

He urged companies to talk with the workers' unions before dismissals. "The ministry will keep facilitating the discussions," Muhaimin said.

As for companies that have dismissed employees and paid severance, he said, the ministry would investigate whether they had followed legal procedures.

He also called for the establishment of a mutual work agreement in every company, made by the workers' union and the board of management. Muhaimin said the dismissals were not related to the Asean-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA), but purely for internal reasons.

Therefore, it is important for workers and companies to unite and face the "global challenge the ACFTA will bring."

In January, Berita Kota laid off more than 140 employees after the newspaper was acquired by media giant PT Kompas Gramedia, while Indosiar is in process of dismissing 20 employees.

Sofyan Wanandi, chairman of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo), said no company institutes a mass layoff without deep consideration, but companies must do what they can to prevent bankruptcy.

He added that if the government calls for companies to stop dismissing employees, it must also ensure that there are enough jobs for everyone. "Make sure that our economy is competitive enough that companies do not have to fire people," he said.

Domestic workers celebrate national day, demand respect

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Sri Wahyuni, Yogyakarta – Commemorating what they called domestic worker national day, which falls on Feb. 15, activists and domestic workers in Yogyakarta staged a rally on Sunday, demanding respect and equal treatment before the law.

Carrying banners and posters expressing their demands, protesters marched to the provincial legislature.

Calling the move "Serbet Cinta untuk PRT Yogya" (Love napkins for Yogyakarta domestic workers), they stitched 400 napkins to form a giant napkin that they spread over the front yard of the building.

"This is our way of showing respect to domestic workers. They deserve the same protection and treatment as workers in other sectors," activist Damairia Pakpahan said.

Protesters comprised of members from domestic workers' associations and NGOs grouped under the Yogyakarta Domestic Worker Protection Network (JPPRT).

Another rally is expected nationwide on Monday. Feb. 15 was chosen as the domestic worker national day in tribute to a large rally in Surabaya in 2001 held in response to the death of 14- year-old domestic worker Sunarsih, who was tortured by her employer.

"Despite the contributions of domestic workers to the wheels of economy of our families, employers, places of origin and even the country, domestic workers still face abundant problems," Raminingsih, a domestic worker, said.

Among the problems, she said, were abuse and exploitation such as long working hours, unpaid overtime, physical violence and sexual abuse.

"What is more concerning is that little is publicly known about such abuse mostly because our working places are considered private and that outsiders cannot just interfere," said Raminingsih, who also coordinated Sunday's rally.

Protesters demanded domestic workers be given reasonable wages and working hours and a day off every Sunday. They also urged the government to recognize Feb. 15 as an official domestic worker national day, when domestic workers across the country could be granted an extra day off.

Another protester, Buyung Ridwan Tanjung, said that with nearly 37,000 domestic workers in the province, there was no other reason for the provincial administration to not provide clear regulation on domestic worker protection.

"We began the struggle for such regulation a decade ago. There is no sign of success yet," said Buyung, who is also coordinator of the advocacy division of Rumpun Tjoet Njak Dien, one of the participating NGOs.

He expressed disappointment with the issuance of a gubernatorial decree annulling an article on domestic workers in a 2009 Yogyakarta municipal bylaw on manpower affairs, which classified domestic workers as formal workers.

Government to focus on labor intensive industries

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The government has promised to provide more attention on reviving manufacturing, service sectors, among the hardest hit by the global crisis last year, in order to provide more employment.

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said that such industries, which provide much employment, needed to be further revitalized in order to help lower the unemployment rate.

"What we need to look at closely is manufacturing industries," the finance minister said last week. "This is our homework. The government keeps making policies to support the growth of manufacturing industries in Indonesia. Revitalizing sugar mills and fertilizer industries are priorities."

The minister said that the government needed to issue new policies to support the manufacturing sector, the main absorber of the employment, in addition to the agriculture and service sector.

Despite the world financial crisis, Indonesia's economy grew at 4.5 percent last year, outstripping the government's target. But several business sectors suffered a decline in growth despite the better-than-expected GDP growth pace.

The manufacturing grew only 2.1 percent as compared to 3.7 in 2008, while the growth in the trade, hotel and restaurant business dived to 1.1 percent from 7.2 percent in 2008. The growth rate in the agriculture, cattle breeding, forestry and fishery sector also fell to 4.1 percent from 4.8 percent, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

Sri Mulyani said that the government would focus on helping these business sectors this year in an attempt to bolster economic growth and lower the unemployment rate.

The finance minister said the government would provide tax incentives for businesses, particularly high-end manufacturers, by eliminating luxury tax.

Sri Mulyani said the trade, hotel and restaurant sector saw a declining growth because of the contraction in export-import activities.

But she said the sector might have a double-digit growth this year with the expected increase in business activities. "Manufacturing industries are more difficult because they depend on capital spending, investment climate and labor law," she said.

She said many companies had begun to import new production facilities (capital goods) during the fourth quarter of last year to increase production and to improve production efficiency.

Sri Mulyani, however, said that the impact of the purchases of new production would be felt only during the second semester of this year. Mulyani said investment growth might pick up to 7.2 percent this year if banks began channeling loans to the real sector.

The government aims to reduce the unemployment rate to 7.5 percent this year, from 7.87 percent recorded by the BPS in August 2009.

Environment/natural disasters

Researchers say toxic pesticides poisoning Indonesia's farmers

Jakarta Globe - February 21, 2010

Fidelis E Satriastanti, Nusa Dua – As Indonesia hosts an international meeting on toxic and hazardous chemicals here, a nongovernmental organization said on Sunday that an increase in the country's pesticide use had resulted in the poisoning of farmers.

That claim was made by Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP) in its latest report, "Asian Regional Report on Community Monitoring of Highly Hazardous Pesticide Use." The report was released before the 11th Simultaneous Extraordinary Meetings of the Conference of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions, which opens today and runs through Wednesday.

The study was conducted in 2008 in collaboration with local partner organizations from eight countries – Indonesia, Cambodia, China, India, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam – with 1,304 farmers as respondents. It found that 66 percent of the active ingredients in pesticides used on vegetables, cotton, paddy rice and other crops were highly hazardous, according to PAN International classification criteria.

In Indonesia, the study was conducted by Gita Pertiwi, a green group focusing on pesticide issues. The group interviewed 100 farmers in Wonosobo, Central Java, in 2008.

Rosanna Dewi, executive director of Gita Pertiwi, said all of the respondents said they had suffered health problems, ranging from mild headaches to fainting and diabetes.

"All of the respondents, 39 females and 61 males, have found themselves manifesting symptoms caused by pesticides, from nausea and headaches to more serious problems like diabetes and cancer," Rosanna said.

She said blood tests performed by health agencies had confirmed that 90 percent of the farmers had been poisoned by pesticides. She added that the problem was exacerbated by the rise in the different types of pesticides used in the country.

"In 2008, there were 1,702 kinds of pesticides [in Indonesia] coming from 353 companies. But now we have 1,822 from 273 companies," Rosanna said. "The reason the numbers keep increasing is that [farmers] are tempted by rewards for buying certain products, for example, offers of a hajj trip."

She added that farmers received little information on how to safely use of the pesticides.

"Based on FAO [UN Food and Agriculture Organization] standards, [farmers] should wear gloves, long sleeves, plastic coveralls and a hat, but they've always said it was too hot," she said, adding that women should not be allowed to spray pesticides because it put them at risk of reproductive health problems.

Rosanna said the herbicide Paraquat continued to be used in the country, mostly on palm oil plantations.

"The substance is already banned based on the Rotterdam [Convention], but unfortunately we have not ratified it yet. It is very effective in killing weeds, but it can cause cancer much more quickly than other substances," she said, adding that the Agriculture Ministry issued a ministerial regulation in 2007 that said only certified farmers could spray Paraquat.

PAN AP executive director Sarojeni Rengam said governments should phase out hazardous pesticides and phase-in non-chemical pest management approaches.

"Support needs to focus on the investigation, education and promotion of agro-ecological practices, biodiversity-based ecological agriculture and integrated pest management," Rengam said.

'Stop new business permits' for the sake of the environment

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2010

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – A group of activists have urged the government to stop issuing new business permits to exploit natural resources due to poor regulation and the high number of overlapping permits.

They also called on the government to review licenses that had been given to companies that were yet to start operation.

The calls for a moratorium were made by the Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam), the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL), the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) and the Women's Solidarity and People's Coalition for Justice in Fishery (Kiara).

They said that a temporary moratorium on business permits was urgent in order to allow time for the government to settle the policies needed to manage natural resources for the benefit of the people.

Jatam chairwoman Siti Maimunah said that in some provinces, the total number of business licenses awarded to companies to exploit natural resources far exceeded the entire land mass of the province.

"They (local authorities) no longer use common sense when issuing permits," Maimunah told a press conference on Thursday. Most of the permits were for mining and plantations, she added.

In East Kalimantan, she said, the total number of overlapping licenses awarded to mining and plantations had reached 21.7 million hectares, but the province's total area of land was only 19.8 million hectares.

"We are not against mining or plantation activities as long as they comply with the regulations. But now, selling permits has become a lucrative business for local authorities," she said.

The coalition said that despite the operation of big companies, the people of Kalimantan, which produced more than 200 million tons of coal per year, remained in poverty.

"Ecological disasters, social conflicts and health problems coupled with a high rate of poverty are still common in provinces that are rich in natural resources," she said.

The Environment Ministry found that most small-scale coal mining firms in East and South Kalimantan failed to produce environmental impact analysis (Amdal) documents, with a number of big companies failing to reclaim their former mining pits.

Executive director of the ICEL Rhino Subagyo, said the ministry was slow to act to protect the environment. "The office of the environment ministry remains unmoved although it has the authority to act under the 2009 Environmental Law," he said.

The law requires the government to set an inventory on environment to map the capacity and the availability of natural resources. The inventory is designed to be the basis for policy makers to determine strategic plans on environmental protection and management.

The law also obliges local administrations to formulate strategic environmental assessments to evaluate impacts that could harm the environment. Under the law, each company should have environmental permits before starting operations.

"We are disappointed with the lack of willingness to impose the environmental law," Rhino said.

The House of Representative's Commissions VII overseeing environmental affairs has summoned the relevant ministries to discuss the issue.

Environment Watch: Illegal loggers target community forests

Jakarta Post - February 19, 2010

Illegal loggers in Lampung have extended their grab beyond the Bukit Barisan Selatan and Way Kambas national parks and are now pilfering from reforestation areas managed under community forest programs, say officials.

West Lampung Forestry Office head Fauzi said huge volumes of illegally logged timber had recently been found originating from forested areas run by local communities. "This finding means the logging has also taken place in community forests where local people put in a lot of hard work," he said.

He added the community forest program in West Lampung was regarded as the country's second most successful after Yogyakarta's.

Fauzi said that since the program served as a role model for an ideal forest rehabilitation project, forestry experts from various countries had visited Way Tenong in West Lampung.

Since 2000, 6,537 farming families living around protected and production forests in West Lampung have been involved in the community forest program.

They reforest land stripped bare by conversion and illegal logging, and growing different crops in critical areas as well as conserving the forest.

Besides being a key source of livelihood for the farmers, the protected forest spanning 12,000 hectares in Register 45 in Bukit Rigis and Register 34 in Tangkit Tebak – previously critical and barren areas – have been turned into dense forests.

Under the community forest program, the local forestry office provides five-year permits to residents to manage critical areas in production and protected forests, on the condition they form groups and carry out forest conservation.

The groups must also have a management system and a good set of organizational rules.

"Bukit Rigis is included in West and North Lampung regencies," Fauzi said. "The Bukit Rigis forest in West Lampung has been kept safe for the past 10 years because residents around the forest monitor it closely and arrest all illegal loggers."

Coffee farmer Jamaludin, whose land borders the Bukit Rigis forested area, said he had often seen illegal loggers at work in the forest.

"I recognize them, but I'm afraid to stop them because they carry sharp weapons," he said. "I've told the authorities about it repeatedly, but they only followed up last week in a raid led by the Way Tenong district chief."

He added he had been on the lookout for illegal loggers for the past decade. "I report them to the Way Tenong district chief because I don't want to be accused of being an illegal logger myself," Jamaludin said.

"I also want to join the community forest program so I can get involved in managing the forest. I'll register for it at the West Lampung Forestry Office this year."

Police have questioned 11 residents of Fajar Bulan as witnesses in the illegal logging case in which dozens of trees were felled. The illegal loggers made off with the bulk of it, leaving behind only 1.5 cubic meters of timber.

The distance between the forest and the highway is only a few kilometers, making transportation by truck the main scenario.

The Indonesia Crisis Center's West Lampung secretary, Satori M. Baki, blamed the widespread illegal logging on lax law enforcement. He said many illegal loggers in Lampung had been arrested, but most were then released due to insufficient evidence.

"At the end of December last year, the Kotaagung District Court in Tanggamus regency released an illegal logging suspect," he said.

"Some are punished, but they only get light sentences because they're charged with theft, and that doesn't serve as a deterrent. They should face the more severe charges as stipulated in the forestry law," he added.

Women & gender

Guest Speaker: Indonesian women still reluctant to enter politics

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Bagus Budi Tama Saragih, Jakarta – The percentage of female legislators at the parliament has reached its highest level in history, but many parties, particularly women's rights activists, have not yet seen any significant changes to the country in terms of gender equality and female empowerment. The newly-inaugurated chairwoman of the Indonesian Parliament Caucus for Women A.P. Andi Timo Pangerang spoke to The Jakarta Post's Bagus BT Saragih to discuss the issue.

Question: What is the caucus' mission?

Answer: We will use the power at our disposal as lawmakers to accommodate women's aspirations. As members of the House of Representatives as well as the Regional Representatives Council (DPD), we have a legislative function – including drafting state budgets – and other authorities granted by the Constitution. Those are powerful tools we can use to help improve gender equality in this country.

What are your short-term plans?

I will start with programs that aim at enhancing our capacities. We, as parliamentarians, must have a comprehensive basic understanding on issues related to gender equality and female empowerment.

The next step is to build good communications with external parties. One of the goals set for the caucus since its establishment is to build synergy with other women's groups, including those affiliated with government agencies, ministries and NGOs. A strong partnership with those different groups is important to improve our capa-city in monitoring government policies.

About 18 percent of the legislators now are female. It is the highest figure ever. Do you see this as a success?

Our target is 30 percent, as stipulated in the law. We are quite satisfied with the current male-female composition at the parliament, though we believe we should lift the percentage higher in the future. I know it will be hard for us to reach 30 percent in the next period, but we are upbeat we can raise the percentage from the current level.

The 2008 Law on Political Parties law require political parties give 30 percent of their organizational committees' seats to women. However, many parties have not done so. What will the caucus do about this?

A law is supposed to be powerful. But in this case, we will rather use soft approach and will not just ask for the law to be enforced. From what I see, the problem is that political parties have a shortage of female members who are willing to pursue career in politics.

I understand that. To overcome this problem, the caucus will launch a campaign on the importance of women's involvement in politics. The campaign will target women at many levels, from college students to housewives. We hope they will garner knowledge on politics and eventually develop an interest in it.

The number of female politicians has gradually increased but many gender equality problems remain. What are the obstacles?

Of course, increasing the quantity (of female legislators) will not yield anything better if it is not followed by improving quality. In this country, the disparity between men and women starts from the elementary school level, particularly in remote areas. Women are still suffering discrimination there.

As a result, as they grow up, women continue to be seen as second-class citizens. This has to be stopped and the government must change that discriminatory outlook. Otherwise, the country will not be able to produce high quality women.

Can you tell me the women-related bills the House is planning to deliberate this year?

There are several, but I can't remember them.

Do you have 100-day program?

No. Not yet. We have not held any meeting yet for we were just inaugurated.

Marriage & polygamy

Ministry of Religious to settle controversial marriage bill

Jakarta Globe - February 21, 2010

Nurfika Osman & Anita Rachman – The Ministry of Religious Affairs is set to settle issues today surrounding the controversial draft marriage bill, which Minister Suryadharma Ali recently called "illegal."

Nasaruddin Umar, director general for Islamic guidance at the ministry, said on Sunday that his team would deliver complete reports about the proposed draft bill to the minister, declining further comment.

Nasaruddin told the Jakarta Globe on Feb. 14 that the ministry fully supported the draft, which proposed the fining or jailing of men who failed to register their marriages in a bid to curb polygamy. But on Friday, the minister told several media that there was nothing wrong with unregistered marriages and polygamy.

"Unregistered marriage is legal before the law because all the requirements are fulfilled," he reportedly said.

Suryadharma also denied signing any draft to be submitted for deliberation, despite Nasaruddin's statement saying the draft was already with the State Secretariat and ready for the president's review.

Ignatius Mulyono, head of the House of Representatives Commission VIII, which oversees religious affairs, told the Globe they had not received the bill.

Meanwhile, more controversy is brewing over the bill. Masruchah, a commissioner at the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), told the Globe that an article in the proposed legislation on marriage would require foreigners seeking Indonesian brides to pay their potential wives a Rp 500 million guarantee ($53,500).

She said she understood that the article was aimed at protecting Indonesian women caught in nikah siri (unregistered marriages) and their children, but said she did not understand how those who had deliberated the bill had come up with the figure.

"I don't know why or how [Rp 500 million] was set as the figure. There is much that needs to be discussed in regard to this bill," Masruchah said.

According to a copy of the draft bill dated 2008 and obtained by the Globe, Article 142 states that foreign men must pay the sum after presenting written verification from their country of origin that they are allowed to marry.

One ministry official, however, denied the article was still included in the draft law currently under discussion, and another official declined comment.

The head of the women's wing of Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's largest Muslim organization, also expressed bafflement over the article.

"I have no wish to comment on why the government wants foreigners who want to marry Indonesian women to pay Rp 500 million. But I am disturbed with the figure... as if a woman is worth only Rp 500 million," Maria Ulfa Anshori said.

The spirit of the bill lies in the banning of nikah siri, which is conducted mostly in secret, leaving women bound in such marriages without any legal or financial protection. Banning such unions is crucial to curbing polygamy, given that some men take second wives without the consent of their first wives via unregistered marriages.

"I can understand that the bill is trying to protect women in such kinds of marriages, but to set a fee at Rp 500 million? Yes, I agree, we recognize nikah siri under Islamic law," Maria said, referring to the fact that it is valid as long as witnesses are present.

However, she did not deny that nikah siri was being abused by Indonesian men who wanted to engage in polygamy but failed to secure the agreement of their first wife.

"A woman needs to think twice before entering an unregistered marriage. The woman has no rights to money or property. Her children will be born with no rights to anything," she said.

"Islam is a monogamous religion. Marriage is about commitment. A man is going against Islam and the vows of commitment if he takes on a second wife on the basis of attraction.

"We need to think very deeply and carefully about the contents of this bill... before it is passed into law."

The existing Law No. 1/1974 on Marriage requires couples to register their marriages with the appropriate civil registry office. However, there are no penalties for violators.

NU backs sanctions for unregistered marriages

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2010

Jakarta – The chairman of Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Hasyim Muzadi, said couples who didn't register their marriages should face administrative, not criminal, sanctions.

"I believe administrative sanctions are more suitable," Hasyim was quoted as saying Friday by news portal kompas.com.

He said, for example, the unregistered wife of a civil servant would be stripped of her rights to her husband's allowance from the state. "That's the kind of punishment I have in mind," Hasyim said. He did not specify what punishment the husband would face.

Hasyim said marriage was a civil law matter, thus the need for administrative sanctions. "Criminal punishment is easy to avoid. They can just live together, because doing so is allowed," he said.

Unregistered marriage is recognized under the Islamic law but not registered with the state. To get married under sharia law, a groom needs the bride, her guardian, witnesses and a cleric.

Religion minister defends unregistered marriage and polygamy

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

There is nothing wrong with unregistered marriage and polygamy, Minister of Religious Affairs Suryadharma Ali said on Friday. He said that in his personal opinion unregistered marriage and polygamy were legal from a religious standpoint.

"I personally think that unregistered marriage is legal before the religion and if anyone wishes to do polygamy then go ahead," Suryadharma said, as quoted by Metro TV.

He said that unregistered marriage was like buying a car. The manufacturer made it in order to solve a transportation problem as well as for the passenger's comfort. If the car is later used for drug smuggling or other bad uses, it was not the carmaker's responsibility, he said, and they should not take the blame.

"Unregistered marriage is legal before the law because all the requirements are fulfilled," he added.

However, public stigma meant that unregistered marriage often equaled secret marriage, he said. Suryadharma condemned such stigma as being "very wrong" because even though the union was not registered, the couple was wed by a member of the clergy and the event was witnessed by their families.

"So, it's not a secret marriage. If it is abused, it's the individual mistake," he said. "And what about polygamy? Go ahead, it's a choice."

Dangdut king says new marriage bill drafted by 'atheists'

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

Controversy surrounding a bill proposing to fine or jail men who failed to register their marriages in order to skirt Indonesia's polygamy restrictions has angered dangdut king Rhoma Irama, who has labeled those who drafted the bill as 'atheists.'

"In my opinion, those who want to put legal charges for unofficial marriages are atheist. It doesn't mean that they don't have religion, but they don't understand religion," he told Warta Kota newspaper.

The singer, who once had an unofficial marriage with actress Angeliq, said that marriage is based on mutual love.

"There are five religious requirements for marriage, namely the couple, clergy, guardian, dowry and witness. Registry is not among the five. So what's the reason for stating that unofficial marriage is illegal?" Rhoma said.

Rhoma said he disagreed with the argument that unregistered marriages were not beneficial for women. He said that many registered couplings were also problematic and questioned why protection seemed to be given to the "wrong things" like prostitution, where prostitutes are called workers as if it was a "normal job."

"This is wrong. I stress that this is not just my personal sentiment," he said.

Disagreement with the bill was also voiced by the chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama, KH Hasyim Muzadi. He said it was illogical to criminalize unregistered marriages while adultery, free sex and premarital sex were "considered to be part of human rights."

"In Islam, unregistered marriage already has a guardian and two witness. Shariah law wise, it is legal but incomplete because the Prophet Muhammad commanded the marriage be announced and celebrated, even though it's not an obligation," Hasyim said.

He added that announcing a marriage was important to prevent social misconceptions and to maintain harmony. The government could regulate this matter but the implications should be administrative, both in the obligations and sanctions, he said. "Not criminal implications," he added.

Changes to Indonesian marriage bill possible

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Camelia Pasandaran – The Ministry of Religious Affairs on Tuesday said it would stand by its proposed draft bill on marriage, which includes controversial articles, but said it was open to reconsidering some points.

The bill, which has been included in the House of Representatives' list of priority bills for this year, proposes a maximum fine of Rp 6 million ($648), or six months imprisonment, for marrying without either the proper documents or the presence of an authorized religious official.

Under the bill, any state official found providing help to administer marriages could also face both a jail term and a hefty fine. Law No. 1/1974 on Marriage requires people to register their marriages with the appropriate civil registry office. However there are no penalties for violators.

Masruchah, a commissioner of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), said she agreed with the banning of unregistered marriages but not with the proposed punishments.

"Considering the punishments, we should understand first that many of those who are tied in an unregistered marriage are from the low-income class," she said.

"If we applied imprisonment and fines, it won't be fair to them. For the wealthy people, it might seem like a light sanction but not to poor people."

However, she said that for someone like Sheikh Puji, a central Java religious figure who married a 12-year-old girl, the proposed sanction is too light.

Minister of Religious Affairs Suryadharma Ali said he was considering several different kinds of punishment instead of imprisonment.

"It is still a draft and open for revision," he said. "We need more opinions, views and reasons that will be philosophical and sociological considerations."

He said he expected the House to agree to the bill. "However, if they don't agree, we will probably change the punishment into administrative punishment, such as oblige them to register, announce it to the public or pay a fine," he said.

Suryadharma said those couples whose marriages were unregistered need not remarry. "They only need to register," he said. "Because if we claimed that their marriage is illegal, then if they have children, they are children of adultery."

Last year, the alleged spiritual leader of terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, told Antara that banning unregistered marriages was crucial.

Ba'asyir claimed that those involved in an unregistered marriage wanted to keep it secret, which is against the tradition of Islam that marriages should be publicized widely.

"One who doesn't want their marriage out in the open is a coward. The state needs to immediately take action and stop this kind of marriage," Ba'asyir said.

Indonesia's top judge backs bill to curb polygamy

Jakarta Globe - February 15, 2010

Anita Rachman & Muninggar Sri Saraswati – The Constitutional Court chief on Sunday threw his weight behind a forthcoming bill to fine or jail men who failed to register their marriages in order to skirt polygamy restrictions.

Mahfud MD said that unregistered marriages, known locally as siri, should be stamped out to protect women and children. A bill to amend a religious law on marriage is due to be debated in the House of Representatives sometime this year.

"I completely agree with the bill as many people have become victims" of unregistered marriages, Mahfud said. "The children are neglected while [women] are made objects of lust."

Nasaruddin Umar, director general for Islamic guidance at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, said that the ministry also supported the legislation. He warned that once the bill was passed by the House, all citizens would be required to register their marriages or face legal sanctions.

"No more unregistered marriages," he said. "All marriages should be legally registered with the state."

Nasaruddin said the ministry had reviewed numerous cases of men entering into unregistered unions for their own benefit, including under the guise of "avoiding committing sin" through adultery. He also said that some men remarried without the consent of their first wives, which violated polygamy laws.

"In Islam, marriage is very sacred and holy. No man is allowed to fool around with it," Nasaruddin said.

The Religious Affairs Ministry started drafting the bill three years ago with the aim of protecting women and children. "The draft is now with the State Secretariat and is ready to be handed to the president for review," Nasaruddin said.

Article 143 of the bill states that "anyone who intentionally conducts a marriage without a marriage registrar faces a maximum fine of Rp 6 million [$642] or six months imprisonment."

The existing Law No. 1/1974 on Marriage requires people to register their marriages with the appropriate civil registry office. However, there are no penalties for violators.

Nasaruddin said the bill would not ban polygamy, adding that men would still be allowed to marry up to four women so long as they met the legal requirements, which include getting the written consent of their wives. "However, all four marriages must be registered," he said.

Ma'ruf Amin, head of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said unregistered marriages were permissible in Islam, but could be sinful if they caused problems for the wives or children.

If all the conditions required by Islamic law were met, such as having witnesses and guardians present, he said, then the marriage would be considered valid.

"However, if the marriage creates hardship for other people, such as the husband abandoning his other wives or children, then it is forbidden," Ma'ruf said. He acknowledged that some siri marriages resulted in abandoned wives and children, and said that was likely the driving force behind the bill to have all marriages registered.

Ma'ruf said it was up to legislators to determine the country's civil law and to set out punishments for those who broke it. "When people conduct siri marriages, it may be legal in accordance with Islam, but they should also be aware of civil law and its sanctions," he said.

Refugees/asylum seekers

People-smuggler to get only a small fine

Australian Associated Press - February 18, 2010

The notorious Indonesian people-smuggler behind the failed attempt to bring 254 Sri Lankan asylum-seekers into Australia last year is facing trial for breaching sailing laws.

Abraham Louhenapessy, better known as Captain Bram, faces a maximum two years in prison for hiring crew members who did not have proper documents to man his boat, the Jaya Lestari 5.

The boat sailed from the Indonesian island of Batam bound for Christmas Island in late September, but the Indonesian navy stopped it early the following month with Bram still on board.

At the time, the boat was waiting to transfer him to another vessel so he did not have to enter Australian waters.

Prosecutors were unable to charge him with more serious offences, partly because people-smuggling is not yet a crime in Indonesia. As a result, Bram looks set to escape the Serang District Court trial with a modest fine. In Australia, he would face people- smuggling charges and up to 20 years in prison.

Bram refused to speak to the media after yesterday's trial proceedings, which heard from two of the crew members he hired in Batam. "He knew the documents were not complete but he hired us anyway," one of the crew members, Mansyur Mamero, said.

The trial, before a panel of three judges, will resume next week, with a verdict expected early next month.

Bram is believed to have brought more than 1500 asylum-seekers into Australia in the past decade. He was arrested in 2007 and served 20 months in prison for immigration offences but was released last year. He was found aboard the Jaya Lestari just months later.

Meanwhile, more than 240 of the Sri Lankans are still aboard his overcrowded boat moored in the Javanese port of Merak, and refusing to go ashore. They fear they will have to wait years for resettlement if they are processed in Indonesia.

Bank Century inquiry

Action, drama and farce but no answers at the Pansus theater

Jakarta Globe - February 21, 2010

Nivell Rayda – The House of Representatives special committee investigating the bailout of Bank Century is set finally to wrap up its boisterous proceedings in early March, ending almost three months of high drama and low comedy.

There were high expectations when the committee, or Pansus, first started investigating the Rp 6.7 trillion ($710 million) bailout on Dec. 14 in an atmosphere of claim and counterclaim.

Many hoped the inquiry would explain where taxpayers' money went and shed light on the complications surrounding the rescue. Those expectations were soon dashed.

Just three days into the inquiry, the ruling Democratic Party's Ruhut Sitompul set the tone when he told Gayus Lumbuun, a member of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI- P), to "shut up."

National television played the argument over and over again. Social networking Web site Twitter was soon flooded with Pansus- related discussions comparing the inquiry to favorite soap operas or movie comedies.

"Kungfu Pansus" is just an excuse for House factions to squabble, wrote one Twitter user, comparing the committee to the popular animated movie "Kungfu Panda."

Through it all, the Pansus show had one dominant star: Ruhut. The outspoken former lawyer caused another stir when he referred to former Vice President Jusuf Kalla as "daeng," a term used as a sign of respect in Kalla's home region of Makassar.

Kalla expressed annoyance that Ruhut, a Batak, dared used the term daeng. This silliness also received airtime, while the nuts and bolts of forensic accounting somehow seemed irrelevant.

But Ruhut could only sit in silence on the day he became a target of verbal abuse by a former Bank Century depositor, Sri Gayatri. The 50-year-old businesswoman, who lost Rp 600 million when the bank collapsed, expressed her outrage at the committee for failing to pinpoint who was at fault.

Sri Gayatri has something of a track record herself. When the bank was closed in 2008 she climbed onto the roof of a Bank Century company car and shouted her disapproval. Her rowdy behavior landed her in the custody of the Surabaya police last week when she single-handedly rallied outside the bank, now renamed PT Bank Mutiara, destroying potted plants and scrawling graffiti reading, "Arrest the Bank Century thieves!"

Several members of the House committee were visiting the Surabaya branch of the bank when she unleashed her rampage. Their job was to determine how several deposit accounts were supposedly embezzled and illegally transferred to a fraudulent investment scheme. They returned empty-handed and later said such digging might be better left to professional investigators such as the National Police or the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). Funny that.

Another senseless visit was the jaunt to the Ministry of Finance to reenact the Financial System Stability Committee (KSSK) meeting at which the decision to bail out the bank was made. The Pansus spent more than two hours determining who would sit where – despite the fact that the committee already had recordings of the original meeting.

TV news stations will certainly miss the inquiry, which has provided laughs, drama and anger – all for free. What will Metro TV and TV One do for news after Pansus ends?

Ultimately, it seems that the inquiry will lead to nothing. The reform credentials of the committee's apparent targets, Vice President Boediono and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, remain largely intact and the entire exercise has been exposed as little more than an attempt by various political parties to gain advantage over the ruling Democrats.

With the Pansus series canceled, now the KPK will have to do the real work. Away from the cameras.

Lobbing at fever pitch in before Century inquiry results

Jakarta Globe - February 18, 2010

Febriamy Hutapea & Muninggar Sri Saraswati – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is flexing his muscles behind the scenes in order to seek a "political solution" to the ongoing Bank Century scandal, a government spokesman indicated on Thursday.

Vice President Boediono's spokesman, Yopie Hidayat, told the Jakarta Globe that he remained "optimistic" that the final results of the House of Representatives special committee investigating the Rp 6.7 trillion ($710 million) bailout would be "favorable to us."

"I am sure the president will do whatever he can do to solve this politically," Yopie said. "Because this is not a legal problem, it is political. And we have confidence in the president."

Yudhoyono canceled a trip out of town scheduled this week and has bunkered with his key advisers and confidantes in Jakarta ahead of the expected release of the committee's findings on Wednesday.

The president is believed to have taken a more forceful tack after Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie, who was once close to Yudhoyono, threatened to pull Golkar from the governing coalition. Aburizal was responding to comments from the president's Democratic Party that coalition partners would be stripped of cabinet seats if they that failed to support the government on the bailout probe.

The Golkar head had been walking a fine line in his alleged attempts to remove Sri Mulyani Indrawati as finance minister in response to a major tax investigation into three mining companies in the Bakrie group.

Despite speculation of animosity, Yudhoyono and Bakrie rely on each other. The president had been counting on the support of Golkar in the House, and Aburizal's business empire depends heavily on government contracts and favorable financial regulators.

The political rumor mill has been active with talk of closed-door meetings between top political figures over the House's bailout probe. While a number of politicians have confirmed such meetings, most denied the link to the probe and its results.

Seven of the nine political parties represented in the House, including four in the ruling coalition, have taken stances against the Democrats, dominating the political landscape and completely overshadowing anything the government has attempted to achieve.

Gayus Lumbuun, deputy chairman of the special committee and a member of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), acknowledged that a number of senior lawmakers from various political factions met in an upscale shopping mall in Jakarta on Wednesday but said the event was a karaoke session.

"There was no lobbying," Gayus said. "It was to celebration the anniversary of a television station."

Lawmaker Mahfudz Siddiq from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) said a similar meeting occurred on Monday, but that lobbying was a normal occurrence in politics.

"I don't mind. Lobbying is a good thing but for certain issues, let each faction present its respective findings. Lobbying does not mean having to say the same thing about complicated problems, as that may threaten democracy," he said.

Golkar and the Democrats had yet to see eye to eye over the issue, he added. Democrat Benny K Harman denied that the party had resorted to threatening Golkar and the PKS over their positions that the bailout was illegal and contained indications of corruption.

He said the party was simply "developing communication and dialogue" with their counterparts "to have similar perceptions and take similar steps in running the country."

Separately, United Development Party (PPP) chairman Suryadarma Ali said that the party had yet to adopt its final position on the bank rescue.

"We are still gathering the latest data, the latest findings. The PPP members of the special committee will present these to the House faction and the final stance will then be formulated," Suryadarma said.

Asked whether his party's final position could still be different from that of its initial stance finding wrongdoing in the bank rescue, Suryadarma said: "everything is still possible because of the newest findings."

He said that he had been against the need for a preliminary stance because the investigation was still ongoing. "With the new findings, it is possible for the early standpoint to change," Suryadarma said.

He denied that there was any pressure from the Democrats, but added that lobbying could also still change the party's position. He declined to elaborate.

[Additional reporting from Camelia Pasandaran.]

Suspicion but no smoking gun in Bank Century probe

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Febriamy Hutapea – In what could be the beginning of the end of the politically charged Bank Century probe, lawmakers have conceded that there is no evidence that money from the state bailout was illegally funneled to the campaign team of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

All of the nine factions on the House of Representatives special committee agreed on Wednesday that there were suspicious and possibly fraudulent transactions during the bailout period beginning in November 2008 and evidence of money laundering. They all then said they lacked the expertise to do more and called on the National Police and Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to take over.

While the House committee has yet to announce its final conclusions on the legality of the central government's Rp 6.7 trillion ($710 million) bailout, the absence of a "smoking gun" proving that money was embezzled by the president's inner circle prompted lawmakers to begin softening their tone, observers said.

Last week, seven political parties had lined up against Yudhoyono, saying in their preliminary conclusions that the bailout was illegal and mired in corruption.

Lawmakers' calls on Wednesday for the police and antigraft agency to take the lead, with some even shifting the blame onto Bank Century's former owners, appear to be designed to allow them to begin washing their hands of the entire affair.

"There are systematic irregularities and data manipulation. We ask the legal authorities to move quickly on the banking fraud that allegedly was conducted by Bank Century's owners, or anyone else who had been involved in the case," Ahmad Yani, a spokesman for the United Development Party (PPP), said during Wednesday's committee meeting.

The PPP, Golkar Party, Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the National Awakening Party (PKB), all member of Yudhoyono's governing coalition, joined the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) in concluding that bailout funds were channeled for illegal purposes.

Both PPP and PDI-P lawmakers highlighted 1,427 Bank Century accounts that had active transactions and moved bailout money even after services were suspended because the lender was under special surveillance by Bank Indonesia starting on Nov. 6, 2008.

"We learned about an amount of money that transferred from Bank Century into the [accounts of] unauthorized names, and concluded that Bank Indonesia did not conduct close supervision of Bank Century," Ahmad said.

PDI-P lawmaker Hendrawan Supratikno said efforts to accurately trace the money trail of the bailout funds was a complicated task, and therefore the National Police, KPK or the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) should take over.

However, the police closed its case months ago. The KPK continues to quietly investigate the matter.

Lawmakers said they found irregularities in the shifting of funds between Bank Century accounts during recent field visits to five regions, including a well-publicized account belonging to Amiruddin Rustan, the owner of a Makassar auto repair shop, who claimed to be unaware of a deposit of Rp 10 billion into his account.

The PPATK said Amiruddin's account received 33 checks for Rp 2 billion each after the bailout money was disbursed in late November 2008.

On Feb. 2, 2009, the National Police blocked the account, which held Rp 24 billion. However, the PPATK found that Rp 10 billion was withdrawn in three separate transactions even after the assets were frozen.

Golkar, which has aggressively pursued the investigation, much to the chagrin of Yudhoyono and the Democrats, joined the PKS and Gerindra in claiming that the state suffered financial losses due to the bailout. "So there must be legal consequences," special committee member Ade Komarudin of Golkar said.

The committee's findings and recommendations

Finding 1 – Several suspicious and fraudulent transactions at Bank Century occurred during the bailout period. Found by: All parties

Finding 2 – Bank Century management abused its power and violated banking regulations. Found by: All parties

Finding 3 – Bank Century's board of directors colluded with depositors to create new accounts to have them "reimbursed" by Deposit Insurance Agency (LPS). Found by: All parties

Finding 4 – There was evidence of money laundering. Found by: All parties

Finding 5 – The Century bailout led to state losses. Found by: Golkar, PKS and Gerindra

Finding 6 – There were indications that the bailout funds were illegally channeled to other purposes. Found by: PKS, Gerindra, PPP, PKB, Golkar and PDI-P

Finding 7 – The trail of money revealed evidence that corruption had taken place. Found by: PPP and PDI-P

Recommendation 1 – Thorough investigations are needed by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and National Police to shed light on suspicious transactions and banking crimes. Recommended by: All parties

Recommendation 2 – Former members of Bank Century's management now at Bank Mutiara should be removed. Recommended by: Golkar and Hanura

Recommendation 3 – A comprehensive public audit of the Bank Century bailout and subsequent transactions is needed by an independent international accounting firm. Recommended by: Golkar and Hanura

[From the House hearing.]

Democrats more confident as horse trading intensifies

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Febriamy Hutapea & Muninggar Saraswati – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party expressed guarded optimism on Wednesday that its coalition partners would change their final stances on the Bank Century bailout after the House of Representatives' special committee stopped short of alleging that bailout money had found its way into Yudhoyono's campaign coffers.

"I believe the coalition must have meaning. If not, what's the purpose of a coalition?" Democratic Party faction chairman Anas Urbaningrum said, just minutes after the parties delivered their verdicts.

However, he dismissed claims that the apparent softening of views on the bailout was a direct result of intensified lobbying by the Democrats in recent weeks. "We did not promise anything [to other parties]," Anas said.

The committee factions on Wednesday revealed their conclusions on the bailout money trail – which included that there were irregularities in the distribution of bailout funds – but the full House is not scheduled to reach a final conclusion until March 2.

Prior to that, the factions must deliver their conclusions on the legality of the bailout.

Seven of the nine political parties on the committee said in preliminary conclusions earlier this month that they believed the bailout was illegal, but a number of analysts and politicians have since said that those conclusions could change, putting pressure on the government.

Four of the nine parties are members of the government's coalition: the Golkar Party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the United Development Party (PPP).

There has been intensive lobbying over the past few days. A meeting of the leaders of all of the coalition parties at the house of PAN chairman Hatta Rajasa on Sunday night is widely thought to have been about the Century probe.

Aggressive lobbying on the part of the Democrats also included party officials reaching out to opposition parties the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and Great Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra).

Gerindra chairman Prabowo Subianto met with Yudhoyono on Monday. Gerindra secretary general Ahmad Muzani confirmed the meeting but declined to elaborate. "I don't know [about the conversation]. But we will not change our position," he said.

On Tuesday, Andi Arief, the president's special staff member for social affairs, met House deputy speaker Pramono Anung and lawmaker Puan Maharani, both from the PDI-P. Both Andi and Pramono denied the meeting was linked to the Century case, saying only that it was a meeting between old friends.

Pramono also denied that Andi's visit was arranged to deliver an invitation from Yudhoyono to the PDI-P to join the coalition.

The Democrats' approaches to PDI-P and Gerindra have raised speculation that the party is trying to secure coalition replacements, given the rebelliousness of Golkar and the PKS.

The latter two parties are widely thought to be pushing to unseat Vice President Boediono and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati through the bailout probe.

If they manage to secure the votes of the PDI-P and Gerindra during the March 2 plenary session, when the final conclusions on the Century case will be made, the Democrats will have more than enough votes to offset those of Golkar and the PKS. Golkar has 107 seats and the PKS 57, while the PDI-P holds 94 seats and Gerindra 26 seats.

In any case, Charta Politika analyst Yunarto Widjaja said the public would be able to judge then whether the Century investigation was about anything more than political horse trading. "Today alone the parties have begun to show what the investigation is all about – nothing but a political game," Yunarto said.

Yunarto said the only institution people could count on to learn about the bailout money trail is the KPK – if the KPK is able to maintain its independence in the case.

Bank Century probe no closer to resolve

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2010

Febriamy Hutapea – Just two weeks before the House of Representatives is scheduled to wrap up the ongoing probe into the Rp 6.7 trillion ($710 million) Bank Century bailout, the special committee investigating the case has yet to reach a conclusion.

Nine factions in the House, having failed on Tuesday to reach a final conclusion on the trail of the bailout money, said that the hearing would be resumed today. What was apparent, however, was that the committee had so far been unable to prove allegations of corruption.

Lawmakers said the special committee had discovered numerous suspicious and fictitious transactions surrounding the bailout following fact-finding visits to five cities, making it impossible to reach a conclusion by Tuesday.

Despite failing to reach a final conclusion, seven of the factions said they would not change their preliminary conclusion, released last week, that the bailout was illegal and mired in corruption. Only President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party and the National Awakening Party (PKB) deemed the bailout as lawful.

"There will be no change from the preliminary view, except in regard to the money trail, because that needs further investigation by the police," House special committee member Rommahurmuziy, from the United Development Party (PPP), said after the meeting.

The committee said it had found several transactions that conflicted with information obtained from the Financial Transaction Reports Analysis Center (PPATK).

"The only facts we found concerned banking fraud. Other matters, like corruption, need more investigation by the Corruption Eradication Commission and the National Police," said the committee's deputy chairman, Mahfudz Siddiq, from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).

He said the special committee was thus far unable to substantiate suspicions of corruption or trace a stream of money that flowed into the coffers of political parties. "There are indications, but we are constrained by time," Mahfudz said.

Committee chairman Idrus Marham, from the Golkar Party, said each party was expected to deliver its final conclusion today on three main issues: the merging of Bank CIC, Bank Danpac and Bank Pikko to form Bank Century; a short-term loan facility extended to the bank; and the government's decision to bail out the lender.

Several lawmakers suggested postponing the final decision on the money trail, saying more reports from the PPATK on several suspicious transactions would be submitted within days.

Among the alleged irregularities are suspected fictitious accounts, including a well-publicized one belonging to Amiruddin Rustan, the owner of a Makassar auto repair shop.

The PPATK said Amiruddin's account received 33 checks for Rp 2 billion each after the bailout money was disbursed in November 2008.

On Feb. 2, 2009, the National Police blocked the account, which held Rp 24 billion. However, the PPATK found that Rp 10 billion was withdrawn in three transactions while the account was blocked.

"This should be investigated to see whether he lied or there were unknown people using his account to get money for certain interests," Mahfudz said.

Mahfudz said that the special committee would recommend the police expedite its investigation into the bank's money trail.

Tide may be turning against Century investigation

Jakarta Post - February 17, 2010

Hans David Tampobolon, Jakarta – A seeming reluctance by three parties initially pushing to investigate the Bank Century bailout may be down to the threat of past scandals being aired and the lure of political incentives, analysts say.

The deputy chairman of the House of Representatives' inquiry committee into the bailout, Mahfudz Siddiq from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said Tuesday that after further investigations, the party had not found any indications of corruption in the disbursement of the bailout.

"In terms of the disbursement, most of the indications point to banking crimes," he said.

Committee member Muhammad Romahurmuziy, from the United Development Party (PPP), said his party regarded the bailout disbursement as symptomatic of the mismanagement plaguing the bank, which he added had continued after it was re-branded as Bank Mutiara.

On Monday, Asman Abnur, the chairman of the National Mandate Party (PAN) at the House, said it was possible the inquiry committee's final conclusion could differ substantially from its preliminary finding of high-level graft.

Should the change in tone by the PKS, the PPP and the PAN indicate the three Muslim-based parties have switched sides on the committee to join President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party and the National Awakening Party (PKB), the pressure from the Century fallout would be off the government, analysts say. These five parties have a combined 317 out of 560 seats at the House.

During the airing of the House committee's preliminary findings on Feb. 9, only the Democratic Party and the PKB said the Rp 6.76 trillion (US$716 million) bailout had been warranted.

The U-turn by the three parties might be linked to the government's efforts to dig up dirt on high-ranking politicians from parties seen as thorns in the administration's side, the Indonesian Survey Institute's (LSI) Burhanuddin Muhtadi said.

Burhanuddin pointed out the recent case of Yudhoyono ordering police to get tough on corporate tax evasion, a high-profile issue in which companies partly owned by Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie's family have been implicated.

Golkar House chairman Setya Novanto was also recently reported to the police for alleged graft in a rice procurement project in 2003.

"The recent developments show Golkar will likely stick to its guns in shouting down the bailout, regardless of the pressure," Burhanuddin said. "However, these machinations will force other parties in Yudhoyono's coalition to ease off and show some sign of loyalty," he said.

The moves also show that coalition members hope the President kicks Golkar out of the alliance, he said.

Inquiry committee member Agun Gunanjar Sudarsa, from Golkar, said his party was oblivious to the supposed muckraking. "How can we back down from our stance if our chairman tells us to stay the course no matter what happens?" he said Tuesday.

Analysts believe the party is pushing the envelope to try and build public support ahead of the 2014 elections.

The committee's deputy chairman, Gayus Lumbuun from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said external pressure and threats targeting individual legislators would not work.

Political tension likely fallout from Century probe

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2010

Nivell Rayda – Analysts are predicting rising political tensions when the House of Representatives special committee investigating the Bank Century bailout presents its findings.

Two of the country's biggest political parties have already faced off over the issue, including threats of a cabinet reshuffle by members of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party.

Arbi Sanit, a political observer from the University of Indonesia, said the House special committee appeared to have only produced more fuel for political bargaining, rather than any solid conclusions about the Rp 6.7 trillion ($710 million) bailout.

"Even now, the parties are busy making political deals. It shows that Yudhoyono's coalition is very fragile and not based on a common goal," he said.

Only one of the Democrats' five coalition partners, the National Awakening Party (PKB), has adopted the government's stance on the bailout. The other four have denounced it as illegal. But the parties condemning the controversial bailout lacked an all- important bargaining chip, Arbi said.

"The House has so far failed to prove that the bailout [money] was channeled to the Democrats," he said. "Even if, at the 11th hour, they manage to find a trail leading to Yudhoyono's re-election campaign, would it easily overturn the election result or impeach the president? I think not."

The nine political factions represented on the committee failed to draw a final stance on the bailout issue on Tuesday, arguing that there had been new discoveries of suspicious transactions at Bank Century.

Almost all parties have pledged to maintain their preliminary stance from last week. Seven have declared the bailout illegal and mired in corruption, while only the Democrats and PKB have deemed the bailout legitimate.

Yanuar Rizky, an independent financial and banking analyst, said the government could be looking for revenge against those parties that condemned the bailout. "More dirt will be put out in the open," he said.

Since the House began investigating the bailout, the Directorate General of Taxation and the National Police have moved to investigate allegations of tax evasion against companies linked to the family of Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie. Analysts have speculated that this was in response to Golkar's position on the bailout.

Then on Sunday, an anonymous source alleged to reporters that Emir Moeis, a lawmaker from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), had received illicit funds from Bank Century shortly before it collapsed. Golkar and the PDI-P are the most vocal critics of the government over the bailout.

"In a way, the new revelations are good for the country's sense of justice," Yanuar said. "Whether the investigation will continue after the House wraps up its investigation is another matter. Only then will we know if the cases are politically motivated."

Members of the special committee are due today to compile their findings on the legal issues surrounding Bank Century's creation, the short-term loan facility offered to the ailing lender and the eventual decision to bail out the bank.

Graft & corruption

Antigraft drive targets regional officials

Jakarta Post - February 19, 2010

Arghea Desafti Hapsari, Jakarta – Measures to prevent corruption in upcoming regional elections will focus on incumbent officials seeking re-election because they are the ones often caught doing it, a watchdog says.

The Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) said Thursday there were cases of incumbent officials using state facilities for election campaign purposes.

"In Central Java, for example, [an official] used his official residence for meetings. There was also a member of the Regional Representatives Council who held meetings in his office... Such practices are prone to corruption. It was the regional budget they were spending," Bawaslu head Nur Hidayat Sardini said.

Such abuse of authority, he added, could be defined as corruption. He said incumbent officials who were also candidates in regional elections were prone to practicing money politics.

The methods used by the officials begins with starting up social donation programs for the poor, road repairs and other infrastructure projects ahead of the campaigning season.

"This includes scholarship programs that are only realized ahead of campaigning although the funding has long been allocated," he said. "The frequency and the intensity [of such projects] usually increase drastically ahead of polling time," he added.

On Thursday, the board met with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to cooperate on preventing corruption and practices of money politics in regional elections, which will be held in 244 regions this year.

Bawaslu urged the KPK to make reports of regional leader candidates' wealth available to the board. The two will also cooperate in raising public awareness to monitor campaign funds, money politics and abuse of power and state facilities in regional elections.

"We also asked the KPK to train Bawaslu staff on preventing electoral violations," Hidayat said, adding that the board would also cooperate with the Financial Transaction Report and Analysis Center (PPATK).

KPK deputy leader M. Jasin said his organization would cooperate with Bawaslu in raising public awareness of the potential of corruption practices at all stages of the regional election. "We will call together all candidates [to educate them]. We will not only monitor, but also take preventive measures," he added.

If candidates still commit electoral violations even after such measures, Jasin said the KPK's enforcement division would investigate.

Bawaslu said there was the potential of electoral violations in regional elections, such as fictitious of campaign donors. "There might also be candidates who cheat on their campaign fund reports."

Illegal funding sources in regional elections are not easily uncovered, the board said. The public has also faced many difficulties in accessing candidates' campaign fund reports.

Hidayat said he also discussed with the KPK the potential of inaccuracies in the electoral rolls, as had happened in general elections held last year.

"In several regions, the electoral rolls were lower for the legislative and presidential elections. [The discrepancy in] the electoral roll in one region even reached 60,000," he added.

Multiple salaries lead to graft by Indonesian officials, KPK says

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Nivell Rayda – The Corruption Eradication Commission on Wednesday asked the government to regulate public officials receiving multiple incomes in order to better combat embezzlement from state coffers.

Muhammad Jasin, deputy for graft prevention at the commission, also known as the KPK, said many governors and district heads across the country had been receiving extra income from their private sector positions at provincial-level companies.

"Based on wealth reports submitted to the commission, public officials can have three of four sources of income," he said at a discussion held by Indonesia Corruption Watch. Jasin said that the practice was prone to graft.

"There are no fixed or universal regulations as to how much these officials should be paid," he said, "so officials could easily force the companies to pay them substantially or face limits on facilities and budget reductions."

The KPK is pushing the government to adopt a single-salary system. "The president must stop the practice and issue a decree or regulation, because that system would substantially prevent graft," Jasin said.

The KPK was currently engaged in talks with the Ministry of Home Affairs on the issue, despite the apparent reluctance of the minister, Jasin added.

This month, Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi admitted to receiving a supplementary income during his term as governor of West Sumatra.

During his term, Gamawan enabled all ex officio members of the provincial consultative leadership board (Muspida), which included himself, to receive extra incomes of between Rp 10 million and Rp 60 million ($1,100 to $6,500) per month.

Arif Nur Alam, director of the Indonesia Budget Center, said government officials often received substantial perks from other sources as well. "They enjoy special privileges like cars and allowances, which are astoundingly excessive," he said.

Based on local regulations and decrees, Arif said, some governors also claimed personal allowances of up to 1 percent of the province's income.

"So imagine a rich oil producing province such as East Kalimantan that has an annual income of Rp 1 trillion – the governor has the legal basis to ask for Rp 10 billion in annual personal allowances alone," he said.

Tama S Langkun, a researcher at ICW, pointed to recent findings by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) that most officials' allowances were unaccounted for. "The current system allows officials to pocket illicit funds," he said.

Among the questionable claims discovered by the BPK was Rp 300 million that North Sumatra Governor Syamsul Arifin and deputy Yunus Saragih spent on food and beverages, Rp 99.2 million on gas for their private cars and Rp 49.2 million on the maintenance of their personal household appliances.

"The system is prone to corruption because it is hard to estimate how much public officials actually make," Tama said. "By imposing a single-salary system, there would be greater legal and civil controls."

Revise laws to curb conflict of interest, watchdog says

Jakarta Post - February 16, 2010

Arghea Desafti Hapsari, Jakarta – Indonesia needs to have clear-legislation to curb collusion and conflicts of interest among its leaders, which is also a cause for concern for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a corruption watchdog said Monday.

Yudhoyono said last week that the country's economy had been severely affected by collusion between businessmen and state officials.

"Although the public see Yudhoyono's statement as an effort to put pressure on the Golkar Party in relation to its critical stance on the Bank Century bailout, it should be able to pave the way for solving conflicts of interest in Indonesia," Ibrahim Zuhdhi Badoh from the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) said.

The Golkar Party at the House of Representatives has been one of the most vocal during hearings of the special committee into the Century bailout. Allegations are rife that parts of the Rp 6.76 trillion (US$716 million) bailout were channeled into Yudhoyono's campaign funds in the last presidential election.

Ibrahim said that Yudhoyono's statement must be followed with concrete action, including revising laws that regulated political recruitment.

He highlighted the importance of revising, among others, the 2008 law on regional government, especially articles that regulated the requirements of regional head candidates.

Yudhoyono, he said, also needed to review articles that regulated the requirements of legislative candidates in the 2009 law on the composition of representative bodies.

"These laws must stipulate that regional heads and legislative candidates are not those who run or hold positions in businesses," he said.

The absence of such regulation, he added, had resulted in the House being composed of lawmakers that had backgrounds of owning or running private businesses. "Around 51 percent of House members from the 2009-2014 period come from business backgrounds," Ibrahim said.

The ICW is currently investigating the number of current lawmakers who presently own or run businesses. "We are also determining whether ministers and commissioners of SOEs and regionally owned enterprises are businessmen," he added.

The ICW urged Yudhoyono to review regulations on the appointment of ministers and SOE and regionally owned enterprise commissioners.

Ibrahim, ICW researcher, said collusion practice and conflicts of interest assumed two patterns.

The first involves politicians who double as businessmen. "This allows businessmen to influence public policies, especially on determining budgets," he said.

Collusion practice that uses the second pattern can be found at presidential elections. "[Businessmen and politician relations] can be built through election campaign fund donations," he said.

"Relations are determined by the donation amount from businessmen or corporations into the bank accounts of political parties or presidential candidates," he said.

Vice President Boediono last week proposed a guideline on state official's business ventures. The National Committee for Government Policy (KNKG) is in charge of composing the guidelines on ethics and behavior of state officials.

KNKG chairman Mas Achmad Daniri told The Jakarta Post on Monday that the process would involve stakeholders including government agencies and businesses.

"This will not be another guideline. It will [regulate] the systems of monitoring and enforcing [state officials'] code of conduct," he said.

Islam/religion

MUI called on to issue helmet fatwa

Jakarta Globe - February 20, 2010

Anita Rachman – If the law doesn't work, will a religious edict be more effective in ensuring motorcyclists stay safe on the roads? One community group thinks it will.

The Road Safety Association on Friday called on the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) to issue a fatwa, or religious edict, to make helmets compulsory for motorcyclists, in the hopes of reducing the number of casualties from road accidents.

The idea behind the push is that by making it haram, or forbidden in Islam, to ride a motorbike without a helmet, people will be less inclined to break the law for fear of committing a sin.

Fatwas issued by the MUI are generally considered as moral guidance, as opposed to being legally binding.

Rio Octaviano, chairman of the RSA, told the Jakarta Globe on Friday that many motorists paid little attention to traffic regulations, particularly on the use of helmets. As a result, Rio said, motorcycle accidents had claimed many lives.

"Some people who use motorcycles do not really follow the legal regulations, but for some reason they listen to what the ulema say," Rio said. "That is why we went to the MUI. The fatwa is our last-ditch effort to ask people to keep their helmets on while on the road."

According to statistics from the RSA, over the past 10 years an average of 32 people died every day on the roads – and 90 percent of those were motorcyclists. Data from the Transportation Ministry says that 30,000 people die each year on the roads, and about 70 percent are motorcyclists.

Suripno, director of road safety at the ministry, said the ministry had been promoting helmet use since 2006. "We also asked people to put helmets on their children and babies," he said.

Ichwan Sam, the MUI's secretary general, said the RSA's efforts were commendable. He said the effort to keep people safe on the roads deserved be supported. The matter, however, would still have to go before a meeting of the MUI's fatwa commission, he added.

Ichwan said many road-safety issues required many parts of society to work together to reduce the number of road casualties, not just the government.

The ministry, however, said that its safety campaigns were already doing enough. "Please don't mix a thing like this with religion," Suripno said.

Blasphemy law threatens freedom: Press

Jakarta Post - February 19, 2010

Arghea Desafti Hapsari, Jakarta – Contentious articles bearing no clear definition of blasphemous acts in the 1965 law on religious blasphemy pose a threat to press freedom, with many journalists having been charged with the articles, a discussion heard.

Ariyanto, a managing editor with Indopos media group, said Thursday that the press should pay close attention to a judicial review request of the law currently being processed at the Constitutional Court.

The request was filed with the court by several NGOs in support of pluralism in October last year. Three hearings have been held with the last two presenting expert witnesses sharing their views on the law.

Senior journalist Arswendo Atmowiloto also spoke before the court. He shared his experience some 20 years ago when he had to serve a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence after a court found him guilty of a blasphemous act.

He was then editor-in-chief of the tabloid Monitor, which in 1990 released the results of a popularity poll that ranked Prophet Muhammad in 11th place, below himself. Ariyanto said Arswendo's case is an example of how the law violates press freedom.

He cited the case of the late H.B. Jassin, a prominent writer who was then an editor of Sastra literary magazine. Jassin published a controversial short story in 1968 that narrated the Prophet Muhammad's reincarnation titled Langit Makin Mendung (The Sky Turns Cloudier), which later ended in him receiving a suspended sentence for blasphemy.

"We in the media find [having this law in effect] unsettling because we can be charged with these articles. This is dangerous and not just a rumor; it can happen to any journalist," Ariyanto said.

The discussion was organized by SeJuK, an association of journalists for pluralism.

Ariyanto's argument was one of many supporting a review of the 45-year-old law. In the discussion, noted Muslim intellectual Dawam Rahardjo gave another opinion, saying it was not the state's function to protect religious education.

"Religious education takes many forms and ideologies. If the state wanted to protect religious education, which of the teachings should it protect? The majority's teaching? Can anyone tell if there are more conservative or liberals among Muslims in Indonesia?"

Yosep Adi Prasetyo, a commissioner at the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas-HAM), said the state could only intervene if a religious movement created public disturbances, threatened public health, caused moral degradation among the public or the followers and violated human rights.

The state, however, has no right to declare a teaching heretic, irrespective of what the majority of the public felt, Yosep said.

FPI hard-liners heckle scholar over religion law

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Ulma Haryanto – An Islamic scholar and lecturer from Jakarta's Paramadina University was jeered by members of a hard-line Islamic group at the Constitutional Court on Wednesday when he dared to draw a comparison between the Prophet Muhammad and the leader of a sect who claimed to be the bride of the Archangel Gabriel.

Luthfi Assyaukanie, who is also cofounder of the Jakarta-based Liberal Islam Network, told the court, which is reviewing the controversial blasphemy law, that the Prophet had initially been persecuted when he first started preaching his faith.

He then compared this to the treatment of Lia Aminuddin, the leader of the Kingdom of Eden sect who was jailed last year for blasphemy. "Some people think she is crazy and even persecute her, just like the Prophet Muhammad in the beginning," Luthfi said.

His statement immediately provoked vocal protest and abuse from members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), who had filled up more than half of the courtroom.

The court hearing comes during the fifth phase of the judicial review into the 1965 Law on the Prevention of Blasphemy and Abuse of Religion. Dating back to the last years of President Sukarno, the law was challenged by the late President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid last year for being misused to intimidate minority religions.

Undeterred by the jeers, Luthfi said the state should never side with a particular religion or criminalize worshipers who held different beliefs.

"What if the majority of the country's population followed Ahmadiyah?" he asked, once again inviting shouts of anger from the crowd. He was referring to the controversial minority Islamic sect that for years has suffered from discrimination and had their mosques burned down by hard-line Islamic groups.

"I'm sure that both Sunni and Shia followers each believe that they are the most correct and true," Luthfi added, referring to the two main branches of Islam.

"The problem with our Constitution is that it allows the religious majority power to do anything in the name of defending their religious rights. We have seen, during violent attacks, it's usually started by the majority who think they have the right to do it."

Toward the end of Luthfi's testimony, presiding judge Mahfud MD had to reprimand the court spectators for their continuous shouting.

Ifdhal Kasim, chairman of the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM), who also appeared as a witness at the hearing, said the state needed to limit itself from interfering in religious matters.

"The right to be religious and to practice one's religion is a Constitutional right," he said, adding that the government should draw the line only when it came to four issues: public safety, public order, morality and if human rights are threatened.

The government, Ifdhal said, was obligated to protect the rights of its citizens through the legal system.

"We argue that Article 1 of the 1965 Law crosses the line on the right to religious belief because it prohibits people from having their own interpretations of religion," he said.

Lutfi Hakim, legal counsel for the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said Ifdhal's testimony was unconvincing. "And furthermore, the four things that you mentioned, were more or less the same with what is written in the judicial review request," he added.

Elections/political parties

PDI-P family feud: Guruh launches legal action against Megawati

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

Muninggar Sri Saraswati – With just over a month to go until the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chooses it next chairperson, a group of party members has filed a complaint against its senior leadership for issuing internal policy that may prevent Guruh Sukarnoputra from running for the post.

The group filed its complaint against Megawati Sukarnoputri, Guruh's sister and the current chairwoman of the party, and Pramono Anung, its secretary general, in the South Jakarta District Court on Friday.

Zulkarnaen, one of the lawyers representing the group, which is calling itself the Advocacy Team to Save the PDI-P, said the new policy prevented subdistrict-level party officials from taking part in the party congress in April.

"The policy is against the party statute, which states that consolidation should involve party management from the lowest level. The policy is systematically designed to bar the presence of party management from subdistrict level," he said.

Zulkarnaen suspected the policy was designed to limit support for Guruh, which mainly comes from PDI-P members at the subdistrict level.

Tjahjo Kumolo, a senior executive at the PDI-P, said the party's central board had no problems addressing the motion filed by its junior members. "It's fine if they want to seek justice through legal proceedings," he said.

Tjahjo said that the PDI-P leadership had issued the policy according to party statutes and after thorough consideration.

Last month, subdistrict-level party officials in Bandung filed a complaint against the same policy in the Bandung District Court. They cited the same reasons as set out by Zulkarnaen.

Guruh, who is also known as an accomplished choreographer, put his hand up last year to run for the PDI-P's top post, although it is widely expected that Megawati will be re-elected chairwoman.

The question of who will take over the leadership from Megawati, however, has been a persistent issue considering she is a party icon and unifying force. Taufik Kiemas, Megawati's husband, has proposed Puan Maharani, their daughter, to eventually replace her mother.

The formation of a deputy chairperson position will also be discussed at April's party congress, a position which is expected to be assumed by Puan to give her more experience before replacing Megawati.

Surya Paloh's National Democrats make political noises

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Never one to take baby steps, media magnate Surya Paloh said on Wednesday that neither he nor his recently formed social organization was the type to just sit back and watch, signaling once again that the National Democrats would be his political vehicle to contest the 2014 elections.

"We do not want to rest our arms. We will not become part of the audience. We have decided to be active and provide the people with choices," Surya said.

This month, Surya threw a massive celebration at Istora Senayan in Jakarta to declare the formation of the National Democrats with Yogyakarta Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, a prospective vice presidential candidate in 2014.

The sultan himself had once announced his intention to run for president but canceled his plans after failing to attract a political party to support his bid.

Following Wednesday's inauguration of the central figures at the organization, Siswono Yudohusodo, who chairs the organization's council of expert staff, called for the acceleration of legal action against those involved in the Bank Century case, as party factions with the House of Representatives' special committee soon to announce their findings about the Rp 7.6 trillion ($710 million) government bailout.

"There is no other way but to speed up legal proceedings. A firm action against anyone involved must be taken," Siswono said.

Surya lost the battle for Golkar Party chairmanship to Aburizal Bakrie, who was central in uniting the faction with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party-led coalition.

Days after the bailout of Bank Century was sanctioned in November 20008 by Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and Vice President Boediono, the Bank Indonesia governor at the time, the lender was looted by its owner and primary shareholders.

Aburizal has allegedly pushed the House inquiry into the case, while he denying that he was seeking to have Sri Mulyani removed as finance minister amid an ongoing clash over alleged tax evasion by Bakrie group companies.

Surya on Wednesday said the National Democrats planned to get involved with uplifting the lives of the masses by focusing on humanitarian work as well as pursuing various social, educational and agricultural programs.

The group wants to ensure that Indonesia remains solid in the future, Surya added, because people haven't been showing much interest lately in issues concerning developing the nation.

"The people's values have deteriorated. It has devolved from solidarity to materialism and individualism," Surya said, adding the change in outlook was the reason the National Democrats were calling on Indonesians to become part of his organization, to guarantee a better future.

The National Democrats have pledged to see through a number of programs, including those on agriculture, by providing farmers with free paddy seeds and goats, and sponsoring the building of five elementary schools in remote regions.

Meutya Hafid, head of the National Democrats' organizing committee, earlier did not rule out the possibility that the organization was the beginning of a political party, but said the group would gauge the public's reaction first. (JG, Antara)

Administration & government

Yudhoyono cabinet reshuffle in the cards once again

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

Febriamy Hutapea & Muninggar Sri Saraswati – The nation's great political standoff continued on Friday, with the Democratic Party of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono continuing to threaten to pull cabinet positions from parties that fail to support the government over the Bank Century fiasco, and the parties concerned saying that is perfectly alright with them.

Yudhoyono, in comments clearly directed at Information and Communication Minister Tifatul Sembiring from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) – a key member of the Democratic-led ruling coalition – said on Thursday that ministers must first consult him before drafting any regulations or bills.

The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology has been heavily criticized recently for a proposal to block Web sites that contain content it determines is illegal, though Tifatul, appointed late last year, said on Friday that the plan was first drafted in 2006.

Responding to the warning shot from the president, PKS secretary general Anis Matta, who is also deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, said he had no objections to the criticism, saying it was Yudhoyono's "style."

"He supports his subordinates in public, but he also criticizes them in public," Anis said. "The coalition [members have] different stances but we remain close," he said, referring to the relationship between the Democrats and the PKS. He said the PKS would not withdraw from the coalition unless Yudhoyono demanded it. The party has indicated that it would hold Vice President Boediono and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati accountable for the Bank Century scandal,

"The PKS always communicates its stance to Mr. SBY," Anis said. "There is no reason to abandon the coalition."

Theo Sambuaga, a senior Golkar official, maintained that the party would not object should Yudhoyono fire Golkar members of cabinet, namely Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Agung Laksono, Minister of Industry MS Hidayat and Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Fadel Muhammad.

"We have repeatedly said that it is the president's right to reshuffle" the cabinet, Theo said, adding that Golkar had "no problems" if Yudhoyono decided to go ahead with such a move.

Theo maintained that his party would not change its initial stance over the Century case, declaring that the Rp 6.7 trillion ($710 million) bailout of Bank Century was illegal.

Responding to comments from senior Golkar Party official Priyo Budi Santoso on Thursday that the party would not hesitate to withdraw from the governing coalition, Democratic Party secretary general Amir Syamsuddin said it was within Golkar's right to do so.

"It is important that they indicate their stance, so that we know their intentions," Amir said. "We are not afraid. It is important that people support the Democrats."

Talk of a possible overhaul of the cabinet came up shortly before the end of the president's first 100 days in office.

The Democrats have also formally suggested that the president consider a reshuffle because members of the ruling coalition, particularly Golkar and PKS, have both hinted that they would not support the government's stance on the investigation of the bailout of Bank Century.

However, the president's close allies, including Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa, said there had been no discussion of a shake-up, although he did not deny the rumors.

Fresh list of plans, priorities for Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2010

Camelia Pasandaran & Anita Rachman – Though reviews have been mixed regarding the success of the government's first-100-days program, a new set of 11 priorities to "accelerate national development" this year was announced on Friday, and backed up with a hefty Rp 114 trillion ($12.2 billion) budget.

Based on a presidential instruction signed on Thursday, the strategy, announced by cabinet members at the Vice Presidential Palace on Friday, comprises a total of 115 action plans, all aimed at supporting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's overarching goals for 2014: accelerate economic growth to reach 7 percent in 2014, reduce poverty and increase the people's welfare, and strengthen democracy and law enforcement.

Joko Suyanto, who heads the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, said he would focus on programs dealing with antiterrorism, managing regional autonomy, harmonizing regulations, putting up a single identity number for more than 300 districts, and eradicating corruption.

"In the case of terrorism, it is important to change the mind- set," he said. "The approach will be more preventive than simply waiting for the problem and then solving it, such as forming a coordinating body to prevent terrorism as a continuation of the old antiterror desk."

The new priorities do not include the eradication of the judicial mafia – those involved in bribery, blackmail, the fixing of lawsuits and the intimidation of witnesses – which topped the government's first 100-days program.

The president created the Judicial Mafia Eradication Task Force, which has since made headlines by uncovering luxurious prison cells enjoyed by monied convicts and indications of corruption involving the investigation of the PT Asian Agri tax-evasion case.

Under the Coordinating Ministry for the Economy, led by Hatta Rajasa, there are six priorities with 83 action plans. Among them are carrying out the second stage of the food self-sufficiency initiative; accelerating infrastructure development, including linking districts and provinces; improving the investment and business climate; energy security; and empowering less-developed, outlying and post-conflict regions.

"The first priority is food self-sufficiency and food security," Hatta said. "The president set up a revitalization plan for food self-sufficiency by 2008. Now comes the second wave, with clear targets for staple food self-sufficiency. The plan is to increase food production, revitalize the food industry and improve nutrition."

The programs under the Coordinating Ministry for People's Welfare include ensuring access to education, providing cash aid to public health centers and eradicating poverty with the use of family-based aid.

The Presidential Working Unit for Development Supervision and Control (UKP4) will monitor the development of all programs. "The president's instructions are very detailed, measurable and will be well monitored by the UKP4," said Lukita Dinarsyah Tuo, deputy minister for national development planning.

Lukita said Rp 92 trillion of the Rp 114 trillion set aside for the program will come from the 2010 budget, while Rp 22.3 trillion will be taken from the revised budget.

Not everyone, however, was sold on the government's new priorities.

Ikrar Nusa Bakti, a political analyst at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said Yudhoyono should have focused on completing unfinished programs, such as the eradication of the judicial mafia, which he had previously listed as his No.1 priority. "His term hasn't reached 130 days, but now he's setting new programs," Ikrar said. "I think he just talks more than acts."

The new priorities

1. Bureaucracy reform and management
2. Education
3. Health
4. Poverty eradication
5. Food self-sufficiency
6. Infrastructure development
7. Investment and business climate
8. Energy
9. Environment and disaster management
10. Empowering less-developed, outlying and post-conflict regions
11. Culture, creativity and technology innovation

Key 100-Day Priorities

1. Eradicate the 'judicial mafia'
2. Revitalize defense industry
3. Eradicate terrorism
4. Electricity generation
5. Food production and security

Press freedom & censorship

Indonesia's draft bill on internet regulation criticized

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Ismira Lutfia – News media, bloggers and other members of the online community were united on Wednesday in voicing objections to a Ministry of Communication and Information Technology draft regulation to create a team to monitor online content.

The Indonesian Internet Service Providers, the Alliance of Independent Journalists, noted bloggers and a news portal all agreed that incorrect perceptions about the Internet are behind the flaws in the draft, which stresses controlling illegal content without addressing the development of positive content.

Karaniya Dharmasaputra, editor-in-chief of news portal Vivanews.com, said in a joint news conference that the draft regulation is "a setback from the spirit of the reform era that upholds the freedom of expression." He warned that the plan might prevent the growth of the Internet in the country.

"This is contrary to other countries, which support the growth of the Internet by giving out incentives," he said.

Valens Riyadi from Indonesian Internet Service Providers, or APJII, said: "We do not reject the idea of healthy Internet use but we reject the repressive way of regulating it as drafted in the regulation. We have the impression that the draft will give the authority for Internet service providers to intercept, so does this mean we can intercept ministers' e-mails?"

Valens added that Internet users can always opt for filtered access if they see the need.

Margiyono, secretary general of the Alliance of Independent Journalists, or AJI, acknowledged that most countries police the Internet to weed out content deemed harmful. "The government must choose which approach it wants to emulate, and it depends on the government's political will," Margiyono said.

He doubted that the model used in the draft would be effective in making the digital sphere safer for users and claimed that "there might be a political motive behind it." Valens said that if the government is taking the example of China, it is not applicable because "unlike China, the Internet infrastructure here is owned by the private sector."

Noted Kompasiana.com blogger Pepy Nugroho said the government's draft policy would not be applicable to filter Web sites that are user-generated.

Meanwhile, ICT Watch, a nongovernmental organization working for a healthy and secure Internet, said in a statement that it understands the draft was made with "good intentions to protect the public from negative content on the Internet and to provide the basis of legal certainty for Internet service providers if there were content determined as illegal disseminated through the providers' infrastructure."

However, it said the draft tended to "control, regulate and sanction" Web content with a "top-down" approach. "It is better for the government to use its resources to boost grassroots activities in developing the quality and quantity of positive local content," it said.

Ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto said the ministry would accommodate feedback on the draft regulation "as long as it has clear justifications."

Web professionals join fight over internet monitoring plan

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Ismira Lutfia & Febriamy Hutapea – Local Web site managers have joined the chorus of objections to the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information Technology's draft regulation to create a team to monitor online content, saying it would hamper the development of local Internet service providers.

Andrew Darwis, the founder of a local online forum called Kaskus, told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday that he was surprised the ministry was drafting such a regulation, which he believed was "contrary to the ministry's encouragement to develop local content."

Andrew said the draft gave the impression that the ministry was "trying to shift the blame to the Web managers" for any content determined to be illegal.

"It is counterproductive to the ministry's efforts in supporting the development of local Web content," Andrew said, adding that he and his online community would deliver their feedback to the ministry.

Satya Witoelar, the chief creative officer of Koprol.com, a local micro-blogging site similar to Twitter, also said the proposed regulation was "a threat to locally based Web sites, which have become a tool for instant and real-time interactions online."

Ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto said on Monday that the planned 30-member Multimedia Content Team would act on public complaints of so-called disturbing content, and would order Internet service providers to block sites that it felt were displaying material banned under Indonesian law.

He pointed out that the draft of the regulation remained open for public comment and debate until Friday.

A recent spate of crimes targeting teenagers in using social networking sites has raised questions over the need for better monitoring of Web sites.

However, Andrew said that it would be impossible for Kaskus moderators to control the content of every posting in the forum, which has 1.4 million registered users to date.

"We have 30 posts every second and we would not have the manpower to filter them all the time," he said, adding that he hoped the ministry would invite local Web site managers to discuss the formulation of the draft.

Andrew added that the proposal would affect local sites more than the foreign ones. "What if the illegal content comes from foreign-based Web sites such as Twitter and Facebook?" Satya said. "Will the government take action to ban them?"

Satya said the draft regulation was "ironic," comparing the situation to that in Singapore where freedom of expression is tightly controlled but the government still encourages citizens to develop local Web sites.

Agustinus Edy Kristianto, the chief editor of Indonesian political and legal news site Primair Online told the Globe that the proposed draft "seems to be similar to the Internet policies in China that could threaten the development of a Web-based creative industry."

He said the draft should have a "clear philosophical background" to justify it. "Was it drafted to protect children from accessing disturbing content? The objective must be clear," Agustinus said.

He added that the ministry must work with the private sector and human rights, media, freedom of information and child protection activists to ensure that the regulation will accommodate their perspectives.

"And it should also avoid using ambiguous wordings that are liable for multi interpretation since this will be a ministerial regulation that deals with the technicalities in its field," he said.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) also rejected the draft regulation, which it regards as an effort to control the content of media and information in an authoritarian style. PDI-P chairman Tjahjo Kumolo said it violated the 1999 Press Law, which guarantees media freedoms and protection of the establishment of media.

Indonesia web monitoring plan panned

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2010

Ismira Lutfia – The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology is facing growing objections to its plan to create a monitoring team with the power to order Internet service providers to block Web sites that contain content it determines is illegal.

Bloggers and media activists say a proposed ministry regulation currently being circulated may violate existing media laws, and poses a threat to freedom of expression in cyberspace. They also say the draft is a knee-jerk reaction to recent publicized cases of Internet abuse, such as the discovery of an online underage child trafficking and prostitution ring in East Java that used Facebook and Yahoo Messenger to find recruits.

Bambang Harymurti, the Press Council's new deputy chairman, said on Monday that the council would file an official objection with the ministry about the proposed regulation because it had the potential to violate press and broadcasting laws by restricting what journalists could and could not report.

The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) also voiced concerns that the draft regulation would restrict press freedom.

But the ministry's spokesman, Gatot Dewa Broto, countered that the draft regulation was "not related to the press, since [the monitoring team] will not act as a censorship body that will monitor Web sites on a daily basis. We will not have the [technological] ability to do that anyway," he added.

Gatot said the Multimedia Content Team would instead act on public complaints about disturbing content, and would only order Internet service providers to block Web sites that it felt were displaying material already banned under Indonesian law.

The 30-member team would include civil servants and private sector staff, so as to prevent abuse of power by the government, he added.

"We did use the Press Law as a reference in drafting the regulation, but in regard to upholding press freedom," Gatot said, adding that only Internet service providers would face sanctions for allowing access to improper Web content. "It will be imposed on the Internet service providers, not the press."

While AJI acknowledged that the draft regulation did refer to the Press Law, it said it did not clearly exempt content provided by media organizations.

"The ambiguous definition of 'illegal content' poses a threat to the press because Clause 3 in the draft states that pornographic content is illegal, while there is no definition of pornography in the draft and this is open to multiple interpretations," AJI said in a press release.

Communication Minister Tifatul Sembiring, currently on an official trip to Europe, is a member of the conservative Islam- based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) who has previously spoken out against illicit content on television and the Internet. He once publicly claimed that natural disasters were a consequence of immoral television programming.

Noted Indonesian blogger Enda Sumarsono said that the draft did not specify what action would be taken should the monitoring body find disturbing content on extremely popular, foreign-based Web sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

"They might [propose] to block access to those Web sites as well," he said. "I think this draft mainly deals with tackling the negative effects of the Internet, and it does not talk about prevention or empowerment."

Gatot said the draft regulation remained open for public comment and debate until Friday. "We may extend the deadline, but we may also close it by Friday and rework it further with the responses we've received," he said. "Once we come up with a new proposal, we will introduce it again for public debate."

Opposition to cyber censorship takes root

Jakarta Post - February 16, 2010

Arghea Desafti Hapsari, Jakarta – Days after news broke that the Communications and Information Technology Ministry was mulling a regulation to curb Internet-related crime, online opposition has sprung up.

As of Monday evening, a group created on Facebook in opposition to the planned regulation has drawn more than 1,460 members. "Say no to the ministerial regulation on Internet content. Let the Indonesian youths create," one group member commented.

Another member said Communications and IT Minister Tifatul Sembiring should instead work on ways to get villages online and provide affordable connections.

IT experts are also among those shouting down the minister's plan. In a comment made on Feb. 13, IT analyst Onno Widodo Purbo said the planned regulation would kill the entire industry of content providers in the country.

"The fatal mistake in the regulation is that [it requires] content providers to be responsible for their content, when instead it should be the creators, the writers or those who upload the content," he said.

Article 3 of the draft regulation stipulates that providers of multimedia services be banned from distributing, transmitting and making accessible multimedia content deemed pornographic or violating public decency.

Other articles in the regulation prohibit content that offers gambling or that "carry lies and misleading information". Under the regulation, content providers failing to remove such content can have their permitsrevoked.

"These [articles] criminalize the providers and not the creators of the content," Onno said. "[The regulation] needs to be reviewed so it doesn't do this. Can the ministry really punish wordpress.com or blogger.com?" The country's biggest online forum, kaskus.us, is among those at risk of being shut down if the draft regulation is adopted.

Co-founder Andrew Darwis told vivanews.com on Monday that it was beyond his organization's capacity to take responsibility for the content viewed by more than 600,000 visitors to the site every day. "This is disappointing and confusing at the same time," he said.

If the regulation is not revised, he added, "local content providers like us will go through a lot of hassle".

"And anyone who has it in for Kaskus can easily post prohibited content such as porn or items that discriminate against sex, religion or race, anytime they like, and then it'd be us who have to bear responsibility for the content," he said. "Eventually we'd have to go through the legal process."

The Press Council is also against the proposed regulation, with one council member telling Antara that the regulation was in violation of the Constitution, the press law and the broadcasting law.

The ministry, however, disagrees. "The planned regulation on content is not intended to limit press freedom," said ministry spokesman Gatot S. Dewa Broto.

Constitutional Court chief Mahfud M.D. said Sunday such an issue should be ruled on by parliament, and not left to the vagaries of any single ministry.

Press freedom watchdog slams multimedia draft regulation

Jakarta Globe - February 15, 2010

The Alliance of Independent Journalists has slammed the Communication and Information Ministry's draft regulation on multimedia content, stating that it threatened freedom of the press.

"If the draft was passed, the Indonesian press would face a new era of bans and censorship," stated the alliance in a press release.

The alliance, known as AJI, stated that the draft's principle was to ban all internet providers from distributing illegal content and to require them to filer and block illegal content such as pornography and other content which was considered to be "violating decency."

"The definition of illegal content poses dangers to the press, because there are no definitions about pornography and it could cause multiple interpretations," AJI chairman Nezar Patria said.

Nezar said that there was nothing in the draft stating that the regulation would not be applicable to the press, even though the draft was contradictory to the Press Law. "The journalism code of ethics is the only content regulation for press be it print, internet or broadcast," Nezar said.

Meanwhile, a researcher with Imparsial said that the draft showed that the ministry was heading in the direction of becoming a New Order era censorship board.

"I think the Communication and Information Ministry would be like the Information Ministry during the New Order era," Al Araf told Metro TV.

He said that multimedia regulation must also consider the public domain. "The government must apply extra caution regarding the public domain and they must have strong reasons to apply such censorship," he added.

Imparsial noted that the ministry under Tifatul Sembiring had issued two controversial drafts – the wiretapping draft and the multimedia content. "The drafts did not have clear orientations and the ministry has a huge authority in both drafts. This is very orthodox and conservative," he said.

Ethnic & religious conflicts

Public debate targets police inaction on religious violence

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2010

Ulma Haryanto – Alleged police indifference to violence targeting religious minorities was questioned on Tuesday during a public discussion in Jakarta held by civil-society organizations about the prospects for reform.

"Violence in the name of religion often happens in front of the police. But they just stood there while somebody was being flushed with acid," said Malik, a member of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras).

"How could they just stand there while a church was being vandalized, a mosque being burned? It seems that the police officers were impotent when facing such tragedies."

In response, Insp. Gen. Imam Soejarwo, National Police chairman for bureaucratic reform, said the police saw everyone as equal before the law.

"If we did nothing, it's because we were concerned about the possibility of bigger calamities if we jumped in to intervene," he said, adding that situations may have made it impossible for the police to take firmer action.

A report released this month by the Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace revealed that 200 violations against freedom of worship were reported to state agencies in 2009.

On Monday, members of the hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) forcibly closed Galilea Church in Bekasi, alleging that the congregation had been trying to convert Muslim residents. Police were only seen guarding the premises on Monday after the incident.

Syafi'i Anwar, executive director of the International Center for Islam and Pluralism, told the Jakarta Globe that police officers are often indecisive when it comes to such acts.

"They think that it would violate human rights if they did something," he said. "They also tend to think that the Indonesian Ulema Council [MUI] should take care of it. Police officers in the field should be given the understanding that violence, even though based on religion, is in itself a violation of human rights, so it has to be stopped.

"The violence toward the Ahmadiyah and churches is not right in any way, and the police should not just stand there because some religious majority said the other faiths are wrong."

Setara's report identified the Ahmadiyah sect of Islam as the most persecuted community in the nation, victimized in 33 cases recorded in 2009.

Jakarta Police spokesman Chief Comr. Boy Rafli Amar said the reform strategy included using police "as an instrument to support human rights."

Bambang Widodo Umar, a former police officer who is now an independent police expert, said reform has to be applied to the police education system.

"In my time, we never heard of education about minority rights, gender equality. We heard of it but we never really learned anything about it," he said.

"This is why the concept of 'human security' [instead of the old state security] has to be taught in police academies to respond to the challenges of becoming a modern democratic country."

Muslim group threatens to close down Bekasi church

Jakarta Globe - February 15, 2010

Hundreds of supporters of 16 Islamic social organizations in Bekasi, West Java, threatened to forcibly close Galileo Church, located in Taman Galaxy, South Bekasi, on Monday, alleging that the church was trying to convert Muslim residents.

"We will close the church on Monday morning because their existence had disturbed the local residents, who are mostly Muslims," said the head of Bekasi's Islamic Defender Front (FPI) Murhali on TV One on Sunday.

Murhali said that there were allegations that the church was carrying out a mission to convert residents. "We received reports that church officials often held a charity bazaar for locals but they were asked to say that Jesus is their God. I think it's a violation," he said.

There were six churches in the housing complex. "At night, their singing disturbs the locals' sleep," he said. The organizations said they had issued a statement to urge Bekasi's municipal government to close the church, as regulated in Joint Ministerial Decree between the Religion Minister and the Home Affairs Ministers about places of worship.

"The joint decree states that before a place of worship is built, it must get approval from 60 percent of local residents," he said.

The officials of Galilea Church were not available for comment, but police were seen guarding the premises on Monday morning.

Bekasi's Head Detective Comr. Budi Sartono advised demonstrators to conduct peaceful protests and avoid violence. He said police would not tolerate anarchy. "If mistakes have been made, let's correct the mistakes peacefully. Police and the government are open to suggestions for improvements from public," Budi said.

Art & literature

Jakarta's artful dodgers

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Marcel Thee – Bombers are decorating Jakarta. Not with explosives, but with cans of spray paint. And lots of it.

"Bombers" refers to the increasing number of graffiti artists prowling the streets of the capital.

Better known as mural or graffiti artists, these bombers often operate outside the law due to the restrictions against their art form, which is often seen as "polluting" the city.

They attempt to get around the law by working the midnight shift, waiting until the streets are empty before they bring out the spray cans. But even then they must still engage in a game of hide-and-seek with police and public order officers.

Chances are you've seen some of their work on the city's underpasses, tunnels and public walls. Not the erratic scrawls and scratches of swear words, but the graffiti pieces that look like they were carefully designed, complete with contrasting colors and detailed graphics.

Graffiti art itself is nothing new in Indonesia. It has been here since the early 1990s. It's only in the last few years, however, that the quality has improved and the bomber community has strengthened.

Twenty-five-year-old Eko Pratomo, who calls himself Silentboy, a bomber who works as a graphic designer and illustrator by day, says, "I would say that graffiti art has been here since around 1994 and experienced a boost in quality and popularity by the 2000s."

The emergence of the Internet in the country played a part in popularizing this underground world, particularly for artists looking for new ways to express themselves.

M Ikhwan Hakiki, 22, another bomber, says local graffiti culture "might have already been here since the 1980s."

Local graffiti artists focus mostly on two distinct styles: lettering, which uses spray paint, and mural illustrations, which use regular wall paint.

Ikhwan has been bombing since 2006, when he joined the art community Kampung Segart, from IISIP University in South Jakarta, which had members who were active graffiti artists.

Eko says graffiti is an extension of his love of illustrating. He became taken with it after discovering the New York City-based street art Web site Wooster Collective. By early 2000, Eko himself was actively illustrating the city's walls.

"It's people's reaction of love and hate toward my work that drives me," Eko says. "Some people look at a mural or graffiti and they completely love it, some completely hate it. The public's reaction is fascinating."

Another bomber, Andri Ruay, 25, says the reason he engages in the art is "the freedom of using unlimited mediums and medias; creating absolutely any illustration and publicizing the art straight into the city."

Andri says he and other bombers can be motivated by feeling they have artistic talent that they are stopped from sharing with the public. "These kinds of feelings eventually drive bombers to 'naughty' ideas, and so they directly publish [their work] using public spaces."

By the mid-2000s, there were numerous bombers and "crews" (groups of bombers) operating in Indonesia. Their developing technique and style meant that even international graffiti artists and publications began to take notice. There were also internationally sponsored events.

"Tons of Indonesian graffiti has been featured in books about street art," Eko says. "And [well-known graffiti] artists such as ERY1, from Japan, Ewok and Futura, from the US, L'Atlas, from France, and Killer Gerbil, from Singapore, have paid visits and done work here."

Even representatives from Sneaker Pimps, which bills itself as "the world's largest touring sneakers and street-based art show," have sponsored street art events in Indonesia.

Ikhwan also points to the growing number of shops selling bombing equipment such as spray paint, mural paint and gas masks, as evidence of the burgeoning movement.

Dhani R Manto, 19, who heads a North Jakarta bomber crew, got into bombing by way of hip-hop music and street culture. He says it takes special skills to create graffiti art.

"An artist might be able to draw on computer, paper, canvas or a number of other mediums. But that does not mean he'll be able to create graffiti art. The use of the spray can is particular and you have to get used to it," he says.

Dhani also mentions that a can of spray paint costs around Rp 18,000 ($2), and that each large piece of graffiti costs a minimum of Rp 200,000 to create due to the amount of paint and variety of colors used.

Still, the increasing quality and popularity does not necessarily translate into a greater appreciation for the artists and their art. They still play cat-and-mouse with officials. Eko was arrested during one midnight bombing raid, while Ikhwan has learned to avoid areas with a strong police presence.

"You just have to know good areas to draw," Ikhwan says, pointing to areas in Depok, where he lives, that he believes are safe from the reach of the law.

Eko says there are a few so-called "legal" areas in the city where bombers are allowed to do their work. What he means by "legal," however, are "areas we keep going back to, even after being warned by the police numerous times – they eventually just throw their hands up in the air and let us do whatever we want in those places."

He adds that explaining to officers that their work is art and not just scribbles sometimes helps to avoid trouble.

Eko is proud of the achievements of local bombers. "If you're talking about quality, Indonesian bombers are on par with international artists. In Asia, I would say that we are as good as Japanese artists."

He adds that a few Indonesian graffiti artists have exhibited their works internationally. Andri says he hopes Indonesian bombers will eventually be recognized as full-fledged artists in their own country.

Ikhwan believes recognition of their art would be helped by stronger ties between graffiti artists across the country. "There is still some separation between bombers in different regions. I hope that all of us become increasingly solid," he says

Judiciary & legal system

Now is good time to update our legal system: Hearing

Jakarta Post - February 18, 2010

Arghea Desafti Hapsari, Jakarta – The judicial review of the 1965 Blasphemy Law requested by several NGOs and supporters of pluralism presents a good opportunity for Indonesia to update its legal system, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) says.

Commission chief Ifdhal Kasim testified before a hearing at the Constitutional Court on Wednesday, arguing that the 45-year-old law was "a product [of the legal system] in a time of emergency".

"The law was issued to prevent the birth of religious groups in Indonesia and also to fill a gap in the Criminal Code," he said.

Under the law, the government has the authority to charge leaders and followers of suspected heretical groups with an article in the Criminal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of 5 years' imprisonment.

"This law rests on the old Constitution, which opposes the new [amended] Constitution. That's why, based on the new Constitution, there needs to be reviews [of laws] produced by former administrations," Ifdhal said.

The law on blasphemy contains articles that are not in line with the amended Constitution, which is more advanced in terms of human rights protection than its predecessor, he said.

"We want to see this old product of law supported in the new architecture of law, so we can have harmony in the protection of human rights in religion and faith," he said.

On Wednesday, the court heard testimonies from the human rights commission, the Indonesian Council of Islamic Propagation (DDII) and the Parisada Hindu Dharma religious council. DDII chairman Syuhada Bahri said the law was constitutional.

Muslim scholar Luthfie Assyaukanie shared a different perspective. Testifying as an expert witness he said the law allowed violent acts against minorities.

In his testimony, Luthfie compared the case of religious sect leader Lia Eden to the situation the Prophet Muhammad faced when he preached his teachings.

Islam, he said, was deemed heretical by the Quraisy Arabs and Muhammad was condemned by the majority of these people. This was the same as what happened to Lia Eden when her teachings were deemed heretical, he said. Lia was jailed for propagating her sect in June last year.

Luthfie's statement triggered a series of objections and questions from representatives of Muslim groups Muhammadiyah, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), DDII and the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI).

He later apologized if his statement had offended certain parties.

Graft courts' ad hoc judges unqualified: Activists

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2010

Jakarta – The Supreme Court has selected ad hoc justice candidates with questionable competence, a member of the Court Monitoring Coalition says.

Illian Deta Arta Sari of Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) said the coalition had conducted their own assessment of the capacities of 79 candidates and found that many were not qualified for the posts.

The coalition had found that 55 (or 70 percent) of the candidates had questionable integrity and knowledge in legal matters, she said, adding that most were affiliated with certain political parties.

"So only 24 of them, or 30 percent are worth considering as ad hoc judge candidates," she said in press statement on Sunday. It was regrettable that the selection committee was not more careful in its checking of the candidates' integrity.

Accoring to the 2009 Corruption Court Law, the Supreme Court can select ad hoc judges for corruption courts to be set up in Samarinda, Medan, Semarang, Makassar, Palembang, Surabaya and Bandung in addition to the one in Jakarta.

Foreign affairs

Bali executions bad for Rudd, says embassy

Sydney Morning Herald - February 18, 2010

Tom Allard, Jakarta – Australian embassy officials in Jakarta have told Indonesian authorities the possible executions of three of the Bali Nine is a highly sensitive issue for the Rudd government in an election year.

The representation was made by the embassy's political counsellor, Paul Griffiths, and comes as the three Australians, Scott Rush, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, prepare their final appeals against the death sentence.

If the appeals – known as a judicial review – fail, the only way for the three drug smugglers to avoid a firing squad is a direct plea for clemency to the President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Mr Griffiths and a colleague, Emily Street, met officials at the Indonesian attorney-general's office on Tuesday. "They told us that it was a sensitive political issue ahead of the election," Didiek Darmanto, a spokesman for the attorney-general, told the Herald.

The talks also canvassed the extradition from Australia of an Indonesian corruption suspect, Adrian Kiki, who was arrested in Perth in 2008.

At least one Indonesian media outlet interpreted the meeting as the Rudd government tying Mr Kiki's extradition to the fate of the three Australians.

However, Mr Darmanto said he did not regard the representations by the Australian diplomats as improper. Asked if Mr Griffiths directly urged that the trio not be executed for political reasons this year, Mr Darmanto said, "No".

"It was a courtesy meeting," he said. "It was not about intervening. They wanted to get information about how the Indonesian legal system worked."

Mr Darmanto, who attended the meeting, said Mr Griffiths also asked to be informed of any developments involving the three Australians in a timely fashion, presumably to avoid the embarrassing situation that occurred in 2006.

Then, the Herald learnt before the embassy that an appeal by some of the Bali Nine for their life sentences to be reduced had failed. Instead the sentences were increased to the death penalty.

Since the Nine's arrests in April 2005, the governments of John Howard and Kevin Rudd have been quietly trying to ensure the death penalty is not carried out. A Department of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman played down the meeting as a "getting to know you" courtesy call.

Economy & investment

Save your pennies, save the nation, President says

Jakarta Post - February 21, 2010

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has launched the National Savings Movement, introducing savings accounts without administration fees to encourage more Indonesians to save their money in banks.

The President said saving money in banks would boost the country's economic growth.

"Saving money in banks will increase domestic savings, investment will swell and that will boost economic growth and public welfare," Yudhoyono declared Saturday during an event at the Jakarta Fairground in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta.

"This will make us capable of reducing foreign debts, and therefore Insha Allah (God willing), our economy will grow more independent," he added.

The President said the recent global economic crisis had badly affected some affluent countries partly because the people had the habit of making excessive spendings.

To boost people's interest in saving their money at banks, Bank Indonesia launched at the same event a new product called Tabunganku (My Account), which allows customers to save their money at banks without being charged administration fees.

Tabunganku will be available at 70 commercial banks and 910 rural banks (locally known by the acronym BPR). The President expressed confidence that the new product would encourage a new savings habit.

"If you want to save money in a conventional or sharia commercial bank you can start with only Rp 20,000 (US$2)," he said. "And if you want to save money at a BPR or sharia BPR you can start with Rp 10,000 without being charged with any administration fees."

He elaborated by saying that the money saved in banks could be channeled to low-income communities through low-interest loans.

According to data from Bank Indonesia, 80 million of the 135 million Indonesians in the productive age group do not have a bank account.

Yudhoyono said if half of the 80 million people each had Rp 100,000 in savings, the government would have an additional Rp 4 trillion in funds that it could use to support its "pro-people" programs. Among such programs are the School Operational Aid and low-interest loans for micro-, small- and medium-scale businesses.

"We hope that banks will take part in promoting (Tabunganku) to the wider public," he said.

Acting Bank Indonesia Governor Darmin Nasution said administration fees were one of the factors stopping people from depositing their money in bank accounts.

He said this could change, however, with the launch of the new product, which was expected to make saving money a part of people's lifestyles.

Indonesia to issue decree on oil and gas cost recovery

Reuters - February 18, 2010

Jakarta – Indonesia will issue a government decree aimed at clarifying what oil and gas contractors can claim under a scheme to reimburse their operational costs, including exploration spending, the finance minister said on Thursday.

Indonesia's cost recovery scheme reimburses oil firms for exploration and production costs, although the billions of dollars paid out have come under political scrutiny at times and the country's parliament has intervened to bring in limits.

"The decree will contain special rules for oil and gas, especially on cost recovery to calculate sharing and tax," Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati told a parliamentary hearing. "In this decree, the cost will be based on normal principles of business and tax rules," she said.

Indrawati said the government had previously issued a "negative" list of items and services that oil and gas contractors working in Indonesia could not be reimbursed for. The list includes the cost of employees, expatriate costs, as well as costs for legal and tax consultants, and community development expenditure.

"The decree is not aimed to intimidate those claiming costs. If the cost is related to exploration, exploitation and development, it can be claimed from the government," Indrawati said.

Indonesia expects spending by contractors of oil and gas exploration in the country to fall to $2.3 billion this year, down about 15 percent from an estimated $2.7 billion in 2009, the country's oil watchdog has said previously.

Crude production, which was about 1.5 million barrels per day in the 1990s, has nearly halved and Indonesia has become a net importer of crude oil in recent years.

Major global resource firms such as Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Total operate in Indonesia, but the country has struggled to attract fresh investment and to develop new fields. Indonesia produced 949,100 bpd of crude oil and condensate in 2009, missing a target of 960,000 bpd in the year.

An energy ministry official, who declined to be identified, said previously a target of producting 965,000 bpd of crude and condensate this year would be very difficult to achieve since output from older wells was falling about 10-15 percent per year.

Indonesia has offered new exploration rights and has said it will provide new incentives to oil and gas investors, including more favourable tax treatment and a better production split, in order to encourage exploration.

But industry insiders have said the incentives may not be sufficient, particularly since many of the unexplored fields are in remote locations and often in deep water, and so expensive to develop.

Selling SOE stakes needs softly, softly approach: Minister

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2010

Caution is essential in Indonesia's program to sell stakes in state firms because of its politically sensitive nature, the state enterprises minister warned on Wednesday.

Mustafa Abubakar said pushing ahead with public offerings for state firms would be hard because of lingering public perceptions that it was in effect selling off state assets to foreign investors.

"So we'll be very selective in picking which will go public and which will not," he said in a visit to the Jakarta Globe.

Last year, the government obtained the approval of the House of Representatives to sell stakes in five state firms through initial public offerings. They are lender PT Bank Tabungan Negara, flag-carrying airline PT Garuda Indonesia, steelmaker PT Krakatau Steel and construction companies PT Pembangunan Perumahan and PT Waskita Karya.

But as 2009 closed, the government had only managed to proceed with the IPO of BTN, partly because it was worried the global financial crisis would have lingering effects on market confidence.

It managed to raise Rp 1.88 trillion ($203 million), passing its Rp 1.5 trillion target. It raised Rp 581 billion from the IPO of Pembangunan Perumahan this month, well below the target of Rp 1.5 trillion.

Mustafa said the priority was now on proceeding with the IPOs first of Garuda and then Krakatau Steel. Garuda's IPO, set for the third quarter of this year, is hoped to raise $300 million, he said.

So far, 16 state-owned enterprises have been listed on the stock exchange. Mustafa confirmed that shares sales would continue to form part of his overall strategy to boost the performance of the country's some 140 SOEs.

While experts argue that taking them public would benefit SOEs as it would help improve their performance by bringing, among other things, better governance and efficiency, the government in the past has had trouble realizing the program due to strong political opposition.

Two high-profile examples were the sale of telecommunication company PT Indosat to Singapore Technologies Telemedia and the sale of shares in cement company PT Semen Gresik to Mexico's Cemex a few years ago.

While not all SOEs will be taken public, Mustafa said, he wants some of them, especially key ones, at least to adopt the norms and protocols applied in the stock market, which he described as "something positive."

He cited state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, which the government is pushing to become a nonlisted public company, requiring it to adopt disclosure guidelines set by the stock- market authority. "If this is successful, [state electricity utility] PLN will follow suit," Mustafa said.

Being studied, he said, is the possibility of secondary offerings for PT Bank Mandiri and PT Bank Negara Indonesia to increase their floated shares to at least 40 percent to gain a tax incentive.

The former chief of the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) said his strategy to help improve the SOEs' efficiency and profitability included mapping their strengths and weaknesses, "regrouping" and "right-sizing" them.

Analysis & opinion

Subsidizing the rich

Jakarta Post Editorial - February 18, 2010

The government, under pressure from the House of Representatives, has asked the state electricity company (PLN) to postpone the implementation of its tariff policy for big household customers with a load capacity of between 6,600 and 10, 500 volt-amperes (VA).

This is another sign of an embattled government that is reeling from the political turbulence set off by the preliminary conclusions of the parliamentary inquiry into the Bank Century bailout, which has declared it legally flawed and infested with corruption.

The specified capacity, we believe, is the range of power load capacity connected to the homes of most House members, senior government officials and upper middle-income residents.

Under the new rate policy, big customers will have to pay PLN its commercial rate of Rp 1,380/kilowatts per hour or kwh, (14 US cents) if their consumption exceeds 50 percent of the national average for their category (6,600-10,500 VA load capacities).

This means that well-to-do households will still pay the subsidized price (Rp 638 kWh) if their consumption is not higher than the national average.

The question then is why such high-income people, who can afford to pay PLN's normal tariff and who usually have big houses with big air conditioners and refrigerators and various other luxury amenities, should continue to pay subsidized prices for their power.

The long planned tariff policy for big customers was stipulated in the 2010 Budget Law, meaning the measure was approved by the parliament. Yet the government has bowed to strong parliamentary lobbying to postpone that measure.

By PLN estimates, the progressive rate policy could reduce power subsidies this year by Rp 2.8 trillion (US$280 million). This potential saving could have better been used to subsidize the interest rate of micro-credits for millions of small and micro- businesses.

We therefore find it mind-boggling to understand how the government could have been so pathetic as to defer the implementation of such a sound a policy designed to conserve energy and reduce gas emissions and stimulate investment in electricity generation.

This is the second bad energy policy measure taken by the government over the past five weeks as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's leadership seems to have weakened under the political heat generated by the parliamentary investigation into Bank Century.

Early last month the Cabinet threw out a sound fuel policy by canceling its January 2009 decision to float fuel prices on the international market in a bid to gradually reduce the nation's dependence on fossil fuels.

Instead of fully implementing the policy through gradual monthly price adjustments, the government decided to increase budget allocations for energy subsidies (mostly for fuel and electricity) for this year by 50 percent to Rp 150 trillion (US$15 billion) as international oil prices have now risen to around $75-80/barrel, higher than the average $65 assumed for the 2010 fiscal year. The January 2009 fuel price-floatation would have been quite conducive to energy conservation and diversification.

The electricity rate policy also could have helped improve the investment climate in the power sector and could have strengthened PLN's competitiveness in facing a new liberalized power sector, which will be ushered in later this year by the new electricity law.

The new law, which was approved by the House last September, will break up the PLN monopoly of the power sector and allow private investors and regional administration-owned companies to generate, transmit, distribute and sell electricity to consumers.

However, the latest policy flip-flop, as evidenced by the postponement of the sound power tariff policy, could create new uncertainty in the electricity sector and consequently discourage new investment.