State Secretary Sudi Silalahi on Tuesday slammed lawmakers for wrongly interpreting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's statement about his salary and for starting the 'Coins for President' movement. Sudi said Yudhoyono was offended by the movement.

"We have explained numerous times that Pak SBY has never asked for a salary raise. In fact, he was trying to motivate the soldiers. He was offered a raise many times but he refused so let's not prolong the issue," Sudi was quoted as saying by news portal Detik.com on Tuesday.

As the president's assistant, Sudi said he was also offended by the movement.

"I am very offended," he said, adding that Yudhoyono also shared a similar sentiment. "Everybody is [offended]. How could he not? He has never complained [about his salary]. I think we all have feelings," Sudi said.

On Jan. 21, Yudhoyono said that he had not had a salary increase since he was sworn into office in 2004 as part of a speech addressed to soldiers.

"This is the seventh year in which the president's salary hasn't been increased," Yudhoyono said, inviting laughter among senior members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) and National Police during a joint national leadership meeting.

Yudhoyono told the delegates that the government was committed to improving the welfare of security officials. "I want everyone to receive an increase that is deserving, accurate and fair," he told 500 delegates at the meeting.

Although it appears not to have been made as a complaint, the statement has sparked a mixed reaction – including the mischievous appearance of a "Coins for the President" collection box at the House of Representatives.

West Papua

Papua torture trial shows military progress: Experts

Jakarta Globe - February 3, 2011

Dessy Sagita & AFP – Although the sentences handed down to soldiers found guilty of torturing indigenous Papuans have been roundly criticized for being too light, observers are now saying the trial itself showed the military had improved in its handling of human rights cases.

Robert Scher, the top Pentagon official handling Southeast Asia, reiterated US concerns that the 10-month sentences given to three soldiers over the abuse in Papua were too lenient.

However, he added: "We do see that there was progress in the fact that this was a trial that was conducted quickly." He went on to praise the trial for being "open and transparent."

"This is not something that one could imagine happening just a few years ago," Scher, a deputy assistant secretary of defense, said at Washington think-tank the Heritage Foundation on Tuesday.

"I think there is still work to be done and clearly, as noted, we are concerned by the sentences." Scher added that the United States would raise the issue with the Indonesian government.

The torture incident caused international outrage last year when a video posted on YouTube showed soldiers burning the genitals of one man with a smoldering stick and threatening another man with a knife.

Indonesian human rights activists also acknowledged that, in the context of Indonesian military tradition, the trial showed that progress has been made.

"Previously, most violations conducted by Indonesian soldiers went unchecked, nothing was done to solve cases," said Ifdhal Kasim, chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) on Thursday.

"It seems the military has begun to learn the importance of taking legal action against soldiers who have committed violations," he said. But he stressed that recent progress was still not enough.

Haris Azhar, coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said that while the Indonesian military's effort to respond to the torture was laudable, it was not enough of an indication of substantial institutional change.

"They did respond which is positive, but then again they didn't respond using the proper mechanism, which is the civilian courts," he said.

Haris also questioned why the US military would praise their Indonesian counterparts. "It makes us wonder if there is a political motivation behind the comments," he said.

President Barack Obama's administration has put a priority on further developing relations with this nation. "Indonesia's a critically important country for us," Scher said, calling the archipelago an "emerging global player."

Verdict on violence in Papua unjust, says Kontras

Bintang Papua - February 3, 2011

Jayapura – Although the three members of the armed forces who were sentenced for acts of violence against civilians have accepted the verdict and are now serving their sentences in a military prison, some sources believe that the verdict is far from just.

The chairman of KontraS Papua, Johanis Maturbongs SH, is of the opinion that the sentence passed against the three soldiers at the military tribunal is far from just. The sentences of ten months for Sergeant Riski Irwanto, nine months for Private Yapson Agu and eight months for Private Thamrin Mahangiri were far too lenient. This punishment cannot be compared to the trauma suffered by the victims of their acts of violence.

Cases of this nature should be tried before a civil court or a human rights court as stipulated in the Special Autonomy Law.

"If such a case of human rights violations is heard before a military tribunal, the result is bound to be far from adequate," said Maturbongs, a law graduate from Cenderawasih University. He said that things like this have been happening for a long time, and with violations that are even worse than this one, but nothing is known about what has happened.

He also said that the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) in Papua should be far more active so as to ensure that such cases are read about in the public domain.

"Our friends in Komnas HAM in Papua have not been working to full capacity. They need to work far harder with regard to human rights violations which occur in Papua," he said.

"The same also applies to the legislature, which should do everything in its power to ensure that a human rights court is set up in Papua."

[Translated in full by TAPOL]

Papua torture trials show 'progress': US military

Associated Press - February 3, 2011

Mathew Pennington, Washington – The US military is concerned over the light jail sentences given to Indonesian troops caught on video torturing men in the restive eastern region of Papua but see the trial as a sign of "progress," a senior official said Tuesday.

Robert Scher, Defense Department deputy assistant secretary of state for South and Southeast Asia, also said the quick and "transparent" trial reflects Jakarta's progress in tackling rights abuses by its military forces.

The United States restored ties with Indonesian special forces last year in recognition of military reforms since the fall of dictator Suharto in 1998 and Jakarta's commitment to investigate and prosecute any future abuses. On Jan. 24, three Indonesian soldiers were sentenced for up to 10 months after a video emerged showing troops burning the genitals of a Papuan man and drawing a knife across another. They were charged with indiscipline, not torture.

Rights groups say the military tribunal was a sham and the light sentences throw doubt over Indonesia's commitment to reform.

By law, the United States must cease training for a foreign military unit if it has evidence the unit has committed gross rights violations, unless the country's government is taking effective measures to bring the individuals responsible to justice.

According to Human Rights Watch, four other soldiers from the same Indonesian battalion who were also captured on video in 2010 kicking and beating villagers in Papua were earlier sentenced to five to seven months. Their convictions are on appeal.

In both cases, the troops belong to the Indonesian Army Strategic Reserve Command, or Kostrad.

Scher described Indonesia as a "critically important country" and "emerging global player."

He was responding to questions after delivering a speech at Washington's Heritage Foundation think tank about stepped-up US engagement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Indonesia is a leading partner. Washington's renewed embrace of ASEAN is seen as a strategy for counteracting China's growing economic and military clout in east Asia.

"We do see that there was progress, that this was a trial that was conducted quickly," Scher said of the prosecutions of soldiers. "The trial was open and the sentences were handed down. This is not something that one could imagine happening just a few years ago."

"There's still a lot to be done. We are concerned by the sentences, and we are continuing to talk with the government in Indonesia about this case," he said, without elaborating.

The Defense Department said it currently has no specific engagement plan with Kostrad, but Kostrad personnel occasionally participate in peacekeeping-related exercises and routinely attend US Army professional military education courses.

A poorly armed Papuan separatist movement has battled for independence from Indonesia for almost 50 years. Rights groups say tens of thousands of people have died as a result of Indonesian military action there.

Indonesian army denies closure of Papua border security posts

Republika - February 2, 2011

Stevy Maradona – On 1 February 2011, Commander of XVII Military Area Command (Kodam XVII) Major General Erfi Triassunu vehemently denied that Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) Border Security Task Force posts along the border with Papua New Guinea (PNG) would be closed.

"The [border security] task force posts in Papua will remain, and no personnel will be withdrawn. Our task is to empower defence regions," he said.

Triassunu said the posts would be maintained due to the continued security threat in Papua posed by internal and external [actors], adding that a number of additional divisions would be deployed to counter these threats.

"The current focus of our security operations is the central highlands, because security disturbances are continuing to take place there," he said.

According to Triassunu, there are currently 94 TNI security posts along the PNG border, which is insufficient given that it spans around 800 kilometres.

[From BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific.]

PNG politician accuses government of doing Indonesia's dirty work

Radio New Zealand International - February 2, 2011

The governor of Papua New Guinea's National Capital District is accusing the government of using a security operation along the Papua border to do Indonesia's dirty work.

More than a hundred Papuans are said to have been arrested in Sunset Merona, a joint forces operation involving police, the defence force, immigration, customs and other government agencies on the Indonesian province's border.

The detainees are being investigated for links with the Papua liberation movement or OPM and while the authorities say they sympathise with the people being held, respect for Indonesia's sovereignty takes priority.

Powes Parkop, a long-standing advocate of Papua's independence, says it's obvious the Indonesian government has been pressuring PNG.

"Because they've just had the recently trans-border liaison meeting I think last month or just towards the end of the year and I think that's where the pressure came from, from the government of Indonesia. We cannot be seen to be doing the dirty work of the Indonesian government. The Indonesian government should recognise the problems in West Papua and deal with it seriously as a political issue."

Internet & social networking

Police warn of internet's dangers after online crime doubled in 2010

Jakarta Globe - February 5, 2011

Zaky Pawas – With the number of Internet users across the country continuing to rise rapidly, the Jakarta Police revealed the incidence of Internet-related crimes in the city last year had more than doubled.

Sr. Comr. Hermawan, speaking to journalists at a news conference on Friday, said the cyber crimes division recorded 242 Internet-related crimes in 2010 compared to the 117 cases reported the previous year.

The crimes, he said, ranged from scams to defraud people of money to soliciting prostitution and defamation. Online scams recorded the biggest increase last year, with 113 complaints lodged in 2010, up from 40 in 2009.

Police have found that scams were usually conducted via online shopping Web sites, through e-mails or social networking sites such as Facebook and online messaging services. Popular targets were online dating and classifieds sites.

The public has been asked to exercise caution when conducting online transactions and to thoroughly research which Web sites were fake or had bad reputations from other users.

"Don't trust people who are trawling dating Web sites claiming to be looking for partners. It could just be a cover to try to scam you out of your money," Hermawan said, adding that women and children were most often found the victims of online scams because "they are easily influenced psychologically."

Hermawan said police had also received a significant increase in reports about defamation, totaling 87 last year compared to 43 in 2009.

"Although it happens online, it can have a negative impact," he said. "People feel their reputations have been tarnished in front of a wider audience."

Online defamation is specifically dealt with in the 2008 Information and Electronic Transactions Law (ITE), which carries a punishment of up to six years in jail or a fine of up to Rp 1 billion ($110,000).

Meanwhile, no online prostitution rackets were uncovered by police in 2009, while two cases were recorded in 2010. "As for 2011, we have already received one report about prostitution being solicited online," Hermawan said, adding that police would continue to monitor online prostitution syndicates as well as trafficking rings operating on the Internet.

"These cases must be watched closely as the victims are usually women and children," he said.

Hermawan said as technology continued to develop and Internet access became more widely available, the number of Internet-related crimes would also increase.

As an example, he cited the growing popularity of Facebook, a social networking site that is used by more than 32 million Indonesians. "It has even reached people in small villages," he said.

Hermawan said that while he could understand people wanting to make new friends through the site, he warned that not everybody could be trusted. "There have been cases of teenagers running away with people that they met through Facebook," he said.

The police are planning to release a list of Web sites found to be operating scams and also provide information for parents about safe Internet use.

Labour & migrant workers

Decline in workers' purchasing power threatens consumption, industry

Kompas - February 4, 2011

Jakarta – The government should be more serious about controlling the rising rate of inflation. If the situation continues, people's purchasing power, especially fixed-income labor groups, will continue to decline and impact on national consumption levels.

The decline in domestic consumption will further weaken the resilience of national manufacturing industries that are already reeling under the impact of imported products. Declining domestic purchasing power will result in the national economy being more vulnerable to crisis.

This was the common threat expressed by the chairperson of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) Sofjan Wanandi and the secretary general of the All Indonesia Workers Organisation (OPSI) Timboel Siregar, who were contacted separately on Thursday February 3. Both were asked for their views on the inflation rate in January 2011 of around 0.89 percent and the annual inflation rate of 7.02 percent.

"The purchasing power of workers will decline further due to rising prices of basic goods so that real wages will continue to decline", said Siregar.

This will result in workers being unable feel the gains from provincial minimum wage increases (UMP) in 2011. Of the 29 provinces that have a provincial minimum wage, in 2011 only eight have set this to 100 percent or more of the reasonable living cost index (KHL).

Siregar gave the example of Jakarta, which has set the 2011 provincial minimum wage at 1.29 million rupiah per month, up from 1,118,009 rupiah in 2010. However this is still below the reasonable living cost index of 1,404,829 rupiah per month.

The continuing increase in the price of basic commodities is making it hard for workers to enjoy the efforts of their hard work. A single worker spends about 45 percent of their wages for renting a room or house and transportation costs plus an additional 30 percent more to eat each day.

Wanandi warned the government that it must control inflation. "I am really worried about the current situation when the government is not seriously taking care of manufacturing. The UMP has now risen by 10-15 percent. In fact it should have been increased by 2-3 percent more because of inflation", said Wanandi.

The Ministry of Labour and Transmigration has received requests for a postponement to the imposition of the minimum regional wage from 82 firms with 4149 workers. These requests came from two companies from Papua, 21 from Central Java, 60 from West Java and two from East Java. (Ham)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Activists rail at officials over handling of stranded workers

Jakarta Globe - February 1, 2011

Ismira Lutfia – Migrant Care says it has raised almost Rp 100 million ($11,000) in less than a month to help repatriate hundreds of Indonesian migrant workers languishing under a bridge in Saudi Arabia.

But Anis Hidayah, the director of the Indonesian nongovernmental organization, said on Tuesday that it would cost at least Rp 1.7 billion to bring home the roughly 200 workers camped under a bridge in the city of Jeddah.

The workers have found themselves stranded after running into contract disputes and being unable to raise the money to fly back home.

Speaking at a discussion in Jakarta hosted by the Indonesian Institute, Anis said Migrant Care had raised Rp 98.5 million from donors in 27 cities here and seven countries with large numbers of Indonesian workers.

"We're going to hand over the money to a government team that will leave for Saudi Arabia to handle the repatriation process this week," she said.

Though her group is working with the officials, Anis criticized the government for doing little to repatriate the workers, saying it only began addressing the issue after Migrant Care launched its fund-raising drive on Jan. 12.

The government has repeatedly claimed that the workers are camped under the bridge in a ploy to receive free flights home. "This argument shows the government's lack of responsibility," Anis said.

The government's handling of this issue, she continued, underlined its view of migrant workers as little more than "remittance-generating commodities."

If the government had treated the case as a human rights issue, the problem could have been resolved sooner, she said. "Using excuses such as the workers are undocumented is not acceptable and doesn't justify the government denying them repatriation," Anis said.

She also criticized the Indonesian Consulate General in Jeddah for making little effort to provide protection for the workers. "It seems the bridge gave them better protection than the government, and the fact that they chose to stay there proves the government failed them," she said.

Tatang Razak, the Foreign Ministry's director for the protection of citizens abroad, said the consulate did not have the staff numbers to deal with the scale of the problem.

He also said some of the workers had since settled their contract disputes and had accepted financial compensation instead of taking their cases to an employment tribunal, which would have forced them to stay longer. "Others disappeared after filing their complaints, so we can't process those cases," he said.

Rieke Dyah Pitaloka, a legislator at House of Representatives Commission IX, which oversees labor affairs, said the root of the myriad problems faced by migrant workers was the government's failure to consider their protection before sending them abroad.

"A moral movement such as that mounted by Migrant Care is both good and necessary, but it will be of no avail without a corresponding government movement," she said.

Environment & natural disasters

Indonesian disasters draw tourist dollars

Agence France Presse - February 7, 2011

Javanese villagers who survived the violent eruptions of Mount Merapi volcano last year are tapping into the macabre market for disaster tourism to help rebuild their shattered lives.

Suwarni lost her house and father-in-law when the volcano burst into life in October and November, killing more than 350 people in searing rivers of lava, ash and gas that swept across the surrounding countryside.

Government assistance was scant and with little prospect of employment the 26-year-old mother started selling video CDs of the disaster to tourists who have been flocking to the mountain north of Yogyakarta.

"It's a strange feeling. I'm selling video CDs about my devastated home to tourists," Suwarni told AFP. "I have no choice. Although it's difficult for me, I have to get over it and bring some money to my family."

Tourists from around Indonesia and the world have been coming to Merapi to see the devastation first-hand since the threat level was downgraded in December, officials said.

The eruptions were the biggest since 1872 and the 2,970-meter peak is still rumbling deep within its molten core. The official alert level now stands at "vigilant," but the eruptions have stopped.

Almost 400,000 people who spent weeks in emergency shelters have returned home, many finding nothing but ash or mud where their villages once stood.

The scene is still one of utter devastation, especially on the southern slopes where pyroclastic flows of gas and debris caused most of the destruction.

Burnt trees and car wrecks litter the area around Suwarni's village of Kinahrejo, about four kilometers from the summit. The once-picturesque village is gone, buried under a moonscape of black earth.

Suwarni's family kept dairy cows before the disaster. Now she sells her videos for about Rp 40,000 ($4.40) each and makes just enough to get by.

Dutch tourist Hans Van Der Weide, 62, said he could barely believe how the landscape, once lush and green, had been transformed. "I wanted to see the impact of the eruptions because I'd been here before... It's unbelievable that everything here has been destroyed," he said.

US geography student Kyle Miller, 21, said he didn't expect to see so many other tourists.

"I was surprised to see so many people on the mountain and walking around in the ruins... I saw what seemed to be thousands of people arriving to simply see an area of devastation," he said.

"I hope that the money being generated by parking fees, as well as souvenir and food sales, will somehow benefit the community and speed up the process of rebuilding the lives of the locals who lost so much."

Kinahrejo's most famous resident was Merapi's traditional "guardian," Grandfather Marijan.

The old man, appointed by the sultan of Yogyakarta to tend to the volcano's restive spirits, ignored warnings to evacuate his home and died in the first seconds of the first eruption. His sacrifice has become local legend.

One of his daughters, Panut, 59, now sells cigarettes, instant noodles and drinks to tourists.

Even before the eruptions, Marijan's house was a popular attraction for curious visitors. Panut said visitor numbers had tripled since his death as people come to pay their respects or simply gawk at the destruction.

"Although a lot of tourists come here I'm still poor because my house was destroyed," she said. "The government has to give us new homes."

Indonesian day-tripper Cahyo Sunarko, 22, from the Javanese town of Magelang, said he was offended by tourists who came to Merapi only for leisure. "You can see that everything here has been devastated. It's a perfect area for reflection that God can take away anything in seconds," the student said.

Merapi is not the only disaster zone in Indonesia that is popular with tourists.

The mud volcano known as "Lusi" also attracts a lot of visitors to Sidoarjo district in East Java province, where the geyser began oozing from the bowels of the earth on May 29, 2006.

The mud – a hot, bubbling, grey substance the consistency of wet concrete 2 has already wiped out 12 villages, killed 13 people and displaced more than 42,000.

Activists urge crackdown on 'forest mafia' networks

Jakarta Globe - February 3, 2011

Nurfika Osman & AFP – Environmentalists have demanded that the government crack down on mining and plantation firms operating illegally in the country, following a startling official admission that these violations were commonplace.

Bustar Maitar, lead forest campaigner for Greenpeace Indonesia, said on Thursday that forestry and environmental protection laws needed to be seriously enforced.

"The most important thing is that violations should be made public," he said. "The public should be allowed to know what is happening with our forests and who the perpetrators behind the violations are."

He was responding to a statement by the Forestry Ministry on Tuesday that said less than 20 percent of plantation companies and less than 1.5 percent of mining firms in Central Kalimantan had official operating permits.

"There are only 67 plantation companies out of 352 that operate legally in Central Kalimantan, while there are only nine out of 615 mine units that operate legally," the ministry said.

The finding also found that violations of laws designed to protect Indonesia's forests, home to endangered species such as orangutans and tigers, had "become widespread in a number of regions, especially in Central Kalimantan."

The findings were released after an investigation by a task force set up by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to look into the "forest mafia" – networks of miners, planters and officials blamed for rampant illegal land clearing.

Indonesia is the world's third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, due mainly to deforestation by the palm oil and paper industries, which is fueled by corruption.

The Forestry Ministry promised to stop issuing new plantation and mine permits in the province and to cooperate with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to enforce the law.

A University of Indonesia study last year concluded that the Indonesian military acted as coordinator, financier and facilitator for illegal loggers in Borneo, where deforestation rates are among the fastest in the world.

Bustar said that Yudhoyono, a former Army general, should not "back the military personnel [implicated] in such cases."

He added the situation in Central Kalimantan was only the tip of the iceberg. "We have 33 provinces across the country, and if 50 percent of a single province's forests face the same problems as Central Kalimantan, this is dangerous," he said.

Bustar also called on Yudhoyono to implement a promised two-year moratorium on issuing new concessions in natural forests and peatland, which was due to go into force on Jan. 1.

The moratorium is part of an agreement struck with Norway last May, in which Indonesia will get $1 billion to help preserve its forests.

"We're also worried about the moratorium because the government is now one month behind on it, and we haven't seen any sign that they're going to implement it immediately," Bustar said. "The president should take action."

Environmentalists accused the government last month of granting massive new logging concessions on the eve of the moratorium.

Indonesia makes startling admission on forests

Agence France Presse - February 2, 2011

Indonesia admitted on Tuesday that hundreds of mine and plantation companies are operating illegally in Central Kalimantan, and promised to beef up law enforcement to protect forests and threatened species.

The forestry ministry made the startling admission that less than 20 percent of plantation companies and less than 1.5 percent of mining firms had official operating permits in Central Kalimantan, on the Indonesian side of Borneo.

"There are only 67 plantation companies out of 352 that operate legally in Central Kalimantan province, while there are only nine out of 615 mine units that operate legally," the ministry said in a statement.

It found that violations of laws designed to protect Indonesia's forests, home to endangered species such as orangutans and tigers, had "become widespread in a number of regions, especially in Central Kalimantan province."

Indonesia is the world's third biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, due mainly to deforestation by the palm oil and paper industries, which is fuelled by corruption.

The Forestry Ministry promised to stop issuing new plantation and mine permits in the province and to cooperate with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to enforce the law.

Yudhoyono has been under pressure from environmentalists to implement a promised two-year moratorium on the clearing of natural forest and peatland, which was due to begin on Jan. 1.

Norway agreed in May last year to contribute up to $1 billion to help preserve Indonesia's forests, in part through the moratorium.

Environmentalists accused the government last month of granting massive new forest clearing concessions to companies on the eve of the moratorium.

Photo expo reveals destructive force of mining

Jakarta Post - February 1, 2011

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Providing vivid photographic evidence, Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam) listed 29 destructive impacts of mining operations – legal and illegal – occurring in the country, in a recent call on the government to stop prioritizing mining as a major income source.

Jatam made its argument – presenting photo evidence for each point – during a four-day-long exhibition and dialogue at Taman Ismail Marzuki, Central Jakarta. The photos showed 29 destructive impacts of mining, including flooding, landslides, poverty, health damage, food and water shortages, deforestation and forest damage, and damage of ocean ecosystems.

"These are real pictures of the impacts of mining activities; not a lie," Siti Maimunah from Jatam told reporters on Friday. "Therefore, it would be a suicidal choice if the government continued to rely on mining to prop up the country's income."

Jatam said mining operations greatly damaged river basin areas, which caused flooding, citing mining in Kalimantan as an example. Of the total 318 river basin areas covering 3 million hectares in the country, 60 are heavily damaged and in critical condition, Jatam said.

"The damage of Sangatta River in Samarinda [East Kalimantan] due to a coal mining firm has caused residents to suffer annual flash floods," Jatam said.

Jatam also challenged claims that mining operations were improving local welfare, saying that 48 percent of people in East Kutai, East Kalimantan, were impoverished despite the presence of massive coal mining firms in the regency.

"Of the 10 provinces ranked the poorest, eight provinces have rich deposits of natural resources. Papua and West Papua are listed as the poorest provinces despite their huge natural resources," it said.

In a dialog organized by Jatam, Rev. Yohanes Kristo Tara from East Nusa Tenggara said promises of poverty alleviation had been used as the reason for allowing mining companies to tap natural resources in East Nusa Tenggara and other provinces.

He cited the example of one mining company that had been operating for 11 years in Sirise, East Nusa Tenggara. He said the local community had received nothing in return, and that most children could not afford higher education.

Yohannes said regents of East Nusa Tenggara had sold mining permits without consulting the public. West Manggarai has issued 10 mining permits, Manggarai regency (23), East Manggarai (15), Ngada (11), in Timur Tengah Utara regency (82), East Sumba (1).

Health & education

12 Jayapura children with HIV/AIDS 'the tip of the iceberg'

Jakarta Post - February 7, 2011

Jakarta – The National AIDS Prevention Commission (KPA) says the 12 children the commission found living with HIV/AIDS in Jayapura district, Papua, are just the "tip of the iceberg".

The results of a survey conducted in Sentani, Jayapura, in 2010, were recently revealed by KPA Jayapura – Among the more startling revelations was that 12 children between one and four years of age were living with HIV/AIDS in that area.

"The children... contracted HIV/AIDS from their mother during childbirth and breastfeeding," KPA Jayapura secretary Purnomo said Monday as reported by kompas.com.

He added that the cases were just the "tip of the iceberg", and that preventive measures needed to be taken by the community to stop the spread of the disease. "These cases must be taken seriously by the community, especially by parents. If preventive measures are not taken the future of our younger generation will be put in jeopardy," he said.

The survey also revealed the total number of reported cases of people living with HIV/AIDS in Jayapura regency reached 609 in 2010, with the majority of these (367) being women. The single-largest group were housewives, accounting for 164 cases, followed by commercial sex workers, 102 cases, and farmers and laborers with 61 cases.

Indonesia's looming AIDS crisis

The Diplomat (Tokyo) - February 3, 2011

Gillian Terzis – Social stigma, cash-strapped NGOs, and moralising politicians are stopping Indonesia taking necessary action to prevent an epidemic.

Moral outrage is a staple of Indonesian politics, which makes for entertaining – if somewhat predictable – political theatre. So it hasn't been any surprise to see the majority of Indonesian politicians trying to score easy political points the past couple of weeks by targeting the usual suspects: sex, lies and moral decadence.

Yet while the chattering classes have been consumed by the government's plan to implement a pornography filter on the ubiquitous Blackberry smart phone, a more insidious threat to Indonesia's future has been growing.

Indonesia faces a looming AIDS epidemic that could wreck the big economic, political and social gains it has made in recent years. UN figures show Indonesia already has an estimated 300,000 HIV/AIDS sufferers and one of the fastest growing infection rates in Asia. The situation is particularly dire in Papua and West Papua, which have the highest HIV/AIDS infection rate outside of Africa – 3 percent of the population is infected with the virus, about 20 times the national average.

But despite the looming crisis, Indonesia's attitudes to sex are remarkably imprudent. Last year, federal Education Minister Muhammad Nuh objected to creating a formal sex education curriculum, arguing that students will learn about it "naturally." It's unsurprising, then, that many Indonesians are unfamiliar with HIV and AIDS.

Data released last year by the Central Statistics Agency illustrate the nation's uphill battle in promoting awareness – a mere 14.3 percent of Indonesians aged 15-24 had reasonable knowledgeable of HIV, far fewer than the 70 percent needed for the country to reach the Millennium Development Goal on HIV/AIDS.

So far, the problem is entrenched in populations that are isolated geographically and socially, such as sex workers, drug users and homosexuals. A survey conducted by Indonesia's AIDS Prevention and Control Commission, for example, highlighted the plight of waria (transsexual sex workers), among whom the HIV prevalence rate is 34 percent in Jakarta, 28 percent in Surabaya and 16 percent in Bandung.

Yet despite these alarming figures, less than half of those surveyed were using condoms on a regular basis. Indeed, many clients refuse to wear condoms – and many waria, desperate for money, comply.

It's perhaps not surprising that so many waria feel they have little choice but to sell themselves to try to make ends meet. The Department of Social Affairs classifies the waria as mentally handicapped, which severely hinders their chances of securing regular employment. In addition, the Indonesian government has been reluctant to recognize waria as a distinct category. This means that for many, the sex trade is the only occupation that offers them any semblance of financial security while still allowing them to embrace their identity.

Dewi, a waria who works the streets of Taman Luwang in Jakarta's tree-lined sub-district of Menteng, says she worked intermittently at a beauty parlour before finally committing fully to sex work. She says it's the only way someone in her situation can earn a decent wage as most employers show her the door as soon as they see her. "As a waria I'm officially classified as a male, but I identify myself as a woman," she says. "I dress as a woman. So tell me, who's going to employ me as a secretary in an office?"

Sexual clients are less discriminatory. On a good night, Dewi says she can take home $5-6 dollars, although she adds that there have been a few times she has gone home empty-handed.

"Sex work pays more than triple what I was paid at the salon," she says. "I knew about the risks involved, but I'm always very careful. I don't have sex with clients who won't wear condoms because of the risk of getting infected. But many other girls don't have that luxury." Dewi adds that although she doesn't have HIV, many of the other girls she knows have contracted it through unprotected sex or by sharing needles.

But the problem isn't confined to waria. Indonesia's HIV epidemic is becoming increasingly feminised, as many female drug users are resorting to prostitution to secure drugs more easily. In an interview in The Jakarta Post, Ratna Mardiata, a former director of the Drug Dependence Hospital in East Jakarta, estimated that between 70 percent and 80 percent of female injecting drug users are involved in informal sex work.

Yet many remain reluctant to attend treatment centres because of the stigma attached to infection. Overall, only 10 percent of Indonesia's HIV/AIDS sufferers are reportedly receiving antiretroviral treatment, thanks to a combination of factors, including the sense of shame felt by many people living with HIV/AIDS; shortages of antiretroviral medicines in remote areas and the simple fact that many Indonesians are unaware that they are infected.

Meanwhile, the local NGOs that are Indonesia's best chance of providing outreach to marginalised populations with HIV/AIDS face their own obstacles. NGOs remain a fairly recent phenomenon in Indonesia, and tend to be concentrated on the island of Java, the archipelago's cultural, political and commercial hub. Local NGOs are also often hamstrung by a lack of funding from central and district governments, with 61 percent of funding for HIV/AIDS initiatives coming from foreign donations.

Indeed, Aditya Wardana of Indonesia's United Nations General Assembly Special Session implies NGOs might be an unexpected victim of the country's economic success. He says that as Indonesia's economy continues to boom, foreign donors may well start to "question why they should channel funds to Indonesia." This could already be happening, he suggests, noting the example of 100 civil society groups that were forced to abandon their clients when a foreign donor pulled the plug on funding.

A recent UNAIDS report underscored the significant challenges faced by civil society groups in Indonesia, and argued that they lack the political and financial support that would enable them to participate at higher levels of decision-making. As a result, these key groups aren't part of the government's frontline assault on HIV/AIDS.

But issues of funding aside, one of the main reasons the government has failed to take a proactive stance on tackling AIDS/HIV is the stigma that's still attached to the disease. The government faces strident ideological opposition from some Islamic groups who actively oppose attempts to implement formalised sexual education programmes in schools across the archipelago.

Some hard-line Islamic groups, such as Hizbut Tahir, have urged Indonesians to "support the application of Shariah in an Islamic caliphate so that (the country) will be free of AIDS." While some local governments have provided thousands of free condoms to high-risk populations, for example sex workers in Papua, other provincial officials remain wilfully ignorant.

For many, it seems, it's convenient to pretend that the sub-populations worst hit by the disease simply don't exist. But the implications for the entire population of rapidly rising infection rates should give them pause for thought – HIV/AIDS epidemics ultimately undercut a country's economic growth by cutting the labour supply, lowering the morale of communities and undermining communities' capacity for regeneration and population growth.

The situation in Papua, where infection rates are among the worst in the country, should serve as a warning to officials inclined to treat the problem as a minority issue to be swept under the rug. Official records for 2010 released last month showed that the majority of HIV/AIDS infection cases were housewives – who had apparently caught the disease from their husbands.

[Gillian Terzis is a freelance journalist based in Jakarta and Melbourne. Her work has appeared in Foreign Policy, The Jakarta Post, New Matilda and Arena.]

Doctors may be pushing meds for drug companies, expert warns

Jakarta Globe - February 1, 2011

Nurfika Osman – A medical expert has warned that many Indonesian doctors may be putting major pharmaceutical companies ahead of their patients' well-being when it comes to prescribing drugs.

Iwan Dwiprahasto, head of the Association of Indonesian Pharmacologists (IKAFI), said on Tuesday that his concern stemmed from recent reports that the domestic pharmaceutical market was worth an estimated $3.9 billion annually, with about 100 manufacturers operating in the country.

"Doctors should be accountable, meaning they should prescribe only high- quality medicine based on the patients' needs," he said. He added that part of the problem was that the country lacked clear regulations governing how doctors prescribed drugs.

"We're not at the stage yet where we can screen doctors who are being influenced by drug companies, because they work independently of regulators," Iwan said. "We don't have the people to do this important job."

He said that while organizations such as the Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) and the Medical Ethical Code Council (MKEK) provided guidelines on ethical behavior for health professionals, they tended to act after the fact.

"These organizations can't carry out preventive actions, they don't have the regulations for this Iwan said. "So they'll only act once a dispute has already arisen."

He said there needed to be a new institution dedicated to the task of monitoring doctors' prescriptions. "A professional union is needed that will ensure that the doctors act responsibly toward their patients and maintain a high standard of ethics," he said.

He said some of their current behavior that could be considered unethical in terms of their ties to pharmaceutical companies included receiving commissions for prescriptions or accepting gifts, travel packages or scholarship offers for family members.

These practices, Iwan pointed out, went against the 2009 Law on Medical Practice. Article 62 of the law, which includes the doctor's oath, says: "I hereby promise to conduct my duties within ethical means and will not accept directly or indirectly from anyone a pledge or a gift."

Agus Purwadianto, chairman of the MKEK, said doctors should always strive to maintain a high standard of ethics in carrying out their duties.

"Doctors should prioritize society and always try their best to serve the community and further academic knowledge at the same time," he said.

"They should have control over what they do because their work should be based on integrity and a code of ethics and aimed at serving the best interests of patients."

He conceded that there might be doctors who "abused their power" through questionable practices such as burdening their patients with prescriptions for unnecessarily expensive medicine.

"In such a case, the doctor should see it from the patient's point of view: How would he feel about being deceived like that?" Agus said. "The essence of being a doctor is that one works based on the principle of upholding human rights, trying to eliminate people's suffering."

Luthfi Mardiansyah, head of the International Pharmaceutical Manufacturer Group (IPMG) in Indonesia, said his organization's members were committed to efforts that benefitted patients and to collaboration with health professionals to enhance the practice of medicine.

He said the IPMG sought to preserve the independence of the decisions taken by health professionals in prescribing medicine for patients.

"Industry relationships with health care professionals must support, and be consistent with, the professional responsibilities that health care professionals have toward their patients," he said. "Ultimately, it is the physician's decision what drug to prescribe."

Graft & corruption

DPR faces complaint for kicking out KPK

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation is planning to file an ethics complaint today against legislators who barred two antigraft officials from House of Representatives hearings last week.

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy commissioners Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M. Hamzah were asked to leave hearings on Monday and Wednesday due to their technical status as extortion suspects.

Erna Ratnaningsih, chairwoman of the foundation, or YLBHI, said the officials should have been allowed to attend the sessions of House Commission III, which oversees legal affairs.

She said they would lodge the complaint with the legislature's ethics committee.

"We allege that by forcing their working partners to leave a hearing, the lawmakers had violated Law No. 27/2009 and a House speaker decree about the legislature's ethical code," Erna said on Sunday.

The Golkar Party's Nurdirman Munir had justified the ban by saying Bibit and Chandra remained suspects for extortion and abuse of power over their handling of a 2009 graft case involving businessman Anggoro Widjojo, who has since been convicted for graft.

Although the Attorney General's Office had dropped the charges, Nudirman said the pair were still considered suspects.

The rebuffs were widely seen as retribution for the KPK's ongoing prosecution of 19 former and active lawmakers over a 2004 bribery case tied to the election of a Bank Indonesia vice governor.

Should the ethics council probe the ban on the KPK officials, Deputy Chairman Nudirman should not be part of the team, the YLBHI said. "We hope the probe could be conducted independently," Erna said.

But Bambang Susatyo, a Golkar lawmaker and member of Commission III, urged the YLBHI to reconsider its complaint, saying the ban had valid reasons.

He said Bibit and Chandra should not be allowed to attend House hearings until the KPK publicly revealed "who was behind" moves to charge the deputies over the graft case.

At the time, the accusations against Bibit and Chandra were widely believed to be trumped-up, especially after wiretapped phone conversations between Anggoro's brother and law enforcers suggested the case was fabricated.

"We will never recognize the deponeering as long as [the KPK has] not publicly revealed the one who made a cases against [Bibit and Chandra]," Bambang said. "Such purpose should be supported by the public, including YLBHI," he added.

Earlier, Indonesia Corruption Watch said legislators had been acting unethically. The House, the watchdog said, should have understood that this kind of action would draw considerable negative publicity.

Politicians behind bars, but key suspect still free

Jakarta Globe - February 6, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran – Despite having detained 26 politicians as suspects in a bribery case linked to a 2004 election of a central bank senior executive, the anti-graft body remained clueless as to what to do with the person who allegedly paid them the bribes.

Witnesses and suspects have repeatedly pointed out, including during trials, that the alleged bribes, in the form of traveler's checks, were distributed by Nunun Nurbaeti Daradjatun. So far, though, she has escaped justice.

Nunun now lives abroad, and her family and lawyer argue she is suffering from a serious illness that is causing memory loss, for which she is seeking treatment in Singapore. She has failed to answer three summons for questioning by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

Haryono Umar, the KPK's deputy chairman, told the Jakarta Globe on Sunday that a doctor said Nunun was unable to face questioning because she was ill, adding that the commission does not know her whereabouts.

Haryono claimed that since the KPK could not locate her, it was difficult to ascertain whether she was actually ill. "Our investigators are still working on this case," Haryono said. "We are trying to find as much information [about Nunun] as possible."

Nunun allegedly funneled Rp 24 billion ($2.7 million) in bribes to lawmakers to help Miranda Goeltom secure a seat as Bank Indonesia's senior deputy governor.

Miranda has also been questioned by the KPK but remains a witness and has not been arrested. Politicians, including those now detained on suspicion of graft, have called on the police to apprehend the two women.

Meanwhile, Golkar Party politician and Industry Minister Fahmi Idris claimed to have evidence that Nunun was not sick and was dividing her time between Singapore and Thailand.

"A friend of mine lives near her residence in Bangkok," Fahmi said. "There are also other friends who've seen her in public places, not hospitalized."

Fahmi showed photos of pages from Nunun's passport on his cellphone, claiming they were given to him by trusted source.

Nunun traveled to Singapore on Feb. 23 and May 6 last year, the photos suggested, while other pages showed she received a permit to stay in Thailand from May 16 to June 14. "She is totally healthy," Fahmi said. "She is under stress, but not having a serious illness, nor suffering from memory loss."

Fahmi said he doubted the KPK was really unable to locate Nunun and added she could change her name and flee for good unless arraigned soon. He suggested the KPK might be dragging its feet because Nunun's husband, Adang Dorojatun, is a former National Police deputy chief and now a Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) lawmaker.

U-turn: Gayus says Bakrie companies clean

Jakarta Globe - February 4, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran – Corrupt former taxman Gayus Tambunan on Friday backtracked on comments in which he alleged that companies controlled by Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie had bribed him in order to avoid paying taxes.

Gayus' lawyer Hotma Sitompul said his client now denied taking bribes from the companies, Kaltim Prima Coal, Arutmin and flagship Bumi Resources.

National Police Chief Gen. Timur Pradopo told the House of Representatives last month that they were committed to probing 151 companies implicated by Gayus in graft.

Hotma, however, said that the 151 companies had been assigned to Gayus but that "only 44 were handled by Gayus". "None of them were Bakrie's companies."

Hotma said Gayus's previous statement implicating the companies in corruption had been made after pressure from Denny Indrayana, a member of the Judicial Mafia Eradication Task Force.

Speaking at the Corruption Eradication Commission on Tuesday, Gayus said he was committed to revealing the companies he dealt with. "We're committed to eradicating corruption and the legal and tax mafias," Hotma reiterated. "We want the KPK to handle Gayus case."

After visiting the KPK, Gayus will also visit the witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK). "Gayus is now a witness in this case that reveal information," Hotma said. "We want to ask protection for Gayus as he is willing to reveal all the case."

Reverse burden of proof a 'giant step' in fight against graft, analysts say

Jakarta Globe - February 4, 2011

Heru Andriyanto – The guilty verdict for former tax director Bahasyim Assifie has set a new precedent in the country's justice system because for the first time judges applied the legal principle of reverse burden of proof, analysts said on Thursday.

The South Jakarta District Court on Wednesday sentenced Bahasyim to 10 years in jail for money-laundering and corruption with the panel of judges arguing that he had failed to prove his Rp 66 billion ($7.3 million) had come from legitimate sources. They also ordered the seizure of the money.

"The verdict can be a model for other judges when they deal with a similar case in the future," said Hifdzil Alim, a researcher with Gadjah Mada University's Center for Anti-Corruption Studies (Pukat). Hifdzil said the principle could also be applied against high-ranking police officers who have been reported to possess enormous bank accounts.

However, since the principle of shifting the burden of proof to the defendant was not recognized by the country's Criminal Code, Hifdzil said it fell on the House of Representatives to issue a related law.

"The principle is mentioned in the Anti-money Laundering Law, but not in the Criminal Code. To make it applicable in corruption cases, we must put the same article on the Criminal Code," he said.

"In the Anti-Corruption Law, the principle is limited to the gratification article, for presents or gifts worth above Rp 5 million allegedly meant as gratitude to state officials.

"We certainly need a much broader application of the principle, because in graft and money-laundering cases, prosecutors usually find it very difficult to present evidence after the ill-gotten money was dispersed or invested in many places."

Danang Widoyoko, chairman of Indonesia Corruption Watch, praised the judges for making "a giant step". "The judges finally made the much-awaited breakthrough in our fight against corruption.

Unlike many other graft trials, where the panel dutifully followed what was mentioned by the indictment, the judges in the Bahasyim case pioneered the reversal burden of proof," Danang said. "Believe me, if our courts use the conventional approach, the antigraft campaign will never bring satisfactory results."

Bahasyim, 58, had earlier presented documents to prove he invested money in the Philippines and China and ran several businesses at home, but presiding judge Didik Setyo Handono dismissed the written statements by his foreign business partners as "one-sided and prepared only after the prosecution began."

Bahaysim claimed he could earn $20,000-$30,000 per month from his investments, but the statement was unsupported.

His attorney, Otto Cornelis Kaligis, accused the judges of having been influenced by public anger. "It's the first time the principle is applied. But what can I do? [The judges] have been stirred by public opinion," Otto said.

Corruption judges' salaries unpaid

Jakarta Post - February 4, 2011

Jakarta – Seven ad hoc corruption judges complained that the Supreme Court had not paid their salaries and housing allowance for two months.

"We met chief justice Harifin Tumpa who assured us that our salaries and allowances would be disbursed as soon as possible," one of the judges, Daniel Panjaitan, was quoted as saying by news portal detik.com.

He added that Harifin had argued that the funds allocated for salaries and allowances had not been released by the state due to administrative problems.

The judges from Bandung, Surabaya and Semarang arrived at the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

An ad hoc corruption judge receives a salary of Rp 13 million (US$1,440) a month and Rp 25 million a year in housing allowance.

In December last year, the Supreme Court selected 82 ad hoc judges to serve the newly established regional Corruption Courts in the three cities.

Farce continues: KPK officials again forced to leave house

Jakarta Globe - February 2, 2011

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Respected Corruption Eradication Commission officials Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M. Hamzah have been forced to leave a meeting in the House of Representatives for the second time in three days.

Just two days after the pair were forced to leave a meeting between the antigraft agency, also known as the KPK, and House Commission III for legal affairs, Bibit and Chandra on Wednesday were given the cold shoulder by a number of legislators sitting on the House monitoring team overseeing the Bank Century investigation.

The rebuffs are widely seen as retribution by lawmakers for the KPK's ongoing prosecution of serving and former legislators in relation to corruption surrounding Miranda Goeltom's appointment to Bank Indonesia in 2004.

The vast majority of the more than two dozen legislators implicated in the corruption scandal come from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Golkar Party, which sits in an increasingly uncomfortable alliance with the ruling Democratic Party headed by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

As on Monday, the main initiators of the freeze on Bibit and Chandra's appearance were PDI-P and Golkar lawmakers, though the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), another coalition member that prides itself on its anticorruption efforts, joined in.

Nudirman Munir of Golkar said that Bibit and Chandra remained suspects in relation to a hugely controversial case in 2009 in which the pair were named suspects for extortion and abuse of power in their handling of a graft case involving businessman Anggoro Widjojo.

The charges have been permanently terminated by Attorney General Basrief Arief, who has used his exclusive right to drop a case in the public interest, using a legal principle from the Dutch system known as deponering. He reiterated his position on Tuesday.

Nudirman, however, said the pair remained suspects and urged meeting leader Pramono Anung, from the PDI-P, to expel Bibit and Chandra from the meeting.

His calls were aped by the PKS's Fachry Hamzah and the PDIP's Gayus Lumbuun. As other lawmakers continued to hamper proceedings, Pramono called for a recession for lobbying to occur.

After 15 minutes, Pramono reconvened the meeting with Bibit and Chandra. However, as KPK chairman Bussyro Muqoddas attempted to deliver his report, a number of Golkar legislators began to leave the meeting, followed by two PKS lawmakers and Gayus. "I am sorry [Pramono], I have something else to do," Gayus said. After ten minutes, Pramono closed the meeting.

KPK detains three more politicians in Bank Indonesia bribe investigation

Jakarta Globe - February 2, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran – Seemingly unfazed by implied political threats, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) continued detaining former lawmakers in connection with the Rp 24 billion ($2.7 million) bribery scandal surrounding Miranda Goeltom's 2004 appointment to Bank Indonesia.

Budiningsih, from the Indonesian Democratic Party in Struggle (PDI-P), was quizzed for hours on Tuesday and later taken to the Pondok Bambu penitentiary.

She was not detained with 19 fellow politicians on Friday as she lived out of town. Her lawyer said that, since she lived in Solo, she could not leave her work.

Another suspect, Willem Tutuarima, also from PDI-P, was forcefully picked up despite his claim that he was suffering from a prostate disease.

"He has a doctor's letter ordering him to rest for three days," said Yanuar Wisesa, Willem's lawyer. "The KPK is overreacting," he continued, adding that the KPK should be held responsible if something bad happened to his client.

Andi Kurniawan, the lawyer of another suspect, Hengky Baramuli from the Golkar party, went to the KPK office because he said he heard the antigraft commission also planned to pick up his client on Tuesday.

"I said, 'What kind of law are they referring to by forcefully picking up someone who's ill?'" he said. "He's not going to run."

Andi claimed Hengky is suffering from heart disease and had recently had bypass surgery. "He shouldn't be scared this way. With his heart disease, something might happen."

Budingsih, Willem and Andi were three of the five suspects who were not brought in for questioning on Friday. Four of those five claimed they were sick.

The newly detained politicians raised the same issues brought up by those arrested on Friday. "The one who gave the bribes should be arrested first," Yanuar said. "The KPK seems to have an intimate relation with Nunun."

Nunun Nurbaeti Daradjatun, who is alleged to have funneled the bribe money to the lawmakers, has ignored several KPK summons. She is reportedly in Singapore, where her lawyer claims she is being treated for an illness that causes memory loss.

Miranda Goeltom, on the other hand, has been questioned several times by the KPK about the case but has not been named a suspect.

Sirra Prayuna, Budiningsih's lawyer, said it was important to find out the reason the money was given. "There is no rule that bans state officials from receiving something as long as it does not break the law. But until now, we do not know the real purpose of the one who gave the money."

KPK spokesman Johan Budi said the detentions were part of their investigation into the crime. "We will detain [Budiningsih] for the next 20 days," Johan said.

Anti-corruption group slams DPR

Antara News - February 1, 2011

Indonesia Corruption Watch has asked the Corruption Eradication Commission to refuse to attend any hearings at the House of Representatives without the presence of its deputies, Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M. Hamzah.

"The KPK must reject any House hearings without Bibit and Chandra. The KPK must be firm," The group's legal affairs coordinator, Febri Diansyah, told Antara.

In what appeared to be retaliation for last week's the arrest of one serving and 18 former legislators by the antigraft agency known as the KPK, lawmakers on Monday barred Bibit and Chandra from a hearing at House Commission III, which oversees legal affairs.

They argued that Bibit and Chandra were still legally "suspects" in a corruption case that has been suspended by the attorney general and they could not be let into a House hearing.

Febri said the argument was "funny" because the Attorney General's Office last week officially halted the long-running case against the pair, using the old Dutch legal principle of deponering to drop the case in the public interest.

"If there is no case, it means there is no suspect," Febri said, adding that the KPK also has the public on its side. "The people will support the KPK," Febri said.

ICW sees the move as a backlash following the detention of 19 politicians on charges relating to alleged bribery in the election of Miranda Goeltom as Bank Indonesia's senior deputy governor.

"It is reasonable for us to question whether the members of the House of Representatives are defending corruptors," Febri said.

War on terror

Bashir's just a kitten, not a tiger, lawyer says

Jakarta Globe - February 3, 2011

Heru Andriyanto & NYT – The National Police have named him as the figurehead of an Al Qaeda-style terrorist network in Aceh and prosecutors accused him of mobilizing people to conduct acts of terror, but a lawyer for radical cleric Abu Bakar Bashir has a different description of his client to offer – a kitten.

Commenting shortly after prosecutors announced they would seek the death penalty for Bashir, the cleric's lawyer, Mahendradatta, lambasted prosecutors, saying that the case against Bashir was based on flimsy evidence.

Mahendradatta said his client was being persecuted just to please the United States.

"Everybody knows that Ustad is just a kitten. He is no tiger," the lawyer said, referring to Bashir by an honorific term used for highly-regarded Islamic preachers and elders.

"He's just an ordinary guy who voices anti-American sentiments. But he really does not have the power to execute much of what he says."

Police handed Bashir to prosecutors on Dec. 13 on charges of leading and financing the paramilitary training activities in Aceh of a group of suspected militants who were the target of a series of raids early last year.

The Aceh camp was allegedly planning a Mumbai-style attack on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and state guests during the Independence Day ceremony at the State Palace last August.

Mahendradatta accused prosecutors of deliberately delaying the cleric's trial in order to keep him detained. "He's already getting old. Why do they have to detain him? This is proof that their true purpose is to keep Ustad silent," Mahendradatta said.

Police have failed in the past to pin terrorism charges on Bashir and analysts say it is crucial they back up the charges this time, or risk turning Bashir into even more of a martyr.

Prosecutor Andi Muhammad Taufiq said on Wednesday that the charges against Bashir, whose detention term had been set to expire next Thursday, had been registered with the South Jakarta District Court.

Andi said the firebrand cleric had been charged with breaching Articles 7, 9, 11, 13, 14 and 15 of the Anti-Terror Law, and that Bashir's detention was now the responsibility of the district court.

"The maximum punishment is death," he said, adding that the prosecution had prepared as many as 138 witnesses to testify against Bashir.

Police have previously said that the Jamaah Anshorut Tauhid, an organization Bashir founded and leads, financed and organized a secret extremist group dubbed "Al Qaeda in Aceh." The group stockpiled weapons and carried out training in Aceh's jungle-covered mountains in February last year.

Islamist militants have been accused during the past year of armed robberies and a number of attacks on the police.

Subsequent crackdowns saw scores of terrorism suspects arrested or killed, including Dulmatin, one of Southeast Asia's most wanted terrorism suspects.

Sidney Jones, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, said unlike in earlier cases, the Indonesian authorities appeared to have a strong enough case to guarantee a heavy sentence against Bashir.

"I think they do have a strong case, and I don't think this is an unusual time period," Jones said. "Because in the Aceh cases, some of those guys were arrested in February and their trials didn't start for another six months."

The case is the third legal attempt in less than a decade by the Indonesian authorities against Bashir, a founder of the radical Jemaah Islamiyah movement. The group has been blamed for a series of attacks, including the 2002 bombing of nightclubs on Bali that killed 202 people, mostly foreigners.

Freedom of religion & worship

Top figures, NGOs gather, condemn anti-Ahmadiyah violence

Jakarta Post - February 7, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Dozens of prominent figures gathered Monday with NGO representatives to condemn the fatal Sunday attack on Ahamdiyah followers in Banten, which claimed 3 lives and injured six others.

Among the figures were senior antigraft activist Todung Mulya Lubis, International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) analyst Usman Hamid, Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) chairwoman Erna Ratnaningsih, Indonesia Conference on Religion and Peace (ICRP) secretary general Johanes Hariyanto, lawyer Taufik Basari and Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) deputy executive director Choirul Anam.

Others were from NGOs including Imparsial, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), the Wahid Institute, the Ma'arif Institute, and the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam).

Zafrullah Ahmad Pontoh, a spokesman for Ahmadiyah Indonesia, also joined the conference.

"This attack was not the first of its kind. I'm afraid it will not be the last either. The government has repeatedly voiced concerns and made promises but no significant change has been accomplished," Todung said.

Taufik said the government's negligence to prevent the attack was effectively facilitating violence.

"The government, especially the religious affairs minister, instead made policies like the joint ministerial decree, which tends to 'legitimate' violence against Ahmadiyah followers," he said.

In 2008, a joint ministerial decree was issued to ban Ahmadiyah from propagating its teachings, citing theological differences between it and mainstream Islam.

Commission to look into rights violations on Ahmadiyah attack in Banten

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Dessy Sagita – National Commission on Human Rights chairman Ifdhal Kasim said that they have formed a team to investigate the fatal attack on an Ahmadiyah community in Banten that left three dead.

"The team has started working today [Monday] and they will depart for Pandeglang soon," he said in a press conference.

Ifdhal said that based on preliminary findings, the commission, also known as Komnas HAM, found at least eight serious cases of human rights violations. "The brutal attack has violated many rights, including the right to live and the right to be free from torture and fear," he said.

Some 1,500 residents attacked 25 Ahmadiyah members who had refused to leave the house of a local group leader in Umbulan village, in the Cikeusik subdistrict of Pandeglang, at around 10 a.m. on Sunday.

Ifdhal said that the state has absolutely no right to declare a certain sect as a devious sect. He said that the main obligation of the government is to protect its citizens regardless of their religion.

He added that the government should focus on enforcing the law instead of the ministerial joint decree or SKB. "Evaluating SKB is not an issue for now. The most important thing is to conduct the proper legal process and arrest the perpetrators," he said.

Yuniyanti Chuzaifah, chairwoman of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), said that the government should immediately revoke the joint decree because it has been used to legalize the brutal attacks toward the Ahmadiyah.

"We have recorded that from 2007 to 2010, there were 342 attacks on various levels at Ahmadiyah members. This indicates the government's reluctance to protect its people," she said.

Yuniyanti said that the House of Representative should also review the 1965 law about religion because it has been used by many people to justify violence against the minority.

Ahmadis recount morning of terror

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Nivell Rayda & Ulin Yusron – Ahmad Masihudi has bruises on his right jaw, a swollen eye and cuts all over his body, but he considers himself a lucky man.

A resident of Parung, West Java, Ahmad said he was grateful "just to be alive" after a lynch mob of over 1,500 people attacked members of the Ahmadiyah community in the Cikeusik village of Pandeglang on Sunday.

Ahmad said he was one of about 18 members of the Ahmadiyah, a minority Islamic sect, who went to Cikeusik to protest the detention of local Ahmadiyah cleric Ismail Suparman by Pandeglang Police. But a bloody clash ensued which left three Ahmadis dead and five badly injured. Ten other Ahmadis managed to escape.

Those killed were identified as Roni and Warsono from Jakarta and Chandra from Parung.

"I ran with all my might when the mob came in the thousands. We were clearly outnumbered. It was an outright attack," 25-year-old Ahmad said.

"I ran to a nearby rice field. We all agreed to scatter in a bid to give some of us a chance at surviving the ordeal. I remember several people chasing me. I was hit in the back with bamboo a stick. I stumbled to the ground."

Ahmad said he was saved by the fact that he had Rp 1 million ($110) in cash on him.

"They let me go just like that [after finding the money]. But that didn't stop the others from trying to beat me up. I saw a police officer. I immediately held on to him and wouldn't let go as the mob tried to pull me and continued to hit me," Ahmad said.

"The other officers soon came and I was dragged to a police truck." Ahmad was indeed one of the lucky ones.

One of the injured, Deden Sujana, remains in a coma with extensive injuries to his head and body. The 45-year-old was in critical condition and has been rushed to Pertamina Hospital in Jakarta. Deden's right arm suffered a blow from a machete and was nearly severed.

In an emergency meeting convened by the central government over the attack, National Police Chief Gen. Timur Pradopo said on Sunday night that police on Thursday had been informed about Ahmadiyah members in Cikeusik being involved in "activities," which locals deemed "unacceptable" and were preparing to take action.

"The FKUB [Interreligious Communication Forum of Banten] anticipated problems and took [Ahmadiyah cleric] Ismail Suparman to local police for his own safety on Saturday," Timur said.

"But suddenly, on Sunday at around 7 a.m., a group of 15 Ahmadis, led by a man named Deden, who claimed to be from the Ahmadiyah central headquarters, arrived at Ismail's empty home, saying that the house belonged to the Ahmadiyah community and they would guard it in case of any attack," Timur said.

"We [the police] arrived and asked them to leave. They refused. At the same time, some 1,500 villagers came. This is when the incident occurred."

Another resident of Parung, Ferdiaz, said he had been one of the Ahmadiyah members who had occupied Ismail's house. He confirmed that police had attempted to get them to leave the house for their own safety.

Ferdiaz told police they would not vacate and reminded officers that it was their job to protect them from harm. But soon afterwards, the mob started pelting the house with rocks and several people even drew machetes. Police did little but watch the show, Ferdiaz said.

"In the end, I ran, but a man slashed me with a machete in my back. They hit me with rocks and sticks. I was lucky police officers managed to stop them."

In Jakarta, about 50 people gathered in front of the State Palace to protest against the violence. Yudhi Latief from the Reform Institute said police must protect all citizens. "Nobody should be killed just because they have different faiths," he said.

[Additional reporting by Farouk Arnaz.]

Indonesia mob attacks 'heretic' Muslims, kills 3

Assoiated Press - February 6, 2011

Jakarta – A machete-wielding mob of Muslims on Sunday attacked the home of a minority sect leader in central Indonesia, killing three and wounding six others, police and witnesses said.

Local police chief Lt. Col. Alex Fauzy Rasyad said about 1,500 people – many with machetes, sticks and rocks – attacked about 20 members of the Ahmadiyah Muslim sect who were visiting their leader in his house in Banten province on Indonesia's main island of Java.

He said the crowd demanded that the sect members stop their activities, but the request was rejected. As a result, the crowd stabbed to death at least three men, destroyed the house and set fire to their cars and motorbikes.

Six others were hospitalized, four with critical injuries. The police were called, "but the attackers came faster," Rasyad said.

The attack was the latest targeting the Ahmadiyah sect in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation. Many Muslims see followers of Ahmadiyah as holding heretical beliefs.

Indonesia is a secular country with a long history of religious tolerance. But in recent years a hard-line fringe has grown louder and the government 2 which relies on the support of Islamic parties in Parliament – has been accused of caving in to it.

The Islamic Defenders Front pressured local authorities late last year to shutter a Christian church located in a densely populated Muslim area, and assailants stabbed Christian worshipper and beat a minister in the head with a wooden plank as they headed to prayers.

The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy, a human rights group, says attacks on religious freedom by hard-liners are steadily increasing.

It says in 2010 there were 64 incidents, ranging from physical abuse to preventing groups from performing prayers and burning houses of worship, up from 18 in 2009 and 17 in 2008.

Ahmadiyah, believed to have 200,000 followers in Indonesia, is considered deviant by most Muslims and banned in many Islamic countries because of its belief that Muhammad was not the final prophet.

Secret film records Ahmadiyah attack in Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Scenes from a video reportedly filmed in secret during the bloody attack on members of the Ahmadiyah sect in Banten on Sunday have begun circulating.

The clip, broadcast on Metro TV, shows police officers offering little resistance to the 1,500 strong crowd, many of whom are armed with bamboo sticks, machetes or rocks.

In another scene prior to the attacks, a plain clothes officer is filmed attempting to persuade a group of 21 Ahmadiyah members guarding a house belonging to Ahmadiyah cleric Ismail Suparman to leave the premises.

He warns that a mob is on the way to the village. When negotiations fail the mob stormed the village, with police failing to even erect a barricade to prevent clashes. "Police get out. Burn these Ahmadiyah people!" one man shouts.

The mob is then filmed attacking the house with rocks as the people inside are forced to flee for their lives. The mob then began to chase down the scattered Ahmadiyah members.

The three people who were killed were identified as Roni, 30, Mulyadi, 30, and Tarno, 25. Five other Ahmadiyah members were severely wounded in the incident.

Interfaith week makes grim start

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Antara & Jakarta Globe – A disheartening irony occurred on Sunday. On the same day hundreds of Indonesians from different religions converged on Jakarta's Istora Senayan to acknowledge a UN-sponsored interfaith harmony week, members of a minority Muslim sect were killed during an attack by angry locals in Cikeusik, Banten.

According to police, three Ahmadiyah members were killed and six were severely injured after a mob numbering roughly 1,500 stormed the home of an Ahmadi man in Cikeusik, Pandeglang district, and demanded he stop hosting sect-related services.

Meanwhile, on Sunday afternoon, Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) deputy chief Din Syamsuddin addressed a crowd boasting a diversity of religious beliefs in Jakarta.

"It is our hope that this event is able to send out a message to followers of all religions in Indonesia – let us, as a nation, uphold unity and oneness," said Din, who also leads the Indonesian Inter-Religious Council.

The gathering was held in conjunction with World Interfaith Harmony Week. The UN General Assembly unanimously passed a resolution in 2010 to recognize the event annually during the first week of February.

The observance is being marked globally with meetings, religious services and the publication of academic papers and religious statements in the hope that adherents of every belief system and non-believers can build harmony and understanding through discussion.

When asked to comment on the attack, Din only said: "I have not received that information. In any case, [the Ahmadiyah] matter is more the jurisdiction of the MUI."

Human rights watchdogs strongly criticized the government and law enforcement agencies on Sunday, accusing them of complicity through neglect and calling for the resignations of key officials.

The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy demanded President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono remove Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali from his post for repeatedly failing to react to or even acknowledge acts of religious violence during the past few years.

Setara, a Jakarta-based group advocating religious freedom, recorded 50 attacks against the Ahmadiyah in 2010.

"Instruct the National Police chief to provide security to the Ahmadis," Setara said in its statement. "Please investigate the Pandeglang Police precinct chief for his failure to protect the Ahmadiyah."

International organization Human Rights Watch accused Indonesian authorities on Thursday of failing to address the persecution of the Ahmadiyah, saying the government's lack of action reflected a political, legal and social framework that propagated a culture of religious discrimination.

"Since August, Religious Affairs Minister Ali Suryadharma has repeatedly called for the Ahmadiyah faith to be banned in Indonesia. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has failed to repudiate those statements," the organization said.

Cause for alarm

A Cikeusik villager who claimed to have witnessed the fatal Sunday morning attack said the Ahmadis in Pandeglang district had received many warnings to stop practicing their religion.

The villager, Asep Setiadi, said that for "some time" residents had asked an Ahmadi man identified as Ismail Suparman to cease all Ahmadiyah-related religious activities.

"The [majority of] villagers of Cikeusik have been so anxious about the activities of Jamaah [Congregation] Ahmadiyah. So many of our own people ended up following that sect," Asep said.

"We asked Suparman to disband these activities and stop teaching people [about Ahmadiyah]," he added. "But he did not listen. He instead said, 'It is better to die than to disband ourselves.' He kept on teaching about [Pakistani sect founder] Mirza Ghulam Ahmad."

Asep said the visit to Ismail's home on Sunday was merely to talk some sense into him. Village elders and religious leaders had hoped to convince him to disband the congregation. "We arrived at his home and there were already dozens of Ahmadis. They were armed. A clash occurred," Asep said.

According to police, 25 Ahmadis had traveled from Jakarta to Cikeusik to guard Ismail's home while he was at the local police station to discuss his Filipino wife's immigration status. Police had asked the Ahmadis to leave, but they refused.

With tensions running high, police said, members of the mob attacked with edged weapons and blunt objects, leading to the three fatalities.

On Sunday, MUI Banten chief Wahaf Afif said the attack could have been prevented if the Ahmadiyah groups practicing in the province had been disbanded earlier. Wahaf said his group had sent a letter to the Banten High Prosecutor's Office four months ago requesting that all Ahmadiyah congregations in Banten be broken up.

"Four months ago the MUI had sent off that letter. But until now, the [Ahmadis] are still around, and now this incident occurred," he said.

"Their presence is not only felt in Cikeusik but in so many parts of Banten. We had anticipated the anxiety felt by residents, which is why we sent off that letter. We regret that the prosecutor's office did not follow our request for the disbandment."

In denial

Last month, top cabinet ministers angrily denied accusations from nine religious leaders that the government lied to the Indonesian people regarding the prevalence of inter-religious violence, among other complaints.

Yudhoyono held a closed-door meeting with the religious leaders after their statements drew return fire from the irate ministers.

Ahmad Syafii Maarif, a professor of the Yogyakarta State University and former chief of the Muhammadiyah Islamic organization, said on Saturday that criticism of the government's inaction toward religious violence was not politically motivated, but it was a necessary step in securing religious freedom for all Indonesians.

He said those who were furious about the actions of the inter-faith leaders were unaware of the underlying substance of the problem.

"The aim is improvement of the nation. The strategy is cultural and it takes a long time – years – and not just a short time to realize it," he said after attending a cultural oration by former President B.J. Habibie at Muhammadiyah University in Jakarta on Saturday.

The religious figures, including Din Syamsuddin, were prominent intellectuals and clergy members from faiths including Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism and Buddhism.

In their statement, they were especially critical of the government's failure to prevent the prevalence of violence against certain religions, as well as failing to protect freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

Tough action called for after attack on Ahmadis

Jakarta Post - February 7, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Rights bodies are demanding authorities take stern measures against the perpetrators of an attack on members of the Ahmadiyah faith, while President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called for an evaluation of the joint ministerial decree on the Ahmadiyah.

Three Ahmadis were killed and five seriously injured, police said.

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto said after meeting with related ministers that a thorough investigation would take place next week with Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali as supervisor.

"The evaluation is necessary as it relates to one's faith and belief so that it is not against the existing regulation," Djoko said as quoted by Antara.

Human rights NGO Imparsial condemned what it called the government's failure to guarantee the protection of Ahmadiyah followers in Cikeusik, Pandeglang, Banten, who were attacked by locals Sunday.

"The police must act quickly because Ahmadiyah followers are no different from other citizens whose rights are protected by the Constitution," Imparsial program director Al Araf said in a statement.

"Once again, the police, as a state apparatus, failed to guarantee religious freedom by protecting the Ahmadis from violence. In fact, the police seemed to turn a blind eye instead of strictly enforcing the law by arresting the attackers," Al Araf said.

Imparsial urged the Banten Police chief to immediately order an investigation and arrest the attackers.

Hard-line Muslim groups claim Ahmadiyah deviated from orthodox Islamic doctrine, and have labeled the faith heretical. Ahmadis have faced relentless persecution.

The Wahid Institute blamed the frequent violence against Ahmadiyah on Yudhoyono. "Violence against Ahmadis is an almost daily occurrence, yet the President does nothing to address this," Wahid Institute's Rumadi said.

The SETARA Institute urged the National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo to summon the Pandeglang Police chief over his failure to ensure the safety of religious minorities. It also demanded Suryadharma be fired for failing to guarantee religious freedom.

The incident began when Ahmadis gathered at the home of local Ahmadiyah leader Parman at Cikeusik on Saturday. Residents expressed annoyance at the gathering and demanded the Ahmadis disperse. The Ahmadis refuse, prompting clashes.

Initial reports put the death toll at six, but Pandeglang Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Alex Fauzy Rasyad confirmed three deaths, identifying the dead as Roni, Mulyadi and Tarno. The latter two were Parman's sons. "I guarantee the situation at the scene is under control," he said.

The Banten branch of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) blamed the clash on authorities.

"Four months ago we made the request in fear that [the Ahmadis' presence] could trigger clashes. There was no actions until this incident took place," the MUI's Wahaf Afif said.

House to summon police chief, religion minister for Ahmadiyah attack

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Anita Rachman – The House of Representatives says it will summon the national police chief and minister of religious affairs following the religious violence that three members of the minority Ahmadiyah sect dead on Sunday.

Abdul Kadir Karding, chairman of House Commission VIII for religious affairs, said the House would push the government to protect all its citizens and end attack on Ahmadiyah followers for good.

"This week, we will summon the National Police chief and minister of religious affairs," Abdul said. "Possibly also religious figures and the Indonesian Ulema Council [MUI]. I must admit that the government seems to be not proactive in detecting the attacks. Violence, in any form, must not happen to our people."

He recommended the government adopt short-term and long-term solutions to stop the conflicts.

First of all, the government must make assurance that any of its people were harassed, he said. "The government must take firm action," the lawmaker from the National Awakening Party (PKB) said.

Abdul urged the National Police to launch an investigation and arrest anyone found to be involved in the killings. He also asked the police to listen to Ahmadiyah's side of the story.

The long-term solution is to evaluate the joint-ministerial decree among three ministries and the government must initiate a dialogue with Ahmadiyah followers, he said.

"We are ready to discuss the bill on religious harmony, to give a stronger legal base," he said. "The government has no right to say that certain belief is fallacious". "The MUI once said that Ahmadiyah is fallacious, but must we use violence to show that the belief is wrong and that ours is the right one?"

He said there should have been discussions among societies to nurture pluralism across the archipelago. "[The freedom to embrace] beliefs must be guaranteed [by the government]. It's people's private affairs with God," he said.

HRW slams police inaction in Ahmadiyah case

Jakarta Post - February 4, 2011

Jakarta – Human Rights Watch (HRW) condemned the National Police for "tolerating" hate crimes in South Sulawesi during the attack on an Ahmadiyah congregation recently.

"The Indonesian Police may have thought they were taking the Ahmadiyah out of harm's way, but they let the mob go on a rampage," Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at HRW said Thursday. "The authorities need to send a message that hate crimes won't be tolerated by prosecuting those responsible."

On Jan. 28, police "evacuated" members of an Ahmadiyah congregation from their mosque in Makassar, South Sulawesi, amid increasingly threatening protests by members of the hard-line Islam Defenders Front (FPI). The FPI later attacked the mosque, destroying property and breaking windows.

Pearson added that police should arrest those responsible for the attack, as well as protect vulnerable religious minorities throughout the country.

She asserted that the attack on the Ahmadiyah community underscored a troubling trend in Indonesia.

"Religious extremists are harassing religious minorities, particularly members of the Ahmadiyah community, and law enforcement officials are failing to hold those responsible to account."

The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy, a Jakarta-based group working on religious freedom, recorded 50 attacks in 2010 against Ahmadiyah followers.

Mobilization of students against church project raises objections

Jakarta Post - February 2, 2011

Arya Dipa, Bandung – The Alliance of Religious People's Harmony in West Java objected to Tuesday's mobilization of Sirnamiskin Muslim boarding school (pesantren) students against the construction of a church in Bandung.

"The students should have been at school, not staging a rally," Asep Hadian Permana, chairman of the alliance, said after witnessing the rally by hundreds of pesantren students in front of the office of Ciputra Bipark, which is managed by PT Central Internasional Property in Bandung.

The rally was staged by up to 300 students, from elementary to senior high school, under the supervision of their teachers.

The students marched from their school less than 300 meters away to the Ciputra Bizpark office, which was mentioned as the developer of a church construction next to their boarding school.

In the rally the students unfurled banners, which read among others: "Stop the church construction", "Respect SKB [Joint Ministerial Decree on Church construction]" and "If the church is constructed, dismiss [Bandung mayor] Dada Rosada."

When they arrived at the office, they sang and shouted slogans which strongly opposed the church construction.

Anwar, 15, one of the protesters, said he joined the rally as he was ordered by his school's caretakers. "We were told a church would be built behind our school. Its existence is feared to disrupt our school," Anwar said.

Deputy headmaster of the Sirnamiskin Pesantren, Ugan Duriat said the mobilization of the students constituted an early warning. "We want to give a kind of shock therapy. We will deploy bigger masses if the construction turns out to be true," he said.

Rally coordinator Iik Abdul Chalik opposed the church project as it was too close to the pesantren and its mosque. "More than that, there are no non- Muslims in the area. The people think this is part of a conspiracy."

"However, if they want to protest, don't involve students because it is time for them to study. If they are really against the church construction, involve local adults, not the children," Asep said.

Police evacuate Ahmadiyah followers amid threat from hardliners

Jakarta Post - February 1, 2011

Andi Hajramurni, Makassar, South Sulawesi – South Sulawesi Police used force to evacuate around 40 Ahmadiyah followers from their mosque on Jl. Anuang, Makassar amid heightened tension in the vicinity with the presence of hardline group.

Police officers broke into the mosque's locked door at 9:15 p.m. local time and took out all the members, including 25 women and 11 children. They were taken to Makassar Police using two vans and one truck. Some Ahmadiyah members reportedly managed to flee using backdoor.

Those members have locked themselves in the mosque since 5 p.m. following the rally by a hardline group claiming to be members of the South Sulawesi's Islam Defenders Front (FPI) in front of the Ahmadiyah secretariat office next to the mosque.

The mob vandalized the mosque's door and brought down the address board in front of the office using an electric saw. The mob also shouted to the Ahmadiyah members to get out from the mosque.

Dozens of police who safeguarded the vicinity since Friday reportedly let the mob turn violent.

Makassar Police deputy chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Endi Sutendi claimed that police evacuated the Ahmadiyah members amid concern on the members' safety. When asked about vandalism done by the mob, Endi said,"We will process that later."

Sex & pornography

Luna Maya takes case to rights body as she begs for justice over sex tapes

Jakarta Globe - February 4, 2011

Nurfika Osman – Embattled celebrity Luna Maya went to the country's top rights body on Friday for help in what is becoming an increasingly bitter battle with the justice system.

With her boyfriend, singer Nazril "Ariel" Irham, in jail over sex tapes and facing possible charges herself, the model and presenter met with members of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) and described how she felt victimized by the system.

"I am looking for justice here because what Ariel and I have experienced so far is unfairness," she said.

Luna was accompanied by her lawyer, Taufik Basari, and a number of women's rights activists who railed against the Anti-Pornography Law, which they said criminalized victims.

"Where else should we go with this case? The perpetrator has only been sentenced to two years in jail while Ariel will have to serve three and a half years. What is the basis of all this? Is it because of public pressure?" Luna said. "Please, I just want a fair trial."

Ariel was convicted on Monday of violating the Anti-Pornography Law and the Criminal Code in connection with three sex videos that feature a man resembling him having sex separately with Luna Maya and another TV presenter, Cut Tari. He was also fined Rp 250 million ($28,000).

Reza Rizaldy, who was convicted of distributing the videos, was only jailed for two years. Prosecutors said that unlike Ariel, Reza had confessed and shown remorse.

The presiding judge in Ariel's case, Singgih Budi Prakoso, also said Ariel's celebrity was considered in the sentencing. "He has a lot of fans, mostly teenagers, who we fear might imitate his crime," he said.

Luna and Cut Tari have also been named suspects in the case, but police have said they will hold off pursuing the case against them until Ariel's appeals process is completed.

Yeni Rosa, spokeswoman for the Women's and Human Rights Activists Network for Justice, a network of 15 women's rights groups, said Ariel's case had highlighted the weaknesses of the Anti-Pornography Law.

"We are all against pornography," she said. "But Luna, Ariel, and Cut Tari are the victims."

Sri Nurherwati, a lawyer, said that while Ariel's case had gotten all the media attention, there had been other cases where the victims ended up being tried in court under the Anti-Pornography Law.

She said four girls in Bandung who were human trafficking victims were detained for five months last year after the police found them working as striptease dancers in a pub.

"These were poor girls looking to work to help their parents but ended up being deceived by criminals who promised them jobs. In the end they became the target of this law," she said. Sri also cited a case of a sex video in Karang Anyar, Central Java, involving a girl and her boyfriend.

The girl, who did not know the video had been made public, ended up being detained by the police. "This law takes a heavy toll on the victims. It does not help control or prevent pornography, just violates human rights," she said.

Worst of all, she added, is that these things can happen to anyone. "If your cellphone is stolen and private pictures are spread, the person who spreads the pictures needs to be arrested, not you," she said.

Komnas HAM said it would study the case with Luna and her legal team.

Women activists say pornography law intruding into people's private lives

Okezone.com - February 4, 2011

Mahfiroh, Jakarta – Women's activists including the Women's Legal Aid Foundation (LBH APIK) and the Free Women National Network (JRPM) are supporting television host Luna Maya as a victims of the distribution of a private video containing sex scenes. The legal proceedings against Maya are not in accordance with the aims of the anti-pornography law.

The groups said that in the application of the anti-pornography law in the case involving the distribution of a private video containing sex scenes from a computer hard disk belonging to pop star Nazril "Ariel" Irham, his fiancee Luna Maya has been a victim who in the end became a suspect.

"We oppose pornography. [But] we believed that that the ones who are guilty in pornography are the parties that distribute, reproduce and make pornography available at internet cafes (warnet, warung internet). They are the ones who are responsible for pornographic material", explained women's activist Yeni Rosa Damayanti in the public complaints room of the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) on Friday February 4.

As already pointed out by advocates, continued Yeni Rosa, in the elucidation of Article 4 of the anti-pornography law it states that making a video containing pornography for personal consumption is not a criminal act. "This is what has shocked us", she said simply.

In the same vein as Yeni Rosa, LBH APIK activist Sri Nur Herawati conceded to feeling anxious because human rights violations have been committed against Ariel, Maya and Cut Tari (his former partner also shown in the sex video). All three are actually the victims of the distribution of a private video containing sex scenes.

"In the Ariel, Luna Maya and Cut Tari case, we have seen a process that is not in fact in accordance with the aims anticipated by the anti-pornography law", she said.

JRPM activist Vivi Widyawati expressed a similar view saying that the state is intruding too far into people's private lives. "The state is in fact not protecting [the public], but is actually making the public feel uncomfortable", she said. (nov)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Ariel verdict leaves sour taste

Jakarta Globe - February 1, 2011

Yuli Krisna & Kinanti Pinta Karana – Few, if any, seem to have been pleased by Monday's verdict that found pop star Nazril "Ariel" Irham guilty of "giving other people the opportunity to spread, make and provide pornography."

The three and a half year jail sentence handed down to the singer by the Bandung District Court, 18 months less than the prosecution had demanded, was immediately decried for being too low by one camp, and too high by another.

Ariel was convicted of violating the Anti-Pornography Law and the Criminal Code in relation to three sex videos that feature a man resembling him having sex separately with TV presenters Cut Tari and Luna Maya, the singer's girlfriend. He was also fined Rp 250 million ($28,000).

The presiding judge, Singgih Budi Prakoso, said one of the factors affecting Ariel's sentence was his celebrity status.

"He has a lot of fans, mostly teenagers, who we fear might imitate his wrongdoing. Also, he consistently denied that the man in the sex videos was him even though digital forensics suggested otherwise," Prasoko said.

Ariel's lawyer, OC Kaligis, immediately said he would appeal the verdict that was "based on public opinion," while the lead prosecutor, Rusmanto, said he would consider an appeal.

The verdict was greeted by hysterical screams from hundreds of fans of the singer's band, Peterpan, wearing "Freedom for Ariel" T-shirts, while Luna cried. Dangdut singer Camelia Malik and senior artist Titiek Puspa, also in tears, were seen trying to calm her.

Angry fans outside the court also went hysterical, saying the verdict was unfair. "We refuse the verdict. Injustice has been done to Ariel," a teenage boy shouted to the judges while his friends cried.

But another camp consisting of Islamic hard-liners, who had pelted Ariel with rotten eggs and tomatoes as he entered the courtroom, expressed a different kind of disappointment.

"The law is not fair. This is not justice. Let's all support the general prosecutor to appeal the verdict!," they said.

They vandalized a number of cars parked in front of the court, including those of Titiek and human right activist Yenni Rosa Damayanti. Titiek and Yenni said they planned to report the incident to the Bandung Police.

Twitter and Facebook were instantly abuzz with indignant reactions to the verdict.

Prominent lawyer Taufik Basari took to Twitter and wrote, "A private video was 'stolen' and spread, victim of the stealing was then jailed for 3 years and six months, weird."

Many questioned the kind of justice system the country had, comparing Ariel's sentence to the seven years given to graft convict Gayus Tambunan and the less than a year handed down to soldiers found guilty of torturing Papuans.

The Twitter account @FPIYeah, a tongue-in-cheek poke at the hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), a staunch critic of Ariel, wrote: "The victim of private video theft is given a heavier sentence than a corruptor. We love this country."

Eko Kalo, a lawyer, questioned the fine. "The fine in Ariel's case is Rp 250 million, where is the country's loss? While Gayus, who stole the money of the country, only has to pay Rp 300 million," he said.

Criminal law expert Chairul Huda said it wasn't fair that the main perpetrator in the case, Redjoy, the person who distributed the video through the Internet, got a more lenient sentence.

Redjoy, a co-defendant in the case was convicted of distributing the sex videos and jailed for two years. Prosecutors said that unlike Ariel, Redjoy had confessed his crime and shown remorse.

"Ariel was indicted with taking part in the video distribution. The person who really distributed the video should have been given a longer jail term," Huda said.

But Asrorun Niam Soleh, the deputy chairman of the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), expressed disappointment with what he considered the leniency of the sentence, adding that he believed the sex videos encouraged people to rape children.

[Additional reporting by Heru Andriyanto & Nurfika Osman.]

Agriculture & food security

Indonesia to bolster rice inventories to curb record prices

Bloomberg - February 7, 2011

Eko Listiyorini & Supunnabul Suwannakij – Indonesia, the third-biggest rice importer in Asia, is seeking to "strengthen" its stockpiles to protect the poor against rising costs, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Bayu Krisnamurthi says.

"The price is expensive so the government needs to strengthen inventories," Krisnamurthi said in a text message replying to Bloomberg questions on Friday. "Supply is enough but the problem is the price, especially international prices."

Rice futures climbed to $16.3 per 100 pounds in Chicago on Feb. 3, the highest level since November 2008, as US farmers prepared to cut plantings by 25 percent to the lowest since 1989, according to the median of a Bloomberg survey of nine analysts and farmers. The cost of rice in Indonesia, a dietary staple, advanced to a record in December, the United Nations said on Thursday.

Thailand, the top exporter, is negotiating with Indonesia and Bangladesh to supply the grain under government contracts, Chatchai Chookaew, a Commerce Ministry spokesman, said on Feb. 2. Indonesia wants to buy as much as 800,000 tons from Thailand, while Bangladesh is seeking 200,000 tons, Chatchai said by phone. The amounts were yet to be finalized, he added.

Any "imports are to add to stockpiles, not to supply the market," Krisnamurthi said, without specifying the amount.

Bulog, the state food company, aims to keep stockpiles at a minimum 1.5 million tons "at all times" through domestic purchases and imports, President Director Sutarto Alimoeso said in an interview last month. "With leftover inventories at 868,000 tons and the rest of our imports almost all arrived, we have 1.5 million tons of stockpiles now," Alimoeso said.

Thailand's export price, the benchmark in Asia, may climb as high as $600 a ton by December from $534 on Jan. 26, a gain of 12 percent, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey last month. Global food costs, measured by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's Food Price Index, advanced 3.4 percent to a record in January after jumping last year as drought and floods ruined crops from Russia to Argentina.

Bulog agreed with Thailand in December to buy an additional 250,000 tons, bringing total imports to 1.33 million tons, the most since 1999, Trade Minister Mari Pangestu said Dec. 22. Indonesia, self-sufficient in rice in 2008 and 2009, returned to the market last year as stockpiles fell below minimum levels and production growth failed to meet an official target.

The government has been trying to cool food inflation that drove consumer prices 7.02 percent higher in January from a year earlier, the most since April 2009.

Indonesia removed import duties on 57 food items including wheat, soybeans, rice and animal feed for as long as one year to help cool prices. Rice imports are tax-free until March and tariffs on other commodities are lifted until December, Bambang Permadi Brodjonegoro, head of fiscal policy at the Finance Ministry, said on Jan. 27.

"Domestic supply of the staple is predicted to be normal," Krisnamurthi said. Corn and sugar-cane production will expand, while soybean output may be under pressure because of competition from other crops, he added.

Rice production could increase 2 percent to 3 percent this year, Krisnamurthi said. Unhusked rice output may climb to 68.8 million tons this year from an estimated 65.98 million tons last year, Agriculture Minister Suswono said Dec. 29.

The average domestic price in Indonesia climbed to Rp 9,082 ($1.01) a kilogram in December, up 4.8 percent from the previous month and 31 percent more than a year earlier, the United Nations said.

Bulog buys crops from farmers or from overseas and sells grain later to keep domestic prices stable. It also manages the government's emergency stockpiles for natural disasters.

Jakarta & urban life

My Jakarta: Sim Sim, who works with street kids

Jakarta Globe - February 4, 2011

Rachael Fulton – What do you do when a child's face appears at your car window begging for money? Do you turn up the radio and stare straight ahead, or open the window a crack and hand over a few thousand rupiah?

Sim Sim, a coordinator at the Prumpung, East Jakarta, branch of Sahabat Anak (Children's Friend), would encourage you to do neither if you truly want to help these marginalized children. Here, she tells us about the dangers that street kids face and what we can do to improve their lives.

Why do you think places like Sahabat Anak are vital to Jakarta?

As a result of the city's social problems and the number of impoverished people here, there is a massive population of street children in Jakarta.

Street kids tend to have a beggar mentality and often fall victim to a life of crime if nothing is done to help them. Charities like Sahabat Anak take these kids off the street and offer them an alternative way to live their lives.

What do you mean when you say 'alternative'?

Street children lose out on a chance to have a decent childhood. Kids are supposed to have a home, go to school and live with their family rather than work on the street.

Living on the street decreases children's sense of self-worth and makes them believe that there is no world other than the hardships of life on the street. This is something we aim to change.

How dangerous is it for these kids to be living on the streets?

They face all manner of risks. They can easily become victims of crime and abuse at the hands of adults and older street kids. Sometimes they are preyed upon by mafia groups who force them to work, and children who spend their days and nights on the streets risk being sexually abused by people who take advantage of their vulnerability.

Tell us a little bit more about Sahabat Anak?

Our main objective is to provide education to street children by giving them free lessons in eight different areas of Jakarta. These free sessions can be as simple as helping them with their homework if they are still in school or teaching them through games and fun activities.

We have classes in English, music and art, to name a few subject. Our other objective is simply to befriend marginalized children so that they can build trust and self-esteem.

How do you keep the kids interested? What incentives do the kids have to keep coming back week after week?

We don't give them any incentives. At first, it was a little difficult to encourage them to play and study with us. Nowadays, we don't have that problem because they are eager to learn.

They come to the 'study house,' read books in the library and play while studying with the kakak-kakak, our volunteers. We just provide them with things they need to study.

After lessons, we give the kids something nutritious, like vitamins or hot milk, things their parents cannot afford to give them. Could we call that an incentive? Perhaps loving and caring for them is the true incentive.

Tell us an inspirational story from Sahabat Anak Prumpung.

Over the last three years, some of Sahabat Anak Prumpung's teenagers have begun to get involved in our teaching programs and have even helped to create new programs for the study house.

These teenagers were among the youngsters taught by the volunteers when Sahabat Anak Prumpung first opened. Seeing them now, involved in teaching, caring for the little ones and becoming real volunteers is such an unexpected achievement.

It's inspirational because the youngsters are learning to become self- reliant and independent, and hopefully in the future they will be able to manage the programs themselves without much help from outsiders.

Any other projects besides this one in Prumpung?

There are similar schemes in Grogol, Cijantung, Gambir, Manggarai, Tanah Abang and Mangga Dua.

Some of the classes are held in open spaces near railway lines or under bridges because the children in these areas are homeless and there is nowhere else to teach them.

How has your work with the street children affected you as an individual? Do you think it has changed you as a person?

It's affected me in ways that I never could have predicted.

Simply from the way the children respect and obey their parents despite the treatment their families sometimes subject them to, and from how grateful they are for the little that they have... it has changed the way I see things and has made me appreciate my life more.

It's a privilege to have the opportunity to learn from these amazing children and my life has changed as a result of them.

Do you have advice for anyone wanting to help street children?

Make sure you give support in the right way. If you want to support them financially, don't spoil them. Money is what forces them onto the street, so giving them money directly is often counterproductive.

Emotional support is often more valuable than financial support.

Find a local organization or community that can be the bridge between you and the kids so that you can truly give them the help they need.

This can be through donations to the charity or through hands-on volunteering. If you want to join Sahabat Anak or a similar organization, you will be welcomed. Break the negative view you once had of street kids and become their friends.

Rerouting of buses may see hundreds lose their jobs

Jakarta Globe - February 2, 2011

Arientha Primanita & Obey Wibinnov Sianipar – Hipolitus is worried about his job, and for good reason: He's working on borrowed time. The 50-year- old drives the Patas 46 bus that runs from Cililitan in East Jakarta to Grogol in West Jakarta.

Much of his route runs down Jalan S. Parman in West Jakarta, parallel with the TransJakarta busway Corridor IX, running from Pinang Ranti in East Jakarta to Pluit in North Jakarta.

Therein lies the problem. The Jakarta administration has ordered that, as of Tuesday, all public bus routes that overlap more than half of Corridor IX must be scrapped.

Hipolitus said he was aware of the order, but he worked anyway on Tuesday because his office told him to. "If we can keep on operating here, then we'll continue doing so because this is where we earn our livelihood," he said.

He added that while the administration might be trying to improve busway services, it was not going about it the right way.

"This is an unfair policy. It's excessive," he said. "It's good for boosting busway services, but they should have provided us with a solution first before implementing this policy."

A total of 189 buses serving nine routes are affected by the policy, according to Udar Pristono, head of the Jakarta Transportation Office.

He said Corridors IX and X, which run from Cililitan to Tanjung Priok in North Jakarta, had proved popular since being launched at the end of last year.

This, he argued, would see fewer passengers taking the regular buses, which in turn would see the buses make longer and more frequent stops to wait for passengers, thus backing up traffic along the road.

Udar said the bus operators would be provided a one-week grace period in which to remap their existing routes.

"After that week is up, we'll begin enforcing the policy by cracking down on those buses continuing to serve the same routes," he said. He added that the operators appeared amenable to the plan and could use their affected buses to bolster other routes.

Pande Putu Yasa, a spokesman for transportation company PPD, which serves three of the nine affected routes, said the firm disagreed with the policy. He said it could not simply make up for anticipated losses by moving its buses over to its 24 other routes.

"We've calculated each route carefully in terms of the fleet we need, and we can't add more buses just like that because there will be a bus overload," Pande said.

He added that PPD had proposed two new routes that do not overlap with the busway, but the city administration had not issued a permit allowing the company to start operating them.

In the meantime, he said, the livelihoods of 300 drivers and conductors were in limbo. That includes Wawan, who has driven a bus between Grogol and Kampung Rambutan in East Jakarta since 1995.

He said that since Corridor IX began operating on Dec. 31, his passenger numbers have dropped by half. "Instead of eradicating poverty, the government is eradicating the poor through this policy," he complained.

The new rule is also unpopular with some passengers. Wasti, 38, said she regularly took the Patas 46 to get to her office in Taman Anggrek. If this was no longer available, she said, she would be forced to take the busway, which costs Rp 3,500 ($0.40) – more than the fare on the regular bus.

"It's the private cars that should be limited, not the public buses," she said.

Hipolitus, the Patas 46 driver, agreed that the regular buses catered to more cash-strapped commuters. "This isn't just a bus," he said. "The passengers count on us to keep serving this route, as do the street vendors and the buskers whose livelihoods depend on this bus."

He also said taking a regular bus was less taxing on older people because it did not require them to climb up the long ramps leading to the busway shelters.

Fani, a graduate from Tarumanegara University, said the long trudge from the shelter to the sidewalk was the reason she preferred to take the regular bus rather than the busway.

The 23-year-old also said the advent of the busway, and its dedicated lane, along Jalan S. Parman had made the already chronic traffic congestion in the area even worse.

"Before the busway was built, the traffic after the morning rush hour would be flowing smoothly by 10 a.m.," she said. "But now look at it. It's always packed, and the congestion extends to other roads as well."

Hipolitus knows about the traffic all too well. Before the arrival of Corridor IX, he said, he could make 20 trips back and forth from Cililitan to Grogol, but that has since fallen to 16 on a good day. "The traffic is worse with the busway in place," he said.

Because of the reduced number of trips, he sometimes fails to earn enough to pay the daily rent to the bus's owner. That means he must pay the remainder out of his own pocket.

Ajang Sodikin, head of personnel for bus operator Mayasari Bhakti, which serves six of the nine affected routes, said the fallout from the policy would be more severe than just drivers failing to earn the money necessary to pay for bus rental.

"Our biggest concern is what will happen to our 800 drivers and assistants, most of whom only have an elementary school education," he said. "They can't apply to be busway drivers because that requires graduating from high school."

Hipolitus, it turns out, is not the only one working on borrowed time.

Police & law enforcement

Police, AGO commissions to get new powers

Jakarta Globe - February 4, 2011

Armando Siahaan – The largely toothless National Police's and Public Prosecution Commission's watchdog commissions will be given new powers to conduct joint investigations into their respective institutions, Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar said on Friday.

The government is currently finalizing a presidential regulation that would beef up the National Police Commission (Kompolnas) and the Public Prosecution Commission, both of which have failed to reform the notorious branches of government.

"In doing its work, Kompolnas will be given the authority to conduct a joint probe with the National Police's internal investigator," Patrialis said. "But Kompolnas cannot investigate them alone, we don't want them to violate the law and the National Police's regulations."

Patrialis said the Public Prosecution Commission would be given the same powers. "Whenever there is an internal probe against AGO officials, the commission can join," Patrialis said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has promised to give the Public Prosecution Commission greater powers, as the body currently has no authority to press charges against prosecutors suspected of wrongdoing or even reporting them to the police.

The commission is limited to giving recommendations to the president and the attorney general. In addition, its funding comes wholly from the AGO.

Amid calls for more effective and respected watchdogs for the country's law enforcement agencies, Yudhoyono, speaking in November, said he was currently pushing for a new law that would make the prosecution commission and the National Police Commission more independent, especially in terms of their budget.

The Public Prosecution Commission was established by virtue of a presidential decree in 2005. However, it has since failed to come out with concrete sanctions against errant prosecutors, despite the numerous scandals that have hit the AGO in recent years.

Economy & investment

Numbers herald sustained growth in Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

The economy grew at the strongest pace in six years during the fourth quarter of 2010, blowing past expectations with 6.9 percent year-on-year growth.

Data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) underscored expectations that Indonesia is in line for a coveted investment grade credit rating in the next year or so to place it alongside the so-called BRIC nations of Brazil, Russia, India and China.

For 2010 as a whole, Southeast Asia's top economy expanded by 6.1 percent. Gross domestic product rose in the fourth quarter by 6.9 percent from a year earlier, well above even the most optimistic forecast of 6.5 percent in a Reuters poll and a 6.3 percent median estimate of 13 economists surveyed by Bloomberg.

"Looking into the expenditure components, the bulwark of private consumption continued to be a major contributor to growth, adding close to 2.6 percentage points to the headline 6.9 percent growth – a tad lower than the 2.9 percentage-point contribution or so in the previous quarters," Wellian Wiranto, an HSBC economist in Singapore, told the Jakarta Globe.

Wellian said in his analysis that government consumption, which typically shoots up in the fourth quarter as ministries and agencies try their best to spend their allocated annual budgets, added an "OK" 1.2 percentage points, compared to 1.8 percentage points last year.

Net exports added 0.5 percentage points, BPS data showed, down from 1.3 percentage points in the third quarter. Investment grew by 9.3 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter, adding 2.3 percentage points to the headline annual fourth-quarter growth.

The fourth-quarter growth, driven by government spending, domestic consumption and investment, added to other figures showing economies in Southeast Asia grew strongly into the end of the year.

"We expect the Indonesian economy to grow by 6.5 percent in 2011 supported by rising investment and robust consumer spending," said Prakriti Sofat, an economist at Barclays in Singapore.

However, Prakriti said strong growth suggests inflation pressures will remain present. "We continue to expect [Bank Indonesia] to deliver a further 75 basis points worth of back-to-back hikes to put a lid on inflation expectations," she said.

The stock market lost 8.46 points, or 0.24 percent, to close at 3,487.71 in light trading on Monday, while the rupiah edged up to a one-month high. Ten-year bond yields pulled back sharply by more than 70 basis points as investors hunted for bargains after the January sell-off.

Falling government debt levels have spurred sovereign rating upgrades. Moody's Investors Service upgraded Indonesia's credit rating to Ba1 on Jan. 17, the highest level since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, citing the nation's "economic resilience" and improving public debt position.

However, analysts said poor infrastructure remains a hurdle to future growth. The BPS said each percentage point rise in GDP growth adds more than half a million new jobs. Indonesia, the world's top exporter of thermal coal and tin and the biggest producer of palm oil, has benefited from the rise of a number of commodity prices.

[Additional reporting by Reuters & Bloomberg.]

Indonesian government pins high hopes on private sector investment

Jakarta Globe - February 7, 2011

Faisal Maliki Baskoro – The government hopes improving infrastructure and developing science and technology under a new master plan for economic development will help Indonesia become one of the world's top 10 economies by 2030.

Six economic corridors make up the crux of the plan, which details a set of government priorities for the next 15 years. It is designed to push per capita income to between $12,855 and $16,180 by 2025 and to $26,000 by 2030. It is now just above $3,000

"The master plan is a business plan for a credible, incorporated Indonesia. It will try to come up with breakthroughs and cut off problems of the past," Hatta Rajasa, the coordinating minister for the economy, said on Monday at a forum introducing the master plan to the private sector.

According to the master plan, six regions will be designated as main economic corridors.

Sumatra will be developed as an agricultural and national energy center, while Kalimantan will focus on mining and energy, Sulawesi-North Maluku on agriculture and fisheries, Bali-Nusa Tenggara on tourism and supporting national food self-sufficiency, Papua-Maluku on natural and human resources, and Java on industry and services.

The master plan also prioritizes eight sectors: manufacturing, agriculture, fisheries, mining, tourism, telecommunications, energy and industrial zones.

Hatta said realizing the master plan would require $932 billion in investment until 2030. The first stage, which will end in 2014, will cost around $76 billion for infrastructure, with the second stage requiring $856 billion until 2030.

Edwin Utama, from Boston Consulting Group, the project manager tasked with developing the master plan, said the amount of investment required would necessitate plenty of private participation.

"The private sector will lead this development, while the government will act as a regulator, facilitator and catalyst," Edwin said. "As much as 90 percent of the funding will come from the private sector and the remainder from the government."

Under the public-private partnership program, he said, the government would provide incentives and minimize risks to help lure investors.

The government has also offered state and private companies from Japan the chance to participate in the master plan. The Japanese government would provide funding and advice on coal, geothermal and related infrastructure projects, and firms such as Sumitomo, JGC Corp., Electric Power Development and others would cooperate with Indonesia on power projects.

Iman Notodisuryo, the president director of Medco Ethanol Lampung and a participant at the forum, however, said the master plan was the same old deal the government had offered for years.

"There are no significant breakthroughs, and the government has failed to deliver simple solutions to our main concerns," he said.

He said the private sector's main concerns were mostly legal issues, red tape, incentives and infrastructure.

"It's a good idea to involve the private sector, but we still don't see a solution to our concerns, which are land acquisition issues, overlapping bureaucracies, fiscal or monetary incentives and the availability of access," Iman said.

He also said that since the master plan was a long-term vision, he doubted the government could sustain the level of commitment needed to see it through to completion.

Inflation surge leaves Jakarta in a bind

The Australian - February 2, 2011

Peter Alford – Inflation topped 7 per cent in Indonesia last month, its highest level in 22 months. The figures underscore mounting concern throughout the region about runaway food prices and potential scarcities.

Consumer prices in Southeast Asia's biggest economy rose to 7.02 per cent from a year earlier, against expectations inflationary pressure would ease slightly.

The figures create a double quandary for Indonesia's central bank because they increase pressure for an interest rate rise, the first since August 2009.

Foreign investors want Bank Indonesia to act now to curb inflation, and have been voting with their portfolios by pulling out funds in the past month.

But the central bank pointed out yesterday that "core inflation", the consumer price index stripped of volatile food and fuel prices, actually fell last month to 4.18 per cent from December's 4.28 per cent.

The government is far more worried about scarcities driving food prices higher, which interest rate hikes will do nothing to contain and will increase the pain in vulnerable parts of the economy.

Food prices have been driven upwards in the past 12 months by a combination of regional shortages of export staples and the drastic effects on Indonesian crops of a longer and wetter than usual rainy season. Indonesia is importing rice in bulk for the first time since 2007.

Figures released last month showed the price of cheap rice had risen 22 per cent in a year, the prices of various types of chillies rose between 90 per cent and 314 per cent, and cooking oil was up almost 15 per cent.

The central government on Friday took an emergency decision to temporarily halt import duties on foreign supplies of rice, soybeans and wheat, to ease food prices and take the sting out of inflation.

The rice relief will last until next month, when supply problems will be alleviated by the main domestic harvest.

Duties on wheat, coming mainly from Australia, and soybeans will be suspended at least until the end of the year.

Bank Indonesia will decide whether or not to raise the official interest rate on Friday. Most analysts are betting on no increase.

South Korea also experienced inflationary pressures last month, the rate rising to 4.1 per cent, which was mainly blamed on an especially cold month and a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak restricting beef supplies.

Higher prices are a serious problem for the working class, President Lee Myung-bak said yesterday. So the government is considering lowering tariffs as well as taxes on things such as oil to help cover some of the difficulties.

Finance & banking

Indonesian banks crack world 500 ranking

ABC Radio Australia - February 7, 2011

A global survey has placed five Indonesian lenders among the world's top 500 banking brands – but the country's central bank says Indonesian institutions are still the most inefficient and wasteful in Southeast Asia. The report is from the consultants, Brand Finance, and says the growth of Islamic finance and increased lending to small and medium sized enterprises in rural areas are the key factors for Indonesia's success so far.

Presenter: Girish Sawlani

Speakers: Ahmad Erani Yustika, executive director, Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), Jakarta; Adi Tahrir, member of parliament and former chairman, Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Sawlani: The consultancy firm, Brand Finance, ranks the Bank of America as the most valuable banking brand in its latest top 500 list. Several Asian giants also made the cut, led by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

But among the top 500 are five Indonesian institutions, consisting of Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Mandiri, Bank Central, Bank Negara Indonesia and Bank Danamon. And that is a pleasing sight for Ahmad Erani Yustika, who is the executive director of the Jakarta based Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF).

Yutika: I'm very happy with this news that we have five banks included in the top 500 ranked bank brands in the world. We have many opportunities for Indonesian banking to become the biggest banking sector in the world. We have so many prospective customers and we also have a big private sector and also state owned enterprises. That is the source for the banks to get money and also to give the credit or borrowing for the corporate sector.

Sawlani: According to the Brand Finance survey, Indonesia's banking sector is growing because the industry has continued to strengthen and consolidate its investments. It also says there is more access to loans for micro, small and medium sized enterprises.

Adi Tahrir is a member of parliament and former chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He says efforts to tackle corruption have also helped instil confidence in the sector.

Tahrir: The anti corruption movement is very strong in Indonesia so people are now more careful. We can now be more professional in our field, especially in the bank, they are more prudent. But actually for the rural area, we need to be more flexible because the capacity of the rural people is not of an international standard.

Sawlani: But the survey also finds the country's banking sector has been boosted by growth in Islamic, or sharia finance. That said, Indonesia remains a minor player on the global stage and Adi Tahrir says there is significant potential for growth.

Tahrir: Traditionally, we use general banking. Our people, they are still not used to it so they still wonder what is this sharia. Of course it's attractive because it's according to the Muslim law, Muslim regulation, but some people still don't understand it very much. So we need to socialise more about the system of sharia.

Sawlani: It's not all good, though. The country's central bank says Indonesian lenders are among the most inefficient and wasteful in the Southeast Asian region. Bank Indonesia's deputy governor, Muliaman Hadad, says a number of efficiency indicators show the country lags far behind its ASEAN competitors.

One example is the net interest rate difference. That's the difference between the interest you get when you save money as opposed to the interest you pay when you borrow.

In Indonesia, the difference stands at 5.8, while rates in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines range from just 2.3 to 4.5 per cent, which is better for customers. INDEF executive director, Ahmad Erani Yustika, agrees with the central bank's assessment.

Yustika: Inefficiency in the banking operational system in Indonesia is quite high because the BOPO, the comparison between expenses and operational income in Indonesia, is nearly 98 per cent, which is very high. That's why it's very difficult for the banking sector in Indonesia to decrease interest rates.

Sawlani: But interest rates at Bank Indonesia are similar to those in the commercial sector. Mr Yustika says with high inflation rates, the central bank faces more challenging dilemmas than private institutions.

Yustika: They get the big task to stabilise inflation mostly and also the rupiah. With the high inflation in Indonesia, some of the source of inflation comes from the non monetary sources, for example, food and oil. It is difficult for the central bank to manage interest rates. But on the other side, commercial banking must support the central bank, in the sense that they must decrease the credit interest.

Sawlani: There are calls for banks to diversify and focus less on capital cities to reduce their overall inefficiency. So as the calls for interest rate cuts grow, banks are also being urged to increase investment in rural areas to boost the agriculture sector.

Bank Indonesia heeds calls for rate raise

Jakarta Globe - February 5, 2011

Dion Bisara – After months of pressure from the market and economists, Bank Indonesia on Friday raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 6.75 percent, citing growing inflationary pressures.

"It was raised by 25 basis points," Deputy Governor Halim Alamsyah said at the central bank's headquarters in Central Jakarta after Friday prayers.

"The decision was taken as an anticipative measure to control inflation expectation that we see increasing," said an official statement distributed shortly after Halim's comments.

"The increasing expectation is due to still highly volatile food prices, along with a rise in the price of global commodities and government policies in strategic commodities."

Friday's rate hike was the country's first in almost two years. Bank Indonesia had kept its benchmark rate at 6.5 percent since August 2009 – the lowest level since it was introduced in July 2005 – to boost economic growth and on fears that an increase would attract more hot money flows into the country.

Other countries in the region, including India, Australia, Malaysia and Thailand, have already raised their rates.

The consumer price index rose 7.02 percent year-on-year in January, more than the market expectation of 6.81 percent, due to food shortages caused by harvests being spoiled by a long wet season.

Fearing inflation could accelerate even further this year, economists and market analysts had been calling on the central bank to take more hawkish measures. Bank Indonesia on Friday said it would maintain its inflation target at between 4 percent and 6 percent this year.

Eric Alexander Sugandi, a Jakarta-based economist with Standard Chartered Bank, said the central bank had wanted to send a strong signal.

"Bank Indonesia wants to show the market that they are concerned about inflation," he said.

Helmi Arman, an economist at Bank Danamon, agreed, saying the market should be mindful that the rate increase was meant to anchor expectations and help prevent any dramatic outflow of capital.

Eric said the increase in the rate was likely to attract more capital inflows to Indonesia, with the spread between the US Federal Reserve's key interest rate and Bank Indonesia's rate becoming even wider.

"This would increase the cost of market sterilization by the central bank," he said, adding that the capital inflow could also boost the rupiah, helping curb inflation from the import side.

Both Eric and Helmi expect Bank Indonesia to lift the rate again in the coming months to further contain inflation, with Eric suggesting a 75 basis point increase to lift the policy rate to 7.5 percent by the end of the year. Helmi said he expected another hike of 50 basis points, which would take the policy rate to 7.25 percent.

Analysis & opinion

Letter from Jakarta: Amin's death

Direct Action - February 2011

Max Lane – In hindsight, there was a great deal of beauty in the scene. There was a kaleidoscope of colours: dark blues and greens, the red and white of the national soccer team, as well as fading browns and greys and dirty whites. T-shirts and dresses, trousers and singlets, chequered green and brown sarongs, black pecis on black hair, all coloured the scene. There was glistening silver from the sun's steaming rays bouncing off the zinc and tin rooftops and the myriad blacks, browns and greys among the timbers, tiles, packing cases, corrugated iron, tarpaulins and plastics that were the constructions materials for these people's homes. And there was the sky, grey and brooding and dirty, with clouds of faint blue among the puffy curtains that forebode rain. There were the greens of scattered trees and the occasional pot plant.

The coloured beauty of the intense life of that narrow lane remains vivid to me even quite a while later. At the time, it registered only fleetingly, the colour and life and movement drowned almost instantly by the sense of exhaustion that dominated faces and bodily movements and somehow even rose up from the potholed asphalt of the narrow road.

Our taxi stopped immediately outside a doorway into a rectangle of darkness divided by a curtain, lit only by the hot glare of a light globe and a little shudder of light as somebody opened a door or pulled back the curtain. The curtain divided the room about two metres inside the door. Behind the door was a small table, waist high. On the table lay a baby, six months old, his face covered in gauze, his body under a sheet and a piece of simple batik. The baby, named Amin, had been dead about four hours. Amin's mother knelt by his head, wiping the pus that still drizzled from his nose. The father received guests, weeping and holding back his sobs as he greeted his neighbours.

Amin had taken ill earlier in the morning, appearing to be in pain, breathing hard and with red spots appearing over his body. The relative looking after him at the time tried to get the child to a clinic and then a hospital. Lack of money for a taxi, the horrible slow traffic of Jakarta, the bumpy, impossible transport of the little Indian-made motorbike-powered mini-cab made the trip a horror in itself. "The child cannot be helped", said the doctor. "He has measles; it is too far gone and the child is too young to fight the disease." Amin died soon after.

Thirty-eight thousand children a year die of measles in Indonesia.

Amin's father rushed home from work. His mother was there, dealing with these bitter, sad facts of their life. Sadness dominated the exhausted faces and the sobbing voices. Bewilderment too: "He was so well yesterday", said neighbour after neighbour.

Amin's father tidied the sheets. His mother again cleaned his nose with cotton a relative handed across the table. Their eyes, watching the child, were red. The room grew hotter as more people crowded in and out. The mother, now talking outside to a friend, was sobbing.

Loss. Stress and the weight of an unjust reality.

The child had to be buried. Paperwork had to be done. "Two and a half million rupiah" would be the cost, a sturdy woman in plain, brown Western dress explained. Burial and the cemetery papers; money for the kyai to pray; to wash the baby – there was a long list. Two and a half million rupiah ($200) was two or three months' wages in this community, where saving was impossible and debt the norm. More debt loomed, except if the safety net of the extended family could come into play. The state would give no real help, a fact that was like an abrasive little razor in the back of the mind.

There wasn't much I could say except through a hug and whispered words of "So sorry".

Sadness was the air everybody breathed; words about facing reality and "dealing with it" vibrated through that air. Muslim custom required that Amin be buried quickly, the next morning. The father, accompanied by his wife and their relatives and friends, carried Amin a kilometre and a half through the tropical heat and polluted air of Jakarta. They will have to pay money every month if another child is not buried over Amin.

I write this note because I can't forget the incident nor the anger that I felt that poor working people, already squeezed for their energy, for space and for money for their minimal basic needs, need bear a baby's death and be further burdened by the miserliness of a state that allows millions of fathers and mothers to slave for such a life. Hating too the cruelty of a world structured to allow it to happen.

The only medicine for what Amin suffered is to turn the world upside down and the state inside out so that all the Amins and their sisters grow up healthy, and their fathers and mothers rule that world.

Key political risks to watch in Indonesia

Reuters - February 1, 2011

Nick Chatterjee – A booming economy, falling debt and market-friendly reforms could see Indonesia secure an investment grade credit rating as early as this year, putting it on a par with BRIC nations and enabling more institutional interest in its bonds.

That trajectory, however, is threatened by vested interests who stand to lose out if measures aimed at increasing transparency and creating a level playing field succeed.

In January, investors took profits on last year's rally in Indonesian markets, and fund outflows could accelerate if policy makers fail to keep a lid on inflation. Following is a summary of key Indonesia risks:

Central Bank policy and inflation

The central bank has changed its tune in the past month on its key policy rate – held at a record low of 6.5 percent for over a year to drive growth 2 saying that it will not hesitate to tighten policy if core inflation nears 5 percent. Last year its stance was that the rate was appropriate to meet its inflation target for the next two years.

This has not been enough for investors, who dumped Indonesian blue chip stocks and bonds in January on worries the central bank would be behind the curve in tackling inflation, a historic Achilles heel for the country, in favor of Asian countries seen as having a better grip on price pressures.

Inflation, often compounded by the problems of transporting food and goods across a vast archipelago with poor infrastructure, hit a 20-month high near 7 percent in December, though is seen holding steady in January after the government distributed more rice and urged people to grow their own chillies.

Economists are calling for a rate hike by the second quarter to head off inflationary pressures, though the central bank has insisted rate hikes are an option of last resort and it would prefer to tighten through other measures such as further lifting bank reserve requirements following China.

The central bank worries hiking rates would increase the allure of the country's assets for yield hungry investors, lifting the proportion of foreign holdings and leaving the country even more at risk of sudden capital outflows if risk sentiment changes.

If January inflation builds further and the central bank stands still at its policy meeting on Feb. 4, this could spur renewed selling and weaken the rupiah. Previous bouts of capital outflows hammered the rupiah, destabilized the economy, and led to sharp rate hikes.

What to watch:

Inflation data, particularly if core inflation nears 5 percent, and any change in nuance in policy statements.
New soft controls by the central bank to limit volatility by slowing capital inflows.
Moves by the government to head off food price pressures in other ways, such as importing more rice.

Government effectiveness in driving reform

When President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was re-elected with a strengthened mandate in 2009, many Indonesians hoped the former general would use his second and final term to shore up his legacy as a progressive reformer. Soon after his second term began, however, the government was distracted from policy making by a long and highly politicized enquiry into a bank bailout that led to the resignation of one of his top reformers, former Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

In the past year parliament has passed only 17 out of 70 bills targeted, and the government's ineffectiveness at passing laws is emerging as a growing risk to reform. A long awaited bill on land reform, which could encourage vital investment in infrastructure, reached parliament in December, but the body shows no signs of discussing it so far this year. The parliament also missed an end-2010 deadline to pass a bill creating a new financial regulator, with a dispute over its composition worrying banks.

A plan to limit forest clearance from January 1, under a $1 billion climate deal with Norway, has also yet to be signed into law.

What to watch:

Progress on the passage of the government's new land acquisition bill that would set time limits on negotiations over land deemed crucial to public interest. Despite broad support for the bill, it may be as late as 2012 before it comes into effect.
Whether the government can improve infrastructure by attracting investors into private-public partnerships. Yudhoyono has said he would boost infrastructure spending in 2011 by 28 percent from 2010 levels, and both Japan and India have since announced planned investments.
How much opponents of reform, including those within Yudhoyono's ruling coalition, manage to block other pro-investment policies such as changes to the rigid labour laws and cuts in energy subsidies.
Progress with tax cases, since those involving Bakrie's companies such as Bumi Resources, appear to have stalled.

Corruption and governance

Yudhoyono was elected on promises to tackle graft, but early in his second term the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has been under attack with attempts by senior law enforcement officials to frame two KPK leaders. Many felt Yudhoyono was slow to defend his top graft-busters.

Transparency International's latest Corruption Perception Index (CPI) put Indonesia's score at 2.8 out of 10 – the same as in 2009 – signaling a perception that there has been no progress on tackling corruption.

In late November parliament choose soft-spoken academic Busjro Muqoddas to be the new head of the KPK, but gave him just a year to complete the tenure vacancy caused by the jailing of his predecessor, Antasari Azhar, for murder.

Yudhoyono followed up the KPK appointment by naming Basrief Arief as attorney general – a position that is meant to try graft suspects – but the choice of an internal candidate disappointed campaigners, who said this signalled the president was not committed to reform.

A jail sentence of 7 years for Gayus Tambunan, a minor tax official who shocked the nation by bribing his way out of prison while under investigation for taking bribes to cut corporate taxes, disappointed many and the case revealed the continued depth of institutional graft. Gayus faces a slew of other charges but says he is a scapegoat.

The KPK's arrest in January of 16 current and former members of parliament for alleged involvement in bribery will be the next test of whether it can prosecute bigger corruption cases.

What to watch:

How the new KPK chief performs and how the anti-graft body uses new powers to investigate unusual financial transactions.
The effectiveness of the presidential delivery unit in tackling legal reform and other issues that deter investors.
The pace of reform of Indonesia's civil service, police and courts. Investors have already had to adjust expectations.

Security

Suicide bombings at two luxury hotels in Jakarta in July 2009 were the first major attacks in Indonesia since 2005 and raised concerns that the threat from militants was again on the rise.

Since then, the killings of Noordin Mohammad Top and, more recently, bomb- making expert Dulmatin, have significantly reduced that threat, but some risk persists.

Last year, police discovered a network of armed militants operating a training base in Aceh, Sumatra province. The group wanted to create an Islamic state, police said. Police also captured preacher and suspected Aceh group member Abdullah Sonata, who had previously been jailed.

Firebrand cleric Abu Bakar Bashir was also arrested last August for allegedly supporting and financing the Aceh group. Police have failed in the past to pin terrorism charges on Bashir, and analysts say it is crucial they back up the charges this time, or risk turning Bashir into even more of a martyr. His trial was due to start early this year, though no date has yet been set.

Indonesia as beacon for Egypt

Asia Times - February 2, 2011

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar, Bali – After three decades of unchallenged rule, the president clings to power amid massive street protests calling for his resignation and reform. His intransigence merely forestalls his seemingly inevitable downfall. Security forces have killed demonstrators and reportedly engaged in looting to spread chaos and fear. For the West, especially the United States, the anti-government movement poses a huge dilemma with enormous risks.

Indeed, the US has paid lip service to greater freedom and democracy during the former general's lengthy tenure, while his rule has become increasingly autocratic. There have been no free elections, just sham votes rigged to ensure the outcome.

Corruption has grown, along with the role of the president's family. The media has been controlled through a combination of persuasion, censorship and targeted violence against journalists who crossed the wrong lines or people.

But choosing freedom isn't easy for the US. The president's nation holds huge strategic significance. It balances fragile regional peace and relative stability (by this neighborhood's standards) while another power, ethnically and ideologically distinct, looms at the fringe with uncertain designs. Moreover, it controls a waterway vital to the world's trade and oil flows. The nation's size and geography, as well its endemic poverty, has led the US to lavish billions of dollars in aid, much of it military assistance, over the decades. Bullets shot at protesters and aircraft buzzing overhead are predominantly made in the USA.

Heir pollution

United States caution stems in part from uncertainty about the succession. To protect his power, the president groomed no heir apparent, keeping himself at the center of all political activity. It's difficult to gauge the strength of the ruling party, which basically has served as a vehicle for the president alone. There's no opposition leader with either a record of popular support or political skill. The most powerful national institution is the military, and there's little known about its inner workings. Though presumably loyal to the president as one of is own, the armed forces have shown signs of division and divergence as protests spread.

With the growth of civil society stunted by political control, the only non-government institutions of significance are Muslim groups. The majority of the nation's Muslims are believed to be moderate and tolerant, but there are certainly radical elements which have engaged in violence, both against politicians and the nation's sizeable minorities.

While outsiders may hope for "an orderly transition" to democracy, in a country with no real tradition of democracy the more likely reality seems to be a military takeover or an Islamist regime, neither promising freedom or regional stability.

That is a description of Indonesia in 1998, in the last gasps of the 32- year rule of US-backed strongman president Suharto (who resigned days after returning from a visit to Cairo). Much of what was true about Indonesia then is true of Egypt now. However, while US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton used the term "an orderly transition" to speak about hopes for a resolution of the current situation in Egypt under president Hosni Mubarak, carefully parsed comments from Western policymakers indicate they've failed to grasp the parallels.

Rosy scenario

These parallels are not simply of academic interest. Just 13 years after Suharto's fall, Indonesia has emerged as the world's third largest democracy, by far the most functional and free one in Southeast Asia. The world's largest Muslim population now lives under an elected secular government with the military, formerly a political fixture, completely driven from that sector.

Indonesia remains a staunch ally of the US, despite American support for Suharto and domestic opposition to US-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. Indonesia's economy has ranked among the fastest growing in the world for the past two years, shown by burgeoning traffic on the roads and the Internet, while Jakarta's stock market was the best performer in Asia last year.

To give Egypt the best chance of a similarly rosy outcome, the US and its allies, as well as Egyptians who favor a democratic future, should review Indonesia's transition and its aftermath. However, as with investments, past performance provides no guarantee of future returns.

Whether part of a well-conceived plan or a consequence of the Bill Clinton administration being consumed with presidential impeachment and other domestic matters, the US and its allies largely let events in Indonesia play out without intervention. The non-interference doctrine of the 10- member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) kept neighbors from meddling. Perhaps there was a back channel warning passed to China – in the early 1960s, before Suharto took power, Beijing backed and armed Indonesia's Communist Party, Asia's largest outside China – to keep its hands off.

No clean sweep

Rather than sweeping away the institutions of the Suharto regime, Indonesia's transition played out constitutionally. Suharto's handpicked vice president B J Habibie, considered Indonesia's nutty professor, succeeded him as president. Over the course of a year, new elections were organized under the existing constitution.

Electoral laws were amended to open up the process, allowing more parties participate and replacing appointed seats in the legislative branches with elected ones. The first direct presidential election didn't take place until 2004.

Preserving the system and reforming it from a sham democracy to a functioning one allowed government institutions to remain in place, for better or worse. It also preserved and strengthened the notion of the rule of law, compared with the repeated extra-legal transitions in the Philippines, where they call it People Power, and Thailand with its military coups. In Indonesia, there's a sense that the voting and laws matter.

Most important, keeping the system intact kept any debate over replacing secular government with an Islamic state off the table, while reforms took the military out of politics. Neither of those feats came easy, and both remain works in progress to varying degrees; reforming elections is far simpler than reforming government. No one should expect the path in Egypt to run straight and steadily only in the right direction.

Indonesia's first president of the reform era, Abdurrahman Wahid (popularly known as Gus Dur), was chosen in a backroom deal after his party finished third in the 1999 legislative voting. His choice set off a brief outbreak of rioting among supporters of the top party's leader Megawati Sukarnoputri, daughter of Indonesia's first president. A liberal Muslim scholar who led Nahdlatul Ulama, the nation's largest Muslim group, Wahid was revered cleric and dedicated reformer. He had enemies among Islamists and drew the enmity of the armed forces for his assertion of civilian control and efforts to punish human rights abusers.

Loose lips

Offhand remarks and a chaotic administrative approach cost Wahid political as well as popular support. He was removed from office less than halfway through his term by the legislature, as provided by the constitution. Wahid tried to use the military to defy lawmakers, but the armed forces declined to disobey the law. The presidential transition from Megawati to Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in 2004 was frosty but peaceful.

Ironically, Wahid also provided a catalyst for the growth of violent Islamic extremism. The military armed religious radicals in an effort to undermine his rule. Those efforts provided valuable training to Muslim extremists and raised their popular standing. Terrorism sprouted from that unholy alliance, taking hundreds of lives and requiring millions of dollar to combat. Islamists have also made progress imposing their political agenda. However, elections show that only a quarter to a third of Indonesians vote for Islamic parties, roughly the same figure cited as the level of support for the Muslim Brotherhood among Egyptians.

Indonesia's today under Yudhoyono still suffers hangovers from the Suharto era. Corruption remains a major problem. The government's legislature and judicial branches still sell votes and verdicts, treating public service as an opportunity for enrichment. The military remains largely its own fiefdom, and a culture of impunity based on wealth and connections pervades society.

Indonesia's experience demonstrates that whatever the scenario for Mubarak's departure, there are possibilities beyond Muslim extremism and military rule. Most of all, it's a reminder that ousting the president is just the first step in a long journey that, despite obvious obstacles, can take Egypt forward to the benefit of its people, neighbors and friends.

[Longtime editor of award-winning investor rights advocate eRaider.com, Gary LaMoshihas written for Slate and Salon.com, and works an adviser to Writing Camp (www.writingcamp.net). He first visited Indonesia in 1994 and has tracking its progress ever since.]