Indonesian activists are encouraging mobile phone users to turn their cellphones off on Saturday to protest against unwanted mobile phone service costs.

One of the groups, Voice of Humanism, urged users to switch off their phones from 10 a.m. to midday on Saturday as "shock therapy" for providers.

"If consumers turn off their cellphones simultaneously for two hours, operators will lose a 120-minute chance to make money," the group's leader, Harja Saputra, wrote on the group's Web site.

Harja said they held cellular providers responsible for the problems. "Because content providers as the 'credit thieves' seek shelter under the cellular provider's roof. It means there's a collaboration between the two providers," he alleged.

Another group, Indonesian Cellphone Consumers, also encouraged people to declare Saturday a cellphone-free day.

"We as consumers have the right to turn off our cellphones anytime we want. If everyone in Indonesia turns off their cellphones simultaneously, cellular providers will see what the consumers can do," the group said in a message circulated on Blackberry.

The groups also urged the government to disband the Indonesian Telecommunications Regulatory Body (BRTI). "BRTI was founded based on Law 36/1999 on Telecommunications," Harja said. "The law was made on behalf of the people so the law must take sides with the people, in this case, the cellphone consumers."

The outcry over the unwanted cellular service costs started after a report filed by Feri Kuntoro from East Jakarta, who reported Telkomsel to the police last Wednesday, and was later himself reported to the police by Colibri, a content provider, even though he says he did not make accusations against them.

Earlier this week, Ferry told the Jakarta Globe that he was being harassed after lodging the report and has appealed to the Victim and Witness Protection Agency (LPSK) for help.

Bendera activists get 7 months' jail for SBY claims

Jakarta Globe - October 13, 2011

Agus Triyono – Two activists from ultranationalist youth group Bendera have been sentenced to seven months in prison for failing to prove their allegations that members of the president's family and his election team embezzled Bank Century bailout funds.

The long-running and drama-filled libel case against the two men, Mustar Bonaventura and Ferdi Semaun, began in January.

The two claimed in November 2009 that several members of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's inner circle and re-election campaign team accepted Rp 1.8 trillion ($203 million) in kickbacks from the controversial Rp 6.7 trillion government rescue of Bank Century.

Those who filed the suit included Yudhoyono's son Edhie Baskoro; Djoko Suyanto, the coordinating minister for legal, political and security affairs; Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng; and Hatta Rajasa, the coordinating minister for economic affairs.

In Indonesia, libel cases filed by private citizens can be taken up by prosecutors and lead to custodial sentences for respondents found to have seriously defamed plaintiffs. Libel cases can be reported to the police.

The panel of judges who heard the case read their verdict to the Central Jakarta District Court on Thursday, saying that the activists had failed to provide evidence to support specific claims of embezzlement made to journalists.

Mustar and Ferdi immediately signaled their intention to appeal the sentence, saying the trial judges had made numerous legal errors.

"We have many complaints, among them that the court failed to note our opposition to the calling of an expert witness from PPATK [Financial Transaction and Reports Analysis Center]," Ferdi said.

He said the court also failed to refer to their written defense statement in its verdict. "In our defense statement, and in our verbal evidence, we clearly explained that Century funds flowed to the Democratic Party via a number of companies. Why wasn't that used, even though the facts were clear?" Ferdi said.

From the beginning of the case, Mustar, Ferdi and their supporters tried the patience of the court. At their initial hearing on Jan. 20, proceedings were held up for an hour as dozens of Bendera members protested outside the courthouse against the suit, which they called unfair.

Inside the courtroom, lawyers for Mustar and Ferdy told the judges that their clients refused to enter the courtroom unless their supporters were also allowed in. The panel of judges eventually relented and agreed to the condition.

Once the hearing finally began, Bendera supporters shouted insults at witnesses for the plaintiffs, including Djoko. When the presiding judge halted proceedings and ordered police to remove the Bendera members from the courtroom, a scuffle broke out with police, followed by a walkout by the two defendants and their lawyers.

Thursday's final verdict was met with scores of the pair's supporters yelling insults and slogans. Police dragged a number of them from the court.

Actions, demos, protests...

Protest outside Malaysian embassy in Jakarta turns unruly

Bernama - October 12, 2011

Jakarta – Issues concerning the Malaysia-Indonesia border in West Kalimantan which were played up by the Indonesian media, caused a group of Indonesians to stage a demonstration outside the Malaysian embassy here Wednesday.

However, the protest went out of control resulting in a glass panel at the guard post at the entrance to the embassy to be damaged while nine Indonesian policemen, who were part of a team for crowd control and guarding the embassy, were injured.

The group, calling itself Forum Betawi Rempug (FBR) and numbering a few hundred people, hurled hard objects at the guard post, perimeter lighting and the policemen.

They began gathering there at about 1pm local time and dispersed about an hour later after venting their anger over news reports that Malaysia had seized 1,000 acres of land belonging to Indonesia along the Malaysia- Indonesia border in West Kalimantan.

On Tuesday, Malaysia's Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman and his Indonesian counterpart Dr Marty Natalegawa, after the 11th Joint Commission for Bilateral Commission Cooperation Meeting between the two countries in Kuala Lumpur, said at a joint press conference that the removal of markers at the border, either by mischievious individuals or natural disasters, could easily be replaced by their joint survey team. They added that the coordinates had been established during colonial times.

Meanwhile, Malaysia's ambassador to Indonesia Datuk Syed Munshe Afdzaruddin Syed Hassan said the embassy would be sending a diplomatic note to the Indonesian government over the incident.

He said in the note, the embassy would also be asking the Indonesian government as to how it could help the embassy avoid such incidents from recurring.

Farmers protest against potato imports

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

On Tuesday, a group of farmers protested in front of the Trade Ministry in Jakarta against the arrival of imported potatoes that they say were having a detrimental impact on sales of homegrown produce.

"We urge the government to revoke the potato import policy because it is hurting farmers," Sunarjo, a farmer from Sumberejo village in Banjarnegara, Central Java, said Tuesday as quoted by tribunnews.com.

Sunarjo added that since there had been a surge in potato imports into Indonesia, the price of local potatoes had dropped from Rp 7,000-Rp 8,000 per kilogram (around 90 US cents) to around Rp 4,000 per kilogram.

The Indonesian Farmers Union (SPI) confirmed that the slump in potato prices was caused by the arrival of imported potatoes from China and Bangladesh.

West Papua

Police arrest suspects in Papua car shooting that killed 3 and injured 2

Antara News - October 16, 2011

Timika, Papua – Police said they have identified six people involved in an ambush on Friday at Mile 37, Tanggul Timur, Mimika, Papua, that left three people dead.

"There were five or six perpetrators," confirmed Papua Police Command spokesman Senior Commissioner Wachyono, when asked about the incident on Saturday.

He said that based on preliminary results of the investigation the suspects' motive appeared to have been to create additional chaos in the already volatile Mimika area, where the Freeport-McMoRan Grasberg mine is located. He added that the police were still investigating the incident.

Wachyono said that the police discovered a number of documents belonging to a separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM) group while arresting the suspects. He added that one of the documents bears the signature of Teni Kualik, commander of the OPM National Liberation Soldiers for the Timika region.

Yana Heryana, Iip Abdul Rohman and Deden, who were employees of Puri Fajar Mandiri, were killed in the Friday afternoon attack. The attackers also shot at a Freeport Indonesia security car that came to respond to the incident. Thobias and Roy Makalele sustained injuries to their arms and legs while trying to evacuate the victims.

Freeport Indonesia said it would cooperate with police during its investigation into the incident.

The company's spokesman Ramdani Sirait said Freeport was saddened by the deaths of the three employees, who worked for one of its contractors. He added that the incident occurred in the same area where Freeport security officers Daniel Mansawan and Hari Siregar were found dead in a charred vehicle last April.

Three Freeport workers killed in ambush

Jakarta Globe - October 14, 2011

Banjir Ambarita – At least three people were killed in an ambush on Friday near the Freeport-McMoRan Grasberg mine in the Mimika district of Papua, police said.

"Three Freeport workers died instantly from gunshot wounds," Papua police spokesman Sr. Comr. Wachyono said. "The [Mitsubishi] L300 that the victims were in was also set on fire."

Police are still identifying the deceased, Wachyono said, but one man was shot near the neck, a second man's skull shattered, and the third man was still being evacuated from a river. The incident, Wachyono said, occurred at 3:45 p.m. local time.

A military officer and a Freeport security guard were also shot while they tried to evacuate the victims. Both sustained wounds to the left arm, and the security guard was also hit on his left thigh. "The perpetrator is still under pursuit," Wachyono said. "We could not identify [the shooter] yet."

Witnesses said that among those killed in the ambush was Nasep Risza Rahman, who worked for one of Freeport's subcontractors Puri Fajar Mandiri. Nasep was found dead inside the burning car.

Maj. Gen. Erfi Triassunu, head of the Cendrawasih Military Command, which oversees Papua operations, confirmed that the incident occurred. "Right now we are investigating it," Erfi said, declining to elaborate.

The ambush marks the second attack on Freeport employees this year. In April, two workers died when their vehicle was shot and set on fire. The perpetrator was never caught.

Friday's ambush came just days after a demonstration of striking Freeport workers took a violent turn. The workers, who have been on strike for exactly one month today, were demanding a substantial pay raise. When a clash erupted between protesters and the police, a civilian and a police officer were killed.

Violence has increased in Papua in recent years. There has been a low-level insurgency from separatist groups since 1969 when Indonesia annexed the resource-rich province. Mimika is also home to supporters of armed rebel leader Kelly Kwalik, who was killed by police in 2009.

Freeport worker buried as councillors vow probe

Jakarta Post - October 14, 2011

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The remains of Petrus Ayamiseba, 36, a PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) worker who was shot dead on Oct. 10 during a clash with the police at the Gorong-Gorong bus terminal in Timika, Papua, was buried at the Christian cemetery on Jl. Cenderawasih, Timika, on Thursday.

Ayamiseba was buried only after provincial and regency councilors ensured his relatives in a meeting that the shooting would be thoroughly investigated.

"After the meeting, an agreement was reached to form an investigative team to probe the case thoroughly and Ayamiseba's relatives then decided to go ahead with the funeral," PTFI SPSI labor union spokesman Juli Parororongan told The Jakarta Post by phone.

Meanwhile, the Mimika regency council has invited a number of relevant parties to a meeting on Friday to discuss the shooting and the strike by PTFI workers.

After PTFI's management and employees reached a deadlock over demands for a salary increase, Juli said his union was willing to return to the negotiating table, and SPSI had planned to lower the salary demand from US$17.50 to $7.50 per hour.

"This is only talk and has not been officially discussed, but we have faith that everything will return to normal," said Juli.

Doctors at the Timika mayoralty hospital conducted an autopsy on Ayamiseba's body earlier on Thursday. Previously, Ayamiseba's body was laid out at the Mimika regency council office waiting for accountability from relevant parties.

"After authorities approached the family, they eventually took the body from the regency council office to the Timika mayoralty hospital for an autopsy, the results of which have not been released," said Mimika Police deputy chief Comr. Made Indra Laksanta.

According to Indra, the current situation in Timika has returned to normal and residents are going about their daily activities, although a crowd, including Ayamiseba's colleagues and relatives, is milling about the Mimika regency council office waiting to hear the outcome of the investigation.

Besides Ayamiseba's death, scores of others were injured in the clash at the Gorong-Gorong bus terminal on Oct. 10. A Mobile Brigade officer, First Brig. Jamil, was critically injured and was referred to a hospital in Jakarta on Tuesday. "His condition has improved after getting treatment there," said Indra.

The PTFI management said it had suspended around 300 workers, 60 of them office workers taking part in the strike, which started on Sept. 15 and still continues.

PTFI president director and CEO Armando Mahler said in Timika on Thursday that the management had suspended hundreds of workers because they had been involved in acts of intimidation against workers who continued to work throughout the strike.

"Many of our employees were intimidated and scared. They fled from their barracks to hide. Some of those who kept working were threatened that their homes would be burned. We suspended those responsible," said Mahler as quoted by Antara.

He added that the extent of offenses committed by the suspended workers would be investigated after the strike ended and operations returned to normal.

PTFI executive vice president and chief administrative officer Sinta Sirait said the decision to suspend the hundreds of workers and summon striking production staff was in accordance with a joint agreement and Industrial Relations Manual agreed upon by SPSI.

Sinta urged every party to respect the agreement to prove that it was not mere lip service.

Journalist covering events around Freeport is beaten and injured

Tabloid JUBI - October 13, 2011

Dozens of journalists demonstrated in Manokwari to protest against the beating of a colleague, Duma Tato Sanda, a journalist working for Cahaya Papua, who was beaten up by workers of Freeport during a clash in Timika and suffered from bruises and swelling in his cheeks, lips and his waist and was punched in the chest.

Sally Pelu, co-ordinator of the Papuan Peoples Solidarity Action for Press Freedom, said "Journalists are continually being subjected to acts of violence and there is no guarantee that we can do our work of gathering information freely."

The journalists condemned the violence used against their colleague and called on the DPR, the central legislative council, to support the right of journalists to conduct their work freely.

The journalists met a member of the DPRP West Papua, Jaxat who apologised for the fact that many members of the DPRP were absent, because they were involved in other activities.

According to reports, Duma also lost his camera, handphone and motor-bike which were all seized by Freeport workers. "They beat me, grabbed my camera and took my motor-bike," said Duma.

When he was attacked he was gathering information about the burning of three trucks belonging to Freeport which had been set on fire by Freeport workers. The trouble occurred after people heard that three of their colleagues had been shot dead during a demonstration.

"I said that I was a journalist but nevertheless they beat me and threw stones at me. Luckily, someone came by on a motor-bike otherwise I could have been killed from being beaten by so many people."

He went on to say that he was later chased by about ten people, "my sandals fell off while some people pelted me with stones."

Johannes Samuel Nussy, the chairman of the Timika Community of Journalists, also condemned the acts of violence against Duma and said that another journalist working from Radar Timika, Syahrul was also attacked by Freeport workers in Gorong-Gorong, Timika and was bruised in his face. He said: "They beat me because they didn't want journalists to be there."

According to Johannes, some journalists in Timika have formed a relationship with Freeport. "They see the work of journalists as something threatening. They say we are defending Freeport, which is not true. We hope that the workers trade union can urge their colleagues not to see journalists as a threat."

DAP chairman calls for withdrawal of police, army from Freeport

Tabloid JUBI - October 13, 2011

In connection with the shooting dead of Petrus Ayamiseba who worked at the catering department for workers at Freeport, the Dewan Adat Papua has declared that it is essential to withdraw army and police troops from area around the Freeport mine.

Speaking on behalf of DAP, Dewan Adat Papua, Forkorus Yaboisembut said that the chief of the Indonesian police, the chief of police in Papua and the commnder of the XVII Cenderawasih Command should withdraw all their troopa who are currently deployed in the vicinity of the mine. He said that it was important for the police and the security forces to stop exerting pressure on the company. They should also be ordered to stop exerting pressure on the workers.

"The security forces should stop interfering in any way with the company," he said. "The two sides involved in a dispute must find a solution together. If they are subjected to pressure, the dispute will never be solved," he said.

He also said that the Indonesian govrnment should urge the company to provide a clarification about its revenues. "If the government can convince the company to review the wages that they pay to the workers, the dispute can be speedily resolved," he said.

Meanwhile, the lawyer, Yan Christian Warinussy said that the shooting of Petrus Ayamiseba was a gross violation of human rights, and he hoped that the Papua branch of the National Human Rights Commission would speedily hold a meeting with the chief of police in Papua, Police Inspector-General Bigman Lukkaman Tobing to press for this shooting incident to be resolved in the human rights court. He said that if this does not happen, the police will claim that this was nothing more than a criminal act.

He want on to say that the shooting to death was a breach of Law 39/1998 regarding safeguarding actions undertaken by the people. Warinussy also said that the company should halt all their provocative actions. "The company and the workers should sit down together to discuss the rights of the workers."

Warinussy said that he was currently in Timika and was carrying out his own investigations and he said that he would be having a meeting with the chief of police in Mimika and with the company. The results would be conveyed to the chairman of the Papuan branch of the National Human Rights Commission. Matius Murib.

Petrus Ayamiseba who was 36 years old died when he was struck by a burning rod of tin belonging to the police while he was taking part in a demonstration at the Gorong-Gorong Terminal. During the incident, another person was also killed, namely Jamil, a member of Brimob.

Yogyakarta protesters demand nationalisation of Freeport

KRjogja.com - October 13, 2011

Yogyakarta – Scores of demonstrators from the People's Mining Militia held a free-speech forum in front of the Gedung Agung Presidential Palace in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta on Thursday October 13. They were demanding the return of the nation's sovereignty through the nationalisation of the foreign mining industry, in particular PT Freeport Indonesia, under the control of the people.

The speaker at the action, Kuswanto, revealed that PT Freeport, which mines the largest copper deposit in the world, also mines the largest deposit of gold, silver and other materials in the world, and this has never been declared openly. Freeport not only oppresses the people of West Papua, but has also damages the environment, which is the source of the people's livelihood.

"PT Freeport disposes of its waste in the Ajkwa river, which flows into the Arafura coastal sea and contaminates the waters and threatens living creatures. Not only that, Freeport has also committed an inhuman act resulting in the death of a worker because they were demanding a wage rise", he said.

The People's Mining Militia strongly condemns the brutal actions by security forces, both the police and the military, which resulted in the death of a Freeport worker and injured six others. They also called for the immediate arrest, trial and jailing of the perpetrators and an end to militaristic acts at PT Freeport and in other parts in West Papua.

"We also fully support the strike by PT Freeport workers to demand their rights and a [decent] standard of living. Return the nation's sovereignty through the nationalisation of foreign mining industries under the control of the people. We also call on all Indonesian people to unite, take over and manage for themselves all strategic assets for the sake of the people's welfare", he asserted. (Ran)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Indonesian police open fire on student dormitory in Jayapura

West Papua Media Alerts - October 13, 2011

Nick Chesterfield and local sources – Plain clothes Indonesian police agents in Jayapura opened fire late on October 12 outside a student dormitory, in another violent act of security force intimidation before the Third Papuan People's Congress starts on October 16.

Local human rights sources and stringers for West Papua Media have reported that the Rasunawa dormitory, housing West Papuan students from Cenderawasih University (UNCEN), came under attack at 11pm local time by five plain clothes police agents. The agents arrived in a new white Toyota Kijang with police license plate Ds. B 9481 PAA (expiry June 2015).

Witnesses from the student dormitory, who have declined to be identified for their safety, have reported directly to West Papua Media that the agents arrived and started shooting immediately outside the dormitory. "For some reason, these five police goons (polisi preman) entered Rasunawaa and fired wildly, so that all the male resident of the three-story building came down and surrounded the five thugs".

According to an activist with SONAMAPA WP (Papuan Students National Solidarity Organization) who was a witness to the altercation, the students interrogated the five men at the centre of the group. "They were feeling cornered and fired shots incessantly in the air, we think over 30 bullets were flying. "

"We are still looking for eyewitnesses or if there is a gunshot victim from the incident or not – the investigation remains ongoing".

In dramatic scenes, the West Papuan students successfully detained the men until an entire platoon of uniformed police arrived, who then arrested the Indonesian gunmen by force. Uniformed police, also from Jayapura, were reportedly fired upon by one of the five men. However,the platoon of police also opened fire to disperse the crowd in order to retrieve their men.

Photographs of the incident provided to West Papua Media by witnesses appear to show the police vehicle used in the incident. According to the SONAMAPA WP activist, the new vehicle registration means the car has just been imported directly from Jakarta.

A formal report has been made to the Rector of UNCEN, and students have reported to West Papua Media that they hold grave fears for a continuation of the incident, and for the safety of the residents of the Rasunawaa UNCEN dormitories.

New Freeport recruits violate Labor Law: Minister

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The world's largest publicly traded copper mining firm, Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc., may have to wait a little longer to get its Indonesian operations back on track, pending a court ruling to settle a salary dispute with its workers.

Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar warned the company that it could not recruit new workers to replace those participating in a month-long strike. Such a move, he said, would be in violation of the Labor Law.

"PT Freeport's management is not allowed to recruit new workers or conduct massive layoffs to replace those who are on strike until the industrial dispute is settled," Muhaimin said on Wednesday in response to an announcement by Indonesian subsidiary, PT Freeport Indonesia, on the new recruits. Muhaimin said the company must wait for a verdict from the Industrial Court.

The workers have gone on strike again in protest of the management's decision to lay off workers who went on strike at the Grasberg mine in Timika. The strike turned deadly when two workers were shot dead by police officers who were trying to tame the approximately 8,000 protesters.

Human rights organizations condemned the violence. An investigation into the incident is ongoing. Freeport management and workers, represented by the Confederation of All-Indonesian Workers Labor Union (SPSI), have agreed to bring their case to court after failing to close a deal with the help of ministry mediation.

Freeport CEO Armando Mahler told reporters in conference call on Wednesday that his company had tried to create a win-win solution with the labor union SPSI.

"We have agreed to increase pay by 25 percent, as was proposed by the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry," he said. "However, the SPSI did not accept the proposal and held to its demands."

Mahler said the workers demanded a salary increase to US$17.50 per hour. "The company's burden to pay workers will be too high. I don't believe any mining company can bear such a demand," he said.

Freeport Indonesia spokesperson Ramdani Sirait said the annual take-home pay of low level workers ranged from Rp 170 million ($19,040) to Rp 235 million a year. Under the new proposal, Freeport would increase pay to between Rp 210 million and Rp 285 million.

PT Freeport Indonesia chief administrative officer Sinta Sirait said the company was operating at 80 percent capacity. "For now, our productivity is 185,000 tons per day," she said. "With only 80 percent productivity, we lose $20 million every day."

SPSI spokesperson Juli Parorongan said the company had provided the media with false information of how much the workers were demanding and how much they were being paid.

Juli said the workers were in fact demanding $7.80 per hour, not $17.50 per hour. He also said that more than 50 percent of Freeport workers were only being paid as much as Rp 7 million per month in take-home pay. "The company exaggerated how much they were paying the workers," he said.

A member of the Indonesian Science Institute who is an expert on Papua, Ikrar Nusa Bakti, said the workers' grievances could be easily used by separatists to fuel negative sentiment against the central government and foreign investors.

Ikrar said the government should seize the opportunity to play the role as an honest broker between the conflicting parties. "This is also a good opportunity for the government to demand that Freeport be more transparent in its operations. We know for sure that Freeport is not just mining copper," he said. (lfr)

Strike at Papua's Freeport mine turns nasty

ABC Radio Australia - October 12, 2011

An industrial dispute at the world's biggest gold mine in Indonesia's Papua province, has turned ugly, after a striking worker was shot dead by police. Seven others were critically wounded when officers tried to stop striking workers from going into a facility at the mining complex on Monday.

About 8,000 workers have been on strike for almost a month at the US-owned Freeport McMoran copper and gold mine. Human rights activists and workers say it's time the Indonesian Government intervened, to help negotiate a peaceful outcome.

Reporter: Alma Mistry

Speakers: Paula Makabory, Papuan human rights activist; Juli Parorrongan, spokesman for the mine workers' union, the SPSI

Mistry: The workers from the Grasberg gold and copper mine in Papua were marching towards buses heading for the mine when security forces and Indonesian police, tried to stop them. Some of the men were angry because they thought that outside labour was being brought in... although they insist they weren't violent. Paula Makabory is a Papuan human rights activist based in Melbourne. She says she's been told police took a heavy handed approach.

Makabory: But they were forced by the police. The police tried to stop them and then they got mad. And then while they were being pushed by the police the police shot the gun and immediately they saw that Petir Ayamiseba lay down on the ground with blood coming out from his left chest.

Mistry: The injured man was taken to hospital but died half an hour later. Juli Parorrongan is a spokesman for the mine workers' union, the SPSI. He says the death comes after a relatively calm period in relations between mine workers and police.

Parorrongan: Recentlly the situation and condition was quiet and be calm and the conflict betwen the police and worker was stropped we'd tried to resove the problem with dialogue and mediation.

Mistry: He says workers would like the Indonesian police and Freeport Mcmoran to take responsibility for the death and to sit down with workers to resolve the issues behind the strike.

Parorrongan: We just try to resolve this problem and we hope the police department and the Freeport management will if they are responsibility of this case we hope they will meet with us to resolve this problem.

Mistry: It's estimated about 70 percent of the mine's workers are currently on strike, demanding better pay and conditions. At the moment they are paid an average of two dollars ten US per hour. After doing research about what their international Freeport counterparts make, the unions are asking for a pay rise to about 17 dollars an hour. But Mr Parorrongan says management is insisting on less than half of that.

Parorrongan: They were talking to us but they not want to appease our demand They just give us increase of wages 25 percent from the old wages. But this is still not ideal for us.

Mistry: Paula Makabory says the workers have a right to be listened to.

Makabory: The workers who are sacrifiving lives in the deepest ground, underground workers like 4000 metres underground dealing with the mining operation for copper and gold and [indecipherable] and then they are being paid just yeah one point seven that's the lowest one per hour.

Mistry: She says the workers have vowed to keep striking for at least another month and they are now putting pressure on local politicians to intervene.

Makabory: They are carrying the dead body of their fellow and his family is also joining a strike in front of the house of representatives in Timika and then all the strikers are also there they're sitting there and then they will be waiting until the company and the police come and listen to their demands.

Mistry: Ms Makabory says the Indonesian Government has been virtually silent on the issue and that no one has apologised for the death.

Makabory: Seems like Indonesian authorities are so silent on this so I talked to the workers themselves and I asked them why the Indonesian didn't do anything and they say because it seems like Freeport is another state in Indonesia.

Mistry: She says its time for the Government to help the workers negotiate a deal.

Makabory: I think this is serious because Indonesia is trying to create a good international image but with the ongoing human rights violations all over West Papua then West Papuans say that we never experience any of Indonesia's democractic systems.

Government searches for ways to reduce Freeport tensions

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The government will create an inter- ministry team to resolve long-standing salary and security problems involving mining giant PT Freeport Indonesia, according to a minister.

"The problems of Freeport cannot be separated from their substance, namely the absence of agreement on wages. This is the domain of the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry," Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Darwin Zahedy Saleh said in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Zahedy said that the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry would focus on the negative impact of Freeport on the environment and technology.

Clashes between striking workers and the National Police would come under the aegis of Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto, Zahedy said. "The coordinating minister has taken a number of steps to get rid of the security problems," Zahedy said.

Meanwhile, a councilor in Papua said that Freeport should be held responsible for the shooting death of striking worker Petrus Ayamiseba, who was killed when workers and police clashed on Monday at the Gorong-Gorong bus terminal in Timika.

"Freeport must be held responsible and immediately resolve all the consequences of the incident," Papua legislative council Commission A chairman Ruben Magai told reporters in Jayapura on Tuesday.

Freeport was acting as if the company was not responsible for the incident, since the clash was between workers and police officers, Ruben said – despite the almost month-long dispute between management and striking All- Indonesian Workers Union (SPSI) members.

"Had the issue between the management and SPSI been immediately resolved, the problem would not have intensified. It is an internal problem. Why must Freeport involve other parties to resolve it?"

Reuben wanted Freeport to settle the labor dispute immediately, separate from the shooting. "Please open a room for dialogue to discuss the deadlock. The issue is like a misunderstanding between a father and child. It must be resolved amicably," he said.

Papua legislative council speaker, John Ibo, said the government should step in to resolve the dispute, given its mining concession contract with Freeport. "The central government is expected to play a central role in resolving the issue."

Ibo asked the police not to use excessive force to resolve protests and made a plea for calm. "I urge members of the public to abide by the regulations so everything can proceed peacefully despite the protests," Ibo said.

Petrus has not been buried pending demands from his family for an investigation. "The body has not yet been buried as the family is demanding that authorities settle the issue first," union spokesman Juli Parorrongan said in a text message sent to The Jakarta Post.

Juli added that the union was trying to gather all parties for a dialogue to be mediated by the Mimika legislature.

The union demanded on Tuesday that Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Bigman Lumban Tobing and the Timika Police chief be suspended after Monday's clash.

Speaking at a demonstration in front of National Police headquarters in Jakarta, union representative Dorus Wakum said the pair were responsible for Petrus' death. "The police should have protected the people instead of shooting them," he said.

Children sent out of conflict-torn area

Jakarta Globe - October 12, 2011

Officials in Puncak Papua have started moving children out of the conflict-torn district as the situation there continues to deteriorate.

"For nearly three months there have not been any school activities due to the prolonged conflict," said the acting district head, Decky Wambrauw. "Several schools and teachers' homes have also been looted and burned while children have been forced to go to war by their parents.

"The conditions are far from normal, so we plan to move the children to other areas so they can go back to school."

At least 27 people have been killed in the conflict, which began on July 30 when an election dispute spun out of control. Thirteen people were killed in the initial clash, and the others died in the periodic outbreaks of violence that have followed.

On Tuesday, many residents – including some children – were seen carrying spears, machetes and arrows on the quiet streets.

All 18 schools of varying levels in the newly established district have been abandoned since early August, with the 500 students in Puncak Papua either too afraid to go outside or involved in the fighting.

Decky said most of the 80 teachers had also fled the district after some of them saw their homes set on fire on Monday.

The Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) reportedly gave its backing for two candidates vying for the district head position in the upcoming election.

Elvis Tabuni, speaker of the Puncak Papua district council, was angry to learn that Simon Alom, who led the transition during the establishment of the district, also claimed to be backed by Gerindra.

Thousands rally for Papua referendum

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – Thousands of Papuans rallied in front of the Papuan People's Assembly in Abepura, Jayapura, on Tuesday, demanding a referendum on the province's independence from Indonesia.

"We gained freedom in 1969. Papua will demand independence until we die," West Papua National Committee deputy chairman Mako Tabuni said during the rally. "We've had enough with having Indonesia in Papua. It's time for us to end it," he added.

Dozens of police officers guarded the protesters, who carried banners demanding a referendum, similar to their last rally in June, which also drew thousands of participants. Mako said the protesters would not use violence.

More than a dozen of rallies demanding a referendum on Papuan independence from Indonesia have been staged this year, tempointeraktif.com reported.

Teachers' residence set on fire in Papua as tribal tension continues

Jakarta Globe - October 11, 2011

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura, Papua – The situation in the highland district of Puncak Papua remained tense on Monday as a housing complex for local teachers was burned down in the continuing tribal war that has killed at least 27 people since late July.

No one was injured in the Monday's inferno because the occupants had left the complex. By the time the police's Mobile Brigade (Brimob) arrived at the scene, the fire had completely destroyed the building and the arsonists had left the scene.

The provincial and district governments are struggling to find a peaceful settlement to put an end to the war, which was triggered by dispute in the district election involving candidates from the Great Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra).

The party issued recommendation letters for Elvis Tabuni, the speaker of the Puncak Papua legislative council, and Simon Alom, who led the transitional process during the establishment of the new district.

Both sides claimed they had backing from Gerindra and had registered their nomination with the local election committee. Simon's bid enraged Elvis, who had registered four days earlier.

Supporters of the rival camps clashed at the end of July. Four people from Simon's side were killed on July 30, and the following day Simon's supporters retaliated, resulting in the death of 13 people from Elvis's camp. More violence has broken out sporadically since then, resulting in more casualties.

The fights have paralyzed the district, and schools have closed since some students have been involved in the conflicts.

On Monday, many local residents – including children – were seen carrying spears, machetes and arrows on the quiet streets. Many schools were completely abandoned.

Yokim, a student of Ilaga Elementary School, said he had not attended class because of the prolonged fighting. "Me and my friends haven't gone to school for two months. Sometimes, we join our parents for the war," he said.

Usai Alom, head of the education office in Puncak district, said all school activities were suspended and it could take years before a settlement was reached. "According to the local customs, tribal war can last many years, even if they come to a truce," he said. The conflicts affected 18 schools and hundreds of their pupils, he said.

The National Police have added another platoon to the number of personnel on the ground, but despite government claims that the situation is under control, the bloody conflicts continue and more buildings and vehicles have been set on fire.

Freeport strike turns deadly

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Nethy Dharma Somba Rangga D. Fadhillah, Jakarta/Jayapura – A PT Freeport Indonesia worker named Petrus Ayamiseba was shot dead when the police fired warning shots to stop protesting workers from entering Gorong-Gorong bus terminal in Timika, Papua, on Monday.

The local subsidiary of US mining giant Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. provides buses at the terminal to transport workers to and from the Tembagapura mine site.

"The workers were walking and about to enter the terminal when suddenly we heard gunshots. Our colleague, Petrus Ayamiseba, was shot in left side of his chest and killed. The clash between workers and the police was inevitable," Freeport Labor Union (SPSI) spokesman Juli Parorrongan said.

In addition to Petrus, several other workers were injured in the incident. "Philiton Kogoya was injured by a blow to the head with the butt of a rifle. Ahmad Mustofa was shot in the back with a rubber bullet. Melias Rumbiak was also hit in the head with the butt of a rifle. Charry Pesurnay suffered burns on his left hand from a tear gas canister. Leon Ngavulduan was injured by blow to his chest from the butt of a rifle and Alius Komba was shot in his stomach with a rubber bullet," said Juli.

Juli said a group of workers was walking toward the Gorong-Gorong terminal to board the bus to Tembagapura to stop a number of contract workers hired by Freeport from working, as thousands of workers were on strike. Before they arrived at the terminal they were blocked by the police.

"The company has hired contractual workers from outside to operate the mine ever since the strike on Sept. 15, although it is against the Law on Manpower. Our colleagues wanted to inform them that no one should work before the labor issues between the workers and the company management had been resolved," he said.

Juli added that he had received information that five company cars had been set on fire, but he did not know by whom. Juli regretted the incident and demanded that those responsible for the shooting be legally processed and that the company be held responsible for the incident.

Freeport spokesperson Ramdani Sirait said the company regretted the disturbance at the bus terminal where the company provides buses to employees.

"We learned that a group of protesting workers and other individuals were walking from the SPSI office in Timika to the terminal to disturb the arrival and departure of buses for PT Freeport Indonesia workers."

The group attempted to enter the bus terminal, and the police responded by blocking their way, thus making them aggressive. "The incident led to the death of an employee, and several others, including police personnel, were wounded. They are currently being treated at a local clinic and hospital," Ramdani said.

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Darwin Zahedy Saleh said that he had informed the President of the incident. "From time to time the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs also monitors the latest developments there," he said, adding that his ministry had also deployed a team of expert staff to help settle the problem.

Diaz Gwijangge, a member of the House of Representatives from Papua, said in a statement on Monday that Freeport had committed a brutal act against its own workers. He urged the company to meet the workers' demands.

"I urge Freeport not to use security apparatuses, including police and soldiers, in handling rallies by its workers who are demanding their rights. Involving security apparatuses will only lengthen the list of its human rights violations in Papua," Diaz said.

Casualties around Freeport

Aug. 31, 2002: Rebel group Papua Independence Organization (OPM) shoot dead three Freeport workers, including two US citizens.

March 16, 2006: Protesters kill four police officers and one TNI officer during a street rally demanding Freeport closure

April 29, 2006: Seven people are injured and buildings and cars vandalized as police and mine workers clash near Freeport mine

July 11, 2009: A Freeport worker, who is an Australian citizen, is shot dead by an unidentified gunman.

July 12, 2009: Unidentified gunmen kill a Freeport security officer.

July 13, 2009: A police officer is killed by an unidentified man near a Freeport mine.

After shooting, a call to review Freeport's deal

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Rendi A. Witular and Rangga D. Fadillah, Jakarta – The fatal shooting by police of a local worker of Freeport McMoran during a union protest on Monday will likely exacerbate a long-standing row between the US mining giant and its local stakeholders.

The protest in Timika, Papua, about 70 kilometers from the company's Grasberg gold and copper mine site, erupted amid repeated calls from politicians and officials for the government to renegotiate its contract with Freeport.

The government said the contract, renewed in 1991 and due to expire in 2021, had positioned Indonesia on the losing side.

Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa said the government wanted to revise several sections of the contact, including clauses covering royalties, divestment, the size of the mining concession, a ban on raw material exports, the use of domestic services and the length of the contract period.

Lawmaker Sohibul Iman was pessimistic. "My concern is that the shooting incident may botch efforts to renegotiate the contract instead of accelerating them."

"The incident should be used to force Freeport back to the negotiation table and help resolve problems plaguing the company's relations with local residents," Sohibul, a member of House Commission VII overseeing mining, said on Monday.

Since its inception in 1967, Freeport's assets have lured many, triggering countless incidents of violence between the company's security force and residents.

Freeport's Grasberg mine is the world's largest single reserve of both copper and gold. In the first half of this year, the company paid US$1.4 billion in financial obligations to the government. From 1992 to June 2011, the company paid $12.8 billion to the Indonesian government, according to Freeport.

Freeport McMoran, however, controls a whopping 90.64 percent of PT Freeport Indonesia, while the Indonesian government holds the remaining 9.36 percent stake.

A politician who declined to be named said the disturbances surrounding Freeport's operation were triggered by a "pie that was too big for the company to swallow alone".

"Local politically wired businessmen are trying to get some of the pie. They're after the company's stocks, smelter projects, suppliers and much more."

"It's too early to determine if the shooting was deliberately incited. One thing for sure is that there's always trouble in the area," the politician said.

The shooting occurred following the frequent street protests that broke out after 8,000 workers, comprising around 70 percent of the Grasberg mine's workforce, went on strike for higher wages on Sept. 15.

Indonesia Resources Studies director Marwan Batubara said he regretted that the government was not meditating a dispute in a volatile area such as Papua.

Latest clashes over Freeport mine turn deadly

Jakarta Globe - October 11, 2011

Banjir Ambarita, Farouk Arnaz & Ronna Nirmala, Jayapura – In an escalation of the long-running Freeport mine labor dispute, one man was shot dead on Monday and several more injured after a march of striking workers descended into a clash with police officers.

One worker died from a gunshot while a Mobile Brigade (Brimob) officer was seriously injured after he was mobbed by protestors, workers and police said.

The workers, on strike to demand better working conditions at Freeport McMoRan's Grasberg gold and copper mine in Papua, were marching toward the mine in Tembagapura when Freeport forces, assisted by the police, tried to block their advance, according to a member of the All-Indonesian Workers Trade Union (SPSI) who declined to be identified.

"One of our colleagues, a Freeport worker, was shot dead while three others were wounded and are being treated at Timika hospital," the man said. The source added that the shooting took place at Freeport's Gorong-gorong bus terminal in Timika, where thousands had gathered.

"They wanted to go there to close down Freeport, because up until now, the management has refused to talk," the source said. He said Petir Ayami Seba had died about half an hour after he was admitted to the hospital, suffering from a gunshot wound in the chest.

Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Wachyono said one member of the police's Brimob paramilitary unit, First Bridgadier Jamil, died in hospital after being mobbed by the striking workers. He later corrected his statement, saying that the policeman was only seriously injured.

"His firearm was taken and has not yet been found," Wachyono said. He claimed that police had first fired warning shots. The workers also wounded seven policemen with stones and burned three company vehicles.

SPSI spokesman Juli Parongrongan said that the union did not know why shots were fired as the workers had not provoked the police.

The workers also reportedly attacked two journalists, Tato Sanda from the Cahaya Papua daily and Syahrul from the Radar Timika newspaper, and robbed them of their camera, telephone and motorcycle.

"We regret that there was a security disturbance this morning, on Monday, October 10, at the Gorong-gorong terminal in Timika where the company provides buses for workers' transport," Freeport Indonesia spokesman Ramdani Sirait said.

Ramdani said the mine's management had already accepted mediation by the district and provincial manpower office and had agreed to raise salaries by 25 percent from the previous 22 percent, but the union had refused the offer.

Amnesty urges Indonesia to probe 'deadly force' at mine

Agence France Presse - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – Rights group Amnesty International on Tuesday urged Indonesia to investigate the use of "deadly force" by police who shot dead one protester and injured six others at a mining protest.

Indonesian security forces opened fire Monday on workers striking over wages at a mine run by US company Freeport McMoRan in remote Papua province, Amnesty said in a statement. Mine worker Petrus Ayemseba died after being shot in the buttocks and six others were injured in the shooting, it added.

"This latest incident shows that Indonesian police have not learned how to deal with protesters without resorting to excessive, and even lethal, force," Amnesty's Asia-Pacific Director Sam Zarifi said in a statement.

"The police have a duty to protect themselves and uphold the law, but it is completely unacceptable to fire live ammunition at these protesters," he said. Zarifi called for the Indonesian authorities to launch an "independent and impartial" investigation and make the results public.

Monday's violence was sparked when police tried to stop more than 1,000 workers – who began their strike on September 15 – from entering a facility at the sprawling Grasberg complex, one of the world's biggest gold and copper mines, a union official said.

But PTFI, Freeport's local subsidiary, said the workers had tried to stop other colleagues from returning to work. Police said they had fired warning shots into the air after the workers pelted them with stones, injuring seven police officers.

Production at Grasberg was slashed by 230,000 tonnes a day in the first week of the strike last month, representing daily losses of $6.7 million in government revenue. PTFI is the largest single taxpayer to the Indonesian government.

The mine workers, who are mostly indigenous Melanesians, are demanding that their current minimum wage of $1.50 an hour be raised to $12.50.

People's Liberation Party chronology of Freeport shooting

Tribunnews.com - October 10, 2011

Jakarta – The People's Liberation Party (PPR) reports that a person was shot dead by security forces during a clash with thousands of PT Freeport Indonesia employees at the Gorong-Gorong bus terminal in Timika, West Papua, on the morning of Monday October 10.

In addition to one fatality, nine other people had to be rushed to hospital suffering injuries inflicted by security forces. "The dead victim's name was Petrus Ayamsemba", said PPR national spokesperson Budi Wardoyo when contacted on Monday afternoon.

Budi explained that the incident began on Monday morning when around 8 thousand Freeport workers held a protest action against the company demanding a wage increase from US$1.50 per hour to US$12.50 per hour. Together with the workers' action, residents from seven local tribes also held a protest demanding land rights.

In addition to the wage increase, the Freeport workers were also forced to demonstrate because the company had dispatched new workers to replace the workers that have been on strike since September 15.

The clash however did not erupt when hundreds of police officers blocked and then fired shots to disburse the protesting workers who were attempting to enter PT Freeport.

"The action by 8 thousand workers from the SPSI (All Indonesia Workers Union) heading towards Gorong-Gorong was around 500 metres [away]. Police attempted to disburse the demonstrators but the action continued. And eventually the police fired a shot when one of the Papuan workers and traditional land owner was giving a speech. The shots were fired from a distance of 15 metres for some 20 minutes", said Budi.

It was only after this that it was discovered that Petrus Ayamsemba had collapsed as a result of being shot by security forces.

In addition to the shooting fatality, nine local people and workers are also reported to have suffered gunshot wounds. Of the nine, only the identities of seven are known, namely Leo Wandagau, Alius Komba, Melkias Rumbiak, Yunus Nguluduan, Philiton Kogoya and Ahamad Mustofa.

"Earlier there were four gun shot victims, but now this has increased to nine. I obtained this information from PT Freeport trade union comrades. I'm currently in Jakarta", said Budi.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Indonesian forces fire on striking miners, 1 dead

Jakarta Post - October 10, 2011

Indonesian security forces opened fire on striking workers at Freeport- McMoran's gold and copper mine early Monday, killing one and critically wounding another, a union official said.

Police said it was too early to comment and officials from Freeport, based in the US state of Arizona, were preparing an official statement.

Workers at the Grasberg mine in easternmost Papua province kicked off a strike on Sept. 15, demanding pay increases to $17.50 to $43 an hour from the current $2.10 to $3.50 an hour. About 90 percent of the mine's 12,000 employees are taking part.

Union leader Manuel Maniambo said thousands of striking workers headed to the mine in the mountains by bus and by foot to try stop replacement workers.

When security forces tried to block them, they became angry, throwing rocks and yelling insults, he said. The troops opened fire, killing one worker and leaving another hospitalized in critical condition, said Maniambo.

It's the second strike this year at the Grasberg mine. When workers walked off their jobs for eight days in July – also over low wages and the dismissal of union leaders – the mine suffered production losses of 4 million pounds of copper and 7.5 ounces of gold daily.

That affected the company's revenue by $30 million a day, analysts said, and the same was expected this time around.

Protester killed in Freeport Indonesia mine strike

Reuters - October 10, 2011

Jakarta – A clash between striking workers and police near Freeport Indonesia's copper mine killed one protestor and injured others, complicating a pay dispute that appears far from being resolved.

The demonstration by the miners, over access to their barracks, was the biggest clash at Freeport Indonesia in four year and raised tensions at the company's Grasberg copper mine, the world's second biggest, where production has been disrupted since workers went on strike in mid- September.

Last week, the workers said they would extend their stoppage to mid- November as negotiations between the company and their union over better pay and conditions remained stalled, raising the prospect of more output reductions.

Last month, Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc said it would be unable to meet its third-quarter sales estimates because of the strike at Grasberg. The company also estimated each day of stoppage to impact the production of about 3 million pounds of copper and 5,000 ounces of gold.

Copper prices have so far shrugged off the dispute, weighed down by fears about a drop in metal demand if the global economy weakens, but prices could rise if the strike lingers.

"The news of the conflict at Grasberg is a timely reminder that supply considerations remain a major source of upside price risk," said Citigroup analyst David Thurtell. "If the financial market backdrop settles down, then people will return to the strong fundamentals for copper," he said.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange edged up 0.1 percent to $7,375 a tonne by 0909 GMT, from an early low of $7,274.25.

Disgruntled Grasberg workers protested after being barred from collecting belongings from barracks at Gorong Gorong, where buses take workers to the remote mountain mine.

Police fired warning shots, and one worker later died in hospital from a gunshot wound to the chest, said union official Virgo Solossa. Local police chief Denny Siregar said eight workers were injured, while seven policemen were wounded by miners throwing stones.

Police reinforcements

Mine workers burned four trailers after their colleague was killed, according to local television footage seen by Reuters. "The situation has now cooled down," said Siregar, adding he had now assigned 500-600 police todeal with thousands of workers involved in the demonstration.

Siregar said police had allowed some of the workers to camp outside Gorong Gorong to try and calm the situation.

The gap between worker demands and Freeport over pay still looks wide and talks are currently stalled. The union has lowered its pay rise demand to between $12.50 and $37 an hour from a initial $17.5 to $43 an hour, but has rejected a 25 percent pay increase offer from a current rate of $1.5 to $3 an hour.

The strike, which had been peaceful, has slashed output, processing and ore shipments from Grasberg.

The mine is in Indonesia's easternmost Papua region, where a simmering separatist movement has led to occasional attacks on mine workers and police in recent years.

Freeport, which has used some contractors to work at Grasberg during the strike, said last week it had scaled up mining and milling output and concentrate sales, but declined to comment further on production Monday.

"We are continuing to work with the local police to deal with these acts of intimidation so that our workers located in Timika can exercise their rights to return to work if they so desire," said spokesman Ramdani Sirait.

An eight-day strike at Grasberg in July led the company to suffer a production loss of 35 million lb (15,876 tonnes) of copper and 60,000 ounces of gold. The current two-month strike by unionized workers, about half of Freeport's 23,000 Indonesian workers, is the longest stoppage in Indonesia's mining industry.

Miners in other developing nations have walked out this year to demand better pay as corporate profits surged. Freeport, the world's largest publicly traded copper miner, is also facing a strike at its Corro Verde mine in Peru. Union leaders last week failed to agree on a wage deal that would settle the strike.

Two Papuans arriving to attend congress in Jayapura are arrested

Bintang Papua - October 9, 2011

Jayapura – About two thousand people intending to attend the Third Papuan People's Congress due to open on 16 October have already arrived in Jayapura from other parts of Papua. Some arrived by plane while the majority travelled here by ship. The police have taken measures to guard the roads leading into Jayapura by examining all passengers who arrive aboard the white ships.

All passengers who alight from the ships are subjected to sweepings undertaken by the police. A delegation from Serui was also subject to investigation. Ten people were taken into custody. After being interrogated, eight were released while two were held. The two who were held, Noak Kandipi and Henok Dorri, were found to be in possession of sharp implement in violation of the law.

The chief of police of Papua confirmed these arrests, saying that they were carrying weapons without the necessary permit.

The chairman of the congress organising committee, Selpius Bobii described this as an action of terror against Papuans arriving from outside who were coming to attend the congress.

"Their aim is to warn delegates from other parts of the country against coming to Jayapura to attend the congress." he said speaking at a press conference held at the office of the Dewan Adat Papua. He called on the army and the police not to arrest people and damage the programme of the congress, saying that this was very dangerous indeed. "We call on the police to release the two people immediately," he said. He also called on all Papuans not to be provoked by issues that are being launched to damage harmonious relations with the community.

A member of the monitoring and advocacy team express his deep regrets that emergency laws were being used in a part of the country which was not in a state of emergency. "Moreover," he said, "people coming from the kampungs know absolutely nothing about these laws." He said that the monitoring team would assist the two and said that they did not know whether the two had been designated as suspects.

Human rights & justice

Rights NGOs push government to support UN's new special rapporteur

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Dozens of NGOs grouped under the Coalition for Justice and Revelation of Truth (KKPK) welcomed the recent decision of the United Nations Human Rights Council to establish a mandate for a special rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence of serious crimes and gross violations of human rights.

"We also strongly urge the government to actively support the mandate by promoting the special rapporteur selection which will be held next year, and provide permission for the special rapporteur to visit Indonesia and access to any data and information he or she will require in accomplishing his or her duties," Indria Fernida Alphasonny of the Commission on Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), one of the NGOs, said in a statement on Wednesday.

The NGOs welcomed the resolution as a significant contribution by the Council to establish accountability for serious crimes and human rights violations particularly in Indonesia.

"Indonesia still fails to resolve old human rights cases and yet torture and other forms of rights abuse still occur in some region such as Papua," Indria said. "We strongly hope this special rapporteur will also address those unresolved cases," she added.

Munir allies seek tribunal's help in getting to BIN files

Jakarta Globe - October 11, 2011

Ulma Haryanto – A tribunal on Monday began hearing a request for intelligence documents that the widow of the late human rights defender Munir Said Thalib believes would reveal the mastermind behind the murder of her husband.

Suciwati and the Committee of Action and Solidarity for Munir (Kasum) filed a request to the Public Information Commission (KIP) in May.

The move followed a failure to retrieve a copy of a letter they claimed was issued by the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) assigning Garuda Indonesia pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto to be on the same flight as Munir in September 2004.

Aside from that, they also requested the assignment letter for BIN deputy chairman Muchdi Purwoprandjono to fly to Malaysia on the same day. Kasum alleges that both men had a role in the assassination. Pollycarpus has been convicted for poisoning Munir, but Muchdi has been acquitted of charges that he ordered the murder.

"We sent an official request for both letters to BIN in February. But since we did not receive any response, in accordance with the [Public Information Law], we filed an information dispute at the commission 90 days later," Choirul Anam, a member of Kasum, told the Jakarta Globe.

After deadlocks in three mediation processes between BIN and Suciwati, KIP finally agreed to hold its first tribunal.

"The standing point of the respondent [BIN] during previous mediation meetings is that the documents never existed. However, the petitioner has shown digital forensic evidence that a draft of such letters did exist," said KIP chairman Ahmad Alamsyah Saragih, the presiding judge.

After the hearing, KIP decided to conduct a spot check at BIN's headquarters to test whether the agency's claim was true.

"The technicalities of our inspection cannot be disclosed publicly," Ahmad said. "We will send a classified letter to both parties, the president, BIN's director and the cabinet secretary regarding our investigation."

He said the commission would conduct a "consequence test" to assess whether the requested documents should be classified as state secrets.

As well as presenting evidence and court testimony from past hearings linking Pollycarpus to BIN, Choirul also planned to summon the chairman of the presidential fact-finding team created to investigate the case. "He knows the relationship between Pollycarpus, Muchdi, and BIN," Choirul said.

The request is KIP's first major case involving the highly secretive BIN since it was established last year.

A man representing BIN who did not want to be publicly identified said that the agency never had the requested documents. "They came up with tendentious conclusions," the man said about the claimants.

Political parties & elections

Not much difference between coalition and opposition, PKS says

Jakarta Post - October 14, 2011

Jakarta – The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has suggested that being part of a government coalition and the opposition is much the same, following reports that many of its members have called for the party to pull out of the coalition should one of its ministers fall victim to a Cabinet reshuffle.

"We've had two experiences - one as an opposition and one as a coalition member – and we think that they are more or less the same," PKS secretary-general Anis Matta said on Friday, as quoted by kompas.com.

Anis added that the party refused to get drawn into hypothetical situations, as the reshuffle itself may not even take place. "We are considering many options. There may not even be a reshuffle. As long as there is no inauguration, there is no reshuffle," Anis said.

PKS held a meeting on Friday afternoon at Hotel Sahid Jaya in Jakarta to hear party members' aspirations.

Nasdem party snatches up another media kingpin

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – In an open display of the relationship between media companies and political parties, television czar Hary Tanoesoedibjo announced he would join the new Nasdem Party as his first political vehicle.

His membership improves the political leverage of the party, which is also affiliated with media mogul Surya Paloh, the owner of Media Group, which runs Metro TV and Media Indonesia daily.

Hary, the president and CEO of Media Nusantara Citra (MNC) Group, controls national television channels such as RCTI, Global TV and MNC TV, as well as print media outlets such as Seputar Indonesia daily and High End magazine.

"After six months of talks, we concluded that Pak Hary and the Nasdem Party shared a similar vision and political view for a better Indonesia. The chemistry has been there for months, even before the party's declaration in July," party chairman Patrice Rio Capella told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday. Hary's position in the party remains undetermined.

As a cofounder of the Nasdem-affiliated National Democrat mass organization, Surya has been one of the party's active patrons.

Metro TV, the first news channel in the country, has started airing the party's advertisements. With Hary on board, Nasdem's promotional spots have also appeared on the MNC-linked stations.

Patrice admitted that Hary's financial resources and vast media network would benefit the party's bid in the upcoming 2014 elections. "But that is not the main thing... The most important thing is that he is a young and prominent figure who has similar political aspirations to ours," he said.

Patrice declined to say how much Hary had spent or had pledged to spend to help finance the party. "Our party's funds come from donations from our members and supporters, including Pak Hary," Patrice said.

Established in July and still in the verification process, Nasdem is not the only party with strong ties to television stations. Another leading news TV channel, TV One, is partly owned by the family of Golkar Party chairman Aburizal "Ical" Bakrie.

Major parties have downplayed the idea that Hary's membership would improve Nasdem's performance at the polls. "It's a small [issue]," Ical said.

Golkar executive Priyo Budi Santoso warned Hary that the country's political situation was "dynamic and difficult, full of waves, challenges and surprises". "One day you can jump into space like a rocket, but within seconds you can plummet back to the ground afterwards," he added.

Lawmaker Ramadhan Pohan, of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party, also said Hary's presence in Nasdem would not affect his party's stance ahead of the 2014 elections.

"Welcome to the jungle," he said. "It is everybody's political right to join any political party he or she likes."

Ramadhan, himself a former chief editor of the Jurnal Nasional daily, warned Hary not to "overly politicize" the media, which could threaten press freedom.

Court allows PKS founder to sue party officials

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Jakarta – A panel of judges at South Jakarta District Court has ruled in favor of Jusuf Supendi, one of the founders of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), who filed a civil lawsuit against the party's top brass over his alleged unfair dismissal.

"The court allows the plaintiff to continue to sue the party officials because his reasons for suing them are seen as legitimate," presiding judge Subyantoro said Tuesday as quoted by tribunnews.com.

Earlier, Jusuf requested compensation – to the tune of Rp 42.7 billion – from 10 of the party's top officials for what he said was his unfair dismissal from the party several months ago.

Jusuf said the dismissal had caused his wife to suffer from high blood pressure and he also lost many preaching requests because many people had perceived his dismissal from the party as problematic. Because of his dismissal, Jusuf also lost his seat at the House of Representatives.

"The unfair dismissal has caused both material and immaterial damages to me and therefore I demand fair compensation to restore both my life and dignity," he said.

Jusuf is requesting compensation from, among others, Tifatul Sembiring, Anis Matta, Fachri Hamzah, Hilmy Aminudin, Lutfi Hasan Ishaq and Salim Segaf al Jufri.

National Police 'politicize' election fraud cases

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Which one tells lies, the Attorney General's Office (AGO) or the police?

While the AGO publicly announced on Monday that General Elections Commission (KPU) chief Abdul Hafiz Anshary had been declared a suspect in election document falsification, the police continue to deny that he is a suspect.

Deputy Attorney General Darmono said on Monday that Abdul had been named a suspect and charged with falsifying a letter verifying the results of the 2009 legislative election for the constituency of West Halmahera, North Maluku.

"We have accepted the SPDP [notification of the commencement of an investigation] on the case and the KPU chief's name is listed as a suspect," he told reporters while showing a copy of the SPDP to the anxious press.

On Tuesday, National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo and chief detective Comr. Gen. Sutarman separately denied the AGO's claim that Abdul had been named a suspect. "The police haven't named anyone a suspect in this case yet. We are still working on it," Sutarman said.

When asked why the police had denied Darmono's statement on Abdul's status, AGO spokesman Noor Rachmad said, "Pak Darmono is not lying. His statement was not baseless."

Abdul also held a media conference to deny media headlines reporting that he was a suspect of election fraud. "Pak Darmono might have been misinformed. I believe the police are professional in doing their job," he told the press.

Neta S. Pane of the Indonesia Police Watch said he suspected that the police had named Abdul a suspect long ago but had not wanted to make the information public.

"I believe the police have been hiding the fact that Abdul has been named a suspect for hidden reasons; most likely because of political interference [from certain parties]," Neta told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

"A SPDP always carries the name of at least one suspect. It is peculiar that the police keep denying that Abdul is a suspect, but admit they sent the SPDP to the AGO," he added.

The election fraud case is just one of dozens of incidences of alleged fraud in the 2009 elections, which saw Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party become the majority party at the House of Representatives.

The House has formed a working committee on election fraud to probe the cases. At the center of all the election cases are the police, which under the law have the authority to investigate the cases.

However, antigraft activists have questioned the police's impartiality after a series of decisions that were perceived as biased. One of the fraud case has attracted widespread public attention and involves former KPU member Andi Nurpati.

She has been accused of involvement in forging a Constitutional Court (MK) document to help legislative candidate Dewi Yasin Limpo win a legislative seat for the South Sulawesi constituency.

Dewi, however, eventually lost the seat after the forgery was uncovered by Constitutional Court justices, who then informed the KPU to annul Dewi's so-called victory.

The case become highly charged after Andi suddenly announced that she had been recruited as a Democratic Party executive only months after the 2009 elections. The announcement triggered speculation that her new position in the party was a form of "compensation" for her efforts in the KPU in favoring the now ruling party.

The probe by the House committee concluded that it was highly likely that Andi was involved in forging the document, but the police have yet to name Andi a suspect, repeatedly claiming that there is insufficient evidence to charge the politician.

Irregularities in the police investigation into Abdul' case appears to have increased skepticism among a public already cynical about the police's "reluctance" to charge Andi.

Since 2009, the police's credibility in investigating election-related cases has been repeatedly questioned.

In April 2009, for example, Insp. Gen. Herman Surjadi Sumawiredja, then East Java Police chief, was suddenly replaced by Insp. Gen. Anton Bachrul Alam after the former declared East Java Elections Commission chief a suspect in a fraud case involving the province's gubernatorial election.

The election saw Soekarwo, supported by the Democratic Party, being elected. After Herman's replacement, the case against the East Java Elections Commission chief was dropped. (msa)

National Police admit mistake in KPU chief 'suspect' status

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

The naming of the KPU chief and his fellows as suspects on charges of alleged forgery connected to the West Halmahera election was an administrative error, the National Police says.

"The [National Police] administration mis-typed the word suspect in a letter we sent to the Attorney General's Office. The [administration] should have changed the subject of the letter before sending it," National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. I Ketut Untung Yoga said Wednesday. Ketut added that the administrative office had only one format for letters.

KPU chief Abdul Hafiz Anshary and his fellow commissioners had not been named suspects in the election fraud case, he affirmed. "A letter we issued on the commencement of an investigation doesn't confirm that someone is a suspect," Ketut Untung said. (msa)

PKS are 'trouble makers', says Dems official

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has proven itself to be a party of trouble makers by threatening to disclose a political contract it signed with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono before joining the government coalition, says a Democratic Party official.

PKS secretary-general Anis Matta recently said that the party would reveal clauses of the contract if the President replaced PKS ministers in an upcoming reshuffle of the presidential Cabinet.

"The PKS has violated statehood norms; reshuffling the Cabinet is the President's prerogative. The threat impedes the President's work for the people," Democratic Party deputy chairman Pasek Suardika said Tuesday in Jakarta.

He said this was not the first time the PKS had caused problems in the coalition, adding that it had been more troublesome than the other coalition members.

"We're annoyed. The PKS needs to learn how to communicate; and how [to differentiate] between coalition members and opponents. It shouldn't wear a coalition costume if on the inside it is the opposition," Pasek said, as quoted by Antara news agency.

He added that Yudhoyono was currently appraising the PKS ministers' "grade point average", and that the PKS had made the threat because it worried about its ministers' performances.

KPU chief named suspect in poll fraud

Jakarta Post - October 10, 2011

In another blow to the credibility of the General Elections Commission, the AGO announced on Monday that KPU chief Abdul Hafiz Anshary was named a suspect in a forgery case in August.

Attorney General's Office (AGO) spokesman Nurrokhmat told The Jakarta Post on Monday that the AGO received a letter from the National Police on August 15 that named Abdul a suspect in the case.

Abdul and fellow KPU commissioners I Gede Putu Artha, Endang Sulastri, Syamsul Bahri and Abdul Aziz were accused of falsifying a letter verifying the results of the 2009 legislative election for the constituency of West Halmahera, North Maluku.

Muhammad Syukur Mandar, a candidate for the seat from the People's Conscience Partry (Hanura), previously told the House of Representatives working committee on election fraud that Abdul and his fellow KPU members gave false information to the Constitutional Court on a dispute over the final results of the legislative election in the constituency.

Abdul's phone was apparently inactive and he did not respond to calls or messages requesting comment sent by the Post on Monday.

News that Abdul had been named a suspect in an election-related fraud case came as a surprise, as the police have declined to name another KPU member, Andi Nurpati, a suspect in a high-profile forgery case pertaining another legislative election dispute in South Sulawesi.

Democrats propose shrinking electoral districts

Jakarta Post - October 10, 2011

Jakarta – The ruling Democratic Party has proposed that electoral constituents be shrunk and allocated fewer legislative seats so as to decrease the number of under-performing lawmakers in the House of Representatives.

During a discussion on the election law, the party's deputy secretary- general, Saan Mustopa, said it was important to reduce the number of electoral districts because there was a general lack of accountability among lawmakers in the House.

"[The Democratic Party] recommends that in the election bill we set the range for the number of seats allocated to polling regions to three to eight," Saan said in a discussion on Sunday.

He said that his party felt that the change would be a natural progression of the trend of reducing legislative seats since the 2004 election. In 2004, polling regions were allocated three to 12 seats, which was then changed in 2009 to three to 10 seats.

Saan said that legislators had a "representative function", which meant that they had the potential to establish emotional bonds with their constituency, which in turn meant that they were accountable for them.

He said that currently, legislators did not know their own constituencies, showed little accountability and therefore lacked responsibility.

"Many legislators never visit their constituents, not even during [House] recess," Saan, who is also a member of the Special Committee for the election bill, said Sunday.

He said legislators were reluctant to visit their polling regions because the polling regions were too large.

He added that legislators faced overwhelming challenges in maintaining their accountability, citing East Kalimantan, where several electoral districts represented eight regencies each.

"I myself represent three districts in Karawang, West Java. Just with these three districts I am already overwhelmed," Saan said. He said that reducing the size of polling regions would make it easier for lawmakers to represent their constituencies.

In the 2009 general elections, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's party won 20 percent of the total 104 million votes cast. In 2009, some electoral districts represented entire provinces each.

National Mandate Party faction deputy chairman Viva Yoga Mauladi said it was reasonable for some electoral districts to cover large territories. "The population density in remote areas especially outside of Java is different from Java," Viva said.

Unity Development Party deputy secretary-general Muhammad Arwani Thomafi said it was not necessary to shrink polling regions.

"Political parties should choose their legislative candidates long before election time. This would give them [the legislative candidates] more time to get to know their polling regions, and thus decrease the number of 'political adventurers' or opportunists," Arwani said.

Center for Electoral Reform senior researcher Refly Harun told The Jakarta Post that shrinking polling regions would benefit the big political parties and handicap the smaller ones. "Small parties usually get seats only if there are more than five seats in a polling region," he said.

He suggested introducing a 'mixed proportional election system', by which only one legislative seat would be assigned to each electoral district. "Based on our concept [the mixed proportional system] about 280 legislators seats would be won through polling regions," Refly said.

He said that the remaining 260 House seats would be allocated based on a provincial-based closed proportional election. (rpt)

Labour & migrant workers

Workers threaten to pull funds from Jamsostek over insurance bill

Jakarta Post - October 15, 2011

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – A group of workers has opposed the bill on social security and insurance that mandates the merger of the existing four social security providers, saying they would remove their funds from state-owned PT Jamsostek if the bill became a law.

Leaders of three labor union confederations and 18 federations said in a joint press conference in Jakarta on Friday that almost 10 million workers registered with Jamsostek would take their retirement (JHT) funds totaling Rp 10.5 trillion (US$1.19 billion), if the House and government agreed to transform Jamsostek, PT Askes, PT Taspen and PT Asabri into the what the bill says are short-term and long-term social security providers.

"Workers have the right to take their JHT funds because they are kept in personal accounts in Jamsostek and the government and the House must be held responsible for any economic disturbances triggered by the rush," Federation of Indonesian Workers Union (FSPN) chairman Bambang Wirahyoso said.

He said that if the bill was endorsed, the FSPN would bring it to the Constitutional Court for review.

Bambang, accompanied by other labor union confederation and federation figures, warned that the country would face economic turbulence if workers withdrew their JHT funds, which by and large have been invested in bonds and capital markets.

Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) chairman Sofjan Wanandi also warned the government and the House about deliberating the contentious bill, saying that employers would no longer pay their fees to Jamsostek if workers quit Jamsostek, which would create political chaos.

"The government and the House should be cautious and should listen to all stakeholders' aspirations in the bill deliberations. The wrong decision could have serious impacts," he said.

Sofjan and the unionists voiced disappointment that they had never been asked for input on the bill.

Saut Pangaribuan of the Confederation of the Indonesian Prosperous Labor Union (KSBSI) and Muhammad Satya of the Confederation of All-Indonesian Workers Union (KSPSI) said hundreds of thousands of workers would take to the streets on Java on Oct. 18 and stage rallies to demand that the government and the House drop the bill.

The House and the government, represented by eight ministers led by Finance Minister Agus Martowardodjo, have agreed to shift PT Askes to run the healthcare program, and Rp 2.5 trillion would be allocated in the 2013 budget to prepare infrastructure for the scheme so it could be launched in 2014.

Both sides have also agreed to turn Jamsostek into a second provider that would account for occupational accidents, death, elderly care and pension benefits in 2017 throughout 2020. The government has proposed that employers and employees contribute 15 percent to the five mandatory programs, of which eight percent would come from employers and seven percent from workers, while the poor and the jobless would be covered by the state budget.

Another faction of workers from the labor union confederations and federations have stood behind the House committee preparing the bill and planned a counter demonstration for Oct. 21 to demand the bill's immediate endorsement. The contra labor unions accused the House and the government of discrimination because the government would cover only the poor and the jobless, while workers, including those in the informal sector, were required to pay contributions.

"The national social security system is not only social insurance but also social security to which the state has to pay contribution in its task to protect all citizens, as it is mandated by the Amended 1945 Constitution," Bambang said.

Low quality jobs trap Indonesian workers

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Elly Burhaini Faizal – Quality education is the key to improving productivity during this era of high under-employment in the country, an ILO report says.

Per Ronnas, Geneva-based ILO's senior employment and development specialist, said recently that Indonesia had to develop skills faster than it had been to make sure that it did not fall behind other economies.

"Indonesia has to focus more on quality education and technology for high quality workers so that it can move up the development scale," he said on the sidelines of a discussion on local labor productivity.

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) recorded a decrease in the unemployment rate over the past four years, reaching 7.1 percent in 2010. The rate stood at 10.3 percent in 2006.

In the same period, the poverty rate decreased to 13.3 percent from 17.8 percent in 2006. Underemployment, however, remained high, reaching 59 percent in 2010.

Low quality jobs typically pay workers low salaries. In 2009, more than 40 percent of workers received monthly salaries below the regional minimum wage (UMR).

An Employment diagnostic analysis (EDA) study by the ILO recently revealed that lack of education remained the biggest obstacle for people in getting decent jobs.

Conducted in three municipalities in the first semester of this year, the study also highlighted poorly developed markets and infrastructure as major obstacles to productivity.

Ronnas said that high-quality jobs were the main link between economic growth and better welfare. "We have to focus on productive employment. Only through these kinds of jobs can most people escape from poverty and increase their welfare," he said.

In Ambon, Maluku, for example, there is concern about the quality of education, as the illiteracy rate is below the national average.

Maluku Manpower and Transmigration Agency official John Maakewe said that the availability of quality and relevant education in the province was not really as high as it should be to address the demand for a labor market economy.

He said that both the government and the private sector had not developed any tourism colleges in Maluku despite that the tourism-sector has been promoted as one of the region's major industries in an effort to boost revenue.

"As a result, our tourism sector tends to employ workers from outside the province, such as Makassar, Bali and Java, leaving local youths unemployed," John said.

Janti Gunawan, the National Planning Agency's (Bappenas) youth employment consultant, said that the result of this inefficiency was that many people living in the three pilot provinces did not have productive job opportunities in spite of the province's resources.

"Creating more and better jobs is critical to our people's prosperity," said Ceppie K.Sumadilaga, Bappenas' deputy minister for poverty, manpower and small and medium enterprises.

Environment & natural disasters

Indonesia back to old suppression way: Greenpeace

Jakarta Post - October 16, 2011

Jakarta – Environmental group Greenpeace accuses the Indonesian authorities of trying to suppress freedom of speech with its recent barring of Greenpeace UK executive director John Sauven from entering Indonesia.

"The rejection is part of a scheme to systematically suppress Greenpeace. The ban is a sign of [the Indonesian government's] return to the old way used by the Soeharto regime to suppress civilians," Greenpeace Indonesia spokesman Adi Harnowo said in Jakarta on Sunday.

Adi said Greenpeace had been a target of attacks since the group had begun campaigns against forest destruction allegedly committed by Asia Pulp and Paper, a subsidiary of Indonesia's Sinar Mas Group. The attacks have been targeted to exile Greenpeace from Indonesia, he added.

Suave arrived at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Thursday, to attend a forest conference and visit Sumatran forests, among other things.

Indonesia's immigration office, however, denied him an entry despite a business visa he had secured from the Indonesian Embassy in London. Greenpeace said there had been no explanation from the immigration office as to why it barred Suave from entering, tempointeraktif.com reported.

Reason Greenpeace exec denied entry a 'state secret,' Indonesia says

Jakarta Globe - October 15, 2011

Rizky Amelia – John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK, was denied entry to Indonesia because he would "threaten the stability of the country," the immigration office has said.

"There was the possibility that [Sauven] would bring instability and disorder here," immigration spokesman Herawan Sukoaji said on Friday. When pressed for further details he declined to comment, saying that it was a "state secret."

He also declined to comment on whether, as has been suggested, the private sector had anything to do with the ban. The state, he said, had the right to prevent entry to any non-Indonesian.

Sauven was turned back by immigration officials at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Thursday afternoon. Sauven said in a written statement to the Jakarta Globe that in his more than 20 years working for Greenpeace, it was the first time he had been refused entry to a country.

"I had the correct visa, issued from the Indonesian Embassy in London, but apparently that doesn't count for very much when fighting against companies who have powerful connections in Government. At immigration I was informed I am on a "red list," banned from the country. No official explanation was provided," he said.

He said that during his visit, he had planned to meet with several government officials, the British ambassador, one of Indonesia's largest palm oil producers and visit an area deforested by a pulp and paper company in Sumatra.

Sauven denied that he had previously been refused entry to the country to attend a conference on deforestation where President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono pledged to prioritize rainforest protection for the rest of his presidency.

Sauven said: "What sort of message does it send to the world about Indonesia when representatives from an environmental group working peacefully in support of the President's stated commitments to stop deforestation are banned from the country, whilst the companies undermining those commitments in Indonesia continue business as usual?"

Greenpeace slams Indonesia after deportation

Agence France Presse - October 14, 2011

Greenpeace on Friday accused Indonesia of waging a vendetta against the environmental group, after the head of its British branch was denied entry to Jakarta to campaign against deforestation.

Greenpeace UK director John Sauven was blocked by immigration officials on arrival at Jakarta international airport on Thursday evening and was sent back that night to Britain.

"Parts of the government want to attack Greenpeace," the environmental group's Indonesia forestry campaigner Bustar Maitar said. "It's obvious that some government officials are involved," he added.

In recent years, Greenpeace has run several campaigns against Indonesia- based Sinar Mas, a privately owned paper and palm oil giant which environmental groups accuse of illegally logging swathes of carbon-rich and biodiverse forests.

Greenpeace campaigns have seen the likes of Unilever, Kraft, Burger King and Barbie maker Mattel cut supply chains from Sinar Mas companies, including Asia Pulp & Paper, one of the world's largest paper makers.

"Immigration never gave us any official notification that Sauven's visa had been rejected. We are still trying to find out why he was deported," Maitar said.

The Human Rights and Justice Ministry did not respond immediately to requests for comment. But a spokesman told the Financial Times that Sauven was deported for portraying Indonesia "in a negative light through bad campaigns."

Several Greenpeace activists and journalists were deported in 2009 as the environmental group campaigned on Sumatra's Kampar Peninsula, where private paper company APRIL has allegedly been destroying carbon-rich peatland.

Greenpeace's campaign ship the Rainbow Warrior was denied entry into Indonesia in 2010.

Greenpeace says its campaigns support President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's pledge to cut Indonesia's carbon emissions by up to 41 percent by 2020, largely through reducing deforestation.

Deforestation in Indonesia is among the fastest in the world and accounts for up to 80 percent of the country's carbon emissions, according to Indonesia's National Council on Climate Change.

Support for thuggery against Greenpeace worrying

Straits Times - October 14, 2011

Bruce Gale – On July 15 this year, when members of the thuggish Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) staged a rally outside the headquarters of environmental group Greenpeace in Kemang, South Jakarta, Greenpeace staff invited several of the group's leaders into the building for a chat.

The FBR claims to represent the interests of the Orang Betawi, Jakarta's original inhabitants. However, since its establishment in 2002, the group has been widely believed to have developed strong links to organized crime, particularly protection rackets. Critics also accuse FBR leaders of maintaining close ties to local politicians who rely on thuggery to manage their constituencies.

Emerging from the Greenpeace office some time later, FBR spokesmen told waiting journalists that they were there to protest against the negative reports Greenpeace had allegedly published about Indonesia. They also threatened to close Greenpeace down, accusing the organization of being an illegal body because it had not registered with the Jakarta city government.

When I met Greenpeace's Indonesia representative, Nur Hidayati, in Jakarta in early August, she told me that the FBR leaders were polite but not very well informed. Somewhat surprisingly, the FBR had advised the police of their intentions and the latter had turned up outside the Greenpeace headquarters as well. "I got the impression that they (the FBR leaders) actually didn't want to create a serious incident," she said.

One Greenpeace activist, who was also present at the meeting, later commented that he believed the FBR was just going through the motions after concluding a deal with other parties. Political organizers are known to hire thugs to take part in local rallies.

Since then, various politicians have weighed in on the issue, with some accusing the environmental group of pursuing the economic interests of foreign entities. Golkar politician Prya Ramadhani, widely regarded as a possible candidate for governor or deputy governor in Jakarta's upcoming gubernatorial elections, has recently joined the anti-Greenpeace campaign.

The influential Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has also urged the government to outlaw the environmental organization, alleging that the group's operations have been funded by money from gambling operations in the Netherlands.

Greenpeace denies this, saying that the bulk of the organization's funds come from Indonesian individuals, many of whom donate regularly. Currently, the Indonesian branch has a membership of more than 30,000. Greenpeace does not accept donations from companies.

Attacks on non-governmental organizations (NGOs), particularly environmental and human rights groups, at the behest of vested interests are not new in Indonesia. But this may well be the first time that so many prominent organizations and individuals have expressed tacit approval of the harassment. The development is worrying and suggests that Indonesia may be entering a new and more dangerous political phase.

Greenpeace's activities in Indonesia began in the mid-1990s. Operating from its main office in Thailand, the organization cooperated with local activists to campaign successfully against the dumping of hazardous waste in Indonesia by European companies.

Greenpeace set up its Jakarta office in 2006 with permission from the ministry of law and human rights. Almost immediately, it began campaigning on a wide range of issues, including nuclear power, climate change, renewable energy and forestry.

One of the most successful campaigns was a 2009 drive to force Singapore- listed Golden Agri Resources, a subsidiary of the Sinar Mas Group, to adopt environmentally friendly practices on its vast palm oil plantations.

According to Ms Hidayati, the coordinated attacks on Greenpeace came only after the group turned its attention to deforestation late last year.

Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), another Sinar Mas subsidiary, has been a particular target. Last November, Greenpeace activists hijacked an awards ceremony in Brussels to present "The Golden Chainsaw Award" to the paper manufacturer. And in April this year, a group of Greenpeace supporters dressed in orang-utan outfits harassed staff at a Sydney conference held by APP affiliate Solaris.

APP has consistently denied any involvement in the attempt to intimidate Greenpeace. Hidayati sees the FBR campaign as a mere distraction. "We don't want to be trapped in a horizontal conflict with them," she told me.

Even so, the organization is taking the threat seriously. Greenpeace now employs guards to provide 24-hour security. Unusual among NGO offices in Indonesia, the main entrance is now protected by a strong door with a combination lock. Other possible entrances, however, are not so well secured. "They could still get in if they really wanted to," she admitted.

Such is the price of environmental advocacy in Indonesia.

NGOs clash over waste management rights in Cikarang

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – Members of two NGOs were involved in a clash on Wednesday, after negotiations failed in a demonstration over waste management rights for factories in Cikarang.

Police arrested three people who allegedly started the fight and confiscated ten machetes from those involved.

Bekasi Police chief Sr. Comr. Wahyu Hadiningrat said the fight started in a demonstration organized by an NGO called the Poor People's Movement. During the rally, the demonstrators demanded a cut from the factories' waste management contracts.

However, another group from a coalition of mass organizations and other NGOs confronted the demonstrators and insisted that the rights to these contracts were already being jointly managed by the factories and local residents and would not be surrendered.

"Tensions grew uncontrollable and after several minutes of heated debate the opposing sides started to fight each other," Wahyu said Wednesday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

Papua's forests next on the chopping block: Greenpeace

Jakarta Globe - October 10, 2011

Jayapura – With the forests in Sumatra and Kalimantan continually shrinking, Papua's timber fields now face a grave threat, a Greenpeace campaigner for the far-flung eastern province said on Monday.

"Almost nine million hectares of forests in Papua have been identified by the government as expendable in the interest of development of large scale industries," Ricarth Tawaru said.

Ricarth said that land takeovers and clear cutting continued to take place for the development of palm oil plantations, timber estates and mining operations. "These activities pose a serious threat to Papua's forests," he said.

Papua was losing an average of 300,000 acres of forest every year, he added. "Experience in various other regions shows that the changing of forest areas into palm oil plantations and timber estates has created serious social problems, including environmental problems," Ricarth said.

He said that Papua's forests were not only important for the ecosystem but also important as a source of inspiration. Gradually destroying Papua forests was equal to destroying the sources of the Papuan people's cultural inspirations.

"We are concerned about the government's plan to clear Papuan forests as it could separate the local people from their natural resources. We believe that the Papuan people have noble values to protect their forests and are able to cultivate them for their own future," he said.

Health & education

Government says religious beliefs hinder vaccination in East Java

Jakarta Post - October 15, 2011

Elly Burhaini Faizal, Jakarta – The government has blamed parents' reluctance to get their children vaccinated for the recent diphtheria outbreak in East Java, with many religious communities in the province still questioning whether the anti diphtheritic vaccine is halal, or allowed according to Islam.

Edi Purwinarto, assistant for people's welfare affairs at the East Java provincial administration, said on Friday that local communities living in some small areas in the province were still somewhat reluctant to give their newborns a complete basic vaccination.

"Some parents resist getting their children vaccinated due to a number of reasons. Some of them are just worried that vaccination will hurt their children or cause a fever but in some areas people worry that the vaccines are not halal," Edi told The Jakarta Post.

East Java Governor Soekarwo declared an extraordinary situation (KLB) on Sunday for diphtheria in all parts of the province. The provincial administration said that as of Oct. 14, diphtheria incidents had reached 352 cases with 11 deaths, not 328 deaths as reported earlier by several media outlets.

Diphtheria is a deadly upper respiratory-tract illness caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, it can be prevented by administering DPT vaccination to newborns.

Mass diphtheria vaccination is being carried out in several outbreak regions, especially in 11 regencies and municipalities; Bangkalan, Banyuwangi, Blitar, Gresik, Mojokerto, Pamekasan, Pasuruan, Sampang, Sidoarjo, Sumenep and Surabaya.

Together with religious leaders, Edi said, the local government was working to change existing perceptions and attitudes toward vaccines. "It's not easy to overcome parental resistance to immunization since it is closely related to religious perceptions. Therefore, we work with religious organizations to teach parents about the importance of getting their children vaccinated," said Edi mentioning Muslimat NU and Aisyiyah of Muhammadiyah as the government's counterparts in the dialog. The local administration has allocated additional funds of Rp 8 billion (US$896,000) to combat the disease.

To cope with the disease, Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih said the government would not only intensify the routine immunization program but also allocate funds of about Rp 13 billion (US$1.47 million) to tackle the outbreak. The funds would be used both to buy anti diphtheritic serum (ADS) and medicines, as well as conducting surveillance.

"With failures in delivering routine vaccination programs, we may still have areas in which many children have incomplete vaccinations or have never even been immunized. Such conditions will place a heavier burden on public health," she told journalists.

Andi Muhadir, director of surveillance, immunization and quarantine at the ministry, said that the government had delivered vaccines and contact management to combat the diphtheria outbreak. "We are providing erythromicyn to the diphtheria victims and carrying out lab tests to identify carriers of the disease to prevent them becoming sources of infection," he told the Post.

An expanded outbreak response would also be held in East Java to combat the disease since it had spread to 34 regencies and municipalities, he added.

Indonesia at bottom of clean toilet rankings in Asia

Antara News - October 14, 2011

Brace yourselves, germaphobes: Indonesia's toilets are some of the dirtiest in Asia, according to the non-governmental World Toilet Organization.

The organization placed Indonesia at twelfth among the 18 Asian countries judged to have the filthiest toilets.

"We have worse toilets compared with other [Asian] countries," said Naning Adiwoso, founder of the Indonesian Toilet Association (ATI). "Though the rank is better than Vietnam, we're below the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand."

Naning said that the rankings were determined by the WTO based the number of germs found on toilets randomly tested in each country.

As many as 80 million germs could be found living on a single toilet, Naning said, and those germs could lead to infectious diseases such as typhoid.

She also stressed that merely flushing a toilet would not eliminate the germs living on it, and that regular cleaning and sanitation and was required.

"Education in the family has a main role, because there are those who consider toilets as less important, so they are defecating or urinating at the river or [engaging in] open defecation," she said.

She said that with Indonesia's highly mobile population, the country desperately needed an increase in the number of public toilets available.

ATI was established 10 years ago with the aim of educating Indonesians about the need for more hygienic and sustainable toilet practices. The organization will be planning events as part of the upcoming World Toilet Day observed on Nov. 19.

Graft & corruption

Antigraft judges on the spot after acquittal of Bekasi mayor

Jakarta Globe - October 14, 2011

Agus Triyono & Rizky Amelia – The Anti-Corruption Court judges who controversially acquitted the suspended Bekasi mayor of graft charges are being investigated for possible ethical violations in the case, the Supreme Court revealed on Friday.

Hatta Ali, the deputy for supervision at the country's highest court, said the three judges – Azharyadi Pria Kusuma, Eka Suharta Winata Laksana and Ramlan Comel – were facing a probe and their ruling was also being evaluated to check for indications of wrongdoing.

The panel, serving at the Anti-Corruption Court in Bandung, ruled on Tuesday that Mochtar Mohammad was not guilty on four counts of embezzlement and bribery, in the process handing prosecutors from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) their first-ever court loss.

In the wake of the verdict, there have been calls for a thorough investigation of the judges, in particular Ramlan. He was convicted of corruption in 2005 by the Pekanbaru District Court in Riau, and sentenced to two years in jail and fined Rp 100 million ($11,000). But the Riau High Court acquitted him the next year.

Hatta said the Supreme Court investigation was looking into whether any of the judges met Mochtar or his representatives outside the court, which would constitute an ethical violation.

"So far we haven't been able to conclude whether there were any such violations," he said. "We'll have to wait for the full results of the investigation."

Also on Friday, Busyro Muqoddas, the KPK chairman, called on the Supreme Court to enlist the help of academics when appointing judges to the Anti- Corruption Courts, to prevent those with poor track records serving on the bench.

"It's time for the Supreme Court to join hands with the academic community and the Judicial Commission in vetting future appointees more vigorously," he said.

He also said the Bandung case highlighted the importance of compiling a database of the country's judges, so that any past indiscretions or convictions would be immediately apparent.

Busyro said it was crucial that any judge serving in an Anti-Corruption Court be of impeccable integrity. "If a judge doesn't have integrity, this is the kind of mess we end up with," he said.

Hatta conceded that the Supreme Court had been unaware of Ramlan's conviction when it appointed him. "During the selection of ad hoc judges for the court, he failed to mention that he had previously been implicated in corruption," he said.

In 2006, however, the Supreme Court upheld Ramlan's acquittal, indicating it must have been aware of his track record.

While the Mochtar case is the first that the KPK has lost, it marks the 26th acquittal handed down by Anti-Corruption Courts across the country in the nine years they have operated. The 25 other cases were prosecuted by the Attorney General's Office.

The Bandung Anti-Corruption Court has come under particular scrutiny following Tuesday's verdict, having previously acquitted three other high- ranking regional officials.

Golkar says changes to anti-graft body on way

Jakarta Globe - October 14, 2011

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The House of Representatives is fed up with the antigraft agency and is just waiting for public approval before introducing sweeping reforms to the body, a legislator said on Friday.

Bambang Soesatyo, from House Commission III, which oversees legal affairs, said substantial revisions to the statutes governing the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) were urgently needed in order to make it perform better and exhibit greater independence.

"The desire to amend the 2002 KPK Law arises from the KPK's work, which has fallen short of expectations," he said. "Lots of major cases like the Bank Century scandal remain unresolved, so we hope that the planned amendment is welcomed [by the public] because its aim is to help the KPK recover."

Bambang cited the decision by the Bandung Anti-Corruption Court on Tuesday to acquit a graft suspect as a clear indication that the KPK needed to be reformed. Prior to this case, KPK prosecutors had enjoyed a 100 percent conviction rate in trials at anti-corruption courts.

"This loss should prompt some introspection. Perhaps it's time that the KPK made public the track records of its investigators, directors and other top officials. What's really going on in there?" he said.

The remarks from the outspoken Golkar Party legislator are just the latest salvo in a long-running campaign of criticism by the House aimed at the antigraft body.

Last week, Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) legislator Fahri Hamzah urged the government to disband the KPK, accusing it of being a "superbody." He also accused it of attempting to "demolish" the House and of "seeking fame," adding that antigraft officials were overpaid.

However, Bambang denied that the House was engaged in a vendetta with the KPK, which has over the years arrested and jailed a long succession of legislators on various graft charges.

He said that in spite of its apparent focus on legislators, the House always gave the KPK priority in funding and had even increased its funding every year.

He added the House had allocated Rp 575 billion ($65 million) for the agency this year, up from Rp 398 billion last year, and planned to give it Rp 635 billion in 2012. This year, Rp 170 billion is for investigating and prosecuting cases.

However, the Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (Fitra) said earlier this week that funding for the KPK's anti-corruption efforts in 2011 only amounted to Rp 19 billion, down from Rp 26 billion in 2010.

Bambang said the KPK was not using its funding as efficiently as the police or the Attorney General's Office.

"Of the 50 cases that the KPK investigated in 2010, only nine went to trial," he said. "The police investigated 43 cases and sent 15 to trial, while the AGO investigated 66 and tried 28. This means the KPK needs to work harder."

Lack of quality judges hampers nation's fight against corruption

Jakarta Post - October 14, 2011

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Judges with questionable track records are threatening the nation's fight against corruption in the regions, a problem that the Supreme Court admits is difficult to address in the short term.

Concerns about the quality of judges in the regions were raised following the controversial exoneration of Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Mohamad on Tuesday by the Bandung Corruption Court.

The mayor became the first graft suspect to win in court against prosecutors from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), which has a 100 percent success rate in Jakarta's court.

Many questioned the verdict, as one of the judges, Ramlan Comel, was a former lawyer and businessman who was sentenced to two years in jail for graft before his own acquittal at an appellate court.

Hatta Ali, a Supreme Court justice tasked with internal monitoring of the judiciary, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday that he did not know that Ramlan was a former graft defendant. The reason for the oversight, he said, was that the court was given very little time to establish local corruption tribunals in the 33 provinces as mandated by the 2009 Corruption Court Law.

The House of Representatives enacted the law as mandated by a 2006 Constitutional Court ruling that declared the then sole Corruption Court in Jakarta unconstitutional because it created a double standard in the way the country handled corruption cases. The court, which then only tried cases handled by the KPK, has not acquitted a defendant since it was established in 2003 by the 2002 KPK Law.

The law stipulates that each province have an ad hoc corruption court to try corruption cases – whether they originate from the antigraft body or the Attorney General's Office (AGO) – within two years of the law's enactment. As of today, the court has established 18 local graft tribunals, while the two-year deadline is up at the end of this month.

Hatta argued that the court was overwhelmed by the deadline and that the selection of poor-quality justices was inevitable. "Two years is just too short," he said.

Only a few people applied to be judges at local graft courts. The Supreme Court, Hatta said, would have to lower its standards in selecting judges to meet the deadline.

"We were forced to extend the recruitment process since only a few people enrolled."

But even if the Supreme Court is given more time to conduct the selection, it would still find it difficult to scrutinize the track records of the judge candidates. Anyone, not only career judges, is eligible to become an ad hoc graft judge.

Suparman Marzuki of the Judicial Commission, which oversees the judiciary, said that with such a limited time it was hard to check the backgrounds of those vying to become local judges. "The commission and civil society have been monitoring the selections, however, we could not scrutinize all of the candidates."

Nevertheless, the Supreme Court will investigate the ruling made by the Bandung Court that acquitted Mochtar. The panel of judges that adjudicated the case will be summoned to Jakarta on Friday for further clarification.

In Bandung, Ramlan said that he was ready to resign should there be any evidence that he had breached the court's ethics code in acquitting Mochtar.

"I have studied the facts and believe that none of the charges were proven," he said. "Therefore, I will be ready to resign," he said.

Anti-Judicial Mafia Taskforce member Darmono, who is also the deputy attorney general, said that the Judicial Commission and the Supreme Court should examine the verdict to find out whether there were any irregularities in the verdict or whether the KPK's prosecution was weak.

The KPK was established as an ad hoc body due to flagging public trust in the existing law enforcement institutions - the AGO and the National Police - which were widely believed to be plagued by graft. Unlike the KPK, both can halt investigations and have failed several times in their prosecutions against corruption suspects.

[Andi Hajramurni contributed to this article from Makassar, Agus Maryono from Purwokerto and Yuli Tri Suwarni from Bandung.]

House needs action on antigraft appointments: Activists

Jakarta Globe - October 13, 2011

Rangga Prakoso – Antigraft watchdogs have expressed concern that the House of Representatives is dragging its feet on selecting four anti-corruption commissioners, which could potentially lead to a vacuum in the Corruption Eradication Commission.

Dimas Prasidi, an activist from the Institute for the Assessment and Advocacy of Independent Judiciary (LeIP), said on Thursday that with only 15 working days until the House broke for recess on Oct. 29, "we don't believe there's enough time because it took the selection committee several months to come out with the shortlist of candidates it submitted to the House."

House Commission III, which oversees legal affairs, is tasked with selecting four people from the list of eight candidates to serve as deputy chairmen of the body known as the KPK.

After choosing the final four, the list must be submitted to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono within seven working days. He has up to 30 working days in which to review and approve the choices. Though there is no official deadline for the final selections, the current chairmen's terms ends on Dec. 12 and their replacements must be sworn in by Dec. 19.

Dimas accused the House of deliberately wasting time by continuing to hold out for a list of 10 candidates instead of eight, its members having argued that they should be selecting five candidates, one of which would be appointed the KPK chairman.

However, the Constitutional Court ruled earlier this year that the current chairman, Busyro Muqoddas, who was appointed a year ago, is not due for replacement and must be allowed to serve out his full term of four years.

"This issue was addressed by the court, so the House has no reason for continuing to argue," Dimas said. "There's an indication that they're trying to let a vacuum form within the KPK leadership. It will be a violation of the law if on December 19 we don't have a new batch of KPK deputies."

Dwipoto Kusumo, from Transparency International Indonesia, echoed the urgency of selecting the final four candidates for the KPK. "The House must carry out the fit-and-proper tests immediately. Time is fast running out," he said.

However, Zulkarnain, one of the shortlisted candidates, said he did not think that the House was stalling for time, adding that he believed it was just busy with other matters. "I'd say their use of the time allocated has been reasonable," said Zulkarnain, a prosecutor.

He and Aryanto Sutadi, a former police general, are widely considered the least appropriate candidates by antigraft activists, who have cited their questionable track records in fighting corruption.

Ex-graft defendant oversees graft cases

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – The nation's antigraft community raised a collective eyebrow at an ex-graft defendant being made a judge in corruption cases in a regional court.

Ramlan Comel, the only ad hoc corruption judge on the Bandung court panel which controversially acquitted Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Mohamad on Tuesday, was a defendant in a bribery case and indeed was found guilty of corruption in 2005.

The acquittal marked the first case that the KPK, which has sent many corrupt politicians, lawmakers and officials to prison, has lost since its establishment in 2002.

While the Judicial Commission was quick to say that it would examine whether the judges violated ethics or regulations during the trial, many have expressed pessimism about the Supreme Court's willingness to pursue judicial wrongdoing based on past experience.

A copy of a Supreme Court ruling stated that on June 29, 2005, the Pekanbaru District Court in Riau found Ramlan – who was at that time a director of oil company PT Bumi Siak Pusako – guilty of corruption and sentenced him to two years in prison after prosecutors at the Pekanbaru district attorney's office had demanded a five year sentence.

Though Ramlan was later acquitted of all charges by the Riau High Court and the Supreme Court, there remain doubts about his credibility as a judge in corruption cases given his history.

Dian Rosita, a researcher at the Institution for the Advocacy and Study of Judicial Independence (Leip), said that Ramlan failed in 2005 in a bid to become a member of the Judicial Commission because many antigraft activists had reminded the selection committee of his track record.

In February 2010, Ramlan was among 27 new ad hoc corruption judges selected to fill the posts in local tribunals along with local career judges. In July 2011, the Supreme Court selected an additional 84 ad hoc corruption judges.

"Now he is an ad hoc corruption judge; such a troubled track record will raise questions about his performance and impartiality in delivering verdicts," Dian said.

On top of a judge with a questionable reputation there were also questions over the system.

The Judicial Commission confirmed it had received a tip-off that Mochtar would win the case even before the Bandung court handed down its verdict. "That is why we sent our people to monitor the Bandung verdict that day," the commission's mo-nitoring division chief Suparman Marzuki told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

He said that his office planned to examine the court's controversial ruling that found Mochtar not guilty of the multiple graft charges leveled against him by prosecutors from the KPK. "If we find indications that there were indeed ethical violations by the judges, we will summon them for examination," he added.

Prior to the case, all graft defendants whose cases had been handled by the KPK had been jailed. Mochtar's case was also the first KPK graft case to have been tried in a regional corruption court since the enactment of the 2009 Anticorruption Law that mandated that all local corruption cases be tried in local tribunals.

As a number of lawmakers push for the dissolution of the KPK, antigraft activists have expressed concerns that the exoneration of the Bekasi Mayor could be the beginning of KPK failures at regional levels, confirming previous fears that regional graft courts would free defendants and undermine the KPK's credibility.

ICW: Regional graft courts are safe havens

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) says the recent acquittal of Bekasi mayor Mochtar Muhammad was the 25th acquittal to be handed down by a regional graft court since they were first established two years ago.

"Our records show that over the past two years, regional graft courts nationwide have granted freedom to 25 graft defendants," ICW legal monitoring coordinator Febri Diansyah said Thursday as quoted by kompas.com.

Among these, Semarang Corruption Court has acquitted one, Surabaya Corruption Court has acquitted 21 and Bandung Corruption Court has acquitted three, including Mochtar.

Febri added that he suspected that the high rate of acquittals was a result of poor preparations on the part of the Supreme Court, which was asked with the establishment of regional graft courts under an ammendment to the graft court law.

Judicial Commission to take legal action over Mochtar verdict

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Jakarta – The Judicial Commission plans to take legal action in response to the controversial acquittal of Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Muhammad by Bandung Corruption Court on Tuesday.

"We saw indications from the beginning that this case would be won by the defendant, which is why we first need to conduct a thorough investigation of the ruling before we can conclude anything," Judicial Commission spokesman Asep Rahmat Fajar said Tuesday.

"We plan to coordinate with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) as well in doing this," Asep said as quoted by tempointeraktif.com. While he declined to mention when the commission would carry out its investigation, he promised that the result would be made available soon.

The court found Mochtar not guilty of multiple graft charges leveled against him by prosecutors from the KPK. The prosecutors had demanded the court sentence Mochtar to 12 years in prison and pay fines of Rp 300 million (US$33,452) for his alleged involvement in graft.

The four cases include an alleged bribe paid to a selection team for the Adipura city cleanliness award, as well as an "approval fee" paid to Bekasi councilors to speed up the approval of the Bekasi budget for 2010. The approval fee was allegedly equal to 2 percent of the total city budget, worth more than Rp 1.6 trillion.

Mochtar was also alleged to have stolen Rp 639 million from the 2009 Bekasi budget, money he apparently used to pay off his debts to the Bekasi branch of Bank Jabar.

KPK to examine verdict in Bekasi mayor case

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Jakarta – Bandung Corruption Court's acquittal of Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Muhammad had raised many eyebrows, including at the KPK, which is known to only prosecute when it has solid evidence.

Unlike the police and AGO, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is not allowed to halt an investigation. It is widely recognized that all defendants in graft cases investigated by the KPK, especially those tried at Jakarta Corruption Court, were put in prison since the panels of judges consistently found them guilty as charged.

"We want to study this case through the video recording first, before presenting our opinion. First, we need to be sure about this case," KPK spokesman Johan Budi SP said Tuesday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

Earlier, prosecutors from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) had demanded the court sentence Mochtar Mohamad to 12 years in prison and pay fines of Rp 300 million (US$33,452) for his involvement in multiple counts of graft.

Mochtar was also charged with allegedly stealing Rp 639 million from the 2009 Bekasi budget, money he apparently used to pay off his debts to the Bekasi branch of Bank Jabar.

Before releasing Mochtar, the Bandung court had also released Subang regent Eep Hidayat and Bogor deputy mayor Achmad Ru'yat for similar reasons, namely that prosecutors had failed to present sufficient evidence to the court.

House suspends selection of KPK leaders

Jakarta Post - October 8, 2011

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Amid escalating friction between the two state institutions, the House of Representatives said it would suspend the selection process for the eight Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) candidates.

Deputy chairman of the House's Commission III on law Aziz Samsuddin said the commission leadership had decided to suspend the fit and proper test scheduled for next week until the government managed to submit 10 nominees as stipulated by law.

The commission, he said, would also hold an internal plenary session on Monday to decide on whether to return the eight names or ask the government to send two more names. "The fit and proper test was suspended because most factions reject the eight names and only the United Development Party (PPP) accepted them," he said.

Aziz, a Golkar Party legislator, said his commission had also raised objection to the eight names listed on a rank basis. "The law requires the government submit 10 names which will be selected to be five and the names must not be put in ranking because it could suggest we take the first five candidates," he said.

Commission chairman Benny Kabur Harman concurred, saying that the selection was waiting for the commission's decision on the eight candidates and its consultation meeting with Minister of Justice and Human Rights Patrialis Akbar, who chaired the government's selection committee. "There is still enough time for the selection committee to propose two additional names," he said.

Benny and Aziz said the Constitutional Court's ruling, which stated Busyro should act for a term of four years as KPK leader, would not be applied retroactively. They said they could select five candidates if the government submitted 10 names and one of the selected five would be reserved to replace Busyro in 2014.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has submitted eight candidates, identified as Bambang Widjojanto, Yunus Husein, Abdullah Hehamahua, Handoyo Sudradjat, Abraham Samad, Zulkarnain, Adnan Pandu Praja and Aryanto Sutadi.

Critics said the eight candidates drew negative reactions from the House because many factions disliked Bambang and Yunus, who were reportedly seen as threats to several political parties in the future.

Busyro had previously said that in order to avoid unnecessary politicking the selection of KPK leaders should no longer involve the House. In the future, he said, the selection process should be conducted by an independent body.

House Speaker Marzuki Alie appreciated the proposal, but added that it would require an amendment to the 2002 KPK law. "The law can be reviewed. All things can change," he said, adding that only the Koran, the Holy Bible and the Pancasila preamble cannot be revised.

Marzuki, who once called for the KPK's liquidation if no credible candidates were available to lead the commission, stressed that the key to success in the selection of the KPK chief was in the hands of the government's selection committee and not the House.

"If the selection committee chooses candidates with high credibility, integrity, capability and independence, whomever is chosen by the House will certainly be the best," he said, adding that resolving the selection process among the eight candidates was up to the law commission.

The frequency of alleged attacks by legislators against the KPK have reportedly been mounting following the recent questioning of House budget committee leaders during an investigation into bribery and corruption at the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry.

Fahri Hamzah, another deputy chairman of the law commission from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), called for the disbandment of the KPK.

Terrorism & religious extremism

Military families enlisted in antiterror efforts

Jakarta Post - October 15, 2011

Bandung – Siliwangi Military Commander Maj. Gen. Muhamad Munir has urged the families of Indonesian Military (TNI) members to help early detection of radicalism and terrorism in West Java.

While claiming that the extent of radicalism and terrorism was far lower compared to previous years, he warned that a number of areas remained potential pockets of terrorist movements.

"We will enhance early detection by involving non-commissioned officers assigned to villages [Babinsa] and soldiers – including their families – to immediately report to the local military command or immediately to me if they find any suspicious movement," Munir said in Bandung on Thursday.

He added that the TNI intelligence unit, along with the police intelligence and various organizations, had mapped out terrorist groups such as the Cirebon group, which was involved in two suicide bombings over the past two years. However, their movement is considered able to maintain its low profile by using communications equipment that is hard to detect.

However, Munir was optimistic that their movement had been further restricted due to limited funding and information.

Militant gets 8 years in prison for helping set up terrorist training cell

Associated Press - October 13, 2011

Jakarta, Indonesia – An Indonesian militant was sentenced Thursday to eight years in prison for helping set up a terrorist cell plotting attacks on Western hotels and embassies in the capital.

Abu Tholut is among more than 120 alleged members of "Tanzim Al Qaeda in Aceh" captured or killed since authorities discovered their jihadi training camp in westernmost Aceh province early last year.

Judge Musa Arif Aini told the West Jakarta District Court the 50-year-old Islamic militant helped set up the camp and procure M16 assault rifles and other weapons for the group.

Tholut, also known as Mustofa, became one of Indonesia's most-wanted fugitives after Noordin Top and Dulmatin – master bomb makers for the al- Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah network – were killed in police raids last year.

He was convicted for involvement in a 2001 bomb blast at a shopping plaza in central Jakarta that wounded six. He served five years of an eight-year sentence and was released for good behavior.

Like dozens of other convicted Islamist extremists in the world's most populous Muslim nation he returned to his terrorist network after his release.

Indonesia was thrust onto the front lines of the battle against terrorism in 2002, when Jemaah Islamiyah militants bombed two crowded nightclubs on the resort island of Bali, killing 202 people, many of them foreign tourists.

There have been several suicide bombings targeting Western hotels, restaurants and an embassy since then, but all have been far less deadly. The last occurred more than two years ago.

Former teacher sentenced to 4 years in jail for terrorism

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – The Central Jakarta District Court sentenced on Thursday a former teacher at West Nusa Tenggara's Umar bin Khattab (UBK) Islamic boarding school to four years in jail for funding terrorism.

Mujahidul Haque, aka Uqbah aka Mujahid, was proven guilty of handing over Rp 30 million (US$3,360) to Lutfi Haidaroh, aka Ubaid, who is currently standing trial for organizing a militant training camp in Aceh.

Noted terrorist convict Abu Bakar Baasyir was recently sentenced to 15 years in prison in June for his role in organizing the same camp. "The defendant [Mujahidul] has been validly and legally proven to have given money to those who have committed terror actions," Maratua Rambe, who presided over the panel of judges trying Mujahidul, read from the verdict on Thursday.

Maratua said that Mujahidul had collected the money from donors in Bima, West Nusa Tenggara, and from his personal income from garment and honey trading.

He added that the convict had taken an oath before Baasyir, who had visited Bima to preach in a number of mosques, before agreeing to donate the money via Lutfi.

The court also sentenced on Thursday Abu Tholut, who headed the military training, to eight years in prison.

Police, military conduct joint antiterrorist exercise

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – The Indonesian army's elite detachment 81 antiterrorist squad has organized a joint exercise with the National Police detachment 88 counterterrorism unit at the army special forces (kopassus) headquarters in Cijantung.

"We must set the same standard here so we can develop our cooperation for the future," the military's chief of general staff, Lt. Gen. J Suryo Prabowo, said on Wednesday as quoted by kompas.com.

Under the banner Nusa Waspada II operation, the exercise would establish various scenarios involving terrorists, Suryo said.

Besides the two groups, the exercise also involved security officers from various companies in the hope that could be better equipped to prevent and detect threats in their vicinity.

ATM blows, police brush aside terror plot

Jakarta Post - October 8, 2011

Bambang Muryanto, Yogyakarta – Police played down the possibility of a terrorist link in the explosion of an automated teller machine (ATM) in Yogyakarta early on Friday.

The ATM booth, which was located on Jl. Gejayan, Sleman and belonged to Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), reportedly exploded and caught fire.

The incident took place less than two weeks after a suicide bomb ripped through a church in the neighboring Central Java city of Surakarta. There were no fatalities among the congretation inside the church at the time; only the suicide bomber was killed.

Witnesses said they heard a loud noise coming from the direction of the ATM booth early that morning.

Ari, an employee at a mini market adjacent to the ATM, said he heard a loud explosion at 1:50 a.m. "I went out and saw that the ATM booth was already on fire," he said.

The booth was completely burned down but the safe-deposit box was still intact. Sleman Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Irwan Ramaini confirmed that all the money was still inside the box.

The fire also destroyed the wall of an ATM belonging to Bank Nasional Indonesia (BNI), which was located right next to the burned ATM.

Irwan, however, said that the perpetrator(s) might have nothing to do with a terrorist movement. "I guess they are just a fad group that is not happy with current conditions in Indonesia," he said, Friday.

The police questioned a man identified as Billy, who came to the explosion site looking for his lost wallet. "We held him because he made us suspicious. He was not carrying his ID card," said Irwan.

Yogyakarta Police chief Brig. Gen. Tjuk Basuki said that the ATM incident on Jl. Gejayan was not a bombing. "The perpetrator used fuel and then set the ATM alight. No Molotov cocktail had been used," said Tjuk, adding that the police were still probing the case, with investigations focused on explosive substances.

He said the smell of gasoline was emanating from the site. So far, he added, no chemical elements that are usually associated with bomb-making were found at the site, which accounted for his assumption that the perpetrator(s) just wanted to steal money from the ATM.

Local people concurred with the opinion that there was no terrorist link, after finding leaflets at the explosion site which carried the message that "a police and military corporate state is the true terrorism". Another message condemned capitalism.

The police discovered a press card at the site bearing the name of Roni from Indonesia Express News.

As of Friday afternoon, police cordons were still present at the crime scene, as a number of officials from the Central Java Police Forensic Laboratory continued their investigations at the site.

Indonesian police arrest five over mosque bombing

Agence France Presse - October 8, 2011

Indonesia's counter-terrorism police on Saturday arrested five people in connection with a suicide bombing of a mosque in April, a spokesman said.

Heru Komarudin, a 31-year-old man, was arrested by Detatchment 88, an elite counter-terrorism police unit, at a market in central Jakarta in the early hours of the morning, national police spokesman Anton Bachrul Alam said.

"We saw on his mobile phone he had been calling this one number a lot. We traced that number to a house in Bekasi (near Jakarta) and arrested two men and their wives," Alam said without identifying the four. "All five arrested today are being questioned by police."

Komarudin was one of five suspects linked to the bombing in Cirebon, more than 200 kilometres east of Jakarta, which wounded dozens, six of them seriously.

On April 15, Mohammed Syarif, 32, detonated explosives strapped to his body at a mosque within a police station during a Friday prayer service. The dozens wounded in the explosion – who were mostly policemen, including the Cirebon police chief – were found with nails, nuts and bolts lodged in their bodies.

Another suspect on the same wanted list, Achmad Yosepa Hayat, executed an almost identical attack on a packed church in Solo, a city in central Java, on September 25, injuring dozens of others with a similar explosive.

The Cirebon attack was the first suicide bombing inside a mosque in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation of 240 million people.

Beni Asri, another listed suspect, was arrested Monday, leaving two suspects at large.

The attack highlighted a shift from larger organised terror networks, which have been weakened by Detatchment 88's long bloody crackdown, to smaller connected terror cells that execute lower-impact attacks. The attack also exposed Cirebon as a new hotbed for terrorism.

Indonesia has struggled to deal with the threat of homegrown Islamist militants who oppose the country's secular, democratic system and want to create a caliphate across much of Southeast Asia.

A series of bombings in the past decade have been blamed on regional terror network Jemaah Islamiyah, including the 2002 Bali bombings which killed 202 people.

Freedom of religion & worship

New religion law will help: Minister

Jakarta Globe - October 14, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran & Antara – A proposal for a new law on religious issues that may soon make its way to the House of Representatives has been welcomed by some, but others warn that it may restrict religious freedom.

Ministers have responded to a perceived rise in radicalism and religious intolerance by announcing that a new "bill on religious harmony" is being discussed.

According to Agung Laksono, coordinating minister for people's welfare, the bill, which was suggested after a meeting between Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali and Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi, would "legislate for better religious understanding on the ground." He added that the bill was intended to head off potential sectarian conflicts, which have been on the rise.

"To maintain harmony, we need a regulation that contains both conflict prevention and solutions to the problems obstructing religious harmony," he said.

While Agung said that discussions were at an early stage, another lawmaker, Abdul Kadir Karding, chairman of House Commission VIII, which oversees social affairs, said the bill had been on the table for some time.

Karding warned that unless the bill was carefully constructed, it would become a tool of "hard-line groups to limit freedom of religion."

He said that current laws have led to violence against religious groups not recognized by the government, citing the cases of the Tegal in Central Java, the dismantling of a Buddha statue in North Sumatra, attacks on the minority Ahmadiyah sect and intimidation of Christians in Bogor.

Ahmadiyah officially banned in Bekasi

Jakarta Post - October 14, 2011

Hans David Tampubolon, Jakarta – The Bekasi municipality has officially banned the religious practice of the Ahmadiyah sect on Thursday, a move pluralists deemed as the legitimation of a violation of the spirit of the Constitution.

The head of the Bekasi Agency for State Unity, Politics and Community Protection, Agus Dharma, said that the issuance of the decree banning Ahmadiyah's religious practices was passed in order to meet the demands of local people.

"Ahmadiyah activity has caused unrest among Bekasi residents. [The decree was] issued to prevent conflicts resulting from different beliefs among local residents," Agus said.

The decree was signed by acting Bekasi mayor Rahmat Effendi, and involved all city institutions contained under the Regional Consultative Council (Muspida).

The decree accentuated a 2008 joint ministerial decree, and an Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) edict from 2005, demanding Ahmadiyah be disbanded because it was heretic and blasphemous.

There are around 200 Ahmadiyah followers in Bekasi, according to the city administration.

Commenting on this latest development in Bekasi, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) coordinator Usman Hamid said it was time for all civilians to rise up and conduct forms of civil disobedience in protest against a government that has legitimazed a discriminative regulation that basically violated the spirit of the Constitution, which guarantees people's religious freedoms and rights.

"Civil disobedience is not intended as a violation of the law but as a [peaceful] protest. The law, right now, no longer represents the rights of minorities," Usman told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Usman also said that the Bekasi administration's move was a sign that the values of democracy in the country have faded away. "The main pillars of democracy are equal citizenship and human rights. Without them, there can be no democracy. Democracy does not stop with the ballot box."

Separately, Ahmadiyah spokesman Mubarik said that the nation's legal system had done little to support minorities.

"The most horrific example is the fact that the murderers of three Ahmadiyah followers have not been brought to trial until now," Mubarik said, in referring to an incident that occurred earlier this year when three Ahmadiyah followers were brutally murdered by a mob of fundamentalists in Cikeusik, Banten.

Mubarik, however, stressed that for the time being, Ahmadiyah followers would comply with the Bekasi decree, banning their activities.

"Our compliance does not mean that we are not going to fight back. We will fight for our rights through our legal representatives, who have submitted a judicial review to the Supreme Court on every discriminative decree and regulation issued in the country," he said.

"It will be a long fight. But people need to realize that Ahmadiyah followers are basically free citizens. Their right to freedom [of religion] must not be curtailed. Any decree or regulation that curtails citizens' rights is a violation of the Constitution and, therefore, for the sake of the law, such decrees and regulations must be annulled," he added.

Ombudsman reports Bogor mayor to SBY over GKI defiance

Jakarta Globe - October 13, 2011

Camelia Pasandaran – The Ombudsman commission on Thursday sent a letter to the president and Supreme Court reporting the Bogor mayor's continued defiance of legal orders to unseal the embattled GKI Yasmin church.

"We have sent the letter to the president reporting the disobedience of the mayor toward the law, the Supreme court ruling and the ombudsman's recommendation," said Danang Girindrawardana, chairman of the commission. "We also sent the same letter to the House this morning."

The Bogor administration had issued a building permit for GKI Yasmin in 2006, but revoked it two years later, alleging that the church had falsified the signatures required to obtain it.

The Supreme Court ruled in December that the closure was unlawful and ordered its reopening, but the city government has ignored the ruling. The mayor has used several excuses to keep the church closed, most recently saying there should not be a church on a street with an Islamic name. Church members have been forced to hold services on the sidewalk.

But tensions between church members and the local government have heightened recently. On Sunday, the congregation clashed with public order officers (Satpol PP) who sought to move the worshippers. Each side alleged the other had carried out acts of violence.

On Monday, the church received a "final ultimatum" from the government, who said that the sidewalk services would no longer would be tolerated.

Danang said on Monday that he expected President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to take firm action against Diani for his blatant defiance.

"Up until now, the Bogor mayor has had no good intention to obey the ruling," he said. "So, the president has to take strict action after receiving our report. Otherwise, it is going to be a precedent for other regions to follow the bad example."

The Ombudsman commission itself has no power to sanction, but can refer parties to authorities.

Regardless of the threats received by GKI congregation members, church spokesman Bona Sigalingging said that the congregation would still pray on the sidewalk this coming Sunday. "We will still come," Bona said. "Even though we might be slaughtered, we will still come."

Government's commitment to religious freedom queried

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Rampant religious intolerance in North Sumatra has brought the government's commitment to upholding religious freedom into question, says the North Sumatra Joint Alliance (ASB).

The ASB released a list of 17 cases of religious intolerance in the province from January to August this year. The incidents included attacks, including arson attacks, on houses of worship, houses of worship permit conflicts, evictions from houses of worship, religious discrimination, anarchy, deviation from standard ideologies, stigmatization and abuse against religious symbols.

ASB director Veryanto Sitohang said that they had surveyed victims of religious intolerance in Tanjung Balai, Binjai, Langkat, Karo and Medan.

"We were meeting with victims for six months. They were generally concerned about their situation and hoped that all feelings of animosity would end," Veryanto said during a discussion titled "Religious Freedom: Is There Any Hope", in Medan on Tuesday. The three-hour forum was attended by non- governmental activists, university students and representatives of the Islamic sect Ahmadiyah.

Veryanto said that the wide religious and ethnic diversity in North Sumatra meant that the province was like a miniature of the diversity in Indonesia as a whole.

Veryanto said the survey had revealed four drivers of religious intolerance – forced adherence to mainstream religious beliefs by religious organizations, persecution of religious congregations wishing to establish houses of worship, discriminative governmental policies and raids.

"I'm optimistic that if these four triggers can be prevented then hopes for freedom in practicing religion can be guaranteed," he said.

In Binjai, he said, Batak Christians associated with the HKBP Christian congregation were especially concerned about religious intolerance, because their application for a permit to build a house of worship had been delayed by five years.

Christians in Samosir were reported to be concerned about the local government's plan to issue a bylaw that would ban citizens from opening stores on Sundays, as a way of encouraging residents to go to church on Sunday.

"The ban would be unfair and we will fight until it is annulled," he said, adding that his organization had the West Pakpak administration annul an article in the bylaw that would have banned women from going out at night.

Andreas Harsono from Human Rights Watch urged the government to uphold laws on religious freedom. "The key is that the government must be consistent in enforcing the law," Andreas said.

World church leader visits embattled GKI Yasmin

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – The moderator of the World Council of Churches, Walter Altman, paid a visit to the embattled GKI Taman Yasmin congregation in Bogor, West Java, on Tuesday.

During the visit, Altman said he hoped the prolonged dispute between the church and Bogor municipal administration could be resolved quickly so that the congregation could worship as normal.

During his 20-minute visit, in the presence of Bogor public order officers and the police, Altman also said, "We hope we can settle this dispute peacefully. I will plead to the communion of churches to pray [for this]."

The call for peace comes after tensions escalated in a clash on Sunday, when Bogor public order officers attempted to remove the congregation who were holding a service on a street.

Bogor Public Order Office chief Bambang Budianto was injured in the incident and taken to hospital for treatment. Bambang subsequently filed assault charges against GKI member Jayadi Damanik over alleged assault.

The clash broke out when GKI members refused to board buses that public order officers said would take them to a new place of worship.

Despite a Supreme Court decision upholding the legality of GKI Yasmin, Bogor administration has refused to allow the church to reopen.

Bogor authorities give Yasmin church 'final warning'

Jakarta Globe - October 11, 2011

Vento Saudale & Ulma Haryanto – The controversy-plagued Yasmin church in Bogor has received a "final ultimatum" from local authorities seeking its relocation.

"The government will no longer tolerate GKI Yasmin. The enforcement by police [on Sunday] was the final ultimatum from the city to stop the congregation from praying on the sidewalks," Bogor secretary Ade Syarif Hidayat said on Monday.

He said the congregation was forbidden to pray on the sidewalk in front of the closed church building since the location will now be used for a park.

On Sunday, the congregation clashed with police public order officers (Satpol PP) who sought to move the worshippers. Each side alleged the other had carried out acts of violence.

GKI Yasmin spokesman Bona Sigalingging told the Jakarta Globe that the congregation was unafraid of the ultimatum. "The incident on Oct. 9 was actually the third [ultimatum]," Bona said.

Bona said that since Sept. 25 the Bogor administration had told the congregation three times that it would be the last time they could pray there.

"But we are resolute – we will not stop praying there until what is rightfully ours, our church, is reopened," Bona said. "We will come there to pray. Be it only for five minutes, we will come every week."

GKI Yasmin, he said, had filed a police report against Bogor's Satpol PP head, Bambang Budiyanto, for using violent means to prevent a religious ceremony.

Jayadi Damanik a member of the congregation, dismissed Bambang's allegations on Sunday that it was a member of the church that began the violence by beating a Satpol PP officer. "He can say anything, but many people saw the incident," Jayadi told the Jakarta Globe.

Jayadi said that when the police tried to disperse the congregation, he lost his balance. As he fell, he grabbed Bambang's arm, but the officer threw him back. Satpol PP's complaint accuses Jayadi of attacking its members first.

Meanwhile, Bogor Police chief Adj. Comr. Hilman called on both sides to restrain themselves. He said that while his force will investigate the incident he will also try to mediate peace between the two camps.

Danang Girindrawardana, the head of the Ombudsman commission, said the body would report Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono this week.

"It is up to the President to follow up our report. He has the authority to reprimand the Bogor mayor and the Home Affairs Ministry and force them to abide by the law," Danang said.

The roughly 300 members of the GKI Yasmin church have been relegated to the sidewalk for prayer since April 2010, when their church complex was sealed by the Bogor administration on the order of the mayor. Diani has defied legal orders that the church be reopened.

Satpol PP in Bogor clash with GKI Yasmin faithful

Jakarta Globe - October 10, 2011

Vento Saudale – Bogor public order officers violently dispersed worshipers outside the controversy-plagued GKI Yasmin church on Sunday.

"The congregation violated public order because they were holding prayers on public premises without permission," said Bambang Budiyanto, the head of the public order agency known as Satpol PP. "We had the right to force them to leave."

As many as 200 congregation members were forcibly evicted from the sidewalk where they say they have been forced to pray for more than a year since the city administration sealed the building.

Bambang claimed he was hit by a member of the congregation during clashes that occurred when officers asked the congregation to board a bus to take them to the Harmoni Hall, some 500 meters away. "I was hit on my left jaw. I will file a police complaint," he said.

Church spokesman Bona Sigalingging denied that any of the church members hit Bambang. "We have a video recording showing Bambang pushing his men from behind during the clash. He tripped on his own and fell," he said. "Members of our congregation even helped Bambang after he fell."

Bona said the church would file a police report against Bambang for using violent means to prevent a religious ceremony.

Hundreds of protesters from the Indonesian Muslim Communication Forum (Forkami) also gathered across the road from the church on Sunday morning. They claimed that they were there to witness church members be evacuated by public order officers.

The congregation has faced increasing harassment and intimidation by Forkami members over the past two weeks, in an attempt to force them to leave the church site. Last week, several members of the congregation were attacked. In the most recent protests against the congregation, Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto was also present.

Amnesty International, has urged its supporters to write to Diani, National Police Chief Gen. Timur Pradopo, and Ombudsman chairman Danang Girindrawardana to take measures to guarantee the safety of the Yasmin congregation in accordance with their right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

Eighteen lawmakers and 14 regional councilors have also written to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urging him to protect the Yasmin church congregation from physical attacks.

[Additional reporting by Ulma Haryanto & Markus Junianto Siahaan.]

'Love letters' for GKI Yasmin in Bogor promote religious freedom

Jakarta Post - October 8, 2011

Jakarta – "I'll pray for GKI Yasmin so that [the church] will open again and people can pray there. Keep the spirit! Lord Jesus loves GKI Yasmin."

The postcard was sent by 6-year-old Regina Sharon to the GKI Taman Yasmin church congregation, which is facing prolonged persecution from anti- pluralist forces who locked them out of their church building in Bogor.

The Send Love Letters to GKI Yasmin Bogor movement was initiated early this week by several people who turned the church's persecution into an effort to promote religious tolerance to the younger generations and offer moral support to the oppressed.

"[After last week's violent attack] the church congregation members are starting to lose spirit," said human rights activist Ester Jusuf, one of the movement's initiators.

Last Sunday, the church endured more harassment, this time at the hands of a group calling themselves the Indonesian Muslim Communication Forum (Forkami), as the Bogor municipal government remains steadfast against reopening the church building.

The church has been sealed by the local administration since 2008 despite a Supreme Court ruling overturning the city's decision to outlaw the church, pushing members to gather and hold Sunday services on the pedestrian walk in front of the church.

Grace Emilia, a lecturer who supports the Love Letters movement, said the movement was a form of participation as an Indonesian citizen in what is the third-largest democracy in the world.

"We thought of this as an 'investment' in promoting democracy and religious tolerance," Grace told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Markus Hidayat from GKI Taman Yasmin said that within less than a week, they had received dozens of simple yet meaningful drawings from children from various backgrounds.

"A drawing depicted a church with an open door – it was really simple but also really powerful. Other drawings contained their prayers for us," Markus said.

Other support came from high-profile figures. "GKI Yasmin fellows, we are very proud of your persistence to fight against injustice and to uphold basic citizens rights in a respectable way. We support you in our prayers and in a way that we can do. Jesus blesses you. May God give His mercy to them who have no idea what they are doing," Jakob Tobing, a senior politician, said in an email.

Management expert Anugerah Pekerti wrote, "Keep fighting for the supremacy of law but without provocative acts. Don't turn religious rituals into a political tool."

Markus said, "The support means a lot for us. It encourages us and reminds us that we are not alone." Ester also suggested that supporters create simple small stickers containing supportive messages and attach them in public spaces.

Grace said that within a few days, the group had received dozens of responses, including those from politicians, businesspeople and housewives. People can send messages of support to gkibgr@cbn.net.id.

Islam & religion

Minister says Islam fosters democracy

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali says that Islam in Indonesia has helped the country promote democracy and has had no relation with fundamentalism.

Suryadharma said on Tuesday as quoted by kompas.com that even though Islam was not the country's ideology, it influenced the state's life with principles of tolerance and peace. He also said that Islam in Indonesia accommodated pluralist practices among the country's population.

"Islam in Indonesia is a blessing for all creation. That is what makes it unique," he said on the sidelines of the Annual Conference on Islamic Studies XI in Pangkalpinang.

He said that discrimination was unknown in the religion's principles. Islam supported justice, safety and protection for all, he added. "We will continue to campaign for a friendly and tolerant Islam to help Indonesia become a better nation," he said.

The ministry's director general for Islamic education, Muhammad Ali, said that the annual conference was aimed at discussing the problems of Indonesia. "The event is an opportunity to discuss how Islamic thinking can help the nation solve its problems," he said.

Regional autonomy & government

One-year tenure extension for Yogyakarta governor

Jakarta Post - October 10, 2011

Bambang Muryanto and Slamet Susanto, Yogyakarta – Yogyakarta Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono (HB) X and Vice Governor Sri Pakualam IX received another one-year tenure extension over the weekend, or a day before their previous three-year term extension ended on Sunday.

The presidential decree on the extension was handed over to the Sultan at the Yogyakarta Palace on Saturday by secretary of the Home Ministry Regional Autonomy Directorate General, Ujang Sudirman. Also present at the meeting were Vice Governor KGPAA Pakualam IX and the Sultan's brother GBPH Joyokusumo.

"The decree gives a mandate to the Yogyakarta governor to continue his term over the next one year. That way there will not be a vacuum in the provincial leadership," Ujang told reporters after delivering the decree, on Saturday.

Tenure extension was necessary because presently the House of Representatives has yet to approve the bill on Yogyakarta's special status, which among other things, regulates on how Yogyakarta governor and vice governor should be determined.

While Jakarta wants a democratic election for the governor and vice governor posts, Yogyakarta wants the posts automatically go to Yogyakarta Sultan and Pakualam of Pakualaman principality respectively cited historical reasons.

The decree, the second issued by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, was signed by the President on Sept. 30, 2011, reportedly after a meeting with the Sultan and members of the House, which had basically agreed on the concept of the Sultan for governor.

"Hopefully within the next one year the deliberation of the bill on Yogyakarta special status will be completed," Sultan told reporters after the hand over of the decree.

The Sultan expressed confidence that one year would be sufficient for the House to finish deliberating the bill, especially because President also wanted the same. President, he added, had accepted the aspirations of the people of Yogyakarta.

"As long as there is no effort to contest legitimacy, I am sure it will be completed," he said.

Sultan also said that the Palace's internal regulation on the succession could not just be taken or included in the bill.

He said he would look at the bill's articles regarding the matter, especially concerning conditions where a sultan might not be considered capable of acting as governor, if, for example, he may be too young or too old. "We will see how it will be regulated in the bill," he said.

Sultan suggested that in a situation when a sultan was considered incapable of holding the post of governor, President could talk with the Yogyakarta Palace and the Pakualaman principality regarding who would be the governor or vice governor.

The palace has previously said it was ready to adjust its internal succession regulation within the bill as long as it was based on the concept of sultan for governor and governor for sultan.

Parliament & government

Reshuffle plan fails to impress

Jakarta Post - October 16, 2011

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's political opponents say he can do little to improve his administration's performance through the ongoing Cabinet reshuffle, citing the move is not making the "pig" any prettier.

From his private residence in Cikeas, West Java, the President spent the past week busily summoning coalition party leaders and figures to be appointed in the ongoing Cabinet reshuffle, the lineup of which is expected to be announced soon. But these maneuvers fail to impress the opposition parties.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) and the Greater Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra), for example, said on Saturday the reshuffle would not improve the Cabinet's performance.

Akbar Faisal from Hanura said Yudhoyono's maneuver was akin to "putting lipstick on a pig", since it would only accommodate government coalition parties and allocate more posts for them but not really improve the Cabinet.

"The President needs to make sure his Cabinet serves the public well, regardless of who is sitting there. We need capable people, not just polishing [Cabinet] with new figures from the coalition," he said.

"All arguments and considerations used by [Yudhoyono] in reshuffling the Cabinet are unrealistic. There is no real intension to improve the Cabinet's performance."

Yudhoyono had earlier said he would make sure the new Cabinet would comprise figures with capabilities and track records required for their new roles, but also said political considerations were playing a part in his decisions.

PDI-P secretary-general Tjahjo Kumolo urged the President to eliminate the burdens of political pressure from within the coalition. "It is his duty to make sure the Cabinet to do their best in serving the public. It is the public he must serve, not the coalition. He must rule out political pressure from the coalition in reshuffling the Cabinet," Tjahjo said.

Gerindra secretary-general Ahmad Muzani described the reshuffle scathingly as a pointless drama intended only "to save the face of Yudhoyono's administration".

The President also hinted that economic considerations had factored heavily in his move to reshuffle Cabinet.

However, on Friday Yudhoyono promoted the Education Ministry's inspector general for internal oversight, former Andalas University rector Musliar Kasim, to a new deputy minister position. Musliar is tasked to deal with education affairs while the other deputy minister, Fasli Jalal, will deal with tourism. This is the first time any of the country's bureaucracies has had two deputy ministers.

Ahmad criticized Yudhoyono's idea to nominate a second deputy education minister, pointing out that adding more people to Cabinet would not improve its performance but would create more inefficiency, particularly on financial issues. The addition of deputy ministers would add more red tape, not to mention overlapping authority, he said.

"The ministry must, of course, later allocate extra funding for personnel, including for housing and transportation allowances," Achmad said. "I see no effort to make the budget efficient here." Gerindra, he said, would not focus too much on the "drama". "We can only wait and see," he said.

SBY's approval rating sinks to 46.2 percent: survey

Jakarta Post - October 16, 2011

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's (SBY) public approval rating has dropped to 46.2 percent this year reportedly due to public disappointment in five areas, a recent survey shows.

According to the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), respondents were unsatisfied with the Yudhoyono government's performance in managing the economy, social issues, law enforcement, foreign affairs and politics.

"Regarding the economy, most respondents were unsatisfied with rising prices of staple foods. In the social area, violence against minority groups is viewed as a major problem. As for law enforcement, people are disappointed with poor handling of corruption cases," LSI researcher Ardian Sopa said in a press conference in Jakarta on Sunday.

Ardian added that in foreign affairs, the beheading of Ruyati, who was an Indonesian migrant worker in Saudi Arabia, had become a spotlight of public concern. Lastly, in the political area, respondents indicated their hopes that in the interest of stability the political atmosphere could become more consolidated.

The LSI has conducted three surveys on SBY's approval ratings, the first being in January 2010, when the approval rating was recorded at 63.1 percent. The next survey showed approval of 60.7 percent in October 2010, before the survey this month concluded 46.2 percent approval.

The latest survey involved 1,200 respondents from Indonesia's 33 provinces and was conducted from October 5-10 with the multistage-random-sampling method, via direct interviews, with 2.9 percent margin of error. (rpt)

SBY's approval rating decline due to 'burdensome' cabinet

Jakarta Post - October 16, 2011

Jakarta – The recent decline in President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's public approval rating was influenced by his "burdensome" cabinet, according to a researcher with the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), which just released the rating survey.

"The Cabinet has become a burden for SBY with many cases, such as corruption and personal affairs, implicating many of its ministers," LSI's Ardian Sopa told a press conference on Sunday.

The survey, conducted from Oct. 5 to Oct. 10, showed that the President's approval rating dropped to 46.2 percent this year, down from 63.1 percent in January 2010.

It also revealed that the public approval regarding cabinet performance plunged to 31.6 percent, from 52.3 percent in January 2010.

The LSI survey took a sample of 1,200 respondents in all 33 provinces by direct interviews, with a 2.9 percent margin of error. (rpt)

Boediono is Yudhoyono's weak link, LSI says

Jakarta Post - October 16, 2011

The Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) said on Sunday that Vice President Boediono is one of the reasons behind President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's poor leadership in office.

An LSI survey in October showed that only 39 percent of respondents were satisfied with Boediono's performance.

"Boediono is supposed to function as an 'accelerator' because SBY is a 'brake'. But in reality Boediono also works as a 'brake'. People feel that the government has become slower," LSI researcher Ardian Sopa said, as quoted by kompas.com.

In January 2010, exactly 100 days into Yudhoyono's second term of office, 53 percent of respondents said that they were happy with Boediono's work. In October of the same year, the figure slumped to 47.1 percent indicating the public's growing dissatisfaction with his performance.

"Since the first year in office, the public has not been satisfied with Boediono's work. The public has always compared Boediono to Jusuf Kalla who is seen as more determined," he said.

Reshuffle can't be purely professional: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – Although reportedly prompted by the poor performance of some ministers, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says that the Cabinet reshuffle currently underway cannot be purely professional, adding that political factors are surely also playing a part.

On Thursday, the President summoned several figures to his private residence in Cikeas, West Java. These figures will likely hold new positions in the reshuffled Cabinet, aside from leaders of political parties in the government coalition.

He said that he could not make the reshuffling of the Cabinet purely professional, but added that he would ensure that the new Cabinet figures would be those with the capabilities and good track records necessary for their new jobs.

"I've heard inputs that I should not appoint people from political parties, but in real politics, we cannot do that. We cannot dismiss coalition considerations. But I will still pick those with good track records," said the President, as he addressed a press conference on the issue on Thursday afternoon.

He added that he would especially maintain good communications with leaders of parties whose cadres would be affected by the reshuffle.

The President also said he hoped members of the government coalition would better control their cadres in the parliament, so as to allow a "healthy and constructive" relationship between the government and the House.

"Otherwise, there will be many unnecessary obstacles and yet another opportunity lost in our national development," the President said, adding he would announce the outcomes of the reshuffle in a few days.

Among figures summoned to Cikeas were National Economic Committee chairman, Chairul Tanjung, former Indonesian ambassador to Singapore, Wardana, who is tipped to be named deputy foreign minister and Ali Gufron Muti, Gadjah Mada University medical school dean, who is likely to be appointed deputy health minister.

President tells PKS to calm down over reshuffle

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

According to Communication and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring, a member of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had asked him to tell his party colleagues not to stir up a fuss over the upcoming Cabinet reshuffle.

"SBY has asked us to help him calm the situation down," Tifatul said Monday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

The President's request was made in response to a recent statement made by Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) secretary-general Anis Matta, who threatened to go public about a "special deal" made between his party and Yudhoyono if the latter replaced any PKS members of the Cabinet.

Anis also criticized the President over the planned reshuffle, saying he was certain it would not be as effective as expected.

There are currently four ministers from the PKS; Tifatul Sembiring, Agriculture Minister Suswono, Social Affairs Minister Salim Segaf Al Jufri and Research and Technology Minister Suharna Surapranata.

In response to Anis' remarks, Tifatul said he had informed Yudhoyono that this was not his party's policy. "That was just his individual statement. Our party's highest authority is vested in the party ulema council. We will obey whatever the council decides we must do," he said.

Public trust in government at rock bottom: Survey

Kompas - October 10, 2011

The political, economic, social and cultural situation, over which there has been great apprehension of late, has resulted in the public almost entirely loosing trust in those who run the country. As a consequence of the behaviour of the bureaucrats and politicians that that control key state institutions, the country appears to have lost direction.

BI Purwantar – More than three-quarters of respondents stated that their trust in the government has steadily weakened. This is based on their dissatisfaction with how the administration is being run. This view was revealed in a Kompas survey across 12 major Indonesian cities between October 5 and 7, 2011. The negative assessment of those who run the country has been triggered by the behaviour of the politicians, bureaucrats and law enforcement agencies, which are increasingly demonstrating an attitude and behaviour that is far from the goal of bringing prosperity to society, let alone humanity as a whole. Not surprisingly, the exposure of corruption cases linked to the Bank Century bailout, the judicial mafia, the taxation mafia, and now, the House of Representatives' (DPR) Budget Committee, has filled the public's perspectives with only negative views.

In relation to corrupt behaviour, almost 100 percent of respondents agree that the current sale of corruption in all state institutions is massive, including suspicions by a majority of respondents that this involves corruption within circles close to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY).

Even efforts to root out graft by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) are not seen as being able to break this chain of corruption.

Instead of creating a deterrent effect, the KPK's efforts have instead resulted in "attacks and counter attacks" by members of the state's institutions. The most recent example of this is the dispute between the KPK and the DPR's Budget Committee. The KPK's summoning of members of the Budget Committee in relations to alleged corruption was countered by a proposal by DPR members to dissolve the KPK. In this, the "predatory" character of DPR members was nakedly revealed. In response to the affair, three-quarters of respondents explicitly stated that they rejected the proposal to dissolve the KPK. The respondents were convinced that it was motivated simply by the DPR's desire to block efforts to uncover corruption and not to improve the KPK.

Procedural democracy

The general views of respondents also reflected that the democratic conditions in the country are relatively better than during the New Order period of former President Suharto. This has been demonstrated by a strengthening of democratic elements such as the fulfillment of civil and political rights, freedom of expression, relatively smooth elections and the strengthening of civil society.

Also indicated however was that these democratic practices are limited to the procedural, and have not yet touched upon substantive areas. Democracy is built on the foundations of individual freedoms, a differentiation between public and private space, along with the broadening of private space in the social and economic sphere.

This has proceeded in conjunction with the state relinquishing its role in social and economic areas and is related to economy's integration into the regime of the free market. The consequence of this is that the understanding of democracy is not linked to social justice or the direct participation of citizens in creating it.

There are several examples of this. Elections, which are promoted as free, are actually ridden with money political and forces that control capital, which use the state's assets to maintain power. The decentralisation of power, which has been packaged in policies of regional autonomy, mostly maintains the old ruling elite rather than giving rise to bright and creative alternative leaders. Not to mention discriminative practices and acts of violence against minority groups that continue unabated, both quietly and openly.

In the midst of this, the pillars of democracy such as the political parties and the DPR have metamorphosised into a political force of rent seekers. Disappointment with these elements of democracy has resulted in more than half of respondents (56.7 percent) being pessimistic that the administration will be able to extract the Indonesian nation from the problems it faces.

Fragile social basis

In a democratic system that operates simply on a procedural level, social collective ties at the community level have become extremely fragile. This has occurred because the basis of these ties are being masked by narrow and short-term interests. This can be observed from the rapid growth of groups that are driven by narrow primordial and fundamentalist ties that are protected by political forces in order to maintain power.

Conversely groups that should be fighting for community issues and social justice have failed to unit into a solid force. The labour movement for example, is still fragmented. Student or youth groups have been lulled into sleep and isolated by the economic corridors of the education system.

The public is quite well aware of this situation. More than half of respondents (58.4 percent) said that currently there is no consolidation of the political elite that is seeking to improve the disturbing and confusing situation that the nation faces. A strong leader capable of changing the situation is yet to emerge. This could be a warning that the fresh breeze of democracy that reverberated following the reformasi (political reform) movement in 1998 is still confined within the stale air of the narrow cave of reformasi. (Kompas Research and Development)

Kompas survey results

Generally speaking, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the administration of the country?

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How do you rate the situation in the following institutions?

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Do you think that the following things exist?

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Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the following components of the nation?

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[Translated by James Balowski.]

Performance of house lacking, watchdog says

Jakarta Globe - October 10, 2011

Rangga Prakoso – With just three months left in the year, the House of Representatives' performance for 2011 is on its way to being worse than last year's, activists say.

"From our evaluation, we concluded that although there were some improvements, there were also a lot of setbacks," Sebastian Salang from the Concerned Citizens for the Indonesian Legislature (Formappi) said over the weekend.

Formappi said it based its evaluation on four criteria – legislation, budgeting, monitoring and its Ethics Council.

"This is an evaluation of the second year of their 2009-2014 period, and we found that the House has lost more and more of the public's trust," Sebastian said. "Even though they are functioning, their performance still does not meet the public's expectations."

He also said lawmakers' behavior was far from giving the impression that they are in office to serve the interests and aspirations of their constituents. "There are also strong indications of mafias and brokering of budgets, legislation and supervision," Sebastian added.

He said that out of the House's targeted 93 bills for 2011, 70 of which were listed as priorities, it had so far only managed to pass 12 into law, and none of those prioritized.

In July, Ignatius Mulyono, chairman of the House Legislation Body, said legislators had already passed 17 bills and were on track to pass 35 for the whole year, exceeding the previous year's 13.

Ignatius could not be reached for comment on Sunday night, but Sebastian said that Formappi's data had been cross-checked with official House records.

Sebastian also said for the 2011 state budget, the government had originally submitted a proposal for Rp 1,202 trillion ($134.6 billion) in funding, but the House instead approved Rp 1,229 trillion. "There is an additional Rp 27.5 trillion, and it is still unclear which proposed program it was meant for," he said.

Such budget "inappropriations" have occurred in previous years, according to Indonesia Corruption Watch. Citing a 2010 audit by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), ICW said that at least Rp 27.74 trillion was spent inappropriately in 2009.

"They mostly came from budget posts labeled as 'other expenditures' and 'social spending,'" ICW's Fidaus Ilyas told the Jakarta Globe.

Formappi researcher Made Leo Wiratma said the "players" responsible for the accounting discrepancies could be the Budget Committee members now at the center of a graft scandal. It was the House's responsibility to scrutinize budget proposal submissions, he said.

"But what happens is the opposite. They give the government extra funds although we know that every year our government has difficulty spending all of the money," he said.

House Speaker Marzuki Alie has acknowledged the public's poor perception of the legislature and that the body had fallen short in its responsibility to pass legislation. But he has reasoned that the House, though powerful as an institution, still does not have sufficient structural and administrative support to be more effective.

[Additional reporting by Ulma Haryanto.]

Lawmakers neglect their basic duties: Watchdog

Jakarta Post - October 10, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – A watchdog group says the 560 members of the House of Representatives are quick to put the government and state institutions under the microscope to find even the most minor mistakes, but despite continuous public outcry they blatantly ignore their most important duty: to make laws.

As shown by the findings of the Indonesian Legislative Watch (Formappi), since being installed in October 2009, the House only passed 12 out of the 92 bills that were meant to have been deliberated based on the legislators' own set target. The lawmakers' poor performance and corrupt behavior – especially in budgeting – have eroded public trust.

To make matters worse, at least three of the recently-passed laws have been reviewed by the Constitutional Court upon requests by civil society, claiming that the laws were not in line with the 1945 Constitution.

In its annual study on the House's performance, Formappi concluded that the House had failed to produce more pro-people policies. Instead, lawmakers were preoccupied with the political and financial agendas of their parties and their own private interests.

"The House's performance was already low in its first year of this term. At first we thought that was because so many lawmakers were new to the House, but we were surprised to find that it actually worsened in the second year, which led to the conclusion that their lack of 'flying hours' was not actually an issue," Formappi executive director Sebastian Salang said on Sunday.

Bills on national elections, regional elections and the Corruption Court were among the urgent priorities they were meant to address. The original draft of the Corruption Court bill threatens the death penalty for corruptors. The 2014 elections can be delayed because the House members have passed their own deadline.

Citing the study, Sebastian described lawmakers as increasingly detached from the public and abusing their power while carrying out their duties.

"While the House often abused its authority to pressure the government to accommodate its desires, lawmakers also frequently took advantage of the government's projects for their own interests," the watchdog executive said.

The latest example involved the arrest of a businesswoman and two Manpower and Transmigration Ministry officials allegedly involved in a high-profile bribery case that was suspected of being part of an effort to win House approval for projects at the ministry.

Lawmaker Eva Kusuma Sundari from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) rejected Formappi's notion that the House's legislation performance had been poor. "The fact is that we frequently passed bills into law, and all of them were on the legislation program list," she said.

Benny Kabur Harman of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party said that legislators could not be judged by the number of bills that were passed into laws over a certain period of time.

Bambang Soesatyo of the Golkar Party said he accepted Formappi's study as a "whip to boost the House's performance in the future".

Cabinet rumors, hoaxes abound

Jakarta Post - October 10, 2011

Esther Samboh and Nani Afrida, Jakarta – With less than two weeks to go before the President is expected to announce a major reshuffle of his Cabient, rumors and hoaxes about who would be picked for the nation's top posts abounded on the Internet, pleasing some, and embaressing others.

On Sunday, prominent businessman Sandiaga Uno was busy refuting claims that he had been named a new Cabinet member, after what appeared to be a phony Facebook account under his name announced that he had won a Cabinet seat.

"I've been officially offered a chance to serve as the Finance Minister and the Investment Coordinating Board [BKPM] chief. I need positive and negative input please," the Facebook page's shout-out read as quoted by several news portals on Sunday including thejakartapost.com.

Sandiaga subsequently told The Jakarta Post that the Facebook account was not his. "It is a hoax. Please clarify. [The announcement] was made by someone who claimed to be me on a Facebook account," Sandiaga, who is chairman of Saratoga Capital Investment group, said.

"Please clarify. It was a fake Facebook account, my real Facebook account is Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno and my official Twitter account is @sandiuno. It's not true at all."

Daniel Sparringa, an advisor to President Susilo Bambang Yudho-yono, declined to comment on whether the President had selected Sandiaga as one of his new ministers. "I don't know about that," Daniel said.

BKPM chairman Gita Wirjawan did not respond to text messages sent by the Post seeking his comments on the reshuffle. When he was recently asked to comment on rumors that he had been named the new state-owned enterprises minister, he told reporters: "I have not heard anything like that. What if I told you that Michael Jackson was still alive?"

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo, who many believe will be replaced in the upcoming reshuffle, told reporters last week: "It's OK, but the key is whether the individuals appointed as the President's aides will be credible and professional in their fields."

Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa, whose daughter will marry Yudhoyono's son next month, told reporters recently that he had conveyed his suggestions about Cabinet candidates to the President. He declined to elaborate. "We don't know. The President is the one who knows. Again, even if I knew, I would not say," Hatta said.

However, he then added: "You would all see if I conducted a coordination meeting at 7 a.m., you would see which minister was diligent. You would see who arrived at 7 a.m. sharp, who was late, who showed up and who didn't show up. I don't have to tell you. The parameter [for a reshuffle] is not punctuality. But it shows that there needs to be an effort not to do business as usual."

On Saturday, Yudhoyono summoned his special staff to discuss his administration's final three years in power. The President is scheduled to announce his new Cabinet before Oct. 21.

Be firm on reshuffle, SBY told

Jakarta Post - October 8, 2011

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is reportedly now short- listing the names of new ministers for his first Cabinet shake-up during his second term in office.

Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said Friday that the President had been working in his residence in Puri Cikeas, West Java, with Vice President Boediono since Thursday to discuss the impending Cabinet reshuffle.

The spokesman said that it was possible that the President had begun summoning several ministers on Friday, though he claimed that he did not who they were.

The President has gathered all his aides in Cikeas to brief them directly about the reshuffle process, presidential aide Daniel Sparringa was quoted as saying by Antara.

He said that the reshuffle talks continued until Sunday and would begin inviting leaders of the coalition parties next week.

The President has vowed to reshuffle his Cabinet before Oct. 21, which marked the third year of his second term in office. The plan came amid calls from observers and politicians for the President to replace a number of Cabinet members who had not met performance expectations or had been implicated in corruption scandals.

Yudhoyono has three years to improve the performance of his administration, which has been undermined by political wrangling with several parties of the ruling coalition – mainly the Golkar Party and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) – over certain issues and a series of graft scandals implicating several elite members of his Democratic Party.

Political analysts said it was crucial for the President to resist any political pressure or horse-trading in his reshuffle plan.

University of Indonesia analyst Iberamsjah said on Friday that Yudhoyono should be firm in using his prerogative in appointing his underlings. "He must not be held hostage by politics," he said.

As the first directly elected president, Yudhoyono created a government coalition aimed at securing support from the House of Representatives, within which his Democratic Party only controlled by 26 percent of seats.

He has therefore been criticized for appointing too many party-affiliated figures to his Cabinet. "He should now mind public opinion more in choosing his ministers," Iberamsjah said.

Democratic Party politician Ahmad Mubarok said Yudhoyono had broader room to appoint pro-fessionals and reduced the number of party-linked ministers, as he would not run for reelection in 2014. The party, he said, did not provide any inputs about the planned reshuffle.

"The President's burden is not as heavy as in the previous reshuffle [in his 2004 tenure]. If any political parties would lash out against Yudhoyono's decision then it is the public who would judge," he said. "The President could implement his own leadership style this time."

Most of the coalition parties said they would leave it to the President to decide upon the reshuffle, except the PKS, which has served more as a stinging gadfly than a partner to Yudhoyono in the coalition. The party has called on the President to drop the reshuffle plan and focus on maximizing the performance of the current Cabinet. But the call will likely be ignored.

The PKS has four ministers in the Cabinet: Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Agriculture Minister Suswono, Social Affairs Minister Salim Segaf Al-Jufri and Research and Technology Minister Suhana Surapranata.

Rumors have circulated that Democratic Party lawmaker Jafar Hafsah will be appointed to replace Saswono to head the Agriculture Ministry, which analysts said often served as a political vehicle to mobilize support among farmers.

Another Democratic Party lawmaker, Saan Mustofa, said that coalition parties should not "panic" in responding to the impending Cabinet reshuffle. "If [the coalition parties] are not happy with this, they should say it in a good way. Do not make any unnecessary maneuvers," he said.

Jakarta & urban life

Loopholes found in mall decree

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Andreas D. Arditya, Jakarta – The Jakarta administration said that it had issued a gubernatorial decree to restrict the issuing of mall construction permits in the city until 2012, but the new regulation is rife with loopholes.

Governor Fauzi Bowo earlier said the suspension was needed to give the city administration time to evaluate whether Jakarta had entered its mall saturation point.

During the evaluation, the city will not issue new permits for the construction of malls and trade centers. The decree would be effective only until December 2012.

However, interim director for the Jakarta Building Supervisory Agency (P2B), Wiriyatmoko, said on Tuesday that the city administration would only stop issuing permits for shopping malls and commercial centers bigger than 5,000 square meters.

Exception will also be given to those contractors wanting to establish new malls in the Jl. Dr. Satrio area, South Jakarta, and in the whole of East Jakarta. The city said that these two areas were considered the engines of growth in terms of 2011-2030 spatial planning.

"The point is that permits for the construction of new malls will be given to those that are less than 5,000 square meters in size and in strategic locations, so that they won't disrupt traffic and pollute the environment," Wiriyatmoko said.

He also said that the city administration would approve permit applications submitted before the decree was issued. Permits issued by previous administrations would still be valid.

"Management of the Gandaria City mall in Kebayoran, for example, obtained its permit in 1996 but because of the economic crisis it was only built in 2009," he said.

The Indonesian Shopping Center Association (APPBI) said earlier that the moratorium would create positive impacts for the business, as mall operators would have more time to devise new campaign strategies.

Wiriyatmoko said that in the near future, no new permits would be given to applicants in Central and South Jakarta as commercial centers would be focused only on East and North Jakarta areas.

Jakarta now has 564 shopping centers, consisting of 132 malls and 432 traditional markets and supermarkets.

Separately, the city's assistant for economic and administrative affairs, Hasan Basri Saleh, said that consumerism was the biggest source of growth in the capital, higher than in any other city in the country.

Data from the administration showed that Jakarta's average per capita GDP had reached US$10,000 (Rp 89.28 million), far above the national per capita GDP of around US$3,000. The city is expecting an economic growth rate of 7 percent, following last year's 6.51 percent growth.

Faisal Basri names running mate for Jakarta election

Jakarta Post - October 8, 2011

Jakarta – Noted economist Faisal Basri officially announced Friday that local politician Biem Benjamin would become his running mate in the Jakarta gubernatorial election, which is expected to be held mid next year.

"We just want to say, 'let's work together to build Jakarta!'" Faisal said in his opening remarks at the historical Gedung Joang 45 on Jl. Menteng Raya in Central Jakarta on Friday.

Through the slogan "Berdaya Bareng-Bareng" (empowering together) Faisal and Biem expressed their vision that the people of Jakarta should spearhead all attempts to build and improve the city. "The people must be actively involved in contributing ideas, concepts and real efforts in developing Jakarta," Faisal said.

The 52-year-old was one among few independent candidates that have expressed their eagerness to join in the fray in the election. Other independent hopefuls include former youth and sports minister Adhyaksa Dault, former economic minister Marzuki Usman and the chairman of the fan club of rock band Slank, Firman Abadi.

By announcing Biem as his running mate on Friday, Faisal has emerged as the first independent candidate to do so.

Political parties have also started championing their hopefuls for the election, although campaigning has not officially begun yet. Nachrowi Ramli has been touted as a candidate by the Democratic Party, while the Prosperous Justice Party will likely nominate senior party official and city council member Triwisaksana.

Other hopefuls include Djan Faridz, chairman of the Jakarta chapter of Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama; chairman of Golkar Party Jakarta chapter chairman Prya Ramadhani along with lawmaker Aziz Syamsuddin and former marine Nono Sampono. Incumbent governor Fauzi Bowo is also expected to seek re-election next year.

Biem said that should they win next year's election and become Jakarta's first independent governor and deputy governor, the pair would not have to think about pleasing owners of capital in creating city policies. "As independents we won't have any political debts other than to the people," he said.

According to Biem, their camp would depend on public donations as their campaign funds. So far, the pair had collected more than Rp 500 million [US$56,000].

Their five key programs were also revealed on Friday, namely creating more open green spaces, solving traffic jams by establishing a convenient public transit system, providing clean water and better sanitation, increasing city budget usage efficiency and spreading the city's economic growth to other regions in the country.

As independent candidates, the pair are required by law to gather the signatures and copies of ID cards of 4 percent of citizens, amounting to some 400,000 people, to officially register to join the election. "As of today, we have collected 60,000 signatures and ID card photocopies," Biem said. (mim)

Jakarta government facing problems with TNI gas stations

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – Jakarta Park and Cemetery Agency chief Catharina Suryowati says her agency has faced problems in its efforts to close gas stations belonged to the military [TNI], sites it hoped to turn into green space.

"[The military] has consistently requested that we provide a replacement location first before we can tear down their gas stations. This takes time and extra effort for us," Catharina said Monday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

To date, the agency has closed 27 gas stations throughout the capital and is in the process of making them into green and public spaces. The area previously occupied by the 27 gas stations would constitute 4 percent of Jakarta's total green space.

Jakarta administration plans to increase the area of green space to around 30 percent of the Jakarta area. This plan was made among the administration's efforts to conserve the environment and prevent global warming.

Criminal justice & prison system

Death penalty is not the answer: Activists

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – Anti-capital punishment activists and experts have urged the abolition of the death penalty as it is believed to undermine human dignity as well as failing to deliver a deterrent effect to criminals.

Speaking before a forum co-organized by the human rights watchdog Imparsial and the British Embassy in Jakarta on Monday, noted lawyer and human rights activist Todung Mulya Lubis presented 10 reasons to abolish the death penalty in Indonesia, among which were that it undermined human dignity, was incompatible with Article 28 of 1945 Constitution that guaranteed the right to life of every individual and that it failed to curb similar crimes.

"Capital punishment in Indonesia is inherited from the colonial law. We must replace this law because the Dutch, from whose law the punishment was adapted no longer practice the death penalty. Indonesia has been an independent country for 66 years and it's time for us to establish our own law," he said.

He added that Indonesia would be in a dilemma in its attempt to protect its migrant workers from death sentences if still practiced it.

Indonesia has executed 18 individuals between 2004 and 2008, including the execution of the Bali bombers Imam Samudra and Ali Ghufron.

Police & law enforcement

Police biggest target of complaints

Jakarta Post - October 15, 2011

Andi Hajramurni, Makassar – When it comes to public complaints, it is the police force that most people complain about to the Judicial Mafia Eradication Task Force, a seminar has revealed.

As of Oct. 4, public complaints related to the police as an institution have reached 1,309 cases.

The matter was disclosed at a national seminar on the prevention and eradication of the judicial mafia in an effective manner in South Sulawesi, organized by the task force in Makassar on Thursday.

Based on task force data, the institution with the second-highest number of complaints is the judiciary with 1,236 complaints, followed by the prosecutor's office (694), provincial administrations and legislative councils (436) and the National Land Agency (252).

Land issues account for the highest number of complaints, amounting to 1,034 cases, followed by corruption and nepotism (682), fraud (448) and extortion, abuse of power and illegal fee collection (265).

However, not all of the complaints have been followed up due to lack of evidence. "From January until Oct. 4, the task force received 4,815 complaints. Of these, 4,271 have been examined and 130 of them followed up," said task force member Insp. Gen. Herman Efendi, a police officer.

He added that based on region, the highest number of complaints came from Jakarta with 840 complaints, followed by East Java with 489, West Sumatra (450). South Sulawesi ranked sixth with 162 complaints.

Deputy Attorney General Darmono, who is also a task force member, deemed that the number of complaints from South Sulawesi indicated that the province was quite vulnerable, but added that the number of complaints depended on the size and population of an area.

South Sulawesi was once a focus of attention due to many graft defendants being acquitted in court. One judge with a high record of handing down acquittals was Syarifuddin. During his tenure at the Makassar District Court, he acquitted at least 38 defendants involved in seven graft cases.

In response to the huge number of complaints directed at the police, South Sulawesi Police chief Insp. Gen. Johny Wainal Usman said it was nothing out of the ordinary because the complaints were filed by members of the public who were likely dissatisfied with the implementation of a law.

"They're just complaints and not necessarily true. The complaints from members of the public may likely be due to disappointment with a legal decision or law enforcement. Aren't the police one of the law enforcement institutions?" he said.

Despite that, Johny added that the police would continue to pay attention to the complaints and continue to oversee police personnel so as to prevent judicial mafia practices. "We will take stern action against any officers found to be involved in judicial mafia practices," he said.

AGO says it never sacrificed Cirus

Jakarta Post - October 8, 2011

Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office has no intention of making senior prosecutor Cirus Sinaga a scapegoat to restore its tarnished image, an official says.

"If there is no evidence of a crime, of course we will not prosecute a person," Deputy Attorney General Darmono said on Friday in his response to Cirus' statement of defense, which was read recently at the Jakarta Corruption Court.

Cirus is facing a verdict next week for obstructing justice in his handling of a case against the notorious tax official Gayus H. Tambunan at the Tangerang District Court.

Cirus, in his final statement, said that the AGO had put him on trial because it wanted to save its own image. "There is no benefit in us sacrificing Cirus. Bringing him to court does not make us heroes," Darmono added as quoted by kompas.com. He said that Cirus' claim was merely based on emotion.

Last week, KPK prosecutors demanded that the judges sentence Cirus to six years in prison and order him to pay Rp 150 million (US$16,800) in fines to the state or serve an additional three months in prison.

Intelligence & state security

Activists to seek judicial review of intelligence law

Jakarta Globe - October 13, 2011

Anita Rachman & Ezra Sihite – The ink is barely dry on the new Intelligence Law but already activists are preparing to contest its constitutionality.

"As soon as the president signs the law, we are going to file for a judicial review," said Al Araf, program director at human rights watchdog Imparsial.

Imparsial is one of 20 institutions united under a coalition determined to have several articles in the law, passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday, reviewed by the Constitutional Court for potential rights violations.

The law sets out new rules governing the definition of a threat to the state; the leaking of intelligence secrets; the authority to tap telephones; the authority to track the flow of funds; and the gathering of information on anyone suspected of threatening national security or engaging in terrorism, separatism, espionage or sabotage.

Activists, including journalists, have warned that several articles in the law would endanger the freedom of the press. "We are not opposing the entire law, only the articles that would disrupt civil rights," Araf said.

State Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief Sutanto has previously said the Constitutional Court would side with the government on any review.

There was no need to worry, he said, as the intelligence community would work under a regulated system that eliminated the possibility of power being abused.

Deputy House Speaker Priyo Budi Santoso invited a review. "If people are not satisfied with it, if they want to file a judicial review to the Constitutional Court, then please go ahead," he said.

Priyo did say that Indonesia's Intelligence Law was in fact more stringent than those in other countries. "Will the activists that are going to contest the law maintain the nation's security? No," Priyo said.

Too early to enact Intel Law: Kontras

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) criticized the speedy ratification of the Intelligence Law, saying that the House of Representatives had ignored many concerns regarding the law's potential misuse.

"The House has failed to improve the substance of the law by pressing for ratification," Kontras coordinator Haris Azhar told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

He said that there were many opinions which had not been heard, which could have enriched the new law. Instead of which, he said, the law would offer new opportunities for human rights violations.

He added that irresponsible individuals could use the law as a justification to violate a person's personal rights and freedoms.

NGO protests over new law on intelligence, wiretapping

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Jakarta – An NGO has voiced protests over the recent House approval of the 2011 Law on Intelligence, which grants intelligence officers authority to wiretap during investigations.

According to the NGO, the new law gives the intelligence community a "blank check," which could put human rights in jeopardy.

"We have noticed that there aren't enough restrictions in the law that can prevent intelligence agents from conducting wiretapping activities that could violate human rights," Indriaswati Saptaningrum of Elsam said Tuesday as quoted by kompas.com.

The newly passed law allows intelligence officers to conduct wiretap activities to support investigations of matters that could endanger national interest.

Indriaswati added that the House passage of the intelligence bill into law had proved that lawmakers weren't paying serious attention to the aspirations of their constituents, who had demanded more time to deliberate on the bill to avoid such a blunder.

Intel Law is new dawn for Indonesian spies

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – It was not too early for National Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief Gen. (ret.) Sutanto to throw a party two weeks ago at his home to anticipate the House of Representatives' swift passage of the long-debated intelligence bill.

However, it was apparently too late for human rights activists to stop the House from enacting the contentious bill into law on Tuesday, ending eight years of deliberation.

Dozens of activists from several NGOs mobilized outside the House building in Jakarta and in cities such as Bandung, West Java and Semarang, Central Java, to no avail.

While the House dropped controversial articles from the bill that would have granted the BIN arrest authority, numerous loopholes remain that might negate the good intention of giving the nation's spy bodies political legitimacy after operating under no legal basis since Indonesia gained independence in 1945.

Among the critiques of the law was the absence of clauses that would require intelligence agencies to uphold human rights and democracy and penalize those who did not.

The need for such protections became evident after the killing of human rights activist Munir in 2004 onboard a Garuda Indonesia flight to Amsterdam.

While the BIN denied responsibility, an off-duty Garuda Indonesia pilot linked to senior BIN officials, Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, was convicted of Munir's murder in 2008 and sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment, which he has since appealed.

Nezar Patria, chairman of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), raised the concern that the law might threaten press freedom.

The law stipulates that people or institutions can be prosecuted for leaking intelligence and sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment or to pay a Rp 500 million (US$56,000) fine if convicted. "With no specific definition of 'intelligence information', the article might be interpreted freely."

Critics also derided loosely worded provisions of the law that authorized intelligence agencies to collect information, claiming it gave agents in the field a "license to arrest and interrogate".

Further, the law does not explicitly ban intelligence personnel from supporting political parties or from political involvement. For instance, the law does not ban the nation's intelligence agencies from conducting operations to support politicians in power or to act against their opponents.

House deputy speaker Priyo Budi Santoso said the law would bolster BIN's fight against terrorism, despite the protests and the law's downsides.

The intelligence agencies will also have more maneuvering room under the law to expand surveillance of foreign interests for economic, defense, environmental, mining and criminal reasons.

Law and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar hailed the new law, saying it would ensure that the nation's intelligence agencies functioned properly. "Now, intelligence agencies can no longer do anything 'out of the system' that might create public unrest and ignite fears," he said. (rpt)

Student action against intelligence law ends in chaos

Detik.com - October 11, 2011

Triono Wahyu Sudibyo, Semarang – A protest action by scores of students calling themselves the Democratic Concern Student Forum (FPMD) against the enactment of the draft Intelligence Law (RUU Intelijen) ended in a scuffle with police and damage to the front gate of the Central Java Regional House of Representatives (DPRD).

The action began at the Videotron traffic circle on Jl. Pahlawan in the Central Java provincial capital of Semarang on Tuesday October 11. After giving speeches, the students held a theatrical action depicting the depravity of government officials furnished with the Intelligence Law.

Satisfied with the protest at the Videotron traffic circle, the students then moved to the offices of the Central Java DPRD located around 100 metres away. Because the gateway was blockaded by police, they were only able to take turns giving speeches while they waited for DPRD members to come out and joint them.

In speeches the students said that the draft law could be used muzzle social liberties such as the freedom of expression, assembly and association. "If it's enacted, then the law could easily be used as a tool to perpetuate the power of certain interests and gag the voices of the little people", said action coordinator Sustiyo Wandi.

The weather was quite hot and after waiting for some time for the DPRD members to come out the students began to get impatient. They then tried to force their way in but were not of course just allowed to do that.

The police blocked their way and a series of scuffles broke out. Although it did not reach the point of an actual clash, it did result in the front gate almost giving way and left leaning at a 45 degree angle. Fortunately the iron gate was able to be put upright again after the scuffle.

Having failed to break through the police blockade, the students eventually decided to disband. Before this however, several had time to give more speeches declaring that they would be ready to fight if the draft law is enacted. (try/fay)

[Translated by James Balowski. The draft intelligence law was enacted later in the day.]

Intelligence bill draws protests from students, NGOs

Metrotv News - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – The enactment of the Intelligence Law by the House of Representatives (DPR) on Tuesday afternoon was greeted by protests by several different groups around the country. In Jakarta and Solo, opposition was expresses by street demonstrations.

In Jakarta, scores of non-government organisation from greater Jakarta and the satellite cities of Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi held a protest action in front of the DPR building in Jakarta. The protesters called on the DPR to revoke the law, which they said threatens freedom of expression and human rights.

A protest action was also held by hundreds of students in the Central Java city of Solo. During the action, which was held at the Gladag traffic circle in the city, the students set fire to a draft of the Intelligence Law. They also issued a statement on behalf of Solo students expressing concern that the law will be used as a tool by the state to spy on the people and in the interests of those in power. (DSY)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Foreign affairs & trade

Government import policy an economic disaster: Experts

Jakarta Post - October 13, 2011

Jakarta – The Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) and economic analyst Hendri Saparini have voiced concerns over the government's prolonged import policy, which say could cause a disaster for the national economy.

Speaking at a seminar on food security and the financial crisis in Jakarta on Thursday, Apindo chairman Sofjan Wanandi and Hendri both said Indonesia would likely face a crisis if President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono maintained his export policy, particularly on agricultural commodities.

"The import of agricultural products such as rice, beans, meat, flavors and salt has affected millions of farmers and companies in Indonesia, and we are now facing a disaster because the value of imports is higher than that of exports," Sofjan said, adding that the government's decision to import 2,500 tons of rice this year had pressed local rice prices down, affecting the livelihood of millions of Indonesian rice farmers.

Hendri said the government's import policy was part of its neo-liberal economic policy, which she linked to Vice President Boediono. She also said this model was contrary to the people-centered economy stipulated in the Amended 1945 Constitution.

"Indonesia can implement a people-centered economy by stopping imports of agricultural products and by empowering local companies to explore the rich natural resources, but the President ignored this by appointing Boediono as his economic architect in 2004 and Vice President in 2009," Hendri said. She further added that the neo-liberal policy had begun with Indonesia's past agreement to liberalize trade. (rms)

'Double standards' could test Indon-Australia relations in drug case: NGO

Jakarta Globe - October 8, 2011

The arrest of a 14-year-old Australian boy in Bali on drug possession charges will test Indonesian-Australian relations, an NGO said.

The chairman of the NGO Indonesia Institute, based in Western Australia, Ross Taylor said "double standards" applied to the treatment of the Australian boy in Indonesia and the 50 Indonesian children imprisoned in Australian adult prisons could cause a strain in relations between the two countries.

Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said he had told Australia's ambassador to Jakarta, Greg Moriarty, to go to Denpasar and give the case priority. The boy was caught in possession of a quarter of an ounce (7 grams) of marijuana.

"Our foreign minister needs to be commended on his swift response to the apprehension of this 14 year-old boy by Bali police on charges of possessing marijuana. This is a traumatic situation for the boy and his family, and it needs fast and decisive action by both governments," Taylor said.

"Our institute therefore supports Mr. Rudd's strong stance, as children should not be placed in custody in adult prisons. This boy needs to be sent home. But we do ask why the Indonesian government has not yet taken an equally strong stance towards Australia incarcerating up to 50 Indonesian children in our maximum security prisons for simply being deckhands on boats bringing asylum seekers to Christmas Island?"

Taylor said the Indonesian government is reluctant to confront the Australian government over the imprisonment of children as young as 13- years-old.

"We are concerned that throughout Indonesia, people will start to ask why Australia acts so quickly to ensure the welfare of one child allegedly caught in possession of drugs in Bali, whilst 50 of Indonesia's own children remain in prison in Australia for working on asylum-seeker boats? This incident has the potential to strain relations if both issues are not dealt with urgently and simultaneously," Taylor said.

Mining & energy

Indonesia's resource policies will bring catastrophe, Walhi says

Jakarta Globe - October 15, 2011

Fidelis E. Satriastanti – Indonesia could face an energy crisis and environmental disaster unless it makes drastic changes to its current policies on natural resource exploitation, activists said on Friday.

"Indonesia is truly at a tipping point, facing a forestry crisis, an environmental crisis, an energy crisis and even a food crisis," said Mukri Friatna, head of advocacy at the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi).

Mukri said the pending energy crisis stemmed from policies that allowed foreign investors to muscle out local ones in extracting fossil fuels.

"Of all the coal mines we have, 75 percent are controlled by foreign groups," he said. "In oil and gas, 70 percent of concessions are operated by companies from the United States."

Mukri said another factor for a future fuel shortage was declining domestic oil production, leading to a growing dependence on increasingly expensive imports. In 2004, total domestic production was 400 million barrels, while in 2010 it was 344 million.

Prianto Rakhmanto, an energy analyst, said rolling blackouts in several regions were a sign the country was already in the throes of an energy crisis.

"We allow our natural resources to be exploited without concern for the environment or consideration for domestic consumption. Our policies have always been toward exporting and earning revenue," he said.

Prianto said it would be difficult to reverse the situation without first ending subsidies for fuel and electricity. "As long as prices remain artificially low, oil producers will find it more competitive to export oil rather than sell it in the country," he said.

"And if electricity rates are no longer suppressed, it will finally be commercially viable to start developing geothermal power on a larger scale."

Walhi executive director Berry Nahdian Furqon said that bringing about the necessary policy changes required serious commitment from the government. "The government bases its decisions on social and political interests, and never on the ecological crisis that we face," he said.

No more fuel subsidy for private vehicles in 2012: Government

Jakarta Post - October 11, 2011

Jakarta – The government intends to implement a subsidized fuel restriction policy starting next year, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Darwin Zahedy Saleh says.

The restrictions are imperative because the government needs to set aside funds for other budget expenses, Darwin said.

"We noticed we should prioritize [restrictions] in Java and Bali first, because these two islands consume the most subsidized fuel, accounting for 59 percent of national consumption, or 24 million kilolitres of subsidized fuel, 53 percent of which is used for private vehicles," Darwin said Monday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

He added that the government was deciding to introduce the restrictions in January or April next year. "With this policy we could save up to 37.8 million kiloliters of subsidized fuel," he said.

In a similar tone, Finance Minister Agus Martowardjojo said that saving 37.8 millions kiloliters of fuel was equivalent to saving Rp 4.9 trillion from the state budget and was thus worth the effort.

Downstream oil and gas regulator BPH Migas chief Tubagus Haryono said he supported the plan but warned that the government would need to also produce clear schemes regulating which parties would still be allowed to purchase subsidized fuels and which parties would not.

"At the end of the day it is us who are in the front facing the public head-on. So, for us to be able to explain this policy to the public properly, we need clear and thorough regulations on this particular matter," he said.

Economy & investment

Indonesia could face economic crash, IMF warns

Jakarta Globe & Agencies - October 14, 2011

Emerging nations in Asia, including Indonesia, may feel the bite of the global economic crisis after all, according to the International Monetary Fund, which warned that a sell-off by foreign investors in developed markets could trigger a loss of faith in the region's capital markets.

An economic outlook for the Asia Pacific released by the IMF on Thursday said that advanced economies had built up substantial positions in Asian markets for at least three years.

Any sudden liquidation of those positions could trigger a loss of confidence that could quickly spread from bond and equity markets to currency and other markets.

As of this month, foreign ownership in Indonesian bonds, at Rp 214 trillion ($24.2 billion), accounts for 31 percent of the total, one of the highest rates of foreign ownership in sovereign bonds among Asian nations.

The IMF also lowered its growth forecast for Asia, citing the economic and financial problems in Europe and the United States. Asia's economic growth is forecast to average 6.3 percent in 2011, down from 7 percent.

Bank Indonesia spends billions to save rupiah

Jakarta Globe - October 8, 2011

Aloysius Unditu & Ririn Radiawati Kusuma – Massive intervention by Bank Indonesia has cost the country billions of dollars from its foreign exchange reserves over the last month to defend the country's capital markets.

The costly effort helped to stabilize the rupiah, bonds and stocks. But Indonesia's foreign reserves fell 8 percent to $114.5 billion at the end of September from $124.6 billion a month earlier, data from Bank Indonesia showed on Friday.

The central bank declined to say exactly how much of its reserves were used to defend the rupiah. Reserves also tend to decline as international investors withdraw their assets in exchange for dollars.

Overseas investors have been unloading assets in emerging markets, including Indonesia, over fears the euro zone debt crisis will worsen and the US economic malaise will continue.

That prompted several policy makers in Indonesia and other nations across Asia, including South Korea, India, Thailand and Malaysia, to intervene to stabilize their markets.

Hartadi A. Sarwono, a deputy governor of Bank Indonesia, said the central bank had to intervene in the foreign-exchange market to defend the rupiah. On Sept. 23 alone, Bank Indonesia reportedly spent up to $200 million to intervene in the currency market.

"When there is a panic sell-off, we intervene in the market in a massive manner. We have to step in, so that's why our reserves declined," Hartadi said. "That's enough to win the confidence of the market."

He said the government was on guard to prevent the rupiah from further depreciation as a result of panic selling. The fundamentals of the economy, he added, remain solid.

Hatta Rajasa, the chief economics minister, also said there was no need for concern over the lower foreign exchange reserve. He said what was left was more than enough to help the country withstand any economic shocks.

The minister pointed out that the reserves were still much higher than when the 1998 and 2008 financial crises hit. In September 2008, reserves stood at $57 billion. Hartadi described Indonesia's current reserves of $114.5 billion as healthy.

Helmi Arman, an economist and currency strategist at Citigroup in Jakarta, said the latest reserves were enough to cover more than six months of imports and short debt payments.

Wiling Bolung, head of treasury at ANZ Panin Bank in Jakarta, praised the central bank's prudent defense of the rupiah as the "proper move". "Bank Indonesia has been cautious on that front, they used the reserve to defend the market," Wiling said.

The rupiah, which was the best-performing currency in the region last year, weakened 4.9 percent in September. It traded at 8,950 against the dollar at the end of the month from 8,534 at the end of August. On Friday, the rupiah weakened 0.5 percent to 8,968 from Thursday's close at 8,925.

Hartadi said the rupiah was expected to strengthen in the coming months as foreign investors returned to the nation's capital markets.

Eugene Leow, an economist at DBS Group Research in Singapore, said he expected the central bank's foreign reserves to build up at a slow pace because Indonesia's current-account surplus was likely to narrow as import growth outpaced exports.

Analysis & opinion

Mall moratorium: Seriously?

Jakarta Post Editorial - October 15, 2011

Governor Fauzi Bowo's decision to issue a gubernatorial decree to restrict the issuance of shopping mall construction permits is commendable, considering that the city is already overcrowded with concrete buildings.

However, Jakartans cannot expect that the decree will immediately stop or even reduce such concrete planting in the capital, as it does not include a stipulation regarding the development of dozens of shopping malls and other commercial buildings, permits for which have already been issued.

The Jakarta city administration has said that the moratorium on the construction of malls will be effective until the end of 2012. Such a statement is controversial and contradictory, given the fact that mall construction will continue on those malls that have already been granted permits, within the moratorium period. Furthermore, it remains unclear whether the city will issue new permits in the coming years.

According to the interim director for the Jakarta Building Supervisory Agency (P2B), Wiriyatmoko, the city administration will only stop issuing permits for shopping malls and commercial centers bigger than 5,000 square meters. Exceptions, however, will be given to contractors wanting to establish new malls in the Jl. Dr. Satrio area, South Jakarta, and in East Jakarta.

It is still debatable whether Jakarta still needs new shopping facilities, given the current total of 564 shopping centers: 132 malls and 432 traditional markets and supermarkets. But it is an undeniable fact that the city is suffering from a serious shortage of green areas.

In its 2000-2010 Spatial Bylaw, the city was set to develop green areas amounting to 13.94 percent of the 650 square kilometers of Jakarta's total land territory; this plan is already behind by 20 percent as targeted by the national spatial laws.

Unfortunately, green areas in the city are currently less than 10 percent of the city's land mass. A serious implementation of the moratorium on the construction of shopping malls and other commercial facilities that take up large areas of land is therefore the answer to the problem.

The rapacious use of land due to rampant violations against the spatial law over the last two decades has prevented the city from becoming an ideal place to live. During the moratorium period, we strongly call on the city authorities to carry out a serious evaluation on the real state of the city, particularly about the ratio between green spaces and concrete buildings.

Jakarta is already subjected to serious environmental damage due to overexploitation of the city's land: Water shortages during the dry seasons; worsening impacts of annual flooding; worsening air pollution; and a shortage of open space for sports, exercise and social gatherings.

We cannot expect the moratorium will immediately stop the development of new shopping facilities. But we sincerely hope that the result of the one- year evaluation will produce fair recommendations to prevent further environmental damage in the city.

According to the Indonesian Shopping Center Association (APPBI), the moratorium will also have a positive impact upon businesses and give mall operators time to evaluate their strategies.

But of course, commercial considerations should never ignore damage caused to the city's environment, whose impact has already been felt by Jakartans. We hope the moratorium will not only please people, who are longing to see and enjoy more open spaces in the city, but also be part of the general commitment to making the capital a more humane city.

The answer to questions on SBY's Cabinet reshuffle: Hahahaha

Jakarta Post - October 14, 2011

Kornelius Purba, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is expected to announce his new Cabinet lineup very soon. His aides have been boasting that the President who once bowed to pressure from the major political parties and vested-interest groups would be history. They believe the new Cabinet will signify a "rebirth" of the President.

But should we think he is the only head of state in this country? We have some other "kings" who are no less powerful than the President himself. No Cabinet should ever try to make decisions contrary to the interests of Golkar Party chairman and business tycoon Aburizal Bakrie.

On Thursday, the President summoned the leaders of the ruling coalition parties – including Aburizal – in a clear attempt to show to the public that he was in full control of the coalition. But the smiling Aburizal sent a different message: I am the kingmaker (if not the king).

The party bosses know very well that the government will stall if the President does not give them what they want. Judging by the greed of the political parties, it is clear that what they want – in the name of their constituents – is more money and more power.

So, with little doubt, I am willing to bet (although gambling is illegal in this country) that President Yudhoyono's ambition to hire only the most capable and unblemished people for his new Cabinet will not mean much for the country's actual government.

The President has repeatedly voiced his zero-tolerance stance on corruption and abuse of power, but when dirty money plagued his own Democratic Party, he did almost nothing to clean it up. The party's axed treasurer Muhammad Nazaruddin, now a suspect in a high-profile corruption scandal, has repeatedly admitted to having shared with fellow party members and other politicians the money that he extorted from businesspeople and stole from state projects. But Yudhoyono has not punished anyone.

Can the President expect the public to swallow his anticorruption promises while violations of his commitment are so blatant? Do we expect a miracle that our charming leader, who cares so much about his image, will suddenly get tough in upholding the law, even at the cost of his nice-guy brand?

But we need to remember that the country's economy will continue to grow steadily no matter if the government exists or is missing in action. Investors will continue to come because our domestic market is too huge to ignore. For them, poor infrastructure, notorious bureaucracy and bribe- seeking law enforcers are tolerable as long as the bottom line is right.

Look at the market's reaction amid all the bureaucratic turmoil: The rupiah is fluctuating – but not because the international community is waiting for the Cabinet reshuffle – simply because of the global financial unrest.

No matter who the retired four-star Army general will bring into his new Cabinet (even if he naturalizes former US president Bill Clinton as his chief economic minister), he will still be leading a "lame-duck" government until he finishes his second five-year term in 2014.

The President will continue to make beautiful speeches on his government's success in reducing corruption and the rising position of Indonesia among the world's largest economies and democracies.

There is little doubt in President Yudhoyono's capability and strong political will to bring Indonesia to prosperity over the next three years. He will be eternally remembered in history as the country's first directly elected president who won a second term because the people dreamed – wrongly – that the country would rid itself of its most humiliating disease: corruption.

Please do not expect too much from him unless you are ready to face heart attacks or the kind of prolonged frustrations that will land you in a mental hospital.

You may ask: Who do you think you are that you dare to make such conclusions? Are these conclusion based on thorough studies like the polling organizations that hire genius researchers to sell their business?

Trust me. You just need to talk your drivers or your security guards to get an in-depth view of the country's politics. You do not need to read analyses by people with PhDs to know the direction of the country.

Hopefully I am wrong, and the President will be able to transform himself into the kind of leader that the tens of millions of voters wished for when they envisioned him as their superhero in the fight against corruption.

But the concerted efforts of the die-heard corruptors and their accomplices – who all the while enjoy the luxuries of their crimes – to castrate the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) eventually harvested their most nutritious fruit on Tuesday: the acquittal of Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Mohamad by the Bandung Corruption Court.

The verdict has ruined the KPK's long-standing pride that not one person who stole from state coffers had escaped the corruption court. Again, hopefully the Bekasi mayor's case will steel our leader in his noble mission to bring the nation into a much better situation.

For a while, to answer questions about SBY's Cabinet reshuffle, I could only laugh Hahahahahaha.

Military role in counterterrorism counterproductive?

Jakarta Post - October 14, 2011

Ali Abdullah Wibisono, Nottingham, UK – Indonesia is not alien to the use of military in counterterrorism. From the counterinsurgency against the Darul Islam/Tentara Islam Indonesia rebellion in the 1960s to the pursuit, arrest and killing of Darul Islam (DI) members and leaders in the 1970s and 1980s, the Indonesian military had always been the executor, even initiator.

This was not so hard to ponder: The military was present in every security and intelligence operation the country conducted in those periods through their presence in territorial command and intelligence agency (BAKIN).

However, it is more interesting to find out whether counterterrorism was more effective in those days.

The history of Indonesia's terrorism and counterterrorism is rarely documented, patchy and often biased, but several facts are reliable. We can see that between the late 1970s and early 1980s, members of the decapitated DI movement were continually hunted, arrested and at times eliminated on the spot.

It was remarkable to note that those who were still active in the organization were actually deterred by possible sting operations that they could not anticipate and the determinism of the officers on the ground, which effectively prevented them from conducting even a small mass mobilization during the 1980s, let alone a terrorist action.

DI's plan to assassinate President Soeharto in 1982 for example, failed to materialize even though the weapon of choice, a rocket-propelled grenade, was already at hand.

The executors of the plan were too afraid to do it. The deterrent effect was not only contributed by determined (militarized) counter-terrorism, but also political pressure that imposed a limit on what individuals and organizations were allowed to do to express their ideas, for example in the form of Pancasila as the "sole-principle" policy, which was enforced coercively, and angered many Muslim activists at the time, including those in DI.

However, the strength of any terrorist organization is never in its ability to amount an operation inflicting heavy casualties, but rather in its staying power. It is not about why terrorism occurs, but why it lasts. It is not about why one becomes a terrorist, but why one continues being a terrorist.

So in our case, during the 1970s, DI was able to re-consolidate its scattered leadership board members representing Aceh, West Java and South Sulawesi, as well as maintaining recruitment, indoctrination and training of children, kins and next of kins of DI leaders as members.

So successful was this recruitment and education program that when a military crackdown arrested the entire leadership of DI in West Java in 1981, the organization of the movement was immediately taken over by DI figures in Surakarta, the most prominent of which were Abdullah Sungkar and Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, although these two were never Imams due to incarceration.

The ideological adaptation of Indonesia's Islamist movement was a key to their staying power. Western observers were quick to classify Indonesian Islamist groups as Salafy-Jihadi by ideology.

But it is remarkable to notice that supposedly Salafy-Jihadi leaders of DI were once allying with traditionalist Islam during the Communist purge of the late 1960s, and even Shiite figures during the height of Iran revolution in early 1980s, as well as political opposition movements well into the 1990s.

Indeed, when DI figures were pinned down by effective counter-terrorism in the mid-1980s, Shiite figures in East Java took up the fight and conducted terrorist actions against churches on Christmas Eve of 1984, and the bombing of Borobudur temple in January 1985. Their next target was Bali in the following February, but the early detonation of the bomb and their carriers ended up delaying the successful execution of the plan for 17 years.

Indonesia's Salafy-Jihadi is also unique in its ability to stay relevant with problems of the umma as opposed to the implementation of takfir ideology, i.e. perceiving those outside the community or jemaah as unfaithful or kafir, commonly found in Salafy-Jihadi terrorist groups in other parts of the world.

Although interaction with Salafy-Jihadi teachings in Afghanistan infused Indonesian Islamist movement with more intolerance against social and religious practices that are suspected as being deviations from the Koran and Sunnah, as well as justifications for the use of coercion to enforce Islamic jurisprudence (sharia), the movement provides a house for all practical interpretations of puritan Islam.

Indonesia's history of terrorism is thus filled with periods of violence and periods of recruitment, training and fund-raising, but never stagnation.

The moral of this lengthy explanation is that there is so little of the terrorism dynamics that the government can control through counterterrorism. The introduction of military forces in counterterrorism in the past had been effective in maintaining a deterrence against terrorist actions, but such effectiveness was short-lived, for it was proven incapable of halting recruitment. In addition, while one group was deterred, another group grew impatient and took the heat. Above all, the enduring hatred against misconducts and arrogant repression of the Soeharto regime was cultivated from one generation of jihadists to the next.

Therefore, even a militarized counterterrorism only provided a delay of the vengeful return of trained and radicalized Salafy-Jihadists to Indonesia after the collapse of the authoritarian regime, for which they made us pay a staggering price.

But Indonesia's mistake in counterterrorism was not in the use of military force, but in an over-reliance, and hence abuse of it. Provision of military force should only be a measured additional improvement in the technical abilities of counterterrorism. And such improvement must be ensured by an accountability mechanism by an external body outside the executors of counterterrorism.

The history of the world's counterterrorism suggests that there isn't one terrorist movement that is clearly defeated by military forces or coercive forces alone. The most successful counterterrorism story, owned by West Germany in its fight against the Red Army Faction (Rote Armee Fraktion) in the 1970s through the 1990s, suggested that a combination of effective law enforcement and proportional crime prevention measures with an honest dialog with political oppositions, rendered terrorism politically obsolete for the RAF.

I suppose there are indeed better options than simply militarizing our counterterrorism or granting extraordinary powers to security forces.

[The writer is lecturer of international relations at the University of Indonesia and a Phd student at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom.]

West Papuan futures

Arena Magazine - October 13, 2011

Setyo Budi – The Jakarta-Papua dialogue is a test of political will for the Indonesian government and the West Papuan leadership in their search for a long-lasting, peaceful resolution to the question of West Papua. Initiated by Dr Neles Tebay, the coordinator of Papua Peace Network in 2003 the dialogue is intended as an avenue for reconciling two conflicting interests: independence versus integration.

The dialogue process is based on a recommendation by the Indonesian Institute of Science – the Indonesian government's think tank – and its "Papua Roadmap" that was developed in 2007. It calls for a dialogue between Jakarta and key Papuan leaders, including the provincial government, traditional and ethnic leaders, religious groups, women's organisations and NGOs. Indonesian politicians and top military officials consider the project ambitious. The dialogue is framed as a free and frank discussion, covering such issues as the 1969 Act of Free Choice and other sensitive political matters.

Reactions from both sides have been mixed. A US diplomatic cable recently released by WikiLeaks shows there was disagreement among Indonesian officials about the proposal. Dated 9 March 2009, it shows that the Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, A.S. Widodo, opposed the idea despite then Minister of Defence Sudarsono's encouragement. Opposition also came from the Ministry of Home Affairs and "most of the Indonesian intelligence and security agencies". The cable continued: "They rejected any attempt to review the Act of Free Choice or other sensitive issues [as] the dialogue could challenge the most fundamental value of Indonesian nationalists and the unity and territorial integrity of Indonesia. Hard-line nationalists will likely do all they can to stop it".

Opposition to the dialogue continues. It was evidenced in presentations by top Indonesian officials at the conference "Make Papua a Land of Peace", which was held as part of the preliminary process of the dialogue in July this year at the University of Cendrawasih, Aberpura. Djoko Sujanto, Indonesian Minister-Coordinator for Politics and Law, dismissed the conference theme, painting a rosy picture of a peaceful Papua. He did not recognise any human rights violations by the Indonesian military against West Papuan civilians.

As pointed out by Richard Chauvel, an academic and author of several books on West Papua, who attended the conference, "His speech fundamentally opposes the theme of conference". Sujanto called on statistics to prove that West Papua is peaceful. But this statement begs a question about the number of troops deployed in West Papua, which far surpasses other parts of Indonesia. Impartial Jakarta-based Human Rights Monitor reports that to date there are thirty thousand security personnel in West Papua. Fourteen thousand are under Cendrawasih regional command, the rest under Jakarta command. If the national liberation army, the Free Papua Organisation (TRN/OPM), does not pose a threat to the region, might business interests account for such deployments?

In another leaked cable, dated 1 Oct 2007, Berty Fernandez, a Department of Foreign Affairs official seconded to the provincial government to handle border issues, said "the Indonesian Military (TNI) has far more troops in Papua than it is willing to admit to, chiefly to protect and facilitate TNI's interests in illegal logging operations". He added, "The governor had to move cautiously so as not to upset the TNI, which he said operates as a virtually autonomous governmental entity within the province".

Shooting incidents between TNI and OPM rebel groups as well as human rights violations perpetrated by TNI continue, particularly in the Central Highlands region. The latest shooting incident took place in Paniai on Indonesian independence day, 17 August, when John Magay Yogi, a twenty- three-year-old field commander of the TPN/OPM Region IV and his rebel group ambushed police headquarters in Komopa, a sub-district of Agadide, seizing two SKS rifles. The incident was followed by a shoot-out at 1.55 am the same night around two villages close to the Paniai capital, Madi. Yogi's rebel group later attacked the police and army headquarters.

As a result hundreds of Indonesian army and police officers have reportedly been deployed by air and land to the Paniai district. The incident generated fear among local people, who have deserted their homes to live in the jungle. They are afraid of the heavily armed troops who are present in the town, and do not want to become casualties.

Since the attacks the police have also been intimidating the local population. Yuven Tekege, a West Papuan political activist said that one of the police commanders in Paniai sent an SMS to the district administrator calling for two residents to be 'captured, tortured and killed or buried alive' for allegedly being members of the OPM.

Yogi comes from a family with a history of opposition to the Indonesian government. His father, Tadius Yogi, was in charge of Territorial War Commands (KODAP) IV in Nabire and Paniai. His rebel group is one element in the West Papuan struggle that opposes the dialogue process. "I am ready to wage war with traditional weapons. I reject any dialogues with the Indonesian government, and I want UN troops deployed in Papua", Yogi has said.

Rex Rumakiek, Secretary General of the West Papua National Coalition for Liberation, believes Yogi's proposition is not effective and is too costly. "Negotiation with Indonesia is the best way to solve the conflict. The Papua congress in 2000 also decided that negotiation is the way forward." Rumakiek was selected at the conference as one of five Papuan representatives in the Jakarta-Papua dialogue. Like Rumakiek, the other four live abroad.

At the end of the conference delegates produced a declaration that emphasises, among other points, the importance of "dialogue between the Papuan people and the Indonesian government, mediated by a neutral third party". The involvement of a third party was perhaps not expected by the Indonesian government. After all, the government wants to define the conflict as a domestic issue – and this is likely to confirm Indonesian nationalists' worst fears.

The conference showed up a gap in perceptions about the nature of the conflict between Indonesian officials and West Papuans. While government officials offered informal "constructive communication" without clearly articulating what they had in mind, activists responded with a demand for a much more formal dialogue. "The conference reveals that the strength of independent sentiment in Papua among that section of the population is as strong now as it was ten years ago", said Chauvel. Chauvel feels that the Special Autonomy Law, Jakarta's response to try and persuade Papuans to move away from independence, has failed. Under that law, enacted in 2001, the provincial government assumed responsibility for all matters except for foreign affairs, defence and security, fiscal and monetary policy, religious affairs and justice. The Special Autonomy Law also required that Jakarta give the provincial government a greater portion of the revenue from Papua's natural resource exports.

Diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks show that both Papua and Jakarta have failed to follow through on this matter. There is a lack of trained personnel and administrative structures to assume the new responsibilities and lack of coordination among Papuan leaders over priorities and corruption related to mining and forestry concessions.

At about the same time that Sujanto was delivering his speech in Puncak, three soldiers from Infantry Battalion 751 were shot, one while on patrol and two at their post in Kalome, Tingginambut. On 12 July two soldiers from Battalion 753 and a civilian were wounded in another attack in Kalome, while several civilians were wounded as the TNI were searching for the perpetrators. Anton Tabuni, secretary-general of the OPM for the Central Highlands region claimed responsibility for the attacks, which he said in a press conference on 5 August were "a way of showing to the world" that the struggle for West Papuan independence is here to stay.

The National Committee for West Papua is another group that rejected the dialogue process. They have argued that the goal should be a referendum not dialogue. Demonstrations organised by them on 2 August were attended by thousands of West Papuans in Jayapura and other cities in West Papua. The demonstrations coincided with a seminar on the 1969 Act of Free Choice held in Oxford, organised by International Lawyers for West Papua. To date there is no a formal government response to the conference outcome, but Rumakiek is hopeful that the dialogue will go ahead. "We will keep talking to Indonesia as a friend, as a neighbour", said Rumakiek. "The international community also wants Indonesia to engage in the dialogue."

International pressure worries the nationalists in government. East Timor has set a precedent for Indonesia. And perhaps for this reason the Indonesian Special Forces, Kopassus, has spied on human rights activists and government officials in West Papua and abroad. Recently documents were leaked that range from internal briefings, presentations, teaching tools and intelligence products such as daily and quarterly Kopassus reports to a paper "Study on the Claim of the Historical Correction of the Act of Free Choice" on the status of Papua under international law.

These approximately 500 pages of documents from 2006 to 2009 include detailed reports of military surveillance of civilians and provide military perspectives on social and political issues in the area. Most are from Indonesia"s Kopassus and the Cendrawasih military command in Jayapura. 'The Kopassus documents show the deep military paranoia in Papua that conflates peaceful political expression with criminal activity", stated Elaine Person, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, in the organisation's press release.

One of the documents, "Anatomy of Papuan Separatists", reveals that Kopassus has classified public seminars, demonstrations and press conferences as pro-separatism activities. It contains detailed information about organisational structures, figures in the OPM and NGO activists. Prominent West Papuan leaders such as Barnabas Suebu, the Governor of Papua province, John Otto Ondamawe, Rex Rumakiek, and Benny Wenda are noted as being under surveillance. US senators, New Zealand members of parliament, Australian politicians, journalist and academics were, similarly, listed as under surveillance. A separate document describes a surveillance operation in 2011, which makes it clear that such surveillance continues to this day.

What the Indonesian military is doing is familiar to activists. During the struggle for independence in East Timor, the Indonesian military used surveillance to monitor and control the movement of Falintil guerrilla fighters, human rights activists, students and others, including the church. Later the military also set up militia groups to intimidate those who supported independence. A similar process is happening in West Papua.

A local source has said that a new militia organisation, Malenesia Papua for Indonesia, was formed early this month. It is suggested that this is a step taken to counter the current political situation in the region. Eurico Guterres, a notorious East Timorese militia leader who now resides in Indonesia, will work with this organisation. In East Timor militia members who were recruited, trained and aided by TNI were used to fight those who struggled for independence. This conflict was then used as justification for military intervention.

The timing of the formation of new militia coincides with the organising of Papua Peoples' Congress III that will be held in October this year. Five thousand people are expected to attend the congress from Indonesia and abroad. Koffi Annan, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Pope Benediktus XVI and Desmond Tutu will be invited as keynote speakers. The congress is designed as an avenue for West Papuans to decide on future development in the region and to empower indigenous Papuans in all aspects of life. The congress will be used to formulate a strategy for the West Papuans' future.

As a strategy to bolster the dialogue with Indonesia, the West Papuan leadership has lobbied diplomats from various countries. They have used the latest Pacific Island Forum as an avenue to promote interest in the situation in West Papua. The outcome so far seems positive, with the New Zealand government saying that in principal it will be ready to facilitate the dialogue.

Another positive outcome of the Forum for West Papuans came from the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, who stated that the issue of human rights is something that should be discussed with the Decolonisation Committee of the United Nations General Assembly. Although this is a very positive indication of movement forward for West Papuans, the impact will not be immediate. Because any such process will be implemented through recommendations of member countries and before passing through the United Nations Assembly, as noted by Rex Rumakiek, 'It has a long way to go'.

[Setyo Budi is an Indonesian journalist who has reported on East Timor. He now lives in Chewton.]

The new intelligence law: Not smart enough

Jakarta Post - October 12, 2011

Fitri Bintang Timur, Singapore – When one comes across new legislation, they should ask: What does this bill regulate? For example, the Law on Internet Security should ideally regulate people using the Internet, while the Law on the Indonesian Military (TNI) should contain directives for members of the military corps.

Having the law's name different from its objective is equivalent to implementing ineffective regulation because cases arising on the issue might not refer to the law. The same goes for the new State Intelligence Law.

Let us take a look at Indonesia's recent Intelligence Law that was passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

The law is probably one of the most prolonged legal drafts in Indonesia's history, taking more than eight years to complete since it was first raised in 2002. Unfortunately, the result is not optimum.

The sharpest criticism was expressed by Kontras human rights group in its Oct. 6, 2011, press release regarding insufficiencies in the Intelligence Law in order to support democracy in Indonesia. Kontras warned that the draft might even jeopardize the country to a condition of lack of transparency by allowing intelligence to conduct wiretapping and secret interrogations to seek information ('pengamanan' and 'penggalian informasi', in Article 6 and Article 36 of the legal draft).

One thing that is disturbing is that the new law does not regulate penalties for intelligence agents that abuse special powers provided to them. An ideal law on state intelligence should regulate intelligence bodies, or otherwise it should be given another name.

Nevertheless, whenever this problem has been brought before lawmakers, the answer is usually sidetracked to issues of accountability and oversight.

There are articles on the two issues, but nevertheless, they are not enough. Article 42 only states that the accountability of state intelligence operations would be ensured by provision of a written report to the President.

Within the institution, accountability is achieved simply by providing a report to the head of the institution. Issues regarding oversight are stated in Article 43, which states that intelligence agency supervision would be done by internal mechanisms and a special commission created within the House. These two mechanisms, however, seem to be insufficient.

Advisors helping to create this state intelligence law have underestimated the risk of intelligence officials making mistakes. Similar to the New Order government, the future remains the same. Let us not be naive in repeating the answer given to then vice president Mohammad Hatta's question when he was involved in formulating the 1945 Constitution on whether the rights of the people should be stated.

On the meeting of the Preparation Agency for Indonesian Independence (BPUPKI), Hatta's input was, "We should not give unlimited power to the state to enable it to become a state based on power" (BPUPKI Monograph, State Secretary, Ris.209). But his suggestion was dismissed simply because there was no historic experience following colonial rule whereby the new independent state led by Indonesian rulers could also abuse other Indonesians with less power; less education and less capital.

With our experience under the New Order regime, we should be wiser and smarter. What happens if the intelligence body abuses its power? Should there be a corridor for people to demand justice?

Answers to these questions are not provided in the new Law. If we do not raise such concerns now, when the incident occurs and inquiries arise, the intelligence institution runs the risk of being accused of conducting covert operations to dismiss people's objections.

Imagine what would happen if intelligence operations were carried out against people demanding justice for Munir because the new law excluded victims' rights to inquire in intelligence operations.

Another strange thing of the new law is the existence of punishment imposed on people in general should they leak intelligence secrets (see Article 45). The logic behind this regulation should be questioned. Where do common people have access on intelligence secrets in the first place, if it is not from the intelligence agent and/or intelligence institution? We should focus on the main sources of leakage because they are the persons responsible for guarding secrets.

It would not serve justice to prosecute someone who discloses information that they may not have realized was confidential in the first place. Moreover, the limitation given to people in disclosing information actually contradicts the 1945 Constitution under Article 28F, which states: "Every person has the right to communicate and to distribute information using any means possible".

If lawmakers decide to keep the secrecy regulations in the draft, it will be wiser to keep the regulation only to rule upon the intelligence service or issue a state secrecy law prior to the intelligence law in order to fairly inform the public of their civil rights and obligations in regard to handling the confidential affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. Indonesia still does not have a law on state secrets after its legalization was declined in 2009 reportedly due to poor drafting.

Noting that the public has voiced their readiness to take the new State Intelligence Law to the Constitutional Court once it has been legalized, the legislature think about perfecting the law before it is issued.

Again, they should be reminded of Bung Hatta's statement in his book: "Toward Indonesian Independence (Ke Arah Indonesia Merdeka, 1932), "Law must rest upon the feeling of justice and truth that lives in the conscience of the people."

[The writer holds a Master's degree in Defense Management at ITB-Cranfield, UK and is currently acts as a associate research fellow at Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.]

Everyone profits from West Papua, except for Papuans

The Guardian (UK) - October 11, 2011

Benny Wenda – As a child growing up in the remote highlands of West Papua, we often heard stories from the elders about how our ancestors' spirits lived in the mountains and forests. How they would cry if they saw what is happening today. Illegal logging is rife, and the world's largest gold and copper mine, Freeport, has caused permanent environmental devastation to our sacred lands that is visible from space.

Earlier this week, Indonesian security forces opened fire on striking workers at the Freeport mine. It left one person dead and several others wounded, leading Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International's Asia Pacific director, to say that "Indonesian police have not learned how to deal with protesters without resorting to excessive, and even lethal, force". Rough justice is nothing new to my people. Journalists are not permitted entry to Papua but raw footage from Papuans' mobile phones regularly documents Papuanssuffering brutality at the hands of Indonesian security services.

What caused the protests in recent days leading to the latest killing of my people? Local Papuan miners receive $1.50 per hour in wages. This from a company that is the largest single taxpayer to the Indonesian government, and for which profits are such that workers' strikes cost an estimated $30m in revenue per day.

You would think that being home to the world's largest goldmine and huge natural gas deposits, West Papua would be a land of riches. Yet we remain the poorest and least developed part of all Indonesia. There is a lack of basic healthcare, and literacy levels are lower than the national average.

So who is profiting from our sacred lands? The answer lies with companies including Freeport, Rio Tinto and BP – and, of course, the Indonesian government. When West Papua was colonised by Indonesia in the early 1960s, Indonesia quickly awarded the rights to mine our land to the US company Freeport-McMoRan (under the guidance of Henry Kissinger, who later joined Freeport's board). The multimillion-dollar Freeport contract was signed in 1967, two years before West Papuans were given a vote on whether to remain part of Indonesia in a UN referendum required by international law and the UN's commitment to decolonisation. The deal to exploit our resources had already been signed before the vote took place: Indonesia left nothing to chance in securing its future revenue stream. The Act of Free Choice (we call it the Act of No Choice) saw just 1,025 people allowed to vote, out of a population close to 1 million, under threat of violence.

Freeport and Rio Tinto are said to have close relations with the military to protect their mining interests in my people's lands – the very same military that is estimated to have killed more than 100,000 of my people and continue to commit abuses today. In 2008, the Norwegian government removed $1 billion in investments in Rio Tinto because of the environmental damage caused by the company. Sadly, other countries have not followed suit.

In the eyes of Papuans, those companies have given international legitimacy to Indonesia's colonial rule. While they have profited from our natural resources, my people have been subjected to nearly 50 years of oppression, hardship and poverty. As a child, my village was bombed by the Indonesian military and we fled to live in the jungle for many years, in fear of our lives. I have witnessed the rape and murder of my family by Indonesian soldiers. These injustices have only strengthened my resolve to campaign for my people.

On Wednesday, a group of lawyers will gather for the London launch of International Lawyers for West Papua (ILWP), to raise awareness about West Papua and to present the legal case that Papuans have the right to self- determination under international law.

My people have been waiting for nearly 50 years to have their voice heard and to have respect for their most basic of rights - freedom of speech and freedom to determine their own futures. When I fled West Papua in 2002 I had tears in my eyes. I pray that, one day, my family and I will be able to return to our hom eland with a smile. It is the resolve of my people to continue in our struggle and the efforts of our friends that give me faith it will happen.

Bloody gold

Jakarta Post Editorial - October 11, 2011

The fresh unrest, which broke out on Monday morning at the mining site of Timika-based copper and gold company PT Freeport Indonesia in Papua and killed one company employee and wounded three others, apparently supports widespread allegations of poor security management in an area notorious for violence.

The unrest also demonstrates the failure to resolve the long-standing sociopolitical problems in the areas surrounding the location of the world's largest gold mine and third largest copper mine.

Monday's unrest reveals how both the central and local governments have failed to identify key problems in the region and have only managed to provide provisional, short-lived solutions to address serious problems. It is understandable how short-term approaches to solving problems leave vulnerability to greater and more difficult problems that will eventually have to be settled in the future.

There had not been an official statement regarding the cause of the unrest as of Monday afternoon. One version said that the incidents were triggered by a conflict between company employees. Another version claimed that a group of protesting employees and local people clashed with the police as the former was prevented by the latter from meeting the company's management. It was in the middle of a chaotic situation that the police opened fire to disperse the crowd, reportedly killing a company employee identified as Piter Ayamiseba. Freeport employees have been protesting for nearly a month in a campaign demanding wage and benefit increases and employee recruitment reforms.

The Timika area is synonymous with Freeport as its growth and development have come along with the company's businesses and its commitment to developing the area and the Papua province since beginning operations in 1967. As of the first semester of 2011, the company had paid Rp 11.7 trillion (US$1.4 billion) in taxes to the Indonesian government. The company has also contributed to the development of infrastructure in Papua, including urban development, electricity, airports, seaports, roads, schools and hospitals, among other initiatives.

The company is also recognized as having maintained positive relations with military and police personnel, who have been accused of murder, torture and disappearances, including foreign nationals. Based on Freeport's own confessions to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, millions of dollars have been paid to the Indonesian Military, paramilitary and police units and officials, as well as direct payments for vacations and college educations for family members of individual commanders.

As recently as 2008, Freeport admitted it had paid around "US$1.6 million through wire transfers and checks to provide 'monthly allowances' to police and soldiers at and around the Grasberg mine," reported Agence France- Presse. The payments were made "in contravention of a series of legal measures aimed at stopping military units working as paid protection."

The $1.6 million in direct payments were part of $8 million that "Freeport paid to broaden 'support costs' for 1,850 police and soldiers protecting Grasberg last year, according to a company report filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission."

The shooting on Monday was only a small part of much greater problems in Timika – and Papua in general. While the incident could be settled through transparent investigation and strict punishment against whomever was responsible for the violent clash, more complex problems concerning welfare and equal distribution of wealth and opportunity for local people need urgent attention so as to establish permanent peace and order in the country's easternmost province.