Michael Bachelard – Schapelle Corby locked herself in the toilet for an entire day and was still on "heavy medication" her brother-in-law has revealed on Wednesday as he begged the media to give her space and not to "twist" the family's words.

But as Wayan Widyartha was giving his plea, the Indonesian media was ramping up its demand that Corby be locked back in Kerobokan prison.

Mr Wayan spoke to journalists outside his family compound on Wednesday saying the media presence was "the hardest thing" for Schapelle to take, even compared to the threat of being imprisoned again. "It's the hardest thing, I think. She can't say anything, we can't say anything," he said.

He also said she was hallucinating about a large media scrum following her wherever she went. "It's like an illusion of people... If she goes out, it's like she's still seeing people (crowding her). She's still traumatised."

Asked about her attempted suicide, Mr Wayan sighed heavily and then said: "It's because of stress, she's mentally ill. We sometimes can't speak to her. She stayed in the toilet for the whole day, she's still on heavy medication... for her depression."

The family had reportedly previously denied any attempt at suicide, despite comments of Bali Justice Office senior official Sunar Agus, who witnessed Corby take a knife and try to slice her wrist on Monday night.

Mr Wayan said the family had "access to psychologist [from Australia] online" – someone they have consulted before – but he said it was too expensive to bring the doctor from Australia. "The doctor visited her in prison. We also use [Bali's most prominent and respected psychiatrist] Dr. Denny Thong."

Increasing the ammunition against Corby within Indonesia was evidence revealed on Wednesday from the luxury Villa Sentosa Seminyak that the Seven Network had paid the Corby family's bill for their three week stay there.

Bali Justice Office corrections division chief Sunar Agus said he still did not know the exact amount of the bill, but: "It's accurate information" that Seven paid the bill.

"However, it is not information we got from Mercedes... she would not admit it. Mercedes told me there was no payment for the interview, no agreement (for payment)."

He would not comment on whether the payment of the villa bill constituted payment for the interview, saying that was a matter for "interpretation", but the news may be used against the 36-year-old Australian.

Corby's mental state and attempt at self-harm have evoked no sympathy among the politicians or media in Jakarta calling for her to be imprisoned again.

Under a headline, "Waiting for tough action on Corby," Metro TV's morning Najwa Shihab called for immediate revocation of the Australian drug smugglers parole.

Referring to minister Amir Syamsuddin's comments on Tuesday that the Corby family was testing his patience, Ms Najwa suggested the minister and the Indonesian government generally was testing the patience of the whole nation. Metro TV is owned and run by a local tycoon, Surya Paloh, who himself has political ambitions.

An editorial in newspaper Media Indonesia said the Seven Network's Sunday Night program interview with Mercedes Corby had "ridiculed" Indonesian "law and sovereignty" because it suggested Schapelle was innocent and had been "the victim in a set up" by Indonesian officials.

It accused the Indonesian government of a weak response, in contrast with the "tougher" action by the Australian Federal Police in raiding the Seven Network in a proceeds of crime investigation. "Simply revoke the parole as soon as possible and send Corby back into the prison," the newspaper said. (With Amilia Rosa)

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/indonesian-media-ramps-up-calls-for- corbys-parole-to-be-revoked-20140305-347bt.html

'Fearful' SBY blasted over bid to ensure post-presidential security

Jakarta Globe - March 5, 2014

Ezra Sihite, Novy Lumanauw & Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Jakarta – The move to put together a new presidential security detail, or Paspampres, to guard the family of a former president and vice president has elicited mixed responses from observers, some of whom claim the push stems from fear.

Hasto Kristiyanto, a deputy secretary general of the opposition Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle (PPDI-P), said on Tuesday that the move by the current administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was questionable.

"This is part of Yudhoyono's scenario to secure himself when his term ends, using the state to protect himself and his family," Hasto said. "The question is, would the formation of the so-called Group D be relevant amid the various economic issues the people are currently faced with? Or is this a syndrome of [Yudhoyono's] excessive insecurity when his term ends?"

He was speaking in response to the inauguration on Monday of the new security detail, dubbed Group D, by Gen. Moeldoko, the armed forces chief of staff.

The current presidential guard consists of three teams, known as A, B and C, which are respectively in charge of close-range physical security for the president and their family; close-range physical security for the vice president and their family; and security measures for visiting heads of state and other senior foreign dignitaries.

Group D, created by a government regulation, will consist of 287 members with 30 officers being deployed to secure former presidents and vice presidents.

Hasto said that if throughout their term a president had consistently prioritized the public, then excessive security from the government may not be necessary. "The formation of Group D is just a way [for Yudhoyono] to save himself and is not a program to honor any other former presidents," he said.

The two other former presidents still living are Megawati Soekarnoputri, who is the PDI-P chairwoman, and B.J. Habibie, who spends much of his time in Germany, where he has been made an honorary citizen. Both Megawati and Habibie also served as vice presidents; Megawati to the late Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, and Habibie to the late Suharto.

Moeldoko said at Monday's ceremony that he would soon meet with the former heads of state to acquaint them with the new security program.

Clean Indonesia Movement (GIB), which advocates against profligate government spending, also criticized the establishment of Group D just months before Yudhoyono leaves office.

"The way I see it, behind the regulation there is tremendous fear by the person who initiated it – SBY – who will soon enough become a former president," Edhie M. Massardi, a coordinator at GIB, said as quoted by Inilah.com. "All this time, former presidents and vice presidents have almost never been subject to any [security] disturbances."

In a report by Tempo.co, military analyst Anton Ali Abbas questioned the urgency of the team's formation and the scope of its work. "Will they secure the main family as in the wife or husband and their children, or will they go as far as securing their in-laws and grandchildren too?" he said.

Julian Aldrin Pasha, a spokesman for Yudhoyono, said on Tuesday that the formation of the special security force was not proposed by the president, but was a result of evaluations by the presidential guard.

"Of course this was proposed by Paspampres, so if anyone says this was proposed by the president, I think that is not right," he said at the State Palace in Jakarta. He added that suggestions for the team to be put together had started several years ago, but only materialized this year.

Julian also denied criticism that the team would cause an unnecessary increase in the military budget, saying the presidential guard commander had ensured minimal additional expenses by recruiting from within the Paspampres ranks. "Paspampres will be remapping their members and optimizing them," he said. "I don't think there will be any big increases to the budget."

Tubagus Hasanuddin, a deputy chairman of the House of Representatives' Commission I, which oversees defense and foreign affairs, spoke in support of the team, noting that many of the current security staff assigned to former presidents and vice presidents were once members of Paspampres who were now placed in different institutions such as the Army or Marines.

Tubagus, from the PDI-P, said there were currently three to 15 security staff for each former head of state.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/fearful-sby-blasted-over-bid-to-ensure-post-presidential-security/

West Papua

Vanuatu PM addresses UN on human rights in Papua

Jakarta Globe - March 7, 2014

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura – Vanuatu's prime minister has addressed the United Nations, urging a resolution to investigate allegations of human rights violations in Papua.

Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council, Prime Minister Moana Carcasses Kalosil accused the Indonesian government of abuses in Papua, and the international community of "neglecting the voices of the Papuan people, whose human rights have been trampled upon and severely suppressed since 1969."

Citing rights abuse findings by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) as well as academics and NGOs, Kalosil said Indonesian security forces had carried out a "litany of tortures, murders, exploitation, rapes, military raids, arbitrary arrests and dividing of civil society through intelligence operations."

Kalosil said he was "unable to sleep well at night," and his sense of Melanesian solidarity was stirred, he said, when video footage surfaced in 2010 of bound Papuans being kicked in the head by uniformed Indonesian soldiers.

Film of separatist Yawan Wayeni bleeding to death after apparently being disemboweled by police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) officers who recorded the gruesome death on camera also received a mention in the speech, which centered around a call for the UN council to adopt a formal resolution mandating an investigation into the human rights situation in Papua.

With implied reference to the world's largest gold and copper mine run by Freeport, Kalosil said "It is clear that the Melanesian people of West Papua were the scapegoat of Cold War politics and were sacrificed to gratify the appetite for [Papua's] natural resources."

Kalosil, whose speech noted President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's pledge to hold a Papuan dialogue, has been outspoken in his opposition to Indonesia's participation in the Melanesian Spearhead Group. The MSG is an intergovernmental organization that groups Fiji, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu for the purpose of political and trade talks.

Instead of Indonesia's head of state participating in the MSG as an observer, Kalosil's government would rather see the Vanuatu-based West Papua National Coalition for Liberation be given membership to represent the people in Indonesia's Papua provinces.

Last month Vanuatu reiterated its stance on Papua by refusing to join an MSG delegation of foreign affairs ministers who visited Papua and Maluku. Vanuatu Foreign Minister Edward Natapei told Radio Australia that he believed the agenda for the foreign ministers' meeting had been "hijacked" by Indonesia.

He added that Vanuatu would only participate if the delegation was given the opportunity to meet civil society groups, pro-independence groups, church leaders and other groups concerned with human rights violations in West Papua.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/vanuatu-pm-addresses-un-on- human-rights-in-papua

West Papua's 'Act of Free Choice' – 45 years on

Free West Papua Campaign - March 7, 2014

As global media focus on Crimea's forthcoming referendum on whether to join Russia, we remember another 'Act of Free Choice' in West Papua in 1969 – which set off 45 years of military occupation, theft, repression and murder.

West Papua was colonised by the Netherlands in 1898, along with the islands that now make up Indonesia. When the Republic of Indonesia became an independent nation state in 1949, West Papua remained under Dutch control.

The Dutch government began preparing West Papua for its own independence throughout the 1950s. At the end of 1961, West Papua held a Congress at which its people declared independence, and raised their new flag – the Morning Star.

Self-determination – a promise betrayed

But within months the dream was dead. The Indonesian military invaded West Papua and conflict broke out between the Netherlands, Indonesia and the indigenous population regarding control of the territory.

The US intervened and engineered an agreement between Indonesia and the Netherlands, which in 1962 gave control of West Papua to the United Nations and one year later transferred control to Indonesia.

The Papuans were never consulted. However, the agreement did promise them their right to self determination – a right which is guaranteed by the UN to all people in the world.

Democracy under military occupation

By 1969 there was widespread resistance to Indonesian rule. The Indonesian military had killed and imprisoned thousands of Papuans in the seven years it had occupied the country – yet it was under these conditions that the people were supposed to exercise their right to self determination.

It was agreed that the UN should oversee a plebiscite of the people of West Papua, in which they would be given two choices: to remain part of Indonesia or to become an independent nation. This vote was to be called the "Act of Free Choice".

But the Act was a sham. Instead of overseeing a free and fair election, the UN stood by while Indonesia rigged the vote. Declaring that the Papuans were too "primitive" to cope with democracy, the Indonesian military hand- picked just 1,026 'representative' Papuans, out of a population of one million.

It then bribed them, and threatened to kill them and their families if they voted the wrong way. So strong was the intimidation that despite widespread opposition to Indonesian rule, all 1,026 voted to remain a part of Indonesia.

The UN's rubber stamp

Despite protests from the Papuans, a critical report by a UN official and condemnation of the vote in the international media, the UN shamefully sanctioned the result and West Papua has remained under control of the Indonesian state ever since. The Papuans now dub this episode the "Act of No Choice".

Consigning a million people to live under the brutal occupation that ensued is one of the most shameful chapters in the history of the UN.

Recently there have been a number of detailed reports that heavily criticise the actions of Indonesia, the UN, and its member states during this period.

One of the aims of the Free West Papua Campaign is to persuade the UN to review its role in this event and allow the Papuans a true act of self determination.

The People and land under attack

Since the first days of Indonesian occupation, the people and land of West Papua have been under relentless attack.

In an attempt to control the Papuans, and to claim the land to make way for resource extraction, the Indonesian army has systematically murdered, raped and tortured people in numbers that could constitute a genocide.

One of the worst examples of this is the displacement and killing of thousands of people to make way for the giant American- and British-owned Freeport mine, the largest gold mine in the world, which has reduced a sacred mountain to a crater and poisoned the local river system.

As West Papuan leader Benny Wenda wrote in October 2011 after Indonesian security forces opened fire on striking miners, this is the mine that profits everybody – except the West Papuans themselves who are forced to work there is slave-like conditions.

"You would think that being home to the world's largest goldmine and huge natural gas deposits, West Papua would be a land of riches. Yet we remain the poorest and least developed part of all Indonesia."

In a further attempt to eradicate Papuan culture, around one million people from overcrowded shanty towns across Indonesia have been moved into 'transmigration' camps cut into the forests.

The exploitation of West Papua under Indonesia's continuing military accupation represents a severe, wholesale assault on its environment and biodiversity, all carried out for the profit of Indonesia, its military forces and well-connected companies.

Resistance to Indonesian colonialism

Resistance to the Indonesian occupation started from the first days after the invasion. An armed guerrilla group called the OPM (Free Papua Movement) was formed in 1970 to resist the colonisation of West Papua.

The OPM carried out a number of guerrilla attacks on the Indonesian military and on the holdings of multinational companies who had taken Papuan land and resources – including a successful attempt to close down the Freeport gold and copper mine.

Armed mostly with bows and arrows, the small, ragged but determined OPM fought an almost unknown war against the well-armed, Western-backed Indonesian military for decades.

A brief window of hope

Following the fall of the Indonesian military dictator, General Suharto, in 1998, a political space briefly opened up in West Papua. The Morning Star flag was flown again and a huge public congress was held in the year 2000 with hundreds of delegates from tribes all across Papua.

The Congress rejected the result of the 1969 Act of Free Choice and reaffirmed West Papua as an independent nation. It also gave power to the newly formed Papuan Presidium Council (PDP) to gain world recognition for West Papua's independence.

But these hopes were soon dashed. Fearing secession, the army moved in, and hundreds of people were shot and arrested for public flag raisings and independence rallies. Then, in November 2001, the charismatic president of the PDP, Theys Eluay, was assassinated by Indonesian soldiers.

Independence aspirations continued to be publicly demonstrated and whilst on the ground the police and military continued to respond with violence and intimidation, the Indonesian state attempted to quell these hopes by passing special autonomy legislation.

The legislation was supposed to devolve some power and distribute more resources to West Papua but it is widely regarded as a failure by the indigenous Papuans with corruption leading to money being hoarded or misspent.

Murder, torture, arbitrary detention In recent years a new independence organisation, the KNPB (National Committee for West Papua) has become prominent. Under its guidance huge independence rallies have been held across West Papua and the West Papuan's voice is united more than ever.

As a result, many of its members have been arrested, tortured and killed. In 2012, the KNPB chairman Mako Tabuni was killed by Indonesian police, whilst many others face lengthy jail sentences of up to 15 years just for raising the West Papuan flag.

Today West Papua's tragedy continues with ongoing reports of villages being burnt, Papuans being arrested, tortured and shot and the beautiful natural wilderness being devastated by logging, mining, agricultural and biofuel interests.

The repression continues

Targetted beatings by military personnel continue. In one of several recent attacks, Blasius Sumaghai, the son of the late Abraham Sumaghai who was an Awyu community leader, was beaten by Navy officers on the 26th January 2014.

Following the initial assault he was taken to a Navy outpost where "he was beaten over his whole body using rifle butts and hosepipes" and "suffered serious injuries.

And on 11th February a district court sentenced Oktavianus Warnares to three years imprisonment for raising the 'Morning Star'. Four others were also sentenced for the same 'offence' for slightly shorter periods. In their consideration, the judges stated that their activities had "threatened the existence of the Unitary State of Indonesia."

The five were arrested after the Indonesian police and military opened fire into a crowd of people gathered for a flag-raising ceremony on the 50th anniversary of Indonesia's annexation of West Papua.

"Anyone who supported the East Timorese in their struggle for independence should support West Papua", says the campaigner-comedian Mark Thomas. "The Indonesian authorities have tried to suppress, kill and destroy the independence movement in West Papua, with the help of British arms companies and the British government."

Hope springs eternal

But there is good news too. The issue of West Papua is creeping up the international agenda as campaign groups, Papuan leaders-in-exile and concerned people all over the world alert their leaders to the injustice that is happening in West Papua.

Despite a ban on foreign journalists, media outlets are beginning to cover the story and have exposed leaked videos of West Papuans being tortured.

With the advent of the International Parliamentarians for West Papua (IPWP) and the International Lawyers for West Papua (ILWP) politicians and lawyers are beginning to engage with the issue.

West Papuans are also forging international links via the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) – something which clearly alarms the Indonesian authorities.

On 13th January 2014, Indonesian police arrested 47 West Papuan activists who were gathered at the office of the Papuan Legislative Council (DPRP) in Jayapura to welcome and support MSG representatives.

These included the Foreign Ministers of Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji and Kanaky who were on a fact finding mission ahead of the decision on allowing West Papuan membership to the MSG.

On the international human rights agenda

On 4th March 2014 The Prime Minister of Vanuatu, Moana Carcasses gave the cause powerful support when he called for international action on West Papua at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva:

"Since the controversial Act of Free Choice in 1969, the Melanesian People of West Papua have been subject to on-going human rights violations committed by the Indonesian security services. The world has witnessed the litany of tortures, murders, exploitation, rapes, military raids, arbitrary arrests and dividing of civil society trough intelligence operations.

"The Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights (KOMNAS HAM) concluded that these acts constitute crimes against humanity under Indonesian Law No. 26/2000 (KOMNAS HAM 2001,2004).

"In this climate of fear and repression of political dissent, and blatant negligence by the international Community including the UN and the powerful developed countries since 1969, we find this forgotten race still dare to dream for equality and justice. Yet the democratic nations have kept silent."

A UN human rights mandate for West Papua?

In conclusion he called on the Council to establish a formal UN mandate on West Papua."The mandate should include investigation of the alleged human rights violation in West Papua and provide recommendations on a peaceful political solution in West Papua."

Things are finally moving in the right direction – but they need to move faster if more bloodshed is to be avoided, and the people of West Papua's cry for freedom is finally to be heard.

This article is a based on History of West Papua and contains more recent news material published on the website of the Free West Papua Campaign.

Source: http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_analysis/2311015/ west_papuas_act_of_free_choice_45_years_on.html

NZ says it will keep police in West Papua and look into allegations

Radio New Zealand International - March 6, 2014

After criticism over New Zealand's police training programme in Indonesia's remote Papua province, the foreign minister says he will take reports of police violence seriously.

Murray McCully says there's no point criticising Indonesia from afar, and that is why the three-year, 5 million US-dollar programme is still in place, despite calls for it to be stopped.

Pax Christi Aotearoa New Zealand wants the programme to end, saying peaceful pro-independence events in the provinces are being brutally disrupted by military and police.

He says he will take up issues of concern with the Indonesian government should he have any as a result of the regular ministry reviews of the programme.

"Our default position on this is that by having our people participate in West Papua we are significantly assisting the law enforcement authorities in lifting standards there. But since some allegations have been made we will look at them as we always do and if there are issues of concern we ll take them up with the Indonesian government who in my experience have been very open to that sort of process."

Murray McCully says if New Zealand was to pull police out as soon as allegations are made then many police efforts in the Pacific would be worse off.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/238087/nz-says-it-will-keep-police-in-west-papua-and-look-into-allegations

Indonesia strongly rejects the statement of prime minister of Vanuatu

Tabloid JUBI - March 5, 2014

Jayapura – Using the right of reply, Indonesian Ambassador to the United Nations Indonesia's rejected the statement of Prime Minister of Vanuatu.

Please watch the reply by Indonesia's Amabassador here: http://webtv.un.org/watch/rights-of-reply-6th-meeting-25th-regular-session-human-rights-council/3292582057001/.

And bellow is the transcript of the reply by Indonesia Ambassador.

Right of Reply

Mr. President,

My delegation takes the floor to exercise its right of reply to the statement made by Vanuatu.

The Government of the Republic of Indonesia strongly rejects the statement concerning the so-called 'issue of West Papua', made by the Prime Minister of Vanuatu, H.E. Moana Carcessess Kalosil, at the High-Level Segment on this morning.

His statement represents an unfortunate and sadly lack of understanding of basic facts on historical role of the UN and the principled position of international community at large as well as the current state of Indonesia, including the actual development in the provinces of Papua and West Papua, Indonesia.

We are just too conscious that internal political dynamics in Vanuatu have often played a role in the raising of the so-called 'issue of West Papua' in various fora, including the United Nations, as evidently stated in a statement made by the Office of Prime Minister Sato Kilman of Vanuatu in May 2012 and published by the Vanuatu Daily Post on 22 May 2012, which stated inter alia:

"in Vanuatu, the West Papua issue has been politicized and used by different political parties and movements not for the interests of the people in West Papua but more so for elections and political campaign propaganda..."

Furthermore, the statement of Mr. Kalosil is simply in contradiction with the visit of a high-level delegation of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) members representing Melanesian Community, to Indonesia from 11 to 16 January 2014 in which Ministerial Level Delegation of Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and representative of the Front de Liberation NationaleKanak et Socialiste (FLNKS) of New Caledonia as well as MSG High Representative conducted in situ visit to Papua province and obtained firsthand information. The Communique resulted from the visit stipulates that the government of Indonesia and members of the MSG are determined to strengthen cooperation and further enhance constructive relationship.

Worse, his statement is also in contradiction to the will of the Vanuatu government itself towards its relation with Indonesia as reflected in the 2011 Bilateral Development Cooperation Agreement that provides a legal framework for the two countries to respect each other's sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity and principles of non-interference in each other's internal affairs.

Mr. President,

For its part, Indonesia will not be distracted by such inclination. We will continue fostering our agenda for democracy, including the promotion and respect for the human rights of all its peoples.

At the same time, we will also persevere in the promotion of friendly relations with the Government and people of Vanuatu based on principles governing friendly relations between countries. A good will that we have demonstrated by presenting constructive recommendations to Vanuatu in their UPR consideration on last January.

Finally, Mr. President, we also would like to request to you that this statement to be put as an official document and record of the Human Rights Council.

I thank you.

(Jubi/Victor Mambor)

Source: http://tabloidjubi.com/en/?p=1450

In Papua, many still live in poverty despite abundant funds

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Many residents in Papua are still living in poverty although the government has disbursed Rp 57 trillion (US$4.9 billion) in special autonomy, or Otsus, funds to the province since 2002.

"Such abundant funding could neither reduce the poverty level nor increase the human development index [HDI] in Papua. The funds channeled since 2002 to date have not yet been successful to move Papua from its current position as the province with the lowest HDI in Indonesia despite improvements," said Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) member Rizal Djalil after a public lecture at the University of Cenderawasih in Jayapura, on Wednesday.

Papua Governor Lukas Enembe, Papua regional secretary Hery Dosinaen, University of Cenderawasih rector Karel Sesa and other academic community members attended the lecture.

Citing reports, Rizal said Papua's HDI stood at 65.86 in 2012, up from 60.1 in 2002. The data showed that Otsus funds provided by the government to Papua positively impacted residents' standard of living and quality of life but not in a significant way.

"Each Otsus disbursement of Rp 1 million increases Papua's HDI by only 0.000001521, or approaching zero. In other words, increased Otsus funds have no significant impact on improving HDI in Papua," said Rizal.

In Papua, 30.66 percent of the population is currently considered impoverished. Rizal said the government should re-examine the Law No.21/2001 on Papua special autonomy based on results of a comprehensive evaluation on the implementation of special autonomy in the province.(ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/in-papua-many-still- live-poverty-despite-abundant-funds.html

Vanuatu PM blasts Indonesian human rights violations in West Papua

Pacific Scoop - March 5, 2014

PMC news desk – Vanuatu Prime Minister Moana Carcasses Kalosil has condemned the international community's "neglect" of the voices of the Papuan people in protest over the repression by Indonesia for four decades.

Addressing the United Nations Human Rights Council, he said his country was seeking to "amplify the concerns for human rights" in the West Papua region.

"We are very concerned indeed about the manner in which the international community has neglected the voices of the Papuan people, whose human rights have been trampled upon and severely suppressed since 1969," he said.

Introducing his remarks through a comparison with Vanuatu's own colonial history in achieving independence, Prime Minister Carcasses said: "We were Melanesians being governed by Britain and France in our own mother land. Prior to 1980, we were stateless in our country and we were neither French of British citizens.

"And for almost four decades, we were exposed to foreign rule. So we had to struggle to construct our identity as free people to live in dignity. Independence was our objective. And this was a compelling thrive that motivated our leaders to achieve nothing less than political independence."

"We did not fight for independence because we were economically and financially ready. We did not fight for independence because our colonial masters were killing our people. No. We fought for our political independence because it is our God given right to be free."

Prime Minister Carcasses' speech:

The Republic of Vanuatu is very pleased to be addressing this meeting today. I have come here to join the leaders of the world to discuss and raise concerns on different human rights challenges affecting millions of innocent citizens across the entire globe, from the island countries and in countries across continents.

Mr President, the focus of my statement here today will be on two important but very highly critical issues to the entire population of my country. First I want to focus on the rights of our indigenous people to practise their cultural and spiritual rituals in the two of our islands in the Tafea Province, South of Vanuatu. And Secondly, I will bring to the forefront or our debate some of the issues regarding human rights abuses in West Papua that have been very disturbing to the community of democracies around the world.

Mr President, my country's struggle to achieve political independence in 1980 was marked with incidences of social protests and emergence of some political movements within our country. We were Melanesians being governed by Britain and France in our own mother land. Prior to 1980, we were stateless in our country and we were neither French of British citizens.

And for almost four decades, we were exposed to foreign rule. So we had to struggle to construct our identity as free people to live in dignity. Independence was our objective. And this was a compelling thrive that motivated our leaders to achieve nothing less than political independence.

Right to be free

We did not fight for independence because we were economically and financially ready. We did not fight for independence because our colonial masters were killing our people. No. We fought for our political independence because it is our God given right to be free. Freedom was our inalienable right. It is a human right. And Vanuatu was proclaimed independent on 30 July 1980. Thirty three years after our independence I am delighted to say that France has begun to demonstrate its willingness for our indigenous people to visit two of our very sacred islands, Umaepnune (Mathew) and Leka (Hunter) in the southern part of our country to fulfil their cultural and spiritual obligations.

Rituals and ceremonies have continued to be held on other islands of the Tafea province annually despite the blockage previously imposed by the French authority for our tribesmen to travel to the sacred islands Umaepnune and Leka islands to fulfil their cultural and spiritual duties.

Mr President, I want to now focus my attention on the chronic human rights challenges that has affected the indigenous Melanesian peoples of West Papua since 1969. And I do this with great respect and humility. My country is here in this meeting to amplify the concerns for human rights in West Papua. We are very concerned indeed about the manner in which the international community has neglected the voices of the Papuan people, whose human rights have been trampled upon and severely suppressed since 1969.

Mr President, you are presiding over the noblest organ of the United Nations - the Human Rights Council. But what do we do when rights of the Melanesian people of West Papua are challenged with military interventions and presence?

Since the controversial Act of Free Choice in 1969, the Melanesian People of West Papua have been subject to ongoing human rights violations committed by the Indonesian security services. The world has witnessed the litany of tortures, murders, exploitation, rapes, military raids, arbitrary arrests and dividing of civil society trough intelligence operations.

The Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights (KOMNAS HAM) concluded that these acts constitute crimes against humanity under Indonesian Law No. 26/2000 (KOMNAS HAM 2001,2004).

Fear and repression

In this climate of fear and repression of political dissent, and blatant negligence by the international community including the UN and the powerful developed countries since 1969, we find this forgotten race still dare to dream for equality and justice. Yet the democratic nations have kept silent.

Mr President, as a Melanesian citizen, I have come here to call for immediate action. Injustice in West Papua is a threat to the principle of justice everywhere in the world. I do not sleep well at night when I know that in 2010 Yawan Wayeni, known as a separatist was videotaped by the security forces as he was lying in a pool of his own blood with his intestines seeping from a gaping wound in his abdomen.

It concerns me that in October 2010 Telenga Gire and Anggen Pugu Kiwo were tied by the military and were severely tortured. It concerns me when I see the video footage of a group of Papuan men bounded and being kicked in the head by uniformed soldiers who are meant to protect them.

I am worried because between October of 2011 and March 2013, 25 Papuans were murdered and nothing has been done to bring perpetrators to justice. And it embarrasses me.

As a Melanesian, to note that roughly 10 percent of the indigenous Melanesian population have been killed by the Indonesian Security forces since 1963. While I acknowledge the 15 years of reformation that has taken place, I am also worried that Melanesians will soon become a minority in their own motherland of Papua.

Mr President, in a world so now closely connected with innovative technology, there should be no excuses about lack of information on human rights violations that have plagued the Papuan people for more than 45 years. Search the internet and research papers by academic institutions and international NGOs and you will find raw facts portraying the brutal abuse of the rights of the Melanesian people in Papua.

But why are we not discussing it in this council? Why are we turning a blind eye to them and closing our ears to the lone voices of the Papuan people, many of whom have shed innocent blood because they want justice and freedom.

Martyrs persecuted

Many are martyrs that have been persecuted and brutally murdered because the carry the unspoken voices of the millions now living in fear in the valleys and lofty mountains of Papua. They are demanding recognition and equality and a respect for their human rights and to live in peace.

Will this august council hear their cries and now go forward to protect their human rights and put right all wrong of the past?

I have listened attentively to the voice of a former civil servant Mr Filep Karma and student Yusak Pakage who were sentenced to 15 and 10 years in prison and speaking from behind bars, calling on our countries in the Pacific to speak out against the injustice against them. These are the children of the warriors who have stood firm to fight during the Second World War in the Pacific and who helped bring peace and security in our part of the world.

It is now our duty to bring peace to their tribal villages and communities by affording them their basic human rights that most of us here take for granted.

I am very encouraged that the matter has now reached the European Union Committee on Human Rights and we look forward for some actions to improve the human rights conditions of our brothers and sisters in Papua.

I further call on the governments of the developed countries, including the African nations and the island countries of the Caribbean and the Pacific, to condemn the issue of human rights violations.

'Conscientious stupidity'

I want to echo the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., who said in his speech in 1963 that, "nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."

We, the democratic nations, must not ignore the cries of the Papuan people.

Mr President, the concerns we are raising here is more than a question of keeping 70 percent of the wealth from oil and gas in West Papua, it is the question of political status. The concerns we are raising here, is more than the question of economic status were 80 percent of wealth from forestry, fisheries and general mining are kept in Papua.

It is a question of the respect of the human rights and existence of the Melanesian people. Our concern is not to see how much they have been fed by a golden spoon, but to see the measure of respect for freedom accorded to the Papuans as equal citizens. And to what degree the civil society are given the right to express concerns about the quality of governance in their motherland.

For this should be a measure of a vibrant democracy.

Mr President, access must be allowed for the UN human rights monitor, international journalists and international human rights NGOs to visit West Papua.

It is clear from many historical records that the Melanesian people of West Papua were the scapegoat of Cold War politics and were sacrificed to gratify the appetite for the natural resources which this country possess.

Cancer growing

Mr President, if the UN Representative, Mr Ortiz Sanz, had described the West Papuan issue as a cancer growing "on the side of the and that his job was to remove it", it is very clear today from what we have seen that this cancer was never removed but simply concealed.

One day, this cancer will be diagnosed. We must not be afraid if the UN had made some mistakes in the past. We must admit our mistakes and correct them.

Mr President, as I close, my government believes that human rights challenges of Papua must be brought back to the agenda of the United Nations. I call on the Human rights Council to consider adopting a resolution to establish a country mandate on the situation of human rights in West Papua. The mandate should include investigation of the alleged human rights violation in West Papua and provide recommendations on a peaceful political solution in West Papua.

This will help to assist in supporting H.E. President Yudhoyono's pledge to hold dialogue with Papua.

Thank you once again for the opportunity to express my views in this forum.

Long God Yumi Stanap. I God we Stand. Thank you.

Source: http://pacific.scoop.co.nz/2014/03/vanuatu-pm-blasts-indonesian- human-rights-violations-in-west-papua/#more-22258

Historic united front of civil resistance groups meets in West Papua

West Papua Media - March 4, 2014

[From the West Papua Media correspondents in Jayapura and Geneva, with local sources. The original title of the article was: Historic united front in Papua defies police dispersals, supporting Vanuatu PM call on UNHRC in Geneva to address West Papua issue.]

A broad united front of disparate Papuan civil resistance groups has come together to hold Peaceful gatherings across West Papua, in support of Vanuatu Prime Minister Moana Carcasses' call for international action on West Papua at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva today.

PM Carcasses used his ten minute address at the High Level segment of the 25th Session of the UNHRC to reiterate a call made at the UN General Assembly last September, for the UN to establish a specific Country Mandate on the situation of human rights in West Papua and to revisit honestly its role in the fraudulent Act of Free Choice of 1969.

The Vanuatu PM, long a champion for his fellow Melanesian's right to self- determination in West Papua, used an impassioned speech to highlight "grave injustices facing West Papuan people" and to demand the international community take concrete action to end the suffering.

"In a world so closely connected with innovative technology, there should be no excuses about the lack of information on human rights violations that have plagued the Papuan people for over 45 years. Search the Internat and research papers by academic institutions and international NGOs, and you will find raw facts portraying the brutal abbuse of the rights of Melanesian people in Papua," Carcasses noted.

The Prime Minster beseeched the Human RIghts council. "But why are we not discussing it here in this Council? Why are we turning a blind eye to them and closing our ears to the lone voices of the Papuan people, many of who have shed innocent blood because they want justice and freedom. Many are the martyrs that have been persecuted and brutally murdered because they carry the unspoken fears of the millions now living in fear in the valleys and lofty mountains of Papua. They are demanding recognition and equality and a respect for their human rights and to live in peace. Will this August council hear their cries and now go forward to protect their human rights and put right all the wrongs of the past?"

Carcasses told the UNHRC that "The mandate should include the investigation of the alleged human rights violations in West Papua and to provide recommendations on a peaceful political solution in West Papua."

Earlier on Tuesday in West Papua, the vibrant gatherings – organised by university students and supported by a broad coalition of civil society and pro-independence groups – were predictably dispersed forcefully by Indonesian occupation forces, however organisers claimed success in expressing their aspirations peacefully and without bloodshed.

Significantly for the struggle for self-determination in West Papua, the participant groups included the widest range of Papuan resistance components seen together for over ten years, with the united front coalition pulling together previously opposing groups under a common banner of supporting the Vanuatu Prime Minster's efforts to get West Papua on the international agenda.

Activists and leaders from the West Papua National Authority, National Federated Republic of West Papua, West Papua National Committee, the Papuan Women's Movement, Papuan Traditional Council (DAP), West Papua National Coalition for Liberation, GaRDA-Papua, FRONT PEPERA, The Street Parliament (PARJAL), Papuan Student Movement (GEMPAR or "Uproar"), AMPTPI (Association of Central Highland Papuan Students), KMPB (Coalition of Papuan students Rise!), Papuan Students Alliance (AMP), Christian Youth Solidarity Papua (SKK-P), Papuan People's solidarity for Democracy and Human Rights (SHDRP), all agreed to support the UNHRC support action being coordinated by the Student Executive council at Cenderawasih University in Abepura.

Led by University and high school members of the Movement of Papuan Students (GEMPAR or "UPROAR"), the mass gathered early on Tuesday morning in front of the the Cenderawasih University (Uncen) campuses at Waena and Abepura, erecting a large banner that read "The people of West Papua nation, support the Government of Vanuatu pursuing violations of human rights committed by the Government of Indonesia in West Papua". Speeches were made outside the campus entrance until 1025am local time, when Indonesian police from Jayapura station attempted to forcibly disperse the protesters listening to speeches.

According to witnesses, over a hundred Police in 6 trucks, 1 Panzer and 1 Police Bus were on standby, and were heavily armed. However as the group of students passed towards Waena, Police from Sentani and Jayapura amassed at the field of They Eluay's tomb with a full unit of motorcycle commando police (Gegana), eight trucks and three armoured cars. A platoon of heavily armed Brimob police at Post 7 Sentani completed the kettling of students to keep them confined.

Every place throughout the Waena, Sentani and downtown Jayapura was guarded by several platoons of heavily armed Brimob police to prevent students and protestors from gathering. An organiser told West Papua Media's stringer, "This is a police action in Papua that prohibits students to express their opinions, through peaceful demonstration."

Students then all gathered to rally silently at the UNCEN yard fence and spread a large banner, displaying photographic evidence of Indonesian Security force's violence against Papuan People.

An academic at UNCEN, Seth Wambrau, told the gathering, "These police officers, silencing democracy in Papua, this is the example that there is no freedom for students to express opinions freely, it is proving colonialism in Papua is happening.. Special autonomy is specific to the officials of Papua, not the Papuan people!" The events were ended by Gempar peacefully in the afternoon with no arrests.

Further manifestations occurred in Fak-Fak on the west coast, Merauke on the south coast, and in Manokwari, according to local reports. The Fak-Fak gathering included a deeply sacred traditional pre-Islamic indigenous thanksgiving prayer and coffee ritual for the UNHRC plea for international attention to West Papua by Vanuatu Prime Minister Moana Carcasses Kalosil. Members of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) and Regional People's Parliament (Parlemen Rakyat Daerah, PRD) provided a security cordon to enable traditional elders and chiefs in Mamur village, Kramomongga district to hold ceremony in support of the Vanuatu delegation's efforts to bring the world's attention to West Papua.

According to a description from KNPB participants of the ceremony, the elders then rejected wholly the powers of darkness and evil of all the Indonesia's power system in West Papua. "After all this ritual is done, then the placenta from the Child returned to the Land, the mother land West Papua, who gave birth to all things, and all life is God's nation of West Papua. Then all the evil forces of the Republic of Indonesia in Papua were symbolically collected by Mr. Haji Idris Papua Patiran, and were discarded by KNPB security, at least 100 meters from where the activity was taking place in Mamur," the witnesses described. A procession then occured with a ritual washing of all gathered with the "water of life, in order to reconcile all the people with nature and clean the whole self of any desire to be children of the mutually hostile land." a sacred representation of the West Papuan desire for independence. The ceremony was finished by the ritual serving of coffee.

The new West Papuan People's movement (WPM's term due to lack of official name) united front released a joint statement detailing the litany of suffering of West Papuan people, and demanded:

1. People of West Papua are demanding to exercise the right of Self- Determination as recognised by the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights;
2. The UN must immediately take responsibility for the violations of human rights that have occurred in West Papua;
3. People of West Papua ask the UN Human Rights Council to immediately form a special team to investigate all human rights violations in West Papua;
4. People of West Papua urged MSG member countries, specifically Vanuatu, to send a special team to examine and investigate cases of human rights violations that occurred in the region of West Papua;
5. People of West Papua urge UN member States to immediately urge the Indonesian government to open up democratic space in West Papua;
6. People of West Papua are asking the UN for the legal protection, over the application of the Wanted Persons List (DPO) to Buchtar Tabuni (chairman PNWP) and Wim Rocky Medlama (Spokesman KNPB), and all West Papuan independence activists;
7. People of West Papua thank the People and the State Government of Vanuatu for the willingness to bring issues of human rights violations to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Source: http://westpapuamedia.info/2014/03/05/historic-united-front-in- papua-defies-police-dispersals-in-support-of-vanuatu-pm-call-on-unhrc-in-geneva-to-address-west-papua-issue/

Five Papua DPD candidates disqualified

Jakarta Post - March 4, 2014

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The Papua General Elections Commission (KPUD) has disqualified five candidates vying for a seat on the Papua Regional Representatives Council (DPD).

Adam Arisoy, head of the Papua KPUD, said that Daniel Butu, Frederik Wakum, Theofilus Waimury and Dirk Dicky Rumbairusi had been disqualified as they failed to submit their campaign fund reports by the deadline on Sunday.

"The four candidates did not submit their campaign fund reports, while the fifth candidate, Robert Isir, has passed away, so he was automatically disqualified," he told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

"If someone votes for any of the five disqualified the DPD candidates, their ballot will be considered invalid. The five names, however, are still on the ballots as they have already been printed," said Papua KPUD legal and supervisory division head Tarwinto.

There had been 25 registered candidates contesting for a spot on the Papua DPD. Meanwhile, Arisoy said that 12 political parties had reported their campaign funds. "The KPUD will verify the submitted reports. If there are incomplete documents, there will be time to complete them," he said. (idb/nvn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/04/five-papua-dpd- candidates-disqualified.html

Fijian ties move, Indonesians with Papuans fly in

Islands Business - March 4, 2014

Suva, Fiji – An Indonesian delegation arrived into the country last night to strengthen the growing relations between Indonesia and Fiji.

The eight-member delegation is also here to hold public lectures at the three higher education institutions in Fiji – the University of the South Pacific, Fiji National University and the University of Fiji.

On the visit agenda would be moves to improve trade, investment, economic relation and even higher education prospects between the two nations.

Part of the delegation are two Papuan activists – Franzalbert Joku and Nicholas Simeone Messet – who will be talking about the reality of the much talked about Papuan situation in Indonesia.

Indonesian Minister Counsellor with the Foreign Affairs Pratito Soeharyo said Fiji could always regard Indonesia as a friend.

"We are here to see the future of the relationship between Indonesia and Fiji. It is the main purpose of our visit. Through this visit, we will have a clear idea of what is expected in the future regarding the relationship between the two countries. "Indonesia is also part of the Pacific also, therefore, we will develop and strengthen our relationship."

This meeting is a result of an invitation extended to the delegation by Foreign Affairs Minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola.

Joku said: "There is a realisation in Indonesia that we are not just an Asian nation, but also a Pacific nation by the virtue of our geographical location spanning between mainland Asia and Oceania region in the Pacific."

"That is why Government decided we should pursue closer relationship with countries in the Pacific and we hope this is going to be a start of many visits to this nation." Joku said Indonesia had much to learn from Fiji and the assimilation of different cultures.

Messet said: "Fiji for us in Melanesia is a big brother in terms of its independence. We respect Fiji as our big brother, in terms of independence. We hope the upcoming general elections would be democratic in the true sense of the word."

"From Fiji, other Melanesian countries will see the progress made and that could open the doors for us to meet with them. We are very grateful for Ratu Inoke for extending this invitation. This is a stepping stone and I am proud of him taking this step."

Families of Joku and Messet fled to Papua New Guinea when they were young, where they sought political asylum. Messet at one stage was a pilot for Air Nuigini and had also smuggled arms to fight for the Papuan cause. Joku, who worked for the old Fiji Sun, said much had changed since those days of fighting.

"We previously advocated independence because we felt we did not have breathing space in Indonesia. However, happily, the Indonesian Government heard our pleas and gave us special autonomy. Papua is an autonomous region and that is the answer we were looking for.

"After the process of democratisation, we felt that the noble values we were seeking – justice, prosperity, and others were present and we stood to benefit from the change in the political circumstances. We made a firm decision to return home and participate in the democratic processes and also to develop our part of Indonesia."

Messet said some sacrifices had to be made, but now, he said things were different. "We realised that what we are fighting for had been achieved and we had to come back and for the benefit of the Papuans and the Republic of Indonesia. Before, we stood on the other side, fighting with the Indonesians, but now we are standing side by side our brothers and sisters."

"One day we will be able to get Melanesia and Indonesia together and I think, Fiji will be leading that move," he said.

The delegation will also be meeting with the Fijian Defence Minister Joketani Cokanasiga tomorrow.

Also part of the delegation is the Vice-Chancellor of the State University of Papua Dr Suriel Mofu. Dr Mofu said there were a high number of scholarships being given out to foreign students and he said in coming days, Fijian students would also stand to benefit from it.

Source: http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/fiji/4784/fijian-ties-move- indonesians-with-papuans-fly-in/

NZ pro-Papua group calling for NZ to halt Indonesia police funding

Radio New Zealand International - March 4, 2014

A New Zealand group supporting West Papuans has called on their government to end its police training project in Indonesia.

Pax Christi Aotearoa New Zealand's National Coordinator, Kevin McBride, says the $5 million US-dollar programme should be canned. He says it's not clear which Indonesian police are being trained, and it's hard to tell on the ground who the police are.

He says he was in Jayapura in 2011 and witnessed gangs, who could have been plain-clothed police, fire over crowds and intimidate with weapons, with uniformed police standing nearby.

"The New Zealand pilot project began in 2009, so New Zealand police have been there since 2009 and this took place in 2011 and there's every indication that there's been little improvement in the policing management of the Indonesian police in West Papua since that time."

Kevin McBride says he is not against police training, but it must be in full collaboration with the customary leaders of the West Papuan people.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/237939/nz-pro- papua-group-calling-for-nz-to-halt-indonesia-police-funding

Conversions invoke fears of West Papua's stolen generation

Sydney Morning Herald - March 2, 2014

Michael Bachelard, Indonesia – When the parents of Demianus and Seth Gobay died in their small West Papua village of Nabire perhaps five years ago, not all their six children could afford to stay at school.

So when the boys' uncle, Jupri Gobay, approached with an offer of free schooling for the youngest, Demianus, the remaining children leapt at the chance. The offer had a catch, however. Demianus, who says he was just five years old at the time but was probably a little older, would be taken away to Jakarta. To him it seemed an adventure, but neither he nor his family had any idea that when he arrived at the port in Jakarta, the young Christian boy would be converted to Islam and taken to a strictly religious boarding school. There he would learn little else but how to chant Koran verses and preach his new religion.

His name would be changed to make him sound more Muslim, he'd be denied communication with his family and beaten if he strayed from the curriculum. Demianus shows a scar where he says he was burnt with a cigarette after one infraction.

A few years later, without Demianus's knowledge, his older brother, Seth, was also taken from his home and brought to Jakarta. Late last year, the two boys, now young teenagers, were finally reunited. They escaped their respective schools and decided to tell of their experiences.

Their story is more evidence that Christian children are being taken from West Papua and converted to Islam – a practice officially denied after being revealed in Fairfax Media's Good Weekend magazine last year. It also makes clear for the first time that knowledge of the practice reaches high into the upper echelons of Indonesia's political elite.

The religious conversion of any young child is illegal in Indonesia, and the United Nations deems any transfer of a minor, even for education, as trafficking.

But an Islamic boarding school that both boys attended, As-Syafi'iyah, is run by Tutty Alawiyah, a former women's minister in the Suharto government and now a prominent preacher and educator.

The woman widely known as Ibu Tutty – who was too busy to answer queries about such a "small thing" – is highly politically connected in Jakarta. Indonesia's economic affairs minister, Hatta Rajasa, has been photographed meeting West Papuan children from her school and Religious Affairs Minister Suryadarma Ali presided over a recent celebration of the school's history. In another twist, Forestry Minister Zulkifli confirmed he had at one point fostered the small boy Demianus Gobay at his Jakarta mansion.

Demianus was a naive young village boy when he was taken away by his uncle on a ship called the Labobar. There were about 12 Papuan children on board, Demianus says, most of them girls and most of them also put there by his Uncle Jupri. The girls, Christian or Muslim, were required to wear headscarves.

On arrival at the port in Jakarta, Demianus says the group was taken to a nearby mosque. The children were made to dress in Islamic clothes and taught to say the "syahadat", the prayer to convert them to Islam. From then on, Demianus was told, his name would be "Usman". His original name was "haram," or forbidden, the clerics told him.

From the port, the children were taken to different Islamic boarding schools – pesantrens – in Jakarta and the nearby city of Bogor. Demianus was taken to As-Syafi'iyah, run by Ibu Tutty.

For two years Demianus says he stayed at the school before he escaped, only to be caught again and taken to another pesantren in Bogor, about two hours' drive from Jakarta.

Some years later, Demianus' older brother, Seth, was also brought to Jakarta, also by Jupri Gobay. He says he and two girls were on the boat, and all three were converted soon after their arrival. Seth was given the name "Umar".

Like his brother before him, Seth was sent to As-Syafi'iyah, though Demianus had already left. At that stage, the brothers had little idea that they were sharing the same experience. Years later, though, their accounts of life as Papuan village boys cooped up in a pesantren are almost identical. Both were bored with the lessons, which concentrated heavily on Koran recital, religious studies and chanting Arabic. They were punished for being late with their prayers, for leaving the pesantren and for watching TV or using the internet. "They told us: you get naughtier if you go to an internet cafe," Seth says.

Demianus went to several different pesantren so it is difficult to tell which incident refers to which school. But he says he was beaten on the legs with bamboo, on the back of the head with a belt until he bled, and burnt with a cigarette if he strayed. He shows the circular scar on his hand. "If we didn't read the Koran and pray at certain times of day, we were locked up and then we were burnt," Demianus says.

Seth, who only went to As-safi'iyah, says he also was beaten. Another punishment was to make children walk squatting for one or two circuits of a yard. The children had no access to telephones to call their families in West Papua.

The quantity of food was usually sufficient, they say, but there were sometimes weevils in the rice; and they were not allowed to eat pork – traditionally an important part of a West Papuan diet. When they were sick, "we were just told to lay down, they didn't do anything for us," Demianus says. They were allowed out, but only for an hour at a time. If they were late returning, they were called in and punished "with a belt on the legs".

One of the teachers at As-safi'iyah, Usman Musa, told Demianus that when he grew up he "should go back to Papua and Islamise the Papuans", the boy recalls.

Ibu Tutty Alawiyah is famous in Indonesia for her work with children and orphans. She owns the As-safi'iyah pesantren, which was founded by her father, along with a number of other Islamic schools and a university. She was the women's affairs minister in the dying years of the Suharto government and in 2003 unsuccessfully put her hand up to be the presidential candidate for Suharto's former electoral vehicle, the Golkar party. Her staff declined several invitations for an interview, saying she was too busy. Ibu Tutty did not answer a list of written questions.

However, one staff member insisted that all the children who came to the school were already muslims, and they were sourced through another religious organisation, BKMT [Islamic Propagation Contact Forum - JB]. But this also appears to be part of Ibu Tutty's Islamic empire, and an article on a website for recent converts called "Mualaf Centre Online", suggests she is not fussy about how recently her students were introduced to Islam. Describing a group of Papuan children aged from five to 18 as "cheery-faced teens and smaller kids" who were "dark-skinned and with curly hair," the article says many were "recent converts". As-safi'iyah was one of the schools they were destined to be sent to.

As the ethnic Melanesian Christian majority in West Papua is gradually outnumbered both economically and socially by migration from other parts of Indonesia, Papuans see the removal and Islamisation of children as a direct assault on their identity.

But a Muslim bloc within Indonesia's national human rights organisation, Komnas HAM, has made it difficult for the body to mount a full investigation of the issues raised by Fairfax Media – including the existence of a small but active network of agents and middlemen who seek out vulnerable children and bring them to pesantren. It's unclear if these men are paid for their work, or who might be funding it, but there is a suspicion that oil money from Saudi Arabia may play a role.

The boys' uncle, Jupri Gobay, who took them to Jakarta, apparently makes regular trips to West Papua and according to Demianus, Jupri himself was trafficked to Java as a primary school child and converted and educated in Islam.

Approached for comment by Fairfax Media, Jupri Gobay says the only people he "helped" were family members, before terminating the call. Demianus does not know if anyone paid his uncle to take him to Jakarta.

Another key middleman, Fadzlan Garamatan, from the organisation AFKN, boasts of having brought thousands of Christian children and converting them, as well as undertaking mass conversions inside West Papua itself. Seth Gobay says he knew "Ustad Fadzlan" and had been to his house in suburban Jakarta during his time as a student at As-safi'iyah pesantren.

Ibu Tutty is not the only member of Jakarta's elite that Seth and Demianus Gobay met. In early 2012, Demianus escaped from a pesantren near Bogor and began living on the streets on the outskirts of Jakarta. He was being helped by a local family when two men came and asked if he wanted to go to school. The men worked for the Indonesian forestry minister, Zulkifli, who then took Demianus to live in his house in East Jakarta. Zulkifli confirmed these events when questioned by Fairfax Media, saying his own son, Ray, a university student, had found "Usman" and fostered him because "my son has a generous heart".

"During his staying with us I rarely chatted with Usman because I always came home late. But when I got the chance to talk to him, he didn't speak much," the minister told Fairfax Media. "I heard his parents died after natural disaster hit Nabire... That's why I didn't want to ask him much about his life in Papua, about his parents... I didn't want to bring back his trauma."

Demianus says he was at the house for about six months; Zulkifli says it was a matter of weeks, but they agree the minister sent the boy to a pesantren.

In high society in Jakarta, Papuan children are sometimes regarded as charity cases. In the past, East Timorese children were often taken by Indonesian army members as adjutants or household servants, and their presence raised the reputation of the carer. The same perhaps could now be said for young Papuan orphans.

At an event last year organised by Ibu Tutty with 350 orphans, Indonesian economic affairs minister Hatta Rajasa described helping orphans as "one of our ways to obtain a ticket to heaven". Zulkifli and bureaucratic reform minister Azwar Abubakar – all three are from the Islamic PAN party and part of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's governing coalition – were also in attendance. Asked if it had occurred to him that "Usman" and the others may have been victims of trafficking, Zulkifli says: "I know nothing about trafficking, I only look after the forests."

Demianus says that, during his time at the minister's house, Zulkifli and his family "were all nice" to him.

In December last year, the boys, now young teens, both escaped from their respective pesantrens and sought help from some West Papuan university students, who referred them to a Christian organisation.

After much thought, the boys decided in December to return to Papua, though Demianus remembered very little of his life in his home village, or any of the ceremonies of Christianity, including the Lord's Prayer.

At Christmas, they were taken back by university student Frans Tomoki. The boys are now doing catch-up classes at a village school to prepare them for junior high school.

Tomoki, meanwhile, believes a group of men in the western part of Papua, including Demianus and Seth's uncle Jupri Gobay, are still bringing children out of poor provinces. All the children are Christian, Tomoki says, destined for conversion.

Tomoki says that when it had become known he was helping Demianus and Seth, he received several threatening calls – one from Jupri Gobay, and two more from a man called Muhammad Kotouki, a parliamentary candidate for the strongly Islamic PKS political party in West Papua. The men were quite specific in their threats, Tomoki says. "They said they would have me arrested for kidnapping."

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/conversions-invoke-fears-of-west-papuas-stolen-generation-20140301-33shu.html

Aceh

Failed political transformation behind Aceh election violence: LBH

Jakarta Globe - March 6, 2014

Nurdin Hasan, Banda Aceh – Poor law enforcement and a failed political transformation by former militants involved in the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) are responsible for several incidents of political violence that occurred in the province ahead of next month's legislative elections, an activist says.

"The institutional transformation of the former GAM is remarkable, with the establishment of a local political party. But it did not come with a change in their political behavior. In that case, they failed," Aceh Legal Aid Foundation (LBH) director Mustiqal Syahputra said during a press conference on Wednesday.

The press conference took place in response to recent incidents of violence in the region, involving organizations such as the Coalition of Human Rights NGOs (NGO HAM), the Aceh Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), the Aceh Judicial Monitoring Institute (AJMI) and others.

On Sunday night, a legislative candidate from the Aceh National Party (PNA) was shot and killed in a barrage of 42 bullets by unknown gunmen while driving on a secluded road near Sawang in South Aceh district.

The attack was the second against the party since Feb. 6, when the head of the PNA was beaten to death in front of a crowd in Kuta Makmur, North Aceh district, by two men who were allegedly from the rival Aceh Party (PA).

Last month, the campaign office of Zubir H.T., a legislative candidate for the National Democrat Party (NasDem) was attacked by unknown masked shooters who fired 10 shots. The shooting was followed by the beating of two members of Zubir's campaign team in Munyee Kunyet village, in North Aceh district.

The LBH director deplored the incidents, saying that after three rounds of elections since peace came to the region, Aceh should have seen improvement in democratic practices. Instead, the region continues to face the same issues in this year's elections with violence and illegal acts resulting in fatalities, he said.

According to observations by Banda Aceh LBH, violence in Aceh escalated ahead of the 2014 election compared to 2009 and the local election in 2012.

Meanwhile, in the past year, the LBH recorded 38 violent incidents related to elections; three murders, five arson cases, six of persecution and the rest consisting of abductions, intimidation and the destruction of campaign offices.

Twenty cases of violence were recorded in the region in 2009, and ahead of the 2012 regional election, 22 were recorded, with shootings, and the vandalizing of campaign materials, intimidation and terror being dominant.

"With such a history, the police should have been stricter in implementing the law and prioritizing preventive efforts in anticipation of violence," Mustiqal said. "Political parties should make more efforts to build a dignified democracy. Aceh is already tired with all the terror, intimidation and threats."

But Zulfikar Muhammad, the executive director of NGO HAM, said the deployment of more police in Aceh will not solve the problems, as seen in previous elections when it failed prevent violence.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/failed-political-transformation-behind-aceh-election-violence-lbh/

Violence against legislative candidates in Aceh an attack on secularism

Jakarta Globe - March 5, 2014

Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – A recent string of attacks against legislative candidates and political parties' headquarters in Aceh may be a form of dissatisfaction toward efforts to introduce a national idealism into the province which only a few years ago was waging an armed struggle for separation from Indonesia, an analyst says.

Tensions continue to escalate in Indonesia's only province permitted to implemented a limited interpretation of Shariah law, marked by a string of attacks on political targets as next month's legislative election draws closer.

On Sunday night, Faisal, a legislative candidate from the Aceh National Party (PNA), was shot and killed by unknown gunmen who opened fire at his car as it passed a secluded road near Sawang in South Aceh district.

It was the second attack against PNA members in less than a month. On Feb. 6, the party's head in Kuta Makmur, North Aceh district, was beaten to death in front of a crowd by two men who were allegedly from the rival Aceh Party (PA).

Last month, the campaign office of Zubir H.T., a legislative candidate from the National Democrat Party (NasDem) was attacked by unknown masked shooters who fired 10 shots, followed by the beating of two members of Zubir's campaign team in Munyee Kunyet Village, in North Aceh district.

Arbi Sanit, a political analyst from the University of Indonesia, told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday that the attacks on members of two nationalist political parties were related to political sentiments.

He said the sense of autonomy among the Acehnese remained strong, and any push toward embracing the Pancasila-based nationalism espoused in the rest of the country was unwelcome.

"NasDem is chaired by Surya Paloh who originally comes from Aceh. It is a party that carries a national idealism and Surya wants to bring that ideology into Aceh along with the party he established," Arbi said. "Some Acehnese don't seem too happy with that. They feel betrayed and feel like they are being used by their fellow Acehnese in achieving his own goals."

He emphasized that the sense of independence from Jakarta remained strong in Aceh, even after the 2005 peace deal that ended a three-decade separatist struggle by the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

Arbi said the attacks were an expression of Acehnese dissatisfaction toward the "invasion" by "outsiders," who in this case took the form of legislative candidates and political parties espousing nationalist ideals.

"For people in Aceh, the province is the country. History shows that they had been trying to separate from the Indonesian republic for years. The sentiment gets stronger as the election draws nearer," he said. "Indonesian issues are of little interest to most people in Aceh."

He urged the government to beef up security in the province as tensions started to heat up, to prevent things from getting out of hand and disrupting the legislative election on April 9 and presidential election on July 9. "The police and military should take quick action to secure the elections before they even start," he said.

Of the Rp 2.5 trillion ($215 million) election security fund requested by security forces, the government has so far only disbursed around Rp 1 trillion and an additional Rp 600 billion from a budget reallocation.

Arbi said security officers would not be able to work to their best ability with limited funding. "If the government keeps postponing the disbursement of the security fund, it will undermine election security," he said.

Arbi also warned of the potential for similar outbreaks of violence in other restive provinces before and during elections. "Although we now have a system of direct elections, Papua has grown accustomed to 'representative elections,' which deprives individuals of their rights to vote. In addition, prejudice towards candidates from outside the area is still high in Papua," he said.

"Similar to Aceh, Papua is also strong in terms of religion and ethnic identity. That's why most people there are not happy with outsiders," he said.

Arbi also said that Poso district in Central Sulawesi, plagued by sporadic acts of terrorism, could be a potential hot spot. "All this unrest can happen in different areas, but it indicates they have the same ideas which are not in line with the Indonesian ideology of Pancasila," he said.

To prevent the spread of this unrest, Arbi said security officers should be seen as taking firm action against suspected terrorists during the election campaign period, with no room for negotiation.

"We cannot give up the nation's integrity for local disputes. When it comes to national security, there should be decisive actions from the officials. Local interests come second," he said.

Kusnanto Anggoro, a military analyst from the University of Indonesia, agreed the shootings in Aceh were politically motivated, calling them a form of reaction from some groups that were dissatisfied with nationalist political parties.

"Interestingly, the victims so far were from parties with the word 'national' in their name, such as NasDem and PNA," Kusnanto said. "It could be related to dissatisfaction from non-nationalist groups."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/political-violence-against- legislative-candidates-in-aceh-seen-as-attack-on-secularism/

Aceh National Party candidate gunned down in latest instance of violence

Jakarta Globe - March 3, 2014

Nurdin Hasan, Banda Aceh – An Aceh National Party (PNA) legislative candidate was shot and killed late Sunday night in a hail of bullets – the latest attack on the political party ahead of April's general elections.

Unknown gunmen opened fire on a car driven by PNA candidate Faisal on a secluded road near Sawang, South Aceh, hitting his Honda Freed MPV with a barrage of 42 assault rifle rounds. He was found dead with gunshot wounds in his chest, stomach and back, South Aceh Police chief Sigit Jatmiko told the Jakarta Globe.

"It's still unclear whether the victim was chased or blocked by the shooter," Sigit said. "We also haven't figured out the number of perpetrators. The police are still investigating the case."

Police declined to specify what type of guns were used in the attack, but said they discovered 10 5.56mm shell casings at the scene – rounds used in assault rifles worldwide.

The politician was heading home when he was attacked by gunmen on an isolated stretch of road through the hills between Labuhan Haji and Sawang. The gunmen attacked at 9 p.m. local time, killing Faisal and fleeing the scene before police arrived. There were no witnesses to the attack and the nearest village was without power at the time of the shooting, Sigit said.

"The motive remains unknown," he said. "[We don't know] whether it was political or about another problem."

The party's chief Irwansyah said Faisal, the Sawang head of the party, had been the subject of repeated threats by an undisclosed party. He urged police to prevent additional killings in the lead-up to the legislative election. "Looking back at the previous violent attacks on our members, this shooting is definitely has a political motive," Irwansyah said.

It was the second attack against PNA members in less than a month. On Feb. 6, the party's head in Kuta Makmur, North Aceh, was beaten to death in front of a crowd by two men allegedly from the rival Aceh Party (PA). The men accused Juwaini of removing a PA flag in Lamkuta village before immediately attacking him in a savage beating outside a kiosk. A crowd watched the assault but said they were too scared to intervene.

The Aceh Party party members fled the scene, eluding capture. Juwaini was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died shortly after admittance. Aceh Party chief Muzakir Manaf denied the party's role in the attacks. The killing remains unsolved.

The killings began in late April with the death of PNA politician Muhammad bin Zainal Abidin. Police found Muhammad shot to death on April 27 after officers pulled his abandoned car out of a river in Pidie district. His body was found in the back seat of his car. Muhammad had been shot twice in the back of the head.

The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) called the early signs of violence worrying, warning in a previous interview that "there are symptoms that a string violence will appear again."

Three political parties are competing for votes in the upcoming election. The Aceh Party – founded by ex-Free Aceh Movement (GAM) militants – has been at odds with the PNA since it lost members to former Aceh governor Irwandi Yusuf's fledgling party in 2012. The Aceh Peace Party (PDA), founded by local clerics, also entered the political spectrum in 2012.

The resurgence of violence in the lead-up to the general election is a worrying turn for Aceh. The semi-autonomous province's 2012 elections were marred by bloodshed as then-governor Irwandi faced down Aceh Party's Zaini Abdullah for the contested governor's seat. Both men used to be part of the province's GAM separatist forces – an armed group that engaged in a decades-long bloody war for independence with the Indonesian Military that left more than 15,000 dead.

The conflict was settled with a 2005 peace agreement that granted the province special autonomy from the central government. But the ensuing elections, which are largely fought by parties comprised of ex-GAM members, have repeatedly turned violent. In 2012, at least nine people were killed in a wave of pre-election violence, much of it allegedly centered on members of the rival political parties.

Some Aceh Party members boycotted the 2012 registration process in protest of a decision allowing Irwandi, then an independent candidate, to run in the election. The Aceh Party painted Irwandi as a turncoat over his refusal to run with the GAM-affiliated party. The former governor was then attacked by a mob of Aceh Party supporters while attending the inauguration of Zaini in July of 2012.

In total, the Aceh Elections Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu) recorded 57 instances of violence in the run-up to the 2012 election.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/aceh-national-party-candidate- gunned-down-in-latest-instance-of-pre-election-violence/

Human rights & justice

What Indonesians really think about The Act of Killing

The Guardian (Australia) - March 5, 2014

Mette Bjerregaard – The Act of Killing may have lost out on this year's Oscar for best documentary, but it has instigated a spectacular change within Indonesian society. The documentary, in which director Joshua Oppenheimer encourages the perpetrators of mass killings of the 1960s to re-enact their crimes for the camera, has been well received at film festivals around the world. But it is the reaction of the domestic Indonesian audience that is the most remarkable.

To understand how Oppenheimer's film challenges the Indonesian national narrative and the public discourse, it is essential to explore how the film is received and understood by an Indonesian audience. I screened The Act of Killing at a university in Yogyakarta. The audience – a mixed group of students, history professors, and friends of the university – included a former political prisoner who had spent 14 years of his life in captivity, where he experienced horrendous torture. He was never a communist; he wasn't even politically active. He still wonders why he was imprisoned under Suharto's regime. After the screening, he was profoundly touched, and he argued that the younger generations had to see this film so they could build a society with values far different from the ones Suharto established.

Indonesia's official history is plastered with anti-communist bias and fabrications that are presented as facts. The Indonesian school system is still, to a great extent, characterised by an authoritarian tradition – one of the reasons why many students have not been critical of the country's past. It's not surprising that the film provoked anger and frustration among the audience. Many felt betrayed by the political elite.

Their feelings were not only directed towards the Indonesian power structure, but also at the spectacle on screen. The killers – fans of film noir gangster movies and Hollywood musicals – choose to re-enact their crimes by juxtaposing killing and cruelty with dancing and bright colours. The film becomes ludicrous as well as scary. It could be described as amusing, albeit with a macabre undertone. Indeed some moviegoers outside Indonesia have laughed at the sheer absurdity – a markedly different reaction to that of the Indonesian audience.

At the screening, an audience member vented his anger at Oppenheimer's decision to give the killers free rein: "An alternative title of the film would be "A Celebration of Killing". It is a series of festive occasions in which people are celebrating what they did in the past. And what they did in the past was kill other people. And that is not funny for us here, who more or less know what was going on. Maybe in other countries people don't know much about what happened here in the 1960s. For me, the documentary is about people celebrating the killing of others. That leads us to [examine] the banalities of evil."

Another viewer questioned the film's "happy ending", in which the main character, a death-squad leader named Anwar, seems to repent for his actions. He explained that the happy ending in The Act of Killing didn't mirror the state of affairs in Indonesia, because there has been no reparation for the killings of 1965-66. The audience member wondered if Anwar might be acting for the camera and also think that most viewers want a tidy ending. "[Ever] since Anwar was young he wanted to feature in a movie," the man said. "Movies are in his blood, and all of the sudden there is a film crew from abroad giving him a chance for it. Maybe his guilt is really true, but I think he is acting." This opinion created a silence in the screening room, and the comment produced speculation about the guilty conscience of the protagonist; was it merely a shoddy tribute to his beloved Hollywood? The same way that he drew inspiration from James Dean, John Wayne, Victor Mature and Marlon Brando, when it came to murder technique and wardrobe?

In The Act of Killing, Oppenheimer leads the audience through the executioners' everyday lives. He gives a glimpse of individual people involved in the atrocities rather than a historical overview of Indonesia's past. (For a wider historical view, and information on the involvement of foreign powers in the conflict, watch director Chris Hilton's Shadow Play or anthropologist Robert Lemelson's 40 Years of Silence). Oppenheimer's film blurs the usual good v evil narrative often seen in movies. The audience gets the chance to understand the perpetrators. Anwar, for example, is not simply a killing machine, but is capable of repenting for the atrocities of his past. The film argues that humans are complex and inscrutable and that this also applies to Anwar. He often appears happy and proud to be involved in events that have defined Indonesia. At the same time, he is ashamed when confronted with his actions.

Seeing Anwar's humanity gave the majority of the audience at the screening hope. The film showed them that Anwar acted on impulses that "made sense" to him in his everyday life. They started to understand the man behind the killer. But they also argued that forgiveness had to come hand in hand with reconciliation. Gangster capitalism, corruption and censorship still plague Indonesia's social landscape. It is not in the interests of the upper rungs of Indonesian society to analyse the atrocities or seek justice for the victims. There is still a sense that the average Indonesian has no rational alternative to the status quo. A vote for a political candidate puts bread on your table. Bribery and racketeering provide what one Indonesian woman described as "a heaven in this hell".

Through a network of underground distributors and social media, The Act of Killing has now been viewed by millions of Indonesians. Government and anti-communist organisations continue to try to stop its distribution, but their efforts are ultimately futile in the internet age.

It's a film that is impossible to ignore. Even people at the screening who didn't appreciate the "film within the film" structure and criticised its theatricality, thought The Act of Killing would be ground-breaking in helping Indonesia break its silence about its history. International attention will surely help the country come to terms with its past, as one woman said: "I hope that Joshua goes all the way with this film and that the film creates international attention. Then the government of Indonesia may be forced to deal with human rights in this country."

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/mar/05/act-of-killing- screening-in-indonesia

Privatization 'violates' human rights

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Corry Elyda, Jakarta – The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has indicated that the city's water provision, handled by two private firms PT Aetra Air Jakarta and PT PAM Lyonnaise Jaya (Palyja), constituted a human rights violation.

Komnas HAM commissioner Sandrayati Moniaga said during a trial session on water privatization at the Central Jakarta District Court on Tuesday that the commission had found indications of human rights violations, especially related to access to clean water, after the cooperation agreement between city-owned water operator PT PAM Jaya and its two foreign partners – Aetra and Palyja – was signed in June 1997.

Sandra, an expert witness in the trial, said the government had not yet fulfilled the right to water and sanitation to at least half of Jakarta's 10 million residents, according to the Indonesian Consumer Protection Foundation (YLKI). "The coverage of piped water is also limited. There are only 870,000 connections," she said, adding that was only 45 percent of the target.

The commissioner also emphasized that water tariffs in Jakarta were the highest in Indonesia and higher even than several cities in Southeast Asia. Residents should pay around Rp 7,000 (60 US cents) per cubic meter while those on a lower income should pay Rp 1,050 per cubic meter. However, only few low-income families can enjoy the facilities after 16 years of operation.

The Coalition of Jakarta Residents Opposing Water Privatization (KMMSAJ) filed a lawsuit last year, demanding the court annul the cooperation between PAM Jaya and the two private firms. It said the cooperation had failed to guarantee an adequate supply of clean potable water in Jakarta. The privatization has also caused state losses of at least Rp 590 billion through PAM Jaya's debts to the two companies.

Sandra said if the cooperation with private firms was proven to be ineffective to fulfill the need of clean water in the city, the government was obligated to retract the facilities of permit, license and concession, including annulling the cooperation agreement. "As access to clean water is a human right, Komnas HAM recommended the court ensure the verdict was objective and impartial," she said.

Sandra said Komnas HAM also recommended the government, especially the Public Works Ministry, the Finance Ministry and Jakarta governor, develop an integrated water resource management center in Jakarta, which included the management of groundwater and potable water.

Meanwhile, the city administration is planning to acquire shares in Palyja to resolve the poor maintenance of water access. The trial will continue on March 18.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/privatization- violates-human-rights.html

Oscars: Act of Killing passed over, but leads to change in Indonesia

The Guardian (Australia) - March 4, 2014

Andrew Pulver – On an Oscar night of few surprises, one award that didn't quite go the way pundits may have hoped was way down the bill in the best documentary category.

The winner, 20 Feet from Stardom, is an affecting, heartfelt tribute to the normally unsung lot of the backing singer. But among the films overlooked was The Act of Killing, the extraordinary account of mass murder in 1960s Indonesia directed by Joshua Oppenheimer. The documentary has had a seismic effect from the moment it was premiered at the Toronto film festival in September 2012.

Oppenheimer, speaking to the Guardian hours after missing out at the Academy awards, is in no mood to be downhearted. "I honestly feel we have already won," he says. "The film has caused a level of change in Indonesia beyond anything we could have hoped for three years ago. We didn't make the film to win an Oscar; but to open up possibilities for real change."

The Act of Killing is a long way from a straightforward historical treatment of its subject, the mass purges targeting communists carried out in 1965 and 1966 after a failed coup. Oppenheimer interviews several key perpetrators at considerable length; they re-enact their brutality, and even stage scenes of an elaborate film of their own that they are making. What is clear is that men responsible for large-scale murder are living openly without fear of prosecution or reprisal, and indeed with the tacit support of current government officials.

The Act of Killing is not without its critics. Nick Fraser, editor of the BBC's Storyville documentary strand, has accused the film of being "a high-minded snuff movie", suggesting that "getting killers to script and restage their murders... feels wrong and it certainly looks wrong".

Errol Morris, a respected documentarian himself and one of the film's executive producers (along with Werner Herzog), defended the film on the grounds that "by re-enacting the murders... [we] could become reconnected to a history that had nearly vanished into a crepuscular past."

Oppenheimer, however, says the film was not as divisive as this might suggest. "Our biggest challenge was getting people to actually watch the film. When they do the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive. Fundamentally, the film takes people to an uncomfortable place and asks them to look at painful truths. In the end that's what art is all about – but of course any film will have its detractors."

In Indonesia, official acknowledgement of the massacres had hitherto been almost non-existent. However, government officials were forced to respond to the film, not least when an outcry in China following the film's Oscar nomination shone a spotlight on the Chinese victims of the death squads.

Says Oppenheimer: "Whether or not we won the award, the nomination led the government to acknowledge what happened was wrong. That's a significant about-face in the struggle against impunity and that's something that wouldn't have happened without the attention from the Oscars.

"There's no sour grapes in this, but it's pretty clear that an uplifting tale about backup singers is a safe option. It would be nice if the Oscar voters knew they had the power to make a real difference."

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/mar/03/the-act-of-killing- change-indonesia-oscar

No inquiry into 1965 killings on SBY's watch

Jakarta Globe - March 3, 2014

The nomination and possible victory of Joshua Oppenheimer's "The Act of Killing" at today's Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood will put immense pressure on Indonesia to confront and solve a dark part of its history, observers say.

The documentary, which has already picked up a raft of awards worldwide, shines a light on the purge of at leaf half a million suspected communists and their sympathizers by the Indonesian armed forces and state-backed death squads between 1965 and 1966.

The government's own independent human rights watchdog issued a call in 2012 for a formal inquiry into the atrocity, but the government has balked, with senior officials reiterating the official line that the purge was ultimately good for the country and that the past should not be dug up.

"Indonesia will face a lot of pressure worldwide if the movie wins the Oscar, as billions of people across the globe will either watch it or read the news," Bantarto Bandoro, a senior lecturer at the Indonesia Defense University, said on Sunday.

Aleksius Jemadu, dean of Pelita Harapan University's School of Social and Political Sciences, said the government could no longer pretend that the atrocity would be forgotten by history.

"It's time for Indonesia to admit to the acts, bring the offenders to justice and become a proud nation. The world is watching, and we have the chance to settle the case once and for all," he said.

However, Bantarto said it was unlikely the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would deal with the issue, with a new president set to be inaugurated in October.

"The current administration has over the last nine years had no apparent intention of dealing with the 1965 issue. Now they only have a few months left so it is unlikely they will do anything. It's up to the new government to tackle it," he said.

Yudhoyono himself is married to the daughter of the late Sarwo Edhie Wibowo, one of the military chiefs who led the purge. Sarwo's son, Pramono Edhie Wibowo, is the likely presidential candidate from Yudhoyono's Democratic Party.

Bantarto said that if Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) won the presidency, there was more likely to be a fresh and serious attempt to uncover the truth behind the atrocity.

The PDI-P is chaired by Megawati Soekarnoputri, the daughter of Sukarno, the president at the time of the purge, which was widely seen as being orchestrated by Suharto, then a military general, to topple him from power. Sukarno was later accused by Suharto of defending the alleged communists and jailed.

"Megawati will want to clear her father's name and legacy," Bantarto said. "If the PDI-P is in power then there's reason to believe there will be a new investigation."

But if the presidency goes to the Golkar Party's Aburizal Bakrie or the Great Indonesia Movement Party's (Gerindra) Prabowo Subianto – a former son-in-law of Suharto – then efforts to address the purge will face a dead end, Bantarta said.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/no-inquiry-into-65-on-sbys- watch/

'Act of Killing' just the start of 'long road' to addressing 1965 killings

Jakarta Globe - March 3, 2014

Jakarta – The Indonesian co-director of "The Act of Killing," hopes the Oscar-nominated documentary will continue to inspire conversation about the 1965 communist killings, calling the controversial film "a gift for the Indonesian people," after it failed to win an Academy Award on Monday morning.

"We made the movie because we were pessimistic that there would be any action acted upon the case," the anonymous co-director told the Jakarta Globe.

"But we were also optimistic that the people finally want to re-learn their history and identity... We hope that the coming movies, discussions and anything else will bring change in the society. They may not be able to change the conditions, but we're sure they can change the society."

The co-director was unfazed by the film's Oscar snub, explaining via Twitter that documentary was only the start of a "long road" to addressing the realities of the 1965 massacre – which left an estimated 500,000 people dead in a wave of anti-communist violence.

The documentary has prompted a response from the central government, and discussion among human rights activists and public officials over a period of history long obscured by decades of New Order-era propaganda.

The film, made by US director Joshua Oppenheimer and an anonymous Indonesian crew, has already won a host of awards, including best documentary at the 2014 BAFTA awards. But for the co-director, who remained anonymous out of fear of retaliation over the film's content, the documentary's impact in Indonesia remained more important than any award, he said.

"Each nomination and award that we won has helped us to open up a wider discussion on human rights and impunity," the co-director said. "Even though we didn't win [the Oscar], we strongly believe that the conversation on this issue will still be there among the people.

"The movie is disturbing at some points. It is not an answer, but rather a question... for the viewers. Until there is a real answer and action [from the central government], the question will still haunt many people."

"The Act of Killing" received a Best Documentary Feature nomination at the 86th Annual Academy Awards but lost to director Morgan Neville's "Twenty Feet From Stardom," which spotlights the US music industry's unsung backup singers. The documentary may not have won the Academy Award, but the directors continued to receive accolades from their peers on Monday.

"Special salute to @Anonymous_TAoK. If he didn't need to stay anonymous, today he'd be the first Indonesian sitting in that Oscar audience," tweeted Daniel Ziv, the director of "Jalanan," referring to the Twitter account used by the Indonesian co-director.

The film, which was not submitted to be shown in Indonesia, was posted for free download for Indonesian viewers. A complete copy of the documentary was also posted to YouTube, where it has received more 130,000 views, the co-director said. He is now working with Oppenheimer on a second film about the purge, this one focusing on the victims. The documentary, tentatively titled "The Look of Silence," was shot at the same time as "The Act of Killing," and is currently in the editing stages.

The co-director expects "The Look of Silence," to be released by the end of the year. "The movie was shot at the same time as 'The Act of Killing'," he said. "It will bring up the same issue during the same time frame in South Sumatra."

The co-director thanked the survivors of the 1965 killings for their help in making the film in a tweet on Monday morning.

"The Act of Killing is a gift for the Indonesian people. The victim's family, survivors and the viewers are our motivation to make this movie," he tweeted. "We owe them gratitude and support, which we can never pay back," the co-director continued. "Thank you for everything."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/the-act-of-killing-just-the- start-of-a-long-road-to-addressing-1965-killings-co-director/

'Act of Killing' director hopes US will admit genocide role

Inter Press Service - March 1, 2014

Jasmin Ramsey, Washington – Watching former gangsters and paramilitary leaders proudly reenact scenes from Indonesia's military-led mass killings of 1965-66 in the Oscar-nominated documentary, "The Act of Killing", it's easy to forget the role of outside countries.

"It was like I had wandered into Germany 40 years after the Holocaust only to find the Nazis were still in power," director Joshua Oppenheimer told IPS in an exclusive interview.

But while US covert support for the deadly crackdown that killed at least half a million people is not the focus of his film, Oppenheimer hopes the powerful country will at least admit its role.

"There was lots of foreign support for the genocide and that is used as an excuse not to apologise," he said during a recent visit to Washington.

"It's my hope that the US will also take responsibility for its part so the Indonesian government can come to terms with the past and we can move on to reconciliation and healing," he added.

While the US has not formally admitted to that part, declassified documents show the CIA directly assisted the Indonesian army in its quest to eliminate the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI) – killing anyone accused of links in the process – after a failed coup attempt.

"The simplest way to put it is that in the month leading up to the events of Sep. 30, 1965 the US sought through covert operations to provoke an armed clash between the Indonesian army and the communist movement in the hope that it would eliminate the PKI," said Bradley Simpson, who heads a project at the National Security Archive that declassified key US government documents concerning Indonesia and East Timor during the reign of General Suharto (1966-1998).

"Perhaps most important is the fact that the [Lyndon] Johnson administration sent clear signals that they enthusiastically supported an attempt to destroy the communists from the bottom up knowing full well that this would lead to mass violence," he told IPS.

That violence may take centre-stage on Sunday, Mar. 2 when the winner for "Best Documentary Feature" is announced during the 86th annual Academy Awards.

But while Oppenheimer may have produced one of the most unique documentaries of all time, he had initially set out to film a different story in Indonesia.

While documenting a community of exploited plantation workers in 2001, Oppenheimer, then in his late twenties, witnessed how they were bullied by the "Pancasila Youth," a gangster-led paramilitary organisation that used death squads and continues to repress the population to this day.

After victims of the genocide were intimidated into not talking to him by order of the military – the leaders of which proudly display their brute hold on the population and corruption on camera – some survivors urged Oppenheimer to interview the perpetrators instead.

"I was afraid at first, but after I got over that fear I realised that everyone I interviewed was boastful about even the most horrible details of the killings, which they described with smiles on their faces," he said.

In the eight years that it took Oppenheimer to complete "The Act of Killing", which was executive produced by internationally known directors Werner Herzog and Errol Morris, he only discovered his main character, Anwar Congo – the founder of a right-wing paramilitary organisation that grew out of the death squads – in the final year of filming.

Congo, who describes torturing and murdering suspected communists "like we were killing happily," acts as though he is the director of the documentary as he collaborates with friends and colleagues to recreate scenes from his memory. "I felt his pain was close to the surface, so I lingered on him," said Oppenheimer.

But while Congo seems haunted by his past, especially by a recurring nightmare of a severed head with eyes he failed to close staring at him, he ultimately reverts to the excuse that he was just following orders. "I don't think Congo saw this as his redemption," said Oppenheimer. "He doesn't recognise in a cognizant way that what he did was wrong."

After Congo watched the film "he was very moved and emotional and then he pulled himself together and said, 'this film shows what it's like to be me,'" Oppenheimer told IPS. "His conscience was guiding the process and it sounds very complex but for him it was simply about showing me how he killed," he said.

Adi Zulkadry, a fellow executioner who warns Congo that the material in the film could be used against them, seems to have a deeper understanding of the magnitude of his actions but also justifies them as a consequence of war.

Pressed to respond to the fact that what he did is described by the Geneva Conventions as "war crimes," Zulkadry says he doesn't "necessarily agree with those international laws". "War crimes are defined by the winners.... Americans killed the Indians. Has anyone punished them for that? Punish them!" he proclaims.

But while Zulkadry denies the value of Indonesia coming to terms with its past by admitting that what happened was a genocide, Oppenheimer's film may be aiding the process – it has been screened thousands of times in Indonesia, and is available for free online.

"The Act of Killing" was also recently shown at the US Library of Congress. Senator Tom Udall of the foreign relations committee, who introduced the film to a group of senators, told US News and World Report that, "The United States government should be totally transparent on what it did and what it knew at the time, and they should be disclosing what happened here."

But it remains to be seen whether Washington will change a policy of denial. "Fifty years is long enough for both the US and Indonesia not to call it a genocide," said Oppenheimer.

Source: http://www.ipsnews.net/2014/03/act-killing-director-hopes-u-s-will-admit-genocide-role/

Sexual & domestic violence

Hundreds sign petition to have poet prosecuted for rape

Jakarta Post - March 3, 2014

Jakarta – More than 2,400 people have signed a petition urging the Jakarta Police to charge Sitok Srengenge, a notable poet who allegedly raped a University of Indonesia (UI) student.

The online petition, which was accessible on the change.org Indonesia website, was launched to put pressure on the police to name Sitok a suspect in the case.

The petition, which has been online for three weeks, will be submitted by the student's defense counsel to the Jakarta Police on Tuesday. Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said last week that Sitok would undergo questioning as a witness on Wednesday.

The lawyers for Sitok's alleged victim were furious that the poet would only be questioned as a witness in the case. "We are still hoping that Sitok will be named a suspect, as a witness can claim privileges if he is summoned. For instance, he can pretend to be ill to avoid questioning," said Saras Dewi, a UI lecturer who has been counseling the victim.

Saras said the victim's defense lawyers were generally concerned by the attitude on the part of the police, who seemed to be neglecting the case by dragging their feet over the investigation, although several people had given police incriminating statements against Sitok.

Supporters of the alleged rape victim are expected to stage a rally in front of Jakarta Police headquarters when the change.org petition is handed over. "The victim's friends from her campus have been conducting rallies to demand justice in this case," she added.

The victim, through her legal team, reported Sitok for rape with the Jakarta Police on Nov. 29 last year. Following her police report, she was questioned three times by the police.

Iwan Pangka, head of the student's legal team, said she had become more distressed after the police questioning, especially after learning that she was pregnant – allegedly with Sitok's child.

"We sense that Sitok is getting special treatment from the police. This is detrimental for other rape victims who may decide not to report their cases, as law enforcement agencies tend to be skeptical about reports of sexual violence," he said.

Sitok, 48, a well-known poet within the Salihara Art Community, met his alleged victim for the first time at an art event held by UI's school of humanities in December 2012.

In March 2013, Sitok asked her to visit his workplace at the Salihara community in South Jakarta, but then changed his mind and told her to come to his boarding house instead. Once in his room, Sitok allegedly plied the young woman with alcohol and raped her, resulting in her pregnancy. Sitok also allegedly threatened her if she told anyone what had happened.

Sitok previously admitted that he had sexual intercourse with the student, but claimed it was consensual. Separately, two other young women accused Sitok of sexual abuse, although they did not report him to police. (gda)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/03/hundreds-sign- petition-have-poet-prosecuted-rape.html

Labour & migrant workers

Batam workers rally over tariff hike plan

Jakarta Post - March 4, 2014

Fadli, Batam – Hundreds of workers of the Indonesia Metal Workers Federation (FSPMI) staged a rally in front of the Batam office of state power firm PT PLN and demanded it cancel the planned 17.19 percent increase in the electricity tariff.

The workers said the increase could trigger an increase in the prices of basic necessities. The trade union urged the government to not raise the power tariff this year.

FSPMI leader Suprapto told The Jakarta Post on Monday that based on a meeting with the Batam PLN management, it was agreed that the planned rise in the power tariff would be canceled. "We were greeted by the Batam PLN management and it said the planned increase in the power tariff was canceled," said Suprapto.

According to Suprapto, the rise in the power tariff would have an impact on the rise in the prices of basic necessities, so the struggle to raise the city's minimum wage (UMK) would be futile as workers would not have spare money to save.

"The fight for a raise in salary would be pointless as the rise in the power tariff would have an impact on the rise in the prices of basic necessities," said Suprapto.

Should the PLN raise the power tariff, added Suprapto, the 2015 UMK was predicted to rise even higher to more than 17 percent.

Batam PLN operational director Tagor Sidjabat told the protesters that for the time being, PLN would postpone the rise in the power tariff until an agreement had been reached by the Batam mayor and municipal council.

"We urge workers to remain calm as there is not yet an increase in the power tariff. It will not be put into effect until a discussion has been reached between the municipal council and mayor," said Tagor.

The workers urged PLN to not only postpone the increase in the power tariff but cancel it altogether. The workers then shouted at the PLN management, but rally coordinators were able to calm the crowd and the workers eventually dispersed, later converging at the Batam municipal council offices.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/04/batam-workers-rally- over-tariff-hike-plan.html

Political parties & elections

Most legislative candidates ignore environmental issues

Jakarta Post - March 7, 2014

Nurfika Osman, Jakarta – Environmental damage and deforestation will continue to blight the country as policymakers are blind to – and refrain from including – environmental pledges in their political agendas, a survey said.

An Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) Institute survey showed that only 7 percent of 6,561 legislative candidates for the 2014-2019 period included the environment sector in their strategic plan agendas.

"Ecological disasters continue and natural resources are being bled dry but the environment remains a marginalized issue for most of our politicians. This indicates that the interest and power of investors is very strong in Indonesia," Walhi executive director Abetnego Tarigan said in Jakarta on Thursday.

"We are afraid that if the people who make policies in the country are not paying attention to the environment, we are not going to be able to solve the problems in our archipelago and global issues like climate change."

Previously the group released data on floods, landslides and forest fires and drew attention to the fact that there had been a significant 293 percent increase from 2012 to 2013.

The group recorded 1,392 natural disasters nationwide in 2013, up from 475 cases the previous year. West Java had the highest number of disasters last year (177), followed by Aceh (79) and East Nusa Tenggara (56). The disasters also caused the deaths of 565 people, more than a 300 percent increase from 125 victims in 2012.

In addition, Walhi Institute senior researcher Abdul Wahib Situmorang said of the 7 percent group of candidates most were not included as the "big three candidates" on the ballot numbers, limiting their chances to be elected to the House.

"This is very sad. Not only do we have very few legislators who care about the environment, but their chances [of being elected] are slim," Abdul said, adding that most of the candidates were from the National Awakening Party (PKB).

According to the survey, he said, most of the 6,561 candidates prioritized corruption eradication and national development.

In a bid to push the environment to be a priority issue in the next cabinet, Walhi has prepared a number of activities in the near future. Next week, Abetnego said Walhi would conduct a public campaign to highlight green issues. The event is slated for March 11 in Senayan, Central Jakarta.

Yogyakarta Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X and prominent antigraft expert Saldi Isra will be among those championing environment issues during the campaign.

"This year is very crucial for the environment since every policy from the new cabinet will impact on the environment for the next five years. We are going to continue to push everyone involved in the election to think about ecology," he added.

He also said if Indonesia remained tight lipped over green issues, the government would not be reduce green house gas emissions by 26 percent by 2020; a target that is not only essential for the country but also the world.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/07/most-legislative- candidates-ignore-environmental-issues.html

Did you know?: Some 200,000 candidates vying for 20,257 seats

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Frans Sudiarsis, Headlines – The 2014 legislative election will see around 200,000 candidates competing for 20,257 seats at the Regional and Provincial Legislative Councils (DPRD), the House of Representatives (DPR) and the Regional Representatives Council (DPD).

The seats contested have risen significantly compared to 2009 in-line with the population increase, which impacts the number of election districts.

There are 1,344 new seats this election – 129 new provincial seats and 1,215 regional seats. Both the House and the DPD will have the same number of seats as of the 2009 election.

A total of 6,607 candidates from 12 political parties are eyeing the 560 seats at the House. Around 945 will compete for 132 DPD seats. The rest will compete for 2,137 provincial seats and 17,560 regional seats.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/did-you-know-some- 200000-candidates-vying-20257-seats.html

Three times a loser, Indonesia's Megawati is pivotal in elections

Jakarta Globe - March 5, 2014

Kanupriya Kapoor, Blitar, East Java – As Indonesia gears up for twin elections this year, the pivotal figure is a woman in her late sixties who has been trounced all three times that she has contested for president.

Megawati Sukarnoputri dominates the opposition party that opinion polls show is likely to top the April 9 parliamentary election. She also has, if she chooses, the candidate whom polls show would sweep aside all other contenders in the presidential election three months later.

But the 67-year-old daughter of the country's founding president is said to want the top job herself, although the chances of her winning it are slim.

It's a dilemma that has brought uncertainty over who will lead Southeast Asia's largest economy and the nation with the world's biggest Muslim population when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono retires in October.

Senior officials in Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) insisted they did not know what her final decision would be. "It ultimately comes down to her, no matter what anybody feels within the party," said one insider, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "Whatever Ibu Mega decides, so goes the party," the source said, using her popular name.

Megawati is famously enigmatic. When she filled in as the country's first woman president from 2001-2004, her term was criticized for indecisiveness.

A decision on the PDI-P's presidential candidate is likely to be only after April's legislative election and could be taken as late as mid-May.

Indonesia follows a presidential form of government, although power is shared with parliament. Only parties which win 25 percent of the vote or 20 percent of the 560 seats in the parliamentary poll will be permitted to name candidates for the July presidential election. PDI-P and perhaps just one or two other parties are likely to qualify.

If the public had a say in the nomination, it would be for Joko Widodo, a member of PDI-P who is currently the popular governor of the capital Jakarta.

The frontrunner in opinion polls by a wide margin, he is widely seen as representing change in the world's third-largest democracy: a young, clean and competent operator in a system dominated by an ageing, often corrupt elite. But first, he will have to win the endorsement of his party chief.

Loyal base

As the scion of Indonesia's charismatic founding father Sukarno, Megawati has headed a loyal and growing base of supporters through a decade in opposition.

She has never actually won a presidential election. But she was vice president in 2001 when parliament ousted Abdurrahman Wahid, the man elected president by the legislature in 1999, and installed her in his place. She remained in office for three years. She then lost Indonesia's first direct presidential election to Yudhoyono in 2004, and again to him in 2009.

Megawati grew up in the Istana Merdeka presidential palace in Jakarta during her father's long rule and dropped out of university to be with him after his fall from grace in 1965. As strongman Suharto took power, the Sukarno family was pushed to the margins of political and social life. Sukarno died in 1970.

Megawati became a symbol of opposition in the over three decades Suharto was in power and went on to win a following in Indonesia's political turbulence of the late 1990s. She formed the current PDI-P soon after Suharto was forced to step down in 1998.

But she was never able to reproduce her father's popularity, and analysts say that if she does still dream of winning the presidency and creating an enduring Sukarno family legacy, this will be her last chance.

"She has a legacy to live up to and there's a part of her that thinks she belongs back in that presidential palace," said Douglas Ramage, political analyst at Bower Group Asia consultancy.

However, opinion polls suggest she would struggle to beat off likely challengers from other parties: tycoon Aburizal Bakrie and Prabowo Subianto, an ex-general with a dark human rights record.

A legacy

At the rank and file level of the party, however, Megawati enjoys the support of thousands of self-proclaimed loyalists who believe that the ability to lead the country runs in her blood.

"As a Javanese I believe in natural and mystical forces and so I believe the spirit of Bung Karno still protects our nation," said 40-year-old Dewi Kriswindari, using Sukarno's nickname amidst a murmur of prayer by his grave in Blitar in East Java province, one of the party's traditional strongholds. "I'm not very political, but Megawati is his daughter and I believe she can guide Indonesia as a leader."

Party insiders say Megawati and the party's ageing senior leadership take this legacy very seriously – not least because they could lose influence if she goes.

The death last year of Megawati's husband Taufik Kiemas, whom she recently called her "sparring partner," meant perhaps the only other prominent and counterbalancing voice in the party is gone, giving her supporters ample room to urge Megawati to run for president again.

Nevertheless, a growing chorus of voices within the party has called on her to instead take on the role of "Mother of the Nation" to echo her father's legacy and, considering her consistently low popularity ratings, let Joko run for the presidency.

"The people want a new figure, and that's Jokowi," said Ali Husein, a PDI-P legislative candidate from Bangka-Belitung province who co-chairs a group promoting the Jakarta governor's candidacy. "I don't think the PDI-P would be stupid enough for Mega to be the candidate."

In a recent live television interview, she walked out on stage to Frank Sinatra's "My Way" and sat silently or gave typically vague answers as Joko watched from the audience.

When asked the inevitable question about the candidacy, Megawati's answer was ambivalent. "Leaders of the party don't have to be directly related to Sukarno," she said, "But I tell them to remember that there are still many loyal followers of Bung Karno."

[Additional reporting by Jakarta bureau.]

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/three-times-a-loser-indonesias-megawati-is-pivotal-in-elections/

Student action slams elections as 'farce' perpetrated by political elite

KRYogya - March 5, 2014

Ivan Aditya, Sleman – A group of students calling themselves the Yogyakarta Indonesian Student Union (SMI) held a theatrical action opposing the 2014 elections at the Sunan Kalijaga Islamic State University (UIN) intersection in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta on Wednesday March 5.

The activists said that the elections, which are considered to be the climax of the festival of democracy, are little more than a farce perpetrated by the political elite in order to deceive the people.

Action coordinator Abdul Rahman said that none of the political parties taking part in the 2014 legislative and presidential elections is really fighting for the interests of the ordinary people. "All of the current political parties are filled with hordes of people with capital and money. So their policies are designed to protect and give priority to their own interests", he said.

The celebrations, which are referred to as a five-yearly festival of democracy for the people, are in fact little more than an arena to squander the people's money without producing quality leaders. The people are given sweet promises but after the politicians are sitting in parliament they forget what was said.

During the action the students held speeches and put up banners and posters. They also held a theatrical action in the middle of the intersection. As vehicles passed to and fro, two students played the role of legislative candidates appearing to squabble with each other, which a group of bare-chested students did push-ups under the intense heat of the sun.

"This depicts legislative candidates busy bickering with each other and taking care of their own interests while the little people are in fact being left to suffer. This is what is currently happening in our country", said Rahman.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Source: http://krjogja.com/read/207231/aktivis-mahasiswa-tolak-pemilu.kr

Ahok: Possible vice-presidential candidate?

Jakarta Post - March 4, 2014

Sita W.Dewi, Jakarta – Deputy Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama said on Tuesday he had been touted as a potential 2014 vice presidential candidate.

"During informal luncheons, my colleagues in the Gerindra Party have said that I might be a potential vice presidential candidate to be paired with Pak Prabowo [Gerindra chairman Prabowo Subianto]," Ahok said at City Hall."However, there has been no official request from the party," he went on.

Ahok said that Gerindra should focus on winning as many votes as possible during the legislative election, slated for April 9. "Without obtaining more that 20 percent of the seats at the House of Representatives, how can Gerindra nominate its own presidential candidate?" he said.

Although an official request for candidacy had yet to be made, Ahok indicated that he would not reject the offer. "Whether I am ready or not, once my party asks me to run [for a higher seat] in the election, I'll say I'm ready. Be it to become a governor or a president, I'll always say I'm ready," he said.

When he was asked whom he would choose if both Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Prabowo proposed him as a running mate, Ahok declined to answer and instead, responding the question with a joke. "I'll just ask them to allow me to stay at City Hall and be governor so my picture will be hung at the office," he said.

The vice governor further said: "Pak Jokowi's nomination is in the hands of Ibu Mega [Indonesia Democratic party of Struggle chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri] while Pak Prabowo's nomination depends on the number of votes obtained by Gerindra."

Jokowi has been touted as a real contender during the upcoming presidential election, closely followed by Prabowo. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/04/ahok-possible-vice- presidential-candidate.html

Indonesia pushes for more women in power

ABC Radio Australia - March 4, 2014

Helen Brown in Jakarta, staff – More than 80,000 women will be running for office in this year's presidential election in Indonesia, encouraged to be part of the country's plan to have more women in power.

A women's political training program funded by the United States is being run twice in five different regions of Indonesia, including some of its most remote areas.

Organisers have been stunned by the turnout to these workshops, with some women travelling for hours just to attend. Around 170 women are learning to run for office in a conference hall of a hotel in Banda Aceh, Indonesia's northernmost point.

While their discreet Islamic dress might signify an unlikely group to step up and take charge, their vision is more radical. "By becoming a legislative member, I have more chances to fight for women, because I would be the one who creates the law, and monitors it," United Development Party candidate, Sri Gustini, said.

Michelle Bekkering, the International Republican Institute's resident country director in Indonesia, is the lead trainer of the workshops. She has spent 12 years in Washington's hot-house politics, including time on former president George Bush's national security council.

Ms Bekkering says she has never worked with a more attentive group of women. "They soak everything up... they come early, they stay late, they write everything down," she said.

Resistance at street level

It's no easy task for women to build a political profile in one of Indonesia's most conservative regions. "Men often told us if there is an event to wait at home, to cook, that this is men's business, as if there is a division of work between men and women," Golkar candidate, Saida Afrida, said.

While there might be resistance on the street, female politicians are encouraged at the high levels of law, in the province's sharia office.

"In sharia's perspective a woman entering politics is something good," Professor Syahrizal Abbas from the Islamic Shariah Department said. "It gives everyone a chance to take care of this country, and there is no discrimination between men and women."

Indonesia's women are backed by regulations on affirmative action. Since 2008, a law has required that one-third of political candidates must be women and the country's electoral commission is blocking reluctant parties from running if they don't meet the rules.

The names of 83,000 female candidates will be on Indonesia's ballot papers in the upcoming election.

Michelle Bekkering says she hopes more women will be elected this year. "We really want to change public perception and show them a positive image of women as public leaders," she said.

Aceh's women step up

Banda Aceh is a city better known for the devastation caused by the tsunami in 2004, but the women of Aceh don't have to look far for inspiration.

Illiza Sa'aduddin Djamal won a place in parliament well before the female quota was set. She is now the deputy mayor of the provincial capital of Banda Aceh and she has won the support of the region's senior male scholars of Islamic law – the ulama.

"Women's activities were never attended by the leaders in Banda Aceh. Every time that leaders or prominent figures were invited, only a representative would come," she said. "But I won people's trust at the election, by spending most of my time with my people, especially women. I always make them my priority."

It was a defining moment for the region, but also its women. The sectarian violence that had plagued the province for 30 years came to an end, a peace accord was signed, and international recovery funds poured in.

Aceh's women stepped up, picking up the pieces of communities wracked by both war and natural disaster. "I'd say it's a country where women haven't been overly encouraged to get active in the public sphere," Ms Bekkering said.

"But things like the tsunami... taking leadership roles in their communities, helping with reconstruction effort... women here have had long experience in being active for public life. Now they're just ready for the next step which is elected office."

National Aceh Party candidate, Cut Nurlina, says she wants to make a difference in her area. "I really hope that by being elected I can do something for people in my area," she said.

People not only have to contend with patriarchal attitudes, but in some parts of Aceh, old rifts have led to violence. "When I heard that there is intimidation, murder threats... it doesn't make me afraid or want to back down," Cut Nurlina said. "I know there are groups who want Aceh to not be peaceful, and they don't understand how to do politics properly."

Doing politics properly is no easy task in a democracy that's still taking shape, but these women are going to give it a go.

Source: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2014-03-04/indonesia-pushes-for-more-women-in-power/1274240

All parties submit campaign fund reports

Jakarta Post - March 3, 2014

Jakarta – The 12 political parties to contest the legislative election next month have submitted their second financial reports, the final report prior to the election; with the Gerindra Party registering the largest amount of campaign funds.

Gerindra reported on Sunday to the General Elections Commission (KPU) that it had pooled Rp 122 billion (US$10.5 million) of campaign funds, on top of Rp 184 billion it had disclosed in December last year.

"The total campaign fund is Rp 306 billion in the two reports submitted to the KPU. The money is 100 percent from the party's current legislative candidates," Gerindra treasurer Thomas Djiwandono told reporters at the KPU headquarters in Central Jakarta.

Thomas said that it had taken some time for the party to complete the campaign fund report because it had to compile the financial reports of its 560 legislative candidates.

Other than Gerindra, five other parties also submitted reports on their campaign funds to KPU shortly before the deadline on Sunday, including the Democratic Party, the Golkar Party, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the United Development Party (PPP) and the Hanura Party.

Meanwhile, the National Awakening Party (PKB), the Nasdem Party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Indonesian Justice and Unity Party (PKPI) had submitted their reports to the KPU last Saturday; while the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Crescent Star Party (PBB) had done so earlier on Friday.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/03/all-parties-submit- campaign-fund-reports.html

Bakrie sees Golkar election boost from new order nostalgia

Globe Asia - March 3, 2014

Yanto Soegiarto & Albertus Weldison Nonto, Jakarta – Aburizal Bakrie is busy shuttling around Indonesia to consolidate his powerful Golkar Party base ahead of the upcoming legislative elections, garnering support for his bid for the presidency.

With his background as a businessman and in government as coordinating minister for the economy, it is hardly surprising that economics is high on Aburizal's agenda as the elections loom closer.

Underlining his intentions if he is elected to the presidency is the belief that Indonesia needs to manage its economy correctly by not being too conservative in its monetary and fiscal policy, while sustaining sound macroeconomic fundamentals.

"As an example, look at the debt issue. Our debt stands at 25 percent of GDP. People make a lot of noise about our huge debt. They want to lower it by 3 percent. No other nation, or just a few, has such a small ratio of debt to GDP. Usually it's 60 percent or it could even be 300 percent. My point is that we don't have to worry about our debt-to-GDP ratio. If we have a $1 trillion economy, 1 percent would mean $12 billion, 2 percent would mean $24 billion. For me, a debt-to-GDP ratio of 30 percent is good," Aburizal said.

He brushed aside talk that Indonesia's debt would be a burden on future generations. "We are missing Rp 250 trillion [$21.5 billion] in development opportunities with our fear of debt," he said.

High growth, Aburizal said, should not only be generated by domestic consumption or exports of agricultural products. Indonesia should also build its basic industries, he stressed.

"Lakshmi Mittal built his first steel plant in Surabaya in the 1970s and now he is producing 35 million tons of steel," he said. "Indonesia, meanwhile, has Krakatau Steel which only produces two million tons. Even with the new joint venture [with South Korea's Posco], it can only raise production by another million tons.

"Look at the petrochemical industry. We haven't built any refineries and have had to rely on SPC [Singapore Petroleum Company] and Shell. My point is that in 1972, when income per capita was merely $700, we were able to build the Balongan refinery. Now when income per capita is $3,500, we aren't able."

And, he pointed out, without accelerated infrastructure development, economic growth will not exceed 6 percent.

"We must not doubt the need to invest,"Aburizal said. "If the private sector is reluctant to invest due to slow returns and low profitability then the government should take over.

"We can't afford to see another Kuala Namu [the new airport for Medan in North Sumatra]. The airport was completed but there was no toll road to support it. If the private sector looks at business returns, the government should look at the economic returns such as the toll roads or other business that can be created surrounding it. We must be daring and encourage public-private partnership schemes as part of our infrastructure development strategy."

Aburizal insists policies must change, and offers his own road map on the direction to take. For a start, there should be no new energy subsidies.

"Who enjoys the Rp 300 trillion in subsidies? Eighty percent goes to the middle class and up and only 20 percent to lower-income people," he said. "We need direct subsidies to the people for health, working capital, for farmers, people's credit schemes and others. We must not subsidize fertilizer but instead we must subsidize the farmers. We must make lower- income people earn more but spend less."

Experience counts

As an experienced operator in business and politics, Aburizal says he feels he is on firm ground. He implies that another likely contender for the presidency, Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo, is a risky choice to lead the country.

"I fear there will be a competition between capabilities and popularity," he said. "This nation cannot be managed by people who are experimenting. It must be managed by experienced people. Governing is not easy."

He takes a tough line on security and law and order. The government, he said, should provide a political umbrella for the police in carrying out their duties.

"It's not right if a law enforcer can't shoot a criminal or a violent rioter because he fears he will be violating human rights," Aburizal said. "In the US or UK, if a criminal is armed, law enforcers shoot.

"Here we see police getting shot and they can't shoot back. If we tolerate this, they will keep burning churches, mosques or sweeping factories to halt production. My point is that law enforcers must not be afraid of violating human rights. We have to maintain security and order."

While many believe the electorate is looking for a younger man, Aburizal at 67 is fitter than most, buoyed by regular sessions of tennis, jogging and swimming. His son Anindya now controls the Bakrie family business media empire, leaving the father to concentrate on politics. As for his choice for vice presidential running mate, Aburizal says there are some clear criteria.

"Number one, they must be Indonesian and have the same idealism as the presidential candidate," he said. "They must not have different views. In some cases, a presidential candidate might get elected but might not be able to run the country. So it's important to have the willingness to work together with the president."

He concedes that he might pick a vice presidential candidate without having to forge a coalition with other parties. That would mean Golkar winning at least 20 percent of the votes on April 9, allowing it to directly nominate its candidate.

Golkar's stance, he said, is not just about winning a percentage of the vote but about winning seats at national, provincial and district levels. "Golkar's strength is outside Java. We are about as strong as the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle [PDI-P] but we expect Golkar to win more seats. We are aiming at 170 seats, more than 30 percent [of the 560 House seats]."

Back to the 'good old days'

Aburizal claims many people in the regions yearn for the stable economic conditions under Suharto's New Order regime when prices were still affordable.

"With the present conditions, people's buying power may be twice as high but prices of basic necessities are five times higher," he said. "The rural people still remember the good old days of the New Order. This is why there are so many roadside signs depicting Suharto saying, 'It was better during my time, right?' This was really the case.

"The New Order minus guided democracy becomes real democracy. With decentralization now, many still long for the good old Golkar glory days as in the past. They talk about the absence of social upheaval in the past. There was no Shia-Sunni dichotomy. There was hardly any arson or violent riots. We must be firm and arrest people."

He cited the late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping as a leader who knew he must enforce the law. "I am disappointed by the level of drug trafficking," Aburizal said. "We must impose life sentences for traffickers. There should be no amnesty or sentence reductions. We can be like Deng, who said he would not dig up the past but in the future there would be no mercy for corruptors."

On the contentious issue of tax amnesties, Aburizal asked whether the government dared to impose a tax amnesty on cases that violated either civil or criminal law. "We can double our foreign exchange reserves," he said. "More than $100 billion is in bank accounts abroad."

Gauging his chances

Aburizal is satisfied he is eligible to run for the presidency, and can win. "There are only two eligible candidates who can get 30 percent [of the vote]," he said. "They are Aburizal and [PDI-P chairwoman] Megawati Soekarnoputri."

Aburizal pointed out that it would be difficult for other political parties to match Golkar and the PDI-P. "It will be hard for Gerindra, Hanura and the Democratic Party to get 20 percent," he said. "It's also about whether a candidate who has high electability ratings is necessarily eligible. Megawati and Aburizal for sure. Jokowi not yet. Wiranto and Prabowo must wait until April."

Asked whether Megawati would run for president, Aburizal said he didn't know. "I am talking about eligibility. If she wants to run, she is eligible," he said, adding that with the legislative elections now close, it would be very difficult for other contestants to pick up an additional 5 percent through a coalition.

Aburizal was brought up in a rich family and fed with a silver spoon but now talks about helping the poor. Asked what influenced him to embark on the creation of a real people's economy, he responded that he had served as chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin); as coordinating minister for the economy; and as coordinating minister for people's welfare. That last position introduced him to people's suffering, changing him completely as a person.

"It was when I was welfare minister that I had to change course," he said. "I saw the suffering of people from diseases such as AIDS. I also learned what ATM means [AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria]. It is a human development index. I went to Papua, 2,000 meters above sea level. No other ministers had been there. I saw the sufferings of backward Indonesian citizens. We took them spades and hoes to dig their fields. They were happy. They had used wooden tools before. The experience changed me."

Aburizal, born in Jakarta on Nov. 15, 1946, admits he regretted leaving his post as coordinating minister for the economy to become welfare minister.

"I resented [President] SBY for that but it was a blessing in disguise," he said. "I learned what the suffering of the people really was. I was grateful, because it changed my life.

"I got acquainted with the AIDS and bird flu issues. Before I held the welfare post, nobody ever shook hands with AIDS victims. Do you know that 300 people die of tuberculosis every day? Then it was the family planning issue. [Vice president] Jusuf Kalla taught me how to convince people family planning is important."

Is he still involved in the often tortuous maneuvers of his family's companies? "No, I am not lying. Since 2004, I have refrained from doing business completely," he said. "But of course I respond if somebody asks me about my vision. Again, I have to reiterate that I am no longer doing business."

Aburizal also touched on smear campaigns against political opponents, often referred to as "black" campaigns.

"If we are strong, opponents will conduct black campaigns," he said. "But people get tired of black campaigns. Take the case of Lapindo [the Bakrie company whose improperly cased drilling well was blamed for triggering a mud volcano in East Java]. After the verdict of the Supreme Court, many more people know the truth.

"Had it not been for my mother, I would not have compensated the victims of the tragedy. She said God gave me a fortune and I should do good with the wealth. I have spent Rp 9 trillion of my own money. That's life."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/bakrie-sees-golkar-election- boost-from-new-order-nostalgia/

'Politics': Megawati flexes control over PDI-P

Jakarta Post - March 2, 2014

Indra Harsaputra and Ina Parlina, Surabaya/Jakarta – As part of an ongoing attempt to heal an internal rift, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri flew to Surabaya on Saturday to express her support for the widely popular city mayor and at the same time to validate the position of the mayor's rival and deputy, whom Megawati has described as her own son.

With the legislative election campaign period only about two weeks away, she wanted to send a strong message to party members and rival political parties who have tried to poach Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini, popularly known as Risma.

"I told Mbak Risma to keep on going no matter what and be strong in running Surabaya – If we bow to [internal conflict], the only people that will suffer are none other than the people of Surabaya," Megawati said in a media briefing Saturday.

The daughter of Indonesia's first president, Sukarno, was accompanied by the country's most popular potential presidential candidate, Jokowi "Joko" Widodo, during her brief visit to East Java.

The Jakarta governor, a PDI-P politician, has repeatedly persuaded Risma to stay in her post, after she said on national television that she intended to resign over the appointment of her political rival as her deputy.

The Golkar Party, the Democratic Party and the Gerindra Party have openly called on Risma to join their ranks, indicating that she could even be offered a spot as a running mate on a presidential ticket.

Megawati had previously summoned both Tri and her deputy, Wisnu Sakti Buana, to her Menteng residence in Central Jakarta. She decided to visit them again in Surabaya because it was evident that Risma was still dissatisfied with having to work alongside Wisnu in City Hall.

It was Wisnu who led the charge to oust Risma as the mayor just several months after her election in 2010. Last year, the PDI-P chose him to replace previous deputy Bambang DH, who stepped down to run for governor of East Java.

Besides asking Risma to stay on, Megawati told Wisnu to work hand-in-hand with the mayor in running the city. "I regard Wisnu as my own son because I've known him since he was a child. Wisnu is the son of the late Sutjipto, who used to be the secretary-general of PDI-P," Megawati said.

She also told Wisnu not to get easily provoked by any rumors intending to spark internal conflict. "Let the people pass judgment on what has happened," she went on.

Megawati also hinted that some parties might try to hurt the PDI-P in the run-up to the election. "There must be some parties who are trying to intentionally disturb the harmony of our party because they consider PDI-P as a strong rival in the upcoming election," Megawati said.

Both Risma and Wisnu were present during the media briefing, but did not make any comments.

Meanwhile, Jokowi also refrained from talking to the media. Megawati is expected to announce her decision about whether or not he will be the party's presidential candidate after the April 9 election. Risma is also a rising star in the PDI-P, as many observers expect she will become a national leader.

Separately, political expert at Airlangga University in Surabaya, Haryadi, praised Megawati's move, saying the PDI-P had successfully handled its internal conflict.

"Megawati's statement has settled the problem and brought a positive image to the party, but not in terms of the personal issue between Risma and Wisnu," Haryadi said.

Political observer Arie Sudjito of Gadjah Mada University disagreed. "Megawati shouldn't have intervened. It means that the PDI-P and its leadership pattern still relies on her," he said. (fss)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/02/politics-megawati- flexes-control-over-pdi-p.html

Surveys & opinion polls

Public warned of dubious surveys

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Associations and experts have warned the public of dubious surveys ahead of the 2014 elections.

Indonesian Association for Public Opinion Research (Aropi) secretary- general Umar S. Bakry said the number of dubious survey institutions mushroomed ahead of elections and dwindled immediately after.

"There are many survey institutions that are diligent in releasing survey results, but they are seasonal. After the election, they will disappear and the prevailing ones will be the old names," Umar said in a discussion at the General Elections Commission (KPU) here on Tuesday. He said only 32 pollsters had registered with the KPU to be eligible to conduct surveys as well as quick counts.

University of Indonesia (UI) communications expert Ade Armando gave a few examples of pollsters he deemed to be lacking in methodological rigour to the point that their findings were highly questionable.

First was the Indonesian Network Elections Survey (INES), which found through its recent survey that Gerindra Party chief patron Prabowo Subianto was the most popular presidential candidate with an electability rating of 40.8 percent.

"Shockingly, the survey showed that Jokowi had only managed to secure 5.6 percent," Ade said, referring to Jakarta Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, who has frequently emerged as the front-runner in other surveys.

Second was the People's Synergy for Democracy in Indonesia (Sigma), which asked journalists who they would vote for in the presidential race. Hanura Party chairman Wiranto emerged with the highest electability rating, although other surveys placed him at the bottom of the list.

Third was the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), which named Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie as the most popular candidate in the July 2014 presidential poll.

"The result needs to be questioned since the LSI has deliberately paired Aburizal with Jokowi, in a move allegedly aimed to boost Aburizal's electability," Ade said.

Indonesian Association for Public Opinion Surveys (Persepi) ethics council member Andrinof Chaniago, meanwhile, said the survey should have also asked an open question to respondents who should not have been given a list of candidates, to truly measure candidate electability.

Fourth was the Jakarta Survey Institute (LSJ), which likely steered its respondents to a certain answer when they were asked whether they still believed that the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) was a "clean" party, after its former chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq was arrested for bribery.

Fifth was the Indonesia Research Center (IRC), which twice published an unfinished survey last year.

Lastly, was the Soegeng Sarjadi Syndicate (SSS) for conducting a survey through telephone interviews. "The amount of owners of landline phones across Indonesia [is very small]. Therefore, the method cannot be used as it does not fit the criteria of random sampling and does not represent the Indonesian people as a whole," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/public-warned-dubious-surveys.html

Media & journalism

The Jakarta Post ranks second on Indonesia most popular newspapers list

Jakarta Post - March 1, 2014

Jakarta – The Jakarta Post ranked second on a list of Indonesia's most popular newspapers compiled by 4 International Media and Newspaper, as published on its website www.4imn.com.

According to a Kompas.com report, the website used three different parameters as benchmarks for the survey. It uses Alexa traffic rank, Google page rank and a search engine by the name of Majestic Seo Referring Domains to set the rankings.

The site has guaranteed no intervention happened during the assessment. It was all purely based on online visits made to each newspaper's website. The list is subject to improvement every six months.

The Post came after Kompas, which ranked first. Republika came in the third position. Ranked in fourth position was Koran Tempo, closely followed by business daily, Bisnis Indonesia.

The top five positions are all occupied by Jakarta-based newspapers. Regional newspaper Suara Merdeka, a Semarang-based newspaper, came in sixth position, closely followed by Bandung-based Pikiran Rakyat in seventh. Banda Aceh-based Serambi came in eighth.(dic)

Source: ranks-second-ri-most-popular-newspapers-list.html

Environment & natural disasters

Disaster relief agency says the worst is yet to come

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang and Nurfika Osman, Jakarta – The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) warned that forest fires could get worse next month when the country enters the dry season, saying that collective efforts involving all agencies were needed to address the problem.

In a meeting with lawmakers from the House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing social affairs on Tuesday, BNPB chief Syamsul Maarif cited Sumatera and Kalimantan as the two provinces with the highest risk of forest fires this year.

He said this year's drought would be worse than last year's and could last up to September. Syamsul called for stricter law enforcement on those responsible for forest fires, particularly large firms, saying the government needed to adopt a tougher stance.

"The forest doesn't start the fires. People are usually to blame, so strict law enforcement needs to be enforced in order to deter perpetrators," Syamsul said.

Syamsul said his agency was bracing for more hotspots this year than the total of 1,596 hotspots detected nationwide last year. He added this was because the forest fires this year had started much earlier.

"According to the air pollution standard index, more than 500 detected hotspots are already categorized as extremely dangerous," he said. In March alone, as many as 34 hotspots were detected across Riau province as of last Monday – 17 in Jambi, four in Batanghari regency, three in West Tanjungjabung, six in East Tanjungjabung and two each in Muarojambi and Tebo.

Meanwhile, the Kualanamu Airport Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) in North Sumatra had previously announced that as many as 85 hotspots were recorded in the province.

Separately, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) urged the government to get tough on companies and financiers who were responsible for starting the forest fires.

Walhi found that 117 companies, both local and international such as those from neighboring Malaysia and Singapore, were responsible for the fires that had now spread to six provinces.

"We are disappointed that the police have blamed the fires on local residents, 26 of which have been named suspects. They should have pointed the finger at the plantation firms because they are the ones who control the land," Walhi Riau chapter executive director Riko Kurniawan said.

According to Walhi's recent data, in Riau alone, 90 percent of the province's forests were controlled by plantation companies through concessions, while the locals only controlled the remaining 10 percent.

Riko said by naming a large number of local residents as suspects despite the fact the data showed the companies managed the majority of the forested areas indicated the government and authorities were soft on the industry.

However, Forestry Ministry spokesperson Sumarto played down the firms' roles in the fires, blaming it on the slash-and-burn techniques used by local farmers to convert forested areas into rubber and oil palm plantations.

"This is the root of the problem and we keep working with local governments, Manggala Agni forest fire teams, and other relevant stakeholders to curb farmers' slash-and-burn practices," he told The Jakarta Post.

Aiming to boost prevention efforts of spread haze across Southeast Asia, the government and the House have agreed to ratify the ASEAN treaty on Transboundary Haze Pollution, a legally binding agreement that Indonesia, as well as all other ASEAN countries, signed in 2002.

Under the treaty, member countries must cooperate in preventing open burning, monitoring prevention efforts, sharing information.

After having initially rejecting the plan over fears that it could infringement on the country's sovereignty, Indonesia is finally set to adopt the treaty particularly after the country was involved in a row with Singapore after the haze from Riau reached the neighboring country.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/disaster-relief- agency-says-worst-yet-come.html

Indonesian Council of Ulema issue fatwa to protect wildlife

Agence France Presse - March 5, 2014

Jakarta – Indonesia's top Islamic clerical body has issued a religious fatwa against the illegal hunting and trade in endangered animals in the country, which the World Wildlife Fund hailed on Wednesday as the world's first.

The fatwa by the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) declares such activities "unethical, immoral and sinful," Asrorun Ni'am Sholeh, secretary of the council's commission on fatwas, told AFP.

"All activities resulting in wildlife extinction without justifiable religious grounds or legal provisions are haram. These include illegal hunting and trading of endangered animals. Whoever takes away a life, kills a generation. This is not restricted to humans, but also includes God's other living creatures, especially if they die in vain."

The country of 250 million people is the world's most populous Muslim nation, but it remained unclear whether the fatwa would have any practical impact. Indonesia's vast and unique array of wildlife is under increasing pressure from development, logging and agricultural expansion.

The government does not typically react to fatwas by implementing specific policy changes. However, a Ministry of Forestry official who asked to remain anonymous told AFP the ministry and the religious council would make a joint announcement regarding the fatwa on March 12, without elaborating on its content.

The WWF called the fatwa the first of its kind in the world, and said the use of religion for wildlife protection "is a positive step forward."

"It provides a spiritual aspect and raises moral awareness which will help us in our work to protect and save the remaining wildlife in the country such as the critically endangered tigers and rhinos," WWF Indonesia communications director Nyoman Iswara Yoga said.

The fatwa was the result of months of dialogue between government officials, conservationists and other stakeholders, said Asrorun, the fatwa commission official.

Acknowledging it was not legally binding, Asrorun said in English: "It's a divine binding." He said the fatwa was effective from January 22. It was only made public late Tuesday.

The fatwa urges the government to effectively monitor ecological protection, review permits issued to companies accused of harming the environment, and bring illegal loggers and wildlife traffickers to justice.

The clearing, often illegally, of Indonesia's once-rich forests for timber extraction or to make way for oil palm or other plantations poses a severe threat to critically endangered species such as the Sumatran tiger, orangutan, and Sumatran elephant. Poachers also target wild elephants for their ivory tusks, for use in traditional Chinese medicines.

Under Indonesian law, trafficking in protected animals can result in a maximum of five years in jail and 100 million rupiah ($8,700) fine.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/indonesian-council-of-ulema- issue-fatwa-to-protect-wildlife/

Proboscis monkey population in Kalimantan under threat

Jakarta Post - March 2, 2014

Balikpapan – The world's largest population of proboscis monkey, locally known as bekantan, and its natural habitat in Balikpapan Bay is in danger due to the expansion of oil palm plantations.

Stanislav Lhota, a primate researcher from the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, the Czech Republic, said mangrove forests in Balikpapan Bay was home to around 1,400 proboscis monkeys, 5 percent of the world's population of the primate.

"This is the largest proboscis monkey population in the world," said Lhota in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, on Sunday, as quoted by Antara news agency.

Palm oil producer PT Wilmar Nabati Indonesia (WINA) owns concession permits for 149.8 hectares of mangrove forests in the northern part of Balikpapan Bay in East Kalimantan and the western part of Balikpapan, the oil- producing city. The concession areas are part of the Kariangau Industrial Estate.

Besides proboscis monkeys, the Balikpapan Bay waters is also a natural habitat of dugongs, coral reefs and sea grass, according to the researcher. "The palm oil company has been quite destructive," said Lhota.

Converting mangrove forests into oil palm plantations deplete a part of the food chain, relied upon by proboscis monkeys and a wide vary of bird species, the researcher said. "If it continues, there will be no proboscis monkeys in Balikpapan Bay in the next 15-20 years," said Lhota.

To get the expansion permit, WINA has held a public consultation on the environment impact assessment study of the project. The consultation was first held in a school in Waru Bay, in southern coastal areas of Balikpapan Bay, which is part of North Penajam Paser regency

The location of the public consultation was in line with local officials' directives, Eka Saputra of WINA said as quoted by mongabay.co.id. (ebf)

Source: population-kalimantan-under-threat.html

Health & education

Putting Indonesia's children first: Orphanage abuse in spotlight

Jakarta Globe - March 3, 2014

Vita A.D. Busyra & Fana F.S. Putra, Jakarta – Ali, like most youths in Indonesia labeled "orphans," has a family, but has since the sixth grade been placed in the care of an orphanage because his parents had no means of taking care of him, much less keeping him in school.

Today, Ali is 19, an undergraduate on a scholarship at a private university in Jakarta, and one of the success stories of the Putra Nusa Orphanage in Central Jakarta.

"Living in this place has been such a blessing for me," says Ali, who should have left the orphanage when he turned 18 but has been allowed to stay on while he completes his studies.

"The carers have been patient and helpful in accommodating me, and the positive atmosphere has given me the chance to succeed academically. This place I call home is irreplaceable," he tells the Jakarta Globe.

Ali is one of the fortunate ones, children from destitute families or broken homes who have wound up at a properly managed institution that has given them a chance at a bright future.

Not everyone will be so lucky, says Eti Nurbaeti, the treasurer at the Putra Nusa home.

She says that while some of the orphanage's former wards are now studying at places like the University of Indonesia or the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), two of the country's top centers of higher learning, the majority can't expect to aim as high and have to settle for what few job opportunities are available right out of school.

"We've been asking the Jakarta government to provide jobs for the children after they finish vocational school, but they've ignored our requests," Eti says. "The only thing we can do is guide the children based on their passions, so that when they finish school they can immediately be employed by any institution."

She says Putra Nusa is currently home to 45 boys and 40 girls, ranging in age from 7 to 19 years. She says 38 of them are parentless, eight are from broken homes, and the rest have families that are destitute.

Taking advantage

The issue of the country's orphanages shot into the public glare last month with allegations that children at a home in Tangerang, the Samuel Orphanage, had been mistreated and abused by the staff.

Twenty-six of the children have since been removed and placed in other homes, including infants as young as three months. Police are now investigating the orphanage's administrator, Chemy Watulingas, and his wife Yuni for allegations of abuse.

The question of the orphanage's legitimacy is also in question, with Arist Merdeka Sirait, the chairman of the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas PA), who led the evacuation of the children from the facility, saying he suspected Chemy had no license to run and orphanage.

"The owner took advantage of the children's vulnerable positions by mistreating them, restricting their freedom of expression, and forcing them to obey rules," Arist tells the Globe. He says he believes the practice has been going on for years, and has left permanent psychological scars on the children.

"Children have different ways of dealing with abuse," he says. "Some will isolate themselves because they develop a high level of distrust against people, often feeling insecure. Others become very aggressive and tend to pick fights with their peers."

A lawyer representing the children says the latter appears to be the case among some of the children taken from the Samuel Orphanage, who were reported to be hitting one another and stealing items at the safe house provided for them by the Social Affairs Ministry.

"They usually steal food items," the lawyer said as quoted by Merdeka.com. "Whenever a guest comes to visit, they root into their belongings without permission."

Arist says Komnas HAM received 3,039 reports of child abuse last year, an increase of 15 percent from the 2,637 cases reported to the commission in 2012.

But he says these figures are just the tip of the iceberg, with the vast majority of child abuse cases going unreported, either because the victim has no recourse to channels of grievances or because they are too afraid of the consequences.

Orphanages, he says, have a duty to protect the children in their care, but many unscrupulous ones simply take in the children to increase their chances of getting funding from the government, charitable institutions and private donors.

"Children must be allowed to know their rights," Arist says. "For children living in an institution like an orphanage or a boarding school, where they are kept under tight surveillance by adult guardians, it is the latter who are responsible for explaining these rights to them so that the children won't be reluctant to report crimes or offenses to a figure of trust or perhaps to the police."

Unregistered orphanages

There are around 8,000 orphanages throughout Indonesia, 10 of them run by the central government, 200 by regional governments and the rest by private institutions, according to data from the Social Affairs Ministry. The data show 2,000 of them do not have the requisite permits to operate as orphanages.

Samsudi, the ministry's director general for social rehabilitation, whose office oversees orphanages, says the permits ensure that a given institution has the necessary facilities and trained human resources to properly care for the children.

Any orphanage found not to be complying with those standards is answerable to the regional social affairs office, he says, noting that in the case of the Samuel Orphanage, the Tangerang Social Services Agency has ordered the home shut down pending the police investigation.

Eti from the Putra Nusa Orphanage blasts the Samuel administrators as "inhumane," saying that anyone who abused their responsibility to care for vulnerable children should be jailed immediately. "I fear it will take a long time for the children to recover, emotionally and mentally," she says.

The Putra Nusa Orphanage, established in 1958, is registered with the Jakarta Social Service Agency and has a raft of permits, says Abdulloh T.R., the head of the home.

He says it is funded by the Jakarta Social Services Agency, individual donors, and charitable institutions like the Dharma Bhakti Foundation. Children like 14-year-old Friskila would have been fortunate to end up there. Instead, she found herself at the Samuel Orphanage, where she wound up taking care of a newborn baby named Felicia for the next one-and-a-half years, until their rescue last month.

She says Felicia was given up by her parents because of a deformity in the fingers of her right hand.

She denies some of the more outrageous claims of physical abuse, saying that at most Yuni used to pinch the children or get angry at them, but says the older children like her effectively worked there, taking care of the younger ones.

She also says the orphanage had a lot of donors, particularly during Christian holidays. But Chemy, a Pentecostal minister, held all the money and didn't pay to get more staff or improve the facilities.

Government inaction

Maria Ulfa, a former chairwoman of the Indonesian Commission for Child Protection (KPAI), says it is shocking that officials never flagged the alleged abuse at the Samuel Orphanage in the 15 years that it had been in operation.

She says the KPAI first investigated allegations of abuse at the home two years ago and filed a report with the police, urging them to shut it down.

"It's truly regrettable that this case ever happened, and that there was no earlier action by the police or the social services agency," she says.

Maria cites a 2011 Social Affairs Ministry regulation on child care service providers, which requires all licensed providers to provide regular reports to the government and for government officials to conduct routine inspections of the providers.

"The Samuel Orphanage case epitomizes the lack of monitoring and supervision by the local social services agency, because it has been allowed to operate unhindered for 15 years," she says.

She says the Socials Affairs Ministry must be more proactive about checking on orphanages, and not assume that their regular reports necessarily reflect the true conditions in the homes.

"The ministry should have the data and records of all registered, unregistered and illegal orphanages from all local-level social services agencies, so that it can evaluate them thoroughly and set up a better system to monitor the running of the orphanages throughout the country," Maria says.

Arist says the concept of the Indonesian orphanage needs to be overhauled completely. Rather than see them as a place of last resort for the destitute, at best, or a means for generating tax-free money through donations, at worst, orphanages should put the care of children first and foremost, he says.

"We need to set a standard for building orphanages," he says. "An orphanage ideally has to have a playground, hygienic restrooms, a nice pantry, a health clinic with a doctor, a recreation room, adequate sleeping quarters for toddlers and children and employees. There's no reason to build more orphanages if we can't meet those standards."

He says that with so many orphanages not registered with the authority, and the likelihood of abuse taking place in many of them as well as in the registered one, cases like the Samuel Orphanage one are bound to recur.

"Many orphanage owners think they 'own' the orphans, but that's wrong," Arist says. "I would prefer if the children could be adopted by a family, which would be a much better environment for them. But with so many children in orphanages there's no easy way to achieve this."

Maria agrees that children would be much better off in a family environment, and suggests that destitute families thinking of putting their children in an orphanage should instead try to find a family willing to care for their child.

"Children are in better care in a family environment, either in their own families, or when necessary, in an adopted one," the former commissioner says.

Back at the Putra Nusa Orphanage, 15-year-old Atrian is looking forward to a brighter future than his desperately poor family could have given him. At the government safe house, Friskila is waiting for the chance to complete her general equivalency test for the sixth grade.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/jakarta/putting-indonesias- children-first-orphanage-abuse-in-spotlight/

Group calls for more support for breastfeeding mothers

Jakarta Post - March 2, 2014

Jakarta – Women's ability to breastfeed is a national asset, and hence the state has a great responsibility to fully support the breastfeeding mothers' movement, a breastfeeding mothers' association says.

"It's the time for the state to fully lend a hand to ensure the success of breastfeeding initiatives in Indonesia. It is the state's responsibility to respect, protect, support and promote breastfeeding practices by offering its political will and financial support in a balanced way through empowerment programs, such as ensuring an even distribution of basic education and infrastructure and skill development," Indonesian Breastfeeding Mothers' Association (AIMI) representative Mia Sutanto said in a release made available to The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

Therefore, she said, AIMI urged the government to pay close attention to the importance of investing in babies' futures, by supporting them in a more systematic way in order to support successful breastfeeding and to provide the right atmosphere so that every mother in Indonesia can breastfeed her baby in comfort and safety.

"One of right ways to support mothers breastfeeding their babies is by paying close attention to breastfeeding mothers' nutritional intakes, giving accurate breastfeeding-related information and imposing sanctions on medical workers who violate codes of ethics," said Mia.

With such support, she said, the Indonesian government could save medical costs related to various illnesses that can be prevented by breastfeeding, strengthen the development of future generations and reduce the country's infant and maternal death rates, which remain high.

The World Health Organization recommends optimal breastfeeding as one of most effective ways to ensure children's health and fundamental development.

Data from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) shows that almost 83 million of the total of 135 million babies born every year across the world are not breastfed optimally.

In December last year, the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) Asia, as part of the World Breastfeeding Costing Initiative (WBCI), and the Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India (BPNI) jointly released results of research showing that globally, an annual investment of US$17.5 billion was needed to provide intervention packages to create conducive environments for breastfeeding. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/02/group-calls-more- support-breastfeeding-mothers.html

No progress on cigarette package warnings

Jakarta Post - March 1, 2014

Nurfika Osman, Jakarta – Four months before the implementation of a regulation requiring pictorial warnings on the dangers of smoking on cigarette packaging, efforts to comply appear to be at a standstill, a prominent health expert has said.

Widyastuti Soerojo from the University of Indonesia's School of Public Health said the slow progress only proved the government's lack of commitment to solving the country's tobacco problem.

"The deadline is approaching and yet there are no pictorial health warnings. There is no strong commitment from the government to protect its citizens," Widyastuti said on Friday. She alleged that the government could have bowed to the demands from the tobacco industry.

Widyastuti called on cigarette makers to make a start on the new packaging to not only meet the deadline but also to support the campaign on the dangers of smoking.

"We are hoping the tobacco industry understands that it has a moral obligation to provide customers information on products that they consume," she said.

It is hoped that the pictorial warning will prevent more Indonesians, especially teenagers and young adults, from becoming addicts.

Government Regulation (PP) No. 109/2012 on tobacco control, issued on Dec. 24, 2012, orders cigarette makers to use at least 40 percent of the packet – both on the front and back – for images showing diseased lungs, mouth, throat or larynx.

Under the regulation, cigarette adverts are banned from the front pages of publications and are not allowed to be next to food and beverage adverts. In addition, tobacco ads may only be aired between 9:30 p.m. and 5 a.m. on television.

Other provisions include a ban on misleading promotional terms, including "Light", "Mild", "Low tar", "Slim", "Special" and "Premium". Cigarette manufacturers were given an 18-month deadline to comply with the obligation.

Contacted separately, Deputy Health Minister Ali Ghufron Mukti said that the government continued to push and promote the regulation to cigarette makers.

Ghufron said that the ministry was now working with the Food and Drugs Monitoring Agency (BPOM) to step up the campaign to boost compliance among cigarette makers.

"This is still a transition period for cigarette makers. But once the deadline passes, we will punish them," said Ghufron. Punishments would range from administrative sanctions to product recall.

Ghufron also pledged that both the ministry and BPOM would be strict when monitoring the implementation of the new rule.

Indonesian Cigarette Manufacturers Association (GAPPRI) secretary-general Hasan Aoni said cigarette makers would comply with the new regulation. Hasan, however, acknowledged that it would be difficult for cigarette makers to include pictorial warnings by June, due to a lack of clear guidelines on how to follow the regulation.

There is conflicting information from relevant agencies, including the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI), which stated recently that images of cancerous mouths or lungs might be too grotesque for some. "We want clarification from the government so we can implement the regulation. They have to understand it is not easy to prepare the new packaging," he said.

According to the World Health Organization, Indonesia is among the top three countries worldwide with the highest number of smokers. The Health Ministry recorded 61.4 million smokers in the country by the end of 2012, with 60 percent of them being male. Smoking is said to claim 300,000 lives in Indonesia every single year.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/01/no-progress-cigarette- package-warnings.html

Graft & corruption

No link to SBY in Century case

Jakarta Post - March 7, 2014

Bagus BT Saragih and Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The first court hearing in the country's biggest corruption case has revealed no indication yet that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had any role in approving a bank bailout in 2008 that led to massive state losses.

An indictment against former Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Thursday provided no sign that the bailout funds were channeled to finance Yudhoyono's 2009 re-election bid.

Since 2010, the case has become a major political football that has forced the KPK to launch a wide-ranging investigation after politicians accused the administration of misusing the vast bailout fund of Rp 6.7 trillion (US$582 million).

The indictment, however, alleges that Budi and all of BI's then board of governors who were involved in the bailout of the small-scale bank, since then renamed Bank Mutiara, had "collectively" committed violations.

These include then BI governor, and now Vice President, Boediono, BI senior deputy governor Miranda Goeltom and BI deputy governors Siti C. Fadjrijah, Budi Rochadi, Hartadi Sarwono and Ardhayadi Mitroatmodjo, as well as deputy governor Muliaman Hadad, who is currently the chairman of the powerful Financial Services Authority (OJK).

Prosecutors have accused them of making illicit arrangements and orchestrating the eligibility of Bank Century to receive the bailout despite the fraud by its management and shareholders that had left the bank insolvent.

The KPK also found that the bank should not have been salvaged as it posed no systemic risks to the banking sector if it went under.

In response to the question as to why the indictment did not include an investigation into the money trail, KPK spokesman Johan Budi said the case would be fully unraveled.

He said that it would be possible for new facts to emerge in relation to the channeling of the bailout funds. "Court hearings will present the testimony of witnesses and evidence which may be completely new or not included in the indictment," Johan told The Jakarta Post.

Budi insisted that he would not be made a scapegoat as the alleged crimes were committed "collectively". "As you just heard, the indictment clearly states that my alleged role was a 'collective act'," he told the Post after the court hearing.

According to the indictment, the KPK alleges that Budi and "colleagues" abused their authority in channeling short-term financial assistance (FPJP) to keep Bank Century afloat. They are also charged with abuse of authority in categorizing Bank Century as a "potentially failed bank that posed a systemic threat to the banking sector".

The "systemic threat" was insisted on by BI to justify the bailout, which eventually ballooned to Rp 6.76 trillion (US$588.12 million) from the initial Rp 630 billion.

Then finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who along with Boediono approved the bailout based on the "systemic threat" grounds, later regretted her decision, according the indictment.

During a meeting on Feb. 3, 2009, three months after the bailout decision, Mulyani asked the attendees whether the decision to categorize the bank as one with a systemic threat could be reviewed. But Boediono apparently told her that the meeting should focus more on how to save Century as the decision to bail it out had been agreed upon.

KPK prosecutor KMS Roni said that Boediono would be among the witnesses to be summoned to testify in later hearings. "We adopt the principle of equality before the law. We'll summon all relevant witnesses regardless of their positions."

Boediono, in a statement released by his spokesman Yopie Hidayat, repeated that the decision to salvage the bank was a "noble" one made for the sake of preventing the country being engulfed in a financial crisis. "Don't be trapped in a 'logical leap' that all of the then BI leaders automatically became outlaws by salvaging the bank," he said.

According to the indictment, several mid-ranking BI officials opposed the classification of "systemic threat" in order to salvage the bank.

A day before the bailout decision, then BI director of the banking research and regulation directorate (DPNP) Halim Alamsyah, now BI deputy governor, presented an assessment stating that Century did not pose a systemic risk. The BI board of governors, however, disregarded Halim's assessment as they were concerned that it would hamper efforts to have the bailout approved.

The court hearing was also attended by several politicians who initiated a legislative inquiry into the case in 2010 that almost led to Yudhoyono being impeached.

Yudhoyono's Democratic Party deputy chairwoman Nurhayati Ali Assegaf called on the public not to be "blinded" by the politicizing of the case. "Political intervention must be avoided. Let the trial progress."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/07/no-link-sby-century- case.html

Century's 'systemic threat' justification crumbles

Jakarta Post - March 6, 2014

Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – Debate over the justification to bail out ailing Bank Century, now Bank Mutiara, in 2008 has taken a new turn as documents reveal elements of deception in the decision making.

A Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) document on the indictment of former Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya, a copy of which was recently obtained by The Jakarta Post, indicates how then finance minister Sri Mulyani regretted the decision to bail out the bank.

During a meeting of the Financial System Stability Committee (KSSK) on Feb. 3, 2009, or three months after the bailout decision, Mulyani asked the attendees whether the decision to categorize the bank as one with a systemic threat could be reviewed.

The question was raised after the LPS reported that the bailout had topped Rp 6.1 trillion (US$526.7 million) from the initial estimate of Rp 632 billion.

Former KSSK secretary Raden Pardede told her that there was no provision for such a request, while then BI governor Boediono, now the vice president, apparently told her that the meeting should focus more on how to save Century as the decision to bail it out had been agreed upon.

KSSK is a joint forum for the Finance Ministry, BI and other related agencies to work on preventive measures against a financial crisis.

Mulyani's regret was not her first concerning the matter. Based on the document, she previously voiced disappointment over the bailout during a KSSK meeting on Nov. 24, or three days after the bailout decision on Nov. 21.

Mulyani, currently a top executive at the World Bank, questioned BI's professional judgment and supervision capacity as Century's capital adequacy ration (CAR) had plunged to minus 35.9 percent, and that more bailout funds were apparently needed. Boediono told Mulyani that she had already made her decision, and it would be a mistake to rescind it.

"I expressed my disappointment at BI when they told us that the bank's CAR was just minus 3.5 percent and it would only need Rp 632 billion," said Mulyani, according to a document on her questioning.

"When the KSSK made the decision to categorize the bank as one that posed a systemic threat, the data that we received to support it should have been based on fact."

"I was concerned that the data supplied by BI for the KSSK during the Nov. 20 and 21 meeting was incorrect," she said during her questioning on May 1, 2013.

When asked by the KPK whether invalid BI data had caused the ballooning bailout cost, Mulyani briefly said: "Yes, that would have surely [affected the cost]."

The decision to bail out Bank Century was based on BI's conclusion that if the bank was not salvaged, its insolvency could trigger a systemic collapse in the banking sector.

A collapse would have caused panic and led to a run on banks, such as during the 1998 financial crisis. But according to the KPK indictment document, such a conclusion was unfounded.

The BI board of governors, however, disregarded Halim's assessment and decided not to present it at the upcoming KSSK meeting to decide on whether to bail out Century.

According to the document, the board was concerned that the assessment would hamper its effort to get the KSSK to agree to the bailout. The board insisted that Century posed a systemic risk, and requested BI's banking supervision directorate one to word its analysis to support its stance, according to the document.

During the KSSK meeting on Nov. 20, then Deposit Insurance Corporation (LPS) chief commissioner Rudjito along with chairman of the Capital Market Supervisory Agency (Bapepam) Fuad Rahmany, then Fiscal Policy Agency chief Anggito Abimanyu and Bank Mandiri president director Agus Martowardojo tried to convince the meeting attendees that a bailout was unnecessary as the bank did not in any way pose a systemic threat.

According to the document, during questioning on Nov. 26, 2013, Boediono said the decision to categorize the bank a systemic risk was based on "brainstorming" during the KSSK meeting.

"The decision was made in all sincerity and we finally decided that a systemic threat posed a greater risk than shutting down the bank. That's why we decided to avoid such a risk," said Boediono, who had served as BI governor for less than six months prior to the bailout.

The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) announced late last year that the state had lost more than Rp 7 trillion in the bailout, Rp 6.7 trillion of which was in the form of a direct bailout while an additional Rp 689 billion was in form of BI short-term assistance (FPJP).

The first court hearing on the Century case is slated to be held on Thursday, with Budi Mulya as the first defendant.

According to the indictment document, the alleged crime was committed "collectively" by Boediono, then BI senior deputy governor Miranda Goeltom and then BI deputy governors Siti C. Fadjrijah, Budi Rochadi, Muliaman Hadad, Hartadi Sarwono and Ardhayadi Mitroatmodjo.

The KPK deemed that there were sinister motives at play in trying to keep the bank afloat through the bailout. The KPK alleges that Budi accepted Rp 1 billion from Century shareholder Robert Tantular in August 2008, about four months before the bailout decision.

BI foundation YKK [Employees Welfare Foundation - JB] had Rp 83 billion deposited in Bank Century. If the bank had collapsed, YKK would have lost all its money as the government's guarantee program only covered deposits of less than Rp 2 billion. The interest of the members of board of governors in YKK was evident as they had received mortgages under the Baperum Multi Griya plan.

According to the KPK document, there was also a need to rescue Rp 2 trillion deposited by businessman Boedi Sampoerna.

The snowball effect

KPK indictment on the state losses in the channeling of short-term assistance (FPJP) worth Rp 689 billion (US$59.5 million).

Aug. 11, 2008: Bank Century shareholder Robert Tantular allegedly gives Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya a check worth Rp 1 billion at his office in BI headquarters in Jakarta.

Oct. 29: Due to financial problems, Bank Century requests liquidity assistance worth Rp 1 trillion from BI.

Oct. 30: BI official Zaenal Arifin from the banking supervision directorate one declines the request, saying the bank cannot meet the necessary requirements to receive such a facility. After hearing the rejection, BI senior deputy governor Miranda Goeltom summons Zaenal and colleague Heru Kristiyana, and questions their judgment.

Oct. 31: Deputy governor Siti C. Fadjrijah sends a memo to Zaenal saying: "In line with the message from BI governor [Boediono], Bank Century is required to be assisted and there should be no banks left to fail during this time as it will exacerbate the condition of our banking sector and the economy."

Nov. 6: The bank is under special surveillance from BI as its financial health deteriorates.

Nov. 13: The first meeting of the Financial System Stability Committee (KSSK), a joint forum between the Finance Ministry, BI, Deposit Insurance Corporation (LPS) and other related institutions. After the meeting, BI board of governors requests that BI's banking research and regulation directorate (DPNP) prepare an analysis that should lead to the conclusion that Bank Century will pose a systemic threat to the banking sector if left insolvent.

Nov. 14: BI issues a regulation that eases barriers and requirements for Bank Century to receive the FPJP.

However, the bank still cannot meet the requirements, as it cannot provide legitimate documents on its assets and its capital adequacy ratio (CAR) is negative. To obtain the FPJP, the bank's CAR is required to be within positive territory. Budi and others then allegedly use the bank's CAR statement from Sept. 30, which is positive, instead of an updated version that is negative. The bank's collateral is also below the 150 percent FPJP ceiling. The channeling of the FPJP is also made before the end of the day's clearing (in order for the bank's books to look good). BI's internal supervision directorate finds violations in the channeling of the facility after it verifies the process.

KPK indictment on categorizing Century as a bank worthy of being classified as a failed bank with a systemic risk. This is the justification to approve the bank's bailout that eventually swells more than tenfold from Rp 630 billion to Rp 6.76 trillion.

Nov. 16: The board of governors meets with finance minister Sri Mulyani and executives from the LPS. LPS estimates it could cost as much as Rp 15 trillion and as little as Rp 1.2 trillion to salvage Century. LPS believes it will be cheaper to shut down Century, at only Rp 195 billion. Boediono tells LPS that it underestimates the cost as its calculations are based entirely on the micro side.

Nov. 19: In a meeting of the KSSK, Halim Alamsyah of BI's DPNP presents his team's assessment on whether Century will pose a systemic threat. He fails to finish his presentation, and the KSSK does not reach a decision.

Nov. 20: The board of governors convenes at 11 a.m. The meeting requests that the DPNP provide an assessment that supports the justification of determining Century worthy of being categorized as a failed bank with a systemic risk. At 8 p.m., the board receives information that the bank's CAR turns negative. Deputy governors Budi Rochadi and Siti discuss concerns over funds owned by BI's Employee Welfare Foundation (YKK-BI) that are deposited in the bank and will be wiped out should the bank not be salvaged. Halim of the DPNP then presents findings with a conclusion the bank will not pose a systemic threat. The board annuls Halim's conclusions and decides not to have them presented in the upcoming KSSK meeting about determining a bailout plan. The board is concerned that the conclusion will hamper its efforts to get the KSSK to agree on bailing out the bank. The board insists that the bank will pose a systemic risk, and requests that the banking supervision directorate 1 condition its analysis to support the board's stance.

The directorate submits its proposal to the KSSK, citing that the bailout will cost Rp 1.77 trillion. But, prior to the KSSK meeting that day, KSSK secretary Raden Pardede tells Pahla Santoso of the directorate to lower the cost to Rp 632 billion in order for it to be approved by the finance minister. If the cost is huge, there is a possibility that the bailout option will be rejected.

LPS chief commissioner Rudjito, along with Capital Market Supervisory Agency (Bapepam) chairman Fuad Rahmany, Fiscal Agency chief Anggito Abimanyu and Bank Mandiri president director Agus Martowardojo, tells the KSSK audience that bailout is unnecessary as the bank will not pose a systemic threat if shut.

Nov. 21: At 4:30 a.m. Mulyani and BI governor Boediono, accompanied only by Raden and legal consultant Arief Surjowidjojo, meet in a separate room to reach a decision. At 5:30 a.m. they announce to the KSSK audience that Bank Century will pose a systemic threat, and request that the LPS take over the bank.

Nov. 24: During a KSSK meeting, Mulyani questions BI's professional judgment and supervision as the bank's CAR plunges to minus 35.9 percent, and says that a bigger bailout is needed. Boediono tells Mulyani that the government has already made the decision on the bailout and it will be a blunder if it changes its policy. Feb. 3, 2009: During a KSSK meeting, the LPS reports that the bailout for Century has already topped Rp 6.1 trillion in order to keep Century's CAR above 10 percent. Upon receiving the report, Mulyani asks the KSSK audience whether the decision to categorize the bank as having a systemic threat can be reviewed. Raden says such a request is not yet regulated. Boediono tells the audience that the meeting should focus more on how to save Century, as decided in the previous KSSK meeting.

[Source: KPK's indictment document against Budi Mulya.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/06/century-s-systemic- threat-justification-crumbles.html

No politics in Century trial: KPK

Jakarta Post - March 6, 2014

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – In what appears to be the court proceedings of the country's biggest corruption case, former Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya is being indicted on Thursday for allegedly misusing his authority in the bailout of Bank Century in 2008, which has apparently resulted in major state losses.

The trial, less than 34 days prior to the legislative election, will examine how the defendant and others decided on a bailout that eventually swelled tenfold, to Rp 6.76 trillion (US$583.6 million) from Rp 630 billion.

Aside from the scale of the state losses, estimated by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) to be to the tune of Rp 7.4 trillion, the case may also implicate high-profile luminaries such as Vice President Boediono, who was the BI governor during the bailout, and chairman of the powerful Financial Services Authority (OJK) Muliaman Hadad, who was BI deputy governor at the time.

The proceedings will also help to uncover claims voiced by politicians alleging that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's inner-circle misused the bailout to finance his 2009 reelection bid.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) said on Wednesday that the trial, slated to be held at the Jakarta Corruption Court, was not in any way politically motivated or engineered to sideline certain parties ahead of the election on April 9.

"Allegations that this is engineered are irrelevant. We don't care about the election; our job is to enforce the law," said KPK spokesman Johan Budi. "We have been investigating the case for a long [time]. Thus, it has nothing to do with elections."

A KPK document on Budi's indictment, a copy of which was recently obtained by The Jakarta Post, reveals that Budi will be charged with violating articles 2 and 3 of Law No. 20/2001 on corruption in conjunction with articles 55 and 64 of the Criminal Code on collective crime and continuous crime, respectively.

The KPK also cited Article 2 of Law No. 20/2001 that regulates self- enrichment and Article 3 of Law No. 20/2001, which regulates self- enrichment and corporation.

The indictment also alleges that Budi accepted Rp 1 billion from Bank Century shareholder Robert Tantular in August 2008, around four months before the bailout decision. If found guilty, Budi will face a maximum of 20 years in prison.

According to the KPK indictment, Budi's alleged crime was committed "collectively" by Boediono, BI senior deputy governor Miranda Goeltom and BI deputy governors Siti C. Fadjrijah, Budi Rochadi, Muliaman Hadad, Hartadi Sarwono and Ardhayadi Mitroatmodjo.

The KPK, according to the document, alleges that Budi and his "colleagues" abused their authority in channeling short-term assistance (FPJP) to keep Bank Century, now Bank Mutiara, afloat.

They are also alleged to have abused their authority in categorizing Bank Century as a potentially failed bank that posed a systemic threat to the banking sector.

Apart from Budi, no others have been declared suspects by the KPK. However, the commission usually defers prosecuting others until the court hands down its verdict on the first suspect.

"It's a political case from the very beginning, as it involves the House of Representatives [in pushing for a special investigation]," said political analyst Heri Budianto of the Political Communication (Polcomm) Institute.

"It will be interesting to see how Yudhoyono handles [the situation], as it involves his vice president. Will he tell Boediono to resign to focus on his case, as he told Anas Urbaningrum to resign?" he said. Anas is a former Democratic Party chairman who was told to resign last year due to an alleged graft case.

"The decision by the KPK to slap collective crime articles on Budi and his colleagues should be very much appreciated. The naming of Boediono in the collective indictment has serious political consequences," said Muhammad Misbakhun, one of the initiators of the legislative inquiry into the Bank Century controversy.

"Materially, Boediono has been indicted although, formally, he has not yet been declared a suspect," he said. Boediono has repeatedly denied any wrongdoings in his decision to bail out the bank.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/06/no-politics-century- trial-kpk.html

Charges for VP, OJK chief loom

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Rendi A. Witular and Haeril Halim, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has concluded that malfeasance allegedly committed by former Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya in the decision to bail out ailing Bank Century in 2008 also seemingly involved the then BI board of governors.

A KPK document on Budi's indictment, a copy of which was recently obtained by The Jakarta Post, reveals that Budi and his "colleagues" allegedly misused their authority and caused state losses.

According to the indictment, slated to be read out at Budi's first court hearing on Thursday, the alleged crime was committed "collectively" by then BI governor Boediono, now the vice president, BI senior deputy governor Miranda Goeltom and BI deputy governors Siti C. Fadjrijah, Budi Rochadi, Muliaman Hadad, Hartadi Sarwono and Ardhayadi Mitroatmodjo.

Muliaman is currently the chairman of the powerful Financial Service Authority (OJK). Miranda, Hartadi and Ardhayadi retired from their posts several years ago, while Budi Rochadi died on duty while visiting New York in July 2011. Siti had a stroke and is incapacitated.

"That is not the case. We should just hear [court proceedings]," said Muliaman on Tuesday when asked for his comment by the Post.

Other alleged accomplices in the case, according to the document, included former Bank Century shareholder Robert Tantular and president director Hermanus Muslim, and economist Raden Pardede, who was the then secretary of the Financial System Stability Committee (KSSK).

Apart from Budi Mulya, none have been declared suspects by the KPK. However, the agency usually defers prosecuting others until the court hands down a verdict on the first suspect.

KPK spokesman Johan Budi refused to comment on the matter. However, he confirmed that the KPK had slapped "collective" charges on Budi and others, such as Siti Fadjrijah. "Until now, Budi is the only suspect. Siti will also be prosecuted, but her health has prevented us from questioning her," Johan told the Post.

The KPK, according to the document, has charged Budi and "colleagues" with abusing their authority in channeling short-term financial assistance (FPJP) to keep Bank Century, now Bank Mutiara, afloat.

They are also charged with abuse of authority in categorizing Bank Century as a potentially failed bank that posed a systemic threat to the banking sector.

The indictment also alleges that Budi accepted Rp 1 billion (US$87,000) from Robert Tantular in August 2008, around four months before the bailout decision.

Budi's prosecution and court hearing, less than 35 days prior to the legislative election, is the first in the attempt to uncover allegations that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's inner-circle profited from the bank's bailout.

Politicians have accused the administration of misusing the bailout, worth a whopping Rp 6.7 trillion ($582 million), to finance Yudhoyono's 2009 re- election bid. The issue has since created a firestorm of political controversy, dogging the Yudhoyono administration with threats of impeachment by members of his ruling coalition.

In response to the document on the indictment, Budi's lawyer, Luhut Pangaribuan, denied that there would be a stipulation on a "collective decision". "Pak Budi is not in a position to talk about it. He will explain to the court the decision behind the FPJP channeling and in determining the bank worthy to be categorized as a failed bank with a systemic risk."

Under Law No. 3/2004 on the central bank, decisions made by the board of governors are made collectively, meaning that all members are required to bear the same responsibility for any decision made.

A case against Boediono and others for the alleged "collective" crime is not without precedent. In 2009, the Supreme Court found former BI governor Burhanuddin Abdullah guilty and sentenced him to three years in prison for the misuse of Rp 100 billion in BI funds in 2004.

Burhanuddin had not been proven to have personally benefited from the misappropriation but was found guilty because he, along with the BI deputy governors, had approved the illegal fund disbursement.

Gadjah Mada University's Corruption Study Center (PUKAT) director Zainal Arifin Mochtar said the decision by the KPK to charge Budi with "collective" crimes would paved the way to charge other individuals. "There's already a construction that this case will involve many more. Budi is just the entry point."

Interest at play in the bailout decision (based on indictment document)

1. BI foundation YKK [Employees Welfare Foundation - JB] had Rp 83 billion deposited in Bank Century. If the bank collapsed, YKK would have lost all its money as the government's guarantee program only covered deposits of less than Rp 2 billion.

2. Interests of the board of governors in YKK was evident as they received mortgages under the Baperum Multi Guna scheme.

3. The need to rescue Rp 2 trillion deposited by businessman Boedi Sampoerna.

[Tassia Sipahutar and Hans David Tampubolon also contribute to the story.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/charges-vp-ojk-chief-loom.html

KPK denies shielding Mahfud from Akil fallout

Jakarta Globe - March 1, 2014

SP/Novianti Setuningsih, Jakarta – The national antigraft body has denied that it deliberately neglected to name a potential presidential candidate in its indictment of Akil Mochtar, the disgraced former chief justice of the Constitutional Court currently standing trial for bribery and money- laundering.

Johan Budi, a spokesman for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), said in Jakarta on Friday that Akil had no reason for filing a formal note of protest at the omission of any mention of Mahfud M.D., the previous chief justice and a favorite potential candidate for either president or vice president in July's election.

"We didn't omit" Mahfud's name from the indictment, Johan said. "The indictment was against Akil, so obviously it centers on Akil."

He added it was understandable that Akil would try to resort to any available means to fight the charges against him, which if proved could land the country's former top judge behind bars for up to 20 years.

"But it will be up to the judges in the end to determine whether the KPK's indictment can be proven or whether Akil has defended himself sufficiently," Johan said of the case. "Let's all respect the due process of the law."

He emphasized that even before indicting Akil last week, KPK investigators had already questioned Mahfud as a witness into the conduct of his then- subordinate at the Constitutional Court.

Akil, who was arrested last October in a bribery sting and now stands accused of taking kickbacks to rig the outcome of 11 disputed regional elections, claims that it was Mahfud and not him who presided over the hearing of one of those cases, the Banten gubernatorial election in 2011.

In his note of protest filed with the Jakarta Anti-Corruption Court, he said: "I find it very strange that I have been implicated in the Banten case and the prosecutors have failed to name the presiding justice in that dispute, one Mahfud M.D. What could this possibly mean?"

In responding to his indictment on Feb. 21, Akil said the omission of any mention of Mahfud made the case against himself "nonsense."

Akil is accused of taking Rp 7.5 billion ($639,000) in bribes from Tubagus "Wawan" Chaeri Wardana, the younger brother of Banten Governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah, to ensure that she won re-election in 2011.

Both Tubagus and Ratu Atut have been charged with bribery in connection with another disputed election result, this one in Banten's Lebak district last year, for which Akil has also been charged.

Mahfud, for his part, has strenuously denied any involvement in the alleged bribery, and has lashed out at Akil for suggesting otherwise.

"He complains that I should be investigated for a bribe that he took? Of course not, because he's the one that took the money while I was hearing the case," he said on Tuesday.

"The KPK won't call me in [as a suspect] because all I did was preside over the hearing [into the election dispute]. What's clear is that Akil was corrupt and I wasn't."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/kpk-denies-shielding-mahfud- from-akil-fallout/

Islam & religious affairs

Government agrees to set up agency for haj fund

Jakarta Post - March 4, 2014

Jakarta – The government has agreed to a proposal on the establishment of an agency tasked with managing the haj fund independently from the Religious Affairs Ministry in order to give pilgrims more benefits and improve transparency.

The haj fund, which is collected from would-be pilgrims, amounted to Rp 64 trillion (US$5.52 billion) as of December 2013 and is currently managed directly by the Religious Affairs Ministry.

The ministry has been under fire for the lack of transparency in managing the fund, especially after some of its officials were implicated in embezzlement.

The establishment of the agency would be one of provisions in the current haj bill, which was tabled to amend Law No. 13/2008 on haj management and is currently being deliberated at the House of Representatives.

Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had instructed the ministry to seriously discuss the haj bill, including the establishment of the new agency, with House Commission VIII overseeing religious affairs.

"The government proposes that the agency be separated from the ministry's directorate general for haj and minor haj management," Suryadharma said in a hearing on Monday with Commission VIII.

In 2012, Suryadharma balked at a proposal to establish a special agency to manage the haj fund separately from the ministry.

During Monday's hearing, Suryadharma said he would respond to public demand that extra benefits be given to haj pilgrims. Currently, the haj fund is managed conservatively by the ministry, which invests the money in bank deposits and Islamic bonds.

Suryadharma said it had been proposed that fund be invested so that pilgrims could get more benefits, similar to that done by Tabung Haji, a Malaysian state haj fund agency, which invests haj funds in various sharia products. "Malaysia can invest its haj funds freely because it has a law to sanction the practice," he said.

Earlier, Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) supported the establishment of a special agency to manage haj funds independently from the Religious Affairs Ministry to boost transparency.

Anggito Abimanyu, director general for the haj and minor haj at the ministry, acknowledged that the management of haj funds by a public service agency would be conducted in a professional, accountable, transparent and trustworthy manner.

Last year, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) announced that it had launched an investigation into alleged irregularities in the ministry's management of haj funds from 2012 to 2013.

Extensive irregularities were found by the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) in January 2013, amounting to Rp 230 billion in 2004-2012.

Anggito said the ministry had made improvements in the management of fund. He said the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) had audited the ministry and found no irregularities in its reports. (gda)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/04/government-agrees-set-agency-haj-fund.html

Minister asks MUI to give up halal label

Jakarta Post - March 4, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali persuaded the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to hand over the authority on halal certification to the government, promising that the organization would not be required to provide accountability reports on proceeds it received from the halal-certification fees.

Suryadharma assured the MUI on Monday that the fees it collected from the issuance of halal certificates were perfectly legal as the proceeds had been used to pay operational costs. However, he encouraged the MUI to let the government handle the responsibility for the greater good.

"The MUI has handled the halal certification process using its own funds. So, I personally don't see a problem with the organization keeping the proceeds. It is not an issue," Suryadharma said on the sidelines of a meeting with the House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing religious and social affairs on Monday.

Suryadharma, also chairman of the Islamic-based United Development Party (PPP), said that forcing the MUI to disclose its records regarding halal certification would be equal to demanding financial accountability of a privately run hospital when acquired by the Health Ministry.

"Why would a privately run hospital hand over its financial records to the ministry? There's no need to do so," he said, adding that "it [MUI] would be audited only if it later became our partner in issuing the [halal] certificates".

Suryadharma statement comes as Commission VIII lawmakers decides whether to audit MUI's halal certification program. MUI chairman Amidhan Shaberah previously said the council charged up to Rp 5 million (US$431) for a halal certificate for a product, which was only valid for two years.

According to Amidhan, the fees were exclusively for the certificates, while a company may need to cover additional fees, including accommodation and transportation, when a team from the MUI needs to carry out tests outside Jakarta.

Several lawmakers from Commission VIII, which has been tasked with deliberating the halal certification bill, have called for an audit on MUI's financial reports on the halal-certification fees, suspecting that the outfit had amassed a substantial amount of revenue from the process.

Other lawmakers have rejected the proposal, citing MUI's status as a privately run religious organization. Lawmaker Hasrul Azwar of the PPP argued that if the government oversaw the halal certification process it would control the amount the MUI could charge applicants while the proceeds could be kept as additional income for the state.

Ledia Hanifa from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), who chairs a working committee for the deliberation of the halal certification bill, said that unless the government and the House succeeded in resolving the debate, the deliberation of the bill would remain at a stalemate, as it had been since 2006.

Ledia also said that there were other contentious issues in the deliberation of the bill. "Bear in mind that the discussion involves many other important issues including the protection of small businesses."

In the current draft bill, halal certificates and labels would be required for three sectors; cosmetics, pharmaceuticals as well as food and beverages. It would also cover the ingredients and equipment used to make the products.

Each of the nine party factions at the House are expected to present their positions on the matter on Tuesday.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/04/minister-asks-mui- give-halal-label.html

Religious affairs minister wants right to issue halal certification

Jakarta Globe - March 3, 2014

Markus Junianto Sihalolo, Jakarta – The Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) are engaged in a tug-of-war over the right to issue Halal certificates and to reap the potential economic benefits of the Islamic certification process.

The MUI, the nation's highest Islamic oversight body, has handled the issuance of Halal certificates for decades – charging companies as much as Rp 5 million ($430) for the seal. But in Muslim-majority Indonesia, which entity should lay claim to the revenue from such certifications has become a hotly debated issue. The MUI wants to continue issuing the certificates, but is facing strong headwinds from the central government.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs has broached the subject during discussions on the long-deliberated Halal Product Security Bill. Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali wants the ministry to handle the certification, arguing that keeping the right exclusively in the hands of the MUI could breed jealousy among other Islamic organizations. Recent allegations that MUI auditors extorted tens of thousands of dollars from Australian companies has compounded the issue.

"The government as the prosecutor of regulations should be the one doing the process," Suryadharma said. "The MUI is merely a civil organization. If we let the MUI become the executor, there might be jealousy from other organizations like Muhammadiyah and Nadhlatul Ulama."

The central government should be the sole arbiter and reap the attendant benefits, the minister said. "If it is managed by the government, [the funds] will become non-fiscal state income," he said.

MUI deputy chairman Ma'ruf Amin said that the MUI was an umbrella group and therefore should not be compared on equal footing to other prominent Muslim organizations.

"The MUI is not a civil organization. It isn't the same as NU, Muhammadiyah and other [Islamic groups]," he told the Jakarta Globe on Monday. "MUI is a union of a sort, representing a number of civil organizations."

He questioned why the issue was coming up now, when the MUI had overseen the process for 25 years. He declined to say how much the organization earned from certification issuance, but emphasized that it was not a for- profit enterprise. "The MUI isn't targeting revenues, we only want to protect Muslims [from non-halal products]," he said.

He said that the MUI should handle assessment, the government should handle enforcement and that certification should be mandatory. "What's the use of [deliberating] the law if [halal certification] will remain voluntary?" he asked.

Animals must be slaughtered and products must be prepared according to the specific prescriptions of Islamic jurisprudence, as determined by clergy, if they are to be considered lawful for observant Muslims to consume. Currently food and clothing companies that sell in Indonesia can apply for Halal certification. The decision whether or not to seek the certification is voluntary, but the MUI – with the backing of some Islamic political parties – is working to change that. The controversial move would effectively push products containing pork onto the black market as supermarket shelves become Halal-only affairs.

The ministry has argued against this change, explaining that the measure should remain voluntary in a country where six major religions are protected by the constitution.

"The MUI wants the label to be mandatory, while the government wants it to be voluntary," Suryadharma said. "Why? Because if a small business can't have it yet, it could become legal trouble for them. Micro-businesses might have to stop their activities and the economy will suffer. We can't let the regulation disturb the economy."

The bill has been stalled for years in the House of Representatives, where several controversial clauses have been the focus of intense debate. It was almost passed in 2012, but renewed arguments pushed it onto the back burner as the ministry continued to seek to wrest control from the MUI.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/indonesia-religious-affairs- minister-wants-right-to-issue-halal-certification/

Jakarta & urban life

Battle for Jakarta's sidewalks rages on

Jakarta Globe - March 6, 2014

Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – From the homeless to street vendors trying to eke out a living, Jakarta's pedestrians have long learned to share their sidewalks, and with the increasing number of vehicles coming into the city, it may take a while before they will finally be able to stroll along the streets unimpeded.

The number of vehicles in Jakarta and its satellite cities continues to grow every year, with the number reaching more than 16 million in 2013, according to data by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS). That compares with the previous year's number of 14.6 million.

The number of vehicles in the city has been predicted to rise by 9.8 percent this year, according to the vehicle registration and identification unit of the Jakarta Police.

The figures are remarkable when compared with the rate at which Jakarta's road network expands – at just 0.9 percent – leading many to predict complete gridlock in the city as soon as this year.

The increasing number of the vehicles in the city also affects the peace and comfort of pedestrians, who are already burdened by the mushrooming number of street vendors, in addition to improper sidewalk infrastructure.

Ahmad Safrudin, head of the Jakarta Pedestrian Coalition, told Jakarta Globe that compared with the estimated 7,200 kilometers of roads in the capital, there are only 400 kilometers of sidewalks.

Ahmad said the city administration should be gearing up in anticipation of the growing number of vehicles in the city by providing a well-managed and integrated transportation system in the greater Jakarta area (Jabodetabek) to provide optimal services to residents.

"Transportation should also be integrated with the sidewalks. They should be complimentary," he said. "With the increasing number of vehicles, facilities such as pedestrian bridges, sidewalks, bicycle pathways, and trees should have also been increased. At the moment, the government does not give enough attention to this matter, but now is the time to plan ahead properly. If there are 7,200 kilometers of road, and there should also be 7,200 kilometers of sidewalks."

Slow growth of road construction

Azas Tigor Nainggolan, chairman of the Jakarta Citizens Forum (Fakta) said the increasing number of vehicles in the city has no relation with the slow growth of the road network in the capital. "The lack of infrastructure cannot be the reason motorists and parking attendants misuse the sidewalks. That is not the reason," he said.

Azas added that the increasing number of vehicles in Jakarta and its surrounding areas was a direct result of the failure by the provincial government to provide proper transportation services, which are affordable and convenient for residents to utilize. "The government's transportation department is simply not good enough," he said.

Azas said inadequate law enforcement by officials should also be monitored. "The wild parking attendants is a phenomenon as a result of the inconsistent law enforcement by officials. This causes the pedestrians to lost their walking rights," he said. "As a result of the government's poor performance, pedestrians become victims. They have a daily fight for the right to walk along the streets."

Motorists and motorcyclists along Jalan Setiabudi said they fully understand that sidewalks are essentially for pedestrians only. But most of them admitted that they often use the sidewalks if they want to go to a convenience store or to save time, as parking in designated areas would take too much time.

Some even claim it was simply a habit. All those interviewed told the Globe that they have never been fined for parking on sidewalks.

Danang Parikesit of the Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI) said the misuse of the sidewalks in Jakarta is as a result of poor government policies, which still fail to prioritize pedestrians.

"The United Kingdom has a street hierarchy where pedestrians are the main road users. So, when vehicle drivers break that rule, it is considered a serious violation," he said. "In Indonesia, on the other hand, we see the opposite. The government barely has a program to build housing complexes near office buildings. If people worked near their homes, it would change their transport patterns."

However, Danang said Indonesia is 20 years behind in providing comfortable public transportation and well-managed facilities that are better integrated.

"We don't have decent transportation systems. How can we expect to improve it by building more roads to support existing roads. If we have a good public transport system, then we can see whether the road capacity is adequate," he said. "Basically we also need more open green areas in Jakarta. If there are more roads, the quality of life would likely wane."

To him, pedestrians have fallen victim to the lack of proper policies and of poor law-enforcement efforts in the city.

He cited the lack of strict action taken against traffic violators such motorcyclists that make a habit of driving along sidewalks. "Jokowi rules that those who jaywalk will be fined Rp 500,000 [$40]. But why isn't this regulation applied to the motorists who misuse the sidewalks?" he asked, referring the Jakarta governor by his popular nickname. "We should not forget that pedestrians are also road users. I strongly support the enforcement of their right to use sidewalks unimpeded."

An on-duty police official in Tanah Abang, who refused to be identified, told the Globe that the police prioritize their efforts to keep the traffic flowing.

"Who says that we have never fined motorcyclists that drive along sidewalks? If there is a violator in front us, we will immediately act against them," the police officer said. "However, with the current state of the traffic situation in the capital, the number of personnel is limited and they cannot provide a 24-hour stand-by officer at every street corner."

The officer said he has participated in many public-order activities, but such programs proved ineffective, because after traffic offenders are fined or even jailed for up to 10 days, many would return to their old habits.

"What we really need is the society's awareness to create better public order. Society and officials should cooperate to achieve that goal. Honestly, we cannot work alone to ensure all of this," he said.

Sidewalks as business areas

Yayat Supriatna, an urban planning expert from Trisakti University, said the massive number of vehicles that use Jakarta's roads every day play a significant role in making sidewalks in the capital dysfunctional.

"The road capacity in Jakarta is not sufficient to accommodate the high number of vehicles that spill into the street every day, while the number of vehicles are also continuously increasing," he said. "In addition, the footpaths in Jakarta are deserted due to the lack of decent public transportation. Seeing that chance, motorists tend to use the sidewalks because 'nobody's using it.'?"

He agreed that the police's inconsistent enforcement of the law played a major role in motivating motorists to encroach on sidewalks.

Aside from the number of vehicles, he said illegal parking areas also reduced walking spaces. "Surprisingly, the divers are generally fine with paying these thugs while in fact we are not supposed to pay because it is basically illegal," he said.

But Abdillah and Marno in Tanah Abang Blok E area said both of them have been working as parking attendants for three years now. "Each of us makes between Rp 100,000 and Rp 150,000 per day. The income has to be shared with the building owner. We call them "Kantor" [office]," Marno said.

Abdillah added that they are not illegal since they are working inside the area of the shopping building. "We are officially working here. We have permission from the building management," he said.

Marno added that it was parking attendants working outside of their area that are illegal, often catering to motorcycles parking on the sidewalks. Yayat says the only way to prevent parking on sidewalks is by controlling the motorists and acting against illegal parking.

On Tuesday 30 officers of the East Jakarta traffic authorities conducted a raid to clamp down on an illegal parking lot in Jatinegara, East Jakarta, by deflating the tires of 15 motorcycles parked on the sidewalks.

Budi Subiantoro, head of East Jakarta's Monitoring and Controlling Department, said the raid was aimed at ensuring the free flow of traffic around Jalan Jatinegara and its surrounding areas.

But Yayat said the act of deflating tires was not the desired solution to discipline those parking illegally. "The action is not and could not really be effective," Yayat criticized. "It is more important to create awareness among drivers of the importance of sidewalks so that they are informed about pedestrians' rights," he said.

Yayat continued by saying that it seems difficult to enforce the law. The officials, he said, are not firm enough in pursuing and prosecuting those that commit traffic and parking violations. As a result, pedestrians become victims.

"Why it is so hard to fight for pedestrian rights? Why are they not protected? It might be because pedestrians do not pay vehicle tax, but vehicles owners do," he said.

Commenting on the slow growth of the road network, Yayat said the duty of the government was now mixed with business interests.

"There are national, provincial, and regional roads, but it seems the government would prefer to build toll roads so it can partner with the private sector," he said. "In my opinion, despite the income from roads and road users, we have to pay more attention to pedestrian rights. We have to realize and maintain those rights. They deserve sidewalks to use in comfort, and safety."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/jakarta/battle-for-jakartas- sidewalks-rages-on/

KPK honors Joko's graftbusting efforts in Jakarta

Jakarta Globe - March 5, 2014

Deti Mega Purnama & Lenny Tristia Tambun, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has announced the city of Jakarta and Governor Joko Widodo as the most progressive province and leader in eradicating corruption in the country.

"The KPK award recognizes the Jakarta administration as the government that reported the most graft cases," commission chairman Abraham Samad said on Tuesday while handing the award to Joko. "Especially for the governor, we really appreciate everything he is doing to help us in our work. We want Jakarta to lead the way in our fight against graft so other provinces can follow the lead."

He did not disclose how many suspected graft cases had been reported by the Jakarta administration, but said it was a "high number" and illustrated the Jakarta administration's commitment to tackling the scourge of corruption.

He added the administration had implemented major bureaucracy reforms, especially for public service posts. "If there is something that can serve as an example for other provinces, it's the initiative to improve public services through open recruitment," Abraham said.

He said there should be a commitment to redefine graft as a very serious crime. "Outside Indonesia it is considered an extraordinary crime, but here in our country it has been perceived as a common thing," he said. "In other countries, public officials found to have benefited through illegal means would not only be prosecuted, but they would have to step down from their post as well."

Joko and his deputy, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, have long declared a war against corruption in Jakarta. Most recently, they promised full accountability in the case of suspected markups for faulty buses procured from China for the TransJakarta line and a supporting network.

The pledge to root out any city officials implicated in the scandal has been widely lauded, given how rampant corruption in public procurement processes – for which the government has allocated more than Rp 400 trillion this year alone – has become, making it the biggest potential sources of corruption.

Joko vowed to bring all corrupt officials to justice, emphasizing the need for stricter monitoring, management control and field inspections as City Hall embarks on a number of high-value projects.

A recent Indonesia Corruption Watch report showed that up to 98.12 percent of the 267 corruption cases reported in the second quarter of 2013 were in regional government institutions, mostly in North Sumatra and East Java. Last year, 35 regional chiefs were arrested in graft scandals.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/jakarta/kpk-honors-jokos- graftbusting-efforts-in-jakarta/

Armed forces & defense

Kontras wants soldiers tried in civilian courts

Jakarta Post - March 7, 2014

Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) has demanded that two soldiers implicated in the murder of a family of four in North Sumatra be tried in a civilian court to ensure transparency.

Kontras civil and political rights division head Putri Kanesia said on Wednesday that the soldiers, identified as chief Pvt. Puji and chief Pvt. Samsunardi Saragih from the Army's Medium Air Defense Artillery Battalion (Arhanudse) in Binjai, may not face murder charges.

"Alamsyah and Rendi, two civilians who allegedly also committed the murder, will be charged under articles 340 and 338 of the Criminal Code [KUHP] on premeditated murder. But military prosecutors are planning to charge the soldiers with receiving stolen goods," she said in a press conference in Jakarta.

It is alleged that Alamsyah conspired with Rendi and the soldiers to murder a 46-year-old farmer, Misnan, his wife, Suliah, 46, and two children – Dedek, 21, and Tria, 14 – at a plantation in Langkat, North Sumatra on Oct. 9, 2013.

Alamsyah allegedly promised the soldiers Rp 100 million (US$8,600) if they took part in the murder. "It appears there was a debt problem between the suspect [Alamsyah] and the victim. However, the victim's family had no idea about it," Putri said.

In the evening, Alamsyah invited Misnan's family to perform some rituals in the Tanjung Keliling plantation area, also known as Bukit Setan, to obtain a sacred kris (dagger) worth hundreds of millions of rupiah.

Lured by the fake offer, the family came to the meeting spot and drank beverages mixed with pesticides by Alamsyah. After losing consciousness, the family was beaten and stabbed to death by Alamsyah and his accomplices. Their remains were placed at two spots in Batang subdistrict, Langkat.

Alamsyah and Rendi, who will soon stand trial, face the death sentence under two counts of premeditated murder.

The military prosecutors, tasked with handling the case, said they had not found strong indications that the soldiers had committed the murder, despite evidence presented to them by the police. So far, the soldiers will only be indicted for keeping a motorcycle stolen from Misnan after the murder.

"The military prosecutors in Medan said they were still studying the murder accusation," said Oka Laksmana from Kontras' North Sumatra chapter.

Sri Ayuningsih, the oldest and only surviving child of Misnan, called on the government to restore justice for the victim family by handing down the appropriate punishment for all the assailants.

Kontras and Sri urged the defense minister and law and human rights minister to sign a document authorizing civil tribunals for the soldiers, as regulated in Article 197 of the 1997 Military Tribunals Law.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/07/kontras-wants- soldiers-tried-civilian-courts.html

Judicial & legal system

MK ruling paves way for ex-KPK chief to challenge his conviction

Jakarta Post - March 7, 2014

Jakarta – All convicts in the country, including former Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Antasari Azhar – who was found guilty of orchestrating a high-profile murder when leading the antigraft body – can appeal their convictions an unlimited number of times, the Constitutional Court (MK) announced on Thursday.

The court's panel of judges decided to grant Antasari's request that the court annul Article 268 (3) of the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP) that limits each convict to filing a case review – the final appeal stage in the Indonesian justice system – one time only.

The panel of judges, led by the court's chief justice Hamdan Zoelva, said the single case-review regulation contravened the Constitution, which assures justice and the protection of human rights.

"The court [system], tasked with safeguarding human rights, must not limit a case review to only one. By limiting the case review request, the court closed the process of finding justice and truth," said one of the court's judges, Anwar Usman, who read out the decision.

The decision was made seven months ago, on July 22, 2013, during a meeting led by the court's then chief justice Akil Mochtar, who is standing trial on allegations he accepted bribes to fix the results of election disputes. In 2010, Antasari was sentenced by the South Jakarta District Court to 18 years in prison for masterminding the murder of businessman Nasrudin Zulkarnaen.

Nasrudin, a director of state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Putra Rajawali Banjaran, was killed in a drive-by shooting in Tangerang, Banten on March 14, 2009. It is alleged Antasari, who was then at the peak of his career at the KPK, was having an affair with Nasrudin's third wife, Rhani Juliani.

The police found Antasari had conspired with former South Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Williardi Wizard, businessman Sigit Haryo Wibisono and middleman Jerry Hermawan Lo, in the crime.

The case gave rise to a long public debate, with some arguing Antasari was framed for the murder in an attempt to weaken the KPK. Under his leadership, the KPK made a bold move to prosecute Aulia Pohan, the father in-law of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's son, Agus Yudhoyono.

Antasari, who has persistently maintained his innocence, challenged the ruling by lodging an appeal with the Jakarta High Court and a cassation appeal with the Supreme Court, to no avail.

In September 2010, Antasari filed a case review later turned down by the Supreme Court's appeal council, consisting of presiding judge Artidjo Alkotsar, Mugihardjo and Suryadjaja. Artidjo noted Mugihardjo expressed a dissenting opinion.

Separately, former Supreme Court justice Asep Iwan Iriawan, while respecting the Supreme Court's decision, said "legal uncertainty" may emerge as a result of the ruling. "Those who are dissatisfied with a court ruling will lodge case reviews over and over again. Where will it end?"

Criticism of the court's ruling was also heard from Wahyudi Djafar, a researcher and human rights advocate at the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM).

"Aside from fulfilling the rights of the defendants, we must also pay attention to the rights of the victims. Can the victims get back their rights if the case can be reviewed several times? In the context of human rights, restoring justice for victims cannot be delayed," Wahyudi said.

He added the new regulation would lead to a substantial and continuous amount of case reviews that would only add to the Supreme Court's workload.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/07/mk-ruling-paves-way- ex-kpk-chief-challenge-his-conviction.html

House elects two MK justices despite doubts

Jakarta Post - March 6, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Members of the House of Representatives Commission III overseeing law and human rights have elected former official Wahiduddin Adams and law lecturer Aswanto as new Constitutional Court (MK) justices.

The commission elected the new justices after it held a vote on Wednesday evening after several commission members insinuated that the House should not elect new court justices as most of the candidates were unqualified, a decision that could risk the legitimacy of election results. The court is in charge of arbitrating election disputes.

Wahiduddin, a former director general for legislation at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, won 46 votes from the 50 lawmakers, present at the vote, who were each allowed to select two candidates, which left Aswanto, who is currently a lecturer at the school of law at Hasanuddin University in Makassar, with 23 votes.

The two newly elected justices were chosen from a final group of four candidates, who were endorsed by an independent team involved to oversee the screening that began last Monday, out of an initial group of 11 candidates.

Other candidates that were recommended by the team also included Padjadjaran University lecturer Atip Latipulhayat, who secured 19 votes, and Ni'matul Huda, a lecturer at the school of law at Islamic University of Indonesia (UII) in Yogyakarta with 12 votes.

Ni'matul was the only female candidate that participated in the screening. "As Wahiduddin and Aswanto were the two that secured the highest and second-highest number of votes, respectively, so we hereby declare that the two are officially elected [court] justices," Commission III Deputy Chairman Al Muzzammil Yusuf announced.

Muzzammil, a politician from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said that Commission III would present the result of the vote before a House plenary session on Thursday (today).

Before the vote, antigraft expert Saldi Isra, who is among the eight experts in the team, told reporters that the team strongly encouraged Commission III to choose two out of the four names recommended although lawmakers had the right to select other candidates.

"[Of all candidates] we decided that the four we recommended were the most qualified candidates, due to their superior understanding of constitutional law compared to the others," Saldi told the press after a closed-door meeting with lawmakers.

Apart from Saldi, the independent team also included former court justices Laica Marzuki and AS Natabaya, constitutional law expert Lauddin Marsuni, former chairman of the largest Islamic organization in Indonesia (Nahdlatul Ulama) Hasyim Muzadi and former chairman of the country's second-largest Islamic organization (Muhammadiyah) Ahmad Syafii Maarif.

Two figures with political backgrounds were also in the team, namely former law and human rights minister Andi Mattalatta, who is also a former Golkar Party lawmaker, and former United Development Party (PPP) lawmaker Zain Badjeber.

The two newly appointed justices will assume control of two seats that will become vacant in the coming months. One of the seats was left vacant by former chief justice Akil Mochtar, who was arrested on bribery charges surrounding election disputes in Lebak and Gunung Mas regencies as well as several other regencies last year. Meanwhile, 65-year-old justice Harjono will retire later this month, leaving his seat vacant.

With the election of Wahiddudin and Aswanto, the court will have a complete team of nine justices, who will handle potential election disputes in the coming months as the country will hold the legislative election next month and the presidential election in July.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/06/house-elects-two-mk- justices-despite-doubts.html

More judges sacked due to extramarital affairs

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Ina Parlina, National – Two judges from a lower court in Jambi, one of whom is a religious court judge, were dismissed on Tuesday by a joint ethics panel, which found that the judges had breached their code of ethics by having an extramarital affair.

The two judges, Elsadela and Mastuhi, were brought to an ethics panel set up jointly by the Supreme Court and the Judicial Commission, after Elsadela's husband Herman filed a report against his wife at the Jambi High Court due to his suspicions that she had an affair with Mastuhi, a married man and father of three children.

"The aggravating factor is that the misconduct occurred repeatedly and inside an office of the Tebo Religious Court," Desnayati, a Supreme Court panel member, said on Tuesday while reading out the ruling.

Elsadela and Mastuhi are the latest judges found to have breached the ethical code regarding extramarital affairs.

Last week an ethics hearing banned judge M. Reza Latuconsina of the Ternate District Court from hearing cases for two years after he was found to have had extramarital relations with a clerk working in the same court. The panel is set to hear other extramarital cases later this week.

In its ruling, the panel said a witness had revealed that Elsadela was working on a divorce from her husband, and that she had once said he had verbally abused her. Elsadela later sought advice from Mastuhi on the possible divorce, as he was a religious court judge who heard divorce cases, before they began an affair.

In her defense statement, Elsadela said she fell into Mastuhi's trap after he seduced her. Separately, Supreme Court spokesman Ridwan Mansyur said it was difficult for his office to prevent such adultery, as it involved the private lives of judges.

He said that the court could only issue warnings against committing such practices. "Their salaries were already raised [by the government], not to mention that they already got their allowances. However, temptation remains for them," Ridwan said.

"They should not use the excuse of being stationed far from their families to justify their actions, because all judges sign deals [agreeing] that they are ready to be stationed anywhere in the country."

Previously, Judicial Commission member Taufiqurrahman Sahuri criticized the Supreme Court's system, which often stations judges far from their families, saying such a mechanism encouraged adultery.

"I believe [adultery occurs] because there is the intention and opportunity to do so. Many of the judges are stationed at courts far from their homes and they don't have their families with them," he said.

Last year, the joint panel handed down penalties to seven judges. Of the seven cases, four involved adultery, two involved bribery and one was related to drug abuse.

Two female judges were involved in the adultery cases. One of the female judges, Vica Natalia of the Jombang District Court, was found guilty of breaching the judges' ethical code by having extramarital affairs with a fellow judge and a lawyer. The ethics panel stripped her of her position.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/more-judges-sacked- due-extramarital-affairs.html

MK candidates give disappointing show

Jakarta Post - March 4, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – For the first time, the House of Representatives Commission III overseeing legal affairs and laws is using an independent team of experts to help screen Constitutional Court (MK) justice candidates, exposing, in the process, the hopefuls' lack of even basic legal knowledge.

Unlike previous "fit-and-proper" tests for judges and other state officials at Commission III, where lawmakers usually throw softball questions to candidates, the eight invited experts have been asking decidedly more difficult questions.

One of the experts, former Constitutional Court justice AS Natabaya embarrassed one of the candidates in the race, United Development Party (PPP) lawmaker Dimyati Natakusumah, by asking a number of questions that ended up with the politician failing to provide an adequate explanation of the trias politica principle on the separation of powers.

Natabaya later lectured Dimyati, who is currently a Commission III member, on trias politica, explaining the separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches of government and the judiciary, including their respective responsibilities.

While Natabaya was lecturing Dimyati, several Commission III members were overheard saying: "We warned him [Dimyati] not to take the test", while some others said, "He [Dimyati] is embarrassing himself".

Another of the experts, Lauddin Marsuni, grilled Dimyati to test his impartiality if he were selected to be a judge. "You have been a member of the PPP for years. The PPP has become your party. How can you dissociate yourself from a party to which you have been allied for years?" asked Lauddin, who is also a former PPP lawmaker.

Three other candidates who joined the "fit-and-proper" test on Monday received the same treatment from the team of experts.

Also on the team are law professor and writer Saldi Isra; former chairman of Indonesia's second-largest Islamic organization Muhammadiyah, Ahmad Syafii Maarif, and the former chairman of the largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Hasyim Muzadi.

Other figures on the team with political backgrounds are former law and human rights minister Andi Matalatta – who is also a former Golkar Party lawmaker – and former PPP lawmaker Zain Badjeber.

Commission III is expected to hold tests for all 11 applicants and will propose the two strongest candidates to a House plenary session on Thursday.

Commission III deputy chairman Tjatur Sapto Edy said that by the end of the selection process, the commission would meet with the team of experts to discuss the final decision.

"The team is expected to recommend the two strongest candidates to us. We will directly forward their recommendation to the plenary if we agree with their judgment. However, we can reject their proposal and vote to select our preferred candidates," said Tjatur, a National Mandate Party (PAN) politician.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/04/mk-candidates-give- disappointing-show.html

Police & law enforcement

Haiti appointed new deputy police chief, 'big' bank account clarified

Jakarta Globe - March 1, 2014

Jakarta – The National Police on Friday announced that Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti would take over as the country's deputy chief and replace outgoing deputy chief Comr. Gen. Oegroseno, who has reached retirement age.

"Last night I explained – it's Badrodin Haiti," National Police chief Gen. Sutarman said after installing Aceh's new police chief at the National Police's headquarters on Friday, as quoted by the state-run Antara news agency.

Sutarman said the decision to replace Oegroseno was taken on Feb. 27, 2014. He said that Badrodin, who was formerly the head of National Police's security department, was the best three-star general contending for the position. Other candidates included Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, the head of the police academy, and General Supervision Inspector Comr. Gen. Anton Bachrul Alam.

Badrodin Haiti was born in Jember, East Java, in July 1957. He entered the police academy in 1982 and graduated at the top of his class. He was once installed as the Central Sulawesi Police chief in 2005-2006. Afterward, he was the North Sumatra Police chief between 2009 to 2010. Later, he was made the East Java Police chief. The National Police have not announced the one who will replace Badrodin.

Meanwhile, investigative magazine Tempo reported in 2010 that Badrodid, who at the time headed the National Police's legal division, was among 23 police generals who had a large sum of money in his bank account. His wealth in March 24, 2008, was measured at Rp 2 billion ($172,000) and $4,000.

It was reported that he owned a life insurance policy worth Rp 1.1 billion from Prudential, which was paid for by a third party.

Adrianus Meliala, a commissioner of the National Police's supervisory commission, said on Thursday that Badrodin had addressed the issue with the police.

"He received an insurance policy when his wife was sick," he said as quoted Tempo.co. "But he did not clarify it, so the PPATK [Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center] deemed it as a suspicious transaction."

Sutarman, meanwhile, said that Badrodid deserved the post and had settled the matter with the police. "That has been clarified, so there's no problem," Sutarman said.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/badrodin-haiti-appointed-new-deputy- police-chief-big-bank-account-clarified/

Foreign affairs & trade

Indonesia accused of meddling in Fiji affairs

Tabloid JUBI - March 3, 2014

Jayapura – Fiji's opposition has accused an Indonesian delegation planning to visit the Pacific country next week of intervening in Fiji's internal politics by supporting Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama in his campaign for reelection.

United Front for a Democratic Fiji accused Indonesian Ambassador Aidil Chandra Salim of having offered support to Commodore Bainimarama to be reelected prime minister in the upcoming elections.

"In media interviews, the Indonesian Ambassador showed they were behind the offer of support to Commodore Bainimarama to become Fiji's prime minister," Mick Beddoes, the United Front for a Democratic Fiji's spokesman, told Jubi on Monday night (3/3).

He further said that the government of Indonesia also gave half a million dollars to the Melanesia Spearhead Group (MSG) in exchange for betraying the sub-regional group's commitment towards the West Papuan people.

The Indonesian embassy in Fiji has denied the accusations, which have been voiced by pro-West Papuan groups in the Pacific. They say a visit by an Indonesian delegation consisting of local and central government officials next week was part of support for Bainimarama.

"The visit is only an alibi because the main objective is to support Bainimarama's campaign to win the upcoming election. The Indonesian ambassador in Fiji has announced it. The opposition in Fiji has accused the Indonesian government of intervening in Fiji's internal politics, even bribing the Bainimarama's people," Andi Ayamiseba, the representative of West Papua National Coalition for Liberation said in Vanuatu on Monday (3/3).

While the media in Fiji said the visit was aimed at strengthening the relationship between the MSG member countries and the Republic of Indonesia. It was said the mission was also in line with the last meeting results of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of MSG to Indonesia in January.

The delegation is planning to participate in a public lecture to create the awareness and generate a dialogue on the autonomy and development in both provinces of Papua and West Papua, Indonesia.

The mission was planned after Vanuatu announced it would hold an international symposium on West Papua as an alternative solution towards the failure of a fact-finding mission conducted by the MSG foreign ministers.(Jubi/Victor Mambor/rom)

Source: http://tabloidjubi.com/en/?p=1425

Analysis & opinion

'Otsus Plus' for Papua: What's the point?

Jakarta Post - March 7, 2014

Cillian Nolan, Jakarta – A draft law for reworking Papua's special autonomy contains potentially far-reaching proposals that need broader debate – within Papua, between Papua and Jakarta, and among the presidential candidates. Without it, the drafters risk delivering a bill that satisfies few and cannot be implemented.

The proposals now under review include efforts to increase the power of Papuan governors, strengthen Papuan control over politics and the economy; control incoming migration by non-Papuans; increase revenues; strengthen adat or customary institutions; improve education and health services; and end direct local elections.

The draft was produced largely by Papuans in Papua and for that reason deserves attention. But the drafters were a few dozen people close to the Papua and West Papua governors; there has been almost no public consultation on the substance and it has sparked protests from activists who feel that amending a failed law, whatever its contents, will not solve Papua's problems.

If it is unpopular in Papua, it is also likely to face objections from some ministry officials now tasked with making the draft congruent with national law.

Papua Governor Lukas Enembe and some parts of the government are nevertheless trying to fast-track the draft – known as Otsus Plus – toward approval by the House of Representatives before this term ends. But many of its provisions could have major ramifications for Papua, so why the rush?

The first step should be to make clear what the goals are for reconstructing special autonomy, something missing from the process so far. Those goals could include addressing Papuan political grievances, improving Jakarta-Papua relations, reducing violent conflict, improving economic opportunities for Papuans and improving local government.

One political grievance, for example, is the fear that indigenous Papuans face becoming a minority in their own land, swamped by migrants from other parts of Indonesia. The draft has concrete proposals for controlling incoming migration, including by requiring special identity cards for non- Papuans, but they need more discussion.

If improving Jakarta-Papua relations is another shared goal, Jakarta will need to make clear its willingness to allow the provinces to make policies that will not always be trumped by national law. The draft proposes several ways to do this, including by detailing 30 areas of policy from mining to labor, where the provinces would have to include provisions recognizing that special provincial regulations take precedence in Papua. But no discussion over the division of powers has taken place, and in any case, there will need to be consultation with individuals beyond the outgoing administration.

Papua is home to some of Indonesia's deadliest violence; separatist violence is responsible for only a small portion of these deaths. Finding ways to reduce other types of violence is obviously desirable. Governor Enembe cites this as the primary goal behind a proposal in the draft to end direct local elections, which in several instances have turned deadly, most notably in Tolikara and Puncak.

The West Papua drafters have rejected the proposal, but it has the support of the Home Ministry and many in the Papuan political elite. But will indirect elections will be any less violent, and even if so, is it worth rolling back democracy to achieve it? More consistent application of electoral regulations could be a more effective strategy – but would require a more comprehensive effort than a new law.

An unrealized ambition of the 2001 law was to promote economic opportunities for indigenous Papuans through affirmative action. Little has been done to implement its vaguely worded provisions, but the current draft mandates special attention, funding and resources for Papuans in agriculture as well as positions in all businesses operating in Papua up through managerial levels. These are concrete proposals which might address complaints from Papuans that they always lose out to migrants. But again, they will only be useful if they are widely understood.

Even reaching agreement among the tiny elite that produced the draft law on the fundamental issue of who counts as indigenous has proven difficult, which does not augur well for its broader acceptance.

Another possible goal would be to improve the effectiveness of local government. This is the aim behind proposals in the draft that would shift considerable authority from the regencies to the province, most notably the authority to issue mining permits. Some of these ideas may have merit – particularly given the weakness of many local government administrations in Papua – but they only make sense as part of a coordinated approach that has agreement from all levels of government.

Nothing in the draft would slow down pemekaran, the creation of new regencies and provinces, which looks likely to continue in Papua. Separate proposals before the House that would double the number of regencies and add three new provinces will have more effect on the quality of government than any shifting around of powers.

Cynics have explained the rush behind Otsus Plus as a last effort by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to shore up his image as a peacemaker before he leaves office. Passing poorly understood legislation will do little to achieve this; it is likely to be summarily rejected as an empty gesture by Papuan civil society, which sees the central government's lack of good faith as the primary weakness of special autonomy.

Many of the Otsus Plus proposals are useful ideas that have the potential to create positive change. But they will get nowhere without buy-in from necessary constituencies. Rather than try to push the bill through without discussion, the Yudhoyono administration and the governors might do better to open it up to more debate, by the Papuan public as well as by presidential candidates, to ensure that Papua policy after SBY starts out on the right footing.

[The writer is deputy director of the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict in Jakarta.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/07/otsus-plus-papua-what-s-point.html

Populist leaders must maneuver corrupt system

Jakarta Post - March 5, 2014

Hipolitus Yolisandry Ringgi Wangge, Evanston, Illinois – Why are populist figures in Indonesia being challenged to operate in a corrupt political system?

This is a critical question prior to the legislative and presidential elections, and the issue concerns Jakarta Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini. Nationally, both figures have good, clean reputations, yet they have to face unyielding challenges, namely from oligarchs and elites.

The "corrupt political system" refers to a political system dominated and abused by a few powerful people or groups for their own interests. These people are oligarchs and members of the elite. Elites are certain people or groups who have highly concentrated coercive power, mobilizational power and official or party positions, distributed in a highly exclusive way. In contrast, as the political scholar Jeffrey Winters writes, oligarchs are those with significant fortunes accumulated from economic wealth.

Both elites and oligarchs can have similar interests in inhibiting potential challenges or radical demands that threaten them. They can form a collective action such as a political party. In the case of Jokowi, the party has "detained" him to meet public demand. Similarly, in Risma's case, it is not only the local legislative council, but also her own party that has been dominated by businesspeople and party elites who resist her populist policies.

Jokowi has been performing well in managing Indonesia's most populated city; for example, he battled the government regarding the cheap car policy, preferring to improve public transportation. Jokowi has rejected Vice President Boediono's idea of selling "low-cost green cars" to Jakarta's residents.

It was widely believed that automobile business groups were behind this proposal, targeting Indonesia as a potential market for low-price cars.

Above all, the public is looking forward to knowing whether Jokowi will run as the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P) presidential candidate. The decision is in the hands of PDI-P chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri. Apparently, Megawati has not given up on the idea of her third bid as the party's candidate, even though that option is unlikely to increase her party's odds of winning the election.

In the case of Risma, the collaboration between party elites and oligarchs in the legislative council was a significant challenge to her public service policies. In particular, as reported by the weekly magazine Tempo, three issues have prompted Risma to step down as Surabaya's mayor.

First, the battle over the construction of a toll road across Surabaya, in which Risma favored improving the city's public transportation. Second, following this, Surabaya's city council – supported by the PDI-P – attempted to oust her, but failed. The rejection of Risma by the PDI-P and its oligarchic component continued, when she wanted to raise the billboard advertising tax.

In these two cases, the shared interest of business people and political elites was the obvious motivation behind the resistance to Risma's ideas. And third, the "punch" against Risma was the covert appointment of PDI-P's local head and deputy speaker of the city council, Wisnu Sakti Buana, as the new deputy mayor – a move that Risma believed was another attempt to topple her.

Thus, populist figures have been captured by the corrupt political system. On the one hand, they are personality-based figures, who differ from mass mobilizational figures, such as Lula Da Silva and Evo Morales in Latin America. Da Silva and Morales were able to transform their societal support into populist parties. Accordingly, they received full support to implement populist policies without strong resistance from parliament or their own parties.

Yet Jokowi and Risma are also elites, since they received official positions. These two prominent leaders emerged from the middle class. Jokowi was a carpenter-turned-politician and Risma was a true-blue bureaucrat. They had no mass political mobilization to challenge established political elites and oligarchs.

The only option they had was to enter a well-established political party, namely the PDI-P, to be eligible to run for governmental positions.

There is a huge gap between elite and grassroots levels in terms of building strong political influence. In Indonesia's modern history, the banned Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) was widely known for its intimate relationship with the grassroots movement. The masses could be mobilized to support certain party policies, whether in favor of or against the government. However, since Soeharto took over the government in 1966, Indonesian society has been distanced from politics.

The concept of a "floating mass" was widely disseminated by Ali Murtopo, Soeharto's right-hand man; it meant that people would not play any political roles or organize any political movements and therefore would devote all their efforts to economic development. Since then, no populist figures have arisen from a grassroots level.

What we are seeing today are politicians emerging from the middle class. On the one hand, the emergence of populist figures is the result of a deficient political system, creating conditions that are ripe for populism.

On the other hand, these figures have no political-based organizations that can continually draw support from society to impose populist policies. They must frequently abide by the party's rules. Occasionally, pro-people policies are at odds with party interests.

In this regard, populist policies have to fall in line with the party's instruction. So far, the case of Risma has illustrated this pattern clearly.

Furthermore, populist figures in a corrupt political system risk being used by other political parties. Certain parties, such as the National Mandate Party (PAN), the Democratic Party and the Golkar Party have expressed interest in making Jokowi their own candidate.

However, these moves were blocked by the PDI-P. Similarly, if Risma quits as mayor, the Gerinda Party, Golkar and even the Democrats are willing to put her forward as a strong running mate. For these parties, Jokowi and Risma are vote magnets.

This is a very pragmatic reason to recruit them, but it does not guarantee that, in the future, party elites will not continue to threaten the performance of these two leading populist figures.

[The writer is a visiting scholar in the equality development and globalization studies program at the Buffet Center for International and Comparative Studies, Northwestern University, the US.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/05/populist-leaders-must-maneuver-corrupt-system.html

Indonesia's act of denial

Al Jazeera - March 1, 2014

Phelim Kine – Indonesia has a problem with Joshua Oppenheimer's documentary "The Act of Killing." The groundbreaking film, nominated for best documentary at this year's Academy Awards, being handed out March 2, profiles anti-communist Indonesian paramilitary leaders who, along with the country's military units, massacred up to 1 million of their fellow citizens in a nationwide slaughter of alleged communists – including ethnic Chinese, trade unionists and civil society activists – in 1965 and 1966. In the film some of the killers cheerfully boast about and even re- enact their murders, at times in the presence of current Indonesian government officials who express support for the bloodbath.

But the Indonesian government is clearly unsettled by the film's depiction of its role in one of the most horrific incidents of state-sanctioned bloodletting in the 20th century. In a statement released on Jan. 24, presidential spokesman for foreign affairs Teuku Faizasyah slammed the film's portrayal of Indonesia as "a cruel and lawless nation." Faizasyah compared the killings of the 1960s to the "history of slavery in the United States" and suggested that the narrative in "The Act of Killing" was unfair to and did not fit with a contemporary Indonesia in which "many things have changed."

Since emerging from Major Gen. Suharto's three-decade authoritarian rule in 1998, Indonesia has undeniably changed a lot. The country has transitioned to a parliamentary democracy, and in July, Indonesians will go to the polls to elect the country's fourth president since Suharto's downfall. But the lack of accountability for the massacres remains unchanged, creating a toxic legacy of impunity that victimizes Indonesians to this day.

Increasing numbers of those victims are members of Indonesia's religious minorities, including Christian Protestant groups, Shia Muslims and the Ahmadiyah Muslim sect. These groups are increasingly under threat from Sunni Islamist militant groups such as the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI). The FPI and its supporters mobilize gangs that swarm minority houses of worship. The groups' leaders justify such thuggery as attacks against "infidels" and "blasphemers."

Indonesian officials and security forces frequently facilitate harassment of religious minorities, in some cases even blaming the victims for the attacks. Authorities have made blatant and discriminatory statements. In January 2012, Indonesia's Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali publicly stated that Shia is "against Islam." In September 2012 he proposed that Shia Muslims convert to Sunni.

In August he followed up those bigoted statements with a keynote speech at the FPI's annual congress in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital. Rather than denounce the FPI for its violence and intolerance, Ali praised the group for its "maturity" and as an organization "that loves... nationalism and Indonesia." The audience, made up of the country's most intolerant Islamist politicians and clerics, listened politely before turning to the meeting's real focus: the FPI's pursuit of a nation governed under Islamic law instead of the country's secular constitution.

Police in Indonesia often side with Islamist militants at the expense of the rights of minorities, ostensibly to avoid violence. In all cases, the poor police response to violent crimes reflects institutional failure to uphold the law and hold perpetrators to account.

The attacks on religious minorities are becoming increasingly violent. On Aug. 20, 2012, hundreds of Sunni militants attacked the minority Shia community in Sampang in Indonesia's East Java, torching some 50 homes, killing one man and seriously injuring another. The local police, warned ahead of time of the violence by the militants, stood by at the scene of the attack and refused to intervene.

On Aug. 4, 2013, shortly after Islamist militants in Indonesia vowed vengeance against Buddhists for attacks in Burma by members of the Buddhist majority against the local Rohingya Muslim population, a bomb planted inside a Buddhist temple in downtown Jakarta exploded while congregants worshipped, injuring three men. A day later, unknown perpetrators tossed Molotov cocktails into the yard of a Catholic high school in Jakarta. The school staff scrambled to extinguish the flames and kept the devices from igniting by dousing them with water from a bathroom.

Moreover, members of Indonesia's security forces continue to commit human rights abuses with relative impunity. Last March a dozen members of the Special Forces Command, known as Kopassus, launched an attack on the Cebongan prison in the city of Yogyakarta in central Java. Later, military prosecutors said that Kopassus personnel, disguised with ski masks and carrying AK-47 assault rifles, forced their way into the prison, threatened and beat 12 prisons guards, two of whom required hospitalization. The soldiers then executed four detainees who were facing charges for an attack on another member of the Kopassus unit.

The trial of the 12 Kopassus personnel was characterized by an atmosphere of intimidation familiar to anyone who has seen "The Act of Killing." A coalition of local paramilitary groups, Sekber Keistimewaan, wore jungle camouflage and noisily protested outside the court building in support of the defendants.

Inside the courtroom, its members repeatedly disrupted the proceedings, loudly praising the Kopassus defendants as heroes and warriors and demanding their release. On several occasions, they locked the court compound gate while prosecutors were presenting their case and attempted to intimidate journalists, human rights monitors and academics in the spectators' gallery. In early September the military court sentenced the defendants to prison terms ranging from 140 days to 11 years, but the sentences failed to match the gravity of the crimes.

Abuses by Indonesia's security forces remain rife in the provinces of West Papua and Papua. Over the last three years, Human Rights Watch has documented dozens of cases in which police, military, intelligence officers and prison guards used excessive force when dealing with Papuans exercising their right to peaceful assembly. Papua is the site of a low-level insurgency by the Free Papua Movement, a small and poorly organized armed group seeking independence from Indonesia.

In April police fired on a group of Papuans in Aimas district, near Sorong in the province of West Papua, who were holding a prayer gathering to protest the 1963 handover of Papua to Indonesia after Dutch colonial rule. According to eyewitnesses, police opened fire when the protesters approached its vehicles. Two men were killed on the spot, and a third victim died six days later from gunshot wounds. Police detained at least 22 individuals and charged seven of them with treason. The other 15 were subsequently released.

A culture of impunity

These abuses are all examples of a culture of impunity spawned by the government's failure to seek accountability for the massacres of the mid- 1960s. Indonesia's weak rule of law and history of impunity empowers contemporary human rights abusers, making accountability unlikely, especially for the powerful and well connected. In July 2012, Indonesia's National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) declared that the massacres constituted a "gross human rights violation" and called for the prosecution of military officials implicated in those murders. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono responded by instructing his attorney general to "study the findings and report back to me and other relevant parties." His government has not taken any other substantive steps toward accountability to date.

Three months after Yudhoyono's statements, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto dismissed the commission's findings on the killings and stated that "this country would not be what it is today if it didn't happen."

"The Act of Killing" is challenging the government's assessment of the massacres and their malign impact on contemporary society. Komnas HAM has hailed the film as an invaluable tool for confronting the poisonous legacy of those murders and bolstering rule of law in Indonesia. "If we are to transform Indonesia into the democracy it claims to be, citizens must recognize the terror and repression on which our contemporary history has been built," the commission said in praise of the film. "No film or any other work of art, for that matter, has done this more effectively than 'The Act of Killing.' (It) is essential viewing for us all."

That's an impact of far greater relevance than an Academy Award will ever have.

[Phelim Kine is the deputy director of the Asia division at Human Rights Watch. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera America's editorial policy.]

Source: http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2014/3/indonesia-s-act- ofdenial.html