Netherlands officials have announced plans to immortalize assassinated Indonesian human rights activist Munir Said Thalib by naming a street in The Hague after him.

"The Netherlands has a policy of honoring those dedicated to human rights," said Haris Azhar, the coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), a watchdog organization founded by Munir.

The offer to establish Munirstraat, or Munir Street, was officially announced on Monday at an event in The Hague attended by Munir's widow, Suciwati, who is also internationally recognized as a tireless rights activist.

Suciwati is visiting the Netherlands at the invitation of the Movies That Matter film festival and is also scheduled to meet with members of the country's Social Democratic Party.

"Friends, please remember The Hague's promise, because Munir's own country doesn't appreciate what he did," she said in an interview with Radio Nederland on Wednesday, adding that she had been contacted by The Hague's mayor, JJ van Aartsen, who announced the pledge.

Choirul Anam, deputy chairman of the Human Rights Working Group, said he hoped the recognition would inspire a new generation of human rights activists and spearhead efforts to solve Munir's mysterious murder.

The pledge "is a gesture from the Dutch government, because Munir's work transcends nationalities and time. This way, Munir's struggle for human rights will not be forgotten," Choirul said.

Munir died after being poisoned on a Garuda flight from Jakarta to Amsterdam. He was 38.

Although Pollycarpus Budi Priyanto, a former Garuda pilot, was sentenced to 20 years in jail for lacing Munir's drink with a fatal dose of arsenic, the identities and motives of the masterminds behind the killing have not been proven in court.

A presidentially appointed fact-finding team accused former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) deputy director Muchdi Purwopranjono of masterminding Munir's murder and recruiting Pollycarpus as his accomplice.

When the case eventually went to trial, the prosecution alleged Muchdi had orchestrated the murder to get even with Munir, whose fierce criticism cost the retired army general the top job at the Army's Special Forces unit (Kopassus) in 1998.

However, on Dec. 31, 2008, the South Jakarta District Court found Muchdi not guilty as prosecutors failed to prove the motive after three key prosecution witnesses retracted their sworn testimonies. The verdict was later upheld by the Supreme Court.

Amnesty International said the lack of accountability for Munir's murder has contributed to an ongoing climate of fear among human rights defenders in the country, some of whom have recently come under attack.

"Accountability for Munir's killing will send a clear message that intimidation and attacks against human rights defenders will not be tolerated," the group said in a statement.

Plane-seat mixup drama prompts security concerns

Jakarta Globe - March 31, 2011

Ulma Haryanto & Eras Poke – As the drama continues over a recent display of supposed arrogance by a lawmaker involved in an argument over an airplane seat, flight experts have pointed out that one crucial aspect of the incident has been neglected – a serious security breach.

The question at hand is how two people managed to be seated on a flight they did not have tickets for.

The breach occurred on Saturday when a Twitter user identified as Ernest said he and a friend had boarded a 6:15 a.m. Lion Air flight to Yogyakarta only to find their seats occupied by Democratic Party lawmaker Roy Suryo and his wife.

When flight attendants checked their tickets, it turned out that Roy and his wife were booked for the 7:45 a.m. flight. Roy eventually left the plane, escorted by a group of airport officers.

The lawmaker explained the next day that he had been escorted by ground staff from the check-in counter directly to the 6:15 a.m. flight.

Edward Sirait, general manager of Lion Air, declined to confirm Roy's version of events, and said instead that the lawmaker might have misheard the boarding announcement and headed for the gate.

Edward, however, said the carrier's employees bore responsibility for allowing Roy to board the incorrect flight. "There is also a possibility that our officers did not thoroughly check Roy's boarding pass," Edward said.

Ground crews, he said, are required to check each passenger's flight number, seat number, destination and boarding time. "We already closed the case. [The conclusion is that] our officers had mishandled the situation."

Edward also said that the employees responsible for the security breach would be sanctioned, but details had yet to be decided. Dudi Sudibyo, an aviation industry observer, blamed the carrier for the confusion.

"The company has to find out how could this happen. Was there really an insider at the airline responsible for escorting Roy and his wife onto that flight [without the necessary checks]?" Dudi said.

"People were lucky that it was only Roy Suryo and not someone with bad intent. This is the first time I've heard of such a security breach. This should never have happened."

Pudjobroto, a spokesman for national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia, said it performed a number of security checks to ensure only ticketed customers were allowed onto its aircraft.

"Before boarding our officers would check whether the passenger's name is indeed on the list, and that is then check-marked," he said. Passengers are also required to produce an identification card to be cross-checked with their boarding pass prior to setting foot on the plane.

Separately on Wednesday, hundreds of Batavia Air passengers fed up with their flight being delayed for two days became physically and verbally aggressive toward airport officials in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara.

The disruption, witnessed by a Jakarta Globe reporter, occurred in the morning after roughly 300 passengers scheduled to fly to Waingapu and Maumere districts two days earlier stormed the runway at El Tari airport in protest.

Passengers said they were angry at the airline's lack of communication in keeping them abreast of the delay and when it would be over.

El Tari airport officials and workers reported being pushed, shoved and insulted by members of the angry mob Batavia Air district manager Novianto denied allegations that the airline had neglected its passengers. He cited bad weather as the reason for the delay. Flights resumed on Wednesday afternoon.

Councilor wants all girls to wear 'jilbab'

Jakarta Post - March 30, 2011

Bangkalan, Madura, Bangkalan – Bangkalan Legislative Council in East Java has urged all schools in the regency to oblige their female students to wear Islamic head scarves when they are in school.

"We ask all principals in all schools in Bangkalan, be it junior high or high schools, to oblige their female students to wear headscarves," councilor Sudarmo said on Tuesday as quoted by Antara news agency.

Sudarmo said Bangkalan regency was a "Santri City". "Santri" is a term for an Islamic student that implies piousness. He said Bangkalan residents were religious and the city had a lot of Islamic boarding schools.

He said the council had passed a bylaw with that specific mandate a year ago, but the implementation was not effective because many students were not wearing head scarves, commonly called jilbab in Indonesia. "We want all female students here to wear headscarves," he said.

Cruelty behind the mask of Jakarta's monkey circuses

Jakarta Globe - March 28, 2011

Ismira Lutfia – It is a pitiful sight, but one that Jakarta residents are used to and that tourists encounter within days or even hours of arriving.

By the side of the road, a small, skinny monkey, sometimes fitted with a grotesque mask and garish costume, juggles or rides a toy bicycle or rocking horse, all the while tethered by a chain to a handler squatting in the shade a meter or two away, waiting for the occasional coin tossed from a car window.

In one South Jakarta spot, a nursing monkey is forced to perform, her infant clinging to her desperately while suckling, as motorists line up to enter the toll road. Every minute or two, her leash is yanked and she remembers that it's time to change the act.

The sight of topeng monyet, or masked monkeys, is so familiar, and the long-tailed macaques trained to perform like this often seem so world- weary, that it is tempting to imagine that they have always been around.

But the monkey acts really only began in the 1980s as traveling shows to entertain poor kids in the kampungs. Only in recent years have monkeys been seen in the city center.

Since then their numbers have grown steadily, and as their visibility has increased, so too have concerns about the welfare of the monkeys.

For this special report, the Jakarta Globe looks behind the mask and investigates the hidden suffering and torture that the monkeys endure – suffering that becomes more and more entrenched with every Rp 1,000 note that passing drivers hand over.

Where it all begins

The story behind the often light-hearted shows starts in the East Jakarta slum area of South Cipinang Besar, famously known as Kampung Monyet, or Monkey Village, where at least 150 macaques are kept in cramped wooden cages.

After having endured hours of agonizing "training," the monkeys sit stuck in cages, waiting for their turn to be taken out to the street to perform. They live among the roughly 200 households in a shantytown built on disputed land behind the Prumpung toy market. The majority of residents in the area work as monkey handlers.

Cecep, one such resident, shows the Globe the grotesque way that a monkey that normally walks on four legs is taught to stand upright.

Behind a shanty on a riverbank filled with garbage, Cecep puts a metal ring around the neck of Toal, a male macaque with a broken arm from a previous training incident. Two ropes tether the ring to poles erected on either side of the monkey. Cecep also ties Toal's arms behind his back while the monkey screeches in pain.

This "hanging the monkey" method, Cecep says, forces the animal to rely only on its feet to get better footing on the ground, strengthening the monkey's leg muscles and giving it an erect, human-like posture.

"We usually hang the monkeys for half a day before we release them for a few hours to feed them and let them rest," says Nanang, another handler.

"After that, we hang them again for a few hours until the day's training is over and we put them back in their cages. But we have to hit them, too, sometimes."

Cecep says some handlers let their monkeys hang all day without feeding them or giving them breaks, risking medical problems or even death.

The hanging training begins as soon as a monkey stops nursing, or when it is at least a year old. It takes a week to a month for a monkey to get through this basic training, the handlers say.

Cecep, who has been in the trade since 1999, says peranakan monkeys, those born to performing monkeys, have a better chance of surviving the training than monyet pasar, or those caught in the wild by poachers.

"The peranakan ones can take a week to train while the monyet pasar take at least a month," he says. "Sometimes they don't make it and they die."

The peranakan monkeys are considered more hardy than the pasar monkeys because trainers can be sure they have finished nursing. Monyet pasar, on the other hand, might not have had the chance before they were snatched by poachers. As a result, they tend to have less strength and stamina.

Once the monkeys have passed the hanging training and can walk upright, the handlers train them to use various toys and props, such as a toy motorcycle, for their performance.

"We also train them to lift toy weights to check if they can really stand erect," Cecep says. "If they can't, the toy training period takes longer.

"We don't teach them to use all the toys at the same time," he adds. "Once the monkey knows what to do with a toy gun, for example, we start training it with another toy."

Dying in training

Cecep and Nanang both claim a success rate of 60 percent in getting monkeys to complete the two phases of training.

"The other 40 percent [of monkeys] end up dead," Cecep says. "If they're not physically strong enough, they die during the basic training, though some die later in the toy training phase."

Cecep thinks of himself as being gentler with his animals than the other handlers.

"If I fail and one of my monkeys dies during training, I give it a proper burial," he says. "Many others just toss the monkey's body into the river or a garbage dump."

He adds that he has had two monkeys die on him during training. Then there are the non-lethal training accidents, like the broken arm he gave Toal.

Cecep demonstrates how he has trained another of his monkeys, Odon, to ride a small wooden motorcycle and salute a flag.

As Odon walks back and forth with the toy motorcycle, Cecep gives the command for it to perform by yanking on the chain attached to a collar around the monkey's neck.

It's "normal" to pull hard, he says, and there's a certain way to do it without breaking the animal's neck. "I don't give a sudden jerk while the chain is lax," he says.

"I pull the chain straight first and then I slowly yank it to signal to him to start. That way, it doesn't hurt his neck and he doesn't lose his balance."

Cecep and the other handlers train their monkeys to play with the props or perform other stunts in whatever free space they can find. Often this means the training occurs in the narrow alleyways of their neighborhood, among residents milling about and stacks of monkey cages.

Some of the smaller cages house two or more monkeys each, while the larger ones cram up to 15 monkeys together.

One of the caged animals is a female macaque named Atun. She is carrying a nursing infant on her neck.

"Atun is probably eight years old and she has had three babies, but one of them died after it got sick from being bitten by another monkey," says another handler, Dede Irfan Saputra, who has just returned from panhandling with another monkey and is undressing it before caging it.

Cecep says the bigger cages are owned by the local "monkey bosses" who rent out the primates to handlers for Rp 15,000 ($1.70) per monkey per day, with the basic props of a mask and a costume.

The monkey owners charge an additional Rp 20,000 to rent out extra props such as a toy bicycle or musical instrument.

Handlers like Cecep and Nanang can expect to take home Rp 50,000 to Rp 70,000 after several hours of daytime performance on the sides of some of Jakarta's busiest roads.

"That's the net amount I get after transportation and monkey rental," Cecep says, adding that he can make a little more during weekends.

Most of the time, the macaques' diet consists solely of plain white rice. During performances, however, their handlers give them pieces of fruit or snacks that passersby hand out.

Both Cecep and Nanang say a distressed monkey poses some level of danger to the humans around it.

"The monkey can be dangerous if it's handled by an unfamiliar handler who doesn't deal with it on a daily basis like we do," Cecep says.

"Unlike us, the foreign handler won't know if the monkey is stressed, hungry or tired," he adds. "Sometimes the monkeys can get irritated when children make fun of them. If we understand the monkeys, they will understand us back."

Ending the cruelty?

Pramudya Harzani, a spokesman for animal rights and welfare group Jakarta Animal Aid Network, is campaigning to put an end to the cruelty.

Pramudya says JAAN is frequently contacted by animal lovers indignant about the way the monkeys are being exploited in what is essentially a panhandling scheme.

Members of the group have traced the monkeys and their handlers to Kampung Monyet and identified at least three major bosses who own several monkeys that they rent out.

"Those monkeys go through hell to be trained to perform," Pramudya says. "They're even poached from their mothers while they're very young. This is obviously against the five principles of animal welfare," he adds.

These five principles are guidelines relating to freedom from thirst and hunger, freedom from pain and disease, freedom to live in a suitable environment, freedom to express normal behaviors and freedom from fear and distress.

"We are very concerned about this situation. This is not entertainment, this is cruelty to animals," Pramudya says.

He says it is important that people stop giving money to the monkeys or their handlers because doing so only encourages the practice.

He adds that JAAN has tried to raise the issue with the government by pointing out that ignoring this situation could have an adverse effect on human health, given that monkeys are potential carriers of numerous infectious diseases.

The long-tail macaques are not categorized as a protected or endangered species in Indonesia, but Pramudya says this is no excuse to overlook the trade and leave it unregulated.

"Don't wait for them to become endangered or to cause a bigger problem before regulating them," he says.

Actions, demos, protests...

Banggai farmers to erect tent in front of palace

Jakarta Post - March 29, 2011

Jakarta – Farmers from Toili, Banggai, Central Sulawesi, plan to erect a tent and camp in front of the presidential palace on Tuesday for three days to seek support after their land was converted into a oil palm plantation.

Twelve farmers from the Singkoyo Farmers Union (Pepsi), which is supported by local activists, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) and the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), have been seeking help from government in Jakarta since early this month. They have approached the Forestry Ministry, Manpower and Transmigration Ministry, National Land Agency, the House of Representatives and National Police.

"The next plan is to ask for help from the President as the previous hearings did not give us any positive results," one of the farmers, Asis, said Monday.

The farmers said life had been harder for about 350 people in Toili after a plantation took over their land, and their earnings had dropped due to their limited access to land.

Indonesian Muslims protest Qaddafi, international air strikes

Associated Press - March 27, 2011

More than 10,000 Indonesians have rallied peacefully to support pro- democracy movements in Libya, Yemen and Bahrain.

The crowd, organized by the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), expressed opposition to the international air strikes that have checked Libya's military and helped rebels gain control of key towns.

But they also called for the immediate resignation of Libyan leader Muammar el-Qaddafi and the protection of civilians.

PKS leader Hidayat Nur Wahid told the crowd on Sunday the Qaddafi an dictatorship must be ousted to stop a humanitarian tragedy. Indonesia's own "people power" revolt toppled long-ruling dictator and Washington ally Gen. Suharto in 1998.

Aceh

Thousands evacuated in Aceh floods

Antara News - March 31, 2011

Heavy flooding in eight subdistricts of West Aceh has forced the evacuation of thousands of people, an official said.

"Volunteers are still evacuating the flood victims. The flooding was triggered by heavy rain, which started last week, causing rivers in West Aceh to overflow," said Ahmad Dadek from the local Disaster Management Office (BPBD).

Floodwater had inundated 92 villages and affected more than 20,000 people, but so far there had been no reports of injuries or deaths.

"Evacuees are staying in mosques, school buildings and emergency shelters. We are operating an emergency kitchen and are providing logistics as well as health care for them," Dadek said.

On March 10, a at least 13 people were killed in a major flash floods in the Tangse region of Pidie district in Aceh.

New museum on human rights offering lessons from Aceh's painful past

Jakarta Globe - March 26, 201

Nurdin Hasan, Banda Aceh – Decades of armed conflict in Aceh may be officially over, but scars remain from that tumultuous time that, as people like Reza Idri insist, should never be forgotten.

Reza, the director of the newly inaugurated Museum of Aceh Human Rights, believes the past holds valuable lessons no matter how painful they are.

"There is no intention at all for us to reopen old wounds here," he said at the museum's launch on Wednesday. "We only want the past to be remembered and serve as lessons for the future."

He and a group of artists and activists formed the museum to record the many rights violations that took place during Aceh's pro-independence movement from the 1970s to the late 1990s. More than 15,000 people were killed.

The Indonesian military launched a brutal crackdown on the separatists, until the state of emergency in the province was lifted briefly between early 2000 and 2003.

Though fighting flared up again after that, a devastating tsunami in 2004 refocused the country's efforts toward rehabilitation and eventually led to a peace agreement.

The museum, temporarily lodged in a simple house in Ulee Kareng, Banda Aceh, has records of those grim events.

On its opening night on Wednesday, dozens of activists watched a documentary on school burnings that were rampant in 2000. The burnings peaked in 2003 when the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) again declared Aceh a military emergency zone and moved to quash the pro-independence Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

The museum also displays photographs of victims who disappeared along with thousands of others during the almost 30-year conflict.

It also chronicles tragedies such as the massacre of Tengku Bantaqiah and 56 of his students on July 23, 1999, in West Aceh. He had been accused of hiding firearms for rebels.

The museum documents the military raid of a National Committee of Indonesian Youth (KNPI) building on Jan. 9 that same year in Lhokseumawe in northern Aceh, that left five dead and dozens injured.

Though its subject is bloody, the museum has refused to show graphic photos or videos of the violence, citing "ethical reasons". "We do have those photos. But if they are displayed, it might spark violent reactions and reopen old wounds," Reza said.

While the new museum is billeted in temporary quarters, the director said he hoped the Aceh administration would realize the museum's value and assign them a permanent building, such as the rarely used Tsunami Museum.

"This is actually the responsibility of the government, but we have taken the first initiative," Reza said. "Once there is state-built museum, we will grant every resource we have to it, which of course would be housed in a more appropriate setting," the director said.

Reza said their museum not only documented abuses but could serve as a center for conflict studies.

Aceh's shariah 'fashion police' get dressing-down

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Nurdin Hasan, Banda Aceh – A squad of Aceh's "fashion police" was berated and attacked on Wednesday by a group of men angry over the officers' attempt to escort what they deemed to be an immodestly-dressed woman to their offices for counseling.

According to Rusli A.K., who heads the Shariah law-enforcing Wilayatul Hisbah Police as well as the Public Order Agency [Satpol PP], the attack occurred after the group of young men witnessed officers leading a girl into their patrol car.

"We were conducting a routine patrol and our officers saw this woman in tight clothing and without a jilbab outside a coffee shop in Sukadamai, in Lueng Bata," Rusli said on Thursday. "She had agreed to come with us to the office for counseling. As we were on the way, some 20 men suddenly began to chase us on motorcycles."

Rusli said the gang surrounded the car and blocked it from moving before vandalizing it and demanding the woman's release.

"They screamed at us," Rusli said. "They demanded that we get the woman down from the car. They were scolding our officers and stopped the patrol car from proceeding.

"They also beat up one of our officers. We did not suffer injuries and the car also sustained just scratches." He said the men got the woman out of the patrol car and then sped off with her on one of the motorcycles.

"We did not give chase. There was the call of maghrib [evening prayers] so we decided to go for prayers instead."

Separately, Khairul, one of the officers caught up in the melee, said the men had attacked one officer with their helmets. "We were lucky none of us were injured," Khairul said. "One of them wore a stud [in his ear]. There was another who said he was a security officer. The door of the car was also damaged," he added.

Rusli said his officers would continue to conduct patrols and that if they encountered the same group of men "action will be taken against them, because they did not portray Islamic Shariah values of Aceh."

Staunchly Muslim Aceh imposed certain aspects of Shariah law in 2002 under an autonomy program granted by the central government as part of attempts to pacify a continued clamor there for independence.

A series of regulations, known as qanuns, criminalize consumption and sale of alcohol, gambling and illicit sexual relations, with caning the main punishment. Muslim women are required to wear headscarves and not wear "provocative" tight-fitting garments in public.

West Papua

'Makar' should be tested before Constitutional Court

Tabloid JUBI - March 31, 2011

Yan Christian Warinussy, the executive director of LP3BH, the Institute of Research, Analysis and Development for Legal Aid, has called on the Dewan Adat Papua, the Papuan Customary Council, to submit the 'makar' – subversion – article in the Indonesian Criminal Code/KUHP to the Constitutional Court for a judicial review.

"I call on DAP together with the Papuan people to seek a judicial review of the makar article before the Constitutional Court because it is no longer appropriate for such a law to remain in force in a democratic country like Indonesia."

"Other democratic states around the world don't have such a law," he said, "because it is so out-of-date."

He said that this should be recognised by all components of Papuan society, including DAP and should be tested by a judicial review.

"If this article continues to remain in force, the police will be able to make use of it to arrest Papuan activists when they give expression to their political aspirations to the government. This includes rejecting the special autonomy law and calling for dialogue as the way to resolve the Papuan issue and various other problems in Papua."

This article can also be used by prosecutors and judges to convict Papuan civilians and activists when raising problems that they confront. "In my opinion, this article will continue to be used to round up and imprison indigenous Papuans whenever they give voice to their aspirations."

He said that the police continue to use articles 106 and 107 of the criminal code on subversion and incitement to detain Papuan activists whenever they raise any problems in Papua, he said.

Police told to stop accusing protesters of treason

Jakarta Post - March 31, 2011

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – National Commission on Human Rights chair Ifdal Khasim is urging the Papuan Police to stop accusing protesters in Papua of treason because the law ensures freedom of expression.

"The current use of articles on treason to confront the political dynamics in Papua is unprofessional because protests are still within the limits of differences of opinion, so the police should avoid using those articles. People's rights should not be restricted for expressing their opinion," Ifdal said in Jayapura at a lecture to Indonesian Military (TNI) officers at the Cenderawasih Military Command on Tuesday.

Ifdal said that police in Papua should avoid applying articles of treason when confronting activists because gradually a number of Papuans involved in political cases would be incarcerated.

"These conditions are not favorable because there should be no political prisoners in a democratic government. Especially when their numbers are large, then it must be questioned," he said.

Ifdal said police should provide room for people to express their opinions. "Law enforcers should maintain political dynamism when facing demonstrations in Papua, for example by giving the chance for them to express their opinions, but [the police] should not charge them with subversion," he said.

Two Papuan activists, Melky Sehu Blesman Bleskadit and Reverend Daniel Yanu, are currently facing trial at Manokwari District Court in West Papua for treason. They were arrested on Dec. 14 of last year for carrying the Bintang 14 separatist flag during a rally.

In an e-mail to The Jakarta Post, their lawyer Yan Christian Warinussy said the treason charges against his clients were being used to suppress the pro-democracy and political reform movements in Papua.

"The articles should not be used to stifle efforts in expressing people's aspirations, especially in demanding justice over their own land. I think the authorities should not have immediately interpreted what Bleskadit, Yenu and their colleagues did on Dec. 14 as an act of treason or separatism," he said.

He said the term treason should be used to refer to articles in the Criminal Code such as whether elements of violence or the use of arms was present.

"But, can expressing an aspiration, carrying and flying a separatist flag or singing a patriotic anthem immediately be branded and justified as treason or separatism?" Ifdal asked.

"It's time to revise the treason articles, so they will no longer be used by the government, through law enforcers, to continue suppressing democratic action in Papua on the grounds of opposition to a legitimate government," he said.

Australian unions call on Indonesia to release arrested nurses

International Businesses Times - March 30, 2011

Australian unions have called on the Indonesian Government to respect international labour Conventions and human and trade union rights following the arrest of five nurses in West Papua.

Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) President Ged Kearney said it was "outrageous" that the nurses had been detained for nine days and were reportedly subjected to long periods of police interrogation, simply because they had supported an industrial campaign to ensure they received their contracted entitlements.

It is disturbing that at the same time as workers in North Africa are beginning to benefit from newfound democratic freedoms, repression of basic human rights including the freedom of association is taking place in our region, Ms Kearney said.

"These West Papuan nurses were pursuing their legitimate rights and it is obscene to think they are languishing in jail.

"I am advised that more than 1500 nurses took spontaneous and unprecedented industrial action in response to an announcement that the Government of the province of West Papua had withdrawn industrial payments.

"We are told that in an attempt to intimidate the nurses and to force them back to work, five nurses were arrested," she said.

Ms Kearney said the arrests of the nurses, including two officials of the National Union of Indonesian Nurses, was a heavy-handed and excessive response to nurses pursing a legitimate industrial campaign in support of their contracted entitlements.

"This action is a clear breach of ILO Convention 87 (Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise), which was ratified by Indonesia in June 1998.

"It violates the fundamental human and trade union rights enshrined in C87 and reflects poorly on the Indonesian authorities. The Indonesian Government should take immediate steps to release the nurses, to remove all charges and to enter a constructive dialogue with the National Union of Indonesian Nurses to resolve these issues."

Vanuatu opposition on MSG membership

Solomon Star - March 29, 2011

Vanuatu's opposition leader, Edward Natapei, says the country should reconsider its membership of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).

Last year, when Natapei was Vanuatu's leader, he was involved in an acrimonious spat with Fijian leader Commodore Frank Bainimarama af ter cancelling an MSG summit scheduled to be held in Fiji.

Natapei was concerned that handing the chairmanship to an unelected leader undermined the democratic values of the MSG.

Since then Commodore Bainimarama has got the job and is set to chair a summit this week, but Natapei is warning Vanuatu should distance itself from the Fijian administration.

"We have to make up our minds what whether or not we value democracy or not. Vanuatu should consider seriously whether or not we should be participating in the MSG now that it's chaired by a non-democratically elected government."

Meanwhile, Natapei said he has grave concerns at the decision by the Melanesian Spearhead Group giving Indonesia observer status. Natapei who was the previous MSG chair said making Indonesia an observer is a counterproductive move.

He said, instead, the Melanesian people of the disputed Indonesian region of Papua, who have long pushed for observer status, should be given it and eventually made full members, in the same way as the Kanaks of New Caledonia are represented.

"I would express grave concerns about this initial move to bring Indonesia in as on observer of the MSG, because that is not going to help the cause of the Melanesian people of Indonesia, the West Papuans."

Natapei said supporting New Caledonia's Kanaks in their push for independence was a key reason for the establishment of the MSG nearly 30 years ago.

PDP leader on dialogue: Don't forget the OPM

Bintang Papua - March 27, 2011

Jayapura – Thaha Alhamid, secretary general of Papuan Presidium Council, (PDP), has welcomed the initiative taken by the Papuan Peace Network, the JDP, to seek to solve the Papuan problem by means of a Jakarta-Papua dialogue, and says this should include all the leaders of the struggle for Papuan independence, here in the Land of Papua as well as abroad. He was responding to a report in Saturday's issue of Bintang Papua's report regarding the initiative taken by Pastor Neles Tebay regarding dialogue.

But he said that the failure to include representatives of TPN/OPM in the JDP was a serious matter, bearing in mind that the OPM is still struggling in the forests of Papua. "I realise that there are problems of communication but that doesn't mean that they should not be represented in the JDP." He said he was sure that the JDP would deal with this, bearing in mind the fact that the TPN/OPM was present at the Grand Papuan Congress in 2001.

He said that the TPN/OPM consists of a considerable number of groups but this does not mean that it should be excluded. Moreover there was once a UN resolution which made the point that geographical problems should not result in the exclusion of any communities. "I am sure that by means of a process of communication, the TPN/OPM will be represented in the dialogue."

He said that all sides should understand that dialogue or peaceful struggle has been the agreed platform of the Papuan people since the time of the IInd Papuan Congress when it was decided that the Papuan struggle must be pursued by peaceful means and this means prioritising dialogue.

"What we should focus on is not war but dialogue or peaceful struggle," he said.

He said that he welcomed the network, the communications, the role of civil society and the good initiative taken by LIPI, the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, to press for dialogue He also recognised that it will not be easy.

In the first place, there needs to be an internal Papuan dialogue, which should include all Papuans, including those who are in the forests, those who are living abroad or wherever they may be, for they are all entitled to have their say regarding the question of dialogue.

Secondly, for all those Papuans here in the Land of Papua, there's no need to consider what their background is because all Papuans have the right to say what they think the dialogue should discuss.

In the third place, the JDP has entered into communication with various groups at home as well as abroad in order to start preparing for the dialogue process, and have agreed to a joint approach towards the central government in Jakarta.

"If we intend to move towards the process of dialogue, bridges will need to be built even if this brings in voices of people who are in favour or against, as all this must be part of the discussion. I am convinced that the JDP is not in any way subordinated to the central government; they are all leaders of civil society who are trying to find a middle way. Dialogue with those everywhere in the world is something that all of us should appreciate," he said.

[Slightly abridged in translation by TAPOL.]

Nurses arrests violate human rights

Tabloid JUBI - March 24, 2011

KontraS Papua, the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence, is convinced that the detention of five nurses by the police in Papua is a violation of their human rights. KontraS Papua member, Olga Helena Hamadi said that the police should not treat the nurses as criminals, adding that the government should quickly act to resolve this case.

She also said that it was wrong for the governor of Papua Barnabas Suebu to ignore this case, as the consequences are being felt by many others in Papua. 'Many people have already become victims.'

Hamadi urged Komnas HAM, the National Human Rights Commission, to continue with its investigations into this case to mediate in the case. "They need to work harder to produce stronger evidence to bring an end to this case," she said.

She also suggested that the police should hand this case over the government in order to reach a settlement.

As already reported, eight nurses have been identified for questioning, five of whom have been arrested and are being held by the police. Five of the nurses have already been declared suspects, while two others are currently being interrogated.

Vanuatu opposition concerned over MSG's Papua stance

Radio New Zealand International - March 24, 2011

Vanuatu's opposition leader, Edward Natapei, says he has grave concerns at the decision by the Melanesian Spearhead Group giving Indonesia observer status. The MSG is meeting in Suva with a leaders' summit set for next Thursday.

Mr Natapei, who is the previous MSG chair, says making Indonesia an observer is a counterproductive move. He says, instead, the Melanesian people of the disputed Indonesian region of Papua, who have long pushed for observer status, should be given it and eventually made full members, in the same way as the Kanaks of New Caledonia are represented.

Mr Natapei says supporting New Caledonia's Kanaks in their push for independence was a key reason for the establishment of the MSG nearly 30 years ago.

Push for West Papua to gain MSG observer status

ABC Radio Australia - March 24, 2011

As the Melanesian Speahead Group meeting goes ahead in Suva, an Australia- based pressure group is calling for full membership for West Papua.

In an open letter to the leaders of the MSG, the Australian West Papua Association argues that as Indonesia now has observer status, the West Papuans should also get a seat at the table. In the letter, they argue that addressing the issue of West Papuan independence is crucial to stability in the region.

Rex Rumakiek is the Secretary General of the West Papua National Coalition for Liberation and he says most MSG members support the push for West Papua's inclusion.

Presenter: Geraldine Coutts.

Speaker: Rex Rumakiek, Secretary General of the West Papua National Coalition for Liberation.

Rumakiek: The role of the MSG is actually to help issues like New Caledonia or West Papua for example to get their issues, the desire for independence, addressed properly by members of the organisation.

Coutts: Why do you want to be a member of MSG though?

Rumakiek: We actually wanted to be member of MSG because that was the basic principle for the establishment of this organisation. You remember when the Kanak or New Caledonia applied for membership or wanted to get independence, Vanuatu decided it would take it to the United Nations because they could not discuss it properly at the Pacific Islands Forum, that's when they established this body so then western countries can sit together with New Caledonia and Kanaki people and discuss their plan to get to the United Nations. And we hope that Melanesian countries can do the same thing for West Papua. And we have no objection to people like Indonesia or even Australia being post-dialogue partners, but not to become members.

Coutts: So you see it as a stepping stone to perhaps membership of the Forum?

Rumakiek: I feel it is indeed.

Coutts: Now what statement do you think's being made that Indonesia has been allowed observer status to the next MSG meeting, but Papua hasn't?

Rumakiek: Well I think it is basically this Bainimarama, the Prime Minister of Fiji's agenda, that they bid so heavily for the Melanesian countries to accept Indonesia to be an observer.

Coutts: Have they actually answered your request yet to be observers at the next meeting?

Rumakiek: Last meeting I remember in Vanuatu before, at the previous MSG meeting, our case was discussed at a ministerial level, and we hope that this time it will get through.

Coutts: Have you had any dialogue, I mean how have you gone about asking for permission to join the Melanesian Spearhead Group at its next meeting as an observer?

Rumakiek: The secretariat is based in Vanuatu and they have beem discussing it with the Vanuatu government and Solomon Islands government, and almost all the members of the body, that it is our intention that this year we should be allowed to become a member.

Coutts: But I'm just wondering how the negotiations are going? Are you getting any feeling at all for how it's going? I mean are they more for it or more against it?

Rumakiek: I think the majority actually wanted us to be part of it, but it was the effect the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Prime Minister Somare, who actually objected to the issue.

Coutts: And what are his objections?

Rumakiek: Well we cannot be sure but we think it was because of pressure from Australia or Indonesia that Papua New Guinea won't allow West Papua to become a member of the MSG.

Coutts: So are you saying that it's come down to Sir Michael Somare saying no, that it's not a majority vote, it has to be consensus?

Rumakiek: That's correct, because all the process of consensus goes to the fore, I think the majority will allow us to get in.

Coutts: Would that mean that the Chair, which would be Commodore Frank Bainimarama have the final say?

Rumakiek: That's right, that's correct.

Coutts: And have you approached him directly?

Rumakiek: We have in fact.

Coutts: And what's his response?

Rumakiek: Well not directly though, but we have approached him in the past, he was very interested in the issue, but of course at government to government level negotiations, I think they have naturally have more opportunity than us.

Coutts: And what statement, I think I've asked you this before, what statement do you think they're making by allowing Indonesia observer status and not West Papua?

Rumakiek: That is exactly what we are asking as well, we don't understand the criteria how they allow permission to come in, because if they want to allow the same I think they'll have to propose that Australia also if they use the criteria, because there are Melanesians in Indonesia, and then there are also Melanesians in Australia, so they should also come in as well.

Coutts: And Luxembourg's been given observer status?

Rumakiek: That's another issue, we don't understand why Luxembourg become observer status.

Coutts: Why do you think they want it?

Rumakiek: I'm not so sure.

Coutts: What will this do for West Papua do you think, that if you can't get onto bodies like the MSG? I know you say it's a stepping stone to the Forum, but what exactly is it you're going to get out of it? Are you going to forge more trading partners, what are you looking to get out of this?

Rumakiek: Well basically the principle of the MSG is to discuss the issues like people wanting to become independent states like New Caledonia, West Papua, East Timor before. So they can discuss them properly like a family. And our purpose of getting in there was that we can discuss our plan, how we want to get to the United Nations, so the Melanesian countries can take West Papuan issues to the United Nations.

Coutts: Well you've drawn comparisons with Kanaki movement in New Caledonia, New Caledonia has observer status. Have you made those comparisons in your application to become observers this time, that there are similarities?

Rumakiek: Yes in fact that was the reason we have applied for this for a long time, we have been doing that sort of comparison, because that was the reason why they established this body.

Coutts: And without West Papua do you think the Melanesian Spearhead Group does call into question the notion of Melanesian solidarity?

Rumakiek: I think indeed it should be questioned. If they allow internationals to come in, I feel they should allow people from the provinces of West Papua or Papua to come in, not Indonesians.

Coutts: Well what's your next step? Have you approached Sir Michael Somare yourself to try and convince him that you should be given observer status?

Rumakiek: In fact we've done that in the past and we will be doing that as well.

Freedom of expression & press

Information ministry says it won't wiretap web sites

Jakarta Globe - March 31, 2011

Ismira Lutfia – The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology on Wednesday assured the public that it would not wiretap conversations taking place on social networking sites.

"We have no authority and no capacity to do that, so we will not be monitoring the social networking sites," ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto said. But he said that due to the open nature of social networking sites, many conversations were already viewable by regular Internet users.

"I assure you once again and as the [ICT] Minister has also repeteadly said, we are not going to monitor social networking sites," he said. He said that other government agencies, such as the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) or the National Police, might access online conversations.

"But it would be within the agency's authority," he said, adding that for the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, it would be illegitimate to conduct such monitoring in accordance with the 2008 Information and Electronic Transaction Law.

"It is 'haram' for us to do that, and in the law it is clear that it could only be done for a specific purpose and it would require permission from the highest authority of law enforcers," Gatot said.

AJI Papua presses police about lack of progress over stabbing

Jakarta Globe - March 27, 2011

Nurfika Osman – The Papua chapter of the Alliance of Independent Journalists has expressed frustration with the sluggish pace of police investigations into the stabbing of local journalist Banjir Ambarita.

"The investigation is taking too long, that is why we are monitoring the case closely," said Viktor Mambor, chairman of the Papuan branch of the alliance also known as the AJI.

"We are going to do something to pressure the police, like hold a protest rally." "The new [Papua] police chief was once in Densus [the National Police's counterterrorism unit], investigating a case like this should be easier than capturing terrorists," he said.

Banjir, a freelance reporter and contributor to the Jakarta Globe, was attacked in Jayapura by two men on a motorcycle as he was riding his own motorcycle home shortly after midnight on March 3.

The Jayapura Police's detective unit questioned Banjir on Friday, more than three weeks after the stabbing. "Because Banjar Ambarita's condition has improved, we formally asked him for information in relation to the stabbing," said First Adj. Insp. Widodo, an officer in the unit. "A total of 37 questions were posed and were answered well.

"We have already questioned five witnesses, but we have yet to find a lead," he added.

Viktor said the AJI appreciated the police's efforts but said: "Even though they are working quite well in carrying out their job, this does not guarantee that they are taking the case seriously."

Poengky Indarty, director of external relations at rights group Imparsial, said that as a defender of human rights in Papua, it was vital that Banjir be protected.

"Until today, the perpetrators responsible for the violence have not been identified," she said. "We urge the Papuan Police to make every effort to catch the offenders and legally process them."

She said Banjir had provided police with information to make a sketch of his attackers. "We want them to investigate based on this sketch and look into police officers who may be involved in the case," she said.

Lax enforcement of media ownership rules under fire

Jakarta Globe - March 25, 2011

Ismira Lutfia – Ahead of an expected revision to the Broadcasting Law, a coalition of media watchdogs has lashed out at the government and regulators for allowing television station ownership to be concentrated among a handful of companies.

Eko Item Maryadi, coordinator of the Independent Coalition for the Democratization of Broadcasting (KIDP), said on Wednesday that this had resulted in a decline in programming quality on free-to-air channels.

"Our broadcasting industry is controlled by a handful of people and corporations laden with business and political interests, who are taking advantage of their broadcasting licences to gain commercial benefits without addressing quality of content," he said.

"There are mounting public complaints over similar, monotonous and sensationalist programs that prioritize commercial interests, showing violence and violating the privacy of public figures. This is a far cry from a broadcaster's role of educating viewers."

Eko said a notable example of concentrated media ownership was the Media Nusantara Citra group, owned by tycoon Hary Tanoesoedibjo, which owns three Jakarta-based stations with nationwide reach: RCTI, Global TV and MNC TV, previously TPI.

Others include Chairul Tanjung's Trans Corp., which owns Trans TV and Trans 7, and the Viva Media Group, a media investment holding company affiliated with the Bakrie family that owns TVOne and ANTV. The Viva group is headed by Anindya Novyan Bakrie, the eldest son of tycoon and Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie.

"The trend is becoming more visible with the planned acquisition of broadcaster Indosiar by Elang Mahkota Teknologi, which owns SCTV," Eko said.

Paulus Widiyanto, head of People for Communication and Information, which is part of the KIDP, and a former member of the House of Representatives, said that the corporate consolidation of broadcasters had affected the quality and variety of programming.

"Diversity of content is clearly lacking," he said. "Even the news programs have a Jakarta bias because they repeatedly feature the same sources." Amir Effendi Siregar, head of Media Regulation and Regulator Watch and a KIDP member, said the situation was "clearly in contradiction to the 2002 Broadcasting Law, which ensures the diversity of ownership and content."

He said a government regulation related to the law limited individual and corporations to ownership of no more than two broadcasters in two different regions, with a maximum 49 percent stake in the second station.

"Therefore it's the government's and the business regulators' task to be firm in enforcing the Broadcasting Law," he said.

However, Gatot Dewa Broto, a spokesman for the Communications and Information Technology Ministry, on Thursday denied the allegations, saying his office had ensured that all broadcasting permits issued remained with the same parties and were not transferred to others.

He conceded there were still "gray areas" in the Broadcasting Law related to corporations and the stock market that fell outside the ministry's authority.

"We're amending the law to harmonize regulations on broadcasting with regulations on the stock market and limited corporations," Gatot said.

However, the KIDP warned the proposed amendments could make the situation worse. "We think the draft being drawn up by the government favors media corporations and could eventually legalize the concentration of ownership of broadcasters," Eko said.

Gatot asked the KIDP not to rush into judgement on the draft, saying they could always voice their objections during the deliberation process at the House.

Politics & political parties

Damning allegations unlikely to scare off PKS members

Jakarta Post - March 29, 2011

Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – Despite damning allegations voiced by several PKS founders accusing some of the party's key members of embezzlement, unauthorized polygamy and authoritarian leadership, many observers believe the party will not only persevere but continue to thrive.

A core ideology founded on the need to uphold Islamic values and an effective chain of command within the PKS are likely to ensure it retains sufficient support, analysts say.

PKS president Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq said that because the party's members were extremely solid they would not jump on the bandwagon to strike back at Yusuf Supendi and his colleagues over their damaging allegations about the PKS.

"Our members are smart enough to see this conspiracy plot to sideline our party," Luthfi said. "Going forward, we are going to show the public our image based only on achievements not merely on talk." he said.

Yusuf, a senior cleric and one of the party's founders, ran amok, accusing PKS leaders of being corrupt. Among his allegations was that Luthfi had embezzled campaign funds for Adang Daradjatun's Jakarta governorship race in 2007.

Yusuf, who was fired by the party in 2010 for allegedly embezzling the party's fund, has also made a series of media appearances in which he accused PKS secretary-general Anis Matta and his deputy Mahfud Sidiq of committing "unlawful" polygamy.

Yusuf's criticisms of the PKS have somehow received support from the party's other founders, including influential cleric Syamsul Balda, who resigned from the party in 2003.

Syamsul said Yusuf's criticisms had been conveyed to the party's top leaders in 2004, but to no response, forcing him to take the issue publicly in the hopes that the party's members would pressure the party's leaders to change. In their less influential positions, these members cannot be expected to pressure the current leaders to change, according to analysts.

The PKS had around 800,000 registered members as of last year, up from 33,000 in 1999. The cadres are divided into six hierarchies; pemula (rookie), muda (junior), madya (mid-level), dewasa (senior), ahli (expert), purna (complete). Aside from relying on its registered members, the PKS has also groomed sy mpathizers through small Koran recitals and discussions. These are mostly found in high schools, universities and mosques.

The party has targeted to secure at least 15 percent of votes for the upcoming 2014 general elections, and a membership of 2 million by 2015.

During the 2009 election, the PKS secured 10.2 percent or 57 seats of the total 560 seats at the House of Representatives, making it the fourth- largest party after the Democratic Party, the Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), all of which are secular.

"The Islamic-based ideology will remain strong in attracting supporters. The vast and intensive recruitment system has also made the party supporters relatively loyal," Charta Politika Indonesia political analyst Arya Fernandes said.

Indonesia has the world's biggest Muslim population. However, Arya and National University's political observer Alfan Alfian were not convinced the party would net more new supporters in the upcoming 2014 general election.

They said the PKS' ongoing internal disputes would harm its chances of gaining more voters. "The PKS might not lose votes from its existing members, but it would be difficult for the party to attract support from the floating masses if it doesn't do something to restore its image following the dispute," Alfan said.

Aside from its diehard supporters, the PKS' established internal "chain of command" has so far played a vital role in countering political assaults against the party and its high-profile members.

Messages and instructions from the party's highest authority have been passed to its members through regular, small-group meetings, allowing information to circulate quickly among members with minimum distortion.

"This kind of command system allows the PKS to quickly consolidate its members, especially when negative issues about the party occur," Arya said.

Alfan echoed Arya's view, but he suggested the PKS also work to restore its public image following allegations by Yusuf and other founders.

"The PKS can't just remain silent. They must present evidence to deny the graft allegations, otherwise this will undermine their long-standing campaign as a 'clean, caring and professional' party," Alfan said.

Alleged cases of graft shaking up ostensibly clean PKS

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – Similar to other political parties in the country, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has not been immune to graft cases involving its members, despite their inexhaustible campaigns for a holy war against corruption. Here are some of the cases:

1. Helicopter purchase debacles

In 2002, Jakarta Police named former Forestry Ministry secretary-general Suripto a suspect in a case of cost inflation in the purchase of two used Bell 412 helicopters in 2000 while he served as the ministry's secretary- general. Suripto is one of the founders of the PKS and is now the party's head of strategic analysis.

Suripto was detained by the police in November 2002 in the case but was released a couple weeks later.

It remains unclear whether then Forestry Minister Nur Mahmudi Ismail, a PKS founder and former first president for the Justice Party (the PKS's previous name) had any connection to the case.

Although several people embroiled in the case were convicted in 2008, the investigations of Suripto and Nur Mahmudi – now mayor of Depok, West Java – remain unclear.

2. Bank Century bailout fallout

PKS legislator Mukhamad Misbakhun was sentenced to two years in prison by the Jakarta High Court in February after an appeal. His sentence was a year longer than the original levied by Central Jakarta District Court.

Misbakhun, a key initiator of the legislative investigation into the Bank Century bailout, was convicted for creating a fictitious mortgage letter to obtain loans worth $22.5 million from the ill-fated Bank Century. He is currently awaiting an appeal with the Supreme Court.

3. North Sumatra Governor case

North Sumatra governor Syamsul Arifin was suspended from his position on Wednesday after being named a defendant in an embezzlement case involving Rp 102 billion while he served as Langkat regent between 2000 and 2007.

In the race for the governorship in 2008, Syamsul was primarily supported by the PKS, along with the United Development Party (PPP) and several other smaller parties.

4. Karanganyar kickbacks

Central Java prosecutors have been investigating several political parties, including the PKS, for allegedly receiving funds obtained through corruption in the construction of a subsidized housing complex for impoverished families in Karanganyar regency in 2008.

According to prosecutors, of the Rp 3 billion in kickbacks allegedly received by the parties, the PKS obtained about Rp 1 billion.

5. Tanjung Api-Api scandal

In 2006, PKS legislators Suswono (now Agriculture Minister), Tamsil Linrung, Syamsu Hilal and Anwar Sanusi received kickbacks worth more than Rp 300 million from officials involved in the construction of the Tanjung Api-Api port in South Sumatra. The PKS said its legislators could not reject the offered bribes on the spot for various reasons, but that they later reported the incident and handed over the money to the KPK in 2006.

6. Depok health care corruption

In November 2010, the Depok prosecutor's office declared former PKS councillor Beni Bambang Erawan a graft suspect in the purchase of health care facilities for Depok General Hospital in 2006.

The Depok court had sentenced the regency's former health agency head, Mien Hartati, to one year in prison and businessman Yusuf Effendi to 15 months in October 2010 in the case. Depok regency in West Java is known as a major pocket of diehard PKS supporters. The regency is led by Nur Mahmudi Ismail.

Libel report filed against PKS chairman

Jakarta Globe - March 29, 2011

Farouk Arnaz & Anita Rachman – After first having publicly denounced Prosperous Justice Party officials for allegedly embezzling campaign funds, ousted party co-founder Yusuf Supendi now accuses chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq of libel.

Yusuf and his lawyer on Monday filed a police report saying Luthfi wrongfully accused him and State Intelligence Agency (BIN) officials of trying to defame the party known as PKS by airing out its dirty laundry.

"We reported Luthfi to the police for slander and defamation. He accused my client to be in collaboration with BIN to corner the PKS. This accusation is totally baseless," Yusuf's lawyer, Ahmad Rivai, told reporters at the National Police headquarters.

Yusuf last week reported PKS secretary general Anis Matta to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), accusing him of embezzling Rp 10 billion ($1.2 million) from the PKS's campaign funds for the Jakarta gubernatorial election in 2007. He also brought the accusation before the Ethics Council of the House of Representatives.

"My client never visited the BIN [building] and he did not have any business with BIN. This accusation that was sent to my client's mobile phone [via SMS] by Luthfi is slander," Rivai said.

In addition to the embezzlement accusations, Yusuf has also accused three senior PKS officials of having polygamous marriages not approved by the party's Shariah Council. He identified the three as Luthfi, Communications Minister Tifatul Sembiring and party deputy secretary general Mahfudz Siddiq.

The PKS has claimed it has been the target of a smear campaign designed to drive the party out of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's ruling coalition.

Mahfudz told the Jakarta Globe the PKS would respond to Yusuf's latest report in the same way it responded to his previous ones. "We will just let him," he said. "If the police want to summon PKS officials to testify, we are ready."

Anis said last week that Yusuf had been thrown out of the party in 2009 but the former politician insists he is still a member.

Nasir Djamil, a PKS legislator, said he was concerned about Yusuf. "Not about his mind, but about his soul – when I see his eyes on television," he said.

Since Yusuf left the party, Nasir said, "he spun out of control." The lawmaker added he thought that in this state, Yusuf could easily be used by anyone with ulterior motives.

Use Islam as your political ideology: Minister

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

Samarinda – Muslims should not fear making Islam their political ideology, United Development Party (PPP) chairman and Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali says.

He said during a regional conference in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, on Sunday that the PPP's members should not have any doubts about making Islam their ideology for the way they thought and as a method to advance the nation, Antara news agency reported.

Suryadharma shrugged off survey results concluding that parties that used a religion as their ideology were less likely to win voters, saying the surveys were made to bring down Islamic parties.

Rift offers glimpse of PKS' underbelly

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – Revelations of long-kept secrets of high living and allegations of graft and unauthorized polygamy among the leaders of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) are providing a glimpse of the dark side of the party's elites.

While such allegations have been in wide circulation since 2008, it was not until last week that they were substantiated by one of the party's founders and former key figure Yusuf Supendi, whose claims were eventually backed by other PKS founders.

"The party's leaders have long steered the party into pragmatism, veering far from its original course, which calls for a central role for Islam in public life," Yusuf said.

Yusuf was not an ordinary PKS member. He was the religious instructor of current PKS president Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq and PKS secretary-general Anis Matta in the 1980s, as well as the roommate of PKS chief patron Hilmi Aminuddin while the pair was studying in Saudi Arabia.

He was also a top official in the party's sharia council, an oversight body supervising members' attitudes and enforcing Islamic teachings in daily life.

Yusuf's revelations are the first signs of the most devastating internal rift encountered by the PKS since its inception in 1998 under the name of the Justice Party (PK).

The corruption allegations will likely prove most damaging to the PKS, whose anticorruption positions and campaigns contributed to its soaring success at the polls in the 2004 and 2009 elections.

However, PKS elites have been downplaying the allegations, saying the motives of Yusuf and his colleagues stemmed from frustration after Yusuf was discharged by the party for "depraved behavior".

The party has yet to file defamation charges against Yusuf, who it also claimed was "mentally unhealthy".

"There's also an indication Yusuf is being used by certain political elites to sideline the party after a recent failed attempt by PKS and the Golkar Party to pass a legislative investigation of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration and the alleged mafia at the tax and customs offices," Luthfi said.

Golkar, PKS entangled in new scandals

Jakarta Post - March 25, 2011

Bagus B.T. Saragih, Jakarta – As internal conflicts within the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) intensified, the Golkar Party is now facing an allegation that one of its lawmakers used his influence to help smartphone smugglers.

The Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) reported on Thursday Golkar's Aziz Syamsuddin to the House of Representatives' ethics council for allegedly helping alleged smugglers at Tanjung Priok Port.

"[Aziz] allegedly abused his political authority to protect two containers full of smuggled smart phones and alcoholic drinks found at Tanjung Priok Port on Jan. 10. The two containers, previously seized by customs officers, were subsequently released due to the intervention of a number of the House's law and human rights commission members led by Aziz," ICW activist Apung Widadi said after filing the report.

Aziz, also a deputy chairman of the House's law and human rights commission, denied the accusation and instead threatened to file a police report against the activists. "If there were lawmakers like that, they must be reported to the police or the Corruption Eradication Commission [KPK]," he said.

Speculation is rife that the revelation could lead to internal conflicts within the party and tarnish the party's image, as happened recently to the PKS.

Reports of alleged corruption and polygamy scandals involving PKS' elite members have been intensifying after one of the party's co-founders, Yusuf Supendi, filed a report with the House's ethics council against several top PKS politicians.

Yusuf also reported PKS secretary-general Anis Matta to the KPK for the alleged abuse of official party funds that he believed came from unnamed Middle East sources, although the anti-graft body is not authorized to probe the alleged crime.

Anis was also accused of embezzling Rp 10 billion (US$1.15 million) in campaign funds.

Calling the accusations slander, Anis said Yusuf had been "singing an old song." On Thursday, PKS deputy secretary-general Mahfudz Siddiq dismissed Yusuf's statement that he had offered financial aid to Yusuf's wife, who had been hospitalized after a stroke.

Mahfudz also denied the rumor, saying the PKS executive board had sent a psychiatrist to Yusuf to check if the latter "was mentally ill".

"All of this is one scenario. It has been orchestrated to attack the PKS," Mahfudz said.

Similarly to Mahfudz, Aziz said he also believed that the allegation against him was orchestrated by his political foes.

Speculation flared that the revelation of scandals involving politicians from the PKS and the Golkar Party was linked to the latest political turmoil among members of the government coalition.

Despite their status as government allies, both parties have repeatedly opposed President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party.

Last month, both party once again sided with opposition parties in a vote on a proposal to establish a legislative inquiry committee to probe massive corruption at the tax office. It infuriated many Democratic Party politicians and led to a strong speech by President Yudhoyono saying, "coalition parties that have violated commitments should be sanctioned."

Leadership ills hinder democracy: Analysts

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Dessy Sagita – Lack of good political leadership is one of the major causes why democracy in post-1998 Indonesia is not taking off as well as it should be, experts said on Wednesday.

"Our democracy is stuck because our president, who is supposed to be very influential with more than 60 percent of votes, is in fact not that strong," Indria Samego, a political analyst from the state Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) told a discussion among political analysts on democratic progress in Indonesia, at the Habibe Center.

Indria said the weakness of the current government was that it was too busy trying to accommodate all the demands from the members of the pro- government coalition of parties. "While they're trying to harmonize their interests, we Indonesians remain stuck in the middle of nowhere," he said.

Muladi, former justice minister and governor of the National Defense Agency (Lemhanas), said the leadership in Indonesia has been severely hampered by poor recruitment procedures resulting in a limited number of qualified leaders.

"To be a leader, one has to fight twice, first within one's own political party, where the vote buying starts, and the ones who win still have to fight outside the party where they need to buy more votes to win [elections]. Then when someone finally assumes a position of leadership, he or she has to join a coalition, further limiting the leader's power," he said.

"People who have money can win even though they don't have the proper political skills – that is why we have 17 governors who have been named suspects in corruption cases and hundreds of legislators jailed."

Ideally, Muladi added, political parties should be filled with activists and professionals. "But our current political parties are filled with those who have money and their friends, or relatives," he said.

Muladi said many people joined a political party as a means to obtain power rather than to improve the country's democracy. Because many saw their political party as a mere vehicle to gain power, they would not hesitate to switch to another party or change their political views.

"I'm not saying a good leader can't come from a political party, but it has to be the right man for the right job, a leader who is purpose-oriented," Muladi added.

Indonesian politicians needed a lot of leadership training and the country also needed to amend the constitution, he said.

"We need to put the core of democracy into our constitution and laws. Make this a priority," he said, adding that Indonesia should stop thinking about adopting foreign leadership models as they would not work in this pluralist society. Political parties should educate their members about democracy. "We need to make people understand that politics is not a tool for their private interests," Muladi said.

Labour & migrant workers

High rate of youth unemployment presents big challenge: World Bank

Jakarta Globe - March 27, 2011

Shirley Christie – Youth unemployment in Indonesia is five times higher than average, presenting a clear challenge to the government, according to the World Bank.

"In every country, the youth unemployment rate is usually two or three times as high as the average population. In Indonesia, however, it is five times higher," said Tamar Manuelyan Atinc, vice president for human development at the World Bank.

Atinc spoke to the Jakarta Globe at the East Asia Conference on Skills Development for Productivity, which took place at the Shangri-La hotel in Jakarta from Wednesday to Friday.

Indonesia, which averages between 7 and 8 percent unemployment, has more than 30 percent of its population between 19 and 24 years old.

"[Indonesia] has wealth in terms of this very young population," Atinc said. "If it uses it wisely, invests in them so they become productive individuals, it will bring tremendous impact. If not, it could be a drag," she said.

She added that high unemployment could eventually create social tension, especially among young people who graduate from school without the experience employers demand of new hires.

In her presentation on the first day of the conference, Atinc said skills are one of the main factors in developing a country's economy, in addition to good macroeconomic policies and a positive investment environment.

"Ensuring there is a skilled workforce that can deliver and be productive is just as important," she said, referring to a chart that showed countries with good access to quality secondary and tertiary education do better in terms of global competitiveness.

Fasli Jalal, the deputy education minister, told the Globe the government had started a scheme called Program Wirausaha Mahasiswa, or Entrepreneurship Program for University Students, in which the government prepares around $10 million each year to allow university students in their sixth semester to bid for reimbursement to fund their business proposal.

"We have an independent panel that determines if a proposal is good enough. Once it is agreed by the panel, they can set up a start-up business," Fasli said.

The program, launched last year, gives students two years to pass entrepreneurship courses in their universities.

"We have about Rp 100 trillion [$11.5 billion] in funds for the new businesses, but they are required to have at least two years of experience, so it would be difficult for fresh grads," he said. The program has received more than 35,000 proposals this year, Fasli said.

Increasing the number of entrepreneurs in Indonesia has been a goal of the government for some time. Possible reasons for a lack of entrepreneurial spirit include educated youth aspiring to be salaried employees, difficulty in accessing financing, a lack of business skill and confusing regulations, Atinc said.

"An image of a good job is probably sitting in an office and doing work, as opposed to doing entrepreneurial work," she said.

Fasli agreed that Indonesians still have that mind-set. He said people in Indonesia historically were trained to be servants of colonial powers, and later to be civil servants of their government.

"Their environment will also appreciate them more if they work as civil servants," he said. Parents who still had that mentality would keep pushing their kids in that direction. "We don't want to trap our students in that mentality."

Placing more emphasis on "creativity, innovation and taking risks" in the education system could help change that mentality, Atinc said. Entrepreneurship carries higher risks as chances exist for greater success and failure.

"[Young entrepreneurs] need to know if there is a safety net so they can afford to take some risk," she said.

In the same conference, the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration announced a collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) to revitalize 313 vocational training centers (BLK) across Indonesia.

Muhaimin Iskandar, the manpower and transmigration minister, said the plan would play a strategic role in increasing the competency of future workers. "However, BLK revitalization will need a big amount of funds, which cannot be accomplished merely by depending on the state budget for manpower functions," he said.

The program requires coordination with several ministries and government institutions to succeed, he said, as well as support from industry players and international institutions. "In the future, we hope there will be many more companies or industries that accept BLK graduates as their employees."

Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration data from this year show there are 237 BLK belonging to provincial governments currently in operation. They comprise 195 vocational training centers focusing on industry, 18 focusing on manpower and 24 focusing on productivity development.

The ministry itself is running 18 BLK, while 58 centers have yet to start operations because of a lack of equipment.

Activists warns Malaysia agreement may not protect migrant workers

Jakarta Globe - March 25, 2011

Ismira Lutfia – An activist for migrant worker rights has welcomed a plan to sign an agreement on the placement of Indonesian workers in Malaysia, but warns the deal falls short of ensuring the workers' full protection.

The Indonesian Migrant Workers Trade Union (SPMI) said on Thursday that the memorandum of understanding between Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur would be difficult to implement because it was a government-to-government agreement, with little consequence for employers or workers.

SPMI chairman Muhammad Iqbal said the provisions on workers' rights should not have been hard to negotiate, as they were basic rights, such as being given one day off per week and the right to retain their passports.

He further argued that because the agreement was an MoU, it was not legally binding for employers to fulfill the stated terms.

"If employers refuse to give their workers a day off, who will reprimand them?" he said, adding that if the government was serious about ensuring the protection of its migrant workers, it should set up an in-country representative office to deal with their problems.

Iqbal said the labor attache assigned to the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur was unable to adequately deal with the thousands of Indonesians working in Malaysia.

The Manpower and Transmigration Ministry announced on Monday that it would sign the MoU in Jakarta this May, ending an almost two-year moratorium on sending migrant workers to Malaysia following a string of abuses by employers.

Minister Muhaimin Iskandar said the agreement was finalized after a meeting with his Malaysian counterpart, Datuk S. Subramaniam, in Kuala Lumpur the same day.

Besides the workers' weekly day off and their right to keep their passports, the ministers also agreed that the workers would have their wages paid through bank transfers rather than in cash, Muhaimin said.

He also made assurances that the agreement would be properly policed, saying both countries had agreed to establish a joint team to oversee the implementation of the MoU.

"Should there be any cases arising in relation to migrant workers' placement and protection, they would be dealt with by the task force," he said.

Health & education

Firms called on to provide health care for the poor

Reuters - March 30, 2011

Tan Ee Lyn & Fitri Wulandari – Indonesia wants the private sector to build more hospitals and reserve a quarter of the available beds for the poor, as it increases spending on free health care to tackle a rise in diseases from strokes to AIDS, the health minister said.

The plan to cover basic hospital medical services nationwide to ensure Indonesians who live in poverty get free hospital treatment, will cost 10 trillion rupiah ($1.15 billion), Endang Sedyaningsih said in an interview on Tuesday.

The extra spending comes as much of Asia seeks to improve health care facilities to prepare for an increase in chronic long-term illnesses as populations age, though many developing nations such as Indonesia are starting from scratch.

"We are aiming that everybody doesn't have to pay when they are hospitalized in class-3 hospital beds," Endang said, referring to the basic level of service. "They will be covered by either the central government or the provincial government."

But she acknowledged that there were budget constraints and the plan will be implemented in stages.

In 2009, 76.4 million Indonesians who were considered to be poor received free medical services in class-3 hospital beds, up from 36.4 million people in 2005.

Currently, 56 percent of Indonesia's 238 million population have some form of health insurance. Under Indonesia's 2011 budget, the Health Ministry has been allocated 26.2 trillion rupiah, an increase of 10 percent – but this is still just 2.3 percent of gross domestic product, versus 3.7 percent in Thailand and 15.7 percent in the United States.

The government last year opened up its healthcare sector to foreign investment, and is encouraging private hospital builders to reserve space for its free health program.

"I invite the private sector to build hospitals and to have at least 25 percent of class-3 beds," Endang said. "If they can have 50 percent of the rooms in their hospitals for class-3 beds, it would be great."

Indonesian property firm Lippo Karawaci and the Mayapada Group are both building hospitals in Indonesia, but regional firms such as Singapore's Raffles Medical or India's Fortis Healthcare have yet to show interest.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has pledged to reduce the poverty level to around 8-10 percent, from above 30 percent now, though critics say strong economic growth has not benefited the poor. And, as incomes for a growing middle class rise, there is an increase in "lifestyle" diseases.

Indonesia now needs to tackle a rise in chronic, non-communicable diseases such as stroke, heart disease and cancer, even though infectious illnesses like tuberculosis, malaria, childhood diarrhoea and dengue remain huge problems, said Endang, who is currently battling lung cancer herself.

The ministry is trying to extend health services and treat adults with hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol. It is also studying the possibility of reducing the salt content in fast food, and looking to improve health for children under five in a nation with a relatively high mortality rate.

Endang, who was a scientist before becoming minister in October 2009, said HIV/AIDS was a growing concern even though its prevalence across the world's fourth-most populous country is relatively low at 0.5 percent, versus 18 percent in South Africa.

"We have certain provinces that are facing AIDS very seriously, like Jakarta, Bali... Papua province," she said. Indonesia had 4,158 newly confirmed HIV infections in 2010, up from 3,863 in 2009. It had a cumulative 24,131 HIV/AIDS cases by end-2010.

Endang noted that controlling the spread of HIV was difficult because the use of condoms cannot be promoted due to religious sensitivities in the world's most populous Muslim country. The ministry is asking NGOs and religious communities to be more active in promoting safe sex.

"We cannot put ads for condoms openly on TV. They are available, but we cannot promote their use or people will say the health ministry promotes promiscuity," she said.

'Rational' prescription: Less antibiotics, more generic drugs

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

How much faith do you have in the scrawls your doctors write when prescribing drugs?

A discussion over the weekend encouraged patients to be more critical in identifying the most common problems with prescriptions: too many antibiotics, unnecessary drugs and not enough generic drugs.

Oversights attributed to unintelligible writing are reportedly also a serious problem, although less common.

Gadjah Mada University's (UGM) School of Medicine pharmacology professor Iwan Dwi Prahasto showed during the discussion an example of an actual prescription for six antibiotics of different brands but of similar function. He warned that overuse of antibiotics could lead to multi-drug resistance. Several recent studies show that many doctors prescribe antibiotics that are not necessary for treating certain illnesses.

"Excessive use of antibiotics has emerged as one of the most serious health problems... including in Indonesia, because it can severely affect health," he said in a discussion titled "Rational Use of Antibiotics to Prevent Multi-drug Resistance" ahead of World Health Day 2011 on April 7.

Inappropriate use of antibiotics involves inaccurate frequency of use and dosage, Iwan said.

A study carried out by the UGM pharmacology unit and the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) in 1998 found that between 92 to 98 percent of patients with non-pneumonia acute respiratory infections received at least one type of antibiotics when they went to community health centers for medical treatment. The study showed that in private health service centers inappropriate prescriptions of antibiotics reached between 82 and 89 percent.

A national survey in 2009 found that antibiotics had been prescribed for diseases caused by viruses, such as influenza.

Doctors often prescribe many different types of medicines for their patients, including expensive vitamins that are actually unnecessary, the discussion heard.

The unpopularity of generic drugs among doctors' prescriptions has also been a lingering problem that the government hopes to address by campaigning about the efficacy of such drugs.

Sharad Adhikary, a World Health Organization (WHO) environmental health adviser at the Indonesia country office, said WHO was working with the Indonesian Health Ministry to support more rational use of drugs. (ebf)

Women & gender

Women's guide to making money

Jakarta Globe - March 27, 2011

Nurfika Osman – While some would argue that Indonesia is still a male- dominated society, recent economic data suggest that women are playing a larger and increasingly more important role in Indonesia.

Recent data from the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) concluded that there were 46 million to 49 million women running some form of small or medium enterprise (SMEs) here, roughly equal to 70 percent of the women in the country. That number includes everything from women going door to door selling homemade cakes to women who own bakeries.

It is estimated that these businesses contribute up to 55.6 percent of the country's gross domestic product, which in 2009 stood at roughly Rp 4,700 trillion ($540 billion), according to World Bank data.

Based on a MasterCard study released in October, titled "Women-Owned SMEs in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa: An Assessment of Business Environment," Indonesia saw an 8.1 percent jump in women engaging in SMEs.

"The research shows that women are quiet powerful economic players in this country," said Petty S. Fatimah, editor in chief of Femina magazine, one of Indonesia's leading women's magazines.

One woman who exemplifies the rising prominence of female business owners is Martha Tilaar, the well-known owner of a chain of beauty salons bearing her name, as well as cosmetic brands such as Sariayu, Biokos and Belia.

"When I started my business 40 years ago, people called me crazy when I went from one village to another examining the health benefits of Indonesian traditional herbs," Martha said.

The intrepid entrepreneur turned what began as a small salon in her garage into a highly successful company. Her beauty centers, which specialize in traditional Indonesian treatments, can be found all across the country.

"It didn't matter what negative things people said to me. I stayed focused, kept working on building up my business and suddenly, one day, I realized that I had become wealthy," she said.

Martha said it was a struggle to get where she is today, a struggle made greater by a male-oriented society that isn't always ready to support female business owners.

"There are many women in Indonesia who have extraordinary business skills. Unfortunately, since the system of patriarchy is still very strong in Indonesia, businesswomen still do not got enough support from their families," she said.

Santi Mia Sipan said it was her family situation that drove her to start her own company, sustainable teak producer Jaty Arthamas Soegih.

She had just quit a secretarial job that she had held for about 12 years, was recently divorced and was raising two children, including an autistic daughter, when she struck out on her own.

"It was hard, but I was passionate about giving my family a better life, so I never gave up," Santi said. "My daughter has been my greatest best teacher. I've become like this because of her."

Santi said one of the things that helped her was working in similar companies before, which gave her a network and taught her the realities of the business.

"I used to work as a secretary at companies run by the likes of Bob Hasan [former minister of trade and industry] and Abdul Latief [former labor minister]," she said. "Working with them meant I could not say 'I can't' or 'I don't know.' It taught me a lot about the determination it takes to run a business."

Santi added that, as a woman, a lot of running a business was simply having the willpower to keep going. "You have to awaken the giant within, that is what I keep telling myself. Do not deny your power," she said.

Things are becoming easier for female business owners in some ways. For one, banks are now much more willing to give them loans.

Sari Wulandari, head of the small-business division at Bank Negara Indonesia, said the number of female entrepreneurs who took out loans from the bank had risen by 40 percent in the past four years.

"Women are better for us than men because their non-performing loan rate is lower than with men. Sometimes it can even be zero," Sari said. "Women, in general, are smarter about taking out loans because they will only do it when their business is already quite stable. That is why we are happy to work with them."

Despite all of their great strides, women still face a number of hurdles to starting their own businesses.

Petty, from Femina magazine, said key obstacles for female business owners were a lack of entrepreneurial knowledge, business contacts, support from family and a shortage of funds.

To help alleviate these problems, Femina and BNI have been running the Wanita Wirausaha Program [Women Entrepreneurs Program] since 2008.

"We have workshops, seminars and a national competition in the middle of the year that has helped 8,000 women network in 12 cities in Indonesia," Petty said.

"Networking is very important in setting up a business. Oftentimes, businesswomen who live in the same city meet for the very first time in our seminars or workshops," she said.

Based on research conducted by Femina in 12 cities last year, including Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Pekanbaru, Palembang, Manado and Banjarmasin, more and more women are pursuing higher education to improve their business skills.

"Many of them are now university graduates or hold master's, so they are better educated and we hope that they can run their business better too," she said.

Hermawan Kartajaya, an expert in management and marketing from MarkPlus consulting firm, said that women were inherently better at certain aspects of running a business.

"Women are by nature multitaskers. They are better at using both logic and intuition in running their business," he said. "Plus, they are better at balancing family life and business. Women never forget their families."

Graft & corruption

Government defends much-decried antigraft law amendments

Jakarta Globe - March 29, 2011

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – The government defended on Monday its planned revisions to the 2001 Anticorruption Law, which critics have said would only weaken the fight against corruption.

Law and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar said the draft amendments to the 2001 law would deter people from committing corruption. "It's too early to accuse the bill of trying to undermine anticorruption efforts," the minister said, adding that those critical of the bill might not have read it thoroughly.

Graft watchdogs have criticized the amendments for reducing the legal penalties for corruption and allowing graft convicts to avoid prison.

One amendment stipulates a minimum sentence of one years' imprisonment for those convicted of graft, a reduction from the current variable minimum sentence of one to four years' imprisonment. Another says those convicted of embezzling less than Rp 25 million (US$28,000) in state funds can escape prosecution if they return the money.

Patrialis said the government was now using what he termed a "restorative" approach to combating corruption, saying it was impossible to wipe out corruption completely and what could be done was to make it harder for people to commit the crime.

He said the bill stipulated that public officials who deliberately file false reports of their net worth could be charged with corruption. Public officials who did not report money they possess can also be charged with corruption, he added.

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chair Busyro Muqoddas disagreed with Patrialis, saying the proposed provisions, if passed into law, would impair the antigraft commission and undermine the country's efforts to combat endemic corruption.

"The proposed bill contradicts the nation's commitment to tackling corruption," said Busyro, who claimed his office was never invited to discussions about the bill.

He said he doubted the process of creating the law could be separated from politics. "Can the officials proposing the bill act independently and impartially since they were born from certain political elites?" Busyro said. "Political parties have set an expensive price for formulating law."

Busyro questioned whether the amendments to both laws were for the public interest or merely the personal agenda of certain political parties. "If it is really being done for the sake of the people there should be a public polling mechanism carried out by those who initiated the proposal," Busyro said.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a legislator from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and a member of the House's Commission III overseeing legal affairs, criticized the draft as "imperfect", but said she also saw improvements in the proposed amendments.

"Regardless of its flaws, the draft bill has much clearer stipulations on the reverse burden of proof for illicit enrichment and asset forfeiture," Eva said.

Draft revisions to Anticorruption Law:

Someone intentionally making a false statement about suspected corruption is subject to three years in prison
Reduction in previous minimum sentence of one, two, three or four years in prison depending on verdict to one year in prison for all charges - Corruption of less than Rp 25 million may not be prosecuted if person admits offense and returns money
KPK authority unclear
Charges on causing state losses are removed
Clearer passages on the use of reverse burden of proof to probe alleged illicit enrichment
More on assets forfeitures

Bill is easy on graft convicts: Activists

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

Ina Parlina – Critics say that the government's proposed amendments of the 2001 Anticorruption Law will reduce the legal penalties for corruption and allow some graft convicts to avoid prison.

Among the bill's controversial articles is one that would reduce the minimum custodial sentence for corruption from four years' imprisonment to one.

Another article stipulates that those convicted of embezzling less than Rp 25 million (US$28,000) of state funds can avoid prison if they return their ill-gotten booty.

The Indonesia Corruption Watch's (ICW) Donal Fariz said on Sunday that the national climate did not favor leniency due to the number of officials and legislators implicated in corruption investigations.

The draft bill stipulates a minimum sentence of one year's imprisonment for corruption convicts, down from a variable minimum sentence of one to four years' imprisonment depending on the offense.

The bill also has an article that would penalize those who make false corruption allegations with a maximum three year prison sentence – a penalty that might deter potential whistle-blowers, according to Donal. "People would likely think twice before reporting corruption," Donal said.

Another critic said the bill would encourage small-scale corruption. "Rp 25 million means a lot to some people; this will only trigger rampant small corruption," the ICW's Febri Diansyah said.

The draft would also scrap the article most frequently used to charge people with corruption. Febri said the article was important; the Corruption Eradication Commission charged 42 corruptors with the article in 2010, he said.

The government said the revisions were made to ensure Indonesian law accorded with the UN's Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), which Indonesia ratified in 2006.

"I believe the government has made a misinterpretation, believing that UNCAC acknowledges no principle of state financial loss, so the draft does not need to set about saving the state's losses," Febri said.

Todung Mulya Lubis from Transparency International Indonesia criticized a revision that would strip the KPK of the authority to prosecute corruption, which would effectively limit the KPK only to investigations.

Lawmakers also proposed revising the KPK Law to strip the commission of the authority to prosecute corruption. Todung said the government and the House of Representatives should strengthen the KPK by allowing it to hire independent investigators and prosecutors.

KPK deputy chief M. Jasin said any revisions had to improve existing law and not "weaken the fight against corruption".

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a legislator from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and member of the House's Commission III overseeing legal affairs, said despite flaws such as stipulations that would strip those convicted of corruption of their wealth, the law contained improvements.

Article 47 of the draft bill had much clearer stipulations on the reverse burden of proof, Eva said, a concept that first appeared when revising the law on money laundering in 2010. She said the draft bill also regulated asset forfeiture, which was not included in the current law.

Watchdog criticizes proposed changes to anti-corruption laws

Jakarta Globe - March 27, 2011

Anita Rachman – Indonesia Corruption Watch has criticized the government for proposing a raft of changes that if implemented would seriously weaken anticorruption laws and further stall the county's fight against endemic graft.

ICW researcher Donal Fariz said there were serious concerns about major amendments to the Corruption Eradication Law proposed by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights and changes to the Corruption Eradication Commission proposed by the House of Representatives (DPR).

The DPR, which must debate the proposals and amend the laws, has an adversarial relationship with the much more respected KPK, which has prosecuted and jailed a number of legislators.

Donal said there were nine key proposals that would significantly weaken corruption eradication efforts.

The proposed changes included dropping the death penalty for corruption, withdrawing a key article that defines corruption as losses to the state, erasing minimum jail terms for some offenses and reducing penalties for corrupt law enforcement officials who take or receive bribes.

Of more serious concern, ICW said proposed amendments included criminalizing the actions of whistle-blowers who report corruption and allowing a loophole so corruption involving Rp 25 million ($2,875) or under was not considered a crime.

"The revisions will only weaken the fight against corruption," Donal said. "We note that it is still important to include the death penalty because corruption is an extraordinary crime and must be handled extraordinarily," he said.

He said the sentences currently being handed out by the Anti-Corruption Court did not act as deterrents against further offending.

Donal also criticized the DPR and government for attempting to revise the law in the current climate of tensions with the KPK.

In an unprecedented move, the KPK recently charged 26 sitting and former lawmakers in relation to the Rp 24 billion bribery scandal linked to the appointment of a top central bank executive in 2004.

The House is also reviewing the KPK Law. Febri Diansyah, coordinator of legal and court monitoring at ICW, said KPK chairman Busyro Muqqodas had previously told the House that the law was "adequate" and did not need amending.

National Mandate Party (PAN) lawmaker Tjatur Sapto Edy, deputy chairman of House Commission III for law and legislation, said the ICW need not worry about the revisions, claiming the House was still committed to eradicating commission with the KPK.

Tjatur said it was the House that established the KPK and asked what purpose weakening the antigraft agency would serve. The most important thing, he said, was not the laws themselves, but the people who worked at the KPK.

Tjatur questioned the track record of the agency, saying that it had only arrested the "small fish" and not the main actors behind the recent corruption scandals. He said if the KPK wanted to be given broader powers, it should prove that it could handle the responsibility.

"The KPK must prove itself in the upcoming months that it deserves the authority. Why don't they arrest corruptors that have caused the nation losses of Rp 1 trillion or Rp 2 trillion? They have been given a tank, so why do they shoot mosquitoes."

I'll fight jail term, Susno vows

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Heru Andriyanto – After months of allegations and counter allegations, controversial police Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji was sentenced on Thursday to three and a half years in jail for two corruption cases brought against him after he blew the whistle on graft and case-brokering within the National Police.

Prosecutors had asked for a seven-year jail term. Immediately after the ruling, Susno went to appeal the ruling. "I can't accept the verdict and have already registered my appeal," he said afterwards.

"This is not fair," complained his wife, Herawati. "My husband got a heavier sentence than the case broker. We will appeal. Never retreat, that is our motto."

Susno, 54, was accused of taking a Rp 500 million ($57,000) bribe in his handling of a legal dispute involving the Salmah Arowana Lestari fish farm and of embezzling Rp 8 billion from the security fund for elections in West Java while serving as the provincial police chief.

The panel of judges said the bribery cases could not be separated from the cases involving lawyer Haposan Hutagalung, who provided the Rp 500 million bribe, and former diplomat and alleged case broker Sjahril Djohan, who channeled the money to Susno in December 2008.

"This corruption case is related to and cannot be separated from the two cases of Haposan Hutagalung and Sjahril Djohan, who have been proven guilty by the law," presiding judge Charis Mardiyanto said. Haposan was jailed for seven years, while Sjahril received just 18 months.

On the election security fund, the panel said prosecutors proved Susno had ordered the head of West Java Police finances to embezzle money from funds distributed to district and municipal police stations, with recipients asked to sign receipts for higher amounts than they received.

"The actual overall spending was Rp 19 billion, but the defendant, who was in charge of the budget, reported that nearly all the budget of Rp 27 billion had been used and only Rp 2 million was left in surplus," Charis said.

Susno collected Rp 8.46 billion, which he then used to buy traveler's checks, foreign currency, a Toyota Camry for his official vehicle and pay off top officers and other officials in the provincial police.

"All that had nothing to do with the security of the governor and vice governor elections in West Java," the panel said.

The court also ordered Susno to return Rp 4 billion in stolen assets or his personal wealth would be seized, and it fined him Rp 200 million or face an additional six months in jail.

In March last year, the former chief of detectives shocked the nation with his public allegations that two police generals had acted as brokers in their handling of a money-laundering case involving a rogue tax official.

His remarks prompted police to launch an investigation and name at least nine suspects in connection with the scandal. Two months later, Susno himself was arrested on graft charges linked to the fish farm case. The accusation linked to the electoral fund was added later.

Susno's lawyer, Henry Yosodiningrat, criticized the judges for mainly using testimonies from two witnesses, Sjahril and Maman Abdurrahman – former finance head of the West Java Police – while ignoring other facts. "You journalists are smarter than those judges," he said.

War on terror

Militants could launch further attacks: Indonesian anti-terror chief

Reuters - March 31, 2011

Olivia Rondonuwu – Indonesian militants are using parcel bombs and targeting minorities to try to push an Islamist agenda on the government and they could launch further small attacks, the country's anti-terror agency chief says.

Militant attacks and incidents of religious intolerance have risen in recent weeks, with mobs lynching three followers of a minority Islamic sect and torching two churches on Java island.

Parcel bombs have been sent to people involved in promoting pluralism and counter-terrorism in Jakarta. The head of the National Counter-Terrorism Agency, Ansyaad Mbai, said.

Islamic organizations that had not previously been involved in acts of terror were joining a militant network in Indonesia because of a convergence on certain issues.

"Terrorism is politics. The motive is politics, and clearly the militant network's aim is to affect political policy," Mbai said in an interview at his barricaded office in a former colonial building in central Jakarta.

Mbai said radical groups were putting pressure on the government to grant demands to dissolve the Ahmadiyah, a minority Islamic sect branded deviant by religious leaders.

Members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), known for smashing up bars but not considered a terrorist group, have threatened to launch a revolution if the Ahmadi are not banned.

Mbai said the Islamist movement in the officially secular country would gain more ground if the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has no clear stance on the matter, bowed to this demand.

"The president said that we can't be defeated by terrorism, but I say, if Ahmadiyah is dissolved, this country has been defeated," said Mbai, a former two-star police general.

Five parcel bombs were sent to the office and homes of pluralist and counter-terrorism figures this month, with one exploding and injuring three people. While there were no deaths, others in those fields are now fearful they could be next.

Indonesia has been successful in recent years in weakening Islamic militants and reducing the risk of bomb attacks such as those that killed over 200 people in Bali in 2002, but security in the capital has been stepped up after the parcel bombs.

"The bombs were the work of terrorist groups that have been doing terror in the past. The circuit, the type of explosives, the message and the targets carry the same signature," Mbai said.

Mbai said such groups could launch more attacks because they still had weapons, could recruit new members and had a stronghold in northern Sumatra island. However, security forces have killed or captured key figures of Indonesia's most infamous group, Jemaah Islamiah, in recent years.

JI, blamed for the Bali bombings, wanted to establish an Islamic state across Southeast Asia. Firebrand militant cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, accused of being the former head of JI, is being tried in court for allegedly funding a group in northern Sumatra that wanted to overthrow the government.

"There is a possibility of more terror attacks but the attacks would be weak because the militant groups are in a crisis of leadership," Mbai said.

Indonesian terror suspect shot, hurt during arrest

Associated Press - March 31, 2011

Sebastian Abbot and Niniek Karmini, Islamabad – The main Indonesian suspect in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people was shot and wounded by security forces who arrested him in Pakistan, an Indonesian official said Thursday.

Umar Patek, a deputy commander of al-Qaida's Southeast Asian affiliate Jemaah Islamiyah, was arrested in Pakistan on Jan. 25 after a tip from the CIA, Pakistani and Indonesian security officials have said.

He was in a firefight that broke out during his arrest, Sutanto, head of Indonesia's intelligence agency, told reporters in Jakarta. One of the officers was also hurt, he said.

Pakistan will provide Indonesian consular officials access to Patek so they can confirm his identity, said Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Tehmina Janjua, during her weekly press briefing Thursday.

The arrest of Patek, who has a $1 million American price tag on his head, ends a 10-year international manhunt and is a major achievement in the global fight against al-Qaida and its offshoots. If he cooperates, the 40- year-old militant could give valuable intelligence on the current state of the extremist organization and its hardy affiliates in Southeast Asia.

Pakistani authorities are questioning Patek and will eventually hand him over to the Indonesians, Pakistani security officials have said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

[Karmini contributed to this report from Jakarta.]

Indonesian officials give mixed reports on Pakistani arrest

Jakarta Globe - March 31, 2011

Officials on Thursday gave mixed reports on whether the Indonesian Government understood that the man arrested in Pakistan was actually suspected terrorist Umar Patek.

National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo said the Indonesian Government doubted it was Patek. "We got that information, but we have no absolute proof that he is Umar Patek," Timur said at the Presidential Palace on Thursday.

Timur said that he was yet to receive a detailed report from the joint force team, consisting of police and members of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), sent to Pakistan to confirm the identity of the person arrested.

According to foreign intelligence sources on Tuesday, Patek, a suspected member of the Al Qaeda-linked militant group Jemaah Islamiyah and the a main suspect in the 2002 Bali bombing, was arrested earlier this year in Pakistan.

Suyanto said that despite receiving detailed information from Pakistan on Patek's arrest, the Indonesian government still needed to confirm whether the information was true.

"It is said that he has been arrested, but we need to go there to make sure [it is him]," he said. "There is a process to seeking the truth."

But although Timur and Djoko were unable to confirm whether the man arrested in Pakistan was Patek, presidential spokesman Julian Pasha said it was indeed the wanted terrorist.

"He has been arrested. It is true that he is Umar Patek," Julian said. "We're only waiting for the official statement from [Indonesian] police, which has the authority to verify the information. But the ministry of political, legal and security affairs has analyzed the available information and are sure that he is Umar Patek."

Pakistani security officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, on Wednesday confirmed Patek's capture. All spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the issue.

"The CIA tipped us off that he might be traveling here," one official said, but stressed that it was a "solely Pakistani operation."

A US official familiar with the operation confirmed the CIA worked with foreign intelligence agencies to capture Patek – a collaboration that finally paid off after years of pursuit. (JG, AP)

Al Qaeda flag flew at Bashir terror camp, witness says

Jakarta Globe - March 25, 2011

Heru Andriyanto – Hard-line cleric Abu Bakar Bashir was a different man during a hearing at the South Jakarta District Court on Thursday.

Unlike at a previous hearing, when he had stormed out of court accusing prosecutors of producing bogus video confessions from witnesses, Bashir instead chose to stay and question trial witnesses himself.

Bashir is charged with multiple counts of terrorism related to the funding of a paramilitary training camp in Aceh that was raided by police last February.

He asked suspected militant Joko Sulistyo and convicted terrorist Sofyan Tsauri, both presented as trial witnesses by prosecutors, whether or not the camp had actually sparked terror among local residents in Aceh.

"Nearby villagers didn't see us as a threat. Sometimes they even delivered food to us," Joko said. Sofyan added that the camp was too far from the nearest village to cause any disturbance.

However, Joko also informed Thursday's hearing that the paramilitary training activities in Aceh were inspired in part by the movements of the Al Qaeda in war-torn Iraq.

Joko confirmed prosecutors' statements at the hearing that the Al Qaeda flag had been erected in the middle of the paramilitary camp, located in the mountainous region of Jalin Jantho in Aceh.

Under police questioning, Joko said the flag had been raised within the camp grounds to encourage the motivational spirit of participants training at the camp, "In order to follow in the steps of Al Qaeda, led by Osama bin Laden – to whom we pay our highest respects."

Sofyan, a former policeman serving 10 years in jail for selling weapons to the camp, said the paramilitary training intended to prepare fighters for waging jihad in Palestine.

"Muslims are brothers around the world. The misery endured by Muslims in Afghanistan, Chechnya and Palestine is the misery of Muslims in Indonesia," Sofyan told the court.

He said he had sold at least 24 firearms and almost 20,000 rounds of ammunition to the Aceh camp for Rp 350 million ($40,250).

"I got the weapons from Ahmad Sutrisno, a member of Brimob [National Police's Mobile Brigade]," Sofyan said. "I left my unit in the middle of 2008 and was fired in June 2009." When prosecutors asked why he was fired, Sofyan replied: "Because I waged jihad according to Allah's way."

Before the hearing on Thursday, Bashir denied his involvement in an alleged coup attempt on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as reported by Al Jazeera, and dismissed rumors that he had been included as an adviser in the Islamic Revolutionary Council. But Bashir said he would support any movement to uphold Islamic law.

"The ruling government is comprised of infidels who fight against Islam," Bashir said.

"Muslims should not live in a country that is not an Islamic country. This is an issue of faith. This country is secular, not governed by Islamic law. Muslims must do something about this. They must reserve the right to establish an Islamic state.

"I'm not against [President Yudhoyono]. It's the system that I oppose," he added. "SBY may rule this country as long as he wants, as long as the country is based on Islamic law."

He also rejected the term "hard-liner" widely attributed to him and his followers. "The term 'hard-liner' is introduced by infidels. The appropriate term is faithful Muslims," he said.

"There are also those who are termed moderate Muslims. These Muslims do not consistently observe [the rules of] Islam, yet they are widely praised, while consistent Muslims are called 'hard-liners,' " Bashir added.

Extremist & hard-line groups

Ex-generals powerless to topple SBY, despite tough talk: Analysts

Jakarta Globe - March 28, 2011

Nurfika Osman & Farouk Arnaz – The threat of a coup by hard-liners and ex-military generals has been overblown and there is no reason for government officials to panic, analysts have said.

Arbi Sanit, a political expert from the University of Indonesia, said on Sunday that it was unlikely former military generals wielded the kind of power required to overthrow the government, a claim made by the leader of a radical Islamic group in an Al Jazeera report last week.

"These retired generals don't have the means to topple the government because they're powerless," Arbi said. "They're retired and they don't have much money to fund a coup d'etat or foment mass unrest. Neither do they enjoy any kind of mass support."

Chep Hernawan, head of the Islamic Reform Movement (Garis), told Al Jazeera that several senior ex-generals were pulling the strings behind the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) and other hard-line groups to incite religious violence and overthrow President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"All they can do is talk, going from one discussion to another," Arbi said of the former generals. "So far, we haven't seen anything to show that they pose a threat to the country."

Burhanuddin Muhtadi, a political analyst and senior researcher with the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), agreed there was nothing to suggest such a coup would ever materialize. "I don't believe those generals have the power to topple Yudhoyono, because most of them are also close to him and to Wiranto," he said.

Wiranto, a former military chief of staff, is widely credited with kicking off reforms within the Armed Forces that saw it withdraw from politics and split from the police as an independent entity.

"If they weren't retired, perhaps they could topple the government," Burhanuddin added. "But now that they're no longer on active duty, they're not as effective."

However, Chep claimed the coup would go ahead unless Yudhoyono took a hard line against the Ahmadiyah Islamic sect. Members of the minority sect, which has faced increasing animosity over the years, have in recent months suffered deadly attacks and increased persecution by groups such as the FPI.

"If the president is still hesitant [about disbanding Ahmadiyah], we'll occupy the State Palace," Chep told the Jakarta Globe on Sunday.

"We're united by the Ahmadiyah issue, since these retired generals have also lost faith in how the president is managing the country. They are Muslims too and know very well that Yudhoyono's hesitance in banning Ahmadiyah could spark public anger, particularly from Muslims.

"This movement is based on aqidah [belief], not political interests," Chep said.

Among the military men backing the hard-liners is former Army chief of staff Gen. (ret.) Tyasno Sudarto, who previously told Al Jazeera about his support for groups aiming to topple Yudhoyono in a "revolution.

Others identified by Chep were Maj. Gen. (ret.) Muchdi Purwoprandjono, former commander of the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus); Maj. Gen. (ret.) Kivlan Zen, former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad); and Gen. (ret.) Fahrul Razi, a former deputy chief of staff.

Chep said several meetings had already taken place since January between the ex-generals and conservative Muslim leaders to discuss their plans.

"They weren't formal meetings, as you might imagine. Sometimes just one or two of the generals attended. I always attended along with Muhammad Al Khaththath," he said, referring to the secretary general of the Islamic People's Forum (FUI).

Al Khaththath has told Al Jazeera he helped draft a proposed Islamic revolutionary cabinet (DRI) to be appointed after the coup, overseen by FPI chairman Habib Riziq as president.

However, Chep said there had been no discussions yet as to who would lead the revolutionary government if it was ever achieved.

He denied Habib would be appointed as president or that noted radical Abu Jibril, a senior member of the Indonesian Mujahideen Council (MMI), would serve as vice president. "We haven't talked about it," Chep said. "Maybe later at our next meeting because we still have plans to meet after this."

Hard-line groups also plan to hold an anti-Ahmadiyah rally in Jakarta in the near future to urge Yudhoyono to issue a decree banning the sect, he added.

'Islamic government' planner denies it was coup plot

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Nurfika Osman & Farouk Arnaz – Islamic figures on Wednesday admitted to involvement in a plan last year to set up an Islamic revolutionary cabinet, but denied it was an attempt to overthrow the government.

"At the time, we only stood by. In the event that our government collapsed, we would have been ready to take over," the secretary general of the Islamic People's Forum (FUI), Muhammad Al Khaththath, said on Wednesday.

He was referring to a detailed alternative cabinet lineup for a proposed Islamic government, referred to as DRI, that he posted online in March last year during the heat of the Bank Century bailout controversy.

The "cabinet' named Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) chairman Habib Riziq as president and well-known radical Abu Jibril, a senior member of the Indonesian Mujahidin Council (MMI), as vice president.

The list became widely known after Al Jazeera reported on Tuesday that "senior retired generals" were backing Islamic hard-liner groups, including the FPI and the FUI, to topple the government. Al Khaththath said he himself arranged the structures of the DRI cabinet.

Joserizal Jurnalis, an orthopedic physician who is also a director of the Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, is the proposed health minister on the list.

"Yes, I was in the [DRI] cabinet last year, but I do not know who's in the cabinet this year," Joserizal told the Jakarta Globe. "I am close with Habib Riziq and Abu Jibril, they are my best friends."

Others on the list, though, denied knowing anything about the proposal.

"I have never even heard about this list, [FUI] had never said anything about this," Hendri Saparini, the managing director of economic think tank Ecnoit, who appeared on the cabinet list as the coordinating minister for economy and state-owned enterprises, told the Globe. "I would never be a part of such a conspiracy to topple the government."

The economist said she had often advocated the implementation of a Shariah-based economy in Indonesia. "I often come into contact with various Muslim organizations, so they know me well and they know my concept very well too," Hendri said.

Luthfie Hakim, a lawyer known for defending hard-liners and suspected terrorists, refused to comment about being named on the list as attorney general.

But both Al Khaththath and Joserizal said DRI did not aim to overthrow the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono government. "If there is a vacuum in politics, then we have an initiative. Do we call that subversion? If there is a tsunami in Jakarta and everyone dies, we have a structure. Is that subversion?" Al Khaththath said.

Joserizal said scandals such as the Bank Century bailout put the country in danger. "The country was in a chaotic condition at the time. Our aim was to protest against the government since their direction was not clear," Joserizal said. "DRI is a reaction [to these situations] from Muslims."

Government ministers also rejected allegations that hard-line Islamists backed by senior retired military generals were attempting to overthrow the government.

Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said there were "no plans and there should not be any plans for a coup." The minister said even if there was a planned coup, "we're ready to face it."

[Additional reporting by Camelia Pasandaran & Nivell Rayda.]

Freedom of religion & worship

Ahmadiyah urge West Java to revoke ban that fuels violence

Jakarta Globe - March 31, 2011

Yuli Krisna, Bandung – The Indonesia Ahmadiyah Congregation has issued an urgent request to West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan to revoke a recent decree issued to ban activities of the Ahmadiyah.

The congregation, or the JAI, says a decree banning the religious activities of the sect is fueling further violent attacks against them.

"I request that the governor revoke the decree because it is neither easing tensions nor preventing anarchism. Instead, it is driving groups toward anarchy," Rafiq Ahmad Sumadi Gandakusuma, spokesman for JAI in the western part of West Java, told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday.

"The effect of such decrees have been disastrous. So many believe we, the Ahmadiyah, have been banned when actually what has been banned [are our activities] which are in violation of the core teachings of Islam, which are listed in the joint ministerial decree."

In recent years, persecution and violent attacks have marked the lives of Ahmadis across Indonesia, with the government accusing them of leading more and more Muslims astray.

Rafiq said the persecution and attacks were continuing. On Tuesday night, he said, the house of at least one Ahmadi follower was vandalized in the Sukagalih area of Tasikmalaya, West Java.

"The attack was conducted by 40 men. They were not locals from Tolenjeng village, Sukagalih, where the attack took place. Police were there, but they were just watching. I heard they are questioning witnesses, but what is the point?" he said.

"I would therefore like to question the governor's statement that the decree was issued to keep the peace and to guarantee security conditions in the regions. That is completely wrong."

Rafiq also spoke of other attacks. On March 10, he said, an Islamic boarding school in Sukabumi was sealed by locals and security officers. On March 13, electronic equipment and books thought to belong to the sect were burned in Cipeuyeum, Cianjur, He said more violence followed on March 14-15 in the villages of Cibuntu and Ciareuteun Udik in Bogor, leaving at least eight homes damaged.

In addition to the violence, Rafiq said the Ahmadiyah congregation continued to face intimidation. This included numerous instances in which sect members were forced to convert to mainstream Islam through signed statements.

Probe Ahmadi attack: West Java Governor

Jakarta Post - March 31, 2011

Arya Dipa and Panca Nugraha, Mataram – West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan says he wants the police to investigate the attack of a house owned by an 80-year-old Ahmadiyah follower in Tasikmalaya.

"Violence, on behalf of anything, is illegal in West Java. Vandalism is a crime, so it's a police matter," Heryawan said in Bandung on Wednesday.

Heryawan, however, denied that his recently issued regulation banning Amadiyah in the province triggered a violent attack of the Islamic sect's followers in Tasikmalaya.

"The regulation was able to prevent a full-blown conflict, such as occurred in Kuningan. If it had taken place, it would have been 10 times bigger than the riot in Cikeusik," he said.

Tasikmalaya Ahmadiyah Congregation head Encang Zarkasih said the house owned by Ahmadiyah follower Uha, and occupied by the 80-year-old and his six children and grandchildren, took place around 10:30 p.m. on March 29.

"Around 50 people were involved in the vandalism," he said in a telephone interview on Wednesday. According to Encang, all six immediately fled after the mob shattered the house's windowpanes and threw a motorcycle into a nearby pond.

The mob was comprised of local residents and outsiders, Encang said. "It was done only because he is an Ahmadi. The place has never been used for any religious activity," Encang said.

While no one was injured in the incident, Uha's family had been evacuated to avoid further incidents.

Tasikmalaya City Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. M. Hendra Suhartiyono said investigators were currently collecting statements from seven eyewitnesses. "We are still building the case and have yet to name a suspect," he said.

Separately, hundreds of Ahmadis in a refugee camp in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) expressed indifference to the orders recently issued by several provincial governors disbanding Ahmadiyah.

"[The orders] have no influence on us. Actually, we no longer care about it. The most important thing is for the government to resolve the refugee issue. We want freedom like other Indonesian citizens, to live normally again and not in this shelter," Syahidin, coordinator of the Ahmadiyah community at the Wisma Transito refugee shelter in Mataram, told the Post on Wednesday.

Wisma Transito has been the home of 137 Ahmadis, including 48 children below 12 years of age, since their eviction from their homes in Lingsar, West Lombok, in February 2006.

The government stopped assisting the refugees in 2008. The West Lombok and NTB administrations have rejected the Ahmadis' requests to renew their long-expired identity cards.

"We face difficulties in getting healthcare and education for our children. I appeal to the government to provide us with ID cards and to recognize us as Indonesian citizens," said Syahidin.

Many of refugees currently made their livelihoods as construction workers, motorcycle taxi drivers or small vendors.

NTB Religious Affairs Office head Lalu Suhaimi Ismi previously said the office would continue to provide religious counseling to the Ahmadis. "We continue to encourage them to return to mainstream Islamic teachings," said Suhaimi.

Some of the refugees said offers of counseling made through the media would not be effective without direct interaction.

Temanggung religious violence trials begin in Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - March 31, 2011

Semarang, Central Java – Twenty five men implicated in the highly publicized burning of churches in Temanggung, West Java, in early February made their first appearance in the Semarang District Court on Thursday.

The trial venue was moved to the provincial capital of Central Java for security reasons. The defendants have been divided into seven different groups, though the alleged ringleader, Syihabudin, will stand trial alone.

Syihabudin denied the prosecutor's indictment that alleged he was the provocateur of the riot on Feb. 8, in which a mob angered by a sentence handed down in a blasphemy trial attacked two churches and a Christian school. Nine people were injured in the ensuing violence.

Temanggung has long been a breeding ground for Islamic extremists and was one of the areas where early members of regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah were recruited.

In 2009, Temanggung Police killed Ibrohim during a raid. Ibrohim was a florist at the Marriott Hotel in Megakuningan, Jakarta, and was believed to have smuggled in the bomb used in the July 2009 terrorist attack.

In 2007, police arrested Temanggung local Mujaddid, an accomplice of key wanted terrorist Noordin M. Top, for his involvement in the sectarian conflict in Poso, Central Sulawesi, in the late 1990s. (Antara/JG)

Prosecutors accuse cleric of provoking Temanggung riots

Jakarta Post - March 31, 2011

Jakarta – Prosecutors at the Semarang District Court are charging Syihabuddin, a defendant in the Temanggung riots case, of provoking people into engaging in last month's riots that damaged several churches in the area.

Prosecutor Sugeng said Thursday that Syihabbudin is an ustadz (cleric) and mubalig (preacher), who persuaded residents to attend a blasphemy trial at the Temanggung District Court.

The Court's agenda that day was to read the verdict on blasphemy defendant Antonius Bawngan. Some of the residents attending the trial claimed the five-year prison sentence was too light and the situation deteriorated into mass rioting.

The prosecutors said that Syihabuddin had gathered the group to attend the trial. Syihabuddin allegedly rode in the front vehicle of a convoy heading to the trial, holding a megaphone, Tempointeraktif.com reported.

They said that Syihabuddin yelled several provocative statements during the trial, such as "Antonius should be sentenced to death because [spilling] his blood is halal [allowed]," and "...kill him, burn Antonius if the court doesn't sentence him to death."

The crowd attempted to wreck havoc at the district court before moving on to the streets and attacking churches.

Syihabbudin said that the charges read by the prosecutors were "90 percent slander and fabrication." He said that the harshest words that he spoke before the trial was "Whoever hides Antonius, I will go against that person."

Syihabuddin added that according to him, the Temanggung riots were fueled by at least two factors: Antonius provoking them and the arrogance of security officers in dealing with the residents who attended the trial.

Depok to seize Ahmadiyah mosque sealed shut by mob

Jakarta Globe - March 28, 2011

Ulma Haryanto – The Depok administration said on Sunday that it would seize an Ahmadiyah mosque previously sealed off by a mob and turn it into a "normal" mosque.

Fachmi Muhammad, a municipal spokesman, said the Al-Hidayah Mosque on Jalan Raya Muchtar in Sawangan subdistrict "will be changed for normal public use, so it's no longer going to be privately owned by the Ahmadiyah congregation."

The mosque, built and used since 1999 by members of the minority Ahmadiyah sect, was sealed off on March 19 by a group of locals.

Yendra Budiana, a spokesman for the Ahmadiyah congregation in Depok, told the Jakarta Globe that a mob of 30 people had boarded up the mosque's doors and windows with wooden bars. "The police, who outnumbered the mob, just stood by watching," he said.

He said he believed the mob was led by Damanhuri, the owner of an Islamic boarding school located nearby.

"We never had any problems when we first built the mosque, even though the boarding school was already there," he said. "Besides, sealing off a house of worship won't stop people from believing."

Damanhuri said the mosque would remain closed off "until doomsday," as quoted by news portal okezone.com "Residents will watch over it 24 hours a day. If the seal is breached, I don't know what they will do [to the Ahmadis]," he said.

Fachmi argued that the administration's seizure of the building was lawful in light of a decree issued by the mayor of Depok earlier this month. "The decree refers to the West Java gubernatorial decree forbidding Ahmadiyah from conducting any activities or spreading its teachings," he said.

He said the Depok administration was carrying out a campaign to educate the public about the decree.

Both East Java Governor Soekarwo and West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan have issued decrees restricting the activities of members of the beleaguered sect. The issuance was quickly followed up on by district heads in both provinces.

West Java officials have taken the issue a step further, coordinating with the local military command and urging mainstream Muslims to occupy Ahmadiyah mosques, with non-Ahmadis leading Friday prayer sermons in hopes of getting Ahmadis to renounce their version of the faith.

Ahmadis have frequently been persecuted over the high regard in which they hold the sect's founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Mainstream Muslims say that regard violates one of the key tenets of Islam, which holds that Muhammad was the religion's last prophet.

Abdul Kadir Wokanubun, advocacy and campaign director at the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), said the regional decrees restricting the Ahmadis' activities had no strong legal basis.

"First, the 2008 joint ministerial decree on Ahmadiyah that they [the East and West Java governors and other local officials] claim is the basis for their decrees isn't even a valid piece of legislation," he said.

Second, the 2004 Regional Administrations Law clearly refers matters of religion and faith to the central government's authority, Abdul pointed out.

"What these regional leaders have done is actually against the law," he said. "The fact that they're now trying to take over property that belongs to the congregation is another legal issue, but we're not going there yet."

Religious affairs minister resolute on controversial decrees

Jakarta Globe - March 26, 2011

Religious Minister Suryadharma Ali reiterated once again that two controversial decrees governing religious issues would not be revised or revoked despite increasing protests against them.

"The joint decrees will not be revised and the regulation on Ahmadiyah will remain," Suryadharma said during an event held by his United Development Party (PPP) in Manado, North Sulawesi on Friday.

He was referring to the 2008 joint ministerial decree on the Ahmadiyah and the 2006 joint ministerial decree on houses of worship – two decrees the minister says are enough to regulate religious differences in Indonesia, but which pluralism advocates say foment intolerance instead. "The decrees are still very relevant, it's so obvious," Suryadharma said.

The decree on houses of worship, issued by the ministries of religious affairs and home affairs, requires a religious group to obtain the approval of at least 60 households in the immediate vicinity before building a house of worship. It has been criticized for making it almost impossible for minority faiths to build churches in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-majority nation.

Calls to amend the decree resurfaced following the attack on two leaders of the Batak Christian Protestant Church's (HKBP) Pondok Timur Indah congregation in Bekasi on Sept. 12. One leader was stabbed and another beaten. The church has been at odds with Islamic hard-liners, who have objected to the presence of a church in the area.

The decree on Ahmadiyah, on the other hand, requires the Ahmadiyah community to "stop spreading interpretations and activities that deviate from the principal teachings of Islam."

Date from the Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy shows that violence against Ahmadiyah followers increased following the 2008 national decree – with the number of attacks rising from three in 2006 to 50 in 2010.

Human Rights Watch has said the decree and the actions of top government officials facilitated discrimination against the group and unofficially condoned recent attacks on Ahmadis. The US-based NGO has also called for the removal of Suryadharma for repeatedly urging the cabinet to issue a total ban on Ahmadiyah.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has also been sent a letter by 27 US lawmakers urging him to immediately revoke recent provincial decrees and the 2008 national decree banning Ahmadiyah activities. (Antara, JG)

Bombs provide ammo for preaching tolerance

Straits Times - March 25, 2011

Zubaidah Nazeer – Last week's string of mail bombs sent to several moderate Muslim leaders in Indonesia have helped to highlight their work, even as loud noises made by radicals continue to chip away at the country's heritage of tolerance.

These leaders say they are stepping up their activities and working with other groups to emphasise religious diversity and tolerance, and they do not want to rely on the government.

Some have been quietly engaging the Ahmadiyah sect, whose believers were attacked by a mob last month in Cikeusik, Banten province, West Java.

Said Mr Zuhairi Misrawi, chairman of the Muslim Moderate Society: "We have been working behind the scenes with other organisations which support pluralism, and engaging our grassroots through our leaders in all provinces. So we know that on the ground, the majority do not think and feel the same way as the radicals." He will be meeting representatives of the Ahmadis in Bogor today.

His organization has previously fanned out to the provinces to train young religious teachers, and distributed sermons to mosques with contents that counter radical ideas.

Others like Mr Hashim Muzadi, a former chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama, the largest moderate Muslim group in Indonesia, also oppose the use of force against minority groups. He said: "Islamic clerics across Indonesia need to work harder... to enlighten the Ahmadis so they come back to the right path. Whatever the reason is, violence is not allowed... not by Islam, by Indonesian national law, by human rights principles."

Three Ahmadis were killed in the mob attack last month. Since then, there has been other news of attacks against them.

Though such incidents have sparked fears that Indonesia's Muslims are increasingly becoming intolerant, several religious leaders remain optimistic that the silent majority will not be swayed by the ideology of hate. Instead, moderate Muslim leaders criticised the government for its handling of religious conflicts.

Mr Luthfi Assyaukanie, co-founder of the Liberal Islamic Network, told The Jakarta Post: "Religious intolerance and the radicalisation of Islam are getting worse. The government is failing." Added Mr Zuhairi: "The government inaction shows its weakness and ignorance in dealing with religious tensions."

The Muslim Moderate Society is a member of the Alliance for Diversity and Religious Freedom, a band of 25 organisations from different faiths, including Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism.

Pastor Johannes Hariyanto, secretary-general of the Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace, said: "A lot of us who advocate pluralism have been engaged in regular dialogues for some time but... we should push to make the majority voice louder."

He added: "Indonesia has a rich history of religious diversity and tolerance, but since the mid-1990s some groups have brought back rigid and extreme versions of Islam they were exposed to while studying in some Arab countries. These are not suitable for a secular, multi-religious society like ours."

The mail bombs jolted many Indonesians as they were sent to those seen to be advocating religious pluralism, observers say. One was sent to Mr Ulil Abshar-Abdalla, founder of the Liberal Islamic Network. Another was sent to the youth chief of a nationalist organisation, while a third was sent to a rock musician who sings songs about Indonesia's pluralism and diversity.

"Yes, I am worried that pluralist Muslims are targeted, but we should not be discouraged," said Mr Zuhairi. "We should continue our work of spreading tolerance and reminding everyone that the Indonesian Constitution protects the rights of everyone to practise their beliefs peacefully."

Fresh attacks on Ahmadis as peace dialogues begin

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran, Vento Saudale & Nurfika Osman, Bogor – Fresh from attending a trial hearing of men accused of burning down schools and an Ahmadi mosque in Bogor last October, some 20 men on motorcycles on Wednesday vandalized the home of an Ahmadi in the Cibuntu Kaum village of Ciampea.

The home belonged to Laswati, the mother of an Ahmadi leader, Ahmad Hidayat. Ahmad said the men on motorcycles stoned the house, breaking windows and damaging the roof.

"The attackers were a mob who had just returned from the Cisalada hearing," Ahmad said following a trial hearing at the Cibinong District Court on the 2009 attack, which saw a mob of hundreds ransack and burn down houses, schools and a mosque in Cisalada village in Ciampea.

The village was home to 600 followers of the Ahmadiyah minority sect, which is deemed deviant by mainstream Muslims.

"According to witnesses [at Wednesday's attack], there were at least five police officers present at the scene," Ahmad said. "They just watched the stoning and did nothing. Our position is really threatened now. This is the second time they have attacked Ahmadis in Ciampea."

There were no reports of injuries. The attack came on the same day a national dialogue aiming to address the intimidation and violence faced by members of the Ahmadiyah was held in Jakarta.

Organized by the Ministry of Religious Affairs, the dialogue was attended by representatives from both liberal and hard-line organizations, but not the Ahmadiyah. The Indonesia Ahmadiyah Congregation (JAI) cited the short notice given for declining the invitation.

Zafrullah Pontoh, the JAI's national secretary, said on Monday that the invitation had only been received on Friday, adding that the group had only been allocated four seats at the conference.

Attended by representatives from the Islamic Defenders Front, the Nahdlatul Ulama, the Muhammadiyah and the Indonesian Ulema Council to name a few, Wednesday's talks, according to the Detik online news portal, saw a majority of the representatives agreeing to the complete disbandment of the Ahmadiyah.

"We are very disappointed that the Ahmadiyah did not send any representatives" ministry official Zainuddin Daulay said. "It was a forum where they could have voiced their concerns, stated what it is that they need and how can we accommodate them," he added. "We are only here to do what is best for the Ahmadis."

Zainuddin said the forum heard discussions from nongovernmental organizations, academics and Islamic scholars. "We are going to have two more meetings before coming to a decision," he said. "We hope [the Ahmadis] can participate."

Meanwhile, in a separate development, the Supreme Court has ruled that the trials of those allegedly behind the bloody violence that targeted the Ahmadiyah in Cikeusik, would be transferred from Banten to Jakarta. Banten Governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah confirmed on Wednesday that Indonesia's highest court had agreed to move the trail venue to Jakarta for safety reasons.

"As governor, I'm responsible for maintaining peace and stability in Banten," Atut said at the Presidential Office in Jakarta. "Though I haven't received an official response, I've been informed that the Supreme Court has approved our request."

Atut said the province requested the move to prevent further clashes between Ahmadis and Cikeusik residents.

Students from Islamic boarding schools in Banten had previously threatened to stage demonstrations in Banten if the trials were transferred. Atut said the Banten Prosecutors' Office had also requested the trials be transferred.

Legislation & parliament

DPR office row a smear campaign, Marzuki claims

Jakarta Globe - March 31, 2011

Anita Rachman – Embattled House Speaker Marzuki Alie lashed out at critics on Wednesday, saying opposition to a controversial office tower project he had approved was only meant to sully his reputation.

"Factions within the House of Representatives which are against the construction of a Rp 1.13 trillion [$130 million] office tower are doing so to tarnish my image as a leader and a Democrat," Marzuki said.

He said if lawmakers were serious about stopping the project, they should have raised objections during meetings of the Household Affairs Committee (BURT), which had discussed the proposal for months.

Marzuki, BURT's chairman, said parties did not block the plan, which meant they were "not really serious" about having the project scrapped. He said any grievances raised during BURT meetings would be brought to the House consultative body before being discussed in a plenary session.

"This is a political game aimed at fooling the public. They know that the House speaker cannot abort plans without going through legal mechanisms," Marzuki said. "Those who yelled out did so for their political image and to step on the toes of others."

Earlier this week, nongovernmental organizations announced plans to file a lawsuit against Marzuki next month for pushing ahead with the project, which would set state coffers back by around Rp 800 million for each lawmaker's new office unit.

On Tuesday, Marzuki said NGOs should not presume to represent the public's aspirations. "They all can be far too negative about me as the House Speaker and a Democrat," he said. "The Democrat who doesn't side with the people [is the picture they want to paint]."

He also said opponents of the project should suggest feasible alternatives.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said Marzuki brought trouble upon himself. "He is the one who's responsible because he is the BURT chairman," she said on Wednesday. "People should have been involved in the plan, including the concept and design."

Tjahjo Kumolo, also from the PDI-P, said the project should be postponed until a modest design for the building was drafted. The Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) and National Mandate Party (PAN) have also urged the House to scrap the costly project.

Tjatur Sapto Edy, chairman of PAN's House faction, said on Wednesday that they had submitted an official letter to the House leadership, expressing their "strong opposition" to the building's construction.

Since PAN had only four lawmakers on the 51-member BURT, though, Tjatur said it was difficult to push the party's stance.

The lawmaker also denied his party's criticisms against the building project were personal attacks against Marzuki. "We don't have any intention to corner him. We love Pak Marzuki so much," he said.

On Wednesday, the PAN welcomed several NGOs that supported the faction in opposing the building project.

During a meeting with the party, Sebastian Salang, a coordinator for the Concerned Citizens for the Indonesian Legislature (Formappi), said the inverted U-shaped design for the House's new office tower bore striking similarities to Chile's Parliament building.

Sebastian said directly copying architectural designs from other countries would bring shame to the House.

Brothels out of bounds for DPR in new code

Jakarta Globe - March 30, 2011

Anita Rachman & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – With Tuesday's passage of the House of Representatives' new code of ethics, lawmakers are no longer allowed to visit brothels and casinos, unless the visit is for official purposes.

The new code passed by the House plenary consists of 16 chapters dealing with accountability, transparency and integrity. It states that lawmakers are prohibited from using their position to seek privileges and benefits, whether for themselves or their families.

They are also not allowed to establish relationships with their working partners with the intention of asking for money or gifts. The new code of ethics even regulates lawmakers' dress code, stating that in doing their job, House members must dress neatly and appropriately.

Nudirman Munir, deputy chairman of the House Ethics Council, said the new regulation is aimed at making legislators role models for citizens.

For instance, one article says, "An Indonesian legislative assembly member is forbidden from entering places that are considered inappropriate in terms of ethics, morals and norms prevailing in society, such as places of prostitution and gambling." It left room for an exception, though: "Except for the interest of their duties as members of the House of Representatives."

Nudirman said legislators whose working commission deals with social, women's or health affairs are expected to visit "places of immorality" to supervise the work of the ministries involved.

"Some lawmakers often go on sudden inspection trips when the Health Ministry is working on AIDS prevention in prostitution areas. Such activities will be permitted," he said. "Commission III, overseeing legal affairs, could also visit casinos to supervise the work of law enforcers."

Such tasks usually must be approved by the House leadership, and they must always be carried out with multiple lawmakers, he said. "If any legislators come to the locations individually, it can be suspected the lawmaker might have a bad intention and can be reported to the Ethics Council," Nudirman said.

He also said the rules would not apply during campaign periods, when lawmakers often individually visit such areas to establish rapport with constituents. "During election campaigns, lawmakers do not need any permit from House leaders," he said.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a lawmaker from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said some lawmakers, especially those in Commission IX, which oversees health and women's affairs, often need to visit prostitution areas. "As an example, they need to supervise the government's program to prevent venereal disease," she said.

She also criticized the ethics code, saying the issues addressed are largely obvious. "I think all lawmakers know that we should never go there with the intention of violating the law," she said.

The new code has been questioned by a number of nongovernmental organizations because a number of articles from the previous code were left out.

The Ethics Council has maintained that the new code would be sufficient to keep lawmakers in check, saying anything omitted was already covered by existing laws.

Indonesian House of Representatives knows best: Marzuki

Jakarta Globe - March 29, 2011

Anita Rachman & Dessy Sagita – Nongovernmental organizations should not assume to be representatives of the people's aspirations, the speaker of the House of Representatives said on Monday. That, he said, is a role reserved for lawmakers.

Marzuki Alie's comments came after a group of NGOs announced on Sunday that it would file a lawsuit against the House – and Marzuki, in particular – next month for pushing ahead with a controversial plan to build a new Rp 1.13 trillion ($130 million) office tower for lawmakers.

"Please don't speak on behalf of the people," he said, addressing a group of government watchdogs that included the Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (Fitra), a particularly vocal critic of the building plan. "House members are the official representatives."

The senior Democratic Party member said objections raised by the NGOs did not necessarily represent the opinions of most people. Lawmakers, by contrast, are directly elected by the people, he added. "Who do these NGOs represent? How come the one that's legitimate [the House] is being trumped by these NGOs?"

However, people approached by the Jakarta Globe begged to differ with the House speaker.

Maya Larasati, a 23-year-old student at Atma Jaya University in Yogyakarta, said she did not trust lawmakers, especially after the controversial overseas trips, antipornography law and other "stupid bills."

Maya said lawmakers did not deserve to be called representatives of the people because they asked the public to make sacrifices that they themselves were not willing to make.

"As a citizen, I've been willing to cut expenses, save fuel, electricity, but these so-called leaders are not willing to do the same with their plan for a new building," she said.

Witriani, a 29-year-old office worker, said most lawmakers only represented their own interests and their political party's greed.

"They are too busy looking for more power," she said. "They spend most of their time arguing over which policy or bill will benefit their clique the most. They have no time to represent us, their constituents."

Witriani said the House was also distracted by trivial affairs, like sex- tape scandals.

Romy Gustiansyah, a banker, said lawmakers had no right to call themselves the people's representatives. "They've missed their target to finish drafting bills and yet they still make a lot of demands like a lavish new building and a permanent pension scheme for just five years of work," he said.

Ronald Rofiandri, director of advocacy at the Center for Indonesian Law and Policy Studies (PSHK), said it was unwise of Marzuki to criticize the NGOs.

"It is irrelevant to question whom the NGOs are representing. NGOs exist because of public aspirations that forge them into organizations," he said. NGOs, he added, have every right to question the House's decisions because they act as government monitors.

Hanta Yuda, a political analyst at the Indonesian Institute, said the public had lost faith in lawmakers, as seen in the critical voices on social media like Facebook.

"Political parties have failed to perform their function in conveying public aspirations," he said. "They've come up with policies their constituents don't want."

NGOs plan to sue house to block new office tower

Jakarta Globe - March 28, 2011

Anita Rachman – With lawmakers turning a deaf ear to criticisms of the controversial new House of Representatives office building, a group of watchdogs is preparing to file a lawsuit to stop the plan from going ahead.

Yuna Farhan, secretary general of the Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (Fitra), said on Sunday that it and several other nongovernmental organizations would file a lawsuit at the South Jakarta District Court against the House.

"We will file the lawsuit against the House speaker, who is also the chairman of the House's Household Affairs Committee [BURT], Marzuki Alie," he said. "But of course, our lawsuit is basically against the House of Representatives as an institution."

BURT is the body responsible for deliberations over the planned office building.

Yuna said the Rp 1.13 trillion ($130 million) project was a violation of the 2003 Law on State Finances, which requires the efficient and economical management of state funds. "If they drop their plan, the nation could build more than 4,000 houses for the poor," he said.

The House announced on Friday that construction of the new building would go ahead, with 11 construction companies having registered to bid for the project.

Sumirat, an official overseeing the construction, said each of the lawmakers' new rooms would be about 110 square meters and cost about Rp 800 million, minus the furniture.

"It is possible that each room could cost Rp 1 billion," said M. Arwani Thomafi, a BURT member from the United Development Party (PPP). "I can't say whether that's too expensive – we only know that price is a standard price for a state building."

Arwani said the House and BURT welcomed criticisms from the public and NGOs, adding that he thought it showed good initiative from the public.

"I don't think we could drop the plan now, as all factions have agreed to the idea," he said. "All we can do now is efficiently and transparently expend the budget."

Refrizal, a BURT deputy chairman from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said the House was not turning a deaf ear to public criticisms, "such as the one about the swimming pool." "We are listening to what the people say," he said.

The original designs for the new building included a swimming pool, but that was taken out following a public backlash.

Nonetheless, Refrizal said it was too late to abort the project. He said the public needed to understand that the new building would be a long-term benefit for the country and not merely used by the current crop of lawmakers at the House.

Lawmakers have previously argued that they need more office space at the House complex because they plan to have more advisers. The new building is also planned to host a new legislative analysis center.

"In the past, people also rejected Sukarno's idea for Gelora Stadium, and also Taman Mini Indonesia Indah," Refrizal said. "We need to build it because it's not only for today, but for the long-term, for subsequent lawmakers, for the future."

House speaker: Lawmakers represent the people, not NGOs

Jakarta Globe - March 28, 2011

Anita Rachman – The Speaker of the House of Representatives on Monday questioned the claim that nongovernmental organizations represented the people, emphasizing that the lawmakers were the legitimate representatives.

"[NGOs] please don't speak on behalf of the people, House members are the official representatives," said Marzuki Alie, the House speaker from the Democratic Party.

On Sunday, a group of NGOs said they would file a lawsuit against the House Speaker Marzuki for pushing a plan to build an Rp 1.13 trillion new office tower, saying that the plan went against the people's will.

Marzuki said that an objection raised by an NGO does not necessarily represent the opinion of the majority of Indonesians. He added that lawmakers were directly elected, and hence the official representatives of the people.

"Whose representatives are the NGOs? How come the legal one [the House] is being trumped by NGOs?" Marzuki questioned.

Marzuki, however, welcomed any lawsuits filed against him, stating that it was a state official's pleasure to be reported or challenged in the court.

"It's fine. This is a country that's based on law. In this era of democracy, it is official's consequences," he said. "[It's] very enjoyable to be reported here and there."

Lawmaker involved in another plane seat incident

Jakarta Globe - March 26, 2011

Indonesian Twitter users woke up on Satuday to an early morning plane seat mix-up incident that ended with lawmaker Roy Suryo being asked to leave a Lion Air flight.

Twitter user @ernestprakasa said he boarded the 6:15 a.m. flight to Yogyakarta with his friend only to find their seats occupied by the Democrat Party lawmaker and his wife.

"When it was checked, it turned out that Roy Suryo's tickets were for the 7:45 flight, instead of 6.15 a.m. but he refused to leave the plane, dropping the name of Lion Air's director," Ernest wrote.

Ernest said he and his friend decided to just leave the plane, but suddenly some of the other passengers shouted, "Don't let officials beat you!" and "Hey, Roy Suryo, don't pull a Nurdin Halid. You must step down now!"

In the midst of the chaos, the pilot, identified only as Capt. Vino, came out to the cabin to ask what was going on because the flight was already 15 minutes late.

After receiving an explanation from a flight attendant, the captain walked into the cockpit, grabbed his bag and angrily walked over to the plane's door, cursing government officials as he did so. The captain refused to take off if Ernest and his friend were not on the plane.

Shortly after, a group of airport officers approached Roy Suryo, and the lawmaker finally got up and apologized to the passengers. "I am sorry for having disturbed your flight," he said, to the applause of the passengers.

After Suryo left, the captain returned to the cockpit and started the take-off procedure. However, Suryo said he was simply a victim of Lion Air's mistake.

"Tweeps, I was the one who became the bigger man and took the blame for Lion Air's mistake in the double-seat incident. As the people's representative, I know ethics require me to apologize and prioritize others," he wrote on his Twitter account.

Roy claimed Lion Air has apologized to him for the "miscommunication." Lion Air refused to comment on the incident, saying they will verify the flight documents first.

DPD seeks DPR support for constitutional amendments

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Anita Rachman – The Regional Representatives Council has begun lobbying political parties to support amending the 1945 Constitution, a council member said on Wednesday.

Proposed changes outlined in a draft recently completed by the council, also known as the DPD, included curtailing the executive branch of the government's role in legislation, providing the DPD with the power to impeach the head of state, and allowing independent candidates not supported by political parties to run in presidential elections.

Bambang Soeroso, a DPD member and head of the special drafting team, said the council had commenced discussions with the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) and was ready to approach other parties in the House of Representatives (DPR).

Bambang said all 132 members of the DPD had signed the draft proposal, but it still requires the signatures of at least one-third of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which is made of the DPD and lawmakers at the House, to begin debate on the proposal.

"We have scheduled meetings with the National Awakening Party [PKB], Golkar Party and the Democratic Party," he said.

The proposal for the fifth Constitutional amendment was completed in February, after four years of discussion by the DPD.

Fajrul Falaakh, a member of the National Law Commission (KHN), predicted the DPD's draft would find support among lawmakers at the House. "It depends on how they lobby the factions in the House," Fajrul said. "The DPD has many options on offer; let's see which is chosen by the House."

He said that while some points in the proposed amendment might receive negative feedback from certain House factions, such as opening the door to independent candidates, other points were likely to be well received, such as the proposal to cut the government's power to legislate.

Fajrul said that bills were often stalled due to government resistance. With only lawmakers and the DPD deliberating bills, lawmakers may increase their productivity, he said. The House has often come under intense public criticism over what is perceived as poor performance in making laws.

The DPD argued that the president and his administrators were the executors of the law, "so they should not deliberate bills."

"Both the DPD and the House of Representatives should be involved in lawmaking. However, the president will still be given the right to propose and veto bills," Bambang said. Bambang added that giving greater authority to the DPD was warranted, arguing that "it would be a waste for DPD not to be [more] involved in legislation."

Nurul Arifin, the Golkar Party's deputy secretary general, said the party had yet to give an official response on the proposal, but added that it was not a high priority for the party.

Nurul said she believed that in general, there would be resistance at the House toward the DPD proposal, but did not elaborate on the matter. She only cited the proposal to open electoral candidacy to independent candidates.

Sports & youth affairs

All actors in the PSSI drama 'are dirty': Legislator

Jakarta Post - March 30, 2011

Jakarta – Should the saga of the country's soccer association be turned into a film, it would be easy to frame the figure of chairman Nurdin Halid as the villain. It is harder, however, to specify exactly who the protagonist would be.

All the key actors in the continuing drama have resorted to extreme measures in their attempt to create a happy ending, lawmakers say.

House of Representatives deputy speaker Pramono Anung said the crisis of leadership at the Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) had turned into a power struggle between a number of political party elites.

"The wrangle between political powers is clearly visible in the PSSI debacle," the lawmaker from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said.

The rift within the PSSI is born out of years of disappointment over the poor performance of Indonesian soccer. Public grievances deepened late last year when the national team lost to Malaysia in the final of the AFF Suzuki Cup.

Soccer fans blamed Nurdin and demanded he and other long-serving executives such as secretary-general Noegraha Besoes be removed. Anger at Nurdin and his men escalated when PSSI executives disqualified the candidacy of other hopefuls for the post of PSSI chairman earlier this year, allowing only Nurdin and his long-time financial backer Nirwan D. Bakrie, the younger brother of Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie, to run.

The decision triggered protests, especially after the public learned that FIFA, world soccer's governing body, clearly forbade convicts from participating in an election. Nurdin has previously served two prison sentences, both for corruption.

The row culminated when a planned PSSI congress last week devolved into chaos as protestors forced their way into the venue of the meeting after being denied entry by PSSI executives, who later fled the congress, citing a recommendation by FIFA. In a letter released to the media later, FIFA denied giving such advice.

The incident triggered what many claim was government intervention. Under the pretext of preventing further mishaps in the management of elections within the PSSI, Youth and Sports Minister Andi Malarangeng denounced the validity of Nurdin's leadership and stopped all funding for the PSSI until a new chairman was elected.

Rully Chaerul Azwar, a deputy chairman of the House's commission on sports and also a member of the Golkar Party, said the government's move was unwise. The commission, he said, would summon Andi, who is a prominent member of the Democratic Party, the largest party in the House.

Although acknowledging the need for reform in the PSSI, Pramono shared Rully's concern, saying the government's intervention went too far and suggesting the National Sports Committee (KONI) instead should have intervened. He said both PSSI and FIFA statues stipulated that the government was restricted to playing a supervisory role.

Government denounces PSSI leadership, cuts funds

Jakarta Globe - March 29, 2011

Jakarta – The government made its boldest move in the drama surrounding the country's soccer association on Monday by denouncing its leaders and suspending all financial support.

The move followed a chaotic Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) congress in Pekanbaru last week during which a set of rules and plans for electing a new chairman were to be decided. The congress ended with top PSSI executives fleeing after a group of reformists took over the proceedings.

The coup was in response to PSSI executives barring entry to six members with voting rights due to past disputes. In the absence of the executives, the congress – attended by 78 out of 100 PSSI vote holders – appointed 12 members of an executive committee that would be responsible for the upcoming election on April 29.

In a Monday press briefing, Youth and Sports Affairs Minister Andi Malarangeng, who is known to be at odds with PSSI executives, said the government was waiting for FIFA's final say on the validity of the congress in Riau.

However, in a pretext to prevent "more failures" in further proceedings pertinent to the election, Andi said the government was denouncing the current leadership of PSSI.

"The government hereby declares that it no longer acknowledges the leadership of the PSSI under its chairman Nurdin Halid and secretary- general Nugraha Besoes and all sports activities held under that leadership." Andi also said the central or regional governments, as well as the National Police, could no longer facilitate PSSI activities under the leadership of Nurdin and Nugraha.

"The government is temporarily halting all fund disbursements from the state budget until a new PSSI leadership is formed for the 2011-2015 period," he added.

Andi said it was the government's prerogative to make such a decision under the 2005 Law on the National Sports System. The decision, he added, "has been made for the sake of saving the PSSI and protecting national soccer."

Previously in Riau, Nugraha said the decision to cancel the meeting was made based on a recommendation by FIFA representative Frank van Hattum, who was scheduled to attend the congress.

On this note, however, FIFA responded by saying that Van Hattum was prevented from observing the PSSI congress in Pekanbaru on March 26 by the PSSI leadership.

"The claim from the PSSI secretary-general that it was FIFA who decided to cancel the PSSI Congress for alleged security reasons is completely false. On the contrary, the FIFA observer repeatedly requested to go to the congress venue and was prevented in doing so by the PSSI leadership," said FIFA in a letter signed by its media department.

The letter further stated that van Hattum was expected to write an assessment on what happened in Riau and submit it to the relevant body for consideration.

The conflict within PSSI intensified in early February when the PSSI verification team excluded two prominent figures – oil tycoon Arifin Panigoro and Indonesian Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Toisutta – from the race for the chairmanship of the national soccer body, while allowing only current chairman Nurdin Halid and businessman Nirwan D. Bakrie to run for the next term.

The decision triggered protests around Indonesia, with protesters slamming Nurdin, an ex-graft convict, for the lackluster performance of the Indonesian soccer team during his two terms as PSSI chairman, particularly since FIFA regulations forbid anyone with a criminal record from holding such a post.

In a letter addressed to the PSSI secretariat manager, FIFA criticized the failure to comply with FIFA standard codes for selection processes. The letter was dated March 25 and was cc-ed to several PSSI and FIFA executives.

Furious over Andi's statement, Nurdin lambasted him at a press briefing later in the day, saying that he was an incompetent minister and requested that the President oust Andi from the Cabinet.

"There is no [law stating] the PSSI must be acknowledged by the government. No [law] requires government approval of [PSSI] leadership," he said.

Nurdin claimed that he still held the authority and mandate to lead the PSSI. He insisted that the government's move was unauthorized and should not be acknowledged by the PSSI.

Voicing the concerns of other PSSI executives, Nurdin condemned the presence of military personnel at last week's congress. The executives accused former chairman candidate George of sending troops to pressure an opposing party within the association.

The National Police have issued a statement confirming that they requested assistance from the military to secure the congress.

"We didn't want to take any risks. We thank the military for their help," National Police spokesperson Insp. Gen. Anton Bachrul Alam said.

Film & television

Indonesians' winning film formula: Porn stars with clothes

New York Times - March 29, 2011

Aubrey Belford – It was a cloak-and-dagger moment in Indonesia's culture war between peddlers of titillation and Islamist conservatives.

In a run-down maternity hospital in Jakarta's gritty exurbs recently, the shooting of "Evil Nurse 2," a sequel to a low-budget horror film, proceeded under unusually tight secrecy.

Rather than seek news coverage for the movie, the filmmaker, Ody Mulya Hidayat, swore entertainment reporters to silence. An ill-timed piece of publicity could bring enraged Islamist activists banging down the door. A single leaked photo could invite prosecution and a lengthy jail term.

The reason for all the furtiveness was Sora Aoi, a diminutive Japanese sex-film star who had been spirited into the country for a leading role in the movie. Her presence was concealed as she was ferried between her hotel and shoots around Jakarta.

Aoi, and others like her, are the secret of a winning formula stumbled upon by Maxima Pictures, the production house where Hidayat is an executive producer. For two years, Maxima has made some of Indonesia's most popular domestic films based on a simple premise: that many in Muslim-majority Indonesia will pay to see foreign porn stars perform – clothed – in local films. Just don't expect Indonesians to own up to it.

"We're hypocrites," said Hidayat, who is a Muslim. "People know who they are, but they won't admit it. It's a love-hate thing."

In few countries is the word "pornography" as politically charged as in Indonesia. Long known for its moderate and syncretic practice of Islam, and home to a large non-Muslim population, Indonesia has in recent years experienced a surge of orthodox Islam that has tried to reshape society, with the war on smut as a cause celebre.

In 2008, Parliament passed a law including jail sentences of up to 12 years for producing or distributing pornography, which is defined broadly as anything – a drawing, a movie or a body movement – deemed to violate "public decency." An online pornography filter was imposed by the government last year. At the same time, Islamist vigilante groups like the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) have taken to the streets to enforce morality, sometimes violently, as the police have stood by.

The groups are bolstered by provisions in the anti-pornography law that empower private citizens to act. While ostensibly about morality, the campaign is seen by many liberals and minorities as a broader push to Islamize Indonesia.

The filmmakers at Maxima are unlikely cultural warriors. With a standard fare relying heavily on ghosts, gore and teen slapstick, their films are hardly high art, said Yoen K, one of the company's producers. "You have to realize that our market is the C, D, E class, not the A, B class for Indonesian movies," he said.

But the company does know its market. In 2009, Maxima prompted a nationwide media sensation – as well as denunciations by politicians and protests by FPI hard-liners – by announcing its plan to work with Maria Ozawa, a Japanese sex-film star.

While protests forced Maxima to cancel plans to film scenes with Ozawa in Jakarta, the controversy showed that for many Indonesians, Miyabi – as Indonesians popularly know Ozawa – was already a household name. Films starring her ("Kidnapping Miyabi") and another Japanese porn star, "Rin Sakuragi" ("Evil Nurse"), have been resounding successes.

But making the films means toeing a delicate legal line and avoiding provoking vigilantes, Hidayat said. "First we have to make sure the film is safe, passes the censor, and then it's ready to show."

He said he feared that a single clip or screen shot showing too much flesh, if made public before passing the censorship board, could be used as a basis for prosecution under the 2008 anti-pornography law.

As far as Islamist protesters are concerned, Hidayat said, "They want to scream about morals, go ahead. But our films go through the legal processes, through the film censors."

The last time Maxima failed to keep its intentions under wraps, things did not go well. In late 2010, when the producers were discovered to be planning to fly Ozawa in to promote a second film that had been shot in secret, "Carriage Ghost," the FPI struck, protesting at Maxima's offices and sending members to Jakarta's international airport with hopes of intercepting Ozawa and sending her back to Japan by force.

Hidayat's attempt to defuse the situation with a meeting at Maxima's offices was a failure. On Dec. 1, trailed by television cameras and dressed in white turbans and crisp robes, the Jakarta leadership of the FPI swept into the office, past a group of hired muscle brought in by the studio for security.

Facing Hidayat across a conference table, Salim Alattas, the FPI's Jakarta chief, denounced Ozawa as a poisonous influence on the nation's morality. Hidayat had been warned twice to not bring her to Indonesia, Alattas said. There would be no third warning. "We come with good intentions, but if you try to sneak Miyabi in, our intentions will no longer be good," he said.

Another FPI leader, Sahab Anggawi, lost his composure: "For destroying this country, you should be thrown out! Or have both your hands cut off! Then have both your feet cut off!"

Hidayat, visibly sweating, didn't commit to making any changes. Other Maxima producers, including Yoen, a non-Muslim ethnic Chinese, stayed out of sight in another room. Shortly afterward, Maxima canceled Ozawa's trip and later brought in Aoi.

Months later, Hidayat said he was confident enough about how far he could push Indonesia's moral enforcers. After its secret filming, "Evil Nurse 2" is set for release in late April, and Maxima is looking to bring in more Japanese porn stars – without prior publicity. "There's give and take, there's a limit to their attacks," Hidayat said of the radical groups.

Aoi, the star of "Evil Nurse 2," said the fact that Indonesia was a conservative country gave her pause, but that she decided to press on regardless of earlier controversies. Her goal here, she said during a break between shooting in early March, is the same as for the other non- pornography projects she has undertaken in Japan, Thailand, South Korea and China: to complement her notoriety in the sex-film business with mainstream fame.

"One of my career goals was to work abroad, and I also love to be in entertainment," she said. "And I was also really looking forward to coming into contact with foreigners and engaging in communication."

Police & law enforcement

Susno and family say the police quickly turned against them

Jakarta Globe - March 27, 2011

Nivell Rayda – In little more than a year, Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji went from being one of the National Police's most powerful figures to becoming its worst enemy.

He was made a pariah for exposing the dark side of the nation's law- enforcement system and showing the public how deeply mired in corruption its top officials were.

In what many believed was an attempt to gag him, the 54-year-old officer was arrested and charged with corruption, months after being stripped from his prestigious position as chief of detectives and demoted to the post of adviser to the National Police chief.

On Thursday evening, the South Jakarta District Court sentenced Susno to three and a half years in prison for accepting Rp 500 million ($57,500) in bribes in a business dispute and embezzling Rp 8.4 billion of funds earmarked to secure the 2008 gubernatorial election in West Java.

Alienated

Just hours after his sentencing, the whistle-blower granted the Jakarta Globe an exclusive interview at his home in Cinere, south of Jakarta.

"I wasn't surprised that there were attempts to retaliate against what I'm doing," Susno said.

"I predicted that this would happen, but I don't hate the police for not siding with me. I don't even hold any grudges against the individuals who framed me.

"I won't say who they are. I think the public is well aware that the whole case against me has been fabricated. People aren't stupid. I hate corruption. Why would I do something I hate? Why would I expose corruption if I was part of it?"

About 20 cars were parked outside Susno's lavish two-story home in the upscale Puri Cinere residential complex on Thursday evening. Some of his closest friends and family were visiting in a show of support following the courtroom finale.

There were no National Police officers among the guests. Also noticeably absent that day and throughout his trial were all six members of the presidentially appointed Judicial Mafia Eradication Task Force, who had initially been Susno's only allies when he first exposed the corruption within the police force.

"I've always known I was alone in the battle to reform the police and punish the rogue officials within the force," he said.

"I'm saddened and infuriated by the fact that not a single serving officer supported my moves. Instead, they all conspired to cover up the matter and try to bring me down."

Loyal family

Susno's wife, Herawati, said she had also gotten the cold shoulder.

"I used to be friends with BHD's wife," she told the Globe, referring to former police chief Gen. (ret.) Bambang Hendarso Danuri.

"She used to tell me all of her troubles, we used to hang out together. But after what happened to my husband, she wouldn't even see me. I was denied entry to her house. She wouldn't answer my calls.

"It's the same with my husband's former subordinates. They're all afraid to speak to us or show the slightest sign of support. I was enraged, my husband had always stood up for them, defended them. I believe deep down inside they want to at least show their sympathy, but can't out of fear for their safety or careers."

Throughout Thursday's court hearing, Herawati appeared composed about the prospect of her husband going to prison, so convinced was she of his innocence.

"I was shocked at the beginning, though. My husband was arrested by the very same people who had worked for him. It was degrading to see him being interrogated in the building he used to work in, arrested and detained by the institution he had passionately fought for. I felt humiliated, devastated and enraged," she said.

"I asked [Susno] many times about the allegations. I'm convinced this is a plot to silence him. When the guilty verdict came, amid all the irregularities in the case, I wasn't surprised."

Indira Tantri, Susno's daughter, said she could not bear the indignation.

"The night before the verdict, I saw my father packing his clothes, preparing for the worst possibility of going to prison. My heart was shattered," she told the Globe.

"I'm just glad that the judges didn't rule that he be imprisoned immediately. I still get to see him here, in our house, surrounded by his closest and dearest."

A changed man

It is evident that the case has changed Susno personally. Even to his most trusted peers, the three-star general now chooses his words carefully, avoiding controversial topics that might hurt his chances of winning an appeal.

His calculated attitude now is a far cry from his blustering days as chief of detectives, when he wielded the power to oversee all criminal investigations in the country. During his heyday, Susno was never afraid to speak his mind, as controversial as his opinions may have been.

His falling out with the National Police began in March last year, when he accused two of his subordinates of taking bribes from recently convicted tax official Gayus Tambunan.

His comments led to the arrest and subsequent conviction of two officers, a judge and a group of lawyers accused of bribing law-enforcement officials. Two prosecutors have also been charged with leaking top-secret prosecution dossiers, but not for bribery.

Gayus's revelations of massive graft paved the way for reform within the tax tribunal, but not within law enforcement, as Susno had envisioned. Indeed, the police have thus far failed to touch any of the top-ranking officers said to be deeply involved.

"If you look at the Gayus case, [the bribery] occurred after I was demoted [as chief of detectives]," Susno said.

Despite his ordeal, Susno said he did not hold a grudge against the police force.

"If anyone tries to tarnish the police's reputation, I'll say to them 'Over my dead body.' That extends to the [corrupt] police officers ruining the force's own credibility. They must deal with me first, whatever the risk," he said.

Intelligence & state secrecy

Give BIN arrest powers: Minister

Jakarta Globe - March 30, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Angered by some lawmakers' refusal to give the State Intelligence Agency powers to arrest terror suspects, Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said on Tuesday that the state should not be blamed if bombs blew up everywhere.

"When bombs are found everywhere because we cannot make arrests prior to the incident, don't blame us," Purnomo said at the President's Office.

Purnomo was commenting on a clause in a draft bill being debated in the House of Representatives that could give the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) the power to arrest suspected terrorists before they attack, as well as people suspected of espionage and subversion.

The proposed bill also contains a controversial article allowing BIN to wiretap phone conversations without a court order.

Some legislators have criticized the proposal, saying such powers could be abused.

Leaked US diplomatic cables recently alleged that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had used the intelligence agency to spy on rivals. The president has firmly rejected the allegations.

Purnomo said the public should not be overly concerned about the arrest powers, saying heavy punishments for officials who abused their authority could be written into the law.

Ramadhan Pohan, a member of House Commission I overseeing defense and foreign affairs, agreed with Purnomo's suggestion.

"I agree with prevention. If we just follow a long bureaucratic procedure in handling any possible [attack], terrorists might have already run away and pushed the bomb trigger," he said.

The lawmaker from the president's Democratic Party said he had lived in the United States for six and a half years and was in the country during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, stressing that he understood the need for heightened security.

Ramadhan said his party, which had opposed the clause on pre-emptive arrests for fear it would allow human rights violations, was reconsidering the government's proposal. "It is called early prevention," he said.

He added that the proposed detention time of 24/7 – 24 hours a day for seven days – could be reduced to just three days.

But Tubagus Hasanuddin, from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said the Criminal Code clearly stipulated that only law enforcers could make arrests. "So it's weird if the government keeps pushing us to accept the proposal," he said.

Rather than asking for such powers, Tubagus said, it would be better for the state to propose measures that would push BIN to improve intelligence gathering.

"Just imagine, the intelligence agency arrests someone without any warrant, without revealing their identity, without revealing the location of the detention center," the lawmaker said. "Even though it's only for 24/7, does anyone want it?"

Al Araf, the program director of rights group Imparsial, urged the House to drop the plan. "It will disturb our criminal justice system, which is prone to political manipulation and prone to rights violations," he said.

House Commission I held a closed-door meeting late on Tuesday, where it decided to request a state briefing on the pros and cons of the arrest clause.

"We will seek the best formulation to respond to the proposal, or the government must totally retract it," National Mandate Party (PAN) lawmaker M. Najib told reporters after the meeting.

Activists want wiretapping safeguards

Jakarta Globe - March 26, 2011

Elisabeth Oktofani – Indonesia must have a law focused solely on the mechanisms, controls and procedures on wiretapping, human rights organizations say.

Zainal Abidin, deputy director of the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam), said on Friday that articles on wiretapping in existing regulations failed to protect the right to privacy.

Zainal's comments came as the House of Representatives debates a new national intelligence bill, with legislators seeming to favor the idea of giving the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) the power to conduct wiretaps and track money trails without court permission.

The draft bill does not have any specifics on controls or watchdogs that are to supervise BIN in this regard. Zainal said the impact of allowing wiretapping to be carried out without proper controls and mechanisms could be damaging to the rights of private Indonesian citizens and infringe their human rights.

"There are currently a number of laws containing articles that authorize certain state bodies to conduct wiretaps," he said, referring to the Anti- Narcotics Law, the Anti-Corruption Law and the Human Trafficking Law among others. "These articles are vulnerable to abuse by law enforcers due to lack of controls and clarity, not to mention overlapping duties."

Zainal said a special wiretapping law should list in clear detail the exact requirements needed to be met to obtain a permit to conduct a wiretap. It should also specify how long the wiretapping would be allowed to continue and define limitations on who would have access to the data.

He added that the separate law should specify a body that would regulate and supervise agencies that conduct wiretaps.

Anggara Suwahju, a senior associate of the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, agreed with Zainal. "It [wiretapping] could be used to spy on political rivals, for instance. There needs to be clear controls, including, for example, getting court permission," Anggara said.

Both Elsam and ICJR urged the House of Represenatives to launch a public discussion and listen to as much public feedback as possible before considering passing the national intelligence bill into law, particularly in relation to the regulations on wiretapping.

Lawmakers reject giving spy agency arrest powers

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Ulma Haryanto – Legislators are expected to approve a government proposal to give the National Intelligence Agency the right to wiretap without court permission, but say no to the agency being given the authority to arrest suspected terrorists.

Democratic Party legislator Salim Mengga, a member of House of Representatives Commission I overseeing defense and information, said his party supported the idea of giving the agency, also known as the BIN, the power to eavesdrop without obtaining a warrant.

"We think that BIN requires the authority," Salim said. He said, however, that such authority would be prone to political manipulation for the interests of the ruling government and that his party would only approve the proposal if the intelligence bill also mandated the establishment of an oversight agency for intelligence operations.

"We must have a special board to supervise the activities of the agency, one that can push the agency to be responsible for its activities," he said.

However, Salim said his party was opposed to BIN having the right to arrest suspects. "It will be prone to human rights violations and be contrary to the principles of democracy and freedom," he said.

While other factions belonging to the ruling coalition aired similar views, the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said it would like to see a more effective integration of the country's intelligence community.

"We have many intelligence units, and it's time that they were all well organized, both in terms of their structure and job coordination," said Tjahjo Kumolo, the secretary general of PDI-P and a member of Commission I. "It's clear to us that the arrest of suspects should only be carried out by police officials," he said.

Analyst Moufti Makarim said the House should be commended for not giving BIN the right to make arrests. "The intelligence agency is the eyes and the ears of the government, it should not become the hand or foot, which could be used to hit," Moufti said. "The hitters are the police or the military. If the intelligence agency were given the right to arrest, then we would return to the practices of the New Order regime."

Separately, Papang Hidayat, the head researcher for the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said there were several points in the draft law that were susceptible to violations of human rights.

Aside from the lack of description of proposed supervisory body, Papang said there was no clarity on the procedures prior to wiretapping or measures to protect victims. "The law should provide a mechanism allowing victims of violations by agents to report and to receive justice, to clarify the real facts, and determine any material compensation caused by an agent, if any," he said.

Criminal justice & prison system

Bill aims to better protect juvenile offenders

Jakarta Globe - March 29, 2011

Anita Rachman – The government announced on Monday that it was drafting a new bill on juvenile offenders that would offer minors better protection from discrimination and physical abuse.

Patrialis Akbar, the justice and human rights minister, said the legislation to replace the 1997 Juvenile Offenders Law would usher in a new set of regulations compliant with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

One key change would be to raise the age at which a child could be tried for a crime from 8 to 12 years old. Only those older than 14 would be eligible for incarceration upon conviction.

The rest, including those below the age of 12, would return to the custody of their parents and be required to take part in counseling sessions with social service officials.

"The age limit in the current law at which a child may be held responsible [for their actions] is very low at 8 years," Patrialis said. "Children's rights are hardly respected in jail. Children are placed in the same cells as adults because of the limited facilities."

"With this new bill, they will stay in special prisons for juveniles, which must be built separate from adult penitentiaries," the minister added. The bill also requires law enforcement officials to show understanding of a juvenile suspect's problems from the point of arrest through to the detention and trial stages.

The essence of the new bill is to ensure child offenders are protected from physical and psychological abuse when serving their sentences.

Patrialis also said there should not be any discrimination based on race, gender or religion affecting the children.

"We should respect the children's right to participate in the decision- making process, especially when it relates to them," Patrialis said. "All treatments must consider the needs, age and conditions of the children in question."

He said the spirit of the new bill was one of rehabilitating the juvenile offenders instead of merely meting out punishment. To that end, he said it would seek ways to resolve cases outside of court whenever possible.

It would also encourage greater public participation in helping educate children on taking responsibility for their actions.

Linda Gumelar, the minister for women's empowerment and child protection, said she hoped the legislation would be passed as soon as possible by the House of Representatives.

"The government must see the long-term purpose of this bill," she said. "It seeks to ensure that juvenile offenders are not treated in the same way as adult offenders."

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a legislator from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said her party would back the passage of the bill. However, she also urged the government to work on measures to prevent juvenile crimes in the first place.

Economy & investment

Larger middle class does little for economy

Jakarta Post - March 31, 2011

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta – According to the World Bank, the nation's middle class grew by 61.73 percent to 131 million people in 2010, up from 81 million in 2003. Despite the trend, many people like Yudi and Susan cannot afford to live a reasonable life.

Mohammad Ikhsan, a senior economist at the University of Indonesia, said in Jakarta on Wednesday that although the middle class had grown considerably, the majority of its members spent only about US$2.00 a day on average.

"This group of people is still unable to make a significant contribution to the state. Most of them still enjoy the government's subsidies," he said, adding that their tax contribution was still small because their incomes were small.

According to a recently released World Bank Indonesia Economic Quarterly report, the middle class grew by 61.73 percent to 131 million in 2010 from 81 million in 2003, with more than 7 million people jumping from the low- income bracket to the middle class during the period.

The middle class in 2010 represented 56.6 percent of the country's population, compared to 38 percent in 2003. A middle-class person is defined as one who spends a minimum of $2.00 a day.

Despite the expanding demographic, the middle class is still dominated by lower-middle class people who spend $2.00 to $4.00 a day. This sub group represents 38.5 percent of the entire middle class.

In contrast, the upper-middle class, which spends $10 to $20 a day on average, makes up 1.3 percent of the middle class demographic.

The World Bank's head economist for Indonesia Shubham Chaudhuri said the middle class' expansion was partly a result of an increase in the number of people who had moved from the near-poverty line into the lower-middle class segment.

Although people with a per capita spending of about $2.00 a day still dominate the Indonesian middle class, the sharp increase in their number shows a significant improvement of the people's welfare, he added.

Chaudhuri said it was now high time for the government to further increase the number of high added value jobs so that the middle-middle class bracket, whose per capital spending was $4.00 to $10 a day, would increase.

An increase of the population of this middle category would have a major impact on the nation's economy, he added.

He said the country's major challenge was to move lower-middle class people into the middle-middle group. Ikhsan said he agreed that this movement between classes would have a greater positive effect on the country's economy.

The government, he said, should also create a stable economy to stimulate the emergence of more entrepreneurs, because Indonesia's middle class mostly consisted of professionals. (lnd)

Government economic projections overly bullish, analysts say

Jakarta Globe - March 29, 2011

Dion Bisara & Mohammad Al Azhari – While the government expects the economy to grow 6.6 percent next year, worries about rising oil and food prices eating away at consumers' purchasing power have analysts less bullish.

Consumer spending is the main driver of Indonesia's economic growth, accounting for two-thirds of the country's gross domestic product.

Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo revealed the government's 2012 economic targets during a cabinet meeting at the State Palace in Bogor on Tuesday. It expects the economy to grow 6.6 percent next year after projecting 6.4 percent growth in 2011. It assumed the rupiah would trade at 9,150 against the US dollar and put headline inflation at 5.5 percent.

The government uses seven assumptions to calculate the state budget, including economic growth, the rupiah's exchange rate against the dollar, the inflation rate, three-month Bank Indonesia certificates, oil prices and oil production.

Hatta Rajasa, the coordinating minister for the economy, said the government would protect the people from the impact of volatile global oil prices. He said the government acknowledged the Indonesian Crude Price, the international price index for crude oil from Indonesia, had reached $113.03 per barrel, but he said the government would "escort the economy and guard consumer purchasing power."

Analysts told the Jakarta Globe they were not so sure.

"It will be hard for the economy to grow beyond 6.5 percent," said David Sumual, an economist from Bank Central Asia. "It will be overheating because our economy still relies on non-tradeable sectors, which is bad as it does not absorb much labor."

He said the complicated bureaucracy and poor infrastructure hurt potential growth. "Poor infrastructure conditions are hampering the competitiveness of our labor-intensive manufacturing sector," he said.

"Our cost of production remains higher compared to rivals such as China even though we offer cheaper labor costs. It's because of our poor infrastructure."

Infrastructure spending in the state budget increased significantly to Rp 126 trillion ($14.5 billion) this year, the largest allocation in six years, from Rp 108 trillion in 2010. The country needs an estimated Rp 1,400 trillion until 2014 to build much-needed infrastructure projects such as seaports, airports and roads to ease the distribution of goods.

Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, an economist at the Danareksa Research Institute, said the government's target was attainable if consumption remained strong and foreign investment continued to flow into the country.

"We can grow even more if government comes through with its infrastructure projects," he said. "The increase may seem slow because they have not implemented all their programs."

Data from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) shows foreign direct investment in Indonesia could hit $14 billion this year, from $10.5 billion last year.

Fatchur Rochman, chairman of the Toll Road Business Association, criticized the government for its slow movement, including on land acquisition laws.

"They said they could finish it last year, then early this year, but as of now it has not been finished yet," he said.

"The problem in bureaucracy is they are reluctant to point out who failed to do something. Even President [Susilo Bambang] Yudhoyono is like that. If they worked more like in private sector – 'Hey, you failed at this. Fix it.' – I think they would perform better. More continuous and rigorous monitoring should be implemented to ensure things get done."

He suggested the government give up its rights on infrastructure planning and development to provincial governments for better resource allocation.

Banks under fire over SMS barrage

Jakarta Globe - March 24, 2011

Dion Bisara & Shirley Wibisono – A groundswell of consumer anger is building against the rising tide of text messages offering collateral-free loans from banks.

The messages, mostly from local lenders, usually tout loans of Rp 30 million to Rp 300 million ($3,450-$34,500) and are often followed by hard- sell calls to the targets' mobile phones.

Such unsolicited calls are not illegal, but consumers have found them so intrusive that more than 10,000 have complained to a Bank Indonesia hotline. BI has discovered that private customer data are being freely exchanged by companies hired by local banks to market such loans.

"These companies trade consumer data with one another," said Dify Djohansyah, a central bank spokesman. "Unfortunately, BI does not have the authority to control these outsourcing companies. BI also has no power to prohibit banks from using the services of outsourcing firms in marketing their products."

Dify added that offering loans through SMS text messages did not breach banking laws.

According to Bank Indonesia regulations, banks are required to explain the product they are selling to prospective customers, and are prohibited from providing their personal information without their permission. The central bank, however, cannot act unless it finds evidence that banks are leaking customer information.

BI established a hotline – 0885 888509797 – for the public to register complaints. As of February, it had received more than 11,000.

Local lenders contacted by the Jakarta Globe said they could help customers irritated by such contact by removing from them from the call list. "But we can only reach as far as our partners, we cannot do more if the data has found its way to other parties," said Devi Kusumaningtyas, HSBC's spokeswoman.

This explanation, however, does little for Dewi Puspita, who works at an advertising firm. She was furious when she learned her private information was being traded for as little as Rp 1,000. "If there's a way to complain, I want to shout: "Please, get me off the list!" Dewi said.

She added that banks should be relying on their products to attract business. "Sending customers offers by text messages is not only less effective, but so backward."

Consumer watchdogs have also taken up the cause by meeting with lenders and telecommunication providers.

Sularsi, a spokeswoman for the Indonesian Consumer Protection Foundation's (YLKI) claims and law division, said that text messages that offered collateral-free loans (KTA) violated privacy laws. "These irresponsible bank agents or senders have annoyed mobile consumers," she said. "We have reported it to the Indonesian Telecommunications Regulatory Body (BRTI) and mobile operators."

The eight telecoms that attended the meeting, including Telkomsel, XL Axiata, Indosat, Axis and Three, were considering measures to filter text messages based on keywords, she said.

However, Sularsi did not think it would be an effective solution. "The senders are pretty slick, if we filter certain keywords, they could just easily change it," she said.

Indonesia's products losing ground to Chinese imports

Jakarta Post - March 24, 2011

Rangga D. Fadillah, Jakarta – Indonesian products are losing ground in the domestic market to Chinese products, following the implementation of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA), government research shows.

Agus Tjahayana, director general for international industrial cooperation at the Industry Ministry, said the results of the recent ministry survey, canvassing 4,236 traders and 12,151 buyers of both Indonesian and Chinese products, confirmed the troublesome trend.

"From the survey, we see a trend of declining market share for our products, as more consumers prefer buying products imported from China," he told reporters at a press briefing in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The survey revealed most traders preferred selling Chinese products instead of domestically-made ones because their profits rose by around 20 percent, he added. "This negative trend caused several sensitive industries to experience production declines last year," Agus said.

Most consumers bought Chinese products for their cheap prices, unique and creative designs and functionality, although they admitted that the products were not very durable, according to the survey.

Conducted in 11 major Indonesian cities, Medan in North Sumatra, Padang in West Sumatra, Jakarta, Bandung in West Java, Semarang in Central Java, Surabaya in East Java and Makassar in South Sulawesi, the survey focused on the five most-affected industrial sectors: textiles, furniture, metals, machinery and electronics.

From the data, the ministry concluded that implementing the ACFTA caused an increase in raw material imports, decrease in domestic product sales, decline in producers' profits and declining employment.

Agus said the main reasons why Indonesian products were less competitive than Chinese products were expensive raw materials, unstable and high energy prices and limited access to capital.

According to the Trade Ministry, in 2010, Indonesia and China's non-oil and gas trade balance posted a US$5.6 billion (Rp 48.85 trillion) deficit in favor of China, increasing $1 billion from 2009. However, the deficit last year was still far below that of 2008, which reached $7.2 billion.

The ministry claimed that ACFTA's implementation was "useful" for Indonesia, since the country's non-oil and gas exports to China in 2010 reached $14.1 billion, jumping 57.8 percent from 2009.

The data revealed that industrial products still dominated Indonesia's exports to China. From January to November last year, exports topped $7 billion, up 31.9 percent from the same period in 2009.

In 2010, Indonesia's total export touched an all-time record of $157.73 billion, up 35.4 percent from 2009, mainly driven by rising prices of natural resource-based commodities such as crude palm oil, coal, rubber and copper.

Analysis & opinion

Whose interests to serve?

Jakarta Post Editorial - March 29, 2011

Jakarta – As our intelligence community is struggling hard to improve itself and provide early and accurate information to the country's top decision makers in the wake of several incidents of mob violence nationwide and a series of bomb attacks in Jakarta, a severe tug-of-war is occurring at the House of Representatives on the scope of the authority that the nation's intelligence agencies should have.

Providing intelligence agencies with a legal umbrella is undoubtedly necessary to ensure that they act within the Constitution and the limits of the law.

The problem is that some articles in the government-drafted intelligence bill currently under deliberation at the House are counter to universally recognized human rights principles, such as the presumption of innocence and equality before the law.

People's traumatic experiences with the nation's intelligence agencies during Soeharto's rule are still vividly remembered by many Indonesians. It is understandable that many are still reluctant to give more power to our intelligence bodies.

One key article of the intelligence bill has the potential to ignore human rights and basic legal principles: Granting intelligence agencies authority to intercept private communications, including those on social media such as Facebook and Twitter, in the name of security.

We are of the opinion that granting spy agencies eavesdropping authority – for whatever reason – would violate basic human rights that have only a tentative foothold in Indonesia, such as the freedom of speech and the freedom of opinion.

The article that would authorize intelligence agencies to monitor private communications in Indonesia mirrors the scope of the greatly criticized Patriot Act, which was approved by the US Congress and enacted by US president George W. Bush in 2002 in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

We oppose that article and believe that intelligence agencies should be allowed to monitor private communications only after securing court approval – a common legal practice in many parts of the world.

Also controversial are proposed articles authorizing intelligence agencies to arrest and questioning suspects for up to seven days. Again, such actions should only be authorized by a court and intelligence agencies must have sufficient evidence prior to detaining suspects.

Failure to secure court approval or obtain evidence runs counter to the principles of presumption of innocence and equality before the law that assure the fair treatment of all Indonesian people, including suspected criminals and terrorists.

Another article that has failed to attract the attention of House lawmakers relates to the organization of the nation's intelligence community. The article would establish the State Intelligence Coordinating Agency (LKIN), a non-ministerial government body that would directly report to the President.

In our experience, placing the chief of the nation's top intelligence institution under the direct supervision of the President will lead to abuse in Indonesia. The intelligence community might wind up working for the interests of the president instead of the state.

Deliberation on the bill is underway. There is still ample of time for the country's lawmakers to carefully and thoroughly study the proposed articles and make necessary adjustments and revisions to make it more legally and constitutionally compliant.

No one can deny that the state needs strong and effective intelligence agencies. But no one can deny that all intelligence activities should be done in accordance with the laws. Sadly, poor and corrupt law enforcement is one of the most dangerous problems in this country.

Indonesia's tainted democracy calls for changes

Jakarta Post - March 29, 2011

Rizal Ramli, Jakarta – Recent revelations from WikiLeaks documents, stating that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his family were involved in corruption are, frankly, not a big surprise. After all, Indonesian politics is notoriously dirty.

Yudhoyono and his advisors have tried to play down the scandal, but make no mistake about it: Since the news about the palace shenanigans has hit the streets, the outlook for Yudhoyono's presidency until the 2014 elections has been very bleak.

Until recently, mainstream opinion about Yudhoyono had been that he was a weak leader but he remained popular because of the common belief that he possessed that rarest of commodities in Indonesian politics: integrity.

But now that a shadow has been cast over his reputation as an honest character, people are starting to wonder if he deserves to stay in office until the end of his term.

Even if Yudhoyono were dishonest and not the leader everybody hoped he was, one could at least find a good reason to support him if his administration had made some decent progress in national development. Sadly, the quality of life in Indonesia has declined under Yudhoyono's leadership.

Although economic growth has been respectable, less than 20 percent of the population lives comfortably while the vast majority must continuously struggle to make ends meet.

Even menial jobs are difficult to find and the average income remains very low. Prices of staple foods and daily necessities have been increasing over the past year, leading to an increase in poverty.

Not only has life become more difficult for the average Indonesian under Yudhoyono's watch, but we have also witnessed a return to the excesses of power that plagued the country under the former Soeharto regime. The "legal mafia" – a commonly used reference to organized crime throughout the country's legal system – remains a constant menace and prevents us from becoming a more humane and just society.

In fact, the legal mafia is a cabal of influential private attorneys, officials within the police, the prosecutor's office and the judiciary. As a result, the law is conveniently ineffective when applied to elite citizens with money and power.

Many thoughtful observers believe that we can no longer afford to ignore Yudhoyono's failures as a president. Our acceptance of his shortcomings is an act of collective irresponsibility and ensures us of continued decay.

What we are witnessing today is the spreading of the seeds of national disintegration. In turn, this could translate into Indonesia becoming a failed state.

Former Soviet Union president Gorbachev was known as a very judicious leader who was praised by Western leaders. He was even awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

His weak leadership, however, was blamed for runaway unemployment, a dramatic loss of public welfare and, eventually, the collapse of the Soviet Union.

While Indonesia enjoys plaudits from the international community for being one of the largest democracies in the world, I would argue that beyond the right to vote in elections there are few other reasons to wax eloquent about our particular brand of freedom.

So while we may be categorized as an electoral democracy, there is another sobering reality that needs to be addressed: While Indonesians have the right to vote, their votes have only bought them what is best described as a "tainted democracy".

What this means for the average citizen is that the system is only successful at increasing the wealth of crony businessmen, executive officials and legislators – hence defeating the core principle of democracy itself, which is government for the people.

For those Indonesians who care deeply about the future of our country, it has become painfully clear that the reformist movement needs to be reinvigorated.

Civil society must unite to voice their discontent and demand political change. Change is the only solution for containing a tainted democracy, weak leadership and a troubled government.

Political change can oust small self-interested elitist groups and champion efforts to make democracy work genuinely in the interests of the people.

The process for political change, however, does not require a coup or an overthrow of government. A coup can only be carried out with guns or by military forces.

Far-reaching change can be endorsed effectively by strong public support through a peaceful and non-violent approach.

If Indonesians can manage to gain ownership of their democracy, it would set a great example for the rest of the world.

In 1998, Indonesia took the bold step by moving out of the shadows of authoritarian rule. Similar transitions are beginning to take shape in the Arab world. Now a new, equally important transition needs to take place in Indonesia for others to see: The replacement of the elite that only makes a mockery of our hard-earned political freedom.

Indonesia can still become one of the greatest nations in Asia, but Indonesians must now understand that it is their individual responsibility as citizens to stand up for their rights and keep pushing for change until democracy can work for their own welfare.

If change toward a better quality democracy materializes, Indonesia could again show the world that our democracy is capable of self-correction toward the establishment of genuine social justice.

[The writer was the coordinating economic, financial and industrial affairs minister during the presidency of Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid. He is a political observer.]

Deciphering the influence of PKS puppet-master Hilmi

Jakarta Post - March 29, 2011

Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta/Bandung – This is the second of two reports about internal rifts besetting the Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). With many idealists leaving, the party is left in the hands of leaders who are allegedly swinging the party toward pragmatism. The Jakarta Post's Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi Akhmad Witular explore the issue.

A luxurious, two-story villa is tucked in a hilly village of Pagerwangi, Lembang, located around 15 kilometers north of West Java's capital of Bandung.

The villa is hidden inside a 1.3-hectare country-style compound called Padepokan Madani, where visitors must undergo firm security checks and submit their ID cards before entering.

A glimpse into the villa reveals six sport utility vehicles lined up in the garage and yard, including a Mitsubishi Pajero and Nissan Terrano. The garage alone can accommodate six vehicles. A PKS source familiar with the villa said there was a 2-meter safe-deposit box consisting of cash in US dollars for party financial needs.

The villa is owned by none other than PKS chief patron Hilmi Aminuddin, 64, nicknamed Ustadz Hilmi.

Although Hilmi was out of town when the Post visited the villa on Thursday, guest manager Reza Mahdi allowed a tour into the compound that features 43 rooms – all made from hardwood – a camping ground, a posh dining room and eight meeting rooms for accommodating up to 200 guests.

While Reza confirmed that the facility was regularly used as a command center for PKS elites, he denied it was entirely owned by Hilmi.

"The compound is operated by the Madani Foundation, which also runs the nearby Nurul Fikri Islamic boarding school," he said, adding that the facility was also open to the public as long as they complied with Islamic values, refraining from smoking and consuming alcoholic drinks and requiring women to wear head scarves during their stay.

According to the Nurul Fikri boarding school's website, Hilmi is registered as the head of the school's steering committee, while his eldest son Wildan Hakim is the director. Village head Ruspandi said Hilmi moved into the village in 2007.

"Soon after Pak Hilmi moved here, he built several mosques and helped us finance the construction of a 1.5-kilometer asphalt road." After the road was fixed, Ruspandi said area property values soared to Rp 200,000 (US$23) per square meter from Rp 30,000.

Local residents said they often saw legislators, ministers and high-ranking government officials visiting the place, which they also called the "PKS base camp". "Some of the visitors even came with police escorts," said 39- year-old Wawan, a local farmer.

From his tranquil villa, Hilmi is steering the course of the country's largest Islamic party, and probably the world's largest when it comes to the size of its supporters.

As PKS chairman of the Religious Council, or Majelis Syuro, Hilmi is the most powerful official with the highest authority at the party, which is widely known for its clean, caring and modest image.

Hilmi has played a vital role in designing the PKS' political course, including selecting candidates for legislators, councillors, local administration leaders and even gaining support for the president.

According to Syamsul Balda, a PKS founder and former deputy president, while the party's pragmatism was already cemented in 1999 by former PKS first president Nur Mahmudi Ismail, such an approach intensified after Hilmi officially led the Majelis Syuro in 2005.

To maintain such pragmatism, according to PKS' other founder, Yusuf Supendi, Hilmi applied two strategies: establishing a one-door policy for the party's financial affairs and assigning critical and idealistic members to petty jobs. "Hilmi is actually acting as the real treasurer for the party."

Even some party icons, including Syamsul, Yusuf, Hidayat Nur Wahid (former speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly), Didien Hafidhudin (former PKS presidential candidate) and Abu Ridha (now Banten Legislative Council member), have been sidelined to petty jobs within the party. Tizar Zein, Mashadi and Ihsan Tandjung chose to resign from the PKS rather than accept a demotion.

In their less-influential positions, they cannot be expected to pressure the current leaders to change, according to Syamsul and Yusuf.

Hilmi instead nurtured his own boys to help maintain the pragmatic approach. They include PKS president Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq, secretary-general Anis Matta, deputy secretary-general Fahri Hamzah and legislators Achmad Rilyadi and Aboe Bakar Al-Habsyi. These officials operate the PKS machine with Hilmi as their driver.

In a recent telephone interview, Hilmi denied these allegations, saying former PKS members now lashing out at party officials were motivated by disappointment after being dismissed for bad behavior.

"All allegations against me are unfounded. This is just an attempt to destroy the PKS over fears of an Islamic rise," said Hilmi.

"About allegations of my lavish lifestyle, I can only say that it all depends on how people see it. They can say whatever they will." Hilmi refused to elaborate further, and said to seek clarification from party officials.

Fahri Hamzah, a trusted lieutenant of Hilmi's, said the deplorable attacks on the PKS might have been engineered by certain interests whose aim was none other than to keep the party from criticizing the government.

"This is blatant and elaborate engineering to diminish the party ahead of the upcoming [2014] election. We are not buying into that, and our members are not backing down in their support."

Hilmi and his mysterious profile

Hilmi Aminuddin's low-profile preference has rendered numerous speculations, among them of his close involvement with the intelligence community during the authoritarian Soeharto era, which ended in 1998, to control radical Islamic movements.

His close ties with former intelligence officer and PKS senior politician Suripto also helped cement speculation. Suripto has repeatedly denied such allegations, saying his relationship with Hilmi started from his admiration of his charisma as a cleric back in the mid-1980s.

Although his contribution to the PKS was rooted long before the party was established, Hilmi was a relatively unknown cleric before he took the helm of the Majelis Syuro in 2005. His name was not even listed among the party's 52 "official" founding fathers, who signed the party's declaration of establishment on Aug. 9, 1998, as then the Justice Party (PK).

Igo Ilham, a Jakarta councillor and one of the party's founders, however, called Hilmi's role during the party's early days "vital". "Ustadz Hilmi was our political and strategic consultant prior to the party's establishment," Igo said.

Hilmi's father was Danu Muhammad Hasan, a prominent figure of the Indonesian Islamic State (NII) separatist movement.

According to University of Indonesia researcher Yon Machmudi's doctorate dissertation, Islamization Indonesia: the Rise of Jemaah Tarbiyah and the PKS in 2008, Hilmi was raised by a family of Muslim traditionalists. When Yon asked Hilmi whether he was involved in his father's NII activities, he denied it, saying, "He [Danu] was my biological father but not my ideological one."

Hilmi studied at Nahdlatul Ulama's prestigious Tebuireng boarding school in Jombang, East Java, and graduated in 1958. During his studies in Saudi Arabia in the late 1970s, he began establishing contacts with leaders of the Egypt-based Ikhwanul Muslimin movement.

In 1984, Hilmi was arrested and held in Indonesian Military detention for allegedly possessing and distributing a confidential government document containing an intelligence report intended to discredit Islamic groups. However, he was released the same year.

Hilmi and his wife, Nining Suningsih, 60, have five children. Their eldest, Kania, 39, is a physician, while the second child, Wildan Hakim, who earned a Master's degree from International Islamic University in Islamabad, Pakistan, is a director of the Nurul Fikri boarding school.

Their third child, Tina, graduated also from a Pakistan university, while the fourth, Ridwan Hakim, used to study at a college in London, the United Kingdom, but decided to cut short his studies and returned home. Hilmi's youngest child, Eva Fadila, 24, currently works as a designer.

IM movement inspires PKS founding fathers

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – Supported by solid constituencies, mainly comprising young and educated Muslims living in urban areas, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has skyrocketed into one of "the rising stars" of Indonesia's political sphere.

Now the country's fourth-biggest political party, the PKS' roots can be traced back to decades ago, even before it was officially established after the fall of the Soeharto regime in 1998.

In The Justice Party Phenomenon: the 20-year Transformation of Tarbiyah Movement in Indonesia, one of the earliest academic studies that dug deep into the PKS, Ali Said Damanik wrote that the party's embryo could be traced back to the mid 1970s when Muslim activists in major local universities initiated a religious-based student movement whose members were groomed through regular meetings and small group discussions called usrah or halaqah.

It was Imaddudin Abdul Rahim, or Bang Imad, a former student activist and charismatic lecturer of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), who first introduced the movement to student activists at his campus.

Imad, whose mentor was Muslim politician Mohammad Natsir, initially organized a training program dubbed Latihan Mujahid Dakwah (LMD), which taught participants how to understand Islam as an integrated "way of life", and how to apply it in all activities, including politics.

Imad's efforts were also partly aimed at confronting the rising "secularization" campaign led by his fellow faculty member the late Nurcholish Madjid, who promoted the idea of separating Islam from politics.

After receiving a significant number of responses, Imad, who had a vast network of local and international Muslim student activists, developed the training material and delivered it to students separated into small separate groups consisting of between five and 20 students.

Imad's success story escalated among Muslim activists across the archipelago. By the early 1980s, Imad's teaching method had been adopted by activists in many state universities, including University of Indonesia (UI) in Depok, West Java, the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) and Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University.

Following the government repression of student movements after the 1974 student riots, many activists saw such small religious discussion groups as the only way to preserve and disseminate their critical view of the Soeharto regime.

Many experts believed such methods of recruitment and membership exclusivity were similar to the Muslim Brotherhood movement, known also as the Ikhwanul Muslimin (IM) Tarbiyah (education) movement, in Egypt.

IM was founded in 1928 by hard-line Islamic scholar Hassan al-Banna, who advocated a non-violent approach through politics in order to reclaim Islam's manifest destiny; an empire, stretching from Spain to Indonesia.

IM is a key underground organization that contributed recently to the downfall of the Hosni Mubarak regime in Egypt.

In his book, Ali Said predicted that the IM had had a major influence on Indonesia's movements during the mid 1980s after many Middle East-educated clerics and scholars, including Abu Ridha and Rahman Zainuddin (both later become noted PKS figures) translated books written by Al Banna and other IM leaders such as Sa'id Hawwa and Sayyid Qutb into Indonesian.

Equipped already with a solid network of followers, it was time for the Tarbiyah activists to decide the future of their underground movement after the fall of Soeharto.

Dozens of prominent Tarbiyah activists held a discussion in Bogor, West Java, to discuss about the possibility of legalizing their movement into an organization.

"The activists were divided into two teams that discussed the possibility of transforming the movement into either a political party or a social organization," Igo Ilham, one of the PKS' founders, said. "We finally concluded that establishing a political party would be much more efficient for our movement."

In order to measure the response of other activists, a small committee organized a poll involving 5,800 listed activists living throughout the country and overseas.

About 68 percent of the respondents agreed to the establishment of a political party and 27 percent chose a social organization and the remaining 5 percent insisted that the movement remain below the radar.

On Aug. 9, 1998, the activists officially established the Justice Party (PK) as announced at the Al Azhar mosque in South Jakarta.

The party's declaration of its establishment was signed by 52 activists, including Hidayat Nur Wahid (who would later become speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly between 2004 and 2009), Ahmad Heryawan (now West Java governor), Nur Mahmudi Ismail (now Depok mayor), Suharna Surapranata (now Research and Technology Minister), Salim Segaf Al Jufri (now Social Minister), and Fahri Hamzah (now PKS lawmaker).

Rahmat Abdullah, a charismatic cleric, was appointed as the chairman of PK's Majelis Syuro (consultative body with the highest authority), while Nur Mahmudi, a young and energetic lecturer, who had earned his PhD degree in food and technology from Texas A&M University, took the helm as the party's first president.

Syamsul Balda, one of the party's founders, said the PK wanted to make young and educated Muslims the party's key figures to attract voters.

"We first offered the position [of party president] to Amien Rais as the icon of the reform movement, but he refused it, saying he would need a much bigger [political] outfit than the PK."

Nurmahmudi, then 37 years old, was considered a neutral option for the public as he had studied in a Western country.

Aside the 52 "official founders", the establishment of the party also involved other key figures, including former intelligence officer Suripto and cleric Hilmi Aminuddin, now the party's chief patron, who helped provide "strategic consultation" pertaining to the party's formation.

The year after its establishment, the PK successfully gained 1.3 percent of votes and secured seven seats in the House of Representatives. Instead of joining other smaller, Islam-based parties to form a faction coalition, the PK chose to accept an offer from the National Mandate Party (PAN), which had secured 34 seats, to form the Reform Faction.

"At that time, we didn't have much experience in politics. Cooperating with PAN would allow us to learn many things," PKS former president Hidayat Nur Wahid once said.

Having failed to pass the 2 percent electoral threshold, the PK changed its name to the Prosperous and Justice Party (PKS) before registering for the 2004 general elections.

Bad apples see Islamic PKS veer off course

Jakarta Post - March 28, 2011

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta – This is the first report on the deplorable internal rift besetting the Islamic-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). As more senior PKS members speak out about long kept skeletons in the closet of the party's leaders, it may demonstrate that at some point, like all other parties, the PKS is no different when it comes to the euphoria money can create. The Jakarta Post explores the issue.

Around 13 years ago, Islamic activist-cum-preacher Anis Matta and Fahri Hamzah could only afford to sleep in mosques whenever they traveled. Both men also had no other option than to travel on public transportation.

A sermon by one of their senior clerics on the importance of living a humble life and limiting worldly pleasures had become deeply ingrained in their minds and influenced their daily deeds.

But since taking a top job in the Justice Party (PK), the former name of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), and occupying a seat at the House of Representatives since 2004 with all the VIP facilities, Anis and Fahri seemed to have abandoned their modest lifestyles.

Now, as deputy House speaker and PKS secretary-general, Anis enjoys the comfort of a Toyota Crown Royal Saloon as provided by the state to high- ranking officials. Anis also has at least one Toyota Harrier worth around Rp 600 million in his private garage. And a new second wife of Uzbekistan national Szilvia Fabula.

His junior, Fahri, who serves as PKS deputy secretary-general, also enjoys the comfort of a Toyota Alphard and regularly stays in first class accommodations.

A lavish lifestyle as displayed by most PKS leaders coupled with a string of graft allegations recently made by several senior PKS members have posed a serious challenge to the party's image as a clean and constituent-caring party, as well as a role model for modest Islamic living.

But these problems have been long kept under the carpet within the PKS internal circle until recently when several of the party's founders decided to sweep out the dirt.

It was cleric Yusuf Supendi that initiated the campaign for the ousting of the bad apples in PKS by reporting the party's top officials to the House of Representatives' ethics council on March 17 and to the Corruption Eradication Commission on March 21 for alleged corruption.

Yusuf accused PKS chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaq of misusing donations from the Middle East for personal use when serving as the party's treasurer. The money was donated in 1999 for the party's election campaign.

Yusuf also lashed out at PKS secretary-general Anis Matta for allegedly embezzling Rp 10 billion (US$1.26 million) from the Rp 40 billion campaign fund donated by Adang Daradjatun to PKS during the Jakarta governorship race in 2006. Anis and Luthfi were Yusuf's students in the 1980s.

Hilmi Aminuddin, who is chairman of the PKS Religious Assembly, or Majelis Syuro, was also mentioned by Yusuf as the "godfather" providing backup for crooked PKS officials. The Majelis Syuro is the highest institution in the party with the greatest authority.

"When it comes to praying, PKS leaders are undoubtedly the best. But they are also among the very best when it comes to pooling (illegally amassed) money and seducing girls," said Yusuf.

"I am also amazed at how Hilmi accumulated his wealth in a very short time. Just look at his luxurious villa in Bandung, West Java, and his collection of luxury cars."

Yusuf, former PKS legislator between 2004 and 2009, has underscored three problems plaguing the party's leaders: corruption, unauthorized polygamy as based on Islamic teachings, and the role of Hilmi as PKS' authoritarian and absolute leader.

Yusuf's allegation cannot be overlooked as he once held several strategic posts in the party, including a member of the Majelis Syuro.

He is also former deputy chairman of the party's sharia council, which functions as supervisor to ensure the attitudes of the party's officials and members comply with Islamic teachings.

Yusuf is also former chairman of the party's sharia tribunal, which handed out sanctions to members for violating Islamic regulations. While Yusuf does not execute his right to polygamy, he was once involved in the party's committee to grant members permission to have more than one wife.

Yusuf's decision to go public with the alleged violations committed by the PKS leaders have received support from the party's other founders, including Syamsul Balda (former PKS deputy chairman who left the party in 2003), Abu Ridha (senior PKS politician) and Tizar Zein (senior PKS politician who left the party in 2008).

Syamsul said the internal rift occurred because the party was becoming more pragmatic in complying with the need for huge amounts of funds to fuel the party's activities.

Pragmatism within the party, he said, had already started when the party assigned its first president, Nur Mahmudi Ismail, as forestry minister during the Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid administration between 1999 and 2001.

Nur Mahmudi, who was supposed to lead the fight against illegal logging, turned out to have misused his authority by issuing more licenses for forest concessions to businessmen, Syamsul said.

The minister's favorable treatment of the businessmen eventually provided the party with more financial resources to expand, and this was supported by some members of the Majelis Syuro. Gur Dur fired Nur Mahmudi in March 2001 because of vested interests.

"The party then seemed to enjoy the benefit of its members being appointed public officials," said Syamsul. "And they seemed to become addicted to it."

Complaints by several idealistic members who were aware the practices were against Islamic teachings were never taken seriously by the Majelis Syuro. "Hilmi even supported Nur Mahmudi's pragmatic approach," said Syamsul.

Nur Mahmudi denied the accusation that he was using PKS pragmatism to satisfy the need for financial resources. "Just check on the treasurer at the time; where exactly was the party's money coming from?" he said on Friday.

Disillusioned with the party's course, several PKS idealists decided to leave the party in 2003. Those who remained were eventually ousted during Hilmi's term as chairman of the party's Majelis Syuro in 2004. Among those fired included Yusuf Supendi after being accused of having an affair with another woman – an allegation he strongly denied.

Due to the widening internal rift, the PKS lost its largest base in Depok, West Java, during the 2009 election as more of its idealistic constituents were aware that the party was heading off its original course.

In response to the allegations, PKS president Luthfi said Yusuf's outrageous attacks were prompted by his disappointment of being fired by the party in 2008 for bad behavior.

Luthfi said the PKS for now allowed Yusuf to lash out in anger at party officials until he ran out of ammunition and fell from extreme exhaustion.

"I can understand that he could not take the dismissal. It has been proven that Yusuf committed a grave violation of not only the party's regulations but also of Islamic teachings," he said. "We have sent several psychiatrists to check on his mental stability."

Public officials' sense of might, right and impunity goes back a long way

Jakarta Globe - March 28, 2011

Yohanes Sulaiman – Early on Saturday, on Twitter, I read the news about how Roy Suryo, Democratic Party lawmaker, managed to delay the 6:15 a.m. flight of Lion Air to Yogyakarta. Even though his ticket was for the 7:45 a.m. flight, he refused to leave the plane, demanding to stay on board, the twitter user said. In the end, Suryo apologized and left the plane, claiming Lion Air was responsible for the mistake.

Coupled with other horror stories on how public officials and lawmakers abused their position to demand unwarranted privileges or commit other conduct unbecoming a public servant, it is not surprising people are asking: "What is wrong with Indonesia?"

It is not far-fetched to argue that the problem originates from the mentality of our public officials.

The "I am never wrong" mentality is due to the fact that throughout history, Indonesian officials have only rarely been held accountable for their conduct. One reason was Indonesian culture holding any high officials in high regard. Another was colonialism.

Of course it is very easy to blame colonialism for everything wrong in Indonesia: from massive poverty, lack of education and disregard to the rule of law, to Indonesia's backwardness.

On the one hand, it cannot be denied that the Dutch and other imperial powers exploited Indonesia, carting off so much of its wealth to Europe and leaving Indonesia mired in poverty and saddled with huge debts at the 1949 Round Table Conference.

But on the other hand, it is clear that local officials also share part of the blame. The Dutch were only able to exploit Indonesia through their cooperation with local officials, the elites that managed to line their pockets at the expense of the masses.

The book "Max Havelaar," which is set during the implementation of the Cultivation System (Tanam Paksa), noted the wanton abuse of power by local regents and how the Dutch East Indies government protected abusers of power. The Dutch didn't really care about how the regents exploited the population, as long as they were loyal and the treasury was overflowing with money. Unfortunately, this mechanism turned out to be the biggest colonial legacy in Indonesian politics.

Colonialism taught the Indonesians that the Dutch would keep protecting any official, no matter how bad his conduct, as long as he cooperated with the Dutch government. In essence, it was a lesson in totalitarianism: officials need not be accountable to the people. The only people who matter are your superiors, who can fire you at a moment's notice. From the colonial days, public officials were not there to serve the people, but to serve the masters that would protect them when things went badly.

The other lesson, related to the first one, was: "might makes right."

Before the arrival of the Dutch, there was no kingdom that completely ruled Java, let alone a country as big as Indonesia. Even the mighty Sultan Agung of Mataram was unable to completely pacify his kingdom, especially after his defeat at Batavia in the late 1620s. As a result, Javanese kings had to rely on the policy of deliberation to achieve consensus (musyawarah- mufakat), to mollify any possible critics of planned policy, as many were capable of launching a rebellion.

This was Indonesian-style democracy: the inability of any ruler to dominate all of his opponents created some sort of safeguard that prevented wanton abuse of power. The Dutch, through their relatively efficient organization and firepower, managed to bypass this barrier and could rule without musyawarah-mufakat. This reinforced the first lesson, that as long as an official was backed by a powerful organization, the chances of him getting overthrown were miniscule.

These lessons were further reinforced during the authoritarian rule of both President Sukarno and President Suharto – during which only those with the necessary connections could achieve a top position – and became ingrained in the Indonesian mind-set.

Not surprisingly, with cronyism as the only qualification required to hold a position, professionalism and the rule of law were totally undermined and became irrelevant. Indonesian officialdom now has the aura of impunity.

This mentality has two major effects. First, there is a huge chasm between public officials and the people they are supposed to serve, leading officials to behave egregiously. Officials consider themselves not mere public servants, but part of the nobility, the elite to be adored and served at a moment's notice. With this in mind, it is not surprising that so many people complain about public officials and members of parliament being completely out of touch with regular people. They think they live in their own kingdoms.

The second – and most worrisome – effect is that since the rule of law has since long been undermined and easy to bypass, provided that an official believes he or she has enough supporters, he or she can attempt to change rules at will. Never mind using the proper channels.

In Indonesia, might still makes right, so it is important for someone who is seriously interested in running for public office to have recourse to a strong organization that is capable of committing acts of violence or at least threaten political opponents.

We can see the excesses already, such as in the case of violent, religious-based mass organizations that have recently attacked minorities such as the Ahmadiyah sect, with the aim of imposing their will.

Coupled with this, the impeachment discourse being promoted by certain groups is also worrisome. Impeachment, instead of being a last-resort tool to limit presidential abuse of power, is being used to coerce the president into doing things that only a very small part of the population supports.

We should remember that democracy only works when everybody is equal before the law and protected from abuse. That includes abuse by public officials.

[Yohanes Sulaiman is a lecturer at the Indonesian National Defense University and a researcher at the Global Nexus Institute.]