Robertus Wardi – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says that democracy and economic growth can work hand in hand, despite criticisms saying that the two are not mutually exclusive.

"There was a time decades ago when Indonesians felt that we had to choose between two critical objectives, either a lot of democracy but little economic growth or a lot of economic growth but little political freedom," Yudhoyono said in Singapore on Monday during a ceremony at Nanyang Technological University, where he received an honorary doctorate from the university.

Yudhoyono explained that in Indonesia's case, such stereotypes did not exist, adding that Indonesia's economy was growing steadily at a rate of 6 percent and public participation in the country's general and local elections were high.

"We have become a solid democracy with three periodic elections in 1999, 2004 and 2009, while at the same time attaining high economic growth around 6 percent," Yudhoyono said. "Thus we have demonstrated that democracy and economic growth can be mutually reinforcing."

Yudhoyono praised his four-track development strategy – pro-growth, pro- job, pro-poor and pro-environment – for the country's economic development.

"I have also emphasized the need for a development framework based on the principle of 'sustainable growth with equity,' where the expanding economic pie does not produce larger inequity but leads to greater equity," he added.

The president also stressed the central government's efforts to promote a resilient and vibrant domestic market, which contributes to strong economic growth. "I am pleased that these strategies have proven effective in keeping the Indonesian economy afloat in the midst of a global economic slowdown," he said.

Yudhoyono also tackled the global perception that Islam and democracy could not work together. The president said that he believed Indonesia was a good example to highlight how democracy, modernization and Islam worked hand in hand.

"Muslims in Indonesia are very comfortable with democracy and with modernity. Thus, the Indonesian democracy may well offer valuable lessons to Arab Spring countries who are now facing similar challenges," Yudhoyono said, adding that the country's Islamic political parties played a significant role to promote democracy.

"Yes, Islamic political parties at some point proliferated, but they have also become staunch defenders of our democracy and our religious freedom."

During his speech, Yudhoyono also stressed the importance of democracy on keeping the national unity in relation to separatist conflicts in Aceh and Papua, serious violence in Poso and Ambon, and terrorist attacks across the country.

"There was some concern... that democracy would lead to the unraveling of Indonesia. This is because Indonesia is one of the most ethnically diverse nations in the world, and some predicted that the next 'Balkan' would be in Indonesia," he said. "But I am pleased that the strengthening of our democracy has brought about numerous positive impacts."

Yudhoyono was in Singapore to receive an honorary doctorate from the Nanyang Technological University for his contributions to public service and strong links to the university.

Both of his sons Agus Harimurti and Edhie Baskoro also earned their masters' degrees from the univeristy. "I am glad I am following in their footsteps," Yudhoyono said.

Yudhoyono also met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Monday.

West Papua

Indonesian military 'development' program spreads fear in West Papua

Survival International - April 22, 2013

Papuan leaders have voiced their concern at plans for more than a thousand Indonesian soldiers to build 1,500 km of new roads in the next two years to accelerate 'development' in West Papua.

The government claims that unrest in the region is caused by a lack of 'development', while Papuans blame their problems on the violation of their political and human rights. Survival International and many Papuans fear that the influx of soldiers will bring neither development nor peace to the region.

One Papuan leader, Rev Socratez Yoman, told Survival, "The West Papuans do not need big roads, but a better life on their own land, without intimidation, terror, abuses and killings".

Another leader, Markus Haluk, warned that the roads would open up the forests to illegal logging, much of it likely to be at the hands of the military. The military presence in West Papua is almost always accompanied by human rights violations such as killings, arbitrary arrests, rape and torture.

So-called "development" has already inflicted enormous damage to the Papuan people. Despite the presence of the world's biggest gold mine, West Papua remains the poorest region in Indonesia with an HIV/AIDS rate thought to be 20 times higher than the rest of the country. Many of the cases of HIV/AIDS can be traced back to the commercial sex industry, which has accompanied the arrival of migrant workers in the fishing, logging and mining industries.

Many Papuans believe that the military have a vested interest in introducing HIV/AIDS in West Papua and see it as an attempt at ethnic cleansing. In some areas the military have supplied alcohol and prostitutes to bribe tribal leaders in order to gain access to their land and its resources. The disease is devastating some tribes. Rates are especially high in areas where so-called "development" has already taken place, such as close to the US- and British-owned Grasberg mine.

Survival International is calling on the government of Indonesia to end human rights violations in West Papua and to enter into meaningful talks with the Papuan people so they are able to decide their own way of life, their own development priorities and their own future.

For more information about the impact of imposing "development" on tribal people see Survival's campaign Progress Can Kill.

Protesters call on Freeport to leave Indonesia

Aktual.co - April 22, 2013

Vicky Anggriawan, Jakarta – Scores of people from a number of difference social organisations that are part of National Papua Solidarity (Napas) held a protest action in front of the PT Freeport Indonesia central office in Jakarta.

"We demand that Freeport leave Indonesia because they have damaged Indonesia's environment", said Napas public relations officer Vivi Widyawati during the action in front of Wisma 86 in Jakarta on Monday April 22.

Widyawati said that PT Freeport is the biggest symbol of capital and has caused the greatest amount of environmental damage out of all the corporations in Indonesia. Freeport is also the most concrete form of corruption and cooptation of the government.

"The economic benefits for the Papuan community have not been as expected, on the contrary environmental [damage] has instead progressively worsened", she said.

The demonstrators also called on the government to apply a moratorium on mining licenses throughout Indonesia before there are any further designation of mining zones that involve Indonesian communities.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Papua administration wants 10% of Freeport

Jakarta Post - April 19, 2013

Nethy Dharma Somba, Papua – The Papua administration has announced that it will ask for a 10 percent stake in mining giant PT Freeport due to the fact that the company operates on Papuan soil but contributes little to regional development.

"We demand the Papuan people's customary land right in the form of a 10 percent stake in the company," newly installed Governor Lukas Enembe said on Friday.

According to him, a 10 percent share in PT Freeport was equal to Rp 87 trillion in cash. "Of course, we cannot afford to buy the shares, but the company could grant us the shares in compensation for the years of mining on our land," he said.

Lukas also expects Freeport to help more with increasing Papuan people's welfare. He said that all this time Freeport had paid only the central government in the form of taxes and royalties and it was the central government that allocated funds for the Papuan administration.

He said Papuans wanted the company to help the local administration in building infrastructure, such as bridges, highways and other public facilities.

Commenting on this, Papuan activist Joseph Rahawadan said the Papuan administration's request was reasonable considering Freeport had operated in the province for years and had benefited from its presence here.

"In fact, according to my estimate, it would be OK if the local administration asked for a 25 percent share," he said. (dic)

Timika Six plead for international intervention after treason sentence

West Papua Media - April 18, 2013

Six West Papua National Committee (KNPB) activists from Timika were each sentenced to one year in prison on Tuesday by judges from the Assembly District Court in a trial deemed as opaque and farcical by observers. Sentenced on charges of carrying dangerous weapons and makar (treason/subversion), defence lawyers insisted that the six non-violent activists had no case proven against them and will immediately be lodging an appeal.

The six, Romario Yatipai, Steven Itlay, Yakonias Womsiwor, Paulus Marsyom, Alfred Marsyom and Yanto Awerkion, were arrested on October 24, 2012, amidst a spate of high publicity arrests of KNPB activists by the Australian-funded counter-terror unit Detachment 88. The then-incoming Papua Police Chief, former Detachment 88 chief Tito Karnavian, exploited the brutal arrests to increase justification for use of Detachment 88 against political activists at a time when OTK (unknown persons, now known as Orang Terlatih Khusus or Specially Trained Persons) killings were spiralling out of control across Papua.

Despite Jakarta pinning the blame for the killings on non-violent activists from the KNPB, no credible evidence had been able to prove KNPB responsibility despite highly politicised and farcical trial processes. Most independent observers have linked responsibility for OTK incidents in Papua squarely in the hands of agents of the Indonesian special forces.

In SMS and email communications to West Papua Media from the prison before and after the trial, KNPB activist and detainee spokesman Romario Yatipai said that the assertions made by police were "Simply lies".

"Indonesian police say that KNPB activist are criminals, terrorists, Makar (treason), separatist and so on," Yatipai explained.

"Actually, KNPB activists in Timika always make peaceful demonstrations with all West Papuans. We always make peaceful demonstrations to demand Referendum, as the best solution for West Papua," he said.

Central to the police case was that the accused were allegedly carrying explosives to be used against Indonesian police posts and military targets, yet no evidence was furnished that could prove that the accused possessed explosives before t

Despite the Australian Federal Police providing Detachment 88 with state-of-the-art explosives and ballistic forensic testing capability to secure counter-terror convictions, none of this equipment or personnel were deployed in Papua for any of the OTK trials, and no forensic proof was available at the Timika 6 trials that could have linked any of the defendants to use of explosives.

The trial heard wild accusations from prosecutors and police, but defence lawyers led by Gustaf Kawer, objected and expressed surprise when Yanto Awerkion (19) was sentenced.

As to who had ownership of explosives, Kawer explained to Suara Papua, none of the witnesses saw the defendant carrying explosives, but officials forced the defendant to claim possession of explosives.

"Since the moment of the defendant's arrest along with five colleagues, there were absolutely no explosives he possessed... Yet when he reached the Mimika police station, the officers brought explosives and used it as evidence, and compelled the accused to confess having an explosive. It's very strange," Kawer told Suara Papua. "Our legal counsel will conduct a plea on April 23, 2013. The sixth defendant must be released immediately because of not proven guilty, "

Kawer also objected to the sentencing of the other defendants under makar provisions, saying the judges decision "did not correlate with the examination of the facts."

"For the first case, it's not proven that the five defendants were in the possession of sharp weapons. And concerning the treason related article, also during the course of investigation (there was) not any reference to it, but nevertheless the judge decided one year in prison by saying treason that was proven – so we will appeal, " Kawer told suarapapua. com.

After the defendants returned to the prison cells that have been their home since October 2012, they made a video appeal on their mobile phones, calling on the international community to do more to ensure that Indonesia ceases its persecution of peaceful political activists.

"We hope (the) International community, Amnesty International, IPWP, ILWP support us and pressure Indonesia government, Indonesia Police in Papua and Timika," Yatipai told West Papua Media. "West Papua activists, and all West Papuans need UN Observers, UN Humanitarian workers, and International Journalists now in Papua."

"Please support us with prayer and monitoring for us" said Yatipai.

[With Oktovianus Pogau at SuaraPapua.com.]

Freeport Indonesia union refuses to rule out strikes ahead of pay talks

Reuters - April 17, 2013

Yayat Supriatna and Michael Taylor – Workers at the Indonesian unit of Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc have refused to rule out a repeat of a 2011 strike that crippled the world's largest copper mine, trade union officials said in the run-up to pay negotiations next month.

A deal inked in December 2011 to resolve Indonesia's longest running industrial dispute is due to end in October at Freeport's Grasberg mine in west Papua province. It included a pay rise of 37 percent over two years for workers who joined the three-month strike demanding higher pay.

"Whether there will be a strike or not in 2013 is dependent on the result of the negotiations," union spokesman Juli Parorrongan told Reuters on Wednesday.

"The company is the one which can create a strike, not labor. If the company management offers, or decides, lower benefits than its ability or revenues, it means the company asks us to strike."

Indonesian officials of Arizona-based Freeport did not reply to e-mails or telephone calls from Reuters seeking comment.

Mining contributes around 12 percent to GDP in Indonesia, which is also a major exporter of nickel ore, refined tin, bauxite and iron ore.

Under the 2011 deal, wage talks between union and Freeport representatives will start on May 2 in the town of Timika, about 100 kilometers south of the mine in eastern Indonesia.

Up for discussion are workers' wages, benefits, rights, obligations and pensions, said Parorrongan, who declined to reveal an exact pay demand, so to avoid influencing the talks.

"Normally, negotiations last for 30 days," Parorrongan said by telephone. "If there is no agreement, it can be extended for another 30 days. We will try our best to avoid deadlock."

Freeport's mine is a technically challenging open pit in the remote highlands, where the firm and its contractors employ about 17,000 workers, Parorrongan said.

Freeport and its contractors were trying to weaken the union, said another union leader, Virgo Solossa.

"We are still facing unfair treatment and discrimination from the companies," Solossa said. "The companies still have different treatment for workers who joined in the 2011 strikes and those who did not."

Freeport's Indonesian unit, Freeport Indonesia, is 90.64 percent owned by the US-based firm, with the government holding a 9 percent stake.

Sales from Freeport Indonesia will be around 1.1 billion pounds of copper and 1.2 million ounces of gold in 2013, up 54 percent and 31 percent over 2012 figures respectively, as mining moves into higher ore grades, the company said.

Lower benchmark copper prices could either encourage a swift settlement or leave unions and management divided, one analyst said.

"It is possible that this time around, they will be aware that companies aren't making as much money as they were," said BNP Paribas analyst Stephen Briggs.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange has eased about 5 percent since early 2012. It traded at $7,194.75 a ton by 0748 GMT.

Declines in benchmark copper prices over the past two years have prompted many mining unions to settle labor contracts ahead of expiry, Briggs said, pointing to evidence from Chile, the world's top copper producer.

But he added, "If there was a long-running strike, no question it would be supportive of the copper price."

After Indonesia announced new mining rules last year on foreign ownership and domestic processing, Freeport began talks with the government over divestment and higher royalty payments.

The talks also delay Freeport's decision to invest billions of dollars to develop underground mining and extend the life of Grasberg, which has the world's largest gold reserves. Freeport has repeatedly said it is reluctant to build smelters in Indonesia.

Government to embrace separatists

Jakarta Post - April 17, 2013

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Papua Governor Lukas Enembe has pledged to embrace Free Papua Movement (OPM) separatists, expressing his will to build a bridge between the group and the government by involving them in the provincial development.

Enembe said that he would continue to hold discussions with OPM members to find out their demands. "I have yet to meet them in person, but I keep in contact with the group. They are our brothers," Enembe said, adding that they wanted to be listened to and understood.

"If some of the members want to go to school, we will send them to school. If they want to run a business, we can provide training and loans so they can start their business," he continued.

Enembe said that the Papua Liberation Army Front (TPN)/OPM leader Goliat Tabuni had given him a call and asked him to develop Tabuni's village.

Good communication between the parties, Enembe said, would build mutual understanding and therefore it would be easier for the separatists to accept the government's development programs.

Enembe called on all regents in the province to take a peaceful approach by holding dialogue with the separatists. He also urged the central government to disburse more funds for the province's development since Papua could not rely only on the provincial budget.

Civil and separatist conflicts, combined with intense corruption and extreme isolation, have severely retarded development in Papua despite the province's rich natural resources of gold, copper, coal and timber.

Papua was ranked the nation's poorest province by the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), with 32 percent of its residents considered "poor", far above the national poverty rate of 12.5 percent.

Despite an annual budget of more than Rp 40 trillion (US$4.16 billion), the seventh-largest budget in the country, Papua's development indicators remain stubbornly at the bottom of the list. Papuans have repeatedly urged the government to sit down for dialogue to propose solutions.

The Jaringan Damai Papua (Papua Peace Network), led by Catholic priest Neles Tebay who won the 2013 Tji Haksoon Justice and Peace award, is currently struggling to make such Jakarta-Papua dialogue happen. The globally-recognized Papua Peace Network has organized several rounds of negotiations between the separatists and the government.

"The Papua Peace Network has submitted a draft scheme of the dialogue. It is now up to Jakarta to synchronize the concept," said Papua lawmaker Ruben Magai on Tuesday. "Papuans are hoping for dialogue. The government might not care for this, but we will keep on asking them about it," he added.

Aceh

Aceh at risk of returning to violence, Amnesty says

Jakarta Globe - April 19, 2013

Laura Dawson, Gabriel Kereh & Tito Summa Siahaan – The specter of a resurgence in violence in Aceh looms large unless past rights abuses are properly addressed, a human rights group said on Thursday, in a warning that suggests its economic recovery could be derailed following three decades of separatist insurgency and a devastating tsunami.

In its report "Time to Face the Past in Aceh – Justices for Past Abuses in Indonesia's Aceh Province," London-based Amnesty International said the national government must make good on promises of truth, justice and reparations to victims of the separatist struggle, or risk a return of violence to the province.

Isabelle Arradon, Amnesty's deputy Asia Pacific director, said at the release of the report in Jakarta on Thursday that although Aceh was currently politically stable, without justice to accompany the 2005 peace agreement that ended the 29-year separatist insurgency, "there is a real risk of rising tension and resentment that can lead to a resumption of violence."

Renewed violence in the province would be a major setback for Aceh's ongoing economic recovery and development, both from the decades of armed struggle and from the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that devastated the province and killed more than 170,000 people there.

The province's economy contracted by 10 percent in 2005, while inflation accelerated 35 percent, more than double the national average of 17 percent, according to data from the provincial statistics agency.

In the aftermath of the tsunami, the US government through USAID helped with reconstruction of homes, schools, roads and sanitation in partnership with the Indonesian government, local citizens and nongovernmental organizations. In the first year alone the UN refugee agency spent millions of dollars for immediate relief.

The United States said it also helped thousands of local farmers in rehabilitating crops of coffee and patchouli, and that, in turn had helped to revive the province's economy.

Since 2005 the province has recorded some progress. Aceh's gross domestic product last year rose 5.2 percent. Inflation was relatively tame at 0.2 percent, significantly lower than the national average of 4.3 percent.

In a speech last December, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said that the government "remains committed to resolving past cases of human rights violations," including the one in Aceh. "We cannot change what had happened, but we must resolve it," he said.

But activists criticized the pledge, saying that the president has done little to bring those involved to justice.

The peace process in 2005 involved promises by the Yudhoyono administration to establish both a human rights court and a truth and reconciliation commission for Aceh. Still, neither commitments have materialized almost eight years later.

At the time of the peace agreement, brokered by Finland, some were concerned that talks of justice would destabilize the peace process.

Amnesty stressed that the time for action was now, when the province was politically stable. "It is definitely time for President Yudhoyono to finish what he started," Arradon said.

Mufti Makarim, the executive director of the Institute for Defense, Security and Peace Studies, told the Jakarta Globe that it was important for the government to understand the matter from a legal and human rights perspective.

To hold people accountable for human rights atrocities will not only strengthen the current legal system, but it will also prevent future acts of impunity, he said.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a legislator from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), told the Globe that she was doubtful the Yudhoyono administration would act on the unresolved elements of the peace agreement. She did say, though, that there might now be progress.

Eva said that the former chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), Ifdal Kasim, had been asked to prepare the formation of the truth and reconciliation commission bylaw, adding that "hopefully this will actually happen and not end up being another unfulfilled promise."

The Aceh conflict between Indonesian government security forces and the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) stretches back to 1976 but peaked in violence from 1989 to 2005.

The Crisis Management Initiative, an NGO that assisted in brokering the 2005 peace deal between the government and the GAM, estimates that 10,000 people died during the conflict. The Aceh Reintegration Agency, though, claims this figure to be a gross underestimate, and instead postulates a death toll of around 30,000 people.

According to the Amnesty report, even though both sides of the conflict committed human rights violations, the majority of those violations were by the government's security forces.

Arradon said that many of the human rights violations committed by the security forces – such as torture, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances – constituted crimes under international law.

As a result, the Amnesty report argues the Indonesian government is internationally obliged to investigate the crimes, and "where sufficient evidence exists, to prosecute suspects in accordance with international fair trial standards."

Murtala, part of the NGO delegation and a survivor of the 1999 Simpang KKA slaughter in North Aceh, where Indonesian security forces killed dozens of people, agreed on the need to gird the province's fragile development with a resolution for the past violence.

"Many people are in doubt about the establishment of a human rights court and a truth and reconciliation commission and say it would disturb the peace. But for us [the survivors and victims], it would actually be a way of maintaining the peace," he said.

Indonesia moves towards approving deforestation plan in Aceh

Agence France Presse - April 19, 2013

The Indonesian government has said it aims to approve within a month a plan that would free up vast swathes of protected virgin rainforest on Sumatra island for commercial exploitation.

Rights groups reacted with outrage at the news that the plan, which also needs to be passed by the Aceh provincial parliament, was making progress, saying it would only benefit huge foreign companies and not the area's people.

But Canadian mining company East Asia Minerals, which conducts gold exploration in Aceh, hailed the progress as "positive news for mineral extraction in the area."

The government aimed to approve the plan "in up to a month," senior forestry ministry official Hadi Daryanto said late on Thursday. Rights groups say it will free up around 1.2 million hectares to be cleared.

The head of the Aceh legislative committee overseeing the project, Tengku Anwar, said it had a lot of support in the legislature. "We hope it will go through as soon as possible," he said.

Approval of the plan would open up the forest, on the northern tip of Sumatra province and home to critically endangered orangutans, rhinos, and elephants, for mining, paper and palm oil plantations.

The Aceh government banned the granting of new logging permits six years ago to protect the forest, but a new administration that came in last year is in favor of allowing logging again.

East Asia Minerals' chief executive Edward Rochette said the company was "very pleased" at the progress because if the plan was approved, it would help the group's gold exploration activities.

"These new developments are good progress and positive news for mineral extraction in the area," Rochette said in a statement.

The company said it was working with government officials, and company representatives on the ground in Aceh province were pushing for the forest to be reclassified from "protected forest" to "production forest."

But Friends of the Earth Indonesia campaigner Dedi Ratih said the plan must be "immediately rejected." The plan "is being developed via a highly unhealthy process, in which foreign corporations are intervening and driving local policy," he said.

Ian Singleton, who works in Aceh for the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme, said the East Asia Minerals' statement was "amazing" and that it was "shooting itself in the foot."

"The Aceh government has repeatedly claimed this plan is to benefit the people of Aceh, but this shows that's clearly not the case," he said.

Activist groups call for rights tribunal in Aceh

Jakarta Post - April 19, 2013

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Claiming that none of alleged rights abuses during the 30-year-conflict between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) have been resolved, a coalition of human rights watchdogs has called for the a tribunal to hear past cases of rights violations.

The coalition, which includes Amnesty International and the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said that the tribunal as well as a truth and reconciliation commission, were mandated by the 2005 Helsinki peace agreement.

Between 10,000 and 30,000 civilians are said to have lost their lives during and hundreds of women were raped. None of parties or individuals responsible for the atrocities, either from the Army or GAM, have been arrested.

"Those who survived the conflict suffer immensely. Children never stop asking the whereabouts of their parents and siblings. Families continue to dig up mass graves to search for the remains of their relatives for years," said Murtala, a survivor at the launch of a report on Aceh by Amnesty International on Thursday.

While looking for the remains of his relatives, Murtala helped set up a community for victims in North Aceh where he is a counselor for survivors from the conflict. Murtala said that women, especially rape victims, struggle to survive in the community due to stigma attached to them.

"Many of them blame the rape on themselves. They believe that they were raped because they failed to take care of themselves during the conflict, while some others are convinced that they were raped because they were 'naughty'," Murtala said.

Authorities could help rape victims by acknowledging their plight. "We don't wish to take vengeance. We only want the state to admit the abuses we suffered. Such a recognition will help us, if not the whole of Aceh, to move on and build true peace, not one that is imposed on us," Murtala said.

Kontras Aceh coordinator Destika Gilang said that rape victims endure continual insults from neighbors and government officials. "Neighbors look down on them. Some are subjected to further humiliation from officials, asked to provide photos of their genitals to prove they have been raped when they look for help," Destika said.

The former base of the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) known as Rumah Gedung is one of the biggest sources of trauma for rape victims. Kontras said that rapes and killings took place in the building in the early 1990s.

The Amnesty report says human rights abuses that took place between 1976 and 2005, and peaked during the military operations in 1989, could be considered crimes against humanity and war crimes. As a member of the United Nations, Indonesia must comply with international law and should start to prosecute the abusers.

"By addressing the situation in Aceh, the Indonesian authorities cannot only heal open wounds but strengthen the rule of law and secure peace for the long term," Amnesty International's Deputy Asia Pacific Director Isabelle Arradon.

Contacted separately, former GAM spokesman in Pidie, Adi Laweueng, a knowledged that the rights violations did occur but he wants the public not to rush in making judgements.

"GAM respects the law. We hope that the public also does the same. Let's wait for the ongoing discussion on the provincial bylaw to set up the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which I believe will restore justice in Aceh," he said.

Victims of Aceh conflict await justice in Indonesia

Associated Press - April 19, 2013

Niniek Karmini, Jakarta, Indonesia – An international rights group urged Indonesian authorities on Thursday to seek justice for victims of a separatist conflict in Aceh province that ended with a peace agreement nearly eight years ago, warning that growing resentment could lead to future violence.

Amnesty International said in a report that Indonesian security forces killed, tortured and raped scores of civilians during the years of violence in the province on the northern tip of Sumatra island. It said victims and family members are still struggling, many wondering what happened to relatives who disappeared.

Rebel forces were also accused of taking hostages and killing people believed to be linked to the government.

The group urged the government to publicly acknowledge that widespread human rights abuses occurred and set up a human rights court and a truth and reconciliation commission, as agreed to under the 2005 peace deal. It also called for a formal apology and comprehensive reparations for victims.

The results of a limited government investigation into human rights abuses in Aceh have not been made public, it said.

"It has contributed to a culture of impunity for the serious rights abuses committed during the conflict," Isabelle Arradon, Amnesty International's deputy Asia-Pacific director, said at a news conference in Jakarta. "Not a single new case has been prosecuted since the 2005 peace deal," she said.

Aceh experienced almost constant fighting for more than a century. Violence intensified in 1976 between the Free Aceh Movement and government security forces, killing an estimated 15,000 people.

Efforts to end the civil war gained momentum after a massive earthquake struck in December 2004, triggering a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 230,000 people, half of them in Aceh.

Under the peace agreement, the rebels gave up their long-held demand for independence and handed over their weapons. The government allowed them to participate in local politics and permitted the predominantly Muslim province to implement a version of Sharia law while enjoying semi-autonomy from the central government.

Last month, the Aceh Legislative Council passed a bylaw allowing the official use of the former rebel flag. Thousands of Acehnese later took to the streets demanding that the central government approve it.

But President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the move could be a setback for the peace deal. Talks to find a solution are being held by local and central authorities.

Indonesian forest open for mining, logging

Sydney Morning Herald - April 18, 2013

Michael Bachelard – A mining company has boasted of an Indonesian government decision to free up 1.2 million hectares of virgin forest in Aceh for commercial exploitation.

The announcement to the Canadian stock exchange late on Tuesday was met with disbelief by environmental groups worried about endangered orang- utans, Sumatran tigers, rhinos and elephants across the heavily forested region.

But Ed Rochette, chief executive of Canadian mining company East Asia Minerals, celebrated the "good progress and positive news for mineral extraction in the area".

The company's announcement quotes Anwar, chairman of the Aceh government's spatial planning committee, as saying the Indonesian forestry ministry had accepted "almost 100 per cent of the province's new spatial plan" that would "zone large blocks of previously protected forest for mineral extraction, timber concessions and oil palm plantations".

"Aceh has the most forest cover of any province in Sumatra, which lost 36 per cent of its forests in the past 20 years," the release says. "The new spatial plan would grant nearly 1 million hectares of land for mining, 416,086 for logging and 256,250 hectares for palm oil.

"The plan would also approve an extensive new network of roads through protected forests."

Mr Rochette said his company was "working closely with government officials [in Indonesia] and have company representatives in Aceh to obtain reclassification... from 'protected forest' to 'production forest'."

The company's Miwah gold concession is in a "protected forest" and the company is lobbying for approval for an open-pit mine.

Ian Singleton, of the Sumatran Orang-utan Conservation Program, said the news was "devastating". Logging and palm oil concessions would want to operate in increasingly scarce lowland forest "where the densities of tigers, orang-utans and elephants live", he said.

"They've been arguing for protected forest to be made into production forest, which is obscene." Another environmental expert in Aceh, Graham Usher, warned of "all sorts of environmental issues for communities downstream".

Aceh to set up KKR without national precedence

Jakarta Post - April 18, 2013

Hotli Simanjuntak, Banda Aceh – The Aceh Legislative Council (DPRA) is accelerating the deliberation of a provincial qanun (bylaw) to establish the Commission on Truth and Reconciliation (KKR) in Aceh by holding hearings involving activists and institutions concerned with human rights issues.

The process is deemed to be a measure to accommodate victims of human rights violations in Aceh during the separatist conflict.

Among the institutions attending the event were Elsham, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) Aceh, Conflict Victims Community, Human Rights Watch and various other local institutions concerned with Aceh issues.

"The discussion on the KKR [in Aceh] was suspended after the Constitutional Court [MK] revoked the KKR law at the national level," said DPRA Commission A member Muzari.

He said the DPRA began deliberating the qanun on Aceh KKR in 2006 after the Aceh Freedom Movement (GAM) and the Indonesian government signed the peace accord in Helsinki. In fact, the qanun on Aceh KKR was deemed the highest priority for the DPRA to pass.

"However, the national law on the KKR was canceled, which had implications on the KKR qanun we would have established in Aceh," said Muzari.

The MK canceled Law No. 27/2004 on the Commission on Truth and Reconciliation in 2006 on the grounds that such a commission would not be able to provide legal certainty.

However, as Aceh is regarded as having special privileges in a number of matters, the DPRA decided to deliberate the qanun despite the fact that the Constitutional Court canceled the law.

"We have other bases from which to deliberate the KKR qanun, such as the Helsinki Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) or the Aceh Administration Law that stipulated the establishment of the KKR in Aceh," said DPRA Commission A chairman Adnan Beuransyah, who was appointed to discuss the KKR issue.

Based on the Helsinki MoU, Aceh is obliged to issue a qanun on the KKR despite Indonesia lacking such a commission at the national level.

The accelerated deliberation of the KKR qanun was warmly welcomed by human rights activists in Aceh, as well as at the national and international level.

"We believe that accountability for past crimes serve as a foundation for post-conflict reconstruction by referring to supremacy of the law and respect on basic human rights," said Human Rights Watch representative Andreas Harsono.

Andreas said the Helsinki peace treaty and Aceh Administration Law had explicitly given mandate to the Aceh administration to form the KKR.

The KKR is also deemed as a way for victims of human rights abuse in Aceh to seek justice and prosecute human rights violators.

Kontras Aceh, as one of institutions monitoring human rights violations in Aceh, also warmly welcomed the measure taken by DPRA to deliberate the KKR qanun.

"The victims have often been disappointed by the government's enforcement of human rights. They are currently doing the best they can to fight for their rights," said Kontras Aceh director Destika Gilang.

Destika said human rights activists considered that the community was ready to testify against human rights violations they experienced in the past. The community readiness, Destika said, would be meaningless if the DPRA lacked commitment to establish the KKR through a qanun.

"The legislative institution must ensure that they are committed to deliberate and pass the qanun on KKR in Aceh," said Destika.

Women's rights

Kartini day inspires art, protest in West Java

Jakarta Globe - April 22, 2013

Yuli Krisna & Deti Mega Purnamasari, Bandung/Jakarta – A fashion show like no other was staged in Bandung as part of the Kartini Day celebrations on Sunday.

On the runway were three women in their 20s modeling outfits they had designed and crafted, drawing from rags and other recycled materials. When the show was over, the three model-designers were escorted back to where they have lived for the past several months – the Bandung Women's Penitentiary.

"Inmates are often regarded as society's garbage, which is why we deliberately staged a fashion show of clothes made from garbage," Ningsih, a women's rights activist, told the Jakarta Globe.

She said she organized the event to show people that convicts were normal people who sometimes happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Of the convicts, "85 percent were jailed for being a drug courier and they were mostly tricked or forced to be one," Ningsih said.

Ningsih is the founder of a recycling community called Sekolah Hijau Lestari and has been teaching vocational skills to inmates, making anything from clothes to recycled jewelry.

"It got me thinking: If real garbage can be of use to society, so can people that society deem as garbage," she said.

The penitentiary has some conditions, however: Only inmates who have served a third of their sentence can take part, and they may not speak to reporters.

In other celebrations of Kartini Day, a Jakarta group called the Women's Action Committee invited female passersby to ink out their condemnations of sexual violence on three two-meter-high murals at the Hotel Indonesia Traffic Circle on Sunday.

Also in Jakarta, women from the Indonesian Catering Entrepreneurs Association (APJI) celebrated Kartini Day by breaking a record for cooking the most types of fish at one time.

The women used more than 400 traditional spices to flavor 50 types of fish during an event at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah on Sunday. The event was jointly organized with the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, which aims to boost fish consumption in the country.

The ministry cooperated with various women's organizations from the provincial to the neighborhood level.

Born Raden Ajeng Kartini into an aristocratic Javanese family on April 21, 1879, Kartini is famous for her collections of letters that inspired generations to come to fight for women's empowerment.

The letters were compiled into a book titled " Habis Gelap Terbitlah Terang " ("After the Darkness Comes the Light"), published after her death.

Women to show up in force to commemorate Kartini

Jakarta Post - April 21, 2013

Jakarta – Women in uniform showed off their prowess in riding motorcycles hands free to the cheers of spectators at National Monument (Monas) Park on Friday.

Around 2,500 women from the Indonesian Military (TNI), the National Police and university regiments were holding a rehearsal in advance of a joint ceremony to commemorate Kartini Day on April 22.

"The joint ceremony this year is being handled by the navy. We regularly hold this kind of activity, but among TNI women only. This year is different. We have gathered with polwan [policewomen] and women from the country's other forces, too.

"It's been 10 years since we last had a joint ceremony without the polwan," Navy Col. Nora Lelyana, the commanding officer of the Navy Women's Corps and the head of the event committee, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

"This ceremony is just the beginning. What is important is not the ceremony, but how we tell the government that they can rely on us, too – and not just as a secondary force. We are sure that we have the professional capabilities to be trusted."

It has been over a century since Kartini, a young Javanese noblewoman, broke a tradition and established a school for women, thus triggering the emancipation of women in what would become Indonesia.

In 1964, founding president Sukarno declared Kartini's birthday, April 21, as Kartini Day and proclaimed her a National Hero. The struggle, however, continues until today, as women still have to struggle for their freedom, autonomy and equality under the law.

Nora said that the movement that Kartini started has inspired women to expand their roles in many aspects of life. "For example, what TNI women do today in military operations offers good proof that women can be the main players, too," Nora said.

Brig. Efi Nurjaman of the Jakarta Police Motor Brigade agreed. "Kartini is an inspiring figure. She is a hero. If not for her efforts, we women in Indonesia would not be equal as now," adding that many important positions in the National Police were currently held by women.

Efi and 17 of her colleagues will be a part of a big motorcycle show on Monday. "We have practiced for two weeks and we are proud that the rehearsals went well," she said.

"I've just received instructions to add more forces for the final celebration on Monday. It is going to be very crowded and people are welcome to come and see the ceremony," she said.

The women will entertain the public with the Haka-haka war dance and demonstrations of Army self-defense techniques, as well as music performances. (hrl)

Applying Kartini's message in present-day Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - April 21, 2013

Abdul Qowi Bastian – "In my mind and heart," a young woman read. She took a deep breath and went on, "... I do not wholly live in the Dutch East Indies; I feel like I live in an era with my white sisters in the far away West."

The young woman stood on a stage in a dimly lit room. In her hands were letters written more than 100 years ago. Accompanied by acoustic guitar and violin, university student Winner Fransisca read excerpts from a letter written by Kartini, an Indonesian heroine, in May 1899 to a penpal in the Netherlands.

Activists, academics and artists on Thursday read Kartini's letters to remember her ideas that inspired the women's emancipation movement in Indonesia.

Kartini, usually referred to by her title Raden Ajeng, was born into an aristocratic Javanese family on April 21, 1879. Her father was a district head of Jepara in Central Java. Her mother was his father's first wife. During the Dutch colonial era, polygamy was a common practice.

Her father being a Javanese aristocrat working for the colonial administration, Kartini had the privilege to attend school, which exposed her to Western ideas and feminist thinking. She was fluent in Dutch, an unusual accomplishment for Javanese women at the time.

Kartini attended school until the age of 12. Under the old Javanese tradition, she was secluded at home to prepare for marriage. During this seclusion period, she wrote letters to her friends abroad. The letters were compiled into a book called "Habis Gelap Terbitlah Terang" ("Out of Darkness Into Light") and published posthumously.

In 1964, she was declared an Indonesian national heroine by President Sukarno and her birthday was subsequently named Kartini Day, which is celebrated annually.

During President Suharto's New Order era, however, the image of Kartini was reconfigured from that of a radical feminist to a domestic wife.

"We read her letters to remind Indonesia that Kartini Day is not about women and girls wearing kebayas and batik with elaborate hairstyles supposedly replicating Kartini's attire," said Okky Madasari, an award- winning novelist and one of the event organizers. "It's about remembering her ideas and what she fought for."

Okky and Faiza Mardzoeki, playwright and director of the Purple Institute, held an event reading Kartini's letters on Thursday to commemorate Kartini Day, which takes place today.

Kartini dedicated her life to improving the conditions of Javanese women, who had low social status, through education. But Kartini's concerns spanned beyond women's empowerment. Not only did she want indigenous women to reach their dreams, attain freedom and obtain legal equality, she also criticized the education system and mainstream religion.

Kartini, through her letters, protested against any obstacle for the development of Javanese women. When her parents arranged her marriage to a district head of Rembang – who was 25 years older than her and already had three wives – at first she resisted, but eventually agreed to appease her ailing father. She later added one condition: She could establish a school for women.

"Kartini was a survivor, she was a victim of feudalism. She fought with her pen, wrote and established a school," Faiza said.

Women and marriage

"I do not respect Javanese men. How could I admire a married man who, if bored with the mother of his children, could bring another woman into his house and marry her legally under Islamic law?" author Firliana Purwanti recited a passage from another of Kartini's letter.

One hundred and thirty four years since the birth of Kartini, her progressive ideas still ring true to the ears of Indonesian women today. Despite marrying a man who was already married, Kartini was staunchly against polygamy.

Last year, former Garut district head Aceng Fikri married a 17-year-old girl to be his second wife. After only four days, he divorced her via text message.

"A lot of men still practice polygamy, although since about 100 years ago, it has been seen as unfair," Faiza said. Women who are in a polygamous relationship are also prone to suffering psychological abuse, she added.

Sri Nurherwati, the head of the recovery system development commission of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), said such cases were a result of patriarchal elements of Indonesia's culture and legal system.

In another case involving a public official, the wife of Magelang deputy mayor Joko Prasetyo, Siti Rubaidah, reported her husband to the police in January this year after he repeatedly hit her.

Sri said that despite the existence of laws against domestic violence, it was often treated as a personal issue rather than a public one. "There are hardly any reports because of the imbalanced relationship between the husband and wife," she said. "Wives are often ignored and domestic violence is often considered a family matter."

Indonesia's efforts to empower women have also been hampered by weak implementation of laws and legislation designed to promote women's rights.

Additionally, there are exsisting laws and bylaws that work against women. Komnas Perempuan in 2012 released a report that found 282 bylaws that discriminated against women. Among them were bylaws that prohibited women from dressing in certain ways and going out late at night.

Indonesia is also struggling in the women's development sector as the deadline for reaching the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) approaches. Under the MDGs, the country's maternal mortality rate must decrease to 102 per 100,000 by 2015.

Based on the United Nations Development Program's Gender Development Index, Indonesia's current maternal mortality rate of 228 per 100,000 remains one of the highest in Southeast Asia.

Limited access to hospitals and clinics has been blamed for the difficulties in reducing the maternal mortality rate by exposing women to higher risks of infection.

Kartini herself died only four days after giving birth to a child in 1904, a year after her marriage.

Educating the people

"Providing a good education is like the government putting a lantern in the hands of the people, so they can find their own way..." actress Tiga Setia Gara voiced Kartini's desire for decent education for her people.

Prior to her untimely death at the age of 25, Kartini founded a school for young girls; she obtained permission to open the first all-girls school in the nation. Kartini realized that education is everyone's right, but unfortunately not every child in Indonesia today has access to quality education.

Although 95 percent of Indonesian children are enrolled in elementary school, according to a report released by UNDP, the country's education system is routinely criticized for its emphasis on rote learning rather than creative thinking.

From charges of setting an irrelevant curriculum to corruption allegations, wide-scale cheating in the national exams and substandard facilities, Indonesia's national education system has long been a target of criticism.

Indonesia Corruption Watch has sounded the alarm over the alleged misuse of the education budget. "Based on ICW's observations on corruption in the education sector in 2012, there were at least 40 corruption cases uncovered," researcher Siti Juliantari said.

She attributed the high corruption rate in the education sector to lack of transparency and accountability and schools in planning their spending.

Kartini's unfinished business

Kartini's legacy has remain strong until today as Indonesian women are still trying to make their way through a male-dominated society.

However, Indonesian women, to a point, are better off today than they were in Kartini's time. Women now can run for political office but there are still much work to be done.

A number of women on top are sadly entangled in corruption cases, names such as Angelina Sondakh, Miranda Goeltom and Hartati Murdaya spring into mind. And ironically enough, a Semarang anti-corruption judge Kartini Marpaung was sentenced to eight years in jail, just days before Kartini Day.

Gender equality does not come automatically. It has taken hundreds of years to reach the point where Indonesian women are today. Young girls want to follow Kartini's footsteps but they tend to overlook her ideas and are drawn to her oversimplified symbol. The war for women's empowerment is not over and the fight to create a country without injustice and discrimination continues.

Indonesian women are still struggling to practice what Kartini advocated in her letters, but as we are reminded by her letters: "If we want to attain a perfect civilization, then the maturation of intelligence and conscience must go side by side."

Gay rights activists in Bali call for end to violence and discrimination

Tribune News - April 21, 2013

Denpasar – The commemoration of Kartini Day in Denpasar on Sunday April 21 was enlivened by a protest action by the Balinese Women and Children's Social Network of Concern (JAMPAP).

The group gave speeches and held a theatrical action on the theme of ending violence against women and children in front of the Balanese People's Struggle Monument in Renon, Denpasar city.

Interestingly, the demonstration was joined by scores of transvestites from the Kuta Transvestite Community (Ogawata) who took part in shouting slogans opposing violence against women and children.

JAMPAP action coordinator Yastini from the Bali Legal Aid Foundation (LBH) said that the action was held to build an understanding in society about the importance of ending all forms of violence against women and children. "We want to promote awareness that violence and discrimination is still taking place and this violence must end", said Yastini.

Ogawata activist Jovan added that the transvestite community was inspired by and wanted to be involved in the action because they also felt concerned about violence against women and children. According to Jovan, they too want to build awareness in society that transvestites are also venerable to and experience discrimination and violence. "We want this violence to stop", said Jovan during a break in the action.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Activists call on women to think like Kartini, fight discrimination

Kompas.com - April 21, 2013

Zico Nurrashid Priharseno, Jakarta – Around 30 people from the Women's Action Committee (KAP) held a protest action at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta on Sunday April 21.

In addition to opposing violence against women, they also called on the public to read and understand the letters written by RA Kartini. The fourth wife of Regent Rembang wrote a number of letters about the women's struggle at a time when discrimination against women was still rife.

The writings can be found in a book titled "Out of Dark Comes Light". "These days may people only know Kartini as the mother of emancipation, but do not know anything about her thoughts", said KAP member Mutiara Eka Pratiwi on Sunday.

Kartini wrote the letters over a period of six years since she was 12 years old while she was being kept in seclusion before being married. In that era, women were considered weak, were not allowed to attend school, work or even leave the house. It was this that inspired Kartini to write about her thoughts on the differences that existed at that time.

"I was inspired when she wrote that Javanese people had to bow down to the Dutch in the past. These days [we] don't bow down to colonialists, but to [our] superiors. We can see that there are still many women workers who are sexually harassed by their superiors", said Pratiwi.

It is for this reason that Pratiwi believes that modern women must think like Kartini. According to Pratiwi, women who become victims still experience injustice and difficulties when reporting cases to the authorities. Aside from the law, which fails to side with victims, law enforcement officials still tend to blame the victims.

"The same goes for statements by government officials about cases of sexual violence, who still blame women for what they wear, so they believe women deserve to be victims", said Pratiwi.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Workers commemorate Kartini Day with call to reject fuel price hike

Kompas.com - April 21, 2013

Heru Sri Kumoro, Jakarta – Scores of workers from the Association of Independent Trade Unions (GSBI) commemorated Kartini Day on Sunday April 21 with a protest action at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta.

The protesters called on the public to oppose the government's planned fuel price hike, for an end to the exploitation of women, an end to discrimination, wage rises for workers and for a reduction in the price of basic goods.

In addition to women wearing traditional kebaya dresses, the protest was also joined by male workers. The protesters took turns in giving speeches. "The government has given us a sweet gift on this commemoration of Kartini Day, namely the planned fuel price hike. Fuel price increases will be followed by a rise in other prices. The people will loose out", said one of the speakers.

During the action the protesters brought organisational flags and posters with messages such as, "Increase workers' wages", "Reject the Social Security Management Agency Law", "Reject the fuel price hike" and "Stop free trade".

The action was also held in the context of preparations to commemorate International Labour Day (May Day) on May 1.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Activists demand repeal of regulation on circumcision

Jakarta Globe - April 20, 2013

Yuli Krisna, Bandung – "Once a baby girl is 40 days old, she can be circumcised. That's the tradition," says Lusi, a mother of one. "My mother says the child must bleed, but the midwife said there's no bleeding involved because she's just cleaning it up down there."

Lusi is one of many mothers in Indonesia who subject their daughters to a procedure involving pricking and piercing the hood of the clitoris with a needle, citing an Islamic belief that it will keep the girl's libido in check when she grows up.

Although there is no official data to gauge the extent of the practice, women's and children's rights activists say it is widespread, particularly in rural areas.

Ellin Rozana, the executive director of the Women's Institute, an advocacy group, argues that a Health Ministry regulation issued in 2010 that legitimizes the practice must be repealed.

She says the government's rationale – that the form of female circumcision performed in the country is largely symbolic and not harmful – is irrelevant, and that no form of female circumcision can be justified on religious grounds.

"Admittedly the circumcision practiced in Indonesia isn't as bad as in some African countries, where they mutilate parts of the girl's genitals," she tells the Jakarta Globe.

"Here they call it pricking and cleaning, but there's no clear reason for why it has to be done. It's different from male circumcision, which has clear health benefits."

Ellin says the age-old reason given, that the circumcision prevents a girl from having a high sex drive and thus from becoming sexually promiscuous, highlights the patriarchal and discriminative nature of traditional Islamic Indonesian society toward women.

"There's this idea that if a girl is circumcised, she will grow up to be a 'good girl' with a low sex drive," she says. "But this is a question of a woman's reproductive rights, her right to enjoy sex."

The government initially banned all forms of female circumcision in 2006. Four years later, however, it made an about-face and issued a regulation giving health workers the discretion to perform circumcisions as they saw fit.

The government argued that the regulation was needed because the all-out ban had led to large numbers of parents getting their daughters circumcised by unqualified shamans and traditional healers, thereby putting their children at high risk of medical complications.

The Health Ministry regulation defines permissible female circumcision as "an incision of the skin covering the front of the clitoris, without cutting the clitoris."

But a 2003 study by the Population Council found that 22 percent of 1,307 female circumcision cases in the country were excisions, meaning that part of the clitoris or labia was removed. Of the rest, 49 percent involved incisions while only 28 percent were of the "symbolic" prick-and-clean type.

Ellin argues that as minimalist as it seems, the kind of circumcision allowed by the government is still unacceptable under internationally recognized standards on women's rights.

In December, the United Nations passed a resolution banning female genital mutilation, which extends to the circumcision practiced in Indonesia.

Procedures such as pricking, piercing, incising, scraping, cauterization or burning that are carried out for non-medical purposes are categorized by the World Health Organization as mutilation along with practices that alter or remove any part of the genitals.

Back in Bandung, Lusi has come to realize that she did not need to have her daughter circumcised. "I found out too late that what I did was a violation of my child's rights," she says.

[Additional reporting from AFP.]

Men out to end violence against women

Jakarta Post - April 19, 2013

Jakarta – On a recent sunny Sunday at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Jakarta, five men in miniskirts displayed posters condemning violence against women.

One of the posters read, "Real Men Don't Rape", while another said, "Let's unite to fight against rape".

Syaldi Sahude, one of three national coordinators for The New Men's Alliance (ALLB) said the alliance was created to raise awareness among men about the need to end violence against women. "We also want men to be more concerned about gender equality, because discrimination leads to violence," Syaldi said.

ALLB was established in response to the increasing violence against women in Indonesia. The Commission on Violence against Women (Komnas Perempuan) recorded 4,335 rapes in Indonesia in 2011, of which 2,937 cases happened in public spaces.

Syaldi, who formerly worked for Jurnal Perempuan (Women's Journal) often met victims of violence, like women who were raped during the May 1998 riots. She said that ALLB came into being on Oct. 8 during a meeting with activists from Women Rights nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), such as Jurnal Perempuan, Pulih Foundation, Cahaya Perempuan Women's Crisis Center Bengkulu, Rifka Annisa of Yogyakarta, Rumah Perempuan (Women's Home) Kupang, and Men's Forum from Aceh.

The meeting, facilitated by World Population Foundation Indonesia, decided that ALLB should base its activities in Yogyakarta because its activists were already working closely with Rifka Annisa there.

ALLB sees violence against women as just one of the negative results of a patriarchal system. The alliance believes it causes various kinds of trouble for women and for men too.

"When I was a teenager in Makassar, I bowed to peer pressure and bullied transvestites. I realized that was wrong. So when I moved to Jakarta, I decided to get a closer look at the impact of patriarchy on society by working with women's organizations. I came to understand, for example, that men should not be afraid to cry; that this would not make them weak," he said.

Kiki, a female supporter of ALLB, said that she believes that men also want to tell other people about their problems, like women feel free to do. "Most men are reluctant to tell others about their problems, because the patriarchal society expects them to be tough and independent," she said.

An ALLB supporter, Dylan, said that he never differentiates by gender. "Humans are all equal. I really hate men who violate women. My best friend's former husband beat her and cracked her back. I dropped out from a band because I found out one of the band members beat his wife," he said.

Syaldi and the supporters of ALLB believe that there are more men who don't violate women than ones who do.

Shera, an ALLB supporter and formerly of Jurnal Perempuan, told of how she took the man who raped her to court and saw him go to prison. "The violence traumatized me, and even now, when I remember it, I get really down. So, the nonviolent men, the silent majority, really do need to come forward to help women end the violence," she said.

Neng Dara Affiah, a commissioner from Komnas Perempuan says, "On behalf of Komnas Perempuan I can say that we support the ALLB, because the eradication of violence against women will never happen if men don't support that. I hope they can expand their territory to reach more people."

Wulan Danoekoesoemo, from Lentera Indonesia, a sexual violence survivor circle said, "I'm so happy to know that there are men who also fight for gender equality. It would be good if nonviolent men could do more to protect women from any kind of violence or abuse."

ALLB takes this mission to heart and cooperates closely to counsel male perpetrators of violence against women with various women's organizations, including Rifka Annisa and Cahaya Perempuan Bengkulu, which coordinate their activities with law enforcement and correctional institutions.

"We help them mostly by providing capacity sources to counsel perpetrators," Syaldi said. "Actually, we have several goals to achieve in gender equality awareness, but this year we are focusing on the campaign to educate more men to end violence against women," he added.

"We are particularly concerned that the punishment for rape in the criminal code is not harsh enough. Rapists only face 15 years maximum in prison, and most don't serve that much time, while rape victims suffer for a lifetime," he said.

The ALLB also has a forum where men can talk about gender equality issues. "If anyone wants to join us, just follow our twitter account @lakilakibaru, like our facebook page, or look for more details on our website http://lakilakibaru.or.id/," Syaldi said. (ian)

Women's groups establish movement to combat sexual violence, rape

Okezone - April 19, 2013

Susi Fatimah, Jakarta – The failure of law enforcement officials to protect women from sexual violence and rape has prompted an alliance of women from Free Women (Perempuan Mahardika), the Cross-Factory Labour Forum (FBLP) and Marsinah Radio FM to form a movement called the Progressive Labour Front (Barisan Maju Buruh, BAMBU) for Women.

BAMBU coordinator Ampi said that the formation of the movement was in the context of providing information and education to women so that they can protect themselves from widespread acts of violence and rape.

"We will provide awareness through education. Initiate campaigns in the form of leaflets and speeches, so that women have the know how to confront perpetrators by any and all means", said Ampi at the offices of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) in Jakarta on Friday April 19.

The BAMBU movement itself, continued Ampi, will be launched to coincide with Kartini Day on April 21 in Cakung, North Jakarta. The event will be attended by thousands of workers who will bring bamboo sticks measuring 40 centimeters as self-defense against acts of violence against women.

Ampi also said that they will be urging women workers to carry the bamboo sticks during their daily activities, in order to prevent acts of violence on the streets. This is particularly the case for women that have no access to transport facilities when they return home from work after 9pm.

"The women should carry the bamboo [sticks] in their bags, that's what we will be telling our comrades. If they are trapped they can brandish the bamboo [stick]", she said.

In addition to providing awareness through education, BAMBU will also facilitate legal assistance for victims of violence and rape. "We the BAMBU front will accept reports of violence against women and are ready to provide advocacy", she said in closing. (teb)

Notes

Raden Ajeng Kartini was an Indonesian regent's daughter during the Dutch colonial period who, through her letters home, outlined her dreams of a better life for women. She died aged 25 a few days after giving birth to her first child. A variety of myths have made the original Kartini a nationalist hero and feminist symbol. Hari Kartini (Kartini Day, April 21) is a public holiday dedicated to the memory of the turn-of-the-century hero.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

75 percent of women workers in Jakarta experience sexual violence

Kompas - April 19, 2013

Zico Nurrashid Priharseno, Jakarta – To this day many women workers become victims of sexual crimes. In Jakarta, there are around 80 thousand workers and as many as 90 percent of these are women. Seventy-five of women workers in Jakarta have experienced sexual violence.

Based on data released by the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) for 2012, there were 216,156 cases of sexual violence, among which 2,521 were experienced by women workers. This figure is based on women workers who have reported the incidents.

According to Factory Level Labour Community (KBTP) coordinator Jumingsih, cases of sexual harassment experienced by women workers often occur in the factory. The perpetrators can be anyone, from their superiors to fellow male workers.

"Commonly workers are raped under the threat that their contracts will not be extended. This has been happening at factories in North Jakarta", she said at the offices of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) in Central Jakarta on Friday April 19.

Moreover, according to Jumingsih, women workers often become targets of sexual harassment outside the factory. This usually occurs when women are returning home at night after working overtime. "When we return home after 10pm there is no safe [public] transport available so it's when [we] return home that rapes occur", she said.

Jumingsih said that victims should report all cases of harassment to the authorities, however there are still many cases that are not resolved by the police.

According to Jumingsih this is because of weak law enforcement in Indonesia when it comes to cases of sexual harassment, particularly if the victim is a women worker. "Here, we can see that there is discrimination against women workers", said Jumingsih.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Women activists demand higher political representation

Jakarta Post - April 17, 2013

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Representatives of the government and the House of Representatives told a court hearing on Tuesday that the new legislative election law did not sideline women and was devised to empower them politically.

They were responding to women activists' claims that the law was discriminatory against women for not strictly requiring political parties to ensure that at least 30 percent of their executives are females.

The activists, calling themselves the Women Coalition, are requesting that the Constitutional Court amend the law, arguing that the 2012 Legislative Election Law is against their constitutional rights.

They challenged Article 8 Paragraph 2 (e), Article 55, the explanation of Article 56 Paragraph 2 and Article 215 (b) on women's participation in legislative elections, saying that the clauses did not provide legal certainty and did not side with women as they were not binding. They further argued the articles were open to various interpretations.

Home Ministry spokesman Reydonnyzar Moenek, who represented the government, stopped short of saying whether the 30 percent quota was binding or not but made clear that it was a "political decision" that should be supported. "The 30 percent quota stipulated in the law is a political decision. Therefore we all should support it," he said, adding that it would guarantee women's participation in the election.

Lawmaker Martin Hutabarat, who represented the House, dismissed plaintiffs arguments. He told the hearing that the law would not impede women who wanted to enter the race. He disagreed with the petitioners, who had argued that the word "or" in the Article 56 Paragraph 2 was discriminative as it would not allow two women to sit on a sequence.

According to Martin, the article – which stipulates having at least one female candidate for every three candidates – gave more opportunity for women in politics as it did not fix a 3:1 ratio. "The phrase 'at least' means there can be more than one female candidate for every three candidates," he said.

Article 56 Paragraph (2) says that political parties should have at least one female candidate for every three candidates. The article's explanation says that for every three candidates, the female candidate can be placed in the first, second or third position. The Constitutional Court adjourned the hearing.

Although the General Elections Commission (KPU) has ruled that parties not meeting the 30-percent quota for female candidates would be disqualified from districts where they failed to meet the requisite number, the coalition insisted that the passage in the 2012 Election Law requiring political parties to better represent women was not binding.

Former head of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) Erna Ratnaningsih, who represented the plaintiffs, said after the hearing that such non-binding provisions would only close women's access to politics.

According to the UNDP's 2013 Human Development Report titled "The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World", Indonesia even lags behind Laos and Vietnam in terms of women's presence in lawmaking bodies.

The UN report also said that Indonesia had the worst record – with 106th rank on the 2012 Gender Inequality Index – in Southeast Asia. Indonesia lags behind its ASEAN peers such as Singapore (13th rank), Malaysia (42), Vietnam (48), Philippines (77), Myanmar (80), Cambodia (96) and Laos (100).

Based on the World Bank 2011 data, women constitute 50.14 percent of Indonesia's total population of 244 million people, but they occupy only 18.2 seats in the House of Representatives, much below the ideal quota of 30 percent set by the General Elections Commission (KPU).

The 2012 Election Law has drawn criticism from the Islam-based United Development Party (PPP), saying that such a women's quota was "irrational" as it was not easy to find women candidates.

Indonesia lags behind Rwanda in number of women in parliament: UNDP

Jakarta Post - April 16, 2013

Veeramalla Anjaiah, Jakarta – Do you know which country has the most women in its parliament? It is certainly not in a developed country like America nor in Europe or in Asia. It's in the Central African country of Rwanda.

According to the UNDP's 2013 Human Development Report titled "The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World", more than 51 percent of Rwandan parliament members are currently women, and countries like Andora, Cuba, Senegal, South Africa and Nicaragua have a better representation of women in their parliaments.

Likewise, Sweden, Finland and Iceland appeared in the top 10 positions with the highest number of females in their parliaments. What about Indonesia?

Currently, according to the UNDP, Indonesia even lags behind Laos, Vietnam and Singapore in terms of women's presence in lawmaking bodies.

The UN report also said that Indonesia had the worst record with 106th rank on the 2012 Gender Inequality Index in Southeast Asia. Indonesia lags behind its ASEAN peers such as Singapore (13th rank), Malaysia (42), Vietnam (48), Philippines (77), Myanmar (80), Cambodia (96) and Laos (100). Brunei Darussalam's rank was not mentioned in the report.

In Indonesia, based on the Election Law No. 8/2012, all the political parties must allocate at least 30 percent of seats in the national, regional and local legislative bodies to women.

But male-dominated political parties are reluctant to propose women candidates in the legislative elections. For example, the Islam-based United Development Party (PPP) harshly criticized the Election Law on women candidates as "not rational".

"All the regulations must be realistic. In reality, [finding] women candidates is not easy. The KPU must make laws that are rational," PPP chairman and Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali said early this month as reported by Kompas.com. "Only a small number of women want to be politicians. In the end, we will deceive ourselves by just fulfilling the quota".

Women and activists have voiced dissenting arguments against Suryadarma's standpoint. "The government is committed to implementing the regulation regarding allocation of 30 percent of seats in legislative bodies to women. We want to encourage all the political parties to implement this regulation. It will be a progressive step in our democracy," Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry's deputy for women's rights protection Luly Altruiswaty told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

While commenting on the so called "qualified" women legislative candidates, Luly said that Indonesia had thousands of qualified candidates. "We have never had a shortage of talented women in Indonesia. Why do people only ask about qualified women? Why do they never ask about qualified men?," she said.

Media reports showed that several lawmakers were involved in corrupt practices. Some of them were already jailed, and were notorious for not attending many House sessions. Some of them take a nap or play with their electronic gadgets during important House deliberations.

House members' frequent unnecessary foreign trips also, of late, have come under public scrutiny. Once, former president Abdurrahman Wahid compared House members to kindergarten students.

Sexual & domestic violence

Koran teacher in East Kalimantan arrested for raping student

Jakarta Globe - April 16, 2013

Tunggadewa Mattangkilang, Tarakan – A Koran recital teacher who is also an imam at a Tarakan mosque in East Kalimantan has been arrested after admitting to raping one of his students, an 8-year old girl.

The girl's mother reported 40-year old Sul to the police upon learning of her daughter's ordeal.

"According to the victim's parent, the incident happened on Saturday [April 13]. The victim claimed that she was sexually abused by the suspect in the mosque after a Koran recital class," Tarakan Police Chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Desman S. Tarigan said on Tuesday.

"The parent only learned about it on Sunday after the child complained that she felt pain in her genitals."

Desman said police immediately apprehended Sul, who admitted to the investigators that he raped the victim and was immediately named a suspect and detained.

A doctor's examination also confirmed that the victim was suffering from internal bleeding and wounds due to the rape. Investigators believe they may be more victims, because the suspect was teaching about 30 children, most of whom were girls.

"Based on reports from the public, this was not the first time that he has committed this, but that he has done this several times. We have asked the residents to file a report," Deman said.

The suspect has been charged under Article 81(2) and Article 82 of Law No. 23/2002 on child protection. "It carries a 15-year punishment and that's quite high," he said.

Amir, a parent, said he was shocked when he heard about the news because two of his daughters, one aged 8 and another aged 12, were also Sul's students.

"From what I know, he has a wife and five children," Amir said. "He's a teacher's assistant in an elementary school. At night, he teaches Koran to children."

Amir said that Sul was also a mosque Imam in Selumit Pantai. "There was a news about Sul before, that once he tried to rape a student in a mosque after studying the Koran, but it did not happen because the child fought back," he added.

Labour & migrant workers

Labor law fails to protect workers from outsourcing dilemmas: Researcher

Jakarta Globe - April 18, 2013

ID/Agustiyanti – While a labor law to protect workers' rights was passed a decade ago, laborers still suffer from discrimination and unfair employment terms due to outsourcing, a researcher said on Thursday.

Indrasari Tjandraningsih, a researcher at Akatiga Social Research Center, a nongovernmental research organization, said the 2003 Labor Law formally legalized outsourcing – the local term for contracting employees who are hired from outside firms.

"The outsourcing system is very problematic. Amid the increase of open unemployment in the past five years, outsourcing has become one of the answers for workers who do not get in the formal markets," Indrasari said. She said outsourcing can cause pay disparity among employees doing the same job, depending on whether they have been permanently hired.

"Outsourced workers' salaries are on average 26 percent lower than the permanent workers," she said. She added that outsourced workers also face discrimination based on their marital status, as companies are required to cover certain spouse-related costs, along with restrictions on joining unions.

"Akatiga research in industrial centers in West Java, East Java and Riau Islands in 2010 showed that outsourcing work tends to harm workers and it also had not shown job [advancement] opportunities," she said.

Meanwhile, Titik Handayani, a researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said that labor regulations on outsourcing could protect workers if they are tightly implemented and supervised. She said that weak law enforcement and lack of oversight were a bigger problems for outsourced workers.

"Besides that, substantially speaking, the 2003 Labor Law has unclear regulations that could lead to multiple interpretations and open opportunities for violations," Titik said.

Outsourcing has come under fire in Indonesia where labor protests in April shut down sections of Central Jakarta as workers demanded an end to what they call an unfair practice. Outsourced workers often lack access to the job security, annual bonuses or company benefits enjoyed by permanent employees.

According to government data, Indonesia has 16 million outsourced workers, or roughly 40 percent of the country's formal labor force of 41 million.

Under the 2003 Labor Law companies are not allowed to outsource core jobs and can only outsource five types of peripheral work, namely cleaning services, security, driving, catering and work relating to support mining.

Indonesian workers to strike over subsidized fuel price hike

Jakarta Globe - April 17, 2013

Dessy Sagita – Following the government's plan to raise the price of subsidized gasoline for private vehicle owners, labor unions announced on Wednesday that 10 million workers would strike in August to protest the proposed action.

"The Alliance of Indonesian Labor Unions [MPBI] – which consists of more than four million laborers – rejects the plan. We can assure that one million protesters will flood the streets on May 1, and that 10 million workers will go on strike on August 16," Said Iqbal, the chairman of the MPBI, told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday.

"The government never mentioned any guarantee that it wouldn't increase transportation tariffs, housing prices or the prices of basic necessities," he went on.

Said claimed that the government's proposal was unclear and it did not specify whether the budget used for subsidies would be reallocated toward other public welfare projects. "We will always fight against policies made for no clear purpose," he said.

On Tuesday, a coordination meeting involving several ministers and governors from across the country resulted in a proposal to increase the price of subsidized fuel for private vehicles from Rp 4,500 per liter to Rp 6,000 per liter.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa said full fuel subsidies would still be provided for poor people. "Some groups will still be fully subsidized, while for some others, the subsidy will be reduced, though not cut altogether," he said.

Hatta added that the government considered all of its options before proposing the price hike.

Political parties & elections

House races set for graft, dangdut

Jakarta Post - April 22, 2013

Margareth Aritonang and Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Corruption suspects, television personalities, dangdut stars and the police officer better known as the Bollywood cop are topping the veritable rogue's gallery of potential legislative candidates submitted by political parties to election officials.

Parties submitted to the General Election Commission (KPU) on Sunday their lists of prospective candidates for each of the nation's 560 electoral districts in anticipation of elections for the House of Representatives in 2014.

A senior Democratic Party official said that the party had forwarded the names of 133 of its 148 incumbent lawmakers for reelection next year, including Max Sopacua, Saan Mustopa, Sutan Bhatoegana and Johnny Allen – all of whom have been implicated in graft cases.

"Our lawmakers have built relationships with the people," Democratic Party executive chairman Syariefuddin Hasan said on Sunday. "They have also had experience on how to do their jobs, which will help them to improve their performance as well as the party".

"We are still a clean, civilized and intelligent party," Syarief added.

Lawmaker and party deputy executive chairman Max Sopacua was questioned by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) after former Democratic Party treasurer Muhammad Nazaruddin alleged that Max accepted funds embezzled from the construction of the athletes village for the SEA Games in Palembang, South Sumatra.

Some incumbent lawmakers endorsed by the Golkar Party were Setya Novanto, Kahar Muzakir, Bambang Soesatyo, Aziz Syamsuddin and Chairunnisa, all of whom were also implicated in graft cases. Setya and Muzakir were implicated in the National Games (PON) graft scandal.

KPU commissioner Hadar Navis Gumay said that there was little that the commission could do to block the reelection bids of lawmakers involved in graft. "Under KPU regulations, the KPU cannot deny them the opportunity to register as candidates before they have been proven guilty."

Hadar said that the KPU would even have to approve the candidacies of corruption convicts if they could prove that they have completed their sentences.

Political parties on Sunday also forwarded the names of celebrities as potential candidates.

Golkar Secretary-General Idrus Marham announced on Sunday that Golkar had forwarded the name of television presenter Charles Bonar Sirait to the commission. If elected, Charles would join the ranks of the famous-turned- politicians in the party, including actress Nurul Arifin, quiz show host Tantowi Yahya and 1960s folk singer Tetty Kadi.

Meanwhile, former police officer Norman Kamaru, better known as Briptu Norman, the Bollywood cop, who shot to fame after a video of showed him singing Shahrukh Khan's "Chaiyya Chaiyya" went viral in 2011, was nominated as a legislative candidate by the National Mandate Party (PAN) to represent Gorontalo.

The NasDem Party also nominated celebrities, including actor and model Donny Damara, actress Jane Shalimar, hip-hop singer Melly Manuhutu, former national badminton player and Olympic gold medalist Ricky Soebagja and former national soccer squad coach Nil Maizar.

"They have their own character and are capable of voicing the people's aspirations," NasDem Party secretary-general Rio Patrice Capella told The Jakarta Post. "For example Ricky and Nil know exactly about sports and are fit for House's sports commission."

The Muslim-based United Development Party (PPP) recruited four celebrities as legislative candidates: model Ratih Sanggarwati, pop singer Emilia Contessa and dangdut singers Cici Paramida and Angel Lelga.

The party, led by Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali, also nominated Munarman, the controversial spokesman of the hard-line Islam Defenders Front (FPI).

Political analyst Arie Sudjito of Gadjah Mada University's school of social and political sciences said the recruitment of celebrities indicated a failure to nurture quality politicians, one of political parties' most important functions in a democracy.

"Our democracy is becoming more superficial," Arie told the Post. "Many of these celebrities don't represent the identity of the parties themselves." (ian)

Yudhoyono loyalists, relatives fill new Democratic Party line up

Jakarta Post - April 22, 2013

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – The Democratic Party has revealed its new leadership lineup, with the relatives of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and members of his inner circle appointed to the party's strategic central executive board.

The new organizational structure, comprising 190 officials, was announced at party headquarters in Central Jakarta on Sunday. Yudhoyono, who pledged that he would not become preoccupied with party affairs at the expense of his presidential duties, was not present.

Democratic Party executive chairman Syariefuddin Hasan defended the party's expanded structure.

"The more party members involved in the organizational structure, the better the party's organizational machine will be," Syarief, who is also cooperatives and small and medium enterprises minister, told reporters.

"With more individuals serving as party executives, it means that there is wider chance for the people to channel their aspirations to the party," Syarief added.

The minister has been an ardent supporter of Yudhoyono and was recently appointed executive chairman by Yudhoyono after his own election as chairman at an extraordinary party congress in Bali last month.

Another dependable Yudhoyono supporter, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Jero Wacik, was appointed secretary of the supreme assembly, the highest organ in the party's structure.

Meanwhile, the President's son, Edhie "Ibas" Baskoro Yudhoyono, remains secretary-general, the most-powerful position after party chairman.

One of Yudhoyono's in-laws, Hartanto Edhie Wibowo, is head of the party's State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) department, a strategic position as an intermediary between the party and dozens of SOEs.

Toto Riyanto, a retired Air Force marshall and who graduated from the Military Academy with Yudhoyono in 1973, has retained his position as party's executive director.

Another academy classmate of Yudhoyono, Lt. Gen. (ret.) Cornel Simbolon, was appointed head of the party's organizational development division.

The new lineup features three new deputy chairpersons: Nurhayati Ali Assegaf, a confidant of First Lady Ani Yudhoyono and leader of Democratic Party lawmakers at the House of Representatives; Agus Hermanto, a lawmaker and another Yudhoyono in-law; and Soekarwo, the governor of East Java.

Incumbent deputy chairmen Jhonny Allen Marbun and Max Sopacua kept their positions.

"We have opted to have five deputy chairs because we want to distribute the responsibilities in overseeing divisions and departments," Syarief said. "It will also help ease the job of the chairman."

Former treasurer Sartono Hutomo, a distant relative of Yudhoyono, was replaced by Handoyo Mulyadi, director of pharmaceutical company PT Tempo Scan Pacific. However, Sartono's new position as head of party's logistics is considered strategic, as he will be in charge of managing resources for the upcoming elections.

Former spokesperson Andi Nurpati now was appointed party as deputy- secretary-general. Andi was controversial figure who joined the ruling party in 2010, while she serving on the General Elections Commission (KPU). The commission then fired Andi.

Arya Fernandes, a political analyst from Charta Politika, said that the Democratic Party had gone further away from notions of a modern political party. "The party has ignored public criticism that says that it has become a party of nepotism," Arya said.

Gerindra, the most transparent political party: TII

Jakarta Post - April 17, 2013

Jakarta – The Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party has come out top in being the most transparent and accountable political party in the management of their finances, a survey has found.

Transparency International Indonesia (TII) found that Gerindra, the political party of former Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) commander Lt. Gen. (ret.) Prabowo Subianto, scored 3.74 on a scale of 4 by being transparent in the management of its finances, including full disclosure of its donors, reporting party assets and other bookkeeping details.

Two other political parties, the People's Conscience (Hanura) Party and the National Awakening Party (PKB) were found to be the least transparent or accountable political parties with respective scores of 2.41 and 2.31.

For the survey, TII looked at the financial reports of five political parties: Gerindra, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Hanura and the PKB. The survey was conducted between June 2012 and April 2013.

In the survey, PAN and the PDI-P came in second and third with scores of 3.64 and 3.10, respectively.

The antigraft watchdog also concluded that there could be a correlation between a political party's transparency and the quality of its politicians.

Four political parties, the United Development Party (PPP), the Democratic Party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Golkar Party declined to participate in the survey, reinforcing the notion they could be the country's most corrupt political parties.

Former chairman of the Democratic Party, Anas Urbaningrum, and the former chairman of the PKS, Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq, have been named suspects by the KPK, while several Golkar politicians have been implicated in graft.

"We can only monitor the behavior of members who come from transparent and accountable parties," Putut Aryo, a TII researcher, said.

Putut added, however, that the TII had not yet determined why some parties were more transparent than others. "We have not reached that stage; this was preliminary research. However, we will have a follow-up study in September," Putut said.

Lucky Djani from the Institute of Strategic Initiatives said that transparency was crucial for political parties to build an image that, ultimately, could be translated into votes.

"Transparency is the political 'currency' to gain public trust. People will only vote for transparent parties," Lucky said.

He said the public would reach their own conclusions about the political parties that failed to join the survey. "People will label these parties as uncooperative," Lucky said.

The TII sent letters to all political parties last year requesting that they participate in the assessment.

Golkar Party lawmaker Priyo Budi Santoso said he was surprised by the TII's claim that his party had not responded to a request from the watchdog. "As far as I know, Golkar is always open to scrutiny as long as it is conducted by professionals who don't cherry-pick on certain issues," Priyo said.

Senior PKS politician Hidayat Nur Wahid, meanwhile, maintained that his party had not received an invitation to join the survey. "I haven't heard of their survey [...] but it would be good if the TII was equally transparent about its finances," Hidayat said. (ogi)

Health & education

Exam results questioned after fiasco

Jakarta Post - April 21, 2013

Jakarta – With massive delays and students in remote areas forced to take exams on photocopied materials, the credibility of this year's national examination results is being thrown into doubt.

Dedi Suwandi Gumelar, a lawmaker from the House of Representatives' Commission X overseeing education, argued that the exams were unfair and therefore the results should be annulled.

"The annulment would have to be a national consensus at the House of Representatives. It's just not fair how some students only got copies, some taking it on a later date, and there were even reports of leaks," he said on Friday.

Educational observer Darmaningtyas said the mismanagement of the national examination had put the credibility of its results into question.

"The result of delayed examinations will not be deemed credible as they do not reflect the actual results of students' learning process. Distress experienced by students will greatly affect the exam results," he said.

He argued that the national examination delay could dampen student motivation. "They had prepared for the examination, but they could be disappointed as a result of the delays."

The Education and Culture Ministry has been on the defense amid mounting criticism of its apparent incompetence in handling the national exams.

Deputy Education and Culture Minister for Education Musliar Kasim rebuffed the suggestion that this year's exams were not credible and should be dismissed as illegitimate.

"This is all force majeure. There's a standard of procedures in the event a school lacks exam materials. The exams can be photocopied in the presence of witnesses from universities, local education agency, and the police," Kasim told The Jakarta Post via telephone on Friday.

He called on the public to stop making a fuss over the ordeal as the same process was implemented for the exams and there was no problem. "Please do not make matters worse and dismiss the exams all together. We admit it was our mistake. The upper echelons in the ministry are dealing with this matter personally. This is all a tragedy," he said.

The ministry assured that the junior high school exam, which is due to start next Monday, will proceed as planned. "I'm optimistic that the exam materials for the national exams will be delivered on time," Kasim said.

As of now, the ministry does not foresee any problems with the printing and distribution of the exam materials for junior high schools, Kasim said. "We have anticipated any issues. The exams will begin on April 22," he added.

The ministry decided to relieve the printing company, PT Ghalia Indonesia, from its role as it failed to print and deliver exam materials for 11 provinces, It is now only responsible for printing and distributing exam materials to junior high schools in Bali.

Despite the government's claim, as of the late afternoon on Friday, exam materials for junior high school in Nunukan regency, East Kalimantan had not arrived. "We still haven't received confirmation on when the materials will arrive," said Nunukan education head Rahardi, as quoted by Antara news agency.

He said, however, that Nunukan did receive the exam materials for their high schools on time. Darmaningtyas suggested that the printing process for the examination materials should be decentralized again to avoid another distribution fiasco.

"The materials should be printed near the schools so distribution won't be time consuming. The printing process was decentralized before 2010. It was very effective," Darmaningtyas said.

He said that there would always be problems concerning the distribution of examination sheets to remote regions such as Papua or East Nusa Tenggara. "If for any reason the examination has to be conducted in spite of the lack of examination sheets, the teachers can make manual corrections, or the teachers can move the students' answers to a computer-based answer sheet, which is very risky," he added.

Kasim, however, disagreed with the suggestion, saying that a centralized system for the national exams was necessary. "It prevents question sheet leakages. This way, it is also more efficient, and the ministry can have better control – all of this is to raise the credibility of the national exams." (ogi/asw)

Government scrambles to save exams

Jakarta Post - April 17, 2013

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Amid concerns that another delay to the 2013 national examinations could occur in some areas, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered the Indonesian Military (TNI) to mobilize its resources to help the distribution of exam materials.

Yudhoyono issued the order on Tuesday in a meeting with Education and Culture Minister Mohammad Nuh, TNI Commander Adm. Agus Suhartono and National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo who were summoned to deal with the situation due to problems in the distribution of exam materials, which resulted in the delay of the exam in 11 provinces. The 11 provinces are expected to commence the exams on Thursday.

"I take the highest responsibility for this problem. I offer my deepest apology to all the Indonesian people," Nuh said before meeting with Yudhoyono.

The minister shrugged off the mounting call for his resignation. "I am not a politician. The future of my position depends on God and the President, because I am his servant," he said.

The minister said he could guarantee that high school students in the 11 provinces – Bali, East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, South Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Gorontalo, North Sulawesi, West Sulawesi, South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi – could begin their exams on Thursday.

Nuh said that the ministry was confident because the Air Force agreed to loan six aircraft – one Fokker 28, one Boeing 737 and four Lockheed Martin C-130H Hercules – to deliver the exam materials.

"The TNI and the National Police said they are ready to deploy more aircraft if necessary," Nuh told a press briefing after the meeting.

In spite of Nuh's guarantees, local officials are prepared for the worst with some predicting that the national exams would not start until early next week.

Officials in some far-flung regions expected the exam materials three days before the test dates, confirmed that as of Tuesday afternoon none had been delivered. In South Sulawesi as of Tuesday afternoon, most of the materials had yet to arrive in the provincial capital of Makassar.

"The printing firm promised that the materials would arrive tonight, so we would be able to begin distributing them to regencies and municipalities on Wednesday morning at the earliest," head of South Sulawesi Education and Culture Agency, Abdullah Jabbar, said on Tuesday.

He said the provincial administration would use helicopters to distribute the materials to some remote regions like the Selayar Islands and North Luwu regencies.

"We will borrow some choppers belonging to Pak Jusuf Kalla," Abdullah said referring to the former vice president, a respected figure in the province.

However, Abdullah said his office was prepared for the worst. "If the materials fail to reach the regions by Thursday, I will ask the Education and Culture Ministry to make another schedule," he said.

The situation in nearby Gorontalo was considered better with only seven of the 196 high schools in the province yet to receive the materials as of Tuesday.

The seven schools were scattered across the Gorontalo and Bone Bolanggo regencies, head of the province's Education, Youth and Sports Agency Arfan Arsyad said.

Exam materials had slowly trickled into Mataram, the provincial capital of West Nusa Tenggara, via Lombok International Airport since Monday night, West Nusa Tenggara Police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Sukarman Husein said, but the distribution to all 10 regencies and municipalities in the province would have to wait until all the materials arrived.

On Tuesday in Langkat, North Sumatra, local education agencies had to photocopy materials for the exam because of low supplies.

Also on Tuesday, the Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (FITRA) filed a report at the KPK on alleged graft in the tender for the printing and distribution of the papers.

According to FITRA, PT Ghalia Indonesia Printing, which won the tender for the 11 provinces, offered the highest price for the project and should not have won the tender.

[Andi Hajramurni, Syamsul Huda M Suhari and Panca Nugraha contributed to this story from Makassar, Gorontalo and Mataram.]

Chaos on first day of national exams

Jakarta Post - April 16, 2013

Nadya Natahadibrata and Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – After delaying the exam in 11 provinces at the 11th hour due to printing problem, the Education and Culture Ministry face complaints from students and teachers in provinces where the examination began as scheduled on Monday.

Indonesian Teachers Association chairman Sulistyo said they had received mountains of complaints from teachers everywhere on the first day of the exam.

Some schools in Aceh, Riau and West Sumatra had insufficient question sheets, so teachers copied the sheets themselves in order to keep the exam on schedule.

"Schools that were short of question sheets started the exams at 9 a.m., or 1.5 hours behind schedule," Rokan Hilir Education Agency chief Surya Arfan said on Monday. "This obviously affects the students' psychological condition. The government should be held responsible if the students end up failing the exam," he added.

Sulistyo added that the poor quality of the answering sheets had also put students in jeopardy. "The answer sheets are very thin, so when students erase their answers, the printing is also erased and the paper gets torn. Students are really having a hard time in this year's exam," Sulistyo told The Jakarta Post.

Ministry spokesperson Ibnu Hamad said on Monday that the ministry had received 276 reports, protests and information requests. "The reports are mostly about the 11 provinces in central part of the country that failed to start on time, but also about the poor quality of answer sheets," Ibnu told reporters on Monday.

He said that the students should not worry about ripped answer sheets as the ministry would form a special team to examine the matter. "As for the shortages of question sheets, we have instructed schools to make copies of the sheets themselves," Ibnu said.

Around 1.1 million students from 5,109 schools, including senior high schools, madrasah aliyah (Islamic high school) and vocational high schools in Bali, East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, South Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Gorontalo, North Sulawesi, West Sulawesi, South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi, failed to sit exams on Monday.

Education and Culture Minister Mohammad Nuh said that the delay was due to technical problems with the printing company, PT Ghalia Indonesia Printing, which failed to pack all the question and answer sheets on time.

Deputy House speaker Pramono Anung said that the delay showed lack of seriousness from the minister in organizing the exam, saying that the technical problems could not be blamed for the incident.

"This shows the ministry's poor management, while the state has allocated 20 percent of its budget for them," Pramono said. "It is very regrettable that even with so much budget, the ministry still has this petty problem."

Nuh expressed his regrets, saying that this year's examination was not just a test for the students, but also for the ministry. "We learned a lesson from this incident. Whatever happens, the company that wins the tender should be ready. We will blacklist PT. Ghaila from the national exam tender," he told reporters on Monday.

Separately, Amin Priatna, from the ministry's inspectorate general said that auditors would be sent to each province to investigate the problems.

"We will investigate all the printing companies, especially Ghalia," Amin said. "The ministry had actually done everything they could to ensure the exam goes well. The public must understand that we have our limitations," he added.

The first day of the exam in Jakarta went well with no reports of irregularity, according to city police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto.

"The police were committed to guard the national exam. One or two officers are assigned to each school and stay there just in case there is any misconduct during the four days," he said. (hae)

[Rizal Harahap and Apriadi Gunawan contributed from Pekanbaru and Medan.]

Graft & corruption

Salary raise won't stop corrupt judges and prosecutors: Attorney General

Jakarta Globe - April 17, 2013

SP/Erwin Sihombing – In the opinion of Indonesia's attorney general, solving the issue of corruption in the country's courtrooms will take a lot more than raising the salaries of judges and prosecutors.

Attorney General Basrief Arief said on Wednesday that the judicial mafia's stranglehold on the system will not be loosened by a mere pay raise.

"Many judges and prosecutors were caught red-handed and terminated for acts of corruption," he said. "Even if their allowance is raised, it won't guarantee that [they won't accept bribes]."

Rather, Basrief suggested that the only way to improve the system was to recruit credible legal enforcers with good morals. "Strengthening judicial institutions will be meaningless without the right people," he said.

Additionally, according to Basrief, the government needs to beef up its monitoring of the judiciary in order to ensure a more fair and just court system.

Over the past few months, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has arrested several judges for receiving bribes. Last month, Setiabudi Tejocahyono, the deputy head of the Bandung District Court, was apprehended for allegedly taking a bribe during a corruption case.

Freedom of religion & worship

MUI to Subur: Stop blaspheming or face police

Jakarta Globe - April 22, 2013

The Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) has threatened to report a celebrity spiritual guru to the police for deviating from Islamic doctrine and having too many wives.

Besides having more spouses than is allowed by Islam, the MUI claimed that Subur – who is known to his disciples as Eyang – also practiced sorcery and black magic.

"For this reason, the MUI wants Subur to repent and return to a straight path," Ma'ruf Amin, the chairman of the MUI, said on Monday as quoted by state-run news agency Antara.

The edict was issued after the conclusion of an MUI investigation that began April 8, 2013. The council gathered that Subur had digressed from mainstream Islamic teachings by having eight wives, when the religion only allows for a man to have four.

Though he has not officially tainted the religion, the MUI believes that Subur violated Islamic principles and has asked him to divorce four of his spouses and stop working as a shaman and a clairvoyant.

"If he refuses to repent, the MUI will report his actions to the police since we don't have any authority to punish him," Ma'ruf said. He went on to say that if Subur admitted his wrongdoings, he would have to issue a statement.

Ma'ruf called on all of Subur's disciples to stop following him, though he warned people – especially Muslims – to not be provoked by Subur's actions and use the situation as an excuse to wage violence.

Meanwhile, the chief of the Islamic Reform Movement (Garis) expressed disappointment with the council's decision.

"We're not satisfied with the decision of the MUI. They should have come out said that Subur is a heretic and taken swift action on him and his followers," Adang Nurmansyah, the head of the organization, said on Monday as quoted by Antara.

He also suggested that Subur should be forced to divorce four of his spouses in a specific amount of time.

Subur gained notoriety in the media after four of his followers, including former child singer Adi Bing Slamet, lashed out at him via social media and accused him of being a heretic.

Adi regularly went to Subur's house with many others. However, he soon realized that the supposed spiritual guru was extorting his followers by asking them to take part in bogus rituals such as drinking salt-water and coffee without sugar.

Ramdan Alamsyah, Subur's attorney, commented that his client never claimed to be a shaman or a clairvoyant. "The MUI should bring people closer to heaven, not farther away," he said. "Contrary to the reality, the MUI has asked my client to admit to mistakes that he has never made."

Residents reject church in West Jakarta

Jakarta Post - April 22, 2013

Jakarta – Residents have taken to the streets to stop construction of a church Tambora, West Jakarta, claiming that organizers lack a needed permit.

Several people were seen on Sunday surrounding the Bunda Hati Kudus Foundation school, where the church was to be built.

"How can you just build a church when there's no permit?" Wawat, one of the men outside the school, said as quoted by kompas.com. "We have no issues as to what the school management plans to build, but there has to be a permit."

Wawat claimed that the school had falsified a letter with the required 60 signatures of local residents needed to build a house of worship. "We never signed such a letter," he said.

Police were also on hand to secure the school. School officials could not be reached for comment.

House hails religious harmony in predominantly Christian NTT

Jakarta Globe - April 17, 2013

SP/Yoseph Kelen – Legislators have commended the East Nusa Tenggara administration for its ability to maintain religious harmony in the province.

"I have to give a thumbs up to the NTT [East Nusa Tenggara] administration and its people," Mahrus Munir, a member of the House of Representatives' Commission VIII, which oversees religious and social affairs, said during a visit on Monday to the provincial capital, Kupang.

"Here, the majority of the people are Christians, but there is no tyranny in NTT. I praise that."

The Democratic Party legislator also praised the heads of several districts in NTT for setting aside funds from their regional budget to provide transportation to the airport for hajj pilgrims.

"It's extraordinary here in NTT. Several districts provide subsidies to take pilgrims to the airport. This is part of the religious harmony in the Unitary Republic of Indonesia," Munir said, adding that he would tell people about the positive attitudes prevailing in NTT.

NTT Governor Frans Lebu Raya, in his presentation before the Commission VIII delegation, said that the proportion of Catholics in the province was 55.9 percent, Protestants 34.3 percent, Muslims 9.6 percent, Hindus 0.21 percent, and Buddhists 0.01 percent. He attributed the religious harmony in to the ability of religious leaders to get along with one another.

"No one sets mosques on fire in NTT. I have repeatedly said that the majority should protect the minorities. In NTT, we truly maintain [religious] harmony and peace," Frans said.

Nurul Iman Mustofa, also from Commission VIII, said the legislators wanted a closer look at the management of religious issues in the province.

"We specifically wanted to know about the implementation of a 2007 government regulation on religious education in NTT, the implementation of religious harmony programs, and alms management in the province," Nurul said.

Surabaya court acquits Rois in Sampang Shiite attack

Jakarta Globe - April 16, 2013

Amir Tejo & Dessy Sagita – The Surabaya District Court acquitted Nahdlatul Ulama figure Rois Al-Hukama of all charges on Tuesday, arguing that no witnesses directly saw the Sunni leader participate in last August's deadly anti-Shiite rampage in Sampang, Madura Island.

Rois faced charges of participating in a mob attack and vandalism after more serious charges were dropped. Prosecutors demanded two years in prison, but judges at the Surabaya court said the case lacked sufficient evidence.

The court heard testimony from 21 witnesses, but only one of them was able to place Rois in the mob that left two dead.

"There was only one witnesses who said the defendant was among the mob who attacked the Shiite Muslims, and the panel of judges doubted the testimony because the witness did not see it directly," Judge Ainur Rofiq said. "He heard it from someone else."

A mob of 500 Sunni Muslims rampaged through a village in Sampang's Omben subdistrict on Aug. 26, hacking one Shiite Muslim to death and setting fire to more than 30 homes. The brutal attack drove the beleaguered Shiite community from their homes.

Those who remained in the region, or refused to convert to Sunni Islam, were forced to live in spartan conditions in an unadorned sports complex. Few, including several lawmakers with the House of Representatives, have offered to extend aid to the displaced community.

Rois was a central figure in early narratives of the violence, which focused on a dispute over a woman with brother and Shiite boarding school head Tajul Muluk. The brothers began feuding in 2004 after Rois lost a woman he planned to marry to a man from Tajul's school.

The family feud inflamed anti-Shiite sentiment in the region, sparking multiple attacks against the Shiite minority. The Ministry of Home Affairs focused on the story of the feud, with minister Gamawan Fauzi denying the wave of violence was anything more than a family dispute that got out of hand.

In the end, the prosecution was unable to prove Rois participated in the attack or uttered the words that set off the mob. Witnesses could only say Rois asked his followers to mass in Nangker Village. Rois testified that he was home when the violence occurred.

The court said its decision to drop the charges had restored Rois' honor. "The defendant was not proven guilty of committing murder," Ainur said. "He will be freed of any charges requested by the prosecutors and his honor will be restored."

Human rights groups called the verdict disappointing, but expected. "This is an expected show," said Haris Azhar, coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras).

"The police pretend to bring the violent mob to court, but the prosecutors did not work hard enough to prove their involvement. In the end, the perpetrators walk away free."

Seven men originally detained in the wake of the attacks walked free on a lack of evidence. Only one man, who has been accused of stabbing a Shiite Muslim in the head, still faces charges. The prosecutor demanded 12 years in prison for Hadiri, the accused. His trial is still ongoing.

Haris accused police of purposely charging men like Rois with charges that won't stick. Indonesian law enforcement only tries to silence critics in the media and civil society, not actually prosecute those who commit violent acts against religious minorities, he said.

"There were a lot of articles that could be used to charge the perpetrators, like inciting violence or spreading hate speech, but the prosecutors failed to interpret the criminal code properly," he said. "Our law enforcement definitely lacks the courage to charge people who have abused or harassed minority groups. "Everything was just a show."

Civil service & bureaucracy

Bureaucratic reform is all talk and no action

Jakarta Post - April 18, 2013

Ina Parlina and Dwi Atmanta, Jakarta – Despite regulations and a blueprint for reform, the government lacks the conviction to shake up the nation's sprawling bureaucracy, a senior official has said.

Administrative Reforms Deputy Minister Eko Prasojo said the country's successive government has never been serious about making its current overstaffed, underproductive, expensive and graft-ridden bureaucracy into a slim, efficient, competent and service-oriented organization.

"We are actually running short of competent government workers, while at the same time employing too many civil servants who act like deadwood," Eko said in a recent interview.

Other reports have made it clear that Eko, a professor in public administration and the brains behind the plan to reform the bureaucracy, has not overstated the situation.

The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), for example, recently released an audit that said that 4.57 million civil servants worked for the central or regional governments, costing the state a whopping Rp 407.16 trillion (US$41.96 billion), or about one-third of the state budget of Rp 1,229 trillion, which the agency deemed excessive.

In some regencies, particularly newly established ones, the BPK said that personnel expenditures topped 60 percent of the local budget.

Eko said that bureaucratic restructuring could start with trimming structural posts and weeding out non-performing personnel, which would in turn help the government reduce personnel expenditures.

"Obviously, there will be a cut in spending for pay, the unnecessary procurement of goods and services as well as travel allowances," Eko said. "We may have to cut some programs due to overlapping structures and programs. The state has spent too much on programs and activities that don't relate to one another."

Eko said that reform could start by ministries eliminating two or three of their directorates general and barring ministers from the common practice of appointing any number of aides handpicked from their political parties. While change must start from the top; in reality, the central government has failed to set an example, Eko said.

"It is imperative that the structure of central government be thinned out, because of its responsibility in setting norms, standards, procedure sand general policies," Eko said. "In reality the opposite has been happening: The central bureaucracy is swelling."

Eko said that reform would produce efficiencies that would improve the remuneration system without increasing the state budget.

The administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has raised the salaries of civil servants and members of the Indonesian Military and the National Police almost every year to provide incentives to boost performance and curb corruption.

The reforms have principally been aimed at preventing corruption at the Finance Ministry, the Taxation Directorate General, the Supreme Audit Agency, the Supreme Court, the National Police and the Attorney General's Office.

The monthly take-home pay of a junior tax official, for example, rose to about Rp 20 million (US$2,200) after the start of bureaucratic reform in 2007.

However, as the graft cases involving tax officers Pargono Riyadi, Gayus Tambunan, Bahasyim Assafie and Dhana Widyatmika have shown, the raises did little to curb corruption.

Uchok Sky Khadafi of The Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (FITRA) said that bureaucratic reform has suffered a setback in recent years. "There's nothing we can do about bureaucratic reform on civil servants," Uchok said. "It is doomed."

Film & television

Warnings over low-brow comedy on TV

Jakarta Post - April 22, 2013

Jakarta – Even to people who have long worked in the industry, the current trend toward low-brow comedy television makes them scratch their heads.

Switch on any local television station at any hour of the day and the chances are that viewers will see slapstick comedy and regular outbursts of verbal abuse from some of the most recognizable names on television.

But it was not always like this. In the 1970s, two of the country's greatest comedians – Benyamin Syueb and Bing Slamet – were both refined artists who mixed humor with high production values.

Until recently, smart comedians from the likes of Bagito Group and Patrio, were the staple of even the most mainstream television programs, but observers say these comedians have long disappeared from our screens.

Ishadi SK, the former executive of Trans TV and a media observer, said there was a lack of talented and intelligent comedians today.

"It's difficult to get intelligent comedians who are able to make fun of social situations instead of people and certain groups. Comedians need to improve their qualities instead of getting complacent and arrogant because of their popularity," Ishadi said.

Uni Lubis, the chief editor of ANTV, said this trend might be motivated by commercial concerns. "The television industry depends on advertisements and ads depend on the rating of a program," Uni said.

"Stations depend on Nielsen research agency to find out the ratings of their shows. Meanwhile, Nielsen's criteria in judging television shows is not holistic. It's judgment is only based on quantitative ratings," Uni said.

"Nielsen says most television audiences come from the 'C' socio-economic status bracket, with monthly incomes from Rp. 900,000 [US$92.70] to Rp. 1.5 million per month. So stations create programs based on what they think their market segment will like," Uni added.

Uni said market segment-based selection had almost eliminated her news program. "ANTV management once suggested that my news program went off the air, because based on a survey, the majority of our audience were women, and they assumed that women didn't need to watch news programs because they weren't intelligent enough," Uni said.

Uni said she was afraid they might pick up sexist jokes broadcast on television. "Teenagers and children might imitate behavior they see on television. They might start to insult women and other minority groups," Uni said.

Nina M. Armando, an Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) commissioner, said other programs often contained jokes that insulted disabled people, people from certain ethnic groups, people with certain physical characteristics, people with mental disorders and transgendered people.

"The comedians call people names based on his or her physical characteristics – buck teeth, shorty, fatso and so on," Nina said.

She also mentioned one episode of Dahsyat, a popular music program on RCTI, a television channel owned by media baron Hary Tanoesudibjo, in which host Raffi Ahmad asked chef Renne Tanjung if he celebrated Christmas.

Renne said he did not celebrate Christmas. When Raffi asked why, Renne said "because I am a pro-Satan Muslim," a play on words on Muslim protestant, a twist on Protestant Christian.

The episode, aired on Dec. 24 last year, caused public outrage. As a response, on March 6 the KPI ordered RCTI to stop airing the program for three days.

Ishadi said that television crews needed to write the script of comedy programs instead of just letting the comedians do impromptu acts.

"I used to have a team to write the script for the Extravaganza comedy program on Trans TV. But somehow, the script writers ran out of ideas and now the show is off air," he said.

KPI chairman Mochamad Riyanto said a media literacy program was the best solution to overcome the negative effects of crude jokes on air.

"Sanctions from the KPI are not enough to deter television channels from broadcasting low-brow comedy. We recognize the need to educate the public on how to select and be critical toward television programs. Our media literacy program was intended to create a smarter audience," Riyanto said.

"The KPI has cooperated with universities and NGOs to implement a media literacy program. We have implemented this program since 2011," he added. (ogi)

Armed forces & defense

Ten soldiers named suspects in PDI-P office attack

Jakarta Globe - April 22, 2013

Ezra Sihite – Ten soldiers have been accused of assaulting several security officers at the headquarters of the Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) in Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta.

"[They] have been named suspects," Jakarta Military Commander Erwin Hudawi Lubis said on Monday at Halim Perdana Kusuma airbase. "The ten have been questioned, and they admitted to going [to the PDI-P office]."

Erwin explained that the ten soldiers were not detained because the commander of their battalion claimed responsibility for their actions. All of them are still being interrogated at the military police unit.

"Coincidentally, they're all privates," Erwin said. "The case has been filed and is waiting to be processed. But whether it will be handed over to a military tribunal remains to be seen."

Three security guards at the PDI-P's headquarters were attacked by the soldiers on Saturday night after one of the guards tried to mediate an argument between a soldier and a student following a minor motorcycle accident.

The student proceeded to run into the PDI-P office, but was chased out. However, a few of the soldiers searched the premises and injured the guards in the process.

Two of the guards, Priyo and Marlan, were bruised while a third security officer, Yatna, suffered a head injury after being hit with a bayonet.

The personal security guards of PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Sukarnoputri, who was a the headquarters that night, detained two of the soldiers during the attack. They later admitted that they were members of the military, and their commander, Lt. Col. Hari Darniko, arrived at the location to take the soldiers with him.

Indonesian military chief Adm. Agus Suhartono commented that the public must view the event as an isolated occurrence and not blame the institution itself. "The incident at the PDI-P office was a personal issue. It is not the army's [problem]," Agus said on Monday.

Helmy Fauzi, a member of the House of Representative's Commission I, which oversees defense, said that the scuffle at the PDI-P office was a pure crime. He added that the incident proved that the deliberation to revise the military tribunal bill should not be delayed any further.

"Those who are naughty and commit crimes should be tried before a public court," he said. "As a follow up, the Defense Ministry and the Indonesian Armed Forces [TNI] should continue deliberating the revision of the military tribunal bill with the House of Representatives."

TNI back in the spotlight for PDI-P attack

Jakarta Post - April 22, 2013

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Less than a month after Army commandos raided a prison and killed four detainees, attention is back on the Indonesian Military (TNI) after soldiers allegedly attacked the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P) headquarters in Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta.

Fifteen TNI members from the Army's 13th Engineering Construction Battalion (Yon Zikon 13) were accused of attacking three security guards late on Saturday after they tried to stop an argument between the military personnel and a high school student who was involved in a motorbike crash with the soldiers.

The high school student sought refuge in the PDI-P headquarters following the crash. One of the soldiers, who apparently objected to the guards intervening in the argument, called for backup at around 8:45 p.m. on Saturday.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said that based on testimony from several eyewitnesses, the soldiers broke into the PDI-P headquarters to search for the student. During the fight, the TNI soldiers, yelled "I am a Mobile Brigade member" while engaged in a fist fight.

Two of the security guards, Priyo and Marlan, sustained cuts and bruises while the third guard, Yatna, got a concussion after being hit with a bayonet.

PDI-P secretary-general Tjahjo Kumolo said that the soldiers fled the scene after learning that the personal guards of party chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri were members of the military. Megawati's security officers then arrested two of the attacking soldiers.

"We will file an official objection with the Army for what its members have done although it's up to military internal affairs," Tjahjo said.

PDI-P Lawmaker TB Hasanuddin, a retired TNI general who arrived at the location later in the evening, identified the assailants as Chief Pvt. Junaedi and Second Pvt. Rachmat.

Hasanuddin also said that commander of the battalion, Lt. Col. Hari Darniko, arrived on the scene at 10:30 p.m. and took the soldiers with him. "We regret that these soldiers just barged into our office and took the law into their own hands," Hasanuddin said.

Separately, Army spokesman Brig. Gen. Rukman Ahmad said that 10 soldiers were now under investigation by the Military Police.

"The PDI-P officials also handed over the two soldiers they earlier detained for further investigation to us," Rukman said. Rukman denied the attack was planned and that the incident was personal in nature.

"Nonetheless, we are deeply disappointed for what they've done as military members are obliged to help people, not fight with them," he said.

PDI-P executives have also urged the Army to discipline its members and to bring those responsible to justice.

Earlier in March, members of Kopassus allegedly brutally killed four detainees in Yogyakarta's Cebongan Prison, following the murder of Kopassus commando First Sgt. Heru Santosa.

The detainees that were shot dead in their cell during the Cebongan raid had been arrested for Heru's murder by the Yogyakarta Police, which dropped its investigation after their deaths.

PDI-P security guards injured during military raid

Jakarta Globe - April 21, 2013

SP/Fana F.S Putra, Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Bayu Marhaenjati – Three security guards at the head office of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) were allegedly attacked by members of the military on Saturday night after they tried to break up an argument between a soldier and a high school student.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto explained that PDI-P security guards had tried to resolve an argument between a military member and a student after their motorcycles bumped outside of the party headquarters in Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta.

Ahmad Basarah, secretary general of the PDI-P's central executive board (DPP), said that more than a dozen military members from Batallion Zeni Konstruksi 13 (Yon Zikon 13) came to the party headquarters around 7:45 p.m. on Saturday following the argument.

"Two motorcycles bumped each other and one of the riders is a member of Yon Zikon battalion. There was an argument over the incident that happened in front of PDI-P's office. Another rider was a high school student who ran into our office and he was chased out [of the office area]," Basarah said in a press conference on Saturday night.

Rikwanto said that according to witnesses, some of the soldiers entered the PDI-P office security post while others stood outside.

They searched the PDI-P office for the student and injured three security guards in the process. Priyo and Marlan, two of the guards, were bruised while the third guard, Yatna, suffered a head injury after being hit with a bayonet.

Rikwanto said the military members initially claimed they were police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) members. "When they came in and hit the victims, they yelled 'I am a Mobil Brigade member,'" Rikwanto said on Sunday.

The personal guards of PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Sukarnoputri, who was at the headquarters that night, detained two of the soldiers during the attack. The detainees later admitted that they were members of the military.

"The perpetrators captured were head soldier Junaedi and second soldier Rachmat," said TB Hasanuddin, a PDI-P lawmaker who came to the office after the incident.

He added that at 10.30 p.m. the commander, Lt. Col. Hari Darniko, arrived to the location and took the two soldiers with him. Hasanuddin demanded that the commander of the battalion settle the incident and punish the perpetrators.

Basarah said that no damage to PDI-P property occurred as a result of the incident. However, he said he did not approve of the conduct of the military personnel. "What we regret the most is they just came in to our office and took their own action," he said.

Human rights abuse allegations still overshadow Kopassus

Jakarta Post - April 17, 2013

Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – After 61 years, the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) remains riddled with allegations of human rights abuses, with the Cebongan incident where its commandos stormed a prison in Sleman, Yogyakarta, and executed four inmates putting the elite forces under the spotlight for another abuse allegation.

As the elite force commemorated its 61st anniversary in Cijantung, East Jakarta, on Tuesday, Kopassus commander Maj. Gen. Agus Sutomo insisted that the raid on Cebongan prison that left four men dead was not a human rights abuse. "It was not a human rights violation. It was insubordination. That is clear," he said as quoted by Antara.

A number of public figures, including former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief AM Hendropriyono and House of Representatives deputy speaker Priyo Budi Santoso, took part in defending Kopassus. "Those who think that [Kopassus members] have abused people's rights, just take a look at CCTV footage [at Hugo's cafe]. A person was beaten to death, then his remains were dragged along the ground. That is a human rights violation," Hendropriyono said, referring to a former Kopassus soldier whose death triggered the Cebongan raid.

They refuted a preliminary conclusion by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) that the raid violated human rights. The commission has yet to complete its probe into the incident.

Since being founded by Col. Alexander Evert Kawilarang in 1952, Kopassus have been involved in some notable missions, ranging from countering a plane hijack, insurgent attacks and the country's confrontation with Malaysia in 1965.

In the 1950s, Kopassus took part in the counterinsurgency operation against the Darul Islam/Indonesian Islamic Army (DI/TII) rebellion.

In 1985, the elite force achieved global recognition after it successfully rescued passengers on board Garuda Indonesia's DC-9 Woyla aircraft, which was hijacked by Komando Jihad, a network of Darul Islam.

In 1996, Kopassus commandos joined an operation to rescue 12 foreign and Indonesian scientists abducted by the Free Papua Movement (OPM) in Papua's hinterland of Mapenduma. Two Indonesian hostages were killed by the rebels during the rescue operation.

But over the years the forces have also been mired in human rights violations.

In April 1999, 11 Kopassus members were found guilty of abducting nine political activists during the last months of Soeharto's New Order regime. In 2003, a military tribunal sent seven Kopassus soldiers to jail for slaying Theys Hiyo Eluay, the leader of Papua Presidium Council, in 2002. Some of them were not discharged from the army.

A pile of human rights abuses committed by Kopassus had prompted the United States to impose a ban on military contact with the elite forces. In 2010, the US lifted the ban amid strong criticism.

Critics said it was now the time for Kopassus to evaluate themselves. Haris Azhar, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) chairman said that the Cebongan case could be the impetus for Kopassus to end their culture of impunity.

"Looking back at previous cases, military tribunals gave soldiers lenient punishments. The public have been disappointed by that. The prison murder will test Kopassus' commitment to supporting fair and transparent trials for their members," he said.

Ikrar Nusa Bhakti, a defense analyst at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said that Kopassus should use the Cebongan case to build the morale of their members.

He added that Kopassus, like many other Indonesian military forces, was facing a challenge to shine in peacetime. "During the era of turmoil, Kopassus played a pivotal role in many security operations. Kopassus also engaged with civil society by deploying its members to coach the Karang Taruna youth groups," Ikrar said.

Kopassus chief denies human rights violation in prison attack

Jakarta Globe - April 16, 2013

SP/Fana F.S. Putra – The commander of the Army Special Forces (Kopassus) insists that there were no human rights violations when soldiers gunned down four detainees at a prison in Sleman, Yogyakarta, in March.

"There is no human rights violation, but only [Kopassus] members' violation, is that clear?" Maj. Gen. Agus Sutomo told journalists on the sidelines of the Kopassus anniversary in Cijantung, East Jakarta, on Tuesday.

Agus said that as the commander of the Kopassus, he held the most responsibility in addressing those responsible for the attack.

"Kopassus members are all my staffs," Agus said. "I'm the one that hold the highest responsibility. I, Maj. Gen. Agus Sutomo, the commander of Kopassus, all Kopassus organization is my organization, they are my staffs."

Agus said that whoever is found guilty of the attack would be issued a fair punishment. "But beyond the mistake, there's moral message for bigger interest of the society," he said without elaborating his statement. "We have to respect the legal process in Indonesia."

Recently, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) declared that the attack that killed four detainees at Cebongan Prison last month was an extrajudicial killing and a human rights violation for which the government should be held accountable.

"This is clearly a human rights violation. The attack at the Cebongan Prison in Sleman and the killing of four detainees is an attack on the supremacy of the law and can therefore not be justified for any reason," said Siti Noor Laila, chairwoman of the Komnas HAM.

Eleven Kopassus members stand accused of storming the prison on March 23 and executing four men awaiting trial for killing a fellow soldier during a brawl at a cafe in Yogyakarta.

Justice elusive in Sleman prison attack, critics say

Jakarta Globe - April 16, 2013

Anastasia Winanti Riesardhy & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The military chief of staff has promised full transparency in the trial of a group of soldiers accused of the summary execution of four detainees in police custody, but questions still linger over how fair the process will really be.

Adm. Agus Suhartono said in Jakarta on Monday that the military tribunal of the 11 Army Special Forces (Kopassus) members charged with the deadly raid on the Cebongan detention center in Yogyakarta's Sleman district would be "open and transparent" in a bid to "satisfy public expectations of justice."

"The investigation is now in the hands of the [Yogyakarta] regional military command, so please trust in the military tribunal process," he said. "We welcome the media to cover the trial, keep the public informed and provide constructive criticism of the process."

The Kopassus team is accused of having staged the attack in the early hours of March 23 out of revenge. The four detainees they gunned down were alleged to have killed a Kopassus member in a nightclub brawl four days earlier.

While the military has been praised for its rare admission, especially involving Kopassus, an elite unit whose alleged transgressions of human rights have long characterized impunity in the armed forces, rights activists are warning of a campaign to paint the accused as heroes and the slain as menaces to society.

Hendardi, the head of the Setara Institute, a rights watchdog, said in a statement on Monday that there was a "systematic effort" under way to ensure the case was not fully resolved.

"The aim is ultimately to get the public to forget [about this case], in the exact same way that the military used in the past to justify crimes committed by the state," he said in a press release.

In a press conference on April 4 at which the Army admitted that the attack was carried out by Kopassus, the chief investigator repeatedly referred to the victims as thugs and to the perpetrators as dutiful soldiers with a strong sense of solidarity for a fallen comrade.

Haris Azhar, the coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), accused the government of also trying to play down the gravity of the crime.

He denounced a statement last week by Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro that no rights violations had occurred as "an attempt to cover up the facts."

"The minister shouldn't try to steer this case to a false resolution. He should push for due legal process, which in this case should be a human rights tribunal," Haris said over the weekend.

Hendardi urged the public "not to be swayed by this propaganda and to keep monitoring the Cebongan case and pushing for a full resolution."

He added that this could be achieved by urging President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to establish an independent investigative team to look into the matter, and to issue a regulation in lieu of law, or perppu, that would allow for the suspects to be tried in a criminal court instead of a military tribunal.

Agus has insisted that the men will be tried in the military court, but rights activists argue that these courts tend to be more lenient than criminal courts.

Denny Indrayana, the deputy justice minister, said there could be no justification for the killings and demanded that the soldiers be punished to the fullest extent of the law if convicted by the military court of premeditated murder.

"The perpetrators must be held fully accountable and must receive a punishment befitting their crime," he said. "That means that if the facts prove that this brutal act was premeditated, then the punishment for premeditated murder must be meted out."

The maximum punishment for premeditated murder stipulated under the Criminal Code is the death sentence.

"There are a lot of questions and criticism about how this case is being handled internally by the military," the deputy minister went on.

"There are concerns that a conflict of interest will prevent the case from being fully resolved, which is why there are now calls for an independent fact-finding team to be established and for the perpetrators to be tried in a civilian court."

Kopassus is Indonesia asset, says commandant

Jakarta Post - April 16, 2013

Jakarta – The Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) Comandant Maj. Gen. Agus Sutomo spoke positively of his group on Tuesday at an event marking its 61st anniversary.

"Kopassus is the country's asset. It belongs to the country's people, not to the commandos. Therefore, all Indonesian citizens should take care of Kopassus because it is the country's weapon. No one is allowed to crush Kopassus," said Agus in his remarks at the ceremony of the 61st Koppassus anniversary, at Kopassus headquarters in Cijantung, East Jakarta, on Tuesday morning.

He said that in celebrating its 61st anniversary, Kopassus was committed to continuing its work through sacrifice. "We will continue to develop all our positive work and will correct all the improper things we've done in the past," said Agus as quoted by Antara news agency.

He urged Kopassus soldiers to become soldiers of honesty and responsibility, who acted nobly and with esprit de corps. "One statement represents our principle: an upstanding loyalty," said Agus.

"Let us keep guard with sincerity and maintain the honor of the Red beret [as Kopassus can also be known]. Our presence gives positive values to the people and the nation. We are here to be part of the solution, not part of the problem," said the Commandant.

Nine Kopassus commandos have been named suspects in the killing of four detainees at Cebongan prison in Yogyakarta.

A member of the House of Representatives Commission I overseeing defense, Susaningtyas Kertopati, who also attended the celebration, hoped that Kopassus could become a special force that was able to use the esprit de corps it had to protect the unitary state of the Republic of Indonesia. (ebf)

President asks Kopassus to maintain professionalism

Antara News - April 16, 2013

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) to maintain professionalism in performing duties as the national special security forces.

The request was expressed by President Yudhoyono through his official Twitter account on Tuesday morning, coinciding with the 61st anniversary of Kopassus.

"Happy Anniversary to Kopassus. Keep professionalism. Always be the national pride," the president wrote on his Twitter account during his visit to fishing village of Pasirputih in Karawang district, West Java.

President Yudhoyono's Twitter account, @SBYudhoyono, was officially launched on Saturday night (April 13), and so far has had more than 800,000 followers.

Meanwhile, Kopassus Commandant Maj. Gen. Agus Sutomo expressed confidence that no one can destroy the Army's Special Forces which has existed for 61 years.

"Kopassus is a national asset owned by the state and the people, not the marines. Therefore, the state and all citizens should support Kopassus, since it is also a national weapon. No one can destroy Kopassus," Sutomo said in his speech at the 61st Anniversary of Kopassus at Cijantung, East Jakarta.

On that occasion, he urged all Kopassus soldiers to commit themselves develop positive characters, such as honesty, chivalry nature, responsible, and high-spirited corps. "Besides, we have to stick with one expression that will always be our principle. "Straight up loyalty"," he said.

He added, Kopassus is a part of the Indonesian Military (TNI), of which Kopassus acts as the frontline in maintaining the integrity of the Republic of Indonesia and in keeping the safety of the people.

A member of the Indonesian House of Representatives' Commission I, Susaningtyas Kertopati, hoped that Kopassus stands as special forces who are determined to preserve the Republic of Indonesia in the spirit of its corps.

Kertopati also urged Kopassus to continue upholding the human rights as well as having the vision and mission of national defense, that comes with the spirit of reform into a better future.

The commemoration of the 61st Kopassus anniversary was also attended by former Vice President Jusuf Kalla, Vice Chairman of the House Priyo Budisantoso, Regional Representatives Council (DPD) Speaker Irman Gusman, former Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, current Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo, Lt. Gen. (ret.) Prabowo Subianto, and a number of retired high ranking officials of the National Army.

Mining & energy

YLKI says one price for fuel is better

Jakarta Post - April 21, 2013

Jakarta – The Indonesian Consumer Protection Foundation (YLKI) says a government's plan to apply dual fuel prices will be prone to violations and might hamper people's mobility.

Tulus Abadi of the YLKI said that the government's plan might force people to search for gas stations where they could fill up. "That violates the basic rights of consumers," Tulis said on Saturday, as reported by tempo.co.

The plan could not guarantee that private car owners would comply, as they could pay people on motorbikes to buy their gas.

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Jero Wacik earlier stated that the government would likely implement the dual price policy, separating gas stations into two types based on the customers.

Gas stations serving public vehicles and motorbikes would sell fuel for Rp 4,500 per liter, while other stations would sell fuel to private vehicles for Rp 6,500.

Jero said that the policy could save approximately Rp 21 trillion and reduce the government fuel subsidy from the Rp 140 trillion paid last year. (nai/dic)

Politicians pull u-turn on fuel price increase

Jakarta Globe - April 18, 2013

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The two parties that riled their ruling coalition partners last year to oppose an increase in the price of subsidized gasoline now say they are amenable to renewed plans by the government for a hike.

Mohammad Sohibul Iman, the deputy speaker of the House of Representatives from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said on Wednesday that his party acknowledged the need to raise the price for private vehicle owners, but stressed that public transportation operators must be allowed to buy fuel at the current subsidized price.

"Considering the current state of macroeconomic stability and political developments, we believe the option of a dual pricing scheme for subsidized fuel is the best choice," he said.

"It will help ensure that the subsidy benefits those it is meant to, while also mitigating the financial risk posed by the size of the subsidy."

Under the government's dual pricing scheme, proposed on Tuesday, public transportation vehicles would be allowed to use subsidized fuel at the current price of Rp 4,500 (46 US cents) per liter. Owners of private vehicles, however, would have to pay a higher price of Rp 6,500 per liter.

Hatta Rajasa, the coordinating minister for the economy, said the ultimate aim was to ease the burden of the fuel subsidy on the state budget.

"We're [proposing] this with an eye on the public's purchasing power and inflation, and with the expectation that it will have a healthy impact on the economy," he said on Tuesday, following a meeting in Jakarta with senior ministers and all governors from across the country.

The Finance Ministry has calculated that the proposed hike will help the government save Rp 21 trillion a year from the fuel subsidy.

Sohibul called the proposal "easy and applicable," saying that with proper supervision of fuel sales, it had a good chance of proceeding smoothly.

He added the main advantage of the dual pricing policy was that the government would not have to give cash handouts to low-income families to help offset the fuel price hike, given that they were not expected to be impacted by the 44 percent increase at the pump.

"We won't need to give cash handouts anymore, which will make the government's job easier," Sohibul said. "That means the government can more efficiently allocate the budget and boost infrastructure spending."

Harry Azhar Aziz, a legislator from the Golkar Party, welcomed the proposed increase, but said the government must be prepared for the economic impact.

"We agree on the increase, but the president must order his minister in charge, including the trade minister, the agriculture minister and the industry minister, to institute policies that will minimize the impact from the resulting inflation," he said.

He also spoke out against giving cash handouts to the poor, saying it would defeat the purpose of trying to make savings in the state budget.

The PKS and Golkar were the main opponents of a similar government proposal to hike fuel prices in March last year, leading to condemnation and calls from the four other parties in the six-party ruling coalition for the PKS and Golkar to be kicked out of the bloc.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the main opposition party, was also against the proposed hike last year, but this time around has given mixed signals. Taufik Kiemas, a PDI-P stalwart and the speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly, said his party agreed with the notion that private vehicle owners should not be eligible for subsidized fuel.

"My party would approve it, and so would I. But the money saved from the fuel subsidy must be diverted to programs in the education, infrastructure and health-care sectors," he said on Tuesday.

However, Maruarar Sirait, a PDI-P legislator, said separately that the party would continue to oppose a price hike. He suggested the government could find other ways to offset the cost of the fuel subsidy, including by increasing taxes on coal exports.

Indonesia softening mining policy after industry backlash

Reuters - April 17, 2013

Fergus Jensen – Indonesia appears to be softening a controversial mining policy amid industry criticism and legal challenges to rules whose implementation could cost Southeast Asia's largest economy up to $10 billion a year in lost exports.

The world's top exporter of thermal coal, refined tin and nickel ore has pushed to boost exports of finished products and maximize benefits from a sector home to giants such as Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold and Newmont Mining.

Last year Indonesia asked all miners to submit plans to build refineries or smelters ahead of a January 2014 ban on raw mineral exports. Until then a 20 percent tax on ore exports has been levied.

Deputy Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Susilo Siswo Utomo said the focus is to add value to exports, and for that smelters need not necessarily be built.

"The word process does not mean you have to build a smelter. Sometimes you need to wash, to separate the soil and mud. This is also processing," Utomo told an Australian mining conference in Jakarta on Tuesday. "We also realize that not all minerals can be processed," Utomo said.

The government hopes construction will have started on at least 10 smelters by the end of the year when a more concrete processing policy will be in place, he added.

Utomo's comments come after Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Jero Wacik was quoted in local media as saying the rules were "impossible." "We will see what form it will take, so that the law can be carried out, but we are not blocking ourselves," Wacik told reporters last week.

The rules led to layoffs and forced multiple smaller mines to close as ore shipments came to a standstill, costing the industry $164 million a month in lost sales of nickel and bauxite alone.

Lost exports

Up to $10 billion could be lost annually in exports if the smelter requirement and the export ban remain in place, said a senior Jakarta-based analyst with a US mining company, who did not want to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Mining exports from Indonesia last year totaled $31.3 billion.

In a joint meeting in Jakarta on Monday, the country's top mining associations criticized the processing rules. For lead, zinc and copper, building smelters is not economically viable because of the size of Indonesia's reserves and the slim refining margins, the Indonesian Mining Association said.

The policy shift would be good news for companies such as Freeport and Newmont, which process ore in the form of concentrate already, but do not smelt all of it locally. Freeport said last month it remained reluctant to build smelting operations in Indonesia.

The smelting requirement has also been a sticking point in their contract renegotiations with the Indonesian government.

"These are interesting and significant developments," Australian senior trade commissioner Kym Hewett told Reuters on the sidelines of the mining conference, referring to the ministers' comments.

"Value-adding and processing of minerals mean a lot of different things. It's not just all smelting and refineries," Hewett added. "It remains to be seen where it goes."

Dual pricing unlikely to help cut subsidy

Jakarta Post - April 17, 2013

Satria Sambijantoro, Jakarta – After prolonged debate, the government is almost certain to implement a dual pricing system for subsidized Premium gasoline, however, the new policy faced skepticism as it is unlikely to contribute significantly to the government's bid to curb the ballooning fuel subsidies.

The impending implementation of the dual price of subsidized fuel – 88- octane Premium gasoline – was confirmed after top economic ministers sought feedback of the policy at a meeting with the governors of several provinces at the Home Ministry in Jakarta on Tuesday.

In attendance at the meeting were Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengkubuwono X and Jakarta Deputy Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, as well as other regional leaders.

"The response from the governors was very positive; they agreed that we must work together to contain the fuel subsidies," Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa told a press conference after the meeting.

Industry Minister MS Hidayat explained that under the new policy there would be two market prices of subsidized Premium; the existing price of Rp 4,500 (46 US cents) per liter, available for motorbikes and public transportation vehicles only; and Rp 6,500 per liter for privately owned cars.

Hidayat said that some governors suggested that the subsidies for privately owned cars should be completely scrapped, meaning Premium gasoline would be sold at its actual market price of Rp 9,000 per liter. If approved by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the policy could be implemented in early May.

The policy is necessary because, according to Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Jero Wacik, around 77 percent of the subsidies – earmarked in the 2013 state budget at Rp 194 trillion ($20 billion) – are enjoyed by the country's upper middle class.

To support the dual price system, the government would build additional gas stations in some provinces, said the minister. "The governors are concerned that their areas might not have enough gas stations [to support the policy's implementation]."

Jero predicted that the implementation of the dual price Premium gasoline would save the government at least Rp 21 trillion by the end of the year.

However, the amount saved by the policy was insubstantial and it appeared that the government was only "playing safe", fearing that any drastic adjustment of fuel price would trigger political instability ahead of the 2014 elections, according to Atma Jaya Catholic University economist A. Prasetyantoko.

"Rp 21 trillion will not be sufficient to boost the fiscal capacity to stimulate the economy," he said. "The amount is insignificant in the context of fiscal expansion, especially when we are talking about allotting the money to infrastructure projects."

Nevertheless, any adjustment in the price of subsidized fuel, albeit small, is likely to have a positive impact on the economy, as it will help narrow the current account deficit, which had been burdened by the huge deficit in the oil and gas balance in recent months, according to Bank Danamon chief economist Anton H. Gunawan.

"Consequently, this is a positive signal for the rupiah," Anton said in a phone interview. "The foreign exchange reserves will see less downward pressure too, as BI [Bank Indonesia] intervened heavily with state energy company PT Pertamina, which has to import huge amount of oil for its operations."

Anton estimated that the policy might cause inflation to rise to 6.1 percent by the end of the year – higher than BI's target of 5.5 percent – but he argued that such inflationary pressure would only be temporary and not persist in the long-run.

Analysis & opinion

100 years after Kartini, women still lack rights in Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - April 21, 2013

Johannes Nugroho – "Religion must guard us against committing sins, but more often, sins are committed in the name of religion," wrote early 20th century Indonesian women's rights pioneer Raden Ajeng Kartini.

In her correspondence with Estella Zeehandelaar, she also expressed her profound opposition to polygamy, a common practice among members of the Javanese nobility of her day, sanctioned by religion. And yet the great Kartini herself in the end had to bow to customs and religion when her father married her off as the fourth wife of the Regent of Rembang.

More ironically still, more than one hundred years after Kartini's death, even though arranged marriages are mostly extinct, religious doctrine has continued to be used against the advancement of women's rights in this country. The cases range from being medieval to downright ridiculous.

Hasan Ahmad, 47, a member of the legislative Council of Sampang, Madura, was recently arrested by the police for having had sex with nine underage girls. While acknowledging that his action was in breach of the law, Ahmad maintained that according to Islamic law he had not committed adultery as he had a cleric perform a marital rite – in a car – before engaging in sex with each one of the teenagers.

As Islam only allows four wives, Ahmad also revealed that he almost always divorced them after paying their sexual services. During his interview with the press, he laughingly dismissed his arrest as "due to his naughtiness."

The fact that a lawmaker showed no contrition after being the perpetrator of sexual trafficking of underage girls simply highlights the challenges faced by Indonesian women's rights movement. The defiant attitude also exemplifies how many Indonesians deem religious – read divine – laws are somehow higher than state laws, a definite handicap in any nation that endeavors to establish the rule of law.

In the autonomous province Aceh, which has embraced Islamic Shariah as normative law, anachronistic regulations against women seem to be in vogue. Earlier this year, the province's city Lhokseumawe enacted a ban on female passengers straddling on a motorcycle, mandating sitting sideways as the proper religious way. In an April raid in the city, 35 women were detained for sitting astride on motorcycles.

More recently, a law was proclaimed to outlaw audible farting by women. Mayor Sayyid Yahia explained that it was against Islam that a woman should pass wind in a manner that can be heard by others, as he believed audible farting was a male behavior. Hence, by farting audibly, a woman is guilty of impersonating a man.

These clearly sexist regulations are clear setbacks for women's rights in Aceh and highly ironic considering the region has had significant history of female leadership in the past.

Aceh has produced Tjoet Nyak Dien, the celebrated 20th century rebel leader against Dutch colonialism and more importantly Admiral Malahayati, the first woman sea admiral in world history. On Sept. 11, 1599, under Malahayati, the Aceh navy successfully defeated the Dutch in a sea battle and killed the latter's leader Cornelis de Houtman. Significantly, this battle saw the full participation of Malahayati's 2,000 strong regiment of Inong Balee, Aceh's women soldiers.

Today, in stark contrast, religion is being used in Aceh to discriminate against women. It does not help that Islamic religious texts are interpreted by religious councils comprising exclusively of male clerics.

However, hope remains as more and more intellectual Muslim women are coming forward to voice their opinions on gender equality. Muslim feminist Siti Musdah Mulia, and other prominent women with orthodox Muslim background such as Yenny Wahid, daughter of the late President Abdurrahman Wahid, will undoubtedly help shape the future of the struggle for equality between men and women in Indonesia.

Still, the road ahead is arduous, as evident in the recent difficulties experienced by political parties to fulfill the 30 percent quota of candidacy for parliament in the 2014 legislative elections.

It would seem, more than a century after its publication in 1911, Kartini's "Out of Darkness Into Light" is still a pertinent reminder of unfinished her work, and indeed our work, towards gender equality in Indonesia. Her frustration with religion in relation to women's rights is still, regrettably, relevant today. As did their ancestors who adapted Islam to the local values and customs, today's Muslim feminists of this country must be the ones to shape the blending of their faith with the betterment of rights for all women. Happy Kartini Day!

[Johannes Nugroho is a writer and businessman from Surabaya – He can be contacted at johannes@nonacris.com.]

The trouble with beauty

Jakarta Post Editorial - April 19, 2013

West Java Governor Achmad Heryawan is excited about hosting the Miss World global pageant. After hosting the visit of Miss Universe 2011, Leila Lopes, who said she was "amazed" by the lush Lembang mountain resort, naturally Achmad is looking forward to further boosting the province's potential.

The Miss World 2013, to be held here by the Miss World Organization and the MNC giant media group, is scheduled for September in Bogor, West Java and Bali – the first time that the country will host an international beauty pageant.

But there is one problem. Achmad won the recent election on the ticket of mostly Islamic parties. Sure, he cracked down on the infamous Saritem brothel, but governors cannot forever cater to moral sensitivities. In welcoming Lopes as a guest, Achmad defied the rejection of the West Java chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and women organizations.

Now the MUI's Bogor chapter has said it rejects Indonesia hosting Miss World. The New Order was firmly against such pageants, one MUI official said, though a few rebellious aspiring models secretly flew out with sneaky sponsors.

Part of the women's movement rejects all pageants as female degradation for the sake of business, while others resist state intervention on the basis that it is an individual's free will to contest such pageants. Ahead of September, the God-fearing will voice their objections louder. Pageants only serve to arouse men's lust, the MUI representative said.

For the past few years we have officially sent representatives, bickering about whether they should wear one piece of clothing or two, or whether they should skip the swimsuit session altogether.

But being host would mean an official acceptance of the event. To seek a national blessing, Achmad was quick to suggest that bikinis worn by the contestants should be replaced by the kebaya national costume.

Yet ahead of the 2014 general elections, many are wary of the "Islamic" vote, while President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has rarely shown a firm hand against those claiming to represent all Indonesian Muslims. This has led to a set of success stories for certain Islamic groups, including the 2008 Pornography Law, local restrictions on the Ahmadiyah minority, last June's canceled Lady Gaga concert and today's confusion over religious values in the new curriculum.

Add religious vigilantes to the mix and Indonesia should risk less fuss in marking its place on the global map by hosting a pageant – at least until we see a less wobbly government on issues of morality.

The MUI also warns against sending representatives to pageants, but try telling that to young women after instant recognition, at home and beyond.

Many decry the obsession with physical appearance. For all the pretense to search for the smartest, most compassionate and most beautiful woman of the year, all the public largely sees are pin-up figures to gawk at, despite all the good work that winners have inspired, as highlighted by their sponsors.

For countless females, contesting pageants are faster routes to respect and admiration compared to, for instance, toiling up the corporate ladder while balancing the traditional expectations as a wife and a mother.

At the risk of being hypocritical, for now let us just send pageant contestants and host stunning ambassadors – while campaigning for less fixation with the scales.

Civil society groups flourish in Indonesia, but threatened by 'ormas' bill

Jakarta Post - April 18, 2013

Lauren Gumbs, Perth – Indonesia's flourishing civil society activists and advocacy organizations stand in contrast to a darker culture of mob violence, militarism and extremist groups.

Despite the recent rise in reported conflicts carried out by mobs of local vigilantes, soldiers and hard-line Islamic groups, Indonesia also has a growing civil society that is vocal, active and mobilized for positive social and political change.

Because of civil society efforts, the House of Representatives has halted its deliberations on revising the controversial mass organizations (ormas) bill.

The House was supposed to deliberate and pass the proposed amendments, which would give government officials discretionary powers to suspend and dissolve civil society organizations (CSOs), restrict local and international CSOs with regard to the Pancasila ideology, force international organizations to secure permits and limit the activities of CSOs to those within the purview of "the duty of law enforcers and government".

The reason the plenary meetings did not go ahead was because it was too risky for lawmakers to alienate voters before the 2014 legislative election, particularly when civil society groups can take strong political positions and have the power to mobilize members to pointed effect.

But isn't this why the bill was drafted in the first place? To tighten the reins on dissent?

It is to its credit that Indonesian civil society has managed to stall the ormas bill so far, and only due to the ability of opposition groups to foster enough bridging capital to overcome differences and reject what they see as excessive controls on civil and political freedoms.

Even though they hold different viewpoints, Muslim groups and rights groups recognized what sort of repercussions the bill would have on their organizational activities and for civil society as a whole.

The World Alliance for Citizen Participation (CIVICUS) published an open letter to the House, criticizing the proposed amendments that would further limit CSOs above and beyond already-restrictive legislation.

CIVICUS, in alliance with the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development, and the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), said the already vague and overbroad provisions should not seek to further expand state interference in CSOs, which are crucial for a robust democratic society, and that mass organizations should comply with international standards and constitutional protections on the freedom of association.

They said the bill severely undermined freedom of association enshrined in the Constitution and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to which Indonesia is signatory. CIVICUS suggested the House formulate alternative legislation to create an enabling environment for civil society free from unwarranted restrictions.

While many Indonesians feel powerless to act against injustice, compelled to violence or apathy, the efflorescence of grass-roots civil society organizations speaks of a significant transformation in the way people across the country demand change and undertake rights claims.

Indeed, the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Jakarta is awash on most days with demonstrators and protesters advocating a host of causes, from feminist warriors to aggrieved farmers, whose relentless presence represents a movement toward recognition of democratic consolidation, people power and democratic rationality.

The rise of civil society groups echoes the cultural tendencies of Indonesians to band together over common problems, but this innate community spirit has now evolved into a politicized form of social capital that is contributing to the practical realization of democratic norms.

That is, democratic norms are realized in processes that allow legitimate actors to advocate for and demand social change instead of resorting to violent and unjust means.

However, as the attempt to introduce even more restrictive legislation proves, a flourishing civil society challenges the authority of lawmakers, the military and anyone else who employ extractive measures to exploit and perpetuate the status quo.

Yappika, an Indonesian civil society alliance for democracy that was founded in 1991 to strengthen civil society organizations, created a so- called civil society index. In a report issued in 2006, Yappika said that despite significant environmental and structural obstacles, such as legal barriers, poor law enforcement and a lack of financial resources, Indonesian CSOs scored high for values and participation.

Indonesia has a civil group for just about anything one can think of: the Pedestrian Coalition advocates for safer streets; the New Alliance for Men has men who are unafraid of wearing miniskirts in public to oppose violence against women; Indonesia for the Environment; the Indonesia Prosperity Foundation; the Foundation for Women in Small Businesses, and many more.

Last week, members of the Yogya Pedicab Driver Community took to Yogyakarta's streets to campaign against thuggish behavior after 11 Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) commandos were named suspects in the murder of four detainees inside Cebongan prison. In Jakarta last Wednesday, the streets were blocked by members of workers' unions protesting low wages and a lack of health care.

Legitimate civil society organizations do not engage in violence; none of these groups will seal a church, attack a family, or raid a prison to get what they want, but they will march through the streets with banners, lobby the government, talk to journalists and write press releases for their web pages.

The question is, will the government listen and support them, or will it continue to overlook and even protect the vigilantes, hard-liners, village mobs and military personnel?

The shift toward civil society groups and the vocal, diverse range of their advocacy, despite the challenging operating environment, is a definite positive for Indonesia's democracy and development and challenges an insidious culture of violence, abuse of power and vigilantism, by encouraging participation and resistance against illegitimate means of dominance.

[The writer holds a Master's in communications from Griffith University in Queensland and is currently studying a Master's in human rights at Curtin University in Perth.]