Amir Tejo, Mojokerto (East Java) – At least 19 people were injured, 22 vehicles destroyed and a meeting room at the district legislature burned in organized rioting here on Friday that erupted over an apparent electoral dispute related to upcoming polls for a new district head.

The violence began at the Mojokerto Legislative Council building after about 200 people calling themselves the People's Empowerment Committee rallied in front of the hall as the council hosted presentations from three district head candidates. The election is scheduled for June 7.

The demonstrators were reportedly angry that a potential candidate for district head, Dimyati Rasyid, a religious leader, had failed a health exam required as part of the candidate selection process.

Three other candidates and their running mates were inside the building presenting their platforms to the council.

Armed with wooden planks, Molotov cocktails and iron bars, the protesters demanded entrance but were stopped by police. The mob then attacked the police barricade with metal rods, planks and firebombs, broke through and ransacked the building, setting part of it on fire.

"They threw Molotov cocktails, which caught the police officers off guard. A group later attacked, targeting higher-ranking officers," East Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Pratiknyo said.

Ten officers were seriously injured. Nine protesters were also injured, with one suffering a gunshot wound to the chest.

The protesters also ransacked vehicles parked around the council building and the adjacent Mojo-kerto district office. The vehicles were later burned by the demonstrators.

"About a hundred protesters have been arrested," Pratiknyo said. Police also confiscated two boxes of unused Molotov cocktails, along with weapons and vehicles.

Council members and candidates were evacuated from the scene unharmed. Members of the council said they suspected Dimyati was behind the mayhem. His supporters had protested that the health test was rigged by a rival of Dimyati, who chairs the Mojokerto Ulema Council and has many followers.

Dimyati's lawyer, Muhammad Dhofir, denied his client was behind the incident. "I am sure that Gus Dim was not involved and had no knowledge of the incident. Gus Dim is a very polite man."

Rioters burn cars and damage legislative building in East Java

Jakarta Globe - May 21, 2010

A mob set cars alight and damaged the Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) building in Mojokerto, East Java on Friday.

The riot took place while Mojokerto district head candidates were presenting their programs to the lawmakers. The angry mob were allegedly the supporters of a would-be district head candidate who did not pass the verification process.

According to Metro TV, the riot took place at 9 a.m. A throng of people threw molotov cocktail bombs to the DPRD building.

They also burned 17 cars belonging to the lawmakers and government officials, including the cars belonging to the town's major Abdul Gani and his deputy Mas'ud Yunus.

Smoke billowed up as flames raged through the parking lot. Locals tried to contain the fire until firemen arrived. The streets leading to the DPRD building were barricaded by the police.

The rioters said they demanded the cancellation of the Mojokerto's district head election, due to held on June 7 because there were a lot of violations in the process.

The police detained dozens of people involved in the mayhem. Some of them were taken to the police station and others were questioned inside the DPRD building. East Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Pratiknyo went to Mojokerto and coordinated efforts with local police officials.

Medan students reject education minister

Jakarta Post - May 17, 2010

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Dozens of high school and university students staged a joint protest to reject National Education Minister Muhammad Nuh's visit to Medan on Saturday.

The protest however did not affect the minister's scheduled visit to attend a meeting of postgraduate heads from across the country at Medan State University hall.

In their speech, the protesters accused the minister's policy of persisting with the national examination as baseless.

The protest's coordinator, Januar Pasaribu, said the ministry has been violating the Supreme Court's decision, which urged it to first improve teacher quality, education facilities and infrastructure and students' access to information before making the exam as a passing standard.

He said the ministry was also aware of various leaks during the national exam but never thoroughly investigated the cases.

"Every year we hear about students committing suicide out of shame for failing to pass the national exam. Such cases should be taken into account by the ministry to find other alternative to replace the national exam," he said in the speech.

Responding to the protest, National Education Minister Muhammad Nuh said the government would continue holding the national examination since it is important not only as a passing standard but also as an effort to find out education quality standard in each regency and city across the country.

"The national exam is also used to map standards of teaching in each school," he said. The mapping, he said, is important for the government to be able to support struggling schools.

The ministry earlier announced this year's graduation rate was 89.88 percent, down from last year's 95.05 percent, with up to 154,000 students across the country have to sit remedial exams.

The protesters accused the minister's policy of persisting with the national examination as baseless.

Reformasi 12 years on

12 years on, how sick is Indonesia's reformasi?

Associated Press - May 22, 2010

Stephen Coates – A dozen years after the dawning of Indonesia's Reformasi movement, there are fears the country is on a slippery slope backwards.

No one disputes how far Indonesia has come: the economy is booming and last year's elections brought political stability by returning Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to the presidency. The huge street protests, bloody anti-Chinese riots and economic ruin that marked the last days of the dictator Suharto's "New Order" regime are gone.

But on the 12th anniversary on Friday of Suharto's resignation, all is not well with Reformasi, the movement for democratic change that energized reform across the nation for more than a decade.

Some analysts fear the tide may be turning back in favor of Suharto-style cronyism and a political and business elite that has never, they say, relinquished power.

"There is not much difference between Suharto's time and now. Suharto's cronies have just been replaced by new cronies," economist Martin Panggabean said.

Analysts see persistent, widespread corruption, a lack of government transparency, a culture of impunity for rights abuses and the growing use of draconian libel laws to muzzle critics. Such fears came to a head this month with the resignation of Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who often clashed with reactionary forces in the ruling coalition.

She has won international praise for keeping Southeast Asia's biggest economy growing and battling to clean up the graft- riddled tax and customs offices. But Yudhoyono gave her lonely campaign little more than rhetorical support, and her new role as a managing director at the World Bank has extricated her from a position that had become untenable in the face of constant attack by Golkar, Suharto's largely unreformed political vehicle.

Talking to business leaders on Wednesday, she compared the situation now to the crony dictatorship of Suharto, who died in 2008.

"We have learned from the 30-year regime of President Suharto, where relationships between personal and public interests were so mixed-up," she said. "We all knew what occurred during the New Order era was like a disease. But at that time it was done behind closed doors. Now it's more sophisticated and the skills of power enable the decision-making process to be co-opted."

In what some observers saw as a parting shot at the ruling elite, she said the current system was like a cartel. "You can see for yourselves, government officials with business backgrounds, even though they say they have put aside all their businesses, everyone knows that their siblings, their children, who knows who else from their families, are still running the firms," she said.

The comments were reported as a stab at Golkar chief Aburizal Bakrie, seen as the architect of the campaign to remove Sri Mulyani after she tried to bring his vast business empire under the rule of law. Days after her resignation, and after secret talks with Yudhoyono, Bakrie was tasked to lead a new secretariat tasked with overseeing the ruling coalition.

Yudhoyono is seen by some to have ceded control of the government to his political coalition and sacrificed Sri Mulyani.

Analysts said a key test for Reformasi will be whether Sri Mulyani's probe into $210 million in allegedly unpaid taxes by Bakrie-linked mining firms is brought to trial or swept under the carpet.

Protesters say legislators have betrayed the spirit of reformasi

Okezone - May 21, 2010

Hen Hen, Jakarta – A number of social and student organisations held a protest action in front of the House of Representatives (DPR) building on May 21 to commemorated 12 years of reformasi or political reform.

During the action the protesters voiced their disappointment with the people's representatives in Senayan saying they had betrayed the spirit of reformasi.

"Reformasi has been betrayed by the DPR. Today we constantly lied to. We must fight comrades", shouted Rizki, a speaker from the Working People's Association (PRP) during a break in the action in Jakarta on Friday.

They also called on the people to have the courage to seize the political stage, the DPR and the Palace because students, workers, farmers and other working people should not be afraid of becoming involved in politics.

"We will build a hard political [base] to struggle for a network so that we can later take power and determine our own futures", shouted Rizki inspiring the protesters.

Following this the demonstrators began gradually leaving the DPR resulting in the flow of traffic on Jl. Jenderal Gatot Soebroto becoming congested. They then caught rides on metro mini busses and trucks or motorcycles.

All that remains at the DPR now is rubbish and leaflets containing the demonstrators' demands strewn on the ground. Several police officers can be seen directing traffic in an attempt to reduce congestion. (ram)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

12 years since Suharto's fall, students say reformasi is dead

KRjogja.com - May 21, 2010

Yogyakarta – Activists from the United People's Movement (GRB) in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta held a protest action by placing flowers on a grave at the zero kilometer point near the Yogyakarta central post office on Friday May 21. The action was used to the express the group's concern that after 12 years of reformasi, which has been fought for by students since 1997, political reform is now dead.

According to action coordinator Akbar Rewako, over the last 12 years of reformasi or political reform the government has been hijacked by neoliberalism and corruption. Democracy can now be said to be dead, because the regime of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) is neoliberal and his government is filled with fake reformist from various oppressive elements from the New Order regime of former President Suharto.

"Twelve years since Suharto's resignation, most of what was fought for by the reformasi movement has not yet been achieved. In the field of democracy for example, there is still no ideological freedom, because the 1996 MPRS decree banning communist or Marxist and Leninist teachings is still in force. Many books have been banned during the SBY era", said Rewako.

They said that under Yudhoyono's leadership, corruption still continues to take place involving all state institutions, from the presidential office and the House of Representatives to law enforcement agencies. Bank Indonesia (the central bank) and the taxation office have become the most corrupt institutions in Indonesia. Both institutions are crutches for the capitalist system and have become parasites that are destroying the economy and national industrialisation.

"The involvement of SBY, [Vice President] Boediono and [former Finance Minister] Sri Mulyani as the principle actors in mega corruption cases, one of which is the [Bank] Century [bailout] case, has resulted in corruption cases never being able to be fully resolved. The state instead criminalizes officials from corruption eradication institutions [the Corruption Eradication Commission, KPK - JB] who criminalize the corruptors," said Rewako. (Den)

Notes

Tap MPRS XXV/1966 – Provisional People's Consultative Assembly Decree Number XXV/1966 on the Dissolution of the Indonesian Communist Party and Prohibitions on Marxist, Leninist and Communist Teachings.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Aceh

West Aceh readies for assault on 'sexy' dress

Jakarta Globe - May 21, 2010

Nurdin Hasan, Banda Aceh – A West Aceh district bylaw banning Muslim women from wearing short skirts or tight jeans is unclear and could lead to chaos, a female activist said on Friday.

The bylaw comes into force in August. Starting on Monday the district's Shariah Police will launch a public awareness campaign about the regulation, which has been signed by district head Ramli Mansur.

Ramli said raids would be carried out and women caught in public showing skin or wearing figure-revealing jeans would be dressed in full-length skirts. "In Meulaboh [the district capital], the raids will be conducted constantly, so there will be no more people wearing tight outfits," Ramli said.

But Rosni, a 56-year-old women's rights activist who said she would keep wearing trousers, said the bylaw was too strict and open to multiple interpretations.

For instance, the bylaw requires women to wear loose skirts and tops that cover all parts of the body except the face, palm and feet. Men are also forbidden from wearing shorts in public. But it also states that women's outfits should not be "too attractive."

"So women who dress nice so they can appear confident and beautiful will be looked at differently by people," Rosni said. "And what exactly is the meaning of attractive outfits anyway?"

She said there would also be confusion over the punishment for those women found in violation of the bylaw, which does not define the kind of sanctions that can be handed out. Instead, the regulation says "moral sanctions" should be imposed by local leaders and heads of institutions such as universities as they see fit.

"This is dangerous because there might be different sanctions from one village to another, handed out by village heads, principals or rectors," Rosni said. This, she said, is a recipe for confusion and discrimination.

The district administration, though, claims there is overwhelming support for the bylaw among Muslim religious leaders, academics, government officials, students and other public figures in Meulaboh.

Dewi Fithria, the 38-year-old executive director of Aceh Ranub, an NGO that works for women's and children's empowerment in West Aceh, is among the bylaw's supporters.

"Even without a bylaw, Allah stated that every woman should cover her aurat [parts of the body that should not be shown under Islamic law]," Dewi said. "As a Muslim woman, I support and appreciate the decision of the West Aceh district head."

Dewi said many cases of sexual abuse and rape could be blamed on women wearing "sexy outfits."

West Papua

Gunmen attack police, military in Puncak Jaya

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2010

Jakarta – A group of unidentified gunmen attacked police and military troops who were evacuating two injured soldiers from a military post in Yambi area in the Papua highland regency of Puncak Jaya on Saturday.

Puncak Jaya police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Alex Korwa told Antara a police officer, identified as Second Brig. Saumileka, suffered a gunshot wound to his leg during an exchange of fire between the security personnel and the armed group. Alex suspected the gunmen were members of the Free Papua Organization (OPM) separatist rebel group.

The suspected rebels launched an attack on the Yambi military post, about 75 kilometers away from the regency capital of Mulia, which left two soldiers, including platoon commander Second Lt. Agung, injured on Friday night.

The wounded police officer and military soldiers were admitted to Mulia Hospital and may be airlifted to the Papua capital of Jayapura on Sunday.

Alex said the attack on the military post might be related to a raid by security personnel on an OPM base recently, which killed a suspected rebel leader. The raid came after suspected rebels shot three construction workers to death last month.

In Papua prisons, abuse routine for political inmates

Jakarta Globe - May 21, 2010

Radot Gurning & M Irham, Papua – Indonesia is often hailed as the country with the greatest freedom of speech in Asia. But while antigovernment protests are a weekly and colorful norm in Jakarta, it's a different story in the country's far eastern tip of Papua.

Free access for foreign journalists is restricted, antigovernment protests are silenced by heavy-handed police and political dissenters are being abused behind bars.

Ferdinand Pakage is one such prisoner, serving his sentence in the Abepura penitentiary in Jayapura. He is blind in his right eye, which he said happened after one of the guards hit him there.

"Two years ago I was hit with a set of keys and I went blind in one eye. Now I get terrible headaches that I have never experienced before and I can only see out of my left eye," he said.

Pakage is serving 15 years in jail for a murder he says he never committed. He was arrested during antigovernment protests in Abepura. Pakage is now losing his memory and staggers when he walks or stands up.

Despite demands for a full investigation from US-based watchdog Human Rights Watch, the guard, Herbert Toam, accused of carrying out the beating, still works at the prison. And while the prison doctor has recommended Pakage be treated in Jakarta, he has not been allowed to travel.

Cosmos Yual also needs medical attention. He lay shivering on a mat on the floor of his cell in the Doyo prison with just a thin piece of material covering his body.

"I'm in the second stage of tropical malaria. The doctor has just been to see me for the first time since I feel ill," he said.

Yual said he had been shivering for the last four days. His face was pale, his eyes yellow and he still had a high fever. There was a foul smell his room, apparently emanating from the toilet just one step away from where he lay. He shares his 5-by-7-meter room with six other inmates.

"When I fell sick they didn't take me to the hospital straight away. They shouldn't have left me but they did. They don't care about us," he said.

While Yual described his treatment, the prison warden and two guards stood watch. From his occasional glances at the warden it was clear Yual was choosing his words carefully.

"We don't want violence here. We just want fair treatment. If they [prison guards] have personal problems, they shouldn't take it out on us," he said.

Yual was arrested while protesting against the US-owned Freeport mine in Papua, which has been a frequent source of unrest in the province. He was charged with assault and provocation and is now serving six years in prison.

Political dissent is not taken lightly in Papua; those who dare to raise the Morning Star independence flag face up to 20 years in prison.

That's what happened to Filep Karma. He is serving 15 years at Abepura and has been put on par with Burmese human rights activist Aung San Suu Kyi by Amnesty International because he has consistently employed non-violence to promote his cause.

He has been suffering from a bladder infection, but the only help he received was being told by prison officers to lift his legs to ease the pain. He has been waiting for almost a year to be treated in Jakarta, but recommendations for the treatment from the prison's doctor have so far gone ignored.

The head warden of the Abepura prison, Antonius Ayorbaba, said he didn't have the funds to send political prisoners to Jakarta for health care.

When these allegations of abuse and neglect reached government officials in Jakarta, however, the reaction was one of shock and denial.

Ridha Saleh, a member of the National Commission on Human Rights, (Komnas HAM), said he was furious. "I will immediately request information from the head of the Abepura and Doyo prisons and demand they give us full access," he said.

Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar also said he was shocked by the claims. "We have not received any reports about any of this," he said. "In which part of Papua did this happen? Thank you for the information; I will check and recheck it."

But the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) indicated the neglect and abuse of political prisoners was no accident. Syamsul Alam investigates violence in Papuan prisons for the group.

"Why hasn't the government taken any effective steps to fulfil the health rights of prisoners? If they don't give them the permission to have health treatments and leave them to suffer, then I strongly suspect it is intentional," he said.

Following a KBR68H radio interview with Patrialis, Antonius was transferred to another prison in what the government said was a routine move. Meanwhile, the ban against protesting remains in place in Papua.

[This article was first broadcast on "Asia Calling," a regional current affairs program produced by Indonesia's independent radio news agency KBR68H.]

Police urged to find actors behind armed civilian attacks

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2010

Markus Makur, Timika – Puncak Jaya Regent Lukas Enembe says that intellectual activists might be behind a series of attacks by armed civilians in the regency and has urged the military and police to arrest them.

"Thanks to the attacks, many of the development activities in Puncak Jaya regency have been stalled," Lukas told reporters in Timika, Mimika regency, Papua, before leaving for Jakarta to attend a Democratic Party congress.

A group of armed civilians have been terrorizing local residents with guns that were obtained from the military and police in previous ambushes.

Recently, he said, armed civilians had burned people's houses and shot at the workers at the site of a bridge construction project, causing the work to be suspended.

A joint team comprising of the military, police mobile brigade (Brimob) personnel and antiterror squad officers, shot dead Werius Telengen, chairman of the Kampung Yambi group, who was blamed for an attack on residents last Monday.

Lukas said that efforts to involve the community in curbing the violence had not been effective because the activists had consistently provoked the community.

Nesco Wonda, the speaker of the Puncak Jaya legislative council, said that armed civilians had been attacking residents and destroying public facilities including school buildings, health centers and bridges.

"Apparatus from the TNI (military) and police, therefore, must stay on guard in the regency as there are many illegal guns being used by armed civilian groups," he said.

He said the Puncak Jaya administration had given more attention to the community by offering fees to the youth and tribal heads, but security disturbances had not been abated.

He suggested the administration provide clear procedures for security forces entering villages in the regency in search of members of armed groups to prevent them from shooting at residents.

"It's not just the task of Puncak Jaya administration, but also that of the province's and the central government's to discipline the activists," he said.

Native tribe figure to lead Freeport: Scholar

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2010

Markus Makur, Timika, Papua – A Papuan figure from native Amungme tribe, Silas Natkime, has secured support from influential Papua People's Assembly (MRP) to lead US-based gold mining firm PT Freeport Indonesia.

Silas, currently Freeport senior manager for Papuan affairs, will take over from the gold miner's current president director Armando Mahler, a local figure claims.

Amungme figure and young scholar Hans Magal told a media conference in Timika on Saturday the historic change of guard would take place soon.

"On behalf of Papuan people I thank the government of Indonesia for entrusting a Papuan native to lead Freeport. I also thank Freeport management that has groomed a native to take the company's top post," Magal said.

The MRP has issued its endorsement of Silas' promotion as Freeport Indonesia president director in a letter dated April 20. The Regional Representatives Council (DPD) also support his nomination through its letter dated May 18.

Magal said the appointment of Silas, a DPD member, would end 46 years of wait for native Papuans to play a pivotal role in the operation of their own gold mine, which has been controlled by the US company subsidiary since 1967.

"We will carve out a history as a son of Grassberg Mountain will be entrusted to lead PT Freeport Indonesia," Magal said

Releasing Papua political prisoners 'not the answer'

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Nivell Rayda – Freeing political prisoners would not address the key problems in Papua, Andreas Harsono of Human Rights Watch said on Thursday.

He was commenting on remarks by Justice Minister Patrialis Akbar that several Papuan political detainees would be pardoned by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Andreas said what was needed were gestures such as last weekend's granting of Indonesian citizenship to former Free Papua Movement (OPM) leader Nicholas Jouwe, who had been living in exile in the Netherlands since 1960.

Patrialis this week inspected the Abepura Penitentiary in Jayapura and interviewed the inmates. He said he was shocked to learn that some political detainees were jailed because they had joined in a peaceful rally against the government.

"We must make a distinction between detainees who were just expressing their freedom of speech and members of the armed separatist movement," Patrialis said on Thursday.

The inmates eligible for a pardon were those who had joined a rally against the local government's use of Rp 33 trillion ($3.6 billion) that had come from the central government under the regional autonomy policy. "We are writing a report along with the pardon recommendation. I hope the report can be forwarded to the president soon," Patrialis said.

The minister, however, said those who had participated in armed conflict and those charged with raising the banned Morning Star flag, a symbol of the OPM, would not be among the inmates up for pardon.

Usman Hamid, chairman of the National Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said even though Indonesia had ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 2006, political activists were still charged with Articles 106 and 110 on treason in the Criminal Code.

"These are the same articles used to silence critics of the Dutch colonial rule and to imprison political activists during the Suharto regime," Usman told the Jakarta Globe, in reference to former President Suharto.

The existing Criminal Code was adopted by the Indonesian government in 1946 and was based on Dutch colonial law established in 1918. "The government should be consistent in implementing the ICCPR agreement and stop the persecution of those involved in peaceful protests," he said.

The covenant guarantees people's right to freely determine their political ideology, as well as the freedom of movement and speech.

Andreas, of Human Rights Watch said more action was needed to solve the problem. "In East Timor, it was a UN-sponsored referendum. In Aceh, it was the Helsinki agreement with assistance from the EU. Let's learn from them for Papua," he said.

Patrialis inspected Abepura Penitentiary in the wake of a riot that was initiated by prison guards protesting the transfer of former warden Anthonius Ayorbaba. Two escapees have been caught, while the other 16 are believed to have fled to Papua New Guinea.

Papuan prisoner amnesty more effective if accompanied by dialogue

Kompas - May 19, 2010

Jakarta – The National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) supports the idea of amnesties for political prisoners with a specific criterion from Papua. Such a step would be even more effective in creating a safer and more peaceful situation if accompanied by intensive dialogue with the Papuan community.

"The main problem in Papua is the high level of injustice. The irony is that the Papuan community's demands for justice are frequently responded with accusations of subversion. Yet it is not always like that," said Komnas HAM Commissioner Ridha Saleh in Jakarta on Monday May 17.

During a recent visit to Papua, Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar promised to propose to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono that certain political prisoners in Papua be given amnesty. This is because it is beloved that the some of the political prisoners in their movements may never have thought about Papua breaking away from Indonesia but only wanted to convey their wishes for improved development in Papua.

Saleh believes that that Patrialis' proposal should be supported. "Often there are those who are jailed for years and years because they have been declared to have committed subversion. Yet, what they did was perhaps just hold a peaceful protest action demanding transparency in the use of special autonomy funds", he said.

A similar view was expressed by Yorris Raweyai, a member of the House of Representatives from Papua. "The central government has to better understand the situation in Papua if it wants the region to improve. Don't just look at views expressed outside of the Papuan community," he said.

This is because in simply looking at the views expressed from outside, continued Raweyai, there have been state civil servants in Papua who have been sentenced on charges of committing subversion because they raised the Morning Star flag. Yet perhaps these people had never thought of wanting to commit subversion.

In December 2000, former President Abdurrahman Wahid declared that the Morning Star flag was a Papuan cultural symbol. (NWO)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Military in sweep operation through Papuan Highlands communities

Radio New Zealand International - May 19, 2010

The Indonesia military is reportedly waging a campaign of fear throughout the Puncak Jaya region of West Papua in Indonesia over a looming deadline.

An Australia-based NGO says the military is conducting a sweep operation, and has given the civilian population until June 28th to hand over weapons.

The Australian West Papua Association claims military excursions over recent days have triggered clashes with OPM Free West Papua Movement groups and left one Papuan dead.

The Association's Joe Collins says the military is going from village to village, imposing curfews, asking for ID and threatening communities, often beating them.

He says the military appears to be manouevring for a major operation.

Papuans rally for more indigenous candidates

Jakarta Post - May 19, 2010

Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Thousands of protestors in Jayapura, Papua, demanded on Tuesday that the government implement a decree that would require that candidates in Papua's regional elections be indigenous Papuans.

Members of the Democratic Forum for Unitary Papua (Fordem), marched almost 20 kilometers from Abepura to the governor's office in Jayapura and carried banners that expressed support of the decree, Papua People's Council's (MRP) Decree No. 14/2009.

Fordem also hopes that Papuans will run in regional elections throughout the province, said a forum organizer.

Protestors stopped at the MRP office in Kotaraja and at the Papuan Provincial Legislative Council (DPRP) building in Jayapura and listened to an organizer read a written statement.

The statement, read to the crowd by John Baransano, a Catholic priest, asked newcomers to the province to respect and support implementation of Law No. 21/2001.

The proposed law, which covered Papuan autonomy, would give indigenous Papuans an opportunity to develop and exercise political rights, said a forum organizer.

MRP Chairman Agus Alua told reporters that indigenous Papuans could currently only struggle for political rights.

"Look at the market. Everything is in the hands of newcomers; Papuans have no access. Political rights are all that we can fight for," said Agus Alua.

Agus added the decree was intended to protect the future political rights of indigenous Papuans. In the next 10 to 20 years, Papuans are expected to become a minority in their own land, he said.

The decree's legality prompted election officials to postpone regional elections in 27 regencies and municipalities in Papua. Provincial authorities have also postponed implementation of the decree for 60 days while legal issues are resolved.

The process of obtaining a "legal umbrella" of protection for the decree was underway at the Coordinating Ministry of Political, Legal and Security Affairs and at the Home Affairs Ministry, said Agus. "We are now waiting for the official government regulation."

Free Papua not supported by European Union

Viva News - May 18, 2010

Elin Yunita Kristanti – None of the countries in the European Union supports the Papuan independence. On the contrary, the EU stands behind the implementation of the special autonomy in the easternmost province of Indonesia.

"Europe really sides with the fact that Papua is still part of the Republic of Indonesia. It also believes that the special autonomy has been best implemented in the province to improve the life of indigenous people," Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium, Nadjib Riphat Koesoema told reporters in Jayapura today, May 18.

Nadjib further mentioned that the claims made by the International Law for West Papua (ILPW) and the International Parliament of West Papua (IPWP) saying that European countries agree with the struggle on independent Papua are not true.

In fact, the mass media in Europe have never paid huge attention toward the issue as well.

"Only two out of 736 members of European Parliament were present during the launch of ILWP and IPWP in Brussel, Belgium, on January 26. How could the representatives reflect the parliament's support [toward the issue]?" he said.

Meanwhile, former OPM Foreign Affairs Minister, Nicolas Messet, said that the ILPW and IPWP are of mediocre levels. "Some people want to exaggerate ILPW and IPWP," he said.

"I've been fighting for the Free Papua since I was young and didn't make it. Then I changed my view. Papua may develop by implementing the special autonomy," he said.

UK-based Papuan organization of separatists, the International Lawyers for West Papua, helmed by Benny Wenda continues its struggle to free Papua from Indonesia.

[Coverage by: Banjir Ambarita. Translated by: Bonardo Maulana.]

Students condemn anti-Papua taunts

Jakarta Post - May 19, 2010

Rana Akbari Fitriawan, Bandung – A hundred students staged a rally in front of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) campus on Jl. Ganesha on Tuesday in support of Papuan students who had been subject to racist online taunts by an ITB student.

Protest coordinator Yohanes Okdinon said the student, Dzulfikry Imadul Bilad, vented his disappointment when local football side Persib Bandung drew with Persipura Jayapura by posting racial insults on Facebook on May 3.

"His act has provoked anger not only among Papuan students in Bandung but across Indonesia as well," Yohanes said. He said Dzulfikry posted an apology the following day on Facebook but added that the statement was insincere.

"For the mistake I made yesterday in my post, I apologize for the misunderstanding. I beg for the understanding from all parties who felt they have been hurt or annoyed. Thanks a lot," said Yohanes, quoting Dzulfikry's statement.

This, Yohanes said, further incensed Papuans. On May 3, he said, more than 300 Papuan students from various regions had accessed Dzulfikry's Facebook page. Some even tried to find his whereabouts.

"To avoid possible escalation, our representative sent him a text message on May 5 and we agreed to meet to settle the issue." Yohanes said.

A meeting was held the same day between Dzulfikry and representatives of Papuans with ITB's vice rector. Yohanes said his side wanted ITB to punish Dzulfikry for his posts as an example to others, and demanded Dzulfikry apologize to all Papuans.

"We also want the case to be handled according to the information and electronic transaction law," he said.

Yohanes added that ITB had to announce its decision regarding the matter transparently via electronic and print media. "We also urge the government to pay special attention to cases of racism that can pose a threat to the nation and state," he said.

ITB said it would not apologize to Papuans as Dzulfikry's statement was a personal expression. "We consider this his personal responsibility," ITB spokeswoman Marlia Singgih Wibowo said.

Marlia, however, said that ITB's disciplinary commission would investigate the case to learn more about possible mistakes committed by its students. The commission, she added, would hear directly from Dzulfikry.

"This afternoon the commission will start its meeting to evaluate the level of wrongdoing that Dzulfikry may have committed. That's why we don't know what punishment to hand down as we are still waiting for the result of the meeting," Marlia said.

Papuan political prisoners: Why are we forbidden to speak?

Kompas - May 18, 2010

Attention and concern. Something ordinary people hope for from their leaders. Such hopes were clearly apparent when Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar visited the Abepura Penitentiary in Papua on Saturday May 15.

Shortly after arriving at the Abepura jail, officials could be seen directing Patrialis towards the auditorium to exchange ideas with prison employees and a number of selected prisoners. As he entered the auditorium however, coming from a cell block around 25 meters from where Patrialis was standing, shouts were suddenly heard from the prisoners. "Open up... open up... uuuuuu, open up," they shouted noisily.

"Don't order them to talk [with you]", said a prison official upon hearing the shouts. The warning however was not heeded. The prisoners continued to shout and bash on the doors and iron barred windows of the cells.

Seeing this, Patrialis decided to approach the prisoners to see the state of their cells first hand. The 4x5 meter cells were occupied by scores of prisoners. Their plight was worsened by a lack of flowing water and the intense heat because there are no fans in the cells.

Strangely, several of the prisoners quickly stopped shouting as Patrialis approached and invited them to speak. Carefully and politely, the prisoners began talking about issues such as the daily conditions they face in the jail to prisoners' rights, such as the right to sentence deductions.

As Patrialis was speaking with one group of prisoners, there was a sudden shout calling to him from another cell. "Bapak (Mr) Minister, I'm a political prisoner. I want to speak with you," said the prisoner who turned out to be named Victor (26) in a clear and distinct voice, but without malice.

"Bapak, I don't want Papua to be full of violence. I just want to ask, why have I been imprisoned [just] because I wanted to voice my wishes? Isn't expressing an opinion a human right and guaranteed under the 1945 Constitution?" he asked in a calmer voice as Patrialis approached his cell.

Victor, who is a West Papua National Committee activist, related to Patrialis how he has been held for six moths on charges of subversion. Yet all he did was take part in a peaceful protest action. Four of his friends who were also arrested have already been released while he is still waiting on a verdict from the court.

Another prisoner, Sem Yaro, also related how he has been held since November 2009 because he was involved in a demonstration in front of the Papuan People's Assembly offices questioning Papuan special autonomy. This has led him to question his right to speak as a citizen.

Buhtar Taboni, a convicted prisoner, even entrusted an open letter addressed to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono with Patrialis. In the hand written letter, Taboni asks what has happened to the trillions of rupiah sent to Papua after it was granted special autonomy.

"Although they were big and shouted, when invited to talk, they turned out to be very polite," said Patrialis, although he admitted to feeling frightened when he first heard the convicts and prisoners' shouts.

Patrialis said that this proves that the penitentiary's occupants really only need attention and respect. "As fellow citizens and human beings, they still have rights and our job is to fulfill them" he said. (m hernowo)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

David Cameron becomes hero of Papuan tribes

The Telegraph (UK) - May 17, 2010

Alastair Jamieson – Tribespeople in West Papua have pinned their hopes on David Cameron helping their campaign for independence from Indonesia.

Posters of the Conservative leader have been held aloft in villages across the province following news of his arrival in Downing Street in the wake of the coalition agreement.

Mr Cameron has been feted by many of the one million indigenous inhabitants of West Papua after a meeting last year with their exiled leader Benny Wenda, who was granted asylum by Britain in 2003.

The province covers the western part of the island of New Guinea, with the eastern half being Papua New Guinea.

Following independence from Dutch colonial rule in the 1950s, it was handed over to the UN but was formally annexed by Indonesia following a 1969 referendum whose legitimacy was subsequently marred by allegations of coercion.

The Free Papua Movement, whose campaign for self-determination is supported by most of the indigenous population, is outlawed in Indonesia.

Mr Wenda fled to Britain after escaping jail in Indonesia where he was being held, accused of raising the Free Papua flag, which is banned, and of causing of civil unrest.

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph earlier this year, Mr Cameron described the plight of the tribespeople as "a terrible situation".

Dominic Brown, an independent filmmaker whose documentary about West Papua, The Forgotten Bird of Paradise, has been seen by Mr Cameron, said pictures of tribespeople holding messages of support were taken at the weekend by activists spreading the word about Britain's new Prime Minister.

He said: "They are all very happy. It gives them great hope that their voice may finally be heard at international level."

"Last year the International Committee of the Red Cross was thrown out by the Indonesian Government and hasn't been able to return since.

"Cameron is the only western leader to have expressed any real interest in their campaign and they have really pinned their hopes on him being able to do something about the situation."

Among those pictured are political prisoners Buchtar Tabuni and Victor Yiemo who were jailed by the government after taking part in a demonstration.

Mr Wenda, 35, and his wife Maria perform traditional West Papuan music as The Lani Singers.

Military ties

US won't resume ties with Kopassus anytime soon

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2010

Jakarta – The United States on Friday clarified that a recent Indonesian media report of an impending restoration of a cooperation between the US armed forces and Indonesian Army Special Forces (Kopassus) was false.

In a press release, the US Embassy in Jakarta said the reports were inaccurate. Quoting US Rear Admiral Sean Pybus, commander of Special Operations Command Pacific (SOCPAC), who visited Jakarta recently, the media had said the US would soon restore ties with the Indonesian elite forces.

"The US Government is reviewing its policy on Kopassus but has not yet made a decision," the press statement said.

It added that the US government continued to urge the Indonesian government to transparently investigate allegations of human rights abuses committed by members of the Indonesian military, including Kopassus, and to hold perpetrators accountable.

Pybus met with Indonesian officials here to discuss the US- Indonesia military relationship.

Human rights/law

Rights body slams Bogor for shutting church

Jakarta Globe - May 21, 2010

Ulma Haryanto – The National Commission on Human Rights on Friday blasted the Bogor Police and administration for failing to protect the rights of the GKI Yasmin congregation to practice their religion.

"What they did was a serious violation of the 1945 Constitution. They also defied the law by ignoring the court's ruling," said Johny Nelson Simanjuntak, a commissioner for monitoring and investigation for the body, also known as Komnas HAM.

The statement came after members of GKI Yasmin congregation went to the Komnas HAM office on Friday to plead for help after their church was locked and sealed by the Bogor administration in April.

The congregation, which has more than 300 members, has been struggling to get the local administration to allow them to build a church since 2001, when they managed to acquire 1,720 square meters of land in West Bogor.

"From 2002 to 2006 we approached local organizations including the MUI [Indonesian Ulema Council], and then a couple of months after the permit was finally issued [in July 2006], a group of people started showing up saying they didn't want to have a church there," Jayadi Damanik, a member of the congregation and its legal representative, told the Jakarta Globe.

A protest to the Bogor Legislative Council in February 2008 was used by the administration to freeze the church's building permit, and in March the congregation reported this case to Komnas HAM.

"We brought this case to the State Administrative Court [PTUN] in September 2008 and the court ruled in favor of us," Jayadi said. "However, the mayor appealed, saying that if he didn't, people might think he did not try hard enough."

The State Administrative Courts in Jakarta and Bandung both ruled in favor of the church, and this January construction resumed. "However, suddenly in March the municipality sealed the area before finally locking it up in April," Jayadi said.

"Is this how the country works? The local administration is above the law? We have at least three court rulings that confirmed the legality of the building, and yet they ignored this."

The locked gates have forced the congregation to hold prayers on the streets outside the construction area. "The last time there were even Satpol PP [public order] officers who tried to prevent our congregation from praying there," Jayadi said.

He claimed members of the congregation were continually intimidated by a group calling itself Communication Forum for Indonesian Muslims (Forkami).

"The group also tried to fabricate evidence and make false statements to the police that we had forged the signatures from the neighborhood back when we tried to apply for building permit," he said. "But we have proved them wrong, and the police are in the process of retracting the case."

The Rev. Gomar Gultom of the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI), who also attended the meeting with Komnas HAM, said the police had to be more professional and go back to their original function, which is to protect citizens.

"Usually whenever there's a church or school being vandalized, police just stand on the side, claiming they are outnumbered. But last week when the members of GKI Yasmin wanted to pray out on the streets, the police suddenly had a sufficient number of officers to shoo them away," he said.

Johny said, however, that Komnas HAM had no jurisdiction to approach protesting groups directly. "Our task is to monitor the state and its relations with its citizens. But when a conflict breaks out, then it is within our [jurisdiction] to step in and mediate," Johny said.

He said the commission planned to ask the National Police, the Bogor Police, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the West Java governor to "reprimand their subordinates." "We have two days before Sunday, and I hope the congregation can pray under protection of the police," Johny said.

With the half-finished church structure sealed off, the regional government is responsible for finding a new facility for the congregation to use, he said.

Government fails to reform agencies, laws to protect human rights

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2010

Jakarta – After 12 years of reform following the fall of Soeharto in 1998, Indonesia still faces many barriers in its efforts to uphold human rights, observers say.

Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM) director Agung Putri said Thursday that the government's efforts to reform its law and human rights enforcement agencies had stagnated due to the poor rollout of human rights-related programs.

She cited research conducted by SETARA Institute, which showed that the government executed only 56 of the 103 programs, or 58 percent, stipulated in the 2004-2009 human rights national action plan. "The blueprint of human rights enforcement programs is good, but the implementation is poor," she said.

To date, the government has not ratified the UN International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, which was scheduled for ratification in 2005, and the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture and the Rome Statute, which were scheduled for ratification in 2008.

Putri said the poor performance of two key law and human rights enforcement agencies – the National Police and the Attorney General's Office – made some human rights violation cases difficult to solve.

An ELSAM human rights review showed that police often ignored human rights issues when dealing with criminals, as evidenced in their shoot-on-sight policy in recent terrorist raids across the country.

"If the police maintain that policy, it could lead to excessive human rights violations," Putri said, adding that the police should be more transparent when conducting counter-terrorism operations.

She suggested that the National Commission on Human Rights set out guidelines for the police to minimize the possibility of human rights violations in their operations.

Putri said that of all the law enforcement agencies, the AGO had the worst performance.

To date, the AGO has not processed the National Commission on Human Rights investigation results on seven key human rights violation cases: the Trisakti University students deaths, the Semanggi I and II incidents, the May 1998 riots, forced kidnappings and the Talangsari, Wamena and Wasior incidents.

The ELSAM report says that among the reasons used by the AGO to halt the cases were lack of sufficient evidence, sub-standard dossiers and lack of legal bases.

In 2009, the report said, the AGO also banned five books it considered threatened public order. "The AGO has disappointed the public. In the last five years, it has failed to realize its human rights programs," Putri said.

She also criticized the National Commission on Human Rights for its incapability to lobby the President, the police, the AGO and the House of Representatives to solve the cases.

"In 12 years of reform, the coordination between law enforcement agencies has been very weak," she said. (rdf)

Indonesia faces barriers toward better human rights enforcement

Jakarta Post - May 20, 2010

Jakarta – After 12 years of reform following the fall of authoritarian ruler Soeharto in 1998, Indonesia still faces many barriers in its efforts toward better human rights enforcement.

The Director of Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam), Agung Putri, said Thursday that the government's efforts to reform its law and human rights enforcement agencies had stagnated due to poor realization of human rights-related programs.

She cited research conducted by SETARA Institute, which shows that the government executed only 58 percent or 56 programs out of the 103 programs stipulated in the 2004-2009 human rights national action plan.

"The blue-print of human rights enforcement programs is good, but the realization is very poor," she said at Bakoel Koffie in Jakarta.

To date, the government has not ratified the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, which was scheduled for ratification in 2005, and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, which was scheduled for ratification in 2008.

Putri said that the poor performance of two major law and human rights enforcement agencies – the National Police and the Attorney General's Office (AGO) – had made some human rights violation cases difficult to solve.

"The AGO has disappointed the public... In the last five years, it has failed to realize its human rights programs," she said. (rdf)

Law, Constitution fail to fully protect children: Report

Jakarta Post - May 17, 2010

Jakarta – The government should upgrade its ratification of the Convention of Rights of the Child (CRC) from a presidential decree to a law in order to better protect children, says a report by the National NGO Coalition for Child Rights Monitoring.

"The 1945 Constitution and the 2002 Child Protection Law have not yet given children their full rights," said Setiawan Cahyo Nugroho from Save the Children, one international NGO in the coalition. "Only by implementing the CRC, will the rights of the children be fully realized," he added.

There are several rights that are not accommodated by the child protection law. They are children's rights to be heard in court for adoption and guardianship cases, rights to freedom of religion and the right to rehabilitation if they are victims of violence or discrimination.

Cahyo said the child protection law failed to protect children who were victims of violence at the hands of government officials. "Public order officers who attack street children are never punished," he said.

Last year, public order officers in several cities rounded up street children and subjected them to physical examinations on the back of criminal cases where the suspects admitted to raping homeless boys. The examinations were deemed as "humiliating" by a number of organizations.

The review report was a preliminary publication before the Alternative Reports on the Implementation of the Children Rights Convention.

Masnah Sari, the chairwoman of the Commission for Indonesian Child Protection (KPAI), said the CRC did not need to be upgraded to a law. "The 2002 Child Protection Law is sufficient," she said.

She said, in terms of the fulfillment of children's rights, there were several sectors in which those fulfillments were still lacking. "Indonesia is not a developed country, thus the welfare of the children has not yet been fulfilled, one example is the welfare of street children" she said.

She also mentioned several other sectors in which children had not fully received their rights, such as the right to education and health. The government should provide a social security scheme for children as well, she said.

The NGO coalition is scheduled to launch the review report and initiate dialogue between the coalition, Indonesian children and the government on May 25 and 26. The event will comprise a dialogue for the future of Indonesian children, documentation of children consultation and an exhibition of children's art at Taman Ismail Marzuki. The exhibition will display works by 350 children, representatives of vulnerable groups from 10 provinces. (map)

Labour/migrant workers

Cement company workers demand pension payment

Jakarta Post - May 20, 2010

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – Some 200 employees of cement company PT Semen Kupang are angry they have still not been paid their pensions and allowances after being made redundant by the company since 2008.

Many of the workers complained they were no longer able to send their children to school and that some of their children had dropped out of college as a result.

East Nusa Tenggara Governor Frans Leburaya, said his administration had discussed the matter with the company's management, which had promised to make the payment if ordered to by the Supreme Court.

"The administration has been mediating to find a quick solution to the matter. We agreed in December 2009 about the payment of the pension and other allowances," Frans Leburaya told reporters at his official residence on Tuesday evening.

He said that PT Sarana Agro Gemilang, the company that won the tender for an operational cooperation (KSO), had allocated Rp 25 billion, including to settle the dispute between the cement company and its workers.

The dispute has led to wave of protests, which have intensified over the past week. On Tuesday, the employees sealed the main entrance of the factory by welding irons on it. A brawl involving the protesters and anti-riot police broke out, injuring one protester.

PT Semen Kupang president director Abdul Madjid Nampira, said separately in a statement the company was ready to pay the employees' pension and allowances. "We have allocated Rp 7.8 billion for the payment," he said.

He said that once a copy of the Supreme Court's verdict regarding the case was received, the company would make the payment. "So far no copy of the verdict has been received by the Kupang District Court."

The only cement producer in the province went bankrupt in 2008 following a financial crisis. The provincial administration and legislative council could not do much in the case since the administration has only a small percentage of shares in the company.

No firm agreement yet on Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

Ismira Lutfia & Putri Prameshwari – Despite the optimism aired by Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar that the president would sign a long-awaited agreement on Indonesian migrant workers during a visit to Malaysia, officials on Tuesday said more time was needed.

Malaysia needed to determine its position on a standard minimum wage for Indonesian migrant workers, delaying the signing of the memorandum of understanding, an Indonesian official said.

"The joint working group agreed on Friday that Malaysia was not ready to sign a new memorandum of understanding on the treatment of Indonesian migrant workers during President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's visit there," Damos Dumoli Agusman, the director for economic and sociocultural treaties at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told the Jakarta Globe. "So we agreed instead to seal the deal temporarily in the form of a letter of intent."

Yudhoyono arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, the second leg of a trip that has already taken him to Singapore.

The temporary agreement was signed on Tuesday by Muhaimin and Malaysian Home Affairs Minister Hishammuddin Hussein in the presence of Yudhoyono and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak at the latter's office in Putrajaya, outside Kuala Lumpur, the Indonesian Manpower and Transmigration Ministry said in a statement.

"This marks our initial effort to improve protection of our migrant workers, especially those working in the domestic sector," Muhaimin said in the statement.

The agreement secures migrant workers' rights to have a day off in a week and to retain their passports. However, it stipulates that both countries will seek to set a minimum wage based on market price.

Damos said the wage issue had been put on ice because Malaysia did not acknowledge there should be a minimum wage. "We insist that there should be such standard, whereas Malaysia wants to base it on market mechanisms," he said.

Malaysia has requested more time for its cabinet to establish its position on the wage issue. Jakarta had negotiated for its migrant workers to get a minimum wage of 800 ringgit ($249) per month.

Wahyu Susilo, a policy expert with Migrant Care, told the Globe that Malaysia had a standard monthly minimum wage of 1,200 ringgit, calculated on inflation and price fluctuations. Meanwhile, Indonesian workers receive monthly salaries of about 500 to 600 ringgit on average, while workers from other countries get about 1,000 ringgit.

Wahyu said the stalled negotiations on determining the minimum wage was because of "heavy lobbying" of Malaysian officials by employment agencies and employers.

Wahyu said: "They are sending warning signs that if Indonesia insists on having a minimum wage, they will start to look for other markets to recruit migrant workers" such as from the Mekong River countries, where labor is still relatively cheap.

Damos said Indonesia's target to finalize the new memorandum of understanding was "as soon as possible," while Malaysian news agency Bernama reported that the agreement would be signed in two months.

The new memorandum of understanding would lead to the lifting of a moratorium on the flow of Indonesian migrant workers to Malaysia imposed last June after a string of high-profile cases of alleged abuse.

Widyarka Ryananta, counselor for social and cultural information at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, said the signing of the letter of intent had sparked hopes that an agreement would be signed soon between the two countries. "This is one step closer to the memorandum of understanding," he said.

The Associated Press quoted Najib as saying that he expected Indonesia to end soon the moratorium on sending migrant workers to the country. "I assume [the freeze] would be lifted soon... if all the issues have been settled," he said.

Malaysia, Indonesia talks on treatment of maids fail

Jakarta Globe - May 18, 2010

Kuala Lumpur – The Indonesian government's bans on sending migrant workers to Malaysia will remain in force after both countries failed to agree on a minimum wage.

Speaking after bilateral talks with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono today, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak told reporters in Putrajaya, near Kuala Lumpur, that the two leaders agreed in principle for Indonesian maids to be granted one day off a week, but did not conclude a minimum wage.

Indonesia has been negotiating memorandums of understanding on the treatment of migrant workers with both Malaysia and Kuwait.

Last June, migrant workers were banned from travelling to Malaysia following reports that some workers were being abused and were not being paid. Three months later, a similar ban was applied on migrant workers traveling to Kuwait following similar reports. Most Indonesian migrant workers are maids, construction workers and plantation workers.

There are currently 4.3 million Indonesians working in 42 countries, according to the National Board for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers (BNP2TKI).

That figure, however, does not include an estimated 2-4 million Indonesians working abroad illegally. (JG/Bloomberg)

Joint task force will monitor pact on migrant workers

Jakarta Globe - May 17, 2010

Ismira Lutfia & Camelia Pasandaran – A joint task force will be formed to monitor a long-awaited agreement to protect Indonesian workers in Malaysia after it is signed today.

"There will be a joint committee involving members of the Malaysian Home Affairs Ministry, Malaysian Police and our embassies," Indonesian Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar said on Monday before departing for Singapore and Malaysia with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Yudhoyono is scheduled to sign the memorandum of understanding covering migrant workers in Kuala Lumpur today after visiting Singapore.

The agreement has been in the works for months since Indonesia imposed a moratorium on sending workers to Malaysia last June. That followed a string of high-profile cases in which Indonesians were physically abused by their employers.

As well as dealing with abuse, the agreement aims to address other labor issues such as the workers' right to keep their passports while in Malaysia, their right to a day off each week and the setting of a minimum wage.

Muhaimin said the agreement that would be signed by the president would include the passport issue and the right to a day off.

"We've agreed to some points, such as passports being held by workers, one day off a week," he said. "The salary will be set by each country, according to the proper wage standard of the market. How much it is will be defined in the work contract."

Concerning the cost of placements, Muhaimin said that would be decided by the private companies that managed the process for the workers.

There are an estimated two million Indonesians working in Malaysia, the country's top destination for migrant workers, but only 1.2 million have legal documents. Indonesia will resume sending migrant workers after the agreement is signed.

Wahyu Susilo, a migrant worker policy expert from Migrant Care, told the Jakarta Globe that despite securing some basic rights for workers, the new agreement did not guarantee their right to form or join a union, which was a "very important" issue.

"There should also be a commitment from the Malaysian government to prosecute its citizens who commit violence [against the workers]," Wahyu said.

Amnesty International said in a report released in March that migrant workers from countries such as Indonesia, Bangladesh and Burma were lured to Malaysia by promises of high salaries but often ended up being exploited and abused.

Wahyu said what remained to be seen with the new agreement was whether it would be effectively implemented. He said he was not confident the joint task force would be effective in monitoring the agreement's enforcement.

"Ideally, it should not consist only of representatives from both governments, but also from civil society organizations," Wahyu said.

Ban has failed to stem flow of Indonesian labor to Malaysia

Jakarta Globe - May 17, 2010

Ismira Lutfia – If Malaysians seem to have been unfazed by the almost yearlong ban on the placement of Indonesian migrant workers, it is because an underground business has continued to ensure a steady supply.

Anis Hidayah, director of labor watchdog Migrant Care, said "because the demand for workers from Indonesia is always met," albeit illegally, Malaysia seemed "unperturbed" by the temporary ban. "In reality, the moratorium does not have any effect on recruitment," Anis said.

Malaysia's thestar.com news portal reported on Monday that the ban had created a thriving business of smuggling illegal workers to meet the high demand for labor.

According to a freelance agent interviewed by the Malaysian news portal, the recruitment fee charged by one agency had soared from 5,000 ringgit ($1,500), inclusive of payments for the levy, work permit, airfare and six months' salary, to as high as 10,000 ringgit after the moratorium was imposed.

Government officials and migrant worker activists have all confirmed the practice.

Wahyu Susilo, also from Migrant Care, said some cases he had handled recently had shown that the workers' "date of entry to Malaysia was after the moratorium was enforced."

Iskandar Maula, director of overseas workers at the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, has said there has been an increase in cases of smuggled workers in recent months.

Rosstiawati, director for overseas worker placements at the ministry, said illegal recruitment of Indonesian migrant workers was rampant, especially in North Sumatra and East Kalimantan.

"We acknowledged that there is such a practice, and this issue has been frequently discussed in our joint working group," she told the Jakarta Globe.

Jamaluddin, advocacy coordinator of the Indonesian Migrant Workers' Union (SBMI), said the illegal workers found their way into Malaysia by land and sea entrances.

He said the government was not serious about the moratorium and should have increased border controls to prevent workers being smuggled into Malaysia.

The government also should "cooperate with police and customs officials at the border" and seek ways to tackle the illegal recruiters in Malaysia, he said.

Recruitment agencies still manage to send workers to Malaysia through "back-door" deals and with the cooperation of unregistered labor suppliers in Malaysia, he said.

Rosstiawati also said such practices were possible because there were Malaysian recruiters who came to Indonesia to recruit workers. "We have also complained about that to the Malaysian government," she said.

Rosstiawati agreed that "the key to handling this problem is law enforcement."

Traditional practice hurts domestic worker bill: NGO

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2010

Jakarta – A Javanese tradition that holds that domestic workers must be considered as part of the families that employ them is a major hurdle for passage of a House domestic worker protection bill, says an NGO.

In the tradition, called ngenger, a relative from the village comes to the city to work for a related family that is often more stable financially. "Normally, [the poorer] relatives do the housework," said Domestic Workers Advocacy Network (Jala PRT) Lita Anggraini.

"Some are child workers who are sent to school in exchange for housework," she added. She said that the custom was no longer popular and much more common among Javanese people 30 years ago.

"There have been changes in society, but the government has failed to take that into account," she said. "The government thinks that ngenger still exists," she added.

At an international convention for domestic worker protection last year, Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar said that consideration should be given to the Indonesian tradition. The convention should issue a recommendation, and not a legally-binding regulation, on protecting domestic workers, he said.

Lita said the government's position could hinder passage of the House's domestic worker protection bill, which is part of the legislators' 2010 national legislation program.

Faisol Reza, a special staffer to Muhaimin, said that the minister supported the protection of domestic workers. "It is the job of the ministry to support protection," he said.

However, some domestic employment suppliers and legislators said that if the bill is enacted it would be harder to for people to find domestic work, he added.

Reza said the minister's statement was not intended to hamper efforts to protect domestic workers, but instead considered all views. The tradition of ngenger still exists, Reza said. "We cannot reject that perspective," he added.

Lita said she welcomed deliberation on the House bill. A number of Jala's suggestions had been included, she added. However, Lita said that Jala was concerned about the regulation of suppliers of domestic workers, age requirements and daily working hours.

"Jala had suggested seven to eight working hours per day," she said.

Jala also said that the role of suppliers should be limited to recruitment and training. The government should enhance the role of work skill training centers (BLK) and provide more information, she added. (map)

Environment/natural disasters

Walhi rejects governors' climate forum

Jakarta Post - May 20, 2010

Apriadi Gunawan and Hotli Simanjuntak, Banda Aceh – The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) declared on Wednesday that it would reject all agreements made during the Governors' Climate and Forest (GCF) forum in Aceh.

Walhi executive director Berry Nahdran Forqan said any agreements made during the five-day forum would not produce credible solutions to deal with climate change since the forum had not involved civil society members.

The civil society members, he said, would have represented the general public, who would be directly affected by impacts of climate change.

"The meeting is at fault, democratically and substantially. It should be stopped and the results should be rejected," he told reporters in Medan on Wednesday.

He said the meeting was more a ceremony than a credible forum and had come at a time when there were still unclear concepts about dealing with climate change.

He said that in Indonesia many government projects conflicted with the public interest.

Citing an example of this, he said the government had not included peat lands in Sumatra and Kalimantan in its program to protect peat lands in the country from conversion, despite it being widely known that peat lands were large storers of carbon.

He also blamed land conversion projects started by the government-backed oil palm industry for sidelining community forest programs developed and run by local people.

Currently, he said, 300 community forest programs developed by local people had lost their battles to stop their land and forests being converted into oil palm plantations.

"It's better to stop the governors' forum since it's such a waste of time. We don't know for whom this forum is intended and it certainly brings no benefit to the people," Berry said.

The Governors' Climate and Forest forum opened in Banda Aceh on Monday to discuss and formulate a number of policies to fight for the rights of local people to maintain their own forests and profit from carbon trade.

The host, Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf, said the meeting – the third after previous forums held in Brazil and California – was hoped to produce concrete results on a carbon trade mechanism that would also benefit Acehnese in preserving their forests.

On Wednesday, several provinces in Indonesia expressed their readiness to take part in carbon trading schemes to cut greenhouse gas emissions, which are blamed for worsening climate change.

"We are currently preparing several steps to get involved [in carbon trading schemes], such as issuing local policies to stop illegal logging and timber smuggling from Papua," West Papua provincial administration's secretary Martin Luther said.

Many reports have found that halting forest and peat clearance is far more effective than planting trees to absorb emissions.

Discovery of new species proves Indonesia's rich biodiversity

Jakarta Post - May 19, 2010

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – The recent finding of new species in virgin forests in Papua province confirmed the country's wealth of biodiversity but threats remain, scientists said.

Scientists warned the swelling population, deforestation and climate change could lead to the loss of precious biodiversity.

Local and international scientists participating in Conservation International's (CI) Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) have found new mammals, a reptile, an amphibian, a dozen insects and a new bird in a remote forest in the Foja Mountains area in Papua.

"We believe many mysteries of biodiversity remain unmasked in Foja Mountain area," Hary Sutrisno, the research leader from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

He said that scientists were racing to uncover more new species, including in Papua, and were fighting the threats of climate change and rapid deforestation.

Scientists discovered a bizarre spike-nosed tree frog, an oversized, but notably tame, woolly rat, a gargoyle-like, bent- toed gecko with yellow eyes, an imperial pigeon and a tiny forest wallaby, the smallest documented marsupial in the world.

Other discoveries recorded in the survey included a new blossom bat that feeds on rainforest nectar, a small new tree-mouse, a new black-and-white butterfly related to the common monarch, and a new flowering shrub.

The Foja Mountains encompass an area of more than 300,000 hectares of undeveloped, and undisturbed rainforest.

Hary said virgin forest in Papua was selected to verify whether biodiversity remained intact in the absence of human activity. "It will be hard to find new species in Java or Sumatra since most of their forests have been cleared.

The government should pay more attention to protecting new species that have not been recorded yet," he said.

CI-Indonesia regional vice president Jatna Supriatna said, "Now that we can show how many unique forms live only in these mountain forests, it is easier for us to make the case that the world at large needs to take note and make absolutely certain that these superb forests are conserved for the well-being of the local forest peoples as well as the world at large."

Papua Governor Barnabas Suebu warned of the need to conserve Papua's biodiversity.

"We agree and strongly support the belief that the very high biodiversity areas in Papua should be maintained. Many endemic species in our region are still isolated and difficult to access. They need to be conserved," he said in a statement.

Forestry Ministry director general for forest protection and nature conservation Darori hailed the finding. "We need more details, including estimates of the total number of new species to determine whether to declare it a protected species," he said.

Indonesia claims to have 12 percent (515 species) of the world's mammal species, the second-highest after the Brazil, and 17 percent (1,531 species) of total bird species, the fifth-highest in the world.

The government said Indonesia was also home to 15 percent (270 species) of amphibians and reptile species, 31,746 species of vascular plants and 37 percent of the world's species of fish.

Darori predicted that more than half the biodiversity remained unrecorded.

Women & gender

Women forced underground to embrace their sexuality

Jakarta Post - May 17, 2010

Ika Krismantari – If Samantha Jones from the hit TV series Sex in the City really existed, she might find Jakarta a dull place to live.

The capital of the world's largest Muslim majority country is not the kind of place that is open to women exploring their sexuality, with society still regarding sex as a sensitive issue and a man's privilege.

While people think it is perfectly normal for men to watch pornographic DVDs, read pornographic magazines and use sex toys, sexually explicit entertainment is taboo for women as the public sentiment considers sex an inappropriate subject for them.

However, these views have not stopped urban women from tasting the forbidden fruit. A number of Jakarta women shared with The Jakarta Post their experiences of pornography and other "taboo" topics.

They say they are mostly driven by curiosity. Exposure to heightened sexuality in women's magazines and on the Internet have also fueled the trend.

However, most women still prefer keeping these thoughts private so as to avoid being frowned upon by the public or being labeled as promiscuous.

So much so, in fact, that not one woman was willing to have her real name published. "I just share [my secret] with close friends," said 26-year old women, who liked to be called Lily.

Lily likes to watch pornographic DVDs either by herself or with friends. She said she liked to do it for fun and for the sake of "knowledge". The reason she is reticent to share her experience is that she fears people will judge her unfairly.

Sociologist from the University of Indonesia Siti Hidayat Amal said the tendency among women to keep their sexual experience a private matter was because of society's efforts to repress female sexuality. "Most people would disrespect these women and assume they are 'bad'," she said.

But Amelia, 31, ignores the naysayers and prefers to explore her sexuality through the use of sex toys. She has a variety of sex aids, including dildos, furry handcuffs and blindfolds, all of which she considers her best friends.

"It's fun because you can find out new spots to excite your partner as well," said the woman, who, because of her sexual expertise, has been nicknamed Samantha by her friends in reference to the Sex in the City character.

But even for experts, finding sex toys in Jakarta can be a challenge as not many people openly stock them. The Post attempted finding adult toys in Glodok market, West Jakarta, which is known as the city's porn hub, but to no avail. Former retailers said they stopped selling the illegal toys due to frequent raids by the authorities.

"Also, the hot conditions in the marketplace are not good for the [dildos] because the rubber melts," a seller said, adding that people, mostly women, have now turned to buying the items on the Internet or through mail-orders advertised in newspapers.

Society's norms have forced women underground to discover and enjoy pornography in the city. Since the Pornography Law was enacted, people have become more careful when delving into the issue.

Many regions, like Depok and Tangerang have also imposed their own similar policies that mostly put women at a disadvantage. But those limitations do not seem to prevent the emergence of a generation of "Samanthas" in the city.

"[Women] may seem like they're not doing it, when actually they are. They just don't talk about it," said Amelia.

Health & education

Number of people with HIV on the rise: NGO

Jakarta Post - May 17, 2010

Jakarta – The number of Indonesian people contracting the HIV has been on the rise over the past couple of years, according to one NGO.

Pelita Ilmu Foundation has noted that the number of people living with AIDS topped 298,000 in 2009, 25 percent of whom are women.

The foundation's deputy chairman Husein Habsyi said the prevalence of HIV among people aged between 15 and 49 years will increase from 0.22 percent in 2008 to 0.37 percent by 2014.

New HIV cases among women is also expected to increase, which will in turn increase the number of children born with the virus.

According to the foundation, HIV cases in children will increase from 3,045 in 2008 to an estimated 5,775 in 2014. Currently, there are 7,546 children registered living with HIV, Husein said.

Adding to their difficulties, 66 percent of the HIV positive children have lost one or both of their parents to AIDS-related diseases.

"They are taken care of by their grandparents and most suffer malnutrition," Husein said.

Bank Century inquiry

Coalition leaves Century door open

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Members of the government's ruling coalition have agreed to disagree on the touchy issue of invoking the House of Representatives' right to express a further opinion on the Bank Century bailout, leaving the decision on whether or not to invoke that right to individual legislators.

More than 100 legislators have signed a petition to invoke the right to a collective opinion, which could lead to the impeachment of Vice President Boediono, the central bank governor at the time of the 2008 bailout.

Speaking after an evening meeting of the ruling coalition's newly formed joint secretariat on Tuesday, Syarif Hassan, from the Democratic Party, said the group had fragmented over what stance to take on the question of invoking the right.

When it finished its investigation into the controversial bailout of Bank Century, which cost the government Rp 6.7 trillion ($735 million), the House voted not to identify those who it suspected of wrongdoing. The collective opinion would go against that decision, effectively naming names – potentially Boediono's – which could then be used as evidence in a criminal investigation.

The meeting was attended by Ibnu Munzir and Ade Komaruddin, from the Golkar Party, Mustafa Kamal, from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), Asman Abnur, from the National Mandate Party (PAN), Jafar Hafsah, from the Democratic Party, Hazrul Azwar, from the United Development Party (PPP), and Marwan Jaffar and Baharudin Nashori, from the National Awakening Party (PKB).

Ibnu said Golkar was committed to fully supporting the government by not invoking the right, and denied the party had softened its stance on Century since Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati announced her resignation to join the World Bank.

"Our immediate obligation is to support the government," Ibnu said. "This secretariat is a forum for us to participate in governance, to have our say on government policies."

Syarif said the decision would be forwarded to Aburizal Bakrie, the secretariat's managing chairman and Golkar chief, to bring to other party chairmen. "The managing chairman will make known this coalition's political stance this week," Syarif said.

Marwan said that during the meeting on Tuesday all of the House faction leaders agreed that the criminal investigation into the Bank Century case should be followed through. "We all agreed that the political probe into Century was over," he said.

Most other legislators, including representatives from Golkar, the PKS, PAN and PPP, have said they would ignore the petition and let the criminal investigation into the bailout proceed.

But Golkar has split on the issue, with lawmaker Bambang Susatyo leading the charge to invoke the House's right to name names.

Meanwhile, a group of activists and NGOs on Tuesday announced they would form a civilian coalition secretariat in protest of the government coalition. Spokesman Fadjroel Rahman said the group would hold its inaugural congress on May 20 in Jakarta, with 300 activists from across the country expected.

He said the government's coalition secretariat was unconstitutional because it would render obsolete the cabinet and the House. "They're looking to iron out all the creases through the secretariat, which is what we're criticizing," Fadjroel said.

He added that the civil movement was aimed at raising public awareness that the joint secretariat was a political trick by those in charge to keep control of the country in rarefied circles. "We don't want our country's fate decided through back- room deals by the elite," he said.

House Bank Century hearing ends prematurely

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

Armando Siahaan – A meeting between the House of Representatives' team monitoring the Bank Century bailout investigation and the National Police ended in farce on Wednesday, after angry lawmakers pointed out that documents presented by the police conflicted with the House's initial recommendations.

The meeting began cordially, with National Police Chief Bambang Danuri Hendarso outlining its investigation into the controversial Rp 1.8 trillion ($198 million) bailout of the ailing lender, since renamed Bank Mutiara.

Akbar Faizal, a lawmaker from the People's Conscience Party (Hanura), however, objected to the introduction of the document provide by police because it failed to refer to "Option C," namely the recommendation of the full House that found that violations and irregularities occurred during the bailout.

Akbar's interruption provoked a flurry of similar objections, with most agreeing that the police report was flawed and needed correcting, and that the meeting must be postponed.

Bambang conceded that the police progress report contained mistakes and agreed to postpone the meeting. He dismissed allegations that the error was intentional.

House Deputy Speaker Priyo Budi Santoso ruled that though the error was unintentional and did not affect the substance of the investigation, a correction was needed. He then adjourned the meeting. It has not been decided when the meeting will be reconvened.

Graft & corruption

Future of Bakrie tax case clouded by Indonesia's political winds

Jakarta Globe - May 18, 2010

Ardian Wibisono, Muhamad Al Azhari& Dion Bisara – The departure of Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati for Washington and allegations made against top tax officials in the House of Representatives on Tuesday have raised doubts about the future of the high-profile tax probe into PT Bumi Resources.

Bumi is controlled by the family of Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie, who has been at odds with Sri Mulyani and whom many blame for political pressure that, at least indirectly, is believed to have led to her departure.

In a move spearheaded by Golkar lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo, the House Commission III for legal affairs announced that it was investigating the alleged roles of Mochamad Tjiptarjo, the new director general of taxation, and Pontas Pane, the interim director of intelligence and investigation at the Directorate General of Taxation, in a case of alleged tax fraud involving Wilmar Inter-national Limited Group.

Meanwhile, the House's Commission XI, which oversees financial affairs, held a hearing on the Permata Hijau Sawit tax case in which it urged that the law on taxes be revised because senior tax officials have "too much authority and power over taxpayers," Golkar lawmaker Melchias Markus Mekeng said.

The tax office on Tuesday was forced to issue a statement saying the Bumi tax probe would continue.

Analysts say that all of these developments indicate the political winds are beginning to blow in Bumi's favor regarding the tax probe.

Edwin Sinaga, president director of PT Financorpindo Nusa, said the moves announced in the House were likely efforts to weaken the authority of the tax office, and Bumi could see the tax case resolved in its favor.

Analysts have been predicting a bright outlook for the coal miner on the back of rising coal prices and sales, but the tax issue has pushed Bumi's debt ratio higher than other coal miners'.

Bumi and two of its coal-mining subsidiaries – PT Kaltim Prima Coal and PT Arutmin Indonesia – are under scrutiny by the tax office for allegedly evading a combined Rp 2.1 trillion ($225 million) in taxes from the 2007 tax year. The tax office claims that KPC underpaid its taxes by Rp 1.5 trillion, while Bumi and Arutmin allegedly underpaid by a combined Rp 600 billion. The tax office claimed the companies filed incorrect tax declarations in 2007.

"The investigation is still ongoing. We did not halt it," Pontas said. "We are still probing for more proof so it can be handed over to the Attorney General's Office."

The tax office has elevated its probe of KPC and Bumi to the status of criminal investigations, while the probe of Arutmin remains at the preliminary stage.

Miranda case 'will not end here'

Jakarta Globe - May 18, 2010

Dessy Sagita, Armando Siahaan & Ismira Lutfia – With four lawmakers convicted on Monday for their part in the Rp 24 billion ($2.6 million) Bank Indonesia bribery scandal, all eyes are on the country's antigraft body to see who will face justice next.

Johan Budi, a spokesman for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), said it was unwavering in its pursuit of suspects linked to the graft-tainted election of economist Miranda Goeltom as central bank senior deputy governor in 2004.

"We are still discussing the details of our next step – what to do and whom to summon. One thing for sure is that this bribery case will not end here," he said.

On Monday, the Anti-Corruption Court sentenced sitting lawmakers Endin Soefihara, Dudhie Makmun Murod and Hamka Yandhu, and former legislator Udju Djuhaeri, to prison terms ranging from 15 months to two and a half years for receiving bribes to vote Miranda into the BI post.

The KPK had said that it believed 39 of the 41 lawmakers who voted for her had received bribes, but so far only four have been brought to justice.

Johan said the KPK was still pursuing Nunun Nurbaeti Daradjatun, a businesswoman and the wife of Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) lawmaker Adang Daradjatun. The KPK suspects Nunun played a central role in the distribution of 480 traveler's checks worth a total of Rp 24 billion to the lawmakers.

But Nunun has so far ignored court summonses, with her husband and lawyer saying she is being treated at Singapore's Mount Elizabeth Hospital for a mysterious illness that causes severe memory loss.

Anti-Corruption Court judge Andi Bachtiar said that Nunun could be tried in absentia if the evidence was sufficient.

Amir Karyatin, Dudhie's lawyer, said the KPK should have first prosecuted those who allegedly handed out the bribes, including Panda Nababan, a senior member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

"After they have arrested all the people who initiated the bribery, then they can go after those who had received it," he said.

Gayus Lumbuun, a PDI-P lawmaker from the House of Representatives Commission III for legal affairs, also said the KPK should have focused on those issuing the bribes. "How can [the KPK] punish the recipients first?" he said, adding that the law regarding the KPK mandated that it pursue suspects who initiated the graft.

The KPK should only be able to decide whether the money was a bribe by arresting and questioning the source of the funds first, he argued.

"How can they punish someone when no facts have been established about why the money was even distributed?" Emerson Yuntho, deputy chairman of Indonesia Corruption Watch, told the Jakarta Globe that the KPK needed to find conclusive evidence about Miranda's own role in the bribery case.

ICW has alleged that Miranda was well aware of the bribes being given in exchange for her appointment to the central bank. But Emerson said her exact role has "never been made clear."

"The KPK needs to clearly define Miranda's role in the case," he said, adding that the commission should not hesitate in taking swift action against her should they find solid evidence that suggests she had an active role in the scandal.

Asked about whether he thought the KPK would pursue its investigations into Nunun, Emerson said that there was "a big possibility" that the businesswoman would face trial.

Lawmakers get slaps on wrists after corruption convictions

Jakarta Globe - May 17, 2010

Dessy Sagita – The Anti-Corruption Court has found three sitting or former legislators guilty of involvement in a high-profile bribery case but sentenced the trio to comparatively light prison sentences.

Sitting United Development Party (PPP) legislator Endin Soefihara was sentenced to 1 year and three months jail for his role in the Rp 24 billion ($2.7 million) bribery case involving the appointment of economist Miranda Goeltom as Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor in 2004.

The sentence by delivered by Judge Jupriyadi. Asked whether he would file an appeal, Endin said he would think about it.

Endin and former Golkar Party lawmaker Hamka Yandhu were accused of receiving Rp 7.3 billion and Rp 2 billion respectively in exchange for voting for Miranda.

In separate trials, former lawmaker Udju Djuhaeri from the now defunct Police and Military Faction and sitting Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) lawmaker Dudhie Makmun Murod were both sentenced to 2 years in jail and fined Rp 100 million each. The sentence was lighter than the prosecutors' demand of 3 year jail sentences and fines of Rp 150 million each.

Udju and Dudhie told presiding judge Nani Indrawati that they were yet to decide whether they would appeal the verdicts.

The scandal has implicated a number of PDI-P lawmakers, as well as legislators from the PPP and Golkar. It also highlighted the depth of graft within the House of Representatives. A fourth verdict is expected this afternoon.

War on terror

Revision of terrorism law will lead to more violations

Tempo Interactive - May 21, 2010

Pingit Aria, Jakarta – The likelihood that the police will commit human rights on suspected terrorists will increase if their detention period is extended to more than seven days.

"During interrogation, more violations are likely to happen," said Edwin Partogi, Politics, Justice and Human Rights Division staff at the Commission for Missing Persons & Victims of Violence (Kontras), yesterday.

According to Edwin, even with Law no. 15/2003 on Terrorism currently valid, human rights violations are still being committed. A person who is being questioned without the presence of a lawyer is very likely to happen. "They can be trapped by misleading questions, abuse could also take place," Edwin said.

The National Police headquarters felt that seven days was not enough to prove the involvement of a detainee. They want to revise the law. "The time set in the law is very short, yet uncovering a terrorist case is very difficult," the police's spokesperson Insp. Gen. Edward Aritonang, said on Wednesday.

Fugitive able to post jihad notes on internet

The Australian - May 18, 2010

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta – Indonesian authorities are red- faced after admitting their primary terrorism fugitive, a 32-year-old believed to have replaced slain mastermind Dulmatin as chief planner for attacks in the country, has been able to post internet jihad messages.

And they have conceded their task has been made even more difficult by the fact that Abdullah Sunata was released from jail last year after serving less than five years of a seven-year sentence for terrorist activity.

The country's "deradicalisation" program, where convicted terrorists are given special privileges in an attempt to turn them away from violence, came under fire as it emerged Sunata probably used the system to engineer his early release.

In the internet message, posted at the weekend, Sunata condemned those who have become "apostates" by abandoning jihad – despite the fact his early release came through him convincing authorities he had seen the error of his ways.

Chief among these apostates, he claimed, was Nasir Abbas, the former Jemaah Islamiah weapons expert who became a key figure in the state deradicalisation program after himself serving jail time for terrorist activity. Abbas now works with the Indonesian police counselling terrorism convicts, trying to convince them they have been deluded when they follow a violent Islamist path.

Abbas's younger sister, Faridah, was married to Bali bomber Mukhlas, who was executed in 2008.

Many "converts" under the deradicalisation program are given financial assistance when they leave jail, including help finding jobs, paying school fees for their children and providing healthcare for their families.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono yesterday acknowledged there was a problem in the system, saying "terrorism remains a threat because the perpetrators who have been jailed still repeat the same acts".

Sunata is believed to have been given assistance in setting up a small business on his release from prison last year.

However, one of dozens of men arrested this year in relation to a new terrorist network in Aceh and organised by Dulmatin has revealed that Sunata was a key player in that operation, too.

According to the national daily newspaper Kompas, Yudi Zulfahri told its reporter that within weeks of Sunata's release last year, he was in Aceh scouting for locations to set up a terrorist camp.

MUI wants Ba'asyir sermon in Banten cancelled

Jakarta Post - May 17, 2010

Jakarta – The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has asked the Old Banten sultanate management not to invite Abu Bakar Ba'asyir to deliver a sermon at the compound after the arrest of 12 suspected terrorists linked to the firebrand cleric.

MUI Banten chapter secretary Syibli Sarjaya, said in Serang, Banten, Monday that management should get another preacher to "avoid new problems." He said that he was told that Ba'asyir, in previous sermons at Banten, had said that the government was thogut, or evil, for not implementing sharia law.

Ba'asyir was scheduled to deliver a sermon at the Banten sultanate on May 27 to coincide with a full moon celebration at the historical site.

Thousands of pilgrims are expected to go to the event at the Banten mosque, said Fathul Adzim, chairman of the foundation that manages the Old Banten compound.

"Abu Bakar Ba'asyir comes here quite often, but I never noted that he used the word thogut," Fathul said as quoted by the Antara news agency. He added that the cleric came to Banten on his own initiative every month.

The police recently arrested 12 members of the Jamaah Anshoru Tauhid group, which was established and led by Ba'asyir, for terrorism allegations.

The controversial cleric has repeatedly denied that Jamaah Anshoru Tauhidis was connected to terrorism and said the group's main purpose was religious propagation.

Islam/religion

Artist says statue critics have betrayed Indonesian culture

Jakarta Globe - May 23, 2010

Ulma Haryanto – Hard-line groups that convinced or intimidated Bekasi authorities into ordering the destruction of an imposing statue of three women in a private residential complex have adopted a foreign culture and called it their own, the statue's famous creator says.

"They have taken on the culture of Saudi Arabia, because what they have been doing is not part of Indonesian culture," artist Nyoman Nuarta told the Jakarta Globe on Sunday. "They know nothing about Indonesian culture, art or even religion in Indonesia."

The 17-meter-tall statue, "Tiga Mojang" ("Three Girls"), by the Bali-born but Bandung-based Nyoman, depicts three Sundanese women in traditional attire. It is also known as the welcome statue of the Harapan Indah residential complex in Bekasi, which falls under the jurisdiction of West Java.

Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Mohammad, apparently bowing to pressure from hard-line Muslim groups, officially ordered the complex's developer, PT Hasanah Damai Putra, last week to tear down the statue within 21 days.

"It is a reminder for newcomers or whoever passes the area that they are in West Java," Nyoman said. "The women were sculpted in traditional West Javanese clothes and were never meant to offend a religion nor to be depicted as sexual objects."

The copper-and-brass statue, he said, took a year to build and cost the developers Rp 2.4 billion ($260,000). "About 50 people were involved in its making. We used patented technology and software to create a detailed sculpture despite its large size," Nyoman said.

The reason he chose the three women design was because the complex stands at the intersection of three roads, he said.

"So no matter from which direction you come from, you are always greeted by a face, instead of the left-side or the back," he said. "This also reflects courtesy, which is important for people from West Java."

Earlier, the leader of Bekasi's Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), Murhali Barda, said the statue, aside from having lacked a building permit, was un-Islamic.

"The women are wearing tight costumes," Murhali said. "And above all, Islam prohibits statues and paintings that try to copy real living beings."

Nyoman said his public sculptures usually portrayed real beings because Indonesians were generally not interested in abstract art. He also said Indonesians tended to forget their cultural roots and readily adopted anything foreign, both good and bad.

"We take on American or Arabian culture as if we were not proud of our own," he said.

"Culture is the positive and dynamic response of a society toward its living environment, and people of certain cultures should not force their cultural understanding onto others.

"The Balinese, for instance, are Hindus. The religion itself comes from India, but that does not mean we dress like Indians, because we already have our own style."

Endang Suharyadi, a spokesman for the Bekasi administration, said earlier that the statue must come down and if the developer was not willing to remove it in a timely manner, then the administration would. He said the developer had made no attempt to secure a permit for the statue.

Nyoman said he was commissioned by the developer to build the statue on private property, which, according to him, meant that no permit was required.

Since beginning his career in 1973, Nyoman has created hundreds of statues and has frequently been commissioned by companies and government institutions.

Among his most famous works are the grandiose statue of Arjuna's chariot at the southwest entrance to Merdeka Square, the Sukarno statue on Jalan Pegangsaan Timur in Central Jakarta and a smaller version of the "Tiga Mojang" statue in front of Plaza Indonesia in Central Jakarta.

Nyoman said that as an artist, he was no stranger to criticism. "However, those who annoy me are the ones who talk without having any qualification to do so on a subject they know anything about," he said.

Government concerned over surging divorce rate among Muslims

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Nurfika Osman – The number of divorces registered by the country's Islamic courts has been rising sharply in recent years, despite a costly ongoing government program that provides counseling to couples planning to wed.

According to court data, registered divorces jumped by 37 percent to 257,780 last year. And the 2008 figure was an increase of 19 percent over the previous year.

According to the Ministry of Religious Affairs, about two million Muslim couples around the country get married each year.

"It keeps increasing, and that makes us worried," Abdul Rohadi Fatah, director for Islam and Shariah law at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, told the Jakarta Globe on Thursday.

He said that the alarming figures meant that a government program to educate people about marriage values was all the more important.

"We are responsible to teach Muslims about the meaning of marriage and how they can build a good family based on Islamic values, in order to lower the [divorce] rate," Rohadi said. "God hates divorce, even though God does not forbid it."

The government program, which is not compulsory, provides guidance and counseling to couples intending to marry. It includes support from specialized teachers at the ministry and the marriage registry office. Once couples have undertaken the course, which lasts between one to three days, a certificate of completion is issued.

Counseling courses have already been held in Batam this year for about 15 couples. Similar courses have been planned for East and West Java, Banten, Jambi and West Sumatra provinces later in the year.

Although Rohadi said the program had been in place for more than 20 years, he did not say how many people had taken part. He also declined to comment on whether the courses were effective or whether the program had ever been evaluated.

With this year's program in Batam costing about Rp 200 million ($22,000), however, the price tag seems steep and the results uncertain, activists said.

"That amount of money for 30 people is too expensive," said Masruchah, deputy chairwoman of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan).

"It is a waste, as domestic violence continues to occur and divorce rates are not getting lower. The course cannot guarantee a marriage will last forever and I do not think that it is effective to curb the divorce rate," she added.

Masruchah said the government program should be reviewed and strict monitoring put in place to ensure the project's effectiveness.

Najib Anwar, head of the ministry's division that oversees family harmony, told the Globe that the three main reasons behind the sharp rise in the divorce rate were infidelity, greater awareness of gender equality among women and political differences in the family.

"The first five years of marriage is crucial for couples, and they tend to cheat on their partners," he said.

"Women are now also more empowered to face their husbands to ask for a divorce as they are more aware of gender equality. We feel like emancipation is now a threat to marriage."

Rohadi echoed Najib's sentiments, adding that women, especially since the Reform Era of the late 1990s, were better educated and knew what they wanted. "But they need to understand that religion and family should be the priority," he said.

Masruchah criticized the ministry's "male-oriented" views, saying that men and women had equal rights and equal responsibilities. "Blaming women for this [increase in divorce rates] means that they do not want women to be smart," she said.

'Draw Prophet' Facebook page sparks fury of Muslims

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

Nurfika Osman & Ismira Lutfia – As Indonesia called for calm, Muslim scholars expressed outrage over a page on the social networking site Facebook that encourages people to draw images of the Prophet Muhammad. Visual depictions of the Prophet are forbidden in Islam. "I consider this an act of provocation to mess up religious harmony enjoyed by Indonesians," Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday. "I call on everybody to stay calm. Let us all just cool down."

"These are the things that we want to control in the draft of a ministerial regulation on multimedia content," he added.

The Religious Affairs Ministry's director of Islam and Shariah Law, Rohadi Abdul Fatah, said the site had been deemed haram, or forbidden, under Islam. "We cannot tolerate it. Those who created the account were extremely irresponsible," Rohadi said, referring to the Facebook page titled "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day."

The page said: "May 20th of 2010 is Draw Mohammed Day! Help spread around the knowledge about this important day. Invite your friends!" As of 5 p.m. on Wednesday, more than 43,000 people were following the page.

Another account on Facebook was created to urge people to show anger at the "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" account. It had attracted 1,300 followers by last night. It said: "O Muslims! Stand against people who are slandering our Rasul [Prophet]!"

Tifatul said there must be restricted access to the Internet's negative content. He acknowledged, however, that Indonesia "would not be able to completely restrict access."

Tifatul called on the public to avoid using social networking sites to disseminate blasphemous information that could incite hatred toward other faiths. "We are going to send a letter to Facebook management soon since they are based abroad. We cannot just ban it," he said.

Said Aqil Siradj, chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Indonesia's largest Islamic organization, said the page was blasphemous. "Based on ijma [consensus] involving Muslim scholars worldwide, we are forbidden from drawing visual depictions of the Prophet," Said Aqil said.

"It is considered slanderous. The imagination can be used to draw visual depictions of other messengers, but not Prophet Muhammad. That is clear." He urged followers of the 40- million strong organization not to follow the account. "It is intended to insult us. I have asked the government to ban the site," he said.

Amidhan, the head of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said the account was criminal and sanctions should be imposed on all those who followed the page. "This is criminal and humiliating," he said.

The page has also sparked outrage in Pakistan, where a court on Wednesday ordered the government to block the site.

A series of cartoons of the Prophet published in a Danish newspaper in 2005 sparked violent protests and death threats against the cartoonists.

After online threats of violence last month, the US cable network Comedy Central bleeped out Muhammad's name in an episode of the animated series "South Park" that featured the Prophet hiding in a bear suit.

President hits out, says Indonesia will never be Islamic state

Jakarta Globe - May 17, 2010

Camelia Pasandaran – In some of his strongest comments against terrorists yet, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Monday called on all Indonesians to join the government in combating terrorism and their plans to establish an Islamic state governed by Shariah law.

"I call for all Indonesian people to join together in saving the nation, saving our people, saving us all from the terrorism threat and from irresponsible parties that act beyond the limits of humanity," Yudhoyono said at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport in East Jakarta before leaving for an informal visit to Singapore.

"I also hope that all Indonesian regions, provinces, districts and municipalities, all regional leaders, military and police personnel, and all other parties remain alert and active and to contribute to preventing the development of terrorism in their own areas," he said. "This is to save our children, our young generation, from being trapped by terrorism crimes."

The National Police have recently arrested and killed several terrorist suspects in Aceh, Central and West Java, and Jakarta. The police have revealed that the terrorists were planning to assassinate the president and high-ranking officials in a bid to create an Islamic state.

Laying out the evidence and identifying the suspected terrorists arrested or killed since operations began in the mountains of Aceh in February, National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri recently described the plot to attack the Presidential Palace during Independence Day celebrations on Aug. 17.

Yudhoyono, speaking to journalists in offices adjoining the runway, said that several important terrorists had been arrested in the past but when they were released from jail fell back into their terrorist ways.

"What we're actually facing now is those who have been controlling [the terror movement in Indonesia] for the last ten years... with some more new members," he said.

"What is interesting is the target of the terror," he said. "In the past, they targeted foreigners, but now they are targeting our nation, our country, our government as the main target. They want to build an Islamic state, something that has been finished with in our history."

Yudhoyono said that though Indonesia was not an Islamic state, Indonesia respected Islam and had adopted its values and aspects of its laws in building the nation.

"But if this group wants to push its intention to change the nation's ideology, change the Constitution and the nation's foundation, it is unacceptable for the Indonesian people. They're against democracy while democracy is the result of reformation."

Religious minister laments the growing misconception on freedom

Tempo Interactive - May 17, 2010

Rofiuddin, Semarang – Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali lamented the growing misconception of unlimited freedom that has entered the minds of Islam's followers. According to Suryadharma, the realization of unlimited freedom is a democracy without any rules and the freest of human rights.

Suryadharma said, if such a concept is allowed to continue, Muslims would be doing their prayers without reading the Al- Fatihah, pray using the Indonesian language, or pray facing the east. "This concept of freedom can ruin the contents of Holy Quran," he said in front of religious leaders of the Central Java United Development Party's (PPP) Board in Semarang on Saturday.

Suryadharma said such misunderstanding on the meaning of freedom has been prevalent for some time. He cited as examples, the gay and lesbian congress in Surabaya and same-sex marriages.

Sex & morality

Sex survey of Indonesian teens leads call for internet monitoring

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

Ismira Lutfia – In his latest call for more stringent Internet controls, Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring has unearthed more statistics on teenage sex that are suspiciously similar to another survey that was debunked the day before.

He quoted a 2007 survey of 4,500 teenagers in 12 cities, carried out by the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), that showed 97 percent of respondents had access to pornography, 92.7 percent had engaged in oral sex, 62.7 percent had had sexual intercourse and 21.2 percent of girls had had an abortion.

Tifatul claimed he only received the report of the findings three weeks ago. "You can pretty much say all the respondents had access to pornography, because there's a 3 [percentage point] margin of error," he said on Wednesday. "The rest of the results indicate an alarming situation. We need to come up with a solution."

The minister said he would bring up the issue with the Ministry of National Education, the State Ministry for Women's Empowerment and Child Protection, and the State Ministry for Youth and Sports.

The survey is remarkably similar to one recently released then promptly disavowed by the KPAI.

On Monday, KPAI deputy chairwoman Masnah Sari said its 2010 survey, also of 4,500 teenagers in three cities, 93.7 percent of respondents had had oral sex, 32 percent for intercourse and 21.2 percent for abortion.

Masnah blamed the high figures on unfettered access to the Internet, though there was no data linking Web use to sex. She urged the government to limit access to the Internet and implement a monitoring system that could be applied at home and in Internet cafes.

On Tuesday, however, KPAI chairman Hadi Supeno denied the group had ever conducted such a survey. He said the only remotely similar survey was of 100 respondents in Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya, and contained nothing about oral sex. He also said that survey was never meant to be published. Masnah has since been unavailable for comment.

Tifatul, however, picked up on the theme that Internet porn fed teen promiscuity. He said it was "bothersome" that Google search results for the keywords "SMP" or "SMU" (junior high and senior high) brought up links to porn content instead of school or educational information.

"Think of all those kids looking for legitimate educational content who keep stumbling on these adult links every time they run a search," he said.

Parental guidance, Tifatul said, should be the first line of defense against explicit content, but that outside the home, the responsibility lay with schools, clerics and society at large.

"The government and its regulations should always be the last line," Tifatul said, adding that the "survey" findings and other isolated incidents of casual sex among teens reinforced the urgency for tighter controls on Inter-net content.

"We're currently deliberating a draft regulation on multimedia content, for which we welcome feedback from the public," he said.

Ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto said it would revive the controversial draft regulation on multimedia content with several major changes, adding that the ministry was committed to "totally revising" the planned regulation to monitor Internet content.

Shocking teen sex survey results fake: KPAI chief

Jakarta Globe - May 18, 2010

Putri Prameshwari – A shocking survey that found more than 9 out of 10 teenagers in major cities engaged in sexual activity has been disowned by the agency that supposedly carried out the research.

Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) vice chairwoman Masnah Sari had reported that a survey of 4,500 teenagers aged between 14 and 18 in Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya, found that 93 percent had engaged in oral sex and 21.2 percent of the girls had had an abortion.

But on Tuesday, KPAI chairman Hadi Supeno denied the group conducted such a survey. He said KPAI has surveyed the sexual behavior of teenagers in the three cities, "but it was a small one with 100 respondents."

Hadi said there was nothing in the survey about oral sex, nor was it meant to be published. "We conducted the survey as a preliminary study for research we're preparing," he said, adding that the survey was leaked to the media without his knowledge.

Masnah could not be reached for comment. Masnah's claims triggered widespread public reaction and comment online and around the water cooler in offices.

According to Hadi, the small-sample survey KPAI conducted found 32 percent claimed to have had sexual intercourse. He said their reasons for having sex were varied, but KPAI had narrowed them down to three.

For one thing, the teenagers surveyed said they had easy access to pornography. "They get porn videos from the Internet or DVD sellers very easily," Hadi said.

Second, the teenagers, most from upper middle class families, said they had learned about sex from their nightlife. "They go to clubs, meet someone, and it leads to sexual intercourse," Hadi said.

Many of the teenagers claimed they did not receive enough attention from their parents, who did not monitor their time on the Internet or watching television. "This means they do not get enough education on sex and appropriate behavior," Hadi said.

Regardless of which survey results are accurate, child advocates have called for an appropriate response to what still appears to be increasingly liberal attitudes toward sex.

Wahyu Hartomo, assistant to the child protection deputy at the Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection, said society was conservative and showed a reluctance to address sex education.

"If we give sex education and hand out condoms, they cannot accept it," he said, adding that the less children know about sex, the more they will experiment.

Rijalul Imam, who heads the Indonesian Muslim Students' Action Front, pointed to the role of parents in shaping their children's character. He said that parents had a responsibility to control and protect their children from the excesses that came with free access to information.

Internet blamed after survey says most teens sexually active

Jakarta Globe - May 18, 2010

Putri Prameshwari – A child protection group is shocked by the results of a survey in which 94 percent of the teenagers polled said they have engaged in oral sex.

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), which carried out the survey, blames unfettered access to the Internet for the thousands of urban teenagers engaging in casual sex.

KPAI chairwoman Masnah Sari said affordable Internet access and unrestricted use were to blame. The survey showed 93.7 percent of 4,500 urban teenagers reportedly having had oral sex, while 32 percent have had intercourse.

"It's because of what they can access on the Internet," Masnah said. "It's devastating that there's no way to control this."

In its poll, the KPAI surveyed 4,500 teenagers aged between 14 and 18 in Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya. Masnah said the survey also found 21.2 percent of the girls surveyed have had an abortion. However, there was no data linking Internet use with sex.

The Internet held endless appeal for teenagers because of its wealth and variety of content. "They like what they see, and they want to try it out themselves," Masnah said. "This leads them to get addicted to sex."

Casual sex had become a trend among urban teens, she added. "Those who don't engage in it are viewed by their peers as not being with it," Masnah said.

She urged the government to limit access to the Internet and implement a monitoring system that could be applied at home and in Internet cafes. "The Communication and Information Ministry must take charge of this," Masnah said.

Ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto said that while the authorities were concerned by the statistics, the prevailing laws made it "not that easy" to implement Internet controls.

"The 1999 law on telecommunications prohibits service providers from allowing access to indecent content," he said. Anyone who found the law being broken could report it to authorities.

Gatot also said the ministry had written software that filtered out porn sites and it was installed at most Internet cafes. "However, such content is now available everywhere, not just from porn sites," he said, adding that Facebook also hosted explicit content.

Gatot said parents and teachers should monitor children's browsing habits. "We can do more to educate parents about using content-blocking software on home computers," he said.

Indonesia has more than 20 million Facebook users.

New survey claims Indonesian teens have active sex lives

Jakarta Globe - May 17, 2010

Almost 100 percent of 4,500 Indonesian urban teenagers sampled in a new survey have had oral sex and 32 percent have had full sexual intercourse.

The poll by the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) surveyed 4,500 teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18 in the cities of Jakarta, Bandung in West Java and Surabaya in East Java.

KPAI Chairman Hadi Supeno told Metro TV that the survey found that 93.7 percent of the teenagers had had oral sex, 32 had had sex and 21.2 percent of the girls had had an abortion.

It also revealed, according to Hadi, that most of the teenagers learned about sex from the Internet. "Ninety seven percent of them have accessed porn sites at least once," Hadi said.

The methadology of the survey was not revealed.

Hadi said the KPAI urged Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring to block pornographic Web sites. "If China and Iran can do it, so can Indonesia," Hadi argued. Tifatul, meanwhile, said he was very concerned about the survey results. "I am very concerned with the results of the KPAI survey that 97 percent teenagers had seen or accessed porn," he said. "I am calling on everyone's support to limit distribution of negative content on the Internet or in the movies. Everyone must take part in protecting our youth."

Politics/political parties

Democrat poll twist as Anas triumphs

Jakarta Globe - May 23, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Anita Rachman, Bandung – Two months of intense, often-bitter campaigning ended on Sunday as the ruling Democratic Party finally chose as its new leader a young but skilled politician seen as being in the mold of the party's patron, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Anas Urbaningrum, the 40-year-old head of the party faction in the House of Representatives, was elected chairman for the next five years after winning 280 of the 531 votes in a two-stage election at the party's national congress in Bandung.

House Speaker Marzuki Alie, 54, won 248 votes. The third candidate, Youth and Sports Affairs Minister Andi Mallarangeng, 47, who had been considered the front-runner, suffered a shock defeat earlier in the day, when he garnered just 82 votes in the first round of voting.

"The national congress decided and determined that we had conducted a fair and honest vote," voting session chairman Evert Erenst Mangindaan announced after the election, one largely seen to have been carried out without intervention from Yudhoyono.

Speaking after the vote, Anas called on Marzuki and Andi to work with him to make the party better. "No hard feelings. Pak Andi and Pak Marzuki are the best cadres of our party. The three of us will still work together to improve this party," he said.

Achmad Mubarok, head of Anas's campaign team, said they would support the president's son, Edhie Baskoro, to be named party secretary general. "That's firm, Ibas will be supported as secretary general," he said.

Saan Mustopha, another member of Anas's camp, credited the victory to a last-minute campaign to get regional members to support a candidate who can maintain a polite image. "And they find that Anas is similar to Pak SBY, a humble and polite politician."

Benny K Harman, also from the winning team, said the victory was due to a solid strategy that involved reaching out to party members in the regions.

Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) political analyst Ikrar Nusa Bhakti said the victor had promised his loyalty to the party while intensively approaching branches across the archipelago. "Anas said the Democratic Party would be his first and last party. This kind of statement is important for the Democrats, showing his commitment to the party."

Burhanuddin Muhtadi, a political analysts from the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), said that Anas was the right choice given his political experience.

Anas, the former chairman of the Islamic Students Association (HMI), is considered one of only a handful of skilled lobbyists in the party and has close relations with other top political figures.

"And the Democrats want a young leader," Burhanuddin said, adding that the other big parties are still stuck with older leaders. "I think they got a jump-start in regeneration, faster than other big parties, and that is good."

Although also young, Andi did not have the grassroots connections to the party that Anas and Marzuki have.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), lauded the Democrats' choice, saying the party's relations with other factions in the House could improve under Anas.

Tension mounts ahead of Democratic Party vote

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2010

Ridwan Max Sijabat and Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – Tension heightened Saturday in Bandung as the three candidates contesting the Democratic Party's top post launched an all-out campaign in the run-up to a vote late on Saturday.

In a debate broadcast live by Trijaya radio station and several television stations, the camps of candidates Andi Mallarangeng and Anas Urbaningrum went on a last ditch offensive to discredit one another, ignoring the party chief patron President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's call for fair play.

The congress venue and candidates' campaign posts saw an influx of supporters from Jakarta, West Java and other areas who claimed they came to the congress of their own volition.

Andi, who invited members of the press to his campaign post, said more political support was pouring in for him following Yudhoyono's speech and a night-long political maneuvering.

The main streets of Bandung and Padalarang have also turned into a battleground for the two contenders with pamphlets becoming more visible and billboards and banners being erected along main thoroughfares.

The three candidates, including House of Representatives Speaker Marzuki Alie, declined to disclose the total amount they have spent on campaigning.

Analysts have called the congress a political war involving candidates contending the party's top post and their supporters that has also degenerated into a dirty affair with candidates exploiting loopholes "to block" their rivals from winning the election.

"The congress is no longer a political arena but has turned into a political war where each candidate and their campaign teams have launched an offensive not only to garner political support for their candidacy, but also to discredit one another," Gadjah Mada University political analyst Sigit Pamungkas said.

Sources at the congress said Yudhoyono in fact decided to take over the proceedings of congress session on Saturday morning to express disappointment with how candidates were competing for the top post, saying that candidates should not allow the media to fuel friction within the party as it would only benefit rival political parties.

Padjadjaran University political analyst Dede Mariana said Yudhoyono's speech in the opening ceremony served as a criticism of not only the rank and file of the Democratic Party but also other political parties that have behaved in an uncivilized manner in their own national congresses.

The tension began moments after the congress was opened on Friday evening with the three candidates holding a series of closed-door meetings in a number of hotels in Bandung.

Analysts said with such fierce competition, vote buying was almost certainly going on, but that it would be difficult to prove.

"It is a political matter and business deal. If you don't have money, you won't get political support. Unlike the legislative elections, the congress is a field day for regional functionaries. We can assume they received not only transportation fees and lump sums, but also a high price for their vote during the chairmanship election," Sigit said.

In the congress session itself, delegates were at odds over several issues concerning voting procedures.

Delegates debated the congress' agenda and candidates' qualifications. The Marzuki camp wanted the vote to take place on Saturday instead of Sunday, while Andi's camp wanted the vote to be held on Sunday as scheduled.

Many delegates also proposed a stipulation banning candidates from contesting if they held an elected office, an apparent reference to Marzuki.

Marzuki was quick to respond saying that his current job as House speaker would only empower the party to pass laws and monitor the government.

Democratic Party readies powerful tool for Yudhoyono

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2010

Yuli Tri Suwarni and Ridwan Max Sijabat, Bandung – The congress of the Democratic Party proposed Saturday the establishment of a body within the party that will allow its chief patron, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, to ensure a firm hold of the party.

Both camps of the candidates contesting the party top post confirmed that the congress steering committee had proposed the deployment of a supreme assembly during a closed-door session held to review the party stature.

Spokesman for candidate Anas Urbaningrum's campaign team Saan Mustopa and secretary of the Andi Alfian Mallarangeng's campaign team Ramadhan Pohan have confirmed the plausibility of the proposal.

Both camps said that Yudhoyono in his capacity as President, founder and chairman of the party's patron board, would also chair an assembly tasked mainly to make strategic decisions regarding the party's internal and external affairs.

Saan said the supreme assembly comprising of members of the patron and the executive board would be presided over by Yudhoyono, and its main task was to make strategic policies for the party and important decisions on who should be nominated by the party to contest the regional elections.

"I think all delegates to the congress will certainly accept the proposal because all are of the same opinion that the party is inseparable from SBY," said Saan, calling Yudhoyono by his popular name.

Ramadhan said the supreme assembly would not necessarily contradict a plan for devolving more authority to provincial chapters and regional branches.

"This does not mean that the new body will maintain the domination of the executive board within the party. It will strengthen SBY's position in the party because he cannot be separated from the party and his role is still needed to strengthen the development of human resources, infrastructure and leadership in the party."

With the assembly, Yudhoyono will have an indispensable role in deciding which candidates would contest the presidential and legislative elections, although he would no longer assume the presidency.

However a number of members of regional branches were against the proposal as it was considered detrimental to the promotion of democracy within the party. Mustofawiyah Sitompul, deputy chairman of the Democratic Party's provincial chapter in North Sumatra, said the supreme assembly would maintain the party's centralistic policy and it could make the decision-making mechanism more cumbersome.

Yulianus Nawifa, chairman of the party's regional branch in Paniai, Papua, concurred and suggested that the new instrument should function akin to that of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) with the main function being to implement general guidelines in developing the party.

In an event of a regional election, he said, the central board should rely on regional branches to recruit candidates. "Papua has held 21 local elections and none of our candidates have won thanks to the strong intervention from the central board," he said.

Nur Muhyidin, deputy chairman of the party's provincial chapter in East Java, said he has no objection to an assembly as it could improve the party's performance in 2014.

Rev. Viktor representing Morowali in South Sulawesi said he was sure the domination of the central board would not become an iron rule, and its presence was still needed over the next five years.

Coalition mulls longer-term alliance based on Malay model

Jakarta Globe - May 22, 2010

Anita Rachman – Members of the Democrat-led ruling coalition are broaching the need for a stronger, more solid grouping that would last beyond 2014, based on the Malaysian National Front.

Golkar member and People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) deputy chairman Hajriyanto Thohari said on Friday that the coalition should be "designed to be a more permanent coalition, such as Malaysia's Barisan Nasional [National Front]."

Malaysia's National Front is a political coalition made up of the country's three largest parties, led by the United Malays National Organization, the largest political faction. It is essentially an authoritarian coalition that has ruled the country continuously since independence.

Hajriyanto said the ruling coalition, which consists of six parties and was created shortly after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won his second term in office last year, does not have a substantial format as an organization yet.

It has recently established a joint secretariat with Yudhoyono as the head and Golkar leader Aburizal Bakrie as its managing chairman, but senior political figures in the body have taken pains to maintain that it would only be tasked with coordinating meetings among members to discuss and resolve disputes, such as the very public rift over the controversial Bank Century bailout that has shaken the coailtion's foundations.

Three of the six parties – Golkar, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the United Development Party (PPP) defied the Democrats and voted in the House of Representatives to find the Rp 6.7 trillion ($723.6 million) Century rescue illegal.

In a systematically organized and legalized coalition, Hajriyanto said, each party would have their respective roles and benefits.

"Not only job descriptions, but also what will they get as the result, the political portions they will receive. It should be set very clearly," he said.

"If the secretariat is only established like this, without a substantial format, then it's only a political maneuver." With a solid foundation, the coalition can withstand the test of time, Hajriyanto said.

National Awakening Party (PKB) official M Hanif Dhakiri said that Malaysian and German models of coalitions were good examples to take as models.

"Why don't we design a better coalition that could survive for, say, 40 years? The more solid the coalition, the better opportunity for people to live more prosperously," he said, adding that was the reason PKB was sticking with the coalition.

"A strong coalition need not be totalitarian at all," he added. "The government and the opposition are competing to set the best policies for the people."

Some opposition figures and political observers expressed concerns over the suggestion, while others dismissed it as impossible.

"The problem is, who will benefit from it?" said Eva Kusuma Sundari, of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

"Is it just the coalition secretariat or the people in general? In Germany, there are strict agreements on what the coalition should do after the election, so it's not for individual interests, while this is only a transaction between Aburizal Bakrie and the president."

She predicted that the coalition would not last, especially when members do not have the same agenda and opinions on major issues.

Constitutional law expert Refly Harun said he thought the coalition secretariat would not even last until 2014. He said it is difficult to form a formal body such as Malaysia's National Front because Indonesia's system is presidential.

"Malaysia is running under a parliamentary system, and the National Front works from the low level, while here the coalition is held in the elite level," he said. "It's just for strategic reasons and a short time."

Refly said that when it comes to the 2014 election, the secretariat will split apart because the big parties would not want to be cast in the role of a junior partner in the group.

State administration expert, Irman Putra Sidin, said that if the secretariat were maintained it would be dangerous to Indonesian democracy. He added that it was likely the secretariat would end up dividing the House into two – the non-government and government factions.

Political temperature rising as Democrats open congress

Jakarta Globe - May 22, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The Democratic Party congress began on Friday as tensions grew between rival can didates for the chairmanship, with both Anas Urbaningrum and Andi Mallarangeng claiming to have the bulk of regional support to lead the president's party.

Speaking at a news conference at conference venue Bumi Parahyangan Housing Complex in Padalarang, West Java, Anas slammed the idea that the chairman should be elected by acclamation, an idea aired by Andi's camp.

"Acclamation is a method used when there is only one candidate," Anas said, "so when there is more than one, we must be brave enough to have a vote."

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono opened the congress on Friday night before an audience that included Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie and Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa, who is also chairman of the National Mandate Party (PAN). Speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Taufik Kiemas, from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), was also present.

During the opening, Yudhoyono called for greater cooperation and harmony among the country's political forces – and also within the party he founded. "A brighter future does not fall down from the sky," the president said. "If we want to move forward, then we must be one in working together."

Yudhoyono warned the 1,200 participants at the congress to keep their emotions in check during the deliberations for the chairmanship.

"I want all cadres to maintain the dignity of our party," he said. "Not matter how tough the competition is, do not cross the line. Stay away from money politics and violence. We must balance competition with cooperation," he added.

The three men seeking to lead the party – House of Representatives Speaker Marzuki Alie is the third – will settle the race this weekend during a meeting that will take place mostly behind closed doors after a ruling by the party steering committee banned the public and media from deliberations.

There has also been a controversy with the proposed use of electronic voting during the congress, another idea pushed by Andi and disputed by Anas. "If e-voting is eventually used, then fairness must be guaranteed," Anas said. "There should be an independent team to audit the process."

There were also rumors floating about throughout the day that Yudhoyono summoned the two rivals and told Anas to take a step back so as to cool down the tension. Both candidates denied the rumors. "I was not summoned by the president," Andi said.

Meanwhile, Marzuki said that he was ready to confront anyone trying to keep him from the race for the party's top job.

There were scuffles outside the venue, where some delegates were barred from entering because they did not have the proper identification cards. Even Anas exchanged words with security personnel outside.

Sefnat Rumbewas, chairman of the regional Democratic Party branch office in Biak Numfor, Papua, said that he was forbidden entery because he could not produce his identity card. "The organizational committee, until now, has not given us the ID card," he said.

Marzuki said the strict rules for entry might have been a political move designed to keep his supporters from entering the congress venue.

"I will not stand for such unfairness," he said. Marzuki said that he had signed a political contract with representatives of 22 provincial boards and 282 district boards, who had all pledged to support his candidacy for chairman. "In the contract, we agreed we must help each other," he said.

The congress will on Saturday settle voting rules and other party issues, and then elect a new chairman on Sunday. Sitting Democratic Party chairman Hadi Utomo will formally hand over the baton to his successor after the vote.

Indonesia's ruthless politics dog Sri Mulyani to end

Jakarta Globe - May 21, 2010

Armando Siahaan, Irvan Tisnabudi & Anita Rachman – New Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo today begins the tall task of filling in the big shoes left by Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

Inaugurated by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Thursday at a ceremony in the State Palace, Agus, along with new Deputy Finance Minister Anny Ratnawati, has been given a daunting list of instructions, ranging from implementing a prudent fiscal policy to increasing the state income.

Yudhoyono sent a strong message of rebuke to his outgoing minister's political critics by reserving glowing praise for her.

Wishing her luck, he also asked Sri Mulyani to keep Indonesia firmly in mind in her new position as a managing director at the World Bank. "Fight for the world's interest, particularly that of the developing countries, including Indonesia," he said.

Yudhoyono said it was strong policy in 2008, when Sri Mulyani was already finance minister, that guided the economy through the financial crisis. But he praised her personally for her contribution.

"The state and the government recorded your perseverance and hard work. You have done a lot during normal times as well as crises," he said. "You should be grateful for having played an important and historic role." He added that not all people would remember the hard work one has done, but "believe me, God records it."

The warm praise the president had for her achievements, however, came in stark contrast to the cold reception she was accorded at the House of Representatives.

Fewer than one-fifth of the House's 560 lawmakers attended Sri Mulyani's last plenary hearing to present her fiscal policies. Many opposition legislators had already walked out by the time the minister, who had been investigated and attacked by the House for the better part of the past year over the 2008 Bank Century bailout, asked for their forgiveness for past differences.

"In today's meeting, I ask members to forgive, and please let me say goodbye," she said, to applause from those present. "With relief, hope, we walk along our own paths. We all work together for the nation."

Though Yudhoyono said a key reason that Agus and Anny were appointed was that they did not come from any political party but from a professional background, it was clear they should both be prepared for political warfare given Sri Mulyani's experience.

Agus indicated that he was ready for this. "If we assure our stakeholders and we communicate with them, while upholding our professionalism, we will find a solution," he said.

Sri Mulyani said his experience in running a bank as big and complex as PT Bank Mandiri showed leadership skills and integrity.

Moreover, she said Agus had implemented a number of reforms at the bank similar to those at the Finance Ministry. "I am optimistic that the continuation of the reform program will go well," she said, addressing worries that the reform drive she began, which had earned her several enemies, would be forgotten.

Agus said he would pursue tax fraud and evasion, but declined to answer directly when asked by reporters about the tax probe into companies owned by businessman-cum-politician Aburizal Bakrie, whose rocky relations with Sri Mulyani were no secret.

The president's choice for Sri Mulyani's successor had been keenly awaited, given speculation that politics had prompted the former finance minister to leave.

One of the strong contenders for the post, Anggito Abimanyu, on Thursday resigned after being replaced as deputy finance minister by Anny. He was officially named to that post by Yudhoyono last year, but was never officially inaugurated.

Finance minister pick wins support

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Armando Siahaan, Faisal Maliki Baskoro & Irvan Tisnabudi – In a move seen as trying to please political and economic circles, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Wednesday night named veteran banker Agus Martowardojo as the new finance minister and Anny Ratnawati, a senior finance official, as his deputy.

"I perceive these two figures as competent to work as the finance minister and the deputy minister. They have capacity and integrity," the president said, announcing the decision at his private residence in Cikeas, Bogor.

He said both had the experience, knowledge and exposure, domestically and internationally, to succeed in their new positions.

Agus, with no political background, is most notably credited with revitalizing the almost-bankrupt PT Bank Permata into a stable performer during his time as president director of the private bank from 2003 to 2005.

He has since headed the nation's largest lender, PT Bank Mandiri, turning it into one of the most profitable banks in Indonesia, raising its net profit from Rp 603 billion ($60 million) in 2005 to Rp 5.31 trillion in 2008.

Anny is currently the Ministry of Finance's director general of budgeting.

The appointments had been hotly anticipated after outgoing Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati's controversial exit amid a wave of political turbulence seen by many as a result of her strong reform drive.

Businesspeople and experts aired broad confidence in Agus's abilities. Political analysts said they believed his appointment would reduce the hostility between the government and lawmakers, which came to a head with the attacks on Sri Mulyani and Vice President Boediono during the House's investigation into the PT Bank Century bailout.

Yunarto Wijaya, a political analyst from Charta Politika, said Agus's appointment would improve communication between the Finance Ministry and politicians, while Anny's presence would be a reminder that Sri Mulyani's reforms would go on.

But Burhanuddin Muhtadi, an analyst from the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), said Agus would not necessarily be free from political pressure. The House rejected his nomination for central bank governor in 2008. Agus and Anny will be sworn in today at the State Palace.

Politicians had mostly kept out of the way, saying the appointments were solely the president's prerogative.

Tjahjo Kumolo, a senior member of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said the party would not question the choices. "It will be the market that will judge," he said.

Earlier, Sri Mulyani said in a speech to alumni of the University of Indonesia that her successor should improve the ministry's performance. She advised the new minister to train officials to be independent. "The more dependence the Finance Ministry has on me, the more dangerous it is for the institution," she said. "I tried my best so officials could decide on things based on their conscience, instead of just following directions from me."

Sri Mulyani said she was confident reform would continue. "There are still many bureaucratic officials with good integrity, so I'm still confident in the reform efforts," she said.

Finance minister choice is seen as politically astute

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Armando Siahaan – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's choices for finance minister and his deputy reflected a good combination of the best political options available, analysts said on Wednesday.

Yudhoyono named banker Agus Martowardojo as finance minister and promoted Anny Ratnawati from director general of budgeting to deputy minister. "President Yudhoyono is showing the public that the replacement of [outgoing Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati] is not dictated by anyone," said Burhanuddin Muhtadi, a political analyst with the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI).

Both Agus and Anny came from nonpartisan backgrounds and have track records of political independence, he added.

Yunarto Wijaya, a political observer for Charta Politika, said the newly appointed duo was a good combination that could neutralize the heat between the government, the politicians.

Agus, he said, had the ability to reduce the hostility between the ministry and the lawmakers, arguing that he had a more flexible political stance than Sri Mulyani, who was seen as more "rigid and uncompromising."

Burhanuddin also said Agus carried less political baggage than other candidates such as Darmin Nasution and Anggito Abimanyu. During his time as the director general of taxation, Darmin was involved in a number of tax cases of companies linked with elites of political parties such as Golkar's Aburizal Bakrie. Appointing Anggito, who is seen to be favored by Golkar, could have been seen as compliance to a political interest, Burhanuddin said.

On the other hand, Anny, though seen also as favored by Golkar, served under Sri Mulyani and could present an image that the president is committed to continuing Sri Mulyani's reform drive, Yunarto said. "The president is under public scrutiny over whether he will follow Sri Mulyani's footsteps," he said.

However, Burhanuddin said Agus's appointment could invite political conflict in the future, as he has a history with political parties. Agus was rejected by the House of Representatives a number of times as a candidate for governor of Bank Indonesia; as the president director of PT Bank Mandiri, he conflicted with politically linked parties; and Agus was one of those who supported the state-funded bailout of Bank Century, Burhanuddin said.

Both analysts said the short-term barometer for Agus's political independence is whether he can follow Sri Mulyani's strong fight against tax evasion. Burhanuddin said: "This is the ultimate test case, will President Yudhoyono and Agus show the country that they are above business and political powers?"

But Yunarto said Yudhoyono expected Golkar would not put any more political pressure on the new finance minister, as he has given the party "enough political compensations."

House fires another salvo at tax office

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Faisal Maliki Baskoro, Irvan Tisnabudi & Armando Siahaan – Lawmakers on Wednesday turned up the pressure on the tax office, encouraging companies to take legal action it they felt they had been treated unfairly during a tax investigation.

Edison Betaubun, a member of the House of Representatives' Commission XI for finance, was the latest Golkar Party lawmaker to take aim at the Directorate General of Taxation, saying there were indications of "manipulation" by tax officials.

"If you keep trying to please the tax office, it will only cause you to suffer more losses," he said at a hearing with firms allegedly involved in tax scandals: Wilmar International, PT Pertama Hijau Sawit, PT Asian Agri and PT Musim Mas.

Singapore-based Wilmar, the world's biggest palm oil trader and the latest company to be dragged into the increasing list of scandals plaguing the tax office, saw its shares plunge by 7 percent on Wednesday – the most in 17 months – following accusations of tax fraud by Golkar lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo on Tuesday.

Bambang said the House was looking into an internal tax office report that reportedly said the company received "questionable" value-added tax rebates of Rp 800 billion ($88 million) in 2007 and Rp 900 billion in 2008, and was expecting Rp 1.9 trillion for 2009.

He also said the report indicated Wilmar had colluded with high- ranking tax officials – Mochamad Tjiptarjo, the new director general of taxation, and Pontas Pane, the interim director of intelligence and investigation at the tax office – to manipulate financial statements.

Wilmar has denied the allegations, stating that it "was fully confident that its subsidiaries are and have at all times been in full compliance will all relevant Indonesian value-added tax laws."

Pontas also denied the collusion claims, but did not comment on the existence of the internal report. He did confirm, however, that the tax office was currently looking into some irregularities in Wilmar's tax documents, but declined to elaborate.

At the House hearing on Wednesday, Edison asked Hendri Saksti, president director of PT Wilmar Indonesia, if the company had ever been the subject of a tax investigation. Hendri replied that the tax office had only conducted what it described as routine audits.

"The only problem we're dealing with right now is that the government has yet to pay our restitution, but we think that this is fair because of a breakdown in communication," Hendri said.

The statements come just a day after Commission XI lawmakers called for the revision of the tax law, which they said gave the tax office too much power.

Arif Budimanta, a lawmaker from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and a member of Commission XI, said on Tuesday that some tax officials had a conflict of interest by holding positions in both the directorate and the tax court.

A working committee within House Commission III, which oversees legal affairs, has been investigating the tax office since the scandal involving tax officer Gayus Tambunan broke in March, revealing a so-called tax mafia operating within the office.

Yunarto Wijaya, a political analyst from Charta Politika, said the legislators could be attacking the credibility of the tax office because it has been investigating allegations of fraud by companies owned by Golkar chairman Aburizal Bakrie.

On the other hand, he said it could also be a political maneuver by Golkar to repair its image after the public feud between Aburizal and outgoing Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati that portrayed the former in a negative light.

Opposition acknowledges long odds in fight to impeach Boediono

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Ismira Lutfia – Crumbling support among coalition parties to invoke the legislative right to express an opinion on the PT Bank Century bailout has opposition parties acknowledging it will be an uphill battle, even as they claim to have enough support to take it to a vote.

Syarifuddin Sudding, secretary of the People's Conscience Party (Hanura), said on Wednesday that while he was disappointed with the announcement by the coalition secretariat that it would leave the pursuit of the right to express an opinion up to individual parties, he hoped the groundwork laid so far would not go to waste.

"We hope the coalition parties consider how hard the House worked in probing the case, and how much taxpayer money and legislators' time will have been wasted if we don't invoke the right," he said.

Sudding claimed 160 lawmakers had already signed the petition to invoke the right, which could pave the way to the possible impeachment of Vice President Boediono, the central bank governor at the time of the Rp 6.7 trillion ($737 million) bailout.

Because this represents more than a quarter of the House's 560 legislators, he went on, the issue could be put to a vote. "The problem is, the numbers are against us."

The ruling Democratic Party has 148 seats, or 26 percent of the House, and because the right to express an opinion would require support from 75 percent of the plenary, the party could scupper the vote on its own.

The six-party ruling coalition, controls more than three-quarters of House seats.

Ahmad Muzani, secretary general of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), criticized the coalition secretariat for its "authoritarian approach" of weakening legislators' commitment to pursuing the Century case.

"They've closed the book on Century," he said. "Diponegoro 43 [the address of the secretariat] has become the de facto legislature where all the decisions are now made."

Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P) lawmaker Pramono Anung said the decisions made by the coalition secretariat should not infringe on the workings of the House.

"An individual legislator's rights are just that – individual," he said. Pramono urged all parties at the House not to coerce their legislators into choosing one stance or another in the right to express an opinion. "It'd be even more unacceptable if the parties punished those legislators who have already signed the petition."

The National Awakening Party (PKB) and the United Development Party (PPP) have both threatened to do this, while the Golkar Party said it would prohibit any more of its legislators from signing.

Golkar lawmaker Bambang Susatyo, leading the charge on the issue, said: "We'll keep moving on."

Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani takes parting shot

The Australian - May 19, 2010

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta – Indonesia's departing Finance Minister has taken a sharp swipe at the forces she believes made her position untenable, describing them as rapacious and "just like the New Order" of the late dictator Suharto.

Sri Mulyani Indrawati's appointment as a Washington-based managing director at the World Bank shook Indonesian politics when it was announced a fortnight ago.

Dr Indrawati, widely regarded as incorruptible and the key architect of the reform process that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono hopes will be the legacy of his leadership, had since refused to explain the reasons for her resignation as minister.

However at a forum entitled Public Policy and Ethics, attended by the cream of Indonesia's progressive and intellectual elite, the US-educated economist let fly at forces which she said were involved in politics purely for personal gain.

Although she did not mention by name businessman Aburizal Bakrie, the chairman of junior coalition partner the Golkar party and the person appointed manager of coalition business within a day of Dr Indrawati's resignation, her reference to him was too pointed to miss.

"You yourselves can see, when government officials with business backgrounds, even though they say they have put aside all their businesses, but everyone knows that their siblings, their children, who knows who else from their families, are still running the firms," she said.

The reference was clearly intended to be to Mr Bakrie, whose family business Bumi Resources is the giant of the Indonesian stock exchange.

Mr Bakrie was also coordinating minister for the economy, and then minister for people's welfare, in the first Yudhoyono government between 2004 and 2009, before retiring from representative politics to seize control of Golkar in a party room vote last year.

She also insisted that her departure from Dr Yudhoyono's government was not a defeat, despite Mr Bakrie and the Golkar party in the parliament having pursued her for the past year over the controversial 6.7 trillion rupiah Bank Century bailout.

She and current Vice President Boediono – who at the time was central bank governor – authorised that bailout whilst Dr Yudhoyono was out of the country in 2008.

A parliamentary vote late last year held the pair should be investigated for the decision – despite there being no convincing evidence presented, during a drawn-out house committee inquiry, of any criminal wrongdoing.

But Dr Indrawati insisted her move out of Dr Yudhoyono's administration and onto the world stage in Washington was a victory, because no one had been able to "dictate" what she should do, "and this includes those who wished I wasn't here".

"So long as I did not abandon the truth, so long as I did not betray my conscience, and so long as I respected my values and my dignity, then I won," she said.

Dr Indrawati, who insisted that despite not being a politician she "understood politics" (she was appointed by Dr Yudhoyono in part due to her lack of political party affiliation and her strength as a technocrat) described the situation from which she had withdrawn as being like an intolerable "marriage of interests".

The reference was to Dr Yudhoyono's strategic alliance with Mr Bakrie, as well as with the other Suharto-era forces that have increasingly asserted their crony-style power.

"There are those who have described it as a cartel, but I prefer to see it as a marriage – a same-sex marriage," she explained, to great laughter from the audience, before going on to explain she was referring to the overwhelming number of men controlling Indonesian politics.

Sri Mulyani: I won my battle

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

Irvan Tisnabudi – With Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati's term close to an end, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday denied that her move to become managing director of the World Bank was the result of a political deal.

Separately on Tuesday, Sri Mulyani called her departure a victory and said she could "not afford" to be part of a new political realignment.

"No one pressured me," Yudhoyono said during an official visit to Kuala Lumpur. "No one should be allowed to pressure me, because the task of appointing or releasing a minister is the president's prerogative. The process is transparent."

The president ridiculed the idea floated in some quarters that he had engineered Sri Mulyani's high-level appointment as a way out of the stand-off between her and lawmakers, many from among his own coalition partners, over the 2008 Bank Century bailout.

He promised that a successor with "integrity and capability" would be named "in a couple of days."

Meanwhile, in a public lecture in Jakarta, Sri Mulyani said her departure was a personal victory over opponents of reform.

"There are several parties saying that I'm running away, or that I have lost the battle," she said in a lecture billed as a talk on ethics and public policy. "I have won... because they were not able to dictate to me, and I have not betrayed my pride and conscience."

In her strongest remarks since the announcement of her resignation two weeks ago, she stopped short of naming her opponents but made it clear that the political battle that began late last year when the Golkar Party led a House investigation into the Century affair had resulted in an uncomfortable reality.

"I am not a politician, but I understand politics," she told a packed ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Pacific Place. "There has been a marriage of two political sides and it will not uphold the public's needs," she said in an apparent reference to the fallout from the Bank Century case and recent moves to bring Golkar closer to the president's ruling coalition. "I cannot afford to be part of it."

With speculation rising that a new coalition joint secretariat with Golkar head Aburizal Bakrie as managing chairman is part of a political realignment made possible by Sri Mulyani's resignation, Yudhoyono seemed eager to calm fears that politics would guide the choice of a new finance minister.

The new finance chief must "work as hard as Sri Mulyani has over the last five years," Yudhoyono said. "The candidate I have in mind is well qualified to deal with fiscal policy, continue the reforms of the tax and customs offices, and enhance the accountability of state finances."

Also on Tuesday, Golkar lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo, a fierce Sri Mulyani critic, said that House of Representatives Commission III, which handles financial affairs, was planning to summon Darmin Nasution, the acting Bank Indonesia governor and a leading reformist candidate for finance minister, over a case of alleged tax fraud involving agribusiness giant Wilmar International Limited.

Bambang also said the House would probe officials from the Tax Directorate over the case. The directorate has been investigating several of Bakrie's companies for months and Sri Mulyani has said that the House's Century probe was initiated by Bakrie in retaliation for reforms she instituted in the ministry.

Wilmar denied Bambang's allegations in a strongly worded statement.

In her remarks, Sri Mulyani remained combative to the end. "We do some good in this country for the people, but we end up being frustrated. This has been evident ever since the days of President Suharto," she ended, to audience cheers and a standing ovation. [Additional reporting by Antara, Reuters.]

Regional elections

Woman, independent hopefuls beg to differ

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2010

ID Nugroho, Surabaya – Five candidates in Surabaya's upcoming mayoral election participated in the first of a planned series of debates on Tuesday, the first campaign day leading up the June 2 poll.

The debate audience responded most favorably to Tri Rismaharini, head of Surabaya's planning agency – and the only woman candidate – and independent candidate Fitradjaya Purnamain. The other candidates – Bagio F. Sutadi, Fandi Utomo and Arif Afandi – were not as well regarded by the crowd.

If elected, Risma would be the first woman mayor of East Java's capital city. "I may be the only female candidate, but I'm not afraid of the job," she told The Jakarta Post after the debate.

Risma is no political newcomer. As head of Surabaya's park agency, she entered the spotlight after she created more parks in the city, increased city revenues and implemented E-proc, Surabaya's online tender management system. "I have shown that I can do the job," she said.

Risma's nomination is supported by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

Fitradjaya, a former activist and an independent candidate nominated by local NGOs, made several proposals that received large applause from the audience.

"There is only one way to reduce traffic jams in Surabaya," Fitradjaya said. "It is by promoting public transport and banning cars with 'non-L' (license plate) numbers from entering the city." he added. A "non-L" license plate number indicates a vehicle licensed outside Surabaya.

Fitradjaya also suggested that Surabaya voters accept money offered by election candidates, but vote for him in the elections.

Fitradjaya, a graduate of the November 10 Institute of Technology (ITS) in Surabaya, said that Yogyakarta Sultan Hamengkubowono X supported his candidacy.

He said that he was presenting "an honest political style", and that people were tired of politics-as-usual. "That's why I chose to run as independent candidate. People support honesty in politics," he said.

Risma and Fitradjaya did not impress the debate's moderators, Hotman Siahaan from Airlangga University and Pingky Saptandari, an expert from the Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry.

Neither Fitra nor Risma proved to the people of Surabaya that they could solve the city's numerous problems, said the moderators.

Hotman described Fitradjaya's comments as "rhetorical", and said that the independent candidate should offer real solutions in the next debates. "Problems cannot be solved with rhetoric. It's difficult to understand," Hotman said.

Pingky said that Risma did not discuss the problems of women and children in the debate. "When the Dolly red light district was discussed, Risma could have raised the issue of gender," Pingky said, "but she did not."

None of the five candidates discussed gender-related problems, she added. "Let's hope they do better in the next debate."

Social security & unemployment

Social Security Law still faces a string of challenges

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2010

Jakarta – The 2004 Social Security Law remains dead in the water pending the passage of the Social Insurance Management Agency (BPJS) bill, and the issuance of supportive regulations on periodic healthcare assistance and health insurance.

"Right now, we are waiting for the passage of the BPJS bill," Bambang Purwoko of the National Social Security Council said during a oneday seminar on the social security scheme at the Islamic University Syarif Hidayatullah in Jakarta.

The Social Insurance Management Agency (BPJS) bill is one of the keys to the full implementation of the 2004 Social Security Law.

Bambang added that, once passed, the Social Insurance Management Agency law would facilitate the implementation of the Social Security Law within the existing social insurance management agencies, such as Jamsostek (insurance for workers), Taspen (pension funds), Asabri (social insurance for the Indonesian Military) and Askes (health insurance mostly for civil servants).

"We do not want to throw out any of the previous laws," Bambang said. He added that the harmonization could only be once the House passed the Social Insurance Management Agency bill. "Harmonization is the adjustment of the law on the social insurance management agencies laws to bring them into line with the 2004 law," he said.

"According to the agencies, they have already been implementing the Social Security Law, but are still limited liability companies, whereas, to fully function within the law, they should be legal bodies that do not have limitations in serving the public," he added.

Harmonization, as a part of the implementation of the 2004 law, poses other challenges that already have legal basis. For example, Taspen was established under the pension scheme for civil servants that was regulated under a law in 1969 and some other laws and government regulations.

"So, one way is by letting the civil servants who were included within the previous system continue the program, while the new system can be applied by civil servant candidates as well," he added.

There are a few more regulations that have to be formulated relating to sanctions against companies who refuse to obey the law, pensions, workplace accidents and insurance.

The implementation of the 2004 Social Security Law was one of the main reasons for demonstrations organized by the Action Committee for Social Security on May 1 in commemoration of World Labor Day.

Around 50,000 people from labor unions, NGOs, student groups and mass organizations demonstrated in Jakarta alone. The Action Committee for Social Security said they wanted to raise awareness among all parties that the social security scheme was not only useful for laborers, but for all elements of society.

The government so far only provides insurance schemes for poor people and civil servants. The social insurance management agency bill is one of the keys to the full implementation of the 2004 Social Security Law.

Freedom of expression & press

Journalists plan local 'wikileaks' to escape big media censorship

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Anita Rachman – Seeking a media outlet free of the chains of corporate ownership, a group of journalists is planning to develop a Web site that will carry stories conventional news organizations dare not touch.

Wahyu Dhyatmika, chairman of the Jakarta chapter of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), said he hoped the site could provide an alternative outlet for journalists to post sensitive documents or evidence deemed too "dangerous" to be published in their own media.

"In short, it would be similar to WikiLeaks," he told the Jakarta Globe on Thursday, referring to the Sweden-based organization that publishes sensitive material and protects the anonymity of its sources. "We hope that in the future, all Indonesian journalists can engage and really benefit from this Web site and that will eventually strengthen our independent journalism."

The Web site, which AJI Jakarta plans to launch in early August to coincide with its anniversary, is supported by the group's chapters in Denpasar, Semarang, Surabaya, Malang and Pekanbaru.

Wahyu and 17 other AJI members recently completed a three-week course at the Radio Netherlands Training Center on how new media can support independent journalism.

He said that although Indonesia's media had enjoyed 12 years of relative freedom since President Suharto stepped down on May 21, 1998, it did not mean that the threat was gone.

AJI Jakarta sees editorial interference by media owners as the new threat to press freedom. In a discussion the group organized in March, media analyst Ignatius Haryanto said "media conglomerate owners have become a threat because they now exercise the control that the government had in the old days."

The media industry grew exponentially after 1998 when the government gave up its tight control through press permits and content reviews. There are now more than 2,000 radio stations, 1,000 print publications (magazines, tabloids and newspapers), 115 television stations and a growing number of online news portals. However, about 10 prominent business groups control the majority.

Wahyu, who is also a journalist at Tempo weekly magazine, said part of the problem was that most owners lacked a basic understanding of press freedoms.

"It goes for all media conglomerates across the country, which are getting even bigger now," he said. "News stories produced by journalists but censored by [media] owners are nothing new anymore."

And the fact that several of the country's big media organizations were owned by prominent businessmen and political figures, put journalists in an even more difficult position, Wahyu said.

Some journalists, he said, had reported that they were forced by management not to write certain stories or not to use certain sources. "Thus, we are trying to find a way to solve the problem and we think that new media could actually provide us a platform on this matter," Wahyu said.

Ignatius told the Globe on Thursday that while he supported the idea, journalists still risked losing their jobs for publishing censored stories. "AJI, as an organization, should fully support every journalist who submits their stories to this Web site," he said, adding that contributors, for example, should be able to post content anonymously.

Wahyu acknowledged that implementing the project would be difficult – including protecting journalists and checking the facts of the stories submitted.

In line with that, he said it was also important to push the government to establish clear regulations on media ownership, and enforce laws that specifically protected newsrooms from internal and external interference.

On Wednesday, Minister of Communication and Information Technology Tifatul Sembiring said that despite the government's intention to revive the controversial draft regulation on Internet and multimedia content, it would not include provisions restricting press freedoms.

"I guarantee that the word 'press' will not even be in it," he said. "But I can tell you, we will go ahead with this draft regulation."

[Additional reporting by Ismira Lutfia.]

Police/law enforcement

NGOs fear more of the same at AGO

Jakarta Globe - May 20, 2010

Nivell Rayda – Muhammad Amari, who was recently appointed deputy attorney general for special crimes, was criticized on Wednesday by antigraft groups after he promised to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, who was perceived as soft on crime.

Indonesia Corruption Watch expressed its disappointment over Amari's appointment after he promised not to change the system set up by Marwan Effendy, who Amari is replacing.

"By saying that he will just do what [Marwan] has done, it's almost a given that major corruption cases will be handled with little or no transparency at all," ICW deputy chairman Emerson Yuntho said.

Marwan, who was heavily criticized for his handling of corruption cases, has been moved to the Attorney General Office's internal supervision division.

"All I have to do is to carry on the work of my predecessor. The system is in place, and it is running smoothly," said Amari, who was previously the AGO's deputy for intelligence.

Amari is also a former head of the West Java Prosecutor's Office and the West Nusa Tenggara Prosecutor's Office.

"I've handled a lot of corruption cases as well as general ones," he said. "I don't expect to see anything new in my new assignment."

According to the ICW, proceedings for 40 major corruption cases were halted during Marwan's tenure.

"There is an indication that these cases were not handled properly," Emerson said. "Worse, no acceptable reasons were given for the AGO's decision to stop investigating them. "Despite having a new official, we fear that more of these cases will not be pursued."

According to a recent survey by Transparency International Indonesia, the AGO ranks as one of the most corrupt government institutions in the country

Teten Masduki, secretary general of Transparency International Indonesia, said Amari needed to overhaul of the AGO's special crimes division given its poor reputation.

"Amari said the current system in place is ideal? Nothing could be further from the truth," Teten said, citing the way prosecutors handled the highly publicized case of former tax official Gayus Tambunan.

Gayus was originally charged with accepting bribes from private companies and individuals in exchange for favorable decisions at the tax tribunal.

Allegations surfaced that prosecutors and the National Police conspired to build a weaker case against Gayus, including dropping the more serious charges and instead charging the tax official with the relatively minor offense of embezzlement.

According to the Judicial Mafia Eradication Task Force, officials from the AGO, the police and the Tangerang District Court all received bribes from Gayus.

The judge who presided over Gayus's case was immediately suspended and later arrested on charges of corruption, as were two mid-ranking police officers.

Twelve AGO officials, including senior prosecutors Cyrus Sinaga and Poltak Sitorus, only received administrative penalties.

"It is important for the new deputy on special crimes not only to reopen old corruption cases, but also to impose stricter sanctions on those who have been linked to bribery, including prosecutors," Teten said.

AGO moves five deputies around, though not out

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

The Attorney General's Office on Tuesday rotated five deputies, in a move seen as another bid to sweep controversial officials under the rug.

AGO spokesman Didiek Darmanto said Marwan Effendy, the current deputy attorney general for special crimes, had been appointed the new deputy for internal supervision, replacing Hamzah Tadja, who takes up the mantle of deputy for general crimes.

Didiek said the order for the rotation had been signed by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and would take effect on May 27.

Marwan, whose main job deals with corruption cases, has been widely panned for allowing rampant graft within his own ranks and for dropping major cases. Indonesia Corruption Watch has listed 60 such cases dropped by the AGO's special crimes unit since Marwan took the reins in 2008.

The AGO has also come under intense scrutiny for not punishing the prosecutors who tried rogue tax official Gayus Tambunan on lesser charges of embezzlement while dropping the more serious charges of money-laundering and corruption.

Gayus was acquitted in March, but the fallout from the case has dragged in the presiding judge and investigating police officers on suspicion of taking bribes.

However, the 12 prosecutors involved in the case got off lightly, with sanctions ranging from demotion to suspension of promotion.

Replacing Marwan as deputy for special crimes will be M Amari, the current deputy for intelligence. Amari has also drawn his share of criticism from rights groups, most notably for banning several books on the grounds that they were "harmful to public order."

Amari, in turn, will be replaced by Edwin Pamimpin Situmorang, the current deputy for civil and state administrative affairs. Edwin, meanwhile, will be replaced by Kamal Sofyan Nasution, the deputy for general crimes.

ICW deputy chairman Emerson Yuntho said any meaningful reshuffle should begin with Attorney General Hendarman Supandji being replaced.

"He has failed to reform his office or punish AGO officials linked to case-brokering and bribery," he told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday.

"He has also failed to mete out harsh punishment in the wake of the Gayus scandal. The measures taken by the AGO will in no way serve as a deterrent against corruption," Emerson added.

In testimony this month before the House of Representatives' Commission III overseeing legal affairs, Hendarman owned up to several failures in his job, saying, "I never said my leadership has been successful."

His pitted track record began in 2008, when the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) arrested senior prosecutor Urip Tri Gunawan for taking a $660,000 bribe from businesswoman Artalyta Suryani in exchange for dropping embezzlement charges against her business partner and fugitive tycoon Sjamsul Nursalim.

Sjamsul was being probed for siphoning off government liquidity support paid into his bank, PT Bank Dagang Negara Indonesia, to prop it up during the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.

Urip was later convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison, but three other prosecutors alleged to have conspired with him were merely transferred to different posts. Nivell Rayda

Analysis & opinion

Political cartel in the wake of Sri Mulyani's exit

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2010

B. Herry-Priyono, Jakarta – Unlike most accounts these days, this note is not a paean to Sri Mulyani Indrawati; neither is it a swan song for her departure. It is rather an acceptance of a brutal reality that a system based on corrupt public officials does not take kindly to one of its children who refuses to be corrupt. What is left in the wake is less a need for lamentation than a calculus on what lies ahead.

As is well known by now, what is left in the wake is a political cartel evasively called "The Coalition's Joint Secretariat", with the boss of the Golkar Party, Aburizal Bakrie, sitting as the executive chairman.

As expected, soon after the Joint Secretariat was made public, a chorus of denials was bombarded against our strong conviction that Sri Mulyani's exit is the price President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had to pay for a coalition deal with the Golkar boss.

It is a way of securing survival from the threats of various political exploits adroitly played through a game of votes in the legislature. They expect us to believe there is no such deal. Do you believe it?

I don't believe a single word. Not because I know the hard truth, but because I know that they have every reason not to set the truth in the open. That is part of the game and we should not join the rule of their game.

The fact that it is persuasion and not sheer violence that lies at the heart of democratic politics has a tragic implication: The true reason a politician adopts tactical moves is bound to be different from the reasons by which they publicly defend it.

That is why it is ludicrous to believe in the denial of the deal. The louder the denial, the more crystal clear the truth is that the deal has made up the heart of the matter.

Indeed, the silence on the concept of "deal" is not a sign of its absence but its presence.

Here comes the tragic importance of deceit in the raw brutality of politics. A regime in desperate need of stronger legitimacy has created its own cave-prison; i.e., since deceit has been adopted as an instrument to gain legitimacy, a series of further deceits will haunt the legitimacy problem of the same regime.

The regime will simply end up acquiring the disease it was trying to cure, and we are bound to see more lies as part and parcel of the coalition politics.

But let us give them the benefit of the doubt by assuming that out of lies a genuine coalition of reform could arise – depending on what the coalition was established for.

What is agonizing is that the reasons of its establishment can never be expected to come out from the claims made by the Joint Secretariat's PR people. Nor can it be taken from the apparently lofty words rehearsed by the President.

Do you then believe that the Joint Secretariat is established for the common good? Or that the secretariat is set up to initiate genuine reform of graft-ridden Indonesia?

I don't, and the reason is plain. Although the link between Sri Mulyani's exit and the Golkar boss's entry can never be publicly ascertained, it can easily be gauged from the fact that it was Sri Mulyani, and not other less reform-minded state officials, who had to make an exit.

The story of their political animosity is well known. But, why did Sri Mulyani's exit coincide with the Golkar boss's entry?

Even if the causal link between the two remains secretly intact, there is nothing to prevent us from seeing that the former was the effect of the latter. There is also no need to rehearse widely public knowledge that the former has been an itch and a nemesis to the latter's business interests.

Of course, the reason that triggers something needs to be kept distinct from the way the same thing will evolve. The reason that triggered Sri Mulyani's exit and the Golkar boss's entry is one thing, how the Joint Secretariat will evolve is quite another. But there is seldom a case in which an evolving state of affairs succeeds in shaking off the real causes as to why it happened in the first place. Such is the logic of the cave-prison in politics.

This is alarming for democratic politics in this country. It is a warning that the art of governing will again be emptied of a reform agenda, whose urgency has lately presented itself in the starkest form – of various public revelations about high-level graft besetting the National Police, the Tax Office, the Attorney General's Office, legal profession, colossal tax evasions by businesses, among others.

Such is the looming prospect that this Joint Secretariat brings. But these are politicians who like to believe that things will turn out well, especially when it involves the consequences of their own decisions and actions.

It can only be expected that they will then always dismiss or diminish any warning from others.

Then we are caught in a quandary. But suppose we are willing to take a risk by courting their claim – on the feeble grounds that a political game is not simply a matter of throwing the rascals out, as their exit will be replaced by other rascals just as bad as the initial ones.

Then suppose that we have to make a compromise. Since they hardly listen to anything that upsets their liking, and since they claim that the secretariat is established for something good, let us challenge them with a test case that cannot but be defined as self-evidently good. Here is the test case.

We demand that the coalition's Joint Secretariat solve the Lapindo mudflow tragedy in Sidoarjo, East Java, whose victims have been deprived of justice for so many years.

If their coalition politics succeeds in solving this human-caused tragedy – and politics is supposed to address this sort of tragedy befalling so many citizens – then perhaps the coalition's Joint Secretariat deserves our initial assent. Otherwise, it is simply an act of looting the future for the convenience of the present.

[The writer is a lecturer of the postgraduate program at the Driyarkara School of Philosophy, Jakarta.]

The Thinker: Papua behind bars

Jakarta Globe - May 19, 2010

In early May violence once again struck in Papua. This time the perpetrators were neither the security forces nor the armed resistance group the Free Papua Movement (OPM), but Abepura prison guards. They went on a rampage, and 18 prisoners escaped during the commotion. Afterward, Justice Minister Patrialis Akbar, promised a full-scale inquiry into the prison's management.

The riot appears to have been triggered by news that the prison's warden, Anthonius Ayorbaba, was being transferred to Sumatra. Human Rights Watch has long expressed concerns about Ayorbaba over abuses committed against prisoners by guards during his tenure.

On May 3, according to local media reports, several Abepura prison officers and Ayorbaba supporters attacked a ceremony welcoming the new warden, Liberthy Sitinjak. Jack Wanane, a civil servant in the Ministry of justice and Human Rights, hosted the ceremony. Hana Hiyokabi, a member of the Papuan People's Council and a distant relative of Ayorbaba's, slapped Wanane in the face. Hiyokabi was reportedly concerned about a non-Papuan taking over the job. Hiyokabi and others, including prison guards, pursued both Sitinjak and Nasaruddin Bunas, head of the ministry's Papua office, then destroyed property at the prison facilities.

Ayorbaba had been the most senior prison official in Abepura since August 2008, overseeing a litany of abuses. Less than a year after he assumed the post, HRW documented more than two dozen cases of beatings and physical abuse at Abepura. Back in June 2009, Bunas had defended Ayorbaba, denying our allegations of abuse.

For instance, a political prisoner, Ferdinand Pakage, lost an eye after a particularly severe beating by the prison's security chief and a guard in September 2008. Pakage's family tried to report the case to the Jayapura Police, but they demurred, telling the family to contact the Ministry of Law and Human Rights. The ministry took no serious disciplinary action. Herbert Toam, the guard responsible for the damage to Pakage's eye, did not work between October 2008 and March 2009, but he continued to draw his monthly salary, and he returned to work in April 2009.

This was just one of several beatings meted out to both political and ordinary prisoners. On May 11 last year, an Abepura guard beat a prisoner for possessing a mobile phone, causing severe bleeding from his left ear and partial hearing loss. Witnesses said the same guard beat two other prisoners who had used the mobile phone and forced one of them to put his hand into boiling water.

Last month, the Papuan office of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) conducted an unannounced visit to the prison and recommended that the government transfer Ayorbaba without delay. The commission confirmed that guards frequently beat prisoners and found that prison security was poor and that many prisoners had been able to escape.

Under Ayorbaba's tenure, prison authorities also refused to transfer Filep Karma, another political prisoner, who needed treatment available only in Jakarta for a severe bladder infection. Ayorbaba contended he didn't have the authority or funds to allow the transfer.

But simply transferring an abusive official and investigating this month's riot is insufficient. Ayorbaba should be suspended pending disciplinary action or prosecution. Ministry officials should open a formal, transparent investigation into all credible complaints of abuse raised by human rights groups and the families of prisoners, and take effective disciplinary action against Ayorbaba and all prison officials found to be responsible. Local groups should be able to conduct regular prison visits and talk with prisoners on a confidential basis.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should reconsider the tight restrictions that prevent foreign human rights monitors, journalists and diplomats from visiting Papua without prior approval. The government expelled the International Committee of the Red Cross from Papua in April 2008. It should invite the Red Cross to return and visit Abepura prison in accordance with its regulations.

As the recent riot shows, if state officials can commit abuses with impunity, this threatens not only the safety and well-being of detainees but also critically undermines public order. It will take a concerted effort from government officials and local stakeholders, as well as outside scrutiny, to remedy this dangerous situation. Indonesia cannot afford to wait a moment longer to begin that effort.

[Elaine Pearson is the acting director of the Asia Division at Human Rights Watch.]

Intolerance threatens to tear us apart

Jakarta Globe Editorial - May 18, 2010

Tolerance is the social glue that keeps us from degenerating into conflict. But over the past few years, intolerance has been creeping into our society with minority groups, claiming to speak for society at large, making demands on the rest of us.

The latest incident, in which some hard-line Islamic organizations in Bekasi, just east of Jakarta, demanded a statue in a private housing complex be destroyed because it was un- Islamic, reflects a dangerous development. The local authorities capitulated and have ordered its destruction. Coming on the heels of recent attacks on churches in Bandung, it indicates fissures in our society that, if not addressed, could lead to religious and ethnic conflict.

The statue in question, of three women carved in steel wearing traditional Sundanese clothing, should be viewed as a cultural statement reflecting the multi-cultural dimension of Indonesian society. Instead, Bekasi Mayor Muhtar Muhammad caved in to the demands of hard-line Muslim groups, who had vandalized the statue earlier, for the sake of avoiding conflict.

But this sends the wrong message and emboldens hard-line groups across the country. On Monday, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono warned against allowing certain groups to tear apart our social fabric and alter the nature of our democracy. In a democracy, every citizen has a right to express his or her views, but within the confines of the law.

The president explicitly said that Indonesia is not an Islamic state governed by Shariah law, and that pushing such an agenda is unacceptable. Yet we have Islamic groups pushing – if not forcing – their agendas at the expense of the rest of society.

Those who violate the law must be held accountable. Vandalism is the destruction of property, yet no action was taken against those who damaged the statue, which sits on private property.

If we are to prevent social conflict, we must not succumb to the demands of fringe minority groups. This is where the battle for the hearts and minds of all Indonesians is being fought, and if we do not stand up for our rights, extremism will take root.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar has appealed for calm and asked the people of Bekasi not to be provoked. He alluded to the fact that religious provocation could threaten social harmony.

Sociologist Ganda Upaya supported this view in noting that social problems arise when one group forces its agenda on other members of society.

Stemming growing intolerance will not be easy, but if it is not done, social harmony could be destroyed. In a pluralistic society such as Indonesia (whose state motto is "Unity in Diversity"), respecting differences is critical and should be emphasized in our schools and state institutions. Vandalism cannot be tolerated and must be condemned. No individual or group has the right to take the law into their own hands.

Indonesia's democracy still on shaky ground

Melbourne Age - May 18, 2010

Christen Broecker – "Democracy in Indonesia is irreversible and a daily fact of life," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told the World Movement for Democracy's annual assembly, in Jakarta this month.

To be sure, Indonesia's transition from authoritarianism to democracy, which began with Suharto's fall in 1998, has been remarkably successful. During Yudhoyono's March visit to Australia, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd proclaimed, "we welcome you now as a member of the family of democracies... a nation where freedom of the press is now exercised without constraint, without restraint and without fear of repression."

Yet despite progress in promoting democracy and the rule of law, a relatively free press and abundant news outlets, there are ominous signs that the foundations of democracy are not as sturdy as Jakarta would have the world believe. On a number of occasions in recent years, anti-corruption activists, human rights defenders, journalists, consumers, and private citizens alike have been subjected to criminal investigations, and even imprisonment, merely for engaging in the kind of conduct necessary for the proper functioning of a democratic society.

Indonesians face criminal defamation charges for "intentionally harming someone's honour or reputation", through speech or writing or "insulting" an authority or public body. As new research by Human Rights Watch reveals, these laws have been used by public officials or powerful individuals against their critics a number of times in recent years.

Take the case of two anti-corruption activists, Illian Deta Arta Sari and Emerson Yuntho. In a January 2009 news conference the pair described how a government audit revealed troubling discrepancies in the Office of the Attorney-General's budget. Officials could have responded to their statements by explaining the irregularity or simply denying that they had mishandled recovered funds. Instead, they filed a criminal complaint against Illian and Emerson with the police, accusing the activists of defamation.

Illian and Emerson were no strangers to criminal defamation charges. They, like many other anti-corruption and human rights activists in Indonesia, had faced such charges before, and had begun to consider it an unavoidable risk of their work. They were nevertheless relieved when the police initially declined to pursue the Attorney-General's claim against them.

Months passed. In October, their organisation, Indonesia Corruption Watch, called for the dismissal of senior police and prosecutorial officials after police arrested two members of Indonesia's Anti-Corruption Commission on trumped-up abuse-of- power charges. Only then did the police decide to investigate the 10-month-old criminal defamation complaint. The police have since backed off, but the case against the activists has not been closed.

Their experience is only the tip of the iceberg. Many other anti-corruption activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and ordinary citizens have found themselves the targets of criminal charges for defamation. For those who do not work for well-connected organisations as do Illian and Emerson, the charges can be terrifying and the risk of imprisonment can be very real.

In May 2009, Prita Mulyasari, a mother of two small children, was jailed for three weeks for simply writing a private email to friends complaining about the care she had received from doctors at a local hospital.

In 2008, a journalist, Bersihar Lubis, was convicted of "insulting a public official" after he wrote an opinion column that criticised the Attorney-General's decision to ban a high school history textbook. Lubis told Human Rights Watch, "At the time, I thought, where is democracy?"

Not everyone in Indonesia who airs critical facts or opinions ends up accused of a criminal offence. But the arbitrary enforcement of such laws, and even the mere threat of enforcement, has a damaging chilling effect on civil society, the media, and private citizens' willingness to express critical thoughts or opinions, especially online.

Indonesia's media may be free to report on most news, but when it comes to the most powerful people in society, publishers, editors, and journalists know that a negative report, even if true, could bring serious legal consequences. Such a climate of fear and self-censorship is toxic to the proper functioning of democracy, which depends upon vibrant public debate and official accountability.

International leaders with an interest in promoting democracy in Asia should press Yudhoyono to act on his claims that a new democratic order has come to stay. Yudhoyono should call for the repeal of laws that punish defamation with criminal rather than merely civil penalties. Such laws are archaic anti-democratic relics of a bygone, repressive era for which today's Indonesia has no use. And Yudhoyono should press public officials to stop treating activists, whistleblowers, journalists, and critics like criminals. That would be a true embodiment of the democratic principles he espouses.

[Christen Broecker is a New York University School of Law fellow for the Asia Division at Human Rights Watch. She is the author of Human Rights Watch's May 2010 report, Turning Critics into Criminals: The Human Rights Consequences of Criminal Defamation Law in Indonesia.]