Max Horder – Home to 3.5 million people, daily life in West Papua is characterised by widespread violence, intimidation and political suppression. On July 9, a boycott against the Indonesian presidential election was organised by activists – 14 of whom were reportedly tortured by the military and now reside in prison.

Officially named Irian Jaya Barat until it was split into two administrative parts in 2007, the Indonesian State is inflicting what is considered to be a silent genocide on the indigenous people of West Papua.

If the conflict between the Indonesian military and the Free Papua Movement (OPM) has not been given its just representation in the spotlight of the international media, it has been an issue of restrictions: the Indonesian government has banned foreign journalists from reporting on the political situation.

Violent suppression of information has been a substantial obstacle in the way of accurate reporting. Rough estimates suggest that up to 1 million Papuans have been killed during the 50 years of Indonesian repression. Rape, torture and forced disappearances of civilians are common.

Travel within the territory is uncompromisingly restricted. The region remains desperately poor and underdeveloped – decades of Indonesian domination throughout the Suharto dictatorship (1967-98) have silenced the opposition and intentionally neglected economic growth to ease resource extraction.

When Indonesia gained sovereignty from Dutch colonial rule in 1949, West Papua prepared for its future as an independent nation. By 1962, after less than a year of autonomy, the country was invaded by the Indonesian military. The annexation that followed has never been relinquished.

The military, indulging with almost limitless impunity, has seemed to act as it pleases. Raising the national flag of West Papua, the 'Morning Star', can result in a jail sentence of up to 15 years.

The racial pyramid in West Papua

There are two keys to understanding the conflict. The first is an issue of institutionalised racism. West Papuans have no solid ethnic or cultural links with Indonesia, as they are of a Melanesian ethnicity that has far more in common with Australian aborigines than it does with the Javanese.

The Indonesian government continues to cultivate a systemic racial hierarchy between the Java and Papuan, both justifying and perpetuating the political and economic exploitation of the latter. West Papuans routinely describe their treatment by Indonesians as being compared with 'pigs' and 'dogs', being spat at and called 'dirty'.

Dr. Nick Long, a specialist in Indonesian anthropology at the London School of Economics, told The International that stereotyping the 'Papuan' cements a "radical difference" between the two ethnicities, in his words making it "much easier to justify the policies of domination and exploitation".

Certainly, a large segment of the Indonesian population is profoundly critical of the government's policy in West Papua. However, Dr. Long suggests that the patronising tone and unequal distinction between the two groups means that it is "not surprising Papuans should feel alienated from Indonesia and seek to fight against it".

Confronted with extreme violence in their homeland, Papuans who do work or study in mainland Indonesia report that their own cultural history has been whitewashed from official records.

Struggling for resources

Additionally, the Indonesian government has pursued a policy of Java resettlement into camps carved out of Papuan forest. Approximately 1 million slum-dwelling Javanese have been moved into the West Papuan frontier.

Although this action is not explicitly claimed to be a method of cultural extermination, it is a tactic that might be seen to chime with the colonial logic of Indonesian military policy.

Control of the region is highly prized because of its unusually rich amount of material resources. Forests available for logging in mainland Indonesia are being exhausted at astonishingly unsustainable rates.

The move towards timber extraction in West Papua is irreversibly desecrating tribal communities and their traditional homeland. These forests are matched only by the Amazon in terms of size and bio-diversity.

As in Colombia, tracts of timbered lands are also used for the cultivation of Palm Oil, a cash-crop that is used ubiquitously in Western consumer products. Rampant corruption within the Indonesian government leaves little, if any, of this wealth in the hands of either the West Papuan or the Javanese population.

One of the many responses to the ongoing occupation of West Papua has been the formation of the National Committee for West Papua (or KNPB), established in 2008. By cultivating support for independence, the organisation has been gathering national momentum. In West Papua, however, the committee's supporters still face arrest, torture and even execution.

Meanwhile, the Free West Papua Campaign, headquartered in Oxford, has attracted international attention for its efforts to spread light on what they have termed 'The Secret War in Asia'. Led by Benny Wenda, head of the Koteka Tribal Assembly, the campaign has drawn support from influential figures both in the UK and abroad.

Though media attention has increasingly focused on the shrouded atrocities being committed in West Papua, the Indonesian government remains unwilling to allow foreign investigation in the area. Until they do, life for those in West Papua will remain a struggle against further human rights violations.

Source: http://www.theinternational.org/articles/567-indonesias-military-crackdown-on-the-w

Jayapura Five released amid heavy security

Radio New Zealand International - July 21, 2014

The West Papuan political prisoners known as the Jayapura Five have been released after serving almost three years in jail in Indonesia.

Among the five is Forkorus Yaboisembut, the President of the organisation that calls itself the Federal Republic of West Papua.

The five were arrested and imprisoned by Indonesia in October 2011 on charges of treason after the republic was declared at the third Papua People's Congress.

The organisation's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jacob Rumbiak, says they were released in the early hours of Monday morning amid heavy security that quashed plans for a welcome back ceremony.

"Since 6am there's been heavy military around Abepura prison, they didn't allow us to welcome the leader."

Jacob Rumbiak says while the release of the five political prisoners is progress, the Papua People's Congress will continue its efforts.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/250281/jayapura-five-released-amid-heavy-security

Police take stern action against armed groups

Jakarta Post - July 19, 2014

Jayapura – Newly appointed Papua Police chief Yotje Mende said he would take stern action against armed criminals in the province because their actions threaten the stability of the nation-state.

"We will always adhere to our unitary state and nation. We will act firmly against anyone who undermines security and we will obviously work together with the Indonesian Military (TNI) and provincial administration to stamp out the separatist acts that damage the national structure," said Yotje in Jakarta on Friday after accepting a report from outgoing Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian.

The comments made by Yotje, who was installed as Papua Police chief just three days ago, came on the heels of a series of violent acts carried out by armed civilian groups in Papua in the Tingginambut district, Puncak Jaya and Tiom, Lanny Jaya, where two civilians were shot and killed.

The victims in those shootings were Kallo, a public minivan driver from South Sulawesi, who was shot and killed by the assailants in Tingginambut on Wednesday and Nasito, 45, a motorcycle taxi driver, who was shot by a passenger in Dugume village, Tion district in Lanny Jaya regency on Thursday.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/19/police-take-stern-action-against-armed-groups.html

An urge to address West Papua abuses

Radio New Zealand International - July 18, 2014

The organisation called the Federal Republic of West Papua is urging the Pacific Islands Forum and the Melanesian Spearhead Group to address ongoing abuses in Indonesia's Papua region.

The imprisoned President of the Federal Republic, Forkorus Yaboisembut, and other members of his administration have been in jail since their election at the Third Papuan People's Congress in October 2011.

A spokesman for the administration, Jack Wanggai, says Mr Yaboisembut is expected to be released soon and is already implementing resolutions made by the administraion at the congress. He says this includes pushing for international engagement over West Papua.

"Many conflict in here, many conflict made from Indonesian government like military or soldier. Every day. That is why South Pacific (Forum) or Melanesian Spearhead Group must make politic statement to help west Papua people."

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/250027/an-urge-to-address-west-papua-abuses

One killed, two injured in Papua armed ambush of food convoy

Jakarta Globe - July 16, 2014

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura – One person was killed and two were injured when a 10-car convoy traveling in a remote area of Papua's highlands was ambushed by armed attackers on Wednesday afternoon.

According to reports from police and a local resident, the attackers intercepted the convoy, which was carrying food from Wamena to Mulia, in Donggobak village.

Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Pudjo Sulistyo said that three men were shot in the ambush. "From the temporary report we've received, three were shot. One of them died and the other two injured. Four cars were set on fire," Pudjo said.

The victims included Kallo, a 30-year old man from Makassar, who died after being shot in the head. Two others – Laksmana, 24, and Bahar, 40 – were injured in the shooting.

State-run Antara news agency reported that all of them have been taken to Mulia hospital. Laksmana and Bahar are in critical condition. "The armed group intercepted the cars carrying sembako [nine basic commodities]," Puncak Jaya Police commander Lieut. Col. Lukam Arif said.

Puncak Jaya is one of Papua's most remote regencies and has seen violent incidents in the past. The Free Papua Organization (OPM), which has fought a low-intensity guerrilla war against Indonesian security forces since the province was annexed by Indonesia in 1969, operates in Papua's highlands, including Puncak Jaya.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/two-killed-papua-armed-ambush/

Jokowi wins in Jayapura city, Papua

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Presidential candidate Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla garnered 96,780 votes, in comparison to the 69,220 votes rivals Prabowo Subianto and Hatta Rajasa gained in the provincial capital of Papua, Jayapura, in the July 9 presidential election.

"The presidential election in Jayapura has been peaceful since the beginning of the campaign period. However, the number of voters decreased by 40 to 50 percent," Yeremias Numberi, who led the vote count at Le Premiere Hotel in Jayapura, said on Wednesday.

The vote recapitulation was conducted peacefully and was monitored by the Jayapura Police.

The Jokowi-Kalla ticket also won in several other regencies in Papua. In Yahukimo, Jokowi gained 189,076 votes to Prabowo-Hatta's 72,537 votes. Jokowi also led the tally in Nabire with 90,541 votes in comparison to Prabowo-Hatta's 41,061 votes.

In Paniai, the Jokowi-Kalla pair led with 82,970 votes while Prabowo-Hatta gained 7,662 votes. Jokowi also won in neighboring Jayapura regency with 61,353 votes in comparison to Prabowo's 30,378 votes. (fss/nvn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/jokowi-wins-jayapura-city-papua.html

Protests against 1969 annexation of West Papua held in three Java cities

Selangkah Magazine - July 15, 2014

Admin MS, Yogyakarta – Insisting that the annexation of West Papua into the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) through the 1969 referendum (Pepera) was done undemocratically and was a gross human rights violation, the Papuan Students Alliance (AMP) has held peaceful actions in several university cities in Java.

In the Central Java provincial capital of Semarang, the AMP took to the streets calling for a review of the 1969 Pepera saying that it was done under pressure from the Indonesian military so that Papua would become part of Indonesia.

Semarang city AMP chairperson Otis Tabuni told Selangkah Magazine that the 1969 Pepera should have been done with the highest respect for the choice of each individual of the Papuan nation under the principles of one person one vote, but instead what took place was a consensus process where 1026 people selected by Indonesia were allowed to represent the around 800,000 Papuan people at the time.

In a press release the AMP made three demands. First, that the 1969 Pepera was undemocratic and called for a referendum to be held for the Papuan people.

Second, calling for the withdrawal of all organic and non-organic military and police (TNI-Polri) from the land of Papua in order to put an end to all forms of humanitarian crimes by the Indonesian state against the Papuan people.

Third, close down and halt all exploitative activities by multi-national corporations throughout the land of Papua owned by imperialists countries including Freeport, BP, LNG Tangguh, Medco and Corindo.

And finally, a demand that Papuans be given the freedom to determine their own future as a democratic solution for the Papuan people.

In the Central Java city of Yogyakarta, hundreds of protesters from the Yogyakarta city AMP were again blocked at Jl. Kusuma Negara by a joint force comprising hundreds of police and Mobile Brigade (Brimob) officers as well as a social organisation called the Police and Community Partnership Forum (FKPM) that claimed to represent Yogyakarta Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X.

The protesters were not allowed to continue the action to the nearby zero kilometre point in front of the central post office as detailed in the letter of notification that had been submitted to police.

The police along with the FKPM blockaded the road. In fact there were around 12 tactical police unit (Sabhara) trucks and 17 police and Brimob patrol cars that collaborated to halt the AMP demonstration.

This was precisely the same as what happened at an AMP action on July 1 when they were commemorating the proclamation of West Papuan independence in Victoria on July 1, 1971.

In the West Java provincial capital of Bandung meanwhile, protesters from the AMP also took to the streets with the same demands.

The Papuan students from the AMP demanded that the Pepera be held again saying that the 1969 Pepera was not in accordance with international law and ridden with intimidation and terror.

[Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service.]

Source: http://majalahselangkah.com/content/-amp-serukan-pepera-ulang-ini-aksi-mereka-di-yogyakarta-semarang-dan-bandung

Evidence of death squads emerge after Youtefa market riot

West Papua Media - July 15, 2014

[In-depth Investigation from West Papua Media team, our stringers in Jayapura and local sources.]

Evidence has emerged of a savage and potentially premeditated hunt of highland students by Indonesian security forces in Abepura on July 2 after the stabbing death of a police officer sparked an allegedly brutal dispersal of civilians by security forces. Three civilians and an Indonesian police officer were killed around the Youtefa market in Abepura after a failed attempt at a shakedown by corrupt police on a gambling ring degenerated into a riot.

Full transparency of the events leading to the riot and behaviour by police in bringing it under control has been hard to verify, however eyewitness testimony gathered by West Papua Media (WPM) stringers have yielded new information that alleges death squads were operating simultaneously to the riot, targeting three students from a single tribal group who were uninvolved with the riot.

Over twenty innocent people were also taken into custody on July 2, after hundreds of uniformed and plainclothes security forces arrested civilians and beat bystanders, Papuan shoppers and particularly civilians from the Highlands, with many sustaining injuries, after unidentified persons in the crowd of gamblers earlier attacked and fatally stabbed the Indonesian police officer, and beat up his partner.

Eyewitness evidence has also confirmed that three young Yali men, Demi Kepno, Sabusek Kabak, and Yenias Wandikbo were beaten and killed well away from the riot and dispersal, by plain clothes police and Kopassus special forces soldiers. This is despite clear evidence that none of the victims were involved in either the gambling, or the subsequent riot.

The violence had its immediate roots in a daily illegal game of dice (Judi Dadu) played in an Indonesian gangster (preman) run gambling den at Pasar Youtefa, by a mixed crowd of over 100 Papuan and Indonesian colonist gamblers. According to witnesses interviewed by a West Papua Media stringer, the dice gambling rings are part of an informal industry that served to provide daily living income for its organisers, but was usually tolerated by local police in return for a cut of proceedings to supplement their police salary.

Indonesian military and police have a long history of running highly lucrative illegal gambling operations on everything from raffles to chicken, dog and human fighting, to premiere movie tickets. Gamblers and street thugs lured to the easy money are often recruited as the muscle behind preman organisation Pemuda Pancasila, a Kopassus proxy militia front that had thrown its weight behind the Prabowo Presidential Election campaign, casting a dark shadow of fear over Papua over recent weeks.

Just after 3.30pm local time on July 2, Police Brigadiers (equivalent to Chief Sergeant) Asriadi and Samsul Huda from Abepura's Tanah Hitam motorcycle unit, were conducting their allegedly corrupt daily shakedown rounds to demand protection money (tax) from stallholders when they arrived at the Judi venue. It is still unknown why the officers decided to shakedown this particular venue given that preman and police usually have a sophisticated and lucrative system of payoffs.

Gamblers reported that the two police officers walked into the venue without paying admission, angering the Indonesian colonist doorman, whereupon the police drew weapons and demanded that all present (including Papuan and colonist spectators) pay a flat rate "tax" to the police.

Witnesses claimed that the two officers and a customer began arguing after some gamblers refuse to hand over any money, saying they were tired of being shaken down. One witness claimed that the "preman" (gangster) manager of the venue pushed the police officer, complaining that protection money had already been paid to a higher ranking officer, and the shakedown would be reported. The officer Asriadi then smacked another gambler, the relatives of whom retaliated by seizing his rifle and throwing chairs, bottles and other objects at the fleeing officers. None of these claims could be independently verified by WPM.

Unverified reports also claim that all the gamblers, both Papuan and Indonesian, then chased the officers through the markets. An Indonesian colonist trader named Herman told the Jakarta Post that Brig Asriadi tripped, and "was mobbed and stabbed by the gamblers."

Claims that the rioters had stoned the officers to death remain unverified and only alleged by Indonesian colonist traders. No Papuan witnesses could be found to confirm the claims independently of the official police version.

The commotion and cries for help from the bashed police were immediately responded to by over a hundred armed police, Brimob and members of the Australian trained counter-terror squad Detachment 88, according to witnesses who described how large groups of armed men came running from every direction within seconds of the initial chase. They in turn were joined by over 50 plain clothes intelligence, police and military, including scores of Kopassus ojek riders, in seizing and beating large groups of civilians randomly, including traders and shoppers.

Reports remain unconfirmed whether security forces opened fire directly on bystanders at the markets or fired into the air, but many gunshots were heard by various witnesses, causing Papuan civilians to flee from the area. Nine Papuan gamblers were taken into custody as suspects, however the perpetrators of the fatal beating and those who had seized weapons were allowed to escape by security forces. In addition, police and plain clothes agents arrested a further 14 Papuan bystanders, who were uninvolved in the affray. All apart from the nine were released by police late that night, most having sustained injuries from their beatings. The status of the nine Papuan gamblers who were undergoing interrogation through to the weekend were unable to be ascertained at time of writing.

The violence occurred as Papuans in Jayapura were on edge, as arbitrary arrests, shootings and unprovoked beatings on civilians by security forces intensified ahead of the July 9 Indonesian presidential election. Many Papuan civil society and pro-independence groups joined a boycott call challenging the legitimacy of Indonesia's colonial regime. The boycott was met with calls from the Indonesian military commander in Papua, Maj-General Christian Zebua, to "shoot dead any person" distributing election boycott materials – a threat which had materialised throughout the Land of Papua.

Arbitrary murders

The deaths of the three young Papuan students, at a time when Indonesian police are almost exclusively targeting Yali student and civil resistance activists (who make up the bulk of the membership of the West Papua National Committee) in a nationwide crackdown on freedom of expression, will only reinforce perceptions of a premeditated Indonesian security force campaign to eradicate Papua of Yali people. "The TNI hate the Yali with a passion, as this is the tribe that Benny Wenda is from," an observer told WPM during the investigation, referring to the high profile UK-based leader of the Free West Papua Campaign.

Certainly members of the families of the dead agree that their dead children and brothers are being unfairly targeted.

Sabusek Kabak (24) was a university student from the Yali village of Porongkoli in Yahukimo Papua. He passed through the Youtefa market at 8.00am from the Kilometre 9 post at Koya and continued on to the GKI Church students Hostel Liborang in Padang Bulan.

According to interviews with his younger brother Wemen, friends and witnesses, at 3.30pm on July 2 Sabusek went again to Youtefa, planning to return to Kilo 9 with Wemen. After arriving at the Youtefa market he and his younger sibling didn't have enough money to pay for the taxi back to Koya and went to look for a friend to borrow some money for their transport home.

As they were looking for taxi money, the riot broke out at the market. Some ran and there was the sound of gunfire, but Sabusek and Wemen were confused. Sabusek and Wemen agreed to go together and seek protection at the Bank of Papua at the Youtefa market, without realising that there were "preman" plainclothed police manning a roadblock outside the bank.

They were then confronted and surrounded by the preman who were armed with sharp knives, machetes, and pistols, when Sabusek pushed his young brother behind him and told him to escape. A transmigrant trader hid Wemen in their kiosk, however the preman police caught up and stabbed Sabusek with a bayonet through the heart, killing him instantly. Wemen and the trader witnessed the killing, as the preman walked away and left Sabusek's body there. A woman from Biak, unknown to Wemen, told the migrant who had helped Wemen escape, "That is my child. Come my dear child let's go home". She then took Wemen to the protection of a Church hostel.

Sabusek's body was not picked up by Police until the morning of 3 July 2014 by Police, who took his body to the Bhayangkara Hospital. The Kabak family were initially prevented from retrieving Sabusek's body, and were forced to return with the Abepura Police Chief and District Head so the family could take the body. He was buried on 4 July 2014 at the public cemetery in Tanah Hitam, Abepura at 3.00pm by his family.

The Kabak family have demanded that the Papuan Police be held accountable for Sabusek Kabak's death, and that there be an immediate arrest of those responsible and they face the process of law in the immediate future.

Unprovoked savagery

Neither was the second victim involved in any form of opposition action against the police, yet he was savagely beaten until dead. Before the riot at the Youtefa market started, Yenias Wandikbo, a 20 year old Yali student, had been drinking alcohol together and relaxing with a friend during that day at the Engros Beach, until they ran out of drink in the early afternoon. Yenias and his friend then headed home from Engros via to the Youtefa market. In going there they reached the front of the YAMAS campus still unaware that there was a problem at the market, where they separated because of the everyday threat posed by security forces when buying alcohol. Yenias stumbled upon the riot area and straight into an ambush of plainclothes Indonesian preman – believed to be Kopassus soldiers by witnesses due to the impunity in which they moved. These preman then caught, beat and killed Yenias, witnessed by many in broad daylight less than one hundred metres away from the Youtefa market.

Yenias was beaten about the head with such extreme force that his brow, nose area, and rear of his skull was split apart. After Yenias was killed, his body was taken by the police to the Bhayangkara Hospital, where it was held until 3.20pm on July 4. Yenias' family took him home to Nayak Hostel in Abepura, in order to transport his body to be taken back to Wamena.

Extrajudicial execution

Demi Kepno, a 24 year old Engineering Student of Yali origin from Abenah District, Yalimo, was killed after being abducted by police in Abepura, at the same instance as the gambling ring was being broken up in Youtefa market, but some distance away from the market.

As with the two other victims, When Demi Kepno, together with several friends heard about the incident at the old market, they avoided returning to their homes. Demi was called by his girlfriend – who it emerged was working as an intelligence agent – who wanted to meet with him, and he went to meet her in front of the Multi Crosir supermarket. Demi's girlfriend ordered him to get in a black Avanza vehicle, without any idea he was getting in a car with plainclothes security forces

Demi was brought to the Yanmor Police station in Tanah Hitam just above Abepura, where he was interrogated by fully armed anti-terror police. He managed to escape from the Police station, fleeing in the direction of Tanah Hitam Mountain. The police and plainclothes agents gave chase and Demi entered a house of a Butonese migrant, which was surrounded and searched by police, cornering Demi around 5.15pm local time, according to witnesses interviewed by WPM's stringer. Demi allegedly picked up a beam of wood in self-defence as police opened fire on him, hitting him in the abdomen. However, the gunshots did not kill him, so the plainclothes agents were seen to repeatedly stab Demi in the chest and neck with a bayonet, until he was dead.

His body was taken to the Bhayangkara Hospital, and the victim's family took the body away at 4.35pm the following day to the family home at Tanah Hitam, and was buried in Abepura at the public cemetery on 5 July 2014.

Indonesian police in Abepura and Jayapura refused several attempts by WPM to provide a response to these allegations.

Source: http://westpapuamedia.info/2014/07/15/evidence-of-death-squads-emerge-after-youtefa-market-riot-sparked-by-corrupt-police-shakedown-of-gamblers/

Sexual & domestic violence

Police accuse JIS teachers of drugging students with 'magic stone'

Jakarta Globe - July 17, 2014

Farouk Arnaz & Bayu Marhaenjati, Jakarta – Under increasing pressure to justify charging two Jakarta International School teachers with child sexual abuse, police on Wednesday accused the teachers of using drugs to sedate two six-year-old children before raping them.

"The disobedient students were summoned to the guidance counseling [room]. In there, the victims were given drugs called a magic stone," Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Dwi Priyatno said.

Dwi said "magic stone" in English and did not elaborate on what kind of drug the police suspected it to be. He did not comment on where police had heard the term magic stone. "This is a kind of anesthetic drug which made them numb," he said. "We're still investigating this."

Sr. Comr. Dwiyanto of the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) told news portal Tempo.co that he had never heard of the drug, as did Police Hospital medical field service head Sr. Comr. Ibnu Hadjar.

The teachers, Canadian national Neil Bantleman and Indonesian national Ferdinand Tjong, have consistently denied any wrongdoing, and the school has defended them throughout.

The accusation came in the wake of a high-profile investigation into sexual abuse allegations centering on a group of six contracted cleaning staffers, who were accused of raping a 6-year-old kindergartener in a school bathroom. One of the suspects died in custody in an apparent suicide after drinking cleaning fluid.

Dwi said police were still building the case and looking for additional alleged victims. After their arrest, the two accused teachers went though lab tests at Kramat Jati police hospital.

"We expect the results of laboratory and physical results to come out in around a week," Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said on Wednesday. He also said the suspects would be subject to a polygraph tests – which are admissible in Indonesian courts, but not as standalone evidence.

Celebrity defense lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea accused the police of trying to intimidate the suspects.

"After we left in a car, suddenly they were ask to sign a letter [consenting to detention], otherwise they would be shackled and jailed. They [signed] it without the presence of lawyers, obviously violating [regulations]," he said. He said the allegations were entirely fabricated.

The Australian, United Kingdom and United States embassies in Jakarta expressed concern over the arrests. "As the three founding embassies of the Jakarta International School, we are deeply concerned about the detention of several JIS teachers last night," the embassies said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

The Canadian embassy on Wednesday evening told the Jakarta Globe that it was involved in the legal proceedings.

"Canadian consular officials are providing assistance to a Canadian citizen who has been detained in Indonesia," embassy spokesman Ian Trites said in an email. "Consular officials are engaged with local authorities to gather additional information. To protect the private and personal information of the individual concerned, further details on this case cannot be released."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/police-accuse-jis-teachers-drugging-students-magic-stone/

Labour & migrant workers

Workers to monitor election result announcement

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Jakarta – The Confederation of Indonesian Workers Union (KSPI) will deploy 5,000 to 10,000 members to monitor the announcement of the final presidential election result at the General Elections Commission (KPU) on July 22, KSPI president Said Iqbal said on Wednesday.

"We are going to monitor the announcement peacefully and will not be intimidating anyone or causing any riots. If the situation is appropriate then we will deploy 10,000 workers," he said in Jakarta on Wednesday, as reported by tribunnews.com.

Said explained that the workers would gather at the KPU headquarters in Jakarta and also at its low-level branches to offset the number of Joko "Jokowi" Widodo-Jusuf Kalla supporters.

"We have an interest [in the election result]. Prabowo [Subianto] has already signed the ten demands of the people and one of them is to provide decent wages for workers," he said.

Said added that workers all over Indonesia are currently monitoring the vote count at different levels to make sure that there is no vote manipulation.

In May, the KSPI declared its official support for the Prabowo-Hatta Rajasa presidential ticket. (fss)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/workers-monitor-election-result-announcement.html

Political parties & elections

Tifatul threatens to revoke TV One and Metro TV permits over election bias

Jakarta Globe - July 21, 2014

Ezra Sihite, Jakarta – Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring on Monday threatened to revoke broadcasting permits for news channels tvOne and MetroTV over allegedly unbalanced coverage of the Indonesian presidential election.

"I will send a warning to both TV stations," Tifatul said. "If they continue... their permit can be revoked."

The two stations, Tifatul said, have become subject to public scrutiny as both have been reported to the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) over their coverage of the presidential election.

Based on calculations by the KPI on May 19 to 25, MetroTV aired presidential candidate Joko Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla 184 times, or 35,577 seconds of screen time, while their opponents Prabowo Subianto and his running mate Hatta Rajasa were covered only 110 times, or 14,561 seconds.

MetroTV is owned by Surya Paloh, who chairs the the National Democratic party, a member of the coalition that backs Joko's presidency bid.

Meanwhile, TvOne, part of Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie's VIVA Group, aired Prabowo and Hatta 153 times for a combined 36,561 seconds, while Joko and Kalla were covered only 77 times, or 18,731 seconds. Golkar is part of the coalition of parties behind Prabowo's presidential run.

Tifatul said the ministry would be issuing a strong warning for MetroTV and tvOne based on recommendations by the broadcasting watchdog. "The [KPI's] recommendations will be evaluated. After the evaluation, they could either have their permit revoked or the second option might be to not renew their permit," he said.

According to Tifatul, both stations have admitted their wrongdoings. "Taking sides [in reporting] is prohibited, because the public frequency should not be used for one individual or group's interest. Everyone, including myself, can see that it [the imbalanced reporting] is too much," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/tifatul-threatens-revoke-tv-one-metro-tv-permits-election-bias/

Senior Golkar politicians seek extraordinary congress

Jakarta Post - July 21, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – As hope for a Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa presidential election win fades, Golkar Party executives have opened up the possibility of holding an extraordinary congress this year to elect a new leader.

Known as a political party that is never out of government, Golkar, which threw its weight behind Prabowo in the July 9 election, found itself in a new position after it emerged that presidential candidate Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla were leading in the vote tally over the past week.

Although elites from Golkar's executive board firmly upheld a decision made by a Golkar congress in 2009, which gave Aburizal the party leadership until 2015, senior politicians as well as members in regional chapters have continued to endeavor to unseat Aburizal, in an apparent move to clear the way to join a potential Jokowi administration.

On Saturday night, Golkar advisory council chairman Akbar Tandjung, who led Golkar from 1998-2004, visited an office of Jokowi's campaign team on Jl. Jenggala, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.

Although he said the call was just a friendly visit to Jusuf Kalla, his long-time colleague in the Islamic Students Alumni Association (KAHMI), he told journalists that he supported an immediate extraordinary congress, saying that "such an extraordinary congress was needed to annul any decisions that were made in the previous congress."

Other Golkar politicians who disagreed with Aburizal's last minute decision to support Prabowo, took this as a signal to push for the congress.

"We're confident that Golkar, as an organization, will change its support after the KPU [General Elections Commission] announces the result officially on July 22," Golkar senior politician Zainal Bintang said on Sunday.

Zainal, the coordinator of Golkar's mass organization Tri Karya, added that the formal announcement of a Jokowi-Kalla victory would undoubtedly motivate party members throughout the country, particularly those in regional chapters, to fully support the move to unseat Aburizal.

He added that the opposition group had gained more confidence for the move, particularly following the presence of Akbar on the Jokowi camp's premises.

"His [Akbar's] presence there said a lot. We believe that Golkar members will trust our former chairman over someone from outside the party because Golkar members support each other," Zainal added.

"Aburizal must be aware that Golkar is not Bakrie group. Thus, we will continue to push for the congress to take place at least by September," he emphasized.

In a closed door meeting to discuss the matter last Friday, Golkar executive Yorrys Raweyai told kompas.com that most provincial chapters had favored holding an early congress this year and would congratulate Kalla immediately after the July 22 announcement.

The anti-Aburizal movement within Golkar expressed disappointment at Aburizal's poor leadership due to the party's poor performance in the legislative election last April, when Golkar only secured 91 seats at the House of Representatives, far below the 106 seats it picked up in the 2009 election.

The opposition group also said that senior politicians within the opposition group, such as Ginandjar Kartasasmita, a former minister during Soeharto's New Order regime, had warned an extraordinary congress should take place if Aburizal and other party elites rejected their demand.

Golkar deputy secretary-general Tantowi Yahya said Golkar would uphold its previous decision to sustain Aburizal's leadership until next year.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/21/senior-golkar-politicians-seek-extraordinary-congress.html

SBY pleads for peace, unity

Jakarta Post - July 21, 2014

Ina Parlina and Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – In spite of the apparent rivalry between the two presidential tickets, Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa and Joko "Jokowi" Widodo-Jusuf Kalla shared a table to break the fast alongside President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the State Palace on Sunday.

In his speech at the event, Yudhoyono emphasized that such a friendly gathering could ease political tensions between the polarizing support for the two presidential tickets.

Yudhoyono also pointed out a hadith (record of words and deeds of Prophet Muhammad) that reminds people to not have prejudices that could lead to the fall of a nation. "It is important to value our unity, brotherhood and togetherness. When a nation is divided, to reunite is not easy," he added.

Yudhoyono also said that peaceful and democratic elections were a must, adding that "this afternoon, in this room, we strengthen our commitment [to] ensure and realize [processes in] our democracy".

Two days prior to the announcement of the official presidential election result by the General Elections Commission (KPU), tensions continued to run high as the Prabowo camp called for the postponement of national tabulation and the election result announcement, citing various rigging allegations.

The official vote recapitulation, which has been running for almost two weeks now conducted by various institutions, has thus far announced the lead of Jokowi and his running mate, with at least a 4 percent margin.

Prabowo's team has begged to differ from the publicly announced count but has not come up with its own data to be scrutinized.

Yudhoyono has previously asked the two tickets personally to maintain peace and order as well as prevent horizontal conflicts connected to differences in quick-count results. Jokowi responded lightly after the Sunday meeting, denying any heavy talks during the dinner.

"[People] at the table were talking about food and soccer," Jokowi said. Jokowi, however, told reporters that his camp would wait for the KPU's final say.

Prabowo told reporters after the event that he was still "seeking revotes" at thousands of polling stations in Jakarta and East Java, after his campaign team made a similar call on Saturday to postpone the announcement of the official vote tally result given that many allegations of election violations had not been addressed in those areas.

The stark contrast between the moods of the two candidates was also reflected in their supporters.

An advisor to Prabowo's campaign team, Yunus Yosfiah, said that thousands of Prabowo supporters were expected to descend on KPU headquarters on July 22, although the presence of the supporters was not meant to cause unrest but instead to secure KPU headquarters.

Meanwhile, the Jokowi campaign team has called on its supporters to stay home on July 22 so as not to be provoked by certain groups bent on creating unrest.

Earlier on Sunday, in a televised event in Jakarta, two volunteer groups claiming to represent each camp, declared they would maintain peace during the KPU announcement. The event was also attended by National Police chief Gen. Sutarman and Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Moeldoko.

Ananda Mustajab Latif, claiming to represent Jokowi's volunteers, urged all Jokowi volunteers to not take to the streets on July 22 and to accept the KPU's final say.

He also urged Prabowo volunteers to be "legowo", or accept something unpleasant in a sincere manner, should Prabowo lose to Jokowi, and vice versa. "If Prabowo-Hatta are elected, it means they are indeed the next president and vice president," he said.

Brambini, who represented Prabowo's volunteers, said he hoped the new leaders, whoever they were, would focus on fighting for the best interests of the nation.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a Jokowi camp volunteer coordinator, however, disapproved of Ananda, saying that he had not communicated with them.

Eva said Ananda, who once was a member of the Pemuda Pancasila youth organization – which backs the Prabowo ticket, became a volunteer after he announced his support for Jokowi, and later joined Seknas Jokowi, a volunteer support organization for Jokowi.

"We appreciate today's peace declaration although we perceive it merely as a ceremonial activity because nevertheless Jokowi has been seeking reconciliation."

A breezier call for peace came from Prabowo supporters in Bali. Both campaign teams in the region have declared that they have urged their supporters to avoid conflicts after the official result is announced.

"I have confirmed to Prabowo-Hatta supporters to keep things calm and stable in Bali. Whatever the official result, we have to accept it. Whoever the winner is, we have to accept it," the campaign team coordinator of the Prabowo-Hatta ticket, Ketut Sudikerta, said Sunday.

[Ni Komang Erviani from Denpasar contributed to this story.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/21/sby-pleads-peace-unity.html

Members of Prabowo's team raise white flag

Jakarta Post - July 21, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Ina Parlina and Haeril Halimt, Jakarta – Members of the Merah-Putih (Red and White) Coalition supporting the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa presidential ticket, have conceded defeat following the release of a temporary real count by the General Elections Commission (KPU) that shows the ticket has lost to presidential front-runner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla.

According to counts based on votes at the subdistrict and regency/municipality level by several independent observers, the Jokowi- Kalla ticket leads with about 52 percent of the vote. The KPU is expected to announce the final result on Tuesday.

"The election has been completed and my job is complete. I've failed the Prabowo-Hatta ticket," said Mahfud MD, the head of Prabowo's campaign team, during a televised interview with Metro TV. "I don't care about the politics surrounding the election."

The former Constitutional Court chief justice added that any attempts to conduct revotes in polling stations or postpone the announcement of the result would not make much difference, as it would not stop vote rigging practices that he claimed had taken place on both sides.

Similarly, senior National Mandate Party (PAN) politician Amien Rais, also a member of the Prabowo-Hatta team, reportedly passed a message around the party's lawmakers, asking all members to accept defeat to Jokowi-Kalla. Several PAN lawmakers have confirmed the circulated text message.

PAN deputy chairman Drajad Wibowo declined to comment on the validity of the message, emphasizing that "Pak Amien is a statesman, an ulama [religious leader] and a true democrat who puts the interests of the people above all."

"Pak Amien is not the final decision maker in the coalition as it's a multi-party coalition. However, he is always a role model in PAN," Drajad said as quoted by kompas.com.

The vote tally reached the national level on Sunday as regional election committees gathered to present provincial results in a plenary meeting.

Witnesses from the Jokowi camp voiced their suspicions about the high number of invalid votes in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) and Aceh. "In NTB, this mostly happened in Lombok Timur Tinggi regency," said Sudyatmiko Ariwibowo of the Jokowi team.

KPU chairman Husni Kamil Manik said nothing "extraordinary" had caused the high number of invalid voters, but promised to follow up the findings in the near future.

Prabowo's camp questioned the high number of additional voters who were not listed in Riau Islands, saying there was a mobilization of women workers in the Riau Islands to vote for a particular candidate.

"Many residents in Batam do not have identity documents related to Batam, Riau Islands, so they are not registered in the primary lists. But according to KPU regulations, unregistered voters can cast their votes by showing a letter of current domicile," Riau Islands General Elections Commission (KPUD) chairman Said Sirajuddin said.

At the time of print, the KPU had announced nine provinces, with Jokowi leading, winning five provinces, while the other four favored Prabowo- Hatta.

Jokowi won West Kalimantan, Riau Islands, Jambi, Bangka Belitung and Yogyakarta. Prabowo saw strong support in NTB, Aceh, South Sumatra and South Kalimantan. The plenary session is still completing the recapitulation process for the provinces of Bengkulu, West Java and West Sulawesi.

Prabowo expressed confidence he would win and slammed reports of his team members acknowledging defeat, branding them "misleading".

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/21/members-prabowo-s-team-raise-white-flag.html

Indonesian presidential election: Prabowo Subianto will not accept result

Sydney Morning Herald - July 21, 2014

Michael Bachelard – Former military strongman Prabowo Subianto has indicated he will not accept the result of the Indonesian presidential election and has called into question the process leading to his likely defeat.

The country's current president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, called upon both Mr Prabowo and the likely winner, Joko Widodo, to cool the heated political environment in the lead up to the Electoral Commission's declaration of a result, which is scheduled for Tuesday.

But team Prabowo instead increased the pressure on the commission, saying the election counting agency would risk committing a crime if it did not delay its announcement of the result until fresh elections could be held in a number of areas.

"I call on all [regional] electoral commissions to do your jobs according to the oath you made before the election that the process will be clean," Mr Prabowo said late on Sunday.

"The election monitoring agency [Bawaslu] has recommended that the election commission should re-stage the election [in several areas]; if that's not complied with, it's a crime. "I question the legitimacy of this process. It might lead to a situation where the process will be regarded as invalid."

In Jakarta, Bawaslu has suggested that the Commission check results from 5802 polling booths around the city after some people were found to be voting outside the area where they lived.

Bawaslu officials earlier described such inconsistencies as "technical" problems. It's not uncommon in Indonesia for people to be ordered to vote again, but they rarely change the result of an election.

All credible "quick count" polling agencies and a crowdsourced, online version of the official count, kawalpemilu.org, show that Mr Joko, known universally as "Jokowi," won convincingly.

The online vote-aggregator suggests Mr Joko took 52.8 per cent of the national vote. If those counts are correct, about 3.6 million votes would need to change from Mr Joko's column to Mr Prabowo's to change the result.

Mr Joko said there was no need for the Electoral Commission to delay its announcement. "Why? What's wrong? Nothing's wrong. Why should it be postponed?" he said.

The Electoral Commission chief, Husni Kamil Manik, insisted on Sunday that the results would be made public, as scheduled, on Tuesday.

But Mr Prabowo's "success team" secretary, Golkar politician Idrus Marhan, accused anonymous people of carrying out a "massive movement" of votes away from Mr Prabowo to engineer the result of the election.

And Mr Prabowo's political right hand man, Fadli Zon, said his team would certainly take the result to the country's Constitutional Court for review.

Asked if he was questioning the credibility of the Electoral Commission, Mr Fadli said: "Of course we are". "We have gathered so much evidence of cheating in so many provinces in the election process," he said.

It's understood Mr Prabowo's Great Indonesia (Gerindra) party, will present its evidence on Monday. Mr Fadli dismissed the kawalpemilu website as being "made by Jokowi's team".

Mr Prabowo's team has previously requested that thousands of its supporters attend the announcement at the Electoral Commission on Tuesday to "secure" it.

But his team also appears to be fraying. A former constitutional court chief judge, Mahmud MD, who joined the Prabowo camp, has now urged supporters not to go to the announcement on Tuesday.

The risk of rioting or unrest following the planned Tuesday announcement is also reduced because on the following day, Muslim Indonesians – 80 to 90 per cent of the population – embark on the Idul Fitri holiday, which involves spending time with family at their home villages.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/indonesian-presidential-election-prabowo-subianto-will-not-accept-result-20140721-zv4m2.html

Jokowi-Kalla win Indonesia presidential election as KPU completes tally

Jakarta Globe - July 21, 2014

Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Robertus Wardhi & Yeremia Sukoyo, Jakarta – Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo has won the presidential election with just over 53 percent of the vote against Prabowo Subianto, who garnered just less than 47 percent – according to the official results from 34 provinces compiled on Sunday.

A total of 33 provincial offices of the General Elections Commission (KPU) have completed their individual tallies by early Sunday morning, with Jakarta finishing last – declaring Joko the winner with 53.08 percent of the vote over Prabowo's 46.92 percent.

Indonesia's newest and 34th province, North Kalimantan, had its votes counted by the KPU's East Kalimantan branch. The final individual tallies of the provinces have been made public in various media reports, and the Jakarta Globe has compiled the data to produce its own recap of the national tally – with the KPU only scheduled to finish and announce its final national tally by Tuesday night.

On Sunday, the KPU headquarters in Jakarta only began recapitulating data from 12 provinces.

The Jakarta Globe's national recap of the 33 provincial tallies lands Joko – who is also known as Jokowi – and his running mate Jusuf Kalla the winners of the July 9 presidential election, collecting a total of 70.67 million votes (53.17 percent) compared with Prabowo's 62.25 million votes (46.83 percent). There are a total of 132.92 million valid votes – representing 70.6 percent of Indonesia's total eligible voters.

Consistent with quick counts

The result recap is consistent with the quick counts by eight pollsters announced immediately after Indonesians cast their votes on July 9 – which had put Joko in the lead with between 51 percent and 53 percent vote over the 47 percent to 49 percent in favor of Prabowo.

Four other pollsters, citing their own quick counts, had declared Prabowo the winner with lower margins.

The recap also showed that Joko and his running mate Jusuf Kalla won in 23 provinces, while Prabowo and Hatta Rajasa led in 10 provinces. Joko-Kalla thus led by 8.4 million votes, or around 6.3 percentage points.

"The three biggest contributors to Jokowi-JK's votes were Central Java, East Java and West Java," Tjahjo Kumolo, the secretary general of Joko's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the head of his campaign team, said in Jakarta on Sunday, citing the party's own recap of the KPU provincial data – similar to that of the Jakarta Globe.

Joko-Kalla won 66.65 percent of the vote in Central Java, which is a traditional PDI-P stronghold, securing nearly 13 million votes.

Although West Java was the third-largest contributor to Joko's votes, he actually suffered a big loss in Indonesia's most populous province, securing 9.5 million votes (40.22 percent) over Prabowo's 14 million (59.78 percent).

Bali (another PDI-P stronghold), Bangka-Belitung, South Sulawesi, West Sulawesi, Papua and West Papua were among other provinces where Joko-Kalla won by a large majority.

Prabowo-Hatta, meanwhile, won in the provinces of West Sumatra, West Nusa Tenggara and Gorontalo. Joko-Kalla dominated the votes in central and eastern Indonesia, while the spoils were shared on around Sumatra.

Overseas, Joko-Kalla also lead with a total of 364,283 votes (53.74 percent) over Prabowo-Hatta with 313,600 votes, or 46.26 percent.

Despite the result, Joko has so far restrained from again declaring a win as he did when several quick counts showed he was the winner on July 9 – as that soon proved problematic, with Prabowo having hastily followed to also declare himself as the winner, citing the four quick counts whose results defied the majority.

Some politicians from the Prabowo-Hatta camp – including National Mandate Party (PAN) founder Amien Rais, his son, Hanafi Rais, and Mahfud M.D., the head of the Prabowo-Hatta campaign team – have conceded defeat and even extended their congratulations.

"My dear friends ... Pak Amien Rais has extended a report from our campaign team; it says we've lost [to Joko] by more than 4 percent. Hope Allah gives us strength to sincerely accept this," says a text message circulating among PAN lawmakers – which has beenconfirmed by Yasin Kara, an assistant to PAN chairman and Prabowo's running mate, Hatta.

"Even if a revote is held, for example in Jakarta, there would be no significant change," Yasin told Indonesian news portal liputan6.com on Saturday.

Hanafi, also a PAN politician, meanwhile, congratulated Joko through a press statement sent to detik.com. "As members of [PAN's] young generation, we congratulate Bapak Joko Widodo and Jusuf Kalla – who will helm the national leadership for the next five years," Hanafi said on Sunday.

Mahfud, meanwhile, said in a Sunday interview with Metro TV, that "as part of the campaign team, I say the election is over. I'm returning the mandate [to Prabowo]."

"As for another political process beyond this, I will no longer take part. A legal settlement will be of no use. I will only guard the political process until the KPU announcement," Mahfud added.

Prabowo himself, though, refused to concede defeat, demanding that the KPU postpone its ongoing tally, citing allegations of "massive and systematic" fraud in a number of provinces – including Jakarta, Central Java, East Java and North Sumatra – which his team has reported to the Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu).

"We're only demanding what's guaranteed by the law [that the KPU first follows up on the fraud allegation reports]," Prabowo told a press conference in Jakarta on Sunday, as quoted by tempo.co. "We consider this [electoral] process flawed."

Alamsyah, a lawyer for the Prabowo-Hatta camp, said last week they would take a legal action against the KPU if it insisted on continuing its tally.

The KPU, however, has refused any postponement of the ongoing count. The election body's chairman, Husni Kamil Manik, said the tally would probably be completed today. "Seeing the development [of the ongoing national recap], we may be able to declare [the winner] on July 21," Husni said on Sunday.

Another KPU commissioner, Hadar Gumay, added that there was not enough ground for a revote – saying Bawaslu only recommended a recount for a number of regions and the KPU had done just that. "We understand [the complaint]. But for us, there is no strong reason to postpone the count," Hadar said.

Muradi, a political analyst from Padjajaran University in Bandung, West Java, criticized Prabowo-Hatta's move, accusing them of "delegitimizing" the KPU if they insisted that the commission postpone the ongoing tally.

Dispute? 'No Use'

The KPU has instead suggested that any dissatisfied party should file a complaint with the Constitutional Court – the only authorized institution to handle election disputes in Indonesia.

Aburizal Bakrie, the chairman of Golkar Party – another member of the Prabowo-Hatta coalition, on Sunday said the camp was indeed planning to dispute an official result of the KPU if it declares Joko-Kalla the winners.

"It is a constitutional right to go to the Constitutional Court. Everyone who fails will surely go to the Constitutional Court," Aburizal said on the sidelines of a closed-door meeting of the coalition in Jakarta on Sunday.

"If Jokowi-JK lose, they will surely dispute the result to the Constitutional Court however much the margin is. If Prabowo-Hatta lose, we will surely dispute it in the Constitutional Court however much the margin is – especially when we allege massive fraud," Aburizal said.

But observers have pointed out that disputing the case in the Constitutional Court will be of no use if the margin is too large. Constitutional law expert Margarito Kamis, for example, said a margin of more than 1 percent was already too large because that was equal to nearly 1.5 million votes.

"If it's more than 1 percent, then it's better not to go to the Constitutional Court," Margarito said. "To the winner, see this as a happy moment. To the loser, don't think this a disaster. Don't cause any mayhem; it will only be detrimental to you."

With the 8.4-million-vote margin between the two tickets, the Prabowo-Hatta camp would need more than 4.5 million votes to turn around the result and make themselves the winner of Indonesia's third direct presidential election.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/jokowi-kalla-win-presidential-election-kpu-completes-tally/

Prabowo wants delay in KPU announcement

Jakarta Post - July 20, 2014

Hans Nicholas Jong and Ina Parlina, Jakarta/Bandarlampung – The campaign team of Gerindra Party presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto made a surprise call to the General Elections Commission (KPU) on Saturday to postpone the announcement of the official vote tally result, scheduled for July 22.

The Prabowo camp had been adamant the public should only wait for the announcement on July 22 and should ignore results from quick counts conducted by a number of pollsters.

However, Prabowo's legal team now said the KPU must postpone the announcement given that many allegations of election violations had not been addressed in thousands of polling stations in Jakarta and East Java.

"We made the call because of findings from the Jakarta Elections Supervisory Agency [Bawaslu] regarding problems in 5,841 polling stations in Jakarta, where there were 220,000 illegal voters," Prabowo campaign lawyer Habiburokhman told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

He added that East Java Bawaslu had also found around 170,000 "illegal" voters who had cast their votes in locations different than addresses on their identity cards (KTP), in six regencies in East Java.

Despite the irregularities, the KPU only conducted revotes in 13 polling stations in Jakarta on Saturday. "Therefore, we've filed the demand to the KPU this afternoon and we will formally discuss the issue tomorrow," Habiburokhman said.

He said a postponement in announcing the election result was possible under the Election Law. "The law stipulates that the announcement [of the national vote tally] can be conducted within 30 days of the ballot [on July 9]," Habiburokhman said.

The chairman of Prabowo's campaign team, former Constitutional Court chief justice Mahfud MD, asked supporters of Prabowo to drop their plan to stage a rally around KPU headquarters in Central Jakarta on July 22.

"If I may make the call, please drop the plan. We don't need to secure the KPU because the job is in the hands of the police and the TNI [Indonesian Military]. The KPU is independent and should be free of intervention," Mahfud said as quoted by kompas.com. He revealed he would not be present at the announcement and would instead watch on television.

Earlier, an advisor to Prabowo's campaign team, Yunus Yosfiah, said thousands of Prabowo supporters were expected to descend on KPU headquarters on July 22 in anticipation of the KPU's announcement. Yunus said the presence of the supporters was not meant to cause unrest but instead secure KPU headquarters.

Meanwhile, the campaign team of presidential front-runner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, called on its supporters to stay at home on July 22 so as not to be provoked by certain groups bent on creating unrest.

The campaign team also called on its supporters to no longer wear Jokowi's trademark checkered shirts, especially after reports the shirt was worn by a group of protesters who staged a rally on Friday calling for the rejection of the KPU's announcement.

The Jokowi camp said the group had nothing to do with its campaign. "Starting today, I want you to no longer wear anything related to number 2, everything from checkered shirts, T-shirts, avatars, anything. Just go back to 'Indonesia Raya'," Jokowi said on Friday, referring to the country's national anthem.

Prabowo, meanwhile, said on Saturday that he had been invited by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to a meeting at the State Palace on Sunday. Yudhoyono has also invited Jokowi to attend.

The President arranged the meeting to allow both tickets to pledge their willingness to accept whatever result emerges on July 22. "Whoever invites me, I will attend. That's part of our custom," Prabowo said as quoted by kompas.com.

The KPU said it would not postpone the announcement of the official vote count result. "We'll stick to our plan, as stipulated in KPU Regulation Number 4/2014. The schedule of the multi-tiered recapitulation, from the lowest level at the polling station to the highest level at the national level, is already fixed," said KPU legal division head Nur Syarifah.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/20/prabowo-wants-delay-kpu-announcement.html

Indonesia's Prabowo says he will not accept election result

Reuters - July 20, 2014

Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto said on Sunday he will not accept the election result due to be announced in coming days, accusing the Elections Commission of not properly investigating alleged cheating at the polls.

The Elections Commission is due to announce on Tuesday the winner of Indonesia's closest presidential election ever.

A protracted wrangle over the result could begin to undermine confidence in Southeast Asia's biggest economy which has seen strong investment, particularly in its extensive natural resources, in recent years.

Monitoring of ballot counts by private groups last week, and quick counts shortly after the July 9 election by reputable pollsters, showed Prabowo's rival, Jakarta Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo was set to win.

But Prabowo said voting had to be held again in certain areas in line with the recommendation of an election watchdog group. "If they don't, then that is a crime. This very much calls into question the legitimacy of the whole process," Prabowo told reporters.

Fadli Zon, vice secretary general of Probowo's Gerindra party, said they had evidence of many instances of cheating.

"We ask the election committee to solve this problem with recounting," Mr Zon told reporters. "We will not accept (it)," he said, of the result, adding that the announcement should be delayed until the problem had been resolved.

Officials from the Elections Commission could not be immediately reached for comment.

Indonesia, a member of the G-20 group of nations, was swept by bloodshed in which hundreds of people were killed when strongman ruler Suharto was ousted in 1998 after more than three decades in power.

It has since made a slow transition to full democracy, with this only its third direct presidential election. Analysts said Prabowo would find it difficult to provide the necessary evidence to justify delaying the election results.

"Prabowo's team would need to have some idea of how the irregularities added up to justify asking the (Elections Commission) not to release the election result," said Paul Rowland, a Jakarta-based political analyst.

"The problems with the counting process and even intimidation or violence on election day have been relatively insignificant," he said.

Source: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2014-07-20/indonesias-prabowo-says-he-will-not-accept-election-result/1345401

Pollsters speak out against move to criminalize quick counts

Jakarta Post - July 19, 2014

Jakarta – Pollsters have spoken out against efforts to criminalize what they considered a scientific enterprise to ensure a free and fair presidential election by releasing quick count results.

Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) senior researcher Adjie Alfaraby denounced initiatives to block the pollsters from publishing quick count results by filing reports with the police, and he called on the National Police to not categorize scientific work as crime.

"Indonesia's presidential election is being closely followed by the rest of the world. Let's not give the impression that the police are willing to contest scientific findings that come with a disclaimer," Adjie said in a press conference in East Jakarta.

Adjie was responding to a move from Fadli Zon, the secretary of Prabowo Subianto's campaign team, to file a police report against LSI founder Denny Januar Ali, Indikator Politik executive director Burhanuddin Muhtadi and Jokowi-Jusuf Kalla campaign team member Akbar Faisal for treason because they published and disseminated quick count results.

In the report, Fadli said that pollsters prematurely announced the results from their quick counts, which could influence the final result of the presidential race.

Both Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Prabowo have claimed victory in the presidential election, anchoring their cases on quick count data gathered by different pollsters. While the Jokowi camp quoted pollsters with established track records of credibility, the Prabowo camp cited data from questionable polling agencies, including JSI, the National Survey Institute (LSN) and Puskaptis, which relied on dubious quick-count methodology.

"This incident, if left without response, can become a dangerous precedent for the development of our democracy," Adjie said. He also said that the decision to report the findings of a scientific project to the police could harm civil society and academic freedom.

Adjie added that the police report could discourage public participation in the election. "The presidential election is not only an event for the elite, the political parties or their candidates. It also belongs to the public, which has the right to participate."

Adjie said that Denny's early announcement of the election results were based on data from exit polls, a fact that was clearly noted in a disclaimer stating that the only official results would come from the General Elections Commission (KPU).

Adjie also said that LSI was known for projecting election winners quicker than other institutes, even claiming an Indonesian Museum of Records (MURI) title for conducting the fastest and most accurate quick count in a past election.

Separately, Burhanuddin said that quick counts could be one of the most effective tools against possible vote rigging. "Quick count data comes directly from the polling stations, we directly tabulate the results. As for the 'real count' there are many sides involved," Burhanuddin said as quoted by Antara news agency.

He said that the quick count results could be used as a yardstick against which the real count conducted by the KPU could be measured. "It is completely wrong, to expect for quick count results to be published after the KPU's real count," Burhanuddin said, responding to statements issued by JSI and Puskaptis regarding their methodology.(tjs)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/19/pollsters-speak-out-against-move-criminalize-quick-counts.html

Jokowi outspends Prabowo in campaign

Jakarta Post - July 19, 2014

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Campaign finance reports filed by both presidential tickets with the General Elections Commission (KPU) revealed that the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) ticket Joko "Jokowi" Widodo-Jusuf Kalla outspent the Gerindra Party's Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa.

The Prabowo-Hatta campaign team reported on Friday that it had spent Rp 166.5 billion (US$14.3 million) on the presidential campaign, while Jokowi-Kalla reported Rp 311.9 billion in spending. Friday was the deadline for the two camps to submit their final campaign finance reports.

"The financial report that we submitted today was the final campaign finance report of Prabowo-Hatta, which covers spending from June 3 to July 18," Thomas Djiwandono, treasurer for the Prabowo-Hatta campaign, said after submitting the report at the KPU's headquarters in Menteng, Central Jakarta.

During that period, the Prabowo-Hatta campaign raised Rp 166.5 billion in campaign contributions, leaving only Rp 1.6 million in the campaign's bank account set up specifically for fundraising. Meanwhile, the Jokowi-Hatta camp raised Rp 312.3 billion, and left Rp 476.7 million in its coffers.

Political parties provided the largest share of donations to the Prabowo- Hatta campaign with Rp 101.7 billion. Other contributors were corporations, with Rp 56.6 billion, Prabowo and Hatta themselves with Rp 5 billion, individual donors with Rp 2.1 billion and groups and organizations with Rp 1 billion. "The Gerindra Party donated the most [compared to other parties]," Thomas said.

In terms of spending, Prabowo-Hatta spent the greatest proportion of its budget, Rp 88.2 billion, on media advertisements. The ticket also spent Rp 57.5 billion on campaign activities and Rp 13.1 billion on campaign paraphernalia.

The Jokowi-Kalla camp meanwhile spent Rp 151.2 billion on media advertisements. In contrast to the Prabowo-Hatta campaign, funded largely by political parties and corporations, the Jokowi-Kalla campaign raised a substantial amount from individual donations, with more than 60,000 individuals contributing.

"The amount from individual donors was Rp 42.7 billion, while corporations contributed Rp 63.1 billion," Jokowi-Kalla campaign secretary Akbar Faizal said.

The Jokowi-Kalla campaign, however, had to return up to Rp 20 billion of those donations as many of the individuals failed to provide necessary documents required by the KPU. "We haven't been able to verify all [donor information] and we are trying to do that," Akbar said.

Jokowi-Kalla treasurer Didit Mehta Paryadi, meanwhile, said that the campaign could do nothing to prevent individuals from making contributions via bank transfer to Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), Bank Central Asia (BCA) or Bank Mandiri without proper documents, such as a letter of statement, identity card and taxpayer card.

"But we already set up a call center to which people [who donated] could send a letter of statement," he said.

Didit added that the campaign had also obtained a guarantee from the three banks that they would prepare documents required by the private audit firms (KAP) tasked to audit the campaign finance reports.

Responding to the final campaign finance reports, KPU legal bureau chief Nur Syarifah said that the commission would submit them to private audit firms in the next seven days. The firms will have 45 days to audit the reports.

"Now, the auditors will have to really analyze the reports and find whether there were any dubious donors or suspicious money," she said.

She also said that auditors would verify the reports by doing a spot check and random sampling of individual and corporate donors. "They will not only work behind desks," she said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/19/jokowi-outspends-prabowo-campaign.html

Indonesians rally to protect presidential vote from rigging

The Guardian (Australia) - July 18, 2014

Kate Lamb, Jakarta – Indonesians have mobilised in their thousands to ensure the vote counting process in the presidential election is free and fair prior to the official announcement of the winner, expected on Tuesday.

Ex-army general Prabowo Subianto and Jakarta Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo both drew on different unofficial quick counts to declare they had won the 9 July election.

Emotions have run high during this ballot, the tightest and most divisive in Indonesia's short democratic history, and the close contest has energised and mobilised voters.

Dhyta Caturani, a project officer at a local NGO in Jakarta, had never voted before but this week was losing sleep to keep a watchful eye on the count.

"I've been staying up until 2 in the morning at the kecamatan [sub-district office] to watch the count and then going into the office in the morning," she said.

In a country run by an elite pack and where parliamentarians are frequently embroiled in corruption scandals, Jokowi, an outsider with a clean reputation, has inspired an army of volunteers. Caturani said several of her friends had taken leave to get behind the Jokowi campaign, and then to guard the vote.

From the village level, vote counts are subsequently verified at the sub- district, regional and provincial levels before they are sent to the national elections body. The complicated and bureaucratic process has raised fears vote tallies could be tampered with at several stages.

After quitting his job six months ago to become more deeply involved with the Jokowi volunteers, Anton Pradjasto has been monitoring the vote count in his area at each level.

"I just want to give a sense that we are there and we are watching," he said, after stepping out from watching a vote count in the Prabowo stronghold of Banten, a province in West Java. "We are sure Jokowi is the winner and we don't want to be cheated."

More than any election in the past, supporters on both sides have taken a proactive role in election monitoring.

On election day voters paid particular attention to the C1 form, a document that shows the final tabulation of votes at individual polling booths. Many voters waited at their local booths for hours so they could take photos of the forms and post them on social networks.

The newly created phone application iWitness, one of several election- related social media phenomena to spring up this year, allows voters to upload the forms and crosscheck the results at the national level so there is evidence of doctoring if the numbers don't match.

The C1 form, joked Prasetyo, is like a new political "celebrity" because everyone wants to take a photo of it.

Describing as partisan the quick counts that point in favour of his opponent, Prabowo has repeatedly urged Indonesians to wait for the official announcement on 22 July and maintained that he is in the lead.

"All of the real counts show I'm leading," he told the BBC in an interview two days after the election., "So I'm very confident that I have the mandate of the Indonesian people."

The claims were significantly weakened this week after two pollsters that pointed to a Prabowo victory refused to be audited by the Indonesian Association for Public Opinion Surveys. The two institutions have since been dismissed, while the methodology used by seven of eight pollsters that showed a Jokowi win, has been validated by the same association.

In the lead up to the official announcement, analysts say that if he doesn't win Prabowo might take the dispute to the Constitutional Court (MK), the former chief of which was recently jailed for life for accepting millions in bribes.

Responding to a question about the current vulnerabilities of the court, Ade Irawan, a researcher at Indonesia Corruption Watch referred to a new word, a play on an existing Javanese one, that has just entered the Indonesian vernacular.

"We already detect he will take it to the MK [Constitutional Court], although we hope that Prabowo can 'legowo,' after the announcement," said Irawan. Referring to Prabowo by the last two letters of his name "wo", the term legowo is an abbreviation of "Let it go, Wo."

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/18/indonesia-presidential-vote-volunteer-monitors

Prabowo urged to bow out

Jakarta Post - July 18, 2014

Jakarta – Presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto is facing mounting pressure to concede defeat as prominent citizens have published open letters expressing their wishes on the "Surat Untuk Pak Bowo" (Letters to Mr. Bowo) page on Tumblr, a blogging website.

Public figures, such as playwright Leila Chudori, singer Nina Tamam, public speaker Pandji Pragiwaksono and film director Riri Riza have submitted letters to Prabowo, ranging from the heartfelt to the plainly pragmatic.

All of them convey the utmost respect for the former Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) commander in their requests.

Renowned poet and journalist Goenawan Mohammad said in his letter on Monday, "Our country needs you. In any position, whether as winner or loser."

The former Tempo chief editor, who was a vocal critic of the authoritarian Soeharto regime, tried to appeal to Prabowo's honor, reminding him that his rivals considered him and running mate Hatta Rajasa "patriots and statesmen", despite their differences.

Goenawan also said that a political victory was temporary, but that the dream of a better Indonesia would supersede it for the sake of future generations. "Let us respect the people's choice in 2014," he concluded.

Film director Joko Anwar acknowledged that he was motivated to write a letter to Prabowo because of the tendency of his camp to be unrelenting, despite increasing evidence that a Joko "Jokowi" Widodo win was on the horizon.

"This is not only Prabowo's dilemma, but also the people's dilemma. The energy spent throughout this election was massive. Let's just accept the result and move on," he told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Joko said this year's election would forever be etched into history as the one that successfully propelled the majority of Indonesians to care about their future leader and take part in determining who it should be.

He mentioned in his open letter that, as a film director, he was able to instinctively pick up on playacting or sense someone's sincerity. He said he believed Prabowo really wanted to do something for the country.

"Pak, this country needs a hero, not just a president. Being president doesn't necessarily bring good to the people. But being a hero means having an impact on the lives of the people," Joko wrote.

In response to the letters, Pius Lustrilanang, a lawmaker from Prabowo's Gerindra Party, denied conceding defeat after he posted a short commentary on Facebook, indicating that the losing party would have to be given just as much respect as the winner.

"I never said that we might lose the election. I was saying that whoever loses the race should still be honored just as much as the winner," he told the Post. Pius insisted that the Prabowo camp would not concede defeat ahead of the General Elections Commission's (KPU) official results.

He also said that his colleagues would challenge possible electoral fraud at the Constitutional Court, and that restraint on everyone's part would be the better option rather than forcing others to concede. "For all Jokowi's supporters, be patient. I hope supporters from both camps are prepared either to win or lose."

The open letters, which are mostly written by people who openly supported Jokowi, come in the form of personal reflections, poetry and anecdotes, and are accessible at suratuntukpakbowo.tumblr.com.

As of Thursday evening, 56 open letters had been published on the website. The authors of the letters cited growing concern about dubious results by certain pollsters. They also said they were worried that statements from the two candidates, who both claimed victory in the election, could prompt violations by both sides seeking to rig the final result.

In the end, they all asked Prabowo to gracefully accept the official results if the KPU's tally showed that the rival Jokowi-Jusuf Kalla ticket was indeed the winner of the election. (tjs)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/18/prabowo-urged-bow-out.html

Volunteer vote count website under attack

Jakarta Globe - July 17, 2014

Jakarta – A website built by volunteers to trawl through publicly available General Election Commission (KPU) data and conduct its own informal vote count came under attack from hackers on Thursday, according to the site's founder – a day after it published data showing Joko Widodo in the lead.

"Our team is fighting; there are only five of us against hundreds," KawalPemilu.com founder Ainun Najib told news portal Tempo.co on Thursday.

Ainun, a former International Math Olympiad champion, said the attacks began on Wednesday afternoon after news spread that the site had posted data showing Joko Widodo and running mate Jusuf Kalla ahead with just under 53 percent of the vote.

As of Thursday afternoon, the the Jakarta Globe was unable to access the site. Ainun did not elaborate on the nature of the attacks but said that they originated in Indonesia. He did not say if the site had been targeted by denial of service attacks.

He was not available for immediate comment. He told Tempo that he had hired two information security experts to help protect the site and posted a potential workaround on Twitter.

The website was equipped with standard security measures, he said, but attackers were able to circumvent them.

He said that some attackes seemed to have targeted the data itself in an attempt to discredit its accuracy. Those problems had since been corrected, he said. "The data is safe," he said.

Although the accuracy of the website could not be verified, it received praise from observers, who said it was healthy for the political process.

"As this is a new thing, we cannot see its track record," Andrinof Chaniago, a lecturer in politics at University of Indonesia told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday. "I think this is a good movement, setting up the website. There used to be only one party supervising the election [the General Election Commission]."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/volunteer-vote-count-website-attack/

Prabowo's camp prepares to contest result

Jakarta Post - July 17, 2014

Hans Nicholas Jong and Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – Although presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto has claimed that he will abide by the official election result, his legal team is gearing up to challenge the final vote tabulation, scheduled to be announced by the General Elections Commission (KPU) on July 22.

Prabowo campaign team lawyer Habiburokhman said on Wednesday that the camp was ready to file an election-dispute case with the Constitutional Court should the KPU declare that Prabowo lost to the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P) candidate, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

Habiburokhman said the team would focus their lawsuit on three issues. "The first is vote-buying. The second is the theft of recapitulation documents [C1 forms] in some regions and indications of public officials being partial [to one of the candidates]," he told reporters at the Constitutional Court, Jakarta, following a coordination meeting with the court and the KPU. The third issue, he added, was voters who cast their votes in locations where they did not reside, without proper documentation.

Following a close-fought election, pollsters have estimated the vote gap between the two tickets to be at most 6 percent.

Prabowo has repeatedly said in public that he will honor and accept whatever decision the KPU makes since it comes from the Indonesian people. He has criticized the Jokowi camp for suggesting "if Jokowi loses, the KPU must be cheating".

Jokowi's camp has said it will file a challenge only if there is a huge discrepancy between the official vote result and the quick-count results where Jokowi has come out as winner.

"In terms of an election dispute, we are waiting for the lawsuits that [Prabowo's team] are preparing," Jokowi's advocacy team member Sirra Prayuna said. "It doesn't mean we won't file a challenge. We have done our own vote tabulation and the result is clear [that Jokowi won]."

The Constitutional Court has given three days after the July 22 announcement for either camp to challenge the results. Once all necessary documents have been submitted, the court is scheduled to have its first hearing on Aug. 3. The verdict in any challenge will be announced by Aug. 21.

In light of the conflicting quick-count results and both camps claiming victory concerns over possible trouble following the announcement of the election result have mounted.

The National Police have prepared measures to address any security concerns, including possible riots, that may occur. The potential security measures included the use of live rounds to disperse angry mobs, National Police chief Gen. Sutarman said on Wednesday.

"All steps to address riots – from first to sixth, have been prepared. It is not an order to shoot [individuals], but a step up to using firearms," he said after an event at the National Police headquarters in Jakarta.

Sutarman was referring to steps stipulated in the 2010 National Police Procedures on Handling Public Disorder, in which police officers are authorized to use tear gas and live rounds to prevent individuals from harming others.

Sutarman said that he was closely coordinating with the military (TNI) and regional police chiefs to anticipate possible disturbances.

"The TNI are ready to support us, including in intensifying security measures around the KPU headquarters in Jakarta, where the final vote tabulation takes place," he said.

They will also pay special attention to areas surrounding Jakarta, in Banten and West Java, to prevent the mobilization of protesters into the capital.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/17/prabowo-s-camp-prepares-contest-result.html

Puskaptis, JSI refuse to reveal data behind quick counts

Jakarta Post - July 17, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The Indonesian Association for Public Opinion (Persepi) declared on Wednesday that the Development and Policy Research Center (Puskaptis) and the Indonesian Votes Network (JSI) were unaccountable pollsters as they had refused to reveal the research methods behind their quick counts.

The organization said the two member pollsters, which called the presidential election for the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa ticket, were in breach of the organization's ethics by their irresponsible quick-count announcements to the public.

"It's not about whether or not their [quick-count] results match the real count by the KPU [General Elections Commission]. It's about their refusal to open their data to the public," Persepi's ethics council head Hari Wijayanto told a press briefing on Wednesday. The two pollsters have therefore been dismissed from the association.

Hari, a statistician at the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), explained that neither Puskaptis nor JSI had complied with an audit order issued by Persepi, which aimed to systematically examine the data and methodology used by member pollsters that had released their quick-count results of the presidential election, as well as their sources of funding.

Seven of Persepi's member pollsters called the election for Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla, while only JSI and Puskaptis favored Prabowo-Hatta. The seven pollsters favoring Jokowi have been audited and their results have been declared valid.

According to Hari, instead of complying with the request to be audited, JSI and Puskaptis sent letters tendering their resignations as members of Persepi.

"Puskaptis in particular argued that the audit should take place after an official announcement by the KPU and that it should be transparent. [Puskaptis] regarded us, Persepi, as not being transparent," Hari said.

This contradicted Puskaptis executive director Husin Yazid, who had previously said that his institution was ready for an audit to ensure that its polling was accountable.

Puskaptis and JSI declared that Prabowo-Hatta beat Jokowi-Kalla by as much as 6 percent; but their results were met with public skepticism due to their poor track records.

Besides Puskaptis and JSI, other pollsters that also released their quick- count results favoring Prabowo-Hatta included the National Survey Institute (LSN) and the Indonesian Research Center (IRC), but they are not subject to auditing by Persepi as they are not members of the association.

Persepi's ethics council has validated the seven pollsters that called the election for Jokowi as they reported their data and fulfilled the probability-sampling standard in collecting their data.

They are Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC), the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), Indikator Politik, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the Cyrus Network, the Populi Center and the Pol-Tracking Institute.

SMRC, for example, used 4,000 samples while the LSI collected data from 2,000 polling stations. Puskaptis earlier said in a discussion that they only gathered data from 1,250 stations.

Ethics council member Hamdi Muluk, a political analyst from the University of Indonesia (UI), said the council would forward the result of its investigation to the KPU for further consideration.

"We need to set up a national board that has the authority to certify pollsters that conduct quick counts of regional as well as national elections. The confusion caused by questionable surveyors has damaged the credibility of other pollsters," Hamdi said.

In 2009, Persepi also investigated a survey institution, the Indonesian Research Institute (LRI), due to alleged election quick-count manipulation.

The LRI predicted that Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of the Democratic Party would only get 33 percent of the vote, followed by the Golkar Party's Kalla with 29 percent and Megawati Soekarnoputri of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) with 20 percent. However Yudhoyono actually garnered 60.8 percent of the vote, winning in one round. The LRI was later banned.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/17/puskaptis-jsi-refuse-reveal-data-behind-quick-counts.html

Blow for Prabowo's election challenge after pollsters refuse audits

Jakarta Globe - July 16, 2014

Camelia Pasandaran & Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Jakarta – Prabowo Subianto's claim to have won Indonesia's presidential election was dealt a significant blow on Wednesday after two survey institutions which showed he was victorious on July 9 were booted from the country's polling association.

Indonesia voted on July 9 to elect a successor to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Most credible quick count providers with a margin for error of 1 percent had Joko ahead of Prabowo by around five percentage points. Prabowo refused to concede defeat on July 9, however, and has maintained that the quick count providers his campaign uses have given him "the mandate of the Indonesian people."

Hamdi Moloek, a member of the ethics council at the Public Opinion Survey Association (Persepi), told the Jakarta Globe that two of these providers – Puskaptis and JSI – were no longer part of the organization because they had refused to be audited.

"Puskaptis's membership has been terminated," Hamdi said. "Regarding JSI, it withdrew before we decided to oust it from the association." Hamdi said JSI's membership would have been terminated had it not left on its own initiative.

The two other pollsters that showed Prabowo and his running mate Hatta Rajasa were victorious, the National Survey Institute (LSN) and the Indonesia Research Center (IRC), were not members of Persepi.

Eight of Indonesia's most respected survey companies showed that Joko Widodo and Jusuf Kalla won the election by a margin of between three and five percentage points.

However, Prabowo, citing the four quick count results that showed him ahead, has said he was confident the formal electoral count would show he was the victor.

In addition to terminating the membership of Puskaptis and JSI, Hamdi said that Persepi would recommend that the General Election Commission (KPU) prohibit the pollsters from conducting quick counts again.

"We have sent a letter to the KPU not to allow them to undertake quick counts in forthcoming elections," Hamdi said.

Persepi has asked all its members to be audited, including those whose quick counts showed Joko won. Seven out of the eight organizations that said Joko won the election have already been audited.

They included the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC), Cyrus, Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), Polltracking Institute, Populi Center and Indikator Politik Indonesia. The other company which showed the Joko-Kalla ticket to have won was state-broadcaster RRI.

Persepi concluded that the sampling method of the seven pollsters was correct and the quick counts were conducted with sound procedures. "The pollsters that have been audited have explained the process and the calculation method of the quick count," said Hari Wijayanto, head of the ethics council.

When contacted by the Jakarta Globe, the director of Puskaptis, Husin Yazid, refused to comment. "Why are you calling at this hour? This is fast-breaking time," Husin said.

In a recent interview with Majalah Detik, Husin said that he was ready to shut down his polling business if the final election result was different to his quick count result.

"My methodology is clear," Husin was quoted as saying by Majalah Detik. "I used 1,250 samples with margin of error of 1 percent and a reliability of 95 percent. [The samples were] picked proportionally from between 130 and 150 districts in 33 provinces."

Husin, who was once saved by police in Palembang when an angry mob accused him of manipulating quick counts, said that he funded the Rp 20 billion ($1.7 million) quick count himself.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/blow-prabowos-election-challenge-pollsters-refuse-audits/

Indonesian presidential election hinges on graft-battered court

Jakarta Globe - July 16, 2014

Erwida Maulia & Erwin Sihombing, Jakarta – The single-digit difference between the votes for the two candidates in last week's presidential election, coupled with the increasingly litigious posturing by both sides, has made it all but inevitable that the official results, set to be announced on July 22, will be disputed at the Constitutional Court.

But with the court still reeling from the arrest and subsequent life sentence for its chief justice, Akil Mochtar, in a corruption case, doubts have emerged about the independence of any decision to be handed down with regard to the presidential election results.

The camp of Joko Widodo, who according to eight of 12 pollsters won the July 9 ballot by a margin of around 54 percent to 48 percent for Prabowo Subianto, says it has tabulated the data, and "the results are clear."

"If there is a substantial difference between the official count the results of the quick counts that we believe to be credible, then we will [challenge the official tally]," Sirra Prayuna, a lawyer for Joko's team, said on Wednesday at a meeting at the Constitutional Court that was also attended by representatives from Prabowo's camp.

"If we lose, we will file a suit," Habiburokhman, a member of Prabowo's legal team, said after the meeting. "We will report to the court our findings of structured, systematic and massive practices of vote-buying, as well as the snatching of C1 forms and allegedly partisan polling officers in a number of regions."

The C1 form is filled out by each polling station at the end of voting, to keep a written tally of the votes for each candidate, as well as the voter turnout and the number of invalid ballots. It is meant to prevent ballot- stuffing further along in the vote-counting process, although observers warn that it is prone to being doctored or manipulated to cover up ballot- stuffing attempts.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) is expected to issue the final results of the ongoing vote count by next Tuesday, and the Constitutional Court has given both camps until the following Friday, July 25, to file any disputes to the KPU's findings.

The court then has a deadline of Aug. 22 by which to rule on all the disputes, before the new president is sworn in on Oct. 20.

Court on trial

A year earlier, the prospect of the Constitutional Court passing a fair and balanced ruling on such a critical matter would not have caused much of a stir. But the court's reputation has taken a huge hit since its chief justice, Akil, was arrested in early October last year on accusations of taking bribes in exchange for favorable rulings in at least two local elections disputes.

He was subsequently tried, and was last month sentenced to life in prison by the Jakarta Anti-Corruption Court for taking Rp 60 billion ($5.1 million) in bribes in 15 regional election disputes handled by the Constitutional Court. He was also convicted of laundering more than Rp 100 billion since 2002. The sentence was the heaviest ever handed down in a corruption case.

"The Akil incident was admittedly a traumatizing experience, but it was an individual case," says Irman Putra Sidin, a constitutional law expert. "There is no proof of it being institutional," he adds. He says that while people may doubt the court's ability to pass a fair ruling, "they must not dwell too much on these concerns."

He also dismisses worries about a potential conflict of interest among the panel of nine constitutional justices, given that two of them, including the new chief justice, were previously members of political parties that are currently part of Prabowo's coalition.

Chief Justice Hamdan Zoelva was a senior member of the Crescent Star Party (PBB) from 1999 to 2010, while Justice Patrialis Akbar chaired the National Mandate Party (PAN) at the House of Representatives from 2004 to 2009 period. The PAN's current chairman, Hatta Rajasa, is Prabowo's running mate.

"Almost all state officials have party associations, even the president [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] with the Democratic Party," Irman says.

"But that doesn't mean that the public shouldn't trust the president in what he does. Political party affiliations should not be a reason for distrust; that would be an insult to the Constitution."

No other choice

Jimly Asshiddiqie, the Constitutional Court's chief justice from when it was established in 2003 until 2008, agrees that people need to maintain their trust in the court, despite the justices' past party links.

"Some justices' past affiliations with certain parties may indeed create a problem, but they're professionals now," he says. "Besides, after the Akil case, they surely wouldn't want to be accused of political maneuvering. The court will try to stay clean, and will surely work on restoring its reputation."

But Jimly says this does not get the court off the hook, and urges people to remain alert for any possible foul play in the hearings on the election disputes.

Siti Zuhro, a political scientist from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), says the current impasse over who really won the presidential election, and the prospect of having the Constitutional Court decide once and for all, makes for a "most difficult" time in Indonesia's democracy.

She cites the public's loss of trust in the court, coupled with a deeply polarized society after a high-stakes election campaign in which tensions have still not abated, even after voting day.

She agrees, though, that there is no other choice but to trust the court, the only institution authorized to rule on election disputes and the "last bastion of Indonesia's democracy."

"We don't want any riots, we don't want conflicts that lead to violence. So if there are any alleged violations, then settle it through legal channels; don't take the matter in your own hands," Siti says. "The Constitutional Court is still highly regarded for its justice, transparency and accountability."

She adds, though, that aside from putting faith in the court, the public must also safeguarding the process, and encourages non-partisan individuals to volunteer and keep a close watch on the whole vote-counting process and the subsequent legal challenges and rulings.

"This is what we can do as members of the public: to safeguard the process, in a civilized and dignified manner," Siti says. "Don't safeguard by delegitimizing the authorized institutions by claiming that they can't be trusted."

She also calls on both candidates to take the initiative to help "cool down" their supporters instead of inciting hostility against the rival camp, by setting a good example of being gracious in defeat should the KPU and the Constitutional Court find in favor of the other. "What we need is an atmosphere of peace," Siti says.

Yudhoyono, meanwhile, has called on the court to ensure transparency in its legal process, while reminding the public to give the court "time and opportunity" to settle all possible challenges in a responsible manner.

"National security is very important, and so is social harmony," Yudhoyono said in a speech on Monday. "We've seen how the people in Thailand have become divided because of years of conflict. Once divided, it's not easy to reunite. The process can take years."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/indonesian-presidential-election-hinges-graft-battered-court/

RRI in hot seat for conducting quick count

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Ina Parlina and Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – A recent plan by lawmakers to summon state-run broadcaster Radio Republic Indonesia (RRI), following its quick-count result that indicated victory for Joko "Jokowi" Widodo in the presidential election, has sparked public concerns over its future.

Excluding the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the National Awakening Party (PKB), the House of Representatives belongs to the Gerindra Party-led coalition that supported Prabowo Subianto, Jokowi's rival, in the July 9 election.

PoliticaWave, a site monitoring political conversations on social media, found that since Monday, netizens had been using hashtag #saveRRI to support the RRI following the House's plan.

As of 1 p.m. Tuesday, PoliticaWave had recorded 49,500 conversations with the #saveRRI hashtag. The RRI's famous motto, "Sekali di udara, tetap di udara", or "Once on air, always on air", has also been a popular keyword in 1,719 conversations.

"The issue [on dissolving the RRI] has been much criticized by netizens, especially on Twitter," said PoliticaWave's Yose Rizal on Tuesday. "It brings back memories of the New Order regime, which often censored the media."

RRI president director Niken Rosalita Widiastuti said the radio station not only conducted quick counts but also conducted exit polls and news feeds to update their listeners.

"Our quick count used objective data from 2,000 polling stations at the district level. We also had 2,000 volunteers from Sabang to Merauke [to help with the count]," she said as quoted by kompas.com.

Niken said that the RRI had also conducted quick counts during the legislative and presidential elections in 2009. "Our quick count results in 2009 were similar to the real count results. At that time, House Commission I appreciated our work because the results were similar to those of the KPU's," she said as quoted by Antara.

Members of Commission I on information recently revealed their plan to summon the RRI's board of directors following its quick-count result, which put the Jokowi-Jusuf Kalla ticket in the lead with 52.71 percent of the vote, with rival ticket Prabowo-Hatta Rajasa securing 47.29 percent.

Despite the fact that the RRI was one of a number of institutions authorized by the General Elections Commission (KPU) to carry out election surveys and quick counts, Commission I head Mahfudz Siddiq said the RRI should not have conducted the quick count. Mahfudz argued that the RRI was not an official pollster and, as a public broadcaster, it should maintain a neutral stance throughout the election.

The Indonesian Association for Public Opinion Surveys (Persepi) is currently auditing the methodology used by seven member pollsters – including the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Cyrus Network and Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC) – in light of the conflicting results.

Five of the pollsters indicated a win for Jokowi, while two others – the Strategic Development and Po- licy Research Center (Puskaptis) and the Indonesia Votes Network (JSI) – announced Prabowo as the winner.

Although it is not yet official, Persepi reportedly found that the CSIS- Cyrus Network and SMRC quick counts – which pointed to a Jokowi victory – were valid.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/rri-hot-seat-conducting-quick-count.html

Opposition to Bakrie's leadership gathers steam

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Opposition to the leadership of Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie has gained momentum with a faction within the party now calling for an extraordinary congress to unseat him.

Members of the faction, who include former law and human rights minister Andi Matalatta, former trade minister Fahmi Idris and former speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Ginandjar Kartasasmita, supported by leaders of the party's youth wing, also made a call for all Golkar members throughout the country to stage a national congress immediately.

The group said that if Aburizal failed to heed the call for a national congress, it would further press for the convening of an extraordinary congress.

Members of the faction claimed that Aburizal's leadership had set back Golkar's progress, leading to the party's poor performance in April's legislative election.

Aburizal's "immature and irrational" decision to support Prabowo Subianto and his running mate, Hatta Rajasa; and his arbitrary decision to dismiss three Golkar lawmakers – Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, Ginandjar's son, Nusron Wahid and Poempida Hidayatulloh for their open support for presidential frontrunner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate, Jusuf Kalla, were also cited by the group.

Andi particularly slammed Aburizal's poor leadership skills. "There were only 12 [political parties] contesting this year's [legislative] election and yet we only got 91 seats, far below the 106 seats we picked up in 2009 when 24 parties contested the election," Andi said.

Ginandjar, meanwhile, warned Aburizal about possible internal rifts. "We hope that members of the central board, who still love the party, listen to us rather than leaving us fighting against our own friends. Holding a national congress before October is the best way for all. Give the congress a chance to evaluate Aburizal's leadership," he said.

He added that the proposal for an extraordinary congress was also on the table. "There is no other way but an extraordinary congress, if the call for a national congress is ignored," he said, adding that the meeting could take place in August or September.

There is speculation that Coordinating People's Welfare Minister Agung Laksono has been tapped to become the party's new chairman, should Aburizal be replaced.

Ginandjar also hinted at a possible coalition with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) if Aburizal was ousted. "Jokowi has a vice-presidential candidate [Kalla] from Golkar. I think it's only normal that we hope the party could support it [the PDI-P]," he said.

The plan to oust Aburizal was first made public on July 9, hours after several quick counts by credible pollsters showed the Jokowi-Kalla ticket was leading the poll, ahead of the Prabowo-Hatta ticket. Aburizal's removal could allow Golkar to join a Jokowi-Kalla government, should one come about.

The threat of an extraordinary congress arose the day after Aburizal made his appearance at the declaration of a Prabowo-led "permanent coalition" on Monday.

Many within Golkar claim the decision to join the coalition was Aburizal's personal decision. Soon after the declaration, analysts predicted that the coalition may be short-lived.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party made it clear on Tuesday that it had not joined the coalition.

The Democrats' executive chairman, Syariefuddin Hasan, said he was unaware of the declaration and said party executive Nachrowi Ramli, running mate of losing candidate Fauzi Bowo in the 2012 Jakarta gubernatorial election, who was also at the declaration, did not represent the party.

"A permanent coalition? I am not aware of such a declaration [...] It is too soon to establish a permanent coalition while we are still waiting for the KPU [General Elections Commission] to announce the winner of the presidential election," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/opposition-bakrie-s-leadership-gathers-steam.html

'Permanent' coalition seen as already wavering

Jakarta Globe - July 16, 2014

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – The declaration of a "permanent coalition" by presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto and the seven political parties supporting his bid has prompted at least two questions: First, why the hurry to issue such a decision, and second, will it survive after the July 22 announcement of the official results of last week's election?

The seven parties are Prabowo's Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), the Golkar Party, the Democratic Party, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the United Development Party (PPP) and the Crescent Star Party (PBB) – although the last will have no seats at the new House of Representatives that convenes in September, having failed to reach the parliamentary threshold in the April 9 legislative poll.

The declaration binding the parties to Prabowo was made at the Proklamasi monument in Central Jakarta on Monday, with the chairmen of all the parties – except, tellingly, the Democrats – signing the agreement, with Prabowo there to witness the event.

Such a signing – and such a declaration – are unprecedented in Indonesian political history. In 2009, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono signed a similar agreement, called the "coalition contract," with the chairmen of the six parties that supported his re-election bid, but only after the General Elections Commission (KPU) had declared him the official winner of the election that year.

The pact essentially marked the coalition's agreement to continue their partnership beyond the election, and the six parties have remained members of the ruling coalition through Yudhoyono's second term in office.

Prabowo's declaration, though, was made before the KPU had announced the results of this year's election, expected by July 22, thus raising the question: Why the rush to do so?

Is Prabowo so confident of his victory? Only four pollsters, some with a checkered track record, called the election for Prabowo based on quick counts, while eight, including several of the most highly regarded surveyors, handed victory to Joko Widodo.

The PKS is also claiming victory for Prabowo, citing the result of its own "real count." But KPU has emphasized that both sides must wait for the official tally before either can claim victory.

The move may be an attempt by Prabowo's camp to give voters, and particularly their supporters, the impression that they are confident of winning, and that any other result announced by the KPU next week would be unprecedented.

But latest moves by at least two members of the Gerindra-led coalition – Golkar and the Democrats – may simply mean that Prabowo feels the need to bind his coalition with more powerful ties in order to prevent any of the parties from straying to Joko's own coalition.

Golkar's endorsement of Prabowo was a last-minute decision, made just hours after the party handed chairman Aburizal Bakrie the "full mandate" to decide the course of the party's alignment at its congress in May, after a poor showing in the April 9 legislative election left without it enough votes to nominate its own presidential candidate.

Aburizal quickly headed to the home of Megawati Soekarnoputri, the chairwoman of Joko's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), where he was reportedly rebuffed. He then scurried off to Prabowo. They next day, May 19, as Prabowo and Joko registered their bids with the KPU, Golkar officially joined Prabowo's army.

But many Golkar members were intent on backing Joko, who picked as his running mate Jusuf Kalla, the Golkar chairman from 2004 to 2009, and a far more popular figure in the party than Aburizal. The latter responded by firing party members known to support Joko.

But now with the majority of quick counts pointing to a win by Joko, calls for Golkar to switch sides are mounting.

Agung Laksono, a Golkar deputy chairman, recently suggested that the party would indeed cross over to Joko's camp, citing its history as a government party that has never served in the opposition.

"One of Golkar's programs is supporting the government. So if Jokowi becomes the president and J.K. [Kalla] the vice president, then we will support them," Agung told Metrotvnews.com.

The Democrats' commitment to Prabowo has also been questioned after Yudhoyono, the party chairman, failed to attend Monday's declaration signing. The Democrats were instead represented by the head of their Jakarta chapter.

Analysts are predicting that if Joko wins, as expected, the "permanent coalition" will prove not very permanent at all. "Golkar has never been outside the circle of power," said Haryadi, a political scientist at Surabaya's Airlangga University.

"I suspect there will be some hustle and bustle leading to the replacement of the chairman [Aburizal] by moving forward an extraordinary congress intended to attach [Golkar] to the new power [Joko]."

Other parties also look likely to abandon Prabowo's ship. Dimyati Natakusumah, a deputy chairman of the PPP, said his party was ready to join the Joko's camp if the candidate became president. "If we're asked to join, then we'll be in," he told Tempo.co. "Besides, if we're in the government, we'll be able to work directly with the community."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/permanent-coalition-seen-already-wavering/

Coalition reports foulplay in vote tally

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – A coalition of civil society groups on Tuesday filed a report with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) regarding alleged vote buying at the Regional General Elections Commission (KPUD) level during the tabulation of the July 9 presidential election results.

"The KPK welcomed our findings on the irregularities," coalition spokesman, Haris Azhar of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), told reporters at the KPK headquarters on Tuesday.

Haris said that the coalition had found that the alleged tampering had favored the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa ticket, which is supported by the Gerindra Party-led coalition, but he declined to reveal any further details.

According to quick counts by credible institutions last Wednesday, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo-Jusuf Kalla won the presidential election with around 52 percent of the vote.

However, on the same day, Prabowo also declared he had won the election and cited a number of survey institutions whose quick-count results have been deemed "questionable" by the Indonesian Association for Public Opinion Surveys (Persepi).

With regard to the allegations of tampering at the KPUD level, Haris said that the brother of one of the presidential candidates had met with West Papua Governor Abraham Octavianus Atuturi to allegedly discuss about the scheme.

"One interesting finding of ours is that there was a meeting between a regional head in West Papua and a brother of one of the presidential candidates. The meeting took place in a private jet," Haris added.

He further said that one of the presidential candidates had given regional heads substantial amounts of money to press the KPUDs to manipulate the election results.

According to the coalition, the efforts to manipulate the results also allegedly took place in Bangkalan regency, Madura Island.

"We also found many irregularities abroad such as in Johor, Malaysia. He hope that the KPK will follow up our findings, especially on vote buying because we have talked to the General Elections Commission [KPU] and the Elections Supervisory Agency [Bawaslu] but they gave no response,"

He added that members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) allegedly took part in the efforts to influence the election results.

"There was some sort of intimidation in a number of places [on election day]. All the irregularities took place due to a lack of supervision by the KPUDs and the Bawaslu," Haris went on.

Responding to the coalition's questions, KPK spokesman Johan Budi said that the antigraft body would first study the reports. "We asked the coalition to elaborate on their findings," Johan said at the KPK headquarters on Tuesday.

Earlier, the national campaign team of Jokowi-Kalla reported a number of irregularities that they alleged had benefited Prabowo's camp. One of the most blatant acts of tampering, it said, occurred in two regencies, Sampang and Bangkalan, in Madura island, East Java, just three days after the election.

The team found that the Jokowi-Kalla ticket had secured zero votes in a number places in the two regions, which the team said was highly unlikely.

"It does not make sense. At every polling station there is at least one witnesses from our team, not to mention several National Awakening Party [PKB] members and volunteers from the Ansor [Nahdlatul Ulama's youth wing] group. It is impossible that the Jokowi-Kalla ticket did not get a single vote," Ferry Mursyidan Baldan from the Jokowi-Kalla team said on Saturday in Jakarta.

The PKB is part of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)-led coalition, which is backing the Jokowi-Kalla ticket.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/coalition-reports-foulplay-vote-tally.html

KPU pledges impartiality amid vote-rigging concerns

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Hans Nicholas Jong and Ina Parlina, Jakarta – The General Elections Commission (KPU) pledged on Tuesday that it would remain impartial amid allegations of rampant manipulation taking place in the manual vote tabulation process.

The commission also vowed that it would resist any political pressure to favor one presidential ticket over the other.

KPU commissioner Ferry Kurnia Rizkiyansyah said on Tuesday that the commission would not risk its credibility by allowing vote manipulation to happen on a wide scale.

"Thank God, till now there has been no interference in our decision- making," he told reporters at his office at KPU headquarters in Menteng, Central Jakarta.

Ferry was responding to a call by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) for all institutions involved with the electoral process, namely the KPU and the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu), as well as the National Police and the Indonesian Military (TNI), to maintain their professionalism and neutrality, particularly while votes were still being tabulated.

Komnas HAM warned that with only a slim margin separating the two presidential pairs based on numerous quick-count results, the potential for vote rigging had never been higher.

"Vote-counting manipulation could be deemed a violation of human rights because the basic rights of the people will [eventually] be denied," Komnas HAM chairman Hafid Abbas said.

In its investigation, Komnas HAM found that manipulation might have occurred in areas where it had conducted election monitoring activities.

Komnas HAM dispatched observers to monitor voting in 13 provinces; Aceh, North Sumatra, Lampung, Jakarta and its surrounding areas, East Java, Central Java, West Kalimantan, Papua, West Papua, South Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, East Nusa Tenggara and Maluku.

It has been alleged that votes were inflated in favor of Gerindra Party presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto.

One of the most blatant acts of tampering allegedly occurred in the regencies of Sampang and Bangkalan on Madura Island, East Java, just three days after the July 9 election. The Joko "Jokowi" Widodo-Jusuf Kalla campaign team reported that the pair had won zero votes in a number places in the two regions.

Sigit Jojowardono, KPU chief of the technical bureau for elections, said that even though Jokowi did not get any votes at 17 polling stations in Sampang, Madura, it did not mean that manipulation occurred.

"Ideally, there should be a witness. The witnesses are sent by each campaign team. If they can't send witnesses that's fine. The public can always monitor the vote counting and file a report with the Bawaslu," he said.

Enggartiasto Lukito, coordinator of witnesses and vote counting for Jokowi's campaign, said it was obvious that manipulation had taken place in Madura.

"In some cases, votes for Prabowo were added and votes for Jokowi were reduced. In [several polling stations in] Madura, there were no votes for Jokowi and the C1 forms were not signed by witnesses," Enggartiasto said, referring to the vote tabulation form.

He said that there were statements from Jokowi supporters in Sampang that they had indeed cast their ballots for that candidate. "They said they voted for Jokowi [...] KPU, Bawaslu, the police, they have to do something," he said.

Separately, KPU chairman Husni Kamil Manik maintained that the commission would resist any political pressure.

Husni said that there was no pressure from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono when he called him last week.

The President, who made the call while he was being accompanied by State Secretary Sudi Silalahi, Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam and his two advisors, Daniel Sparingga and Teuku Faizasyah, urged the KPU to involve both camps in monitoring the vote tabulation process.

"The President said that it's really important not to leave the [vote tabulation] process completely in the hands of the KPU, because on July 22, one of the candidates would say that the KPU is not being objective," Husni said.

[Josh Kelety contributed to this report from Jakarta.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/kpu-pledges-impartiality-amid-vote-rigging-concerns.html

Popular election monitoring website targeted by hackers

Tempo.co - July 16, 2014

Dini Pramita, Jakarta – The Kawal Pemilu (Guard the Elections) website www.kawalpemilu.org , which is maintained by volunteers to report the movement of vote results from the presidential election was attacked by hundreds of hackers throughout Wednesday afternoon. "Our website security systems were almost overwhelmed", the manager of the website Ainun Nadjib told Tempo.

Nadjib related how his team is still battling the attack by hundreds of hackers which is being countered by a team of only five website security operators. "The five of us are fighting hundreds like the war of Pandawa versus Kurawa [in the Mahabharata myth]", Nadjib told Tempo today, Wednesday July 15.

Nadjib said that they had to bring in two information system security experts to ward of the attack that has been unrelenting since 12noon local time. The most intensive attack is believed to have originated from Indonesia and was intentionally directed at causing a system down so that the data had to be revised.

Standard security measures, said Nadjib, had been in place since the website was first established. As a consequence of the wave of attacks, security measures were upgraded to close any holes that could potentially be exploited by hackers. "Certainly there was a quite heavy attack, so we had to put extra security measures into effect", he said.

Nadjib suspects that the attack was aimed at undermining the credulity of the site which become popular as a reference for monitoring the election recapitulation results. "The hacker's aim was to cause a system down, change data so it would be different from the General Elections Commission (KPU) data", said Nadjib.

The website has since Sunday begun to tabulate data to represent the real count of ballot recapitulation results. Kawal Pemilu's data is based on scans of C1 forms [polling station returns sheets] that are uploaded on the official KPU website.

Although it is not an official KPU website, Nadjib admitted that it has received a great deal of support. "Because Kawal Pemilu's data tabulation is the closest to reality", he said.

Notes

The Kawal Pemilu website http://www.kawalpemilu.org, which employs hundreds of volunteers to manually enter data from scans of polling station return sheets (C1 forms) uploaded to the General Elections Commission (KPU) official website http://pilpres2014.kpu.go.id/c1.php, has over the last week shown a stable national vote tabulation count of around 52 percent for the Joko Widodo-Jusuf Kalla presidential ticket and around 47 percent for the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa presidential ticket.

[Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service.]

Source: http://pemilu.tempo.co/read/news/2014/07/16/269593567/Situs-Kawal-Pemilu-Dikeroyok-Ratusan-Hacker

Quick count institution declaring Prabowo victory refuses to be audited

Kompas.com - July 15, 2014

Jakarta – The strategic Development and Policy Research Center (Puskaptis) has refused to attend an audit by the Association of Indonesian Public Opinion Surveys Firms (Persepi).

Persepi ethics council member Hamdi Muluk said that the refusal was conveyed directly by Puskaptis executive director Husein Yazid through an SMS message.

"He [Yazid] said that the audit should only be conducted after the KPU [General Elections Commission] announces the official [election] count results on July 22. He was of the view that it couldn't be done before the announcement", said Muluk when contacted on the evening of Tuesday July 15.

Muluk said he regretted Puskaptis' position because, he said, it was quite difficult to contact the quick count survey institution that declared a victory for the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa presidential ticket because the organisation does not have an office.

In the end, Muluk said he decided to invite Puskaptis through an SMS message sent to Yazid. "Two days ago I sent him an SMS. Admittedly the impression was that it was informal but what else could I do", said Muluk. Not to mention, he continued, that Yazid had earlier issued a statement to the media saying that his institution was ready to be audited.

During a discussion in Jakarta on Saturday last week, Yazid stated that an audit would not be a problem. He in fact challenged other institutions to close down if it was proven that their quick count results were misleading.

"It's very unfortunate, I [can only] conclude from his SMS that they don't want to come. They refused to attend", concluded Muluk.

Persepi is carrying out an audit of the survey institutions under its membership. The audit is being carried out because of the differing quick count results that have triggered a polemic.

Aside from Puskaptis, Persepi is also investigating other survey institutions namely the Strategic and International Studies-Cyrus Network (CSIS-Cyrus), the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), the Sinful Mugnai Research Centre (SMRC), Indikator Politic (Political Indicator), Poltracking and the Indonesian Votes Network (JOSE).

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Source: http://indonesiasatu.kompas.com/read/2014/07/15/20051451/Persepi.Puskaptis.Menolak.Diaudit

4 quick count pollsters declaring Widodo victory pass ethics council audit

Kompas.com - July 15, 2014

Jakarta – The Association of Indonesian Public Opinion Surveys Firms (Persepi) completed its audit of the Strategic and International Studies- Cyrus Network (CSIS-Cyrus), Indikator Politik (Political Indicator), the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) and the Saiful Mujani Research Center (SMRC) on the morning of Tuesday July 15.

The results, the four survey institutions who conducted a quick count of the July 9 presidential election were declared to have used valid survey methodologies.

"Those institutions are okay. There wasn't any problems with the CSIS- Cyrus, the LSI, the SMRC and Indikator. In terms of the audit they're all clear", said Persepi ethics council chairperson Hamdi Muluk at the Sari Pan Pacific Hotel in Jakarta, on Tuesday July 15.

Muluk said that in terms of the process of carrying out the quick count all of the institutions have been found to be quite in order. Muluk said they were able provide an explanation of the preparatory stages, training of personnel through to regional coverage.

In addition to this, [with regard to] the enumerators [census takers] that were distributed at thousands of polling stations (TPS) in Indonesia, said Muluk, their identities and activities in the field were also able to be substantiated.

"Their samplings were good and okay, so for the moment there's nothing wrong. The relative samplings were correct", he said.

Earlier, Persepi's ethics council consecutively audited the CSIS-Cyrus, the LSI, the SMRC and Political Indicator. Overnight the council audited the Populi Center although Muluk declined to reveal the results. According to Muluk, all of the results will be officially announced on Wednesday July 16.

As has been reported, Persepi finally carried out an audit of the survey intuitions who conducted quick counts after the debate over the differing results. The majority of survey institutions declared the presidential ticket of presidential candidate Joko Widodo and vice presidential candidate Jusuf Kalla as winning the election.

Only the Indonesian Survey Network (JSI), the Nusantara Survey Institute (LSN), the Indonesia Research Center (IRC) and the Strategic Development and Policy Research Center (Puskaptis) declared different quick count results, namely a victory for presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto and vice presidential candidate Hatta Rajasa.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Source: http://indonesiasatu.kompas.com/read/2014/07/15/22325051/Hasil.Audit.Persepi.Metodologi.CSIS-Cyrus.Indikator.LSI.SMRC.Sudah.Tepat

Prabowo campaign sues US journalist Allan Nairn for defamation

Jakarta Globe - July 15, 2014

Jakarta – A senior member of Prabowo Subianto's election team has said that the award-winning US journalist Allan Nairn will be reported to police for publishing a series of articles detailing an off-the-record interview Nairn held with Prabowo in 2001.

"Prabowo never said the things alleged by Allan Nairn," Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party chairman Fadli Zon said. "This Allan Nairn has made so many statements, including those that we are quoting here in our report to the police."

Nairn has been a thorn in the side of Prabowo's campaign since he began releasing excerpts from his 2001 off-the-record interview with the former general who is now a presidential candidate, some 10 years after Nairn had his skull fractured by Indonesian troops while he witnessed the 1991 massacre of more than 250 demonstrators in Santa Cruz, in present-day Timor-Leste.

Prabowo has claimed to have won the July 9 presidential election, just like his rival Joko Widodo, based on a selection of quick count results. Officials results will be announced by the General Election Commission (KPU) on July 22.

Nairn's articles, which he released on his blog in the run-up to the election, painted a man who believed Indonesia was "not ready" for democracy and thought the Santa Cruz massacre was injudicious because it was conducted in full view of the press, rather than that it was a crime against humanity.

"Santa Cruz killed us politically," Prabowo said, according to Nairn. "You don't massacre civilians in front of the world press."

Another spokesman for Gerindra and Prabowo's campaign team, Maj. Gen. Sudrajat, previously told the Jakarta Globe that "Allan Nairn is a foreign journalist, a foreign correspondent who, from the time of the New Order, has always attempted to corner the Indonesian government."

Sudrajat added that for "a foreign correspondent, it is really inappropriate, really not credible... to interfere in the domestic affairs of Indonesia."

According to Fadli, "The essence is that we want the election process not to be disturbed by the intervention of someone claiming to be an investigative journalist who was actually arrested by the government back in 1998."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/prabowo-campaign-sues-us-journalist-allan-nairn-defamation/

Prabowo steps up attack on campaigners, pollsters

Jakarta Post - July 15, 2014

Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – The campaign team of Gerindra Party's presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto filed on Monday a police report against Akbar Faisal, a campaign team member of presidential frontrunner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, and leaders of two Jakarta-based pollsters for claiming that Jokowi had won the July 9 presidential election.

Prabowo's campaign secretary, Fadli Zon, accused Akbar of prematurely declaring Jokowi the country's next president after the candidate delivered a victory speech at the Proclamation Monument in Central Jakarta hours after balloting finished. Akbar, a Nasdem Party politician, worked as the first secretary of Jokowi's campaign team.

"At the monument, Akbar said that [Jokowi was] the president of the Republic of Indonesia without elaborating that the claim was based on several quick-count results. His statement could create security problems," Fadli told reporters.

According to Fadli, he handed the police video footage showing Akbar announce five times that Jokowi was the president. "Declaring someone president, while in fact our president is still SBY [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] could be considered treason," he added.

In his police report, Fadli also complained against Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) founder, Denny JA, and Indikator Politik Indonesia executive director, Burhanuddin Muhtadi, for publishing their quick-count results favoring Jokowi.

"The pollsters could be seen as the basis for [Akbar's] remarks. Also, Burhanuddin once said that the General Elections Commission (KPU) was wrong if its vote tabulation differed from his quick-count result," he said.

Prabowo's camp reported only the LSI and Indikator Politik despite the fact that at least five other reputable pollsters have confirmed Jokowi's victory in the election.

The pollsters, including CSIS-Cyrus Network and Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC), announced their quick-count results showing Jokowi leading with more than 52 percent of the vote against Prabowo's 48 percent.

Fadli denied assumptions that pressing charges against Jokowi's campaigner and the pollsters was a desperate measure by his campaign team to convince people of Prabowo's claim of victory.

"It doesn't mean that we are running out of options. We only filed a police report, unlike those who attacked the offices of [TV] news station tvOne. We do things in a civilized way, by seeking justice through legal channels," he said.

Fadli was referring to supporters of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) who staged rallies and vandalized the tvOne office building in Yogyakarta on July 3, over one of its reports linking the party to communism.

TvOne is controlled by Aburizal Bakrie, whose Golkar Party backs Prabowo. Moments after the election, tvOne faced strong criticism for airing only the quick-count results of pollsters claiming victory for Prabowo.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/15/prabowo-steps-attack-campaigners-pollsters.html

Coalition 'will be short-lived'

Jakarta Post - July 15, 2014

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – In an apparent move to control power at the House of Representatives, seven political parties that endorsed the presidential candidacy of Prabowo Subianto and his running mate, Hatta Rajasa, signed a pact on Monday to set up what they described as "a permanent coalition".

On Monday, the chairmen and secretaries-general of the parties, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to seal the deal witnessed by Prabowo, who was named the coalition's patron, at the Proclamation Monument in Central Jakarta.

"We have witnessed a historic event in which seven parties, which represent almost two-thirds of the Indonesian people, proclaim a permanent coalition. Its main purpose is to set up permanent cooperation to safeguard Pancasila, UUD 45 [the 1945 Constitution] and the principle of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika [Unity in Diversity] to ensure that an efficient government can bring about improvement for Indonesia," Prabowo said in his speech after all party delegates had signed the MoU.

Prabowo dubbed the group the Koalisi Merah Putih (Red and White Coalition). In a press conference after the ceremony, Prabowo said the coalition was founded on the shared aspirations and idealism of its members. He said any party withdrawing from the coalition in the future would face retribution. "There will be sanctions [for a change of stance in the future]." Prabowo said details of the agreement would soon be made public.

Representatives of the ruling Democratic Party, the party of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, were notably thin on the ground at the declaration, with only party executive Nachrowi Ramli, the running mate of losing candidate Fauzi Bowo in the 2012 Jakarta gubernatorial election, present.

Six other political parties sent their leaders to the ceremony; Aburizal Bakrie from the Golkar Party, Suhardiman from the Gerindra Party, Hatta Rajasa from the National Mandate Party (PAN), former House deputy speaker Anis Matta from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali from the United Development Party (PPP) and former forestry minister MS Kaban from the Crescent Star Party (PBB).

In their speeches, each of the party leaders warned the public against "movements to change the country's ideology, Pancasila", an apparent attack on presidential frontrunner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

Jokowi had earlier been targeted by smear campaigns, with accusations that he was trying to revive the now-defunct Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) in the country. Jokowi himself has been accused of being a communist for writing a campaign manifesto titled Revolusi Mental (Mental Revolution).

"Beware of obvious attempts by certain groups to attack our state ideology Pancasila so that they can replace it with an ideology that is different from Pancasila. We will be on the front line in protecting Pancasila. Pancasila harga mati! [Pancasila or death]," Golkar's Aburizal said in his speech.

Aburizal later explained that the permanent coalition was also meant to serve as a tool that would enable a checks-and-balances mechanism for the next government.

The coalition was launched only one week after parties in the coalition joined forces to endorse a new law that would strip the PDI-P of its privilege of getting the coveted post of chairmanship of the House.

Many, however, believe that the Prabowo-led coalition will be short-lived. Politicians within Golkar were confident that the party could change its position in the future. Golkar executive Zainal Bintang said Aburizal's move to join the coalition was personal in nature and would not bind the party as an organization.

"What if the KPU [General Elections Commission] later officially announces that Jokowi-JK [Jusuf Kalla ticket] is the winner? And many of us Golkar members throughout the country believe that will be the case [...] Aburizal will be a failed leader. Whether he is pledged to Prabowo is his own business, not Golkar's," he said.

Yusril Ihza Mahendra, a prominent lawyer and founder of the PBB, said members of the coalition could abandon Prabowo if he failed to win the presidential election.

He also said that members of the coalition would bail if the presumptive administration of Jokowi offered them cabinet seats. "The more parties that accept such offers, the sooner the coalition will break up," Yusril said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/15/coalition-will-be-short-lived.html

Joko signals wider Indonesia coalition as vote tally continues

Bloomberg - July 15, 2014

Rieka Rahadiana & Neil Chatterjee – Indonesian presidential candidate Joko Widodo indicated he is open to other parties joining his coalition as signs of discord appear in opponent Prabowo Subianto's camp with a week until official results are released.

Joko, known as Jokowi, has a lead of 2 to 6 percentage points based on unofficial tallies after the July 9 vote. Joko has a coalition of four political parties while Suharto-era general Prabowo, 62, who says vote counts conducted by companies he uses for guidance show him in the lead, is backed by six parties.

"Whoever wants to join together to build the nation and state of Indonesia, why not?," Bisnis newspaper's website quoted Jakarta Governor Joko, 53, as saying in Semarang in central Java on July 13. Official results from the election commission are due by July 22.

The comment suggests a change of tack as Joko's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, known as PDI-P, aimed before the election for a maximum of four parties in its coalition. While a diverse group could make agreeing on policy changes more difficult, a larger coalition could make it easier for Joko to pass laws in parliament should he win. The rupiah has gained 1.6 percent this month as investors bet on a Joko victory leading to less red tape and corruption in Southeast Asia's largest economy.

Golkar, the country's second-largest party and a key member of Prabowo's coalition, may change sides to Joko, Zainal Bintang, a deputy chairman of its advisory board, said in an interview on July 10. If Golkar were to switch, it would give Joko's coalition 53 percent of parliamentary seats.

Legal challenge

Prabowo's coalition will challenge the official election results to the constitutional court, the country's highest, if its legal team has gathered the evidence to do so, he told reporters yesterday. "It's not in our scenario," Prabowo said. "We're very confident that we're going to win."

Prabowo yesterday sought to project unity as his party, Gerindra, signed a "permanent coalition" pact with parties including Golkar. He said the pact showed he would be able to run a stable government.

Prabowo and running mate Hatta Rajasa, who heads another party in his coalition, the National Mandate Party or PAN, should know they have lost and be resigned to the result, the Jakarta Post newspaper quoted PAN founding member Abdillah Toha as saying in an open letter to the pair.

Golkar

"If say Golkar and PAN were to defect to Prabowo now, they'd receive some form of compensation, but not full coalition participation as the parties that nominated Jokowi," said Marcus Mietzner, associate professor at the Australian National University in Canberra and author of "Money, Power and Ideology: Political Parties in Post-Authoritarian Indonesia."

Joko may not accept Golkar if it comes to the negotiating table with current chairman Aburizal Bakrie seeking cabinet seats in return for its support, said Paul Rowland, a Jakarta-based political analyst. Golkar is likely to switch anyway, since it sees itself as a party of government, he said.

Dissent is coming from people who don't have influence at the party's leadership meeting, Bakrie told reporters on Monday. "They can voice their opinion but no votes," he said.

Golkar, the political vehicle of dictator Suharto who was toppled in 1998, has been in government for the past decade and has played some role in running the country throughout the post-Suharto era. Its leadership can only be decided at a party congress, next scheduled for 2015, and bringing forward the timing of that would depend on a vote by the central board and provincial leaders, Mietzner said.

Yudhoyono

"With a victory of Jokowi-JK already certain, Golkar as an institution should know itself, especially those who are backing Prabowo," Bintang, a deputy chairman of Golkar's advisory board, said July 10 by phone, referring to Joko and his running mate, ex-Golkar chairman Jusuf Kalla. "We can't be in opposition."

Outgoing President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is likely to try to make sure the electoral transition goes smoothly and that democracy prevails, in order to ensure his legacy, said Kevin O'Rourke, a political analyst who wrote the book "Reformasi: The Struggle for Power in Post-Soeharto Indonesia."

The parties currently aligned with Prabowo may wait to see the official election results before making a decision.

"We want to make sure based on the KPU," the Detik news website quoted Akbar Tandjung, Golkar's advisory council chairman, as saying on July 12, referring to the General Elections Commission. "After that, then we will know whether it's Prabowo or Joko. Then we'll discuss the next step."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/joko-signals-wider-indonesia-coalition-vote-tally-continues/

Electoral foul play in its many guises

Jakarta Post - July 15, 2014

All across the country, indications of foul play have broken out like a rash during the vote tabulation phase of the election, which has seen presidential hopeful Prabowo Subianto, a dismissed New Order-era Army general, refusing to concede defeat to rival Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

Quick counts from several reputable pollsters have indicated an average 5 percentage point lead in favor of Jokowi.

However, due in no small part to the tight margin, Prabowo has insisted he will wait for the official tally, which is scheduled to be announced by the General Elections Commission (KPU) no later than July 22.

Prabowo's recent fiery statements, in which he has made it clear that losing is not an option, has triggered widespread suspicions that Prabowo and his supporters may utilize any and all means necessary to secure victory.

In the past couple of days, there have been increasing reports of fraud in the tabulation process in many parts of the archipelago, fueling concerns of a systematic attempt to alter the voting outcome.

While denying the existence of systematic fraud, General Elections Commission (KPU) chairman Husni Malik Kamil acknowledged there had been a rising number of electoral fraud cases. He said the majority of irregularities had occurred at polling stations.

"The problems have been at the polling stations, where some voters were found to have cast ballots on behalf of others, or where illegible voters nevertheless turned up and cast their votes," Husni said on Monday.

The Bekasi Regional General Elections Commission (KPUD), for example, has decided to organize a repeat vote at a polling station in Central Kaliabang subdistrict, North Bekasi, following the discovery during the vote-counting process of 30 ballot papers that had allegedly been tampered with.

"Our election supervisors found evidence of foul play in connection to 30 defective ballot papers from the polling station," local Elections Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu) chairman Ismail Permai said.

According to Ismail, the damaged ballot papers were allegedly tampered with by seven members from local poll administrators (KPPS) to Jokowi's disadvantage.

Based on eyewitness accounts, Ismail said the KPPS members allegedly made use of a nail that was surreptitiously placed on the table during the vote counting.

Before revealing a ballot paper in favor of Jokowi, one of the KPPS members allegedly pressed it against the nail so that the ballot paper had both candidates marked, rendering the vote invalid.

According to the Presidential Election Law, the seven KPPS members could face prison terms of up to three years, if prosecuted and found guilty.

Another recent case involved irregularities in votes cast by dozens of detainees undergoing due process.

Jatinegara District Polling Committee (PPK) member Maliki said that Sunday's vote tabulation in his area in East Jakarta had gone smoothly, even though there were disputes between some committee members and witnesses regarding a substantial surplus of eligible voters beyond the standard 800.

According to the election law, a polling station is prohibited from having more than 800 ballot papers, including spares.

Maliki said the voter surplus was due to dozens of detainees being held at police precincts and prosecutor's offices being transferred to the Cipinang detention center to cast their votes a day before election day.

"In the end, the witnesses agreed to the tally while making a note of the objections, which will be raised in the regency-level polling committees," Maliki said.

The recapitulation of votes for the election at the district level is due to be concluded on Tuesday. Between July 16 and 17, the process will continue at the regency and municipal level, before proceeding to the provincial level. The national ballot recapitulation will be held from July 20 to 22.

However, the officially tally will not guarantee an easy win for either candidate, as the result is likely to be contested by the losing party in the Constitutional Court. (tjs/put)

Detected violations

Local election organizers punch extra holes in ballot papers during vote tabulation to render votes invalid
Unaccounted surplus of voters from different regions
Lack of supervision of election registration, as many ineligible voters manage to cast their votes
C1 tabulation forms left blank for data manipulation by election organizers at the regional level
Discrepancy between KPU data and reports from polling stations
The absence of witnesses and oversight officials at polling stations
Discrepancy between the number of ballots cast and the number of actual voters

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/15/electoral-foul-play-its-many-guises.html

Health & education

Indonesia 'being left behind' in HIV fight

Jakarta Globe - July 17, 2014

Vita A.D. Busyra, Jakarta – A new United Nations report has highlighted a massive increase in the number of AIDS-related deaths in Indonesia between 2005 and 2013, even as other countries in the region and elsewhere recorded declines, with experts attributing the rise to the high number of people from traditionally low-risk population groups contracting HIV.

The 2014 UNAIDS Gap Report, published on Wednesday, identifies Indonesia among a group of six countries "being left behind" in the push to ensure access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) for people living with HIV/AIDS.

Indonesia – along with the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Russia and South Sudan – is facing "the triple threat of high HIV burden, low treatment coverage and no or little decline in new HIV infections," Geneva-based UNAIDS said.

The report showed that Indonesia accounted for 4 percent of all new HIV infections in 2013, making it the eighth-biggest contributor of new infections worldwide, as well as 2 percent of all AIDS-related deaths last year.

In Asia Pacific, Indonesia is among six countries – along with China, India, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam – that account for more than 90 percent of people living with HIV/AIDS in the region.

The number of AIDS-related deaths in Asia and the Pacific fell by 37 percent between 2005 and 2013, the report noted, with countries like Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar posting hefty declines of 72 percent, 56 percent and 29 percent respectively.

However, the number of AIDS-related deaths in Indonesia actually increased by 427 percent during that same period, with UNAIDS noting that only 8 percent of people in the country living with HIV/AIDS had access to ART.

Indonesia accounted for nearly one in every eight AIDS-related death in Asia and the Pacific last year, the report showed.

"The situation in Indonesia is cause for concern, where new HIV infections increased by 48 percent and the country's share of new HIV infections in the region reached 23 percent in 2013, second only to India," the report said.

UNAIDS said there was a high prevalence of HIV infections among female sex workers, and cited the case of Jayawijaya district in Papua province, where the HIV prevalence among sex workers was 25 percent, compared to the national average of 9 percent.

"While in countries with mature epidemics, HIV prevalence among sex workers is stable, rising HIV prevalence in countries such as Indonesia is a cause for concern," the report said.

It also said observations suggested that HIV prevalence among gay men and other men who have sex with men was increasing in the country.

Injecting drug users were another high-risk group identified in the report, with an HIV prevalence "several times higher than HIV prevalence in the general population."

Indonesian HIV/AIDS experts acknowledge the increase in new infections and deaths, saying that Indonesia is on the middle part of an "S curve," marked by a rapid rise in infections after a slow start, and set to be followed by the numbers leveling off.

"You could say that the epidemic is relatively new in Indonesia compared to other countries such as Thailand," Kemal Siregar, the secretary of the National AIDS Commission, or KPAN, told the Jakarta Globe on Thursday.

He said that while the UNAIDS report had correctly identified the groups at highest risk of contracting the virus, one largely overlooked and underreported group was housewives who were being infected by their husbands, who had contracted the virus through extramarital sex with a sex worker or another man, or through drug use by injection.

Kemal said these women tended to be from low-income families, and as such were less likely to be aware about their right to access free or subsidized antiretroviral drugs and treatment from the government.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/indonesia-left-behind-hiv-fight/

Enrollment for national health insurance exceeds expectation

Jakarta Globe - July 17, 2014

Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – The number of Indonesians participating in the ambitious national health insurance program launched under the Social Security Organizing Body, or BPJS, is expected to grow next year. Current figures have already surpassed the 2014 target, according to an official.

"Based on our data, more than 125 million have enrolled in the program since last year – higher than our initial target of 121.6 million," BPJS spkesperson Irfan Humiadi told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday.

"This result is unexpected. Even though we have reached our target, we're still actively putting out information and increasing our marketing efforts to promote the health scheme," Irfan said.

The insurance applicants include millions of people who were already covered by the community health protection scheme (Jamkesmas), the regional health protection scheme (Jamkesda), and civil servants who were covered by insurance provider Asuransi Kesehatan or Askes, among others.

Irfan said employees from the private sector have also registered, and industrial-based companies and businesses have demonstrated good cooperation.

"Around four million have already registered for the insurance," Irfan said. "Motorcycle taxi drivers, street vendors and traders at traditional markets are also included within this group," he added.

Nevertheless, Junaedi, the BPJS director in charge of registration, said the number of employees in the private sector who had jointed the national insurance system was lower than hoped for.

Only 146,878 workers, or 15 percent of the private sector, have joined the health insurance scheme to date – a far cry from the BPJS's target of one million.

"We always set our targets high, because the participation from the private sector is also high. Last June, the participation increased by 180 percent," Junaedi said on Tuesday, as quoted by Kompas.com.

Applicants have been asked to file their registrations with the compulsory government program independently.

BPJS aims for national insurance to manage the health coverage of more than 200 million Indonesians, out of the total population of some 250 million, by 2019.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/enrollment-national-health-insurance-exceeds-expectation/

Graft & corruption

Andi sentenced to 4 years for Hambalang graft

Jakarta Post - July 18, 2014

Jakarta – The Jakarta Corruption Court sentenced former youth and sports minister Andi Mallarangeng to four years in prison and a fine of Rp 200 million, or an additional two months in jail.

"We declare the defendant guilty of having committed joint corruption based on the second alternative indictment," presiding judge Haswandi said at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Friday, as reported by kompas.com.

The sentence is lower than the 10-year sentence sought by Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) prosecutors.

The panel of judges found Andi guilty of abusing his authority to enrich himself in the Rp 2.5 trillion Hambalang sports complex graft case. According to the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), the Hambalang case caused Rp 463.66 billion in state losses.

The panel of judges found Andi guilty of accepting a US$550,000 kickback for the project through his younger brother, Andi "Choel" Zulkarnain Mallarangeng.

Andi was also found guilty of enriching his corporations and enriching others, including former Democratic Party chairman Anas Urbaningrum, former director of PT Adhi Karya Teuku Bagus Mohammad Noor and also PT Dutasari Citra Laras president director Machfud Suroso, whose dossier is still being completed by the KPK. Anas is awaiting trial.

The presiding judge said that Andi's actions showed he did not support the government's corruption eradication programs. Andi maintained his innocence throughout the trial.

However, Haswandi said he and his colleagues on the bench had considered certain mitigating factors, namely the defendant's courteous demeanor throughout the trial, his lack of criminal record and that he had been awarded for his service during his time at the General Elections Commission (KPU). (fss)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/18/andi-sentenced-4-years-hambalang-graft.html

KPK turns to Boediono, others

Jakarta Post - July 17, 2014

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – Wednesday's conviction of former Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya has confirmed the roles of other individuals in the controversial bailout of Bank Century in 2008, including that of Vice President Boediono, who served as BI governor when the bailout decision was made.

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto said that through their conviction of Budi, judges at the Jakarta Corruption Court had confirmed there was strong evidence to move against "other parties" implicated in the case.

"I will meet soon with KPK prosecutors to discuss all information handed down in the verdict before deciding what steps we will take next. The verdict not only confirmed the role of the BI board of governors, but also that of the secretary of the Financial Sector Policy Committee [KKSK]," Bambang told a press briefing on Wednesday evening, hours after the verdict was delivered.

The Jakarta Corruption Court on Wednesday sentenced Budi to a 10-year prison term, the first conviction in the graft case surrounding the multibillion-rupiah bailout.

The panel of judges found that Budi had abused his authority collectively with his colleagues on the board of governors; Boediono, former BI senior deputy governor Miranda Goeltom, and then BI deputy governors Siti C. Fadjrijah, Budi Rochadi, Muliaman Hadad, Hartadi Sarwono and Ardhayadi Mitroatmodjo.

Others implicated in the verdict include former Bank Century shareholder Robert Tantular and the bank's president director Hermanus Muslim, as well as economist Raden Pardede, who served as the KKSK secretary.

Muliaman is currently chairman of the powerful Financial Services Authority (OJK). Miranda, Hartadi and Ardhayadi all retired from their positions several years ago, while Budi Rochadi died on a visit to New York in July 2011. Siti suffered a stroke and is incapacitated.

"Our examination has found the defendant guilty of corruption together with other parties in the case," presiding judge Afiantara said in his verdict announcement.

The panel of judges found that Budi and "colleagues" had abused their authority by channeling Rp 689 billion (US$58.9 million) in short-term financial assistance (FPJP) to keep the bank afloat, and by falsely claiming that Bank Century posed a systemic threat to the banking sector, making it eligible for Rp 6.7 trillion from the Deposit Insurance Corporation (LPS).

An audit by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) found that the bailout policy caused state losses of more than Rp 7 trillion.

Responding to the verdict, House of Representatives' Bank Century inquiry committee member Bambang Soesatyo applauded the ruling and praised both the court and the KPK for shedding light on the involvement of other high- powered individuals in the highly politicized Bank Century scandal.

Soesatyo urged the KPK to immediately charge Boediono with graft given his role as the highest authority at the central bank when the bailout policy was made.

"Now the KPK has strong grounds to name Boediono and his colleagues as suspects in the case. One thing is certain that Budi Mulya was not the highest authority when the Central Bank's decision to bail out Bank Century was made. One person that should be held accountable for all of this is the BI governor at that time," Bambang said on Wednesday.

One of the five judges dissented from the verdict. Judge Anas Mustaqim said that KPK prosecutors' sentence demands had not elaborated on other individuals who should be held accountable in the bailout policy.

"The KPK prosecutor's sentence demand failed to include former finance minister Sri Mulyani [Indrawati], who was also the KKSK chairperson," Anas said prior to the reading of the verdict. Anas added that others in the KKSK should also be prosecuted.

"So Sri Mulyani as the head of the KSSK, Boediono as a member of the KSSK, and Raden as secretary of the KSSK, all were involved in the decision to bail out the bank," Anas said, adding that due to the "incomplete sentence demand" prepared by the KPK prosecutors the court should acquit Budi in the case.

Both Budi and the KPK said they would appeal the sentence. KPK spokesman Johan Budi said that the jail term for Budi was lower than the 17 years demanded by the antigraft body's prosecutors.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/17/kpk-turns-boediono-others.html

Terrorism & religious extremism

ISIS presence in Indonesia raises concern

Jakarta Globe - July 17, 2014

Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – The establishment of representatives of the Iraqi militancy group, the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, in Indonesia has raised concern, with analysts saying that the sympathetic support could turn into extremism – or worse, acts of terror.

Jihadist group ISIS has continuously advanced toward Baghdad in an effort to re-establish an ancient caliphate based on Islamic law, or Shariah, in Iraq and the Eastern Mediterranean. The movement has claimed more than a thousand lives in Iraq and Syria.

More than 30,000 Indonesians have joined the jihadist movement fighting across the Middle East, and some of them have returned home to establish ISIS branches in Jakarta and West Nusa Tenggara.

Ansyaad Mbai, chairman of the National Anti-Terror Agency (BNPT) said support by Indonesian Islamist groups for ISIS was a violation of the law.

"Those who had declared their support by joining the jihadist movement in Syria or Iraq and then establishing Islamic State branches in this country blatantly disobey the law," Ansyaad told the Jakarta Globe on Thursday. "There are even groups that had pledged bai'at [oaths of allegiance] to the ISIS leader [Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi]. This could also be categorized as a violation of the law."

Imprisoned terrorist convict Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, the spiritual leader of Indonesia's extremist network, has also reportedly supported the establishment of local branches of the jihadist movement.

Before being jailed, Ba'asyir was the leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah, a group behind the Bali bombings in 2002, which he left and went on to found Jamaah Anshorut Tauhid (JAT). Many of its members were involved and have been convicted of terrorism activities across Indonesia.

Having a similar goal with ISIS in Iraq, Ba'asyir and other extremists in Indonesia have long dreamed of creating an Islamic state, which once ruled the Middle East and its surrounding areas for over a thousand years.

'Illegal'

"Although some had pledged their oath, Abu Bakar Ba'asyir himself had not pledged his bai'at but I could confirm that he strongly supports the movement," Ansyaad said. "And supporting this ISIS movement goes against the citizenship law."

Ansyaad cited the 2006 Citizen Law, which stipulates that "anyone who pledges an oath to any foreign country or any group based in another country would lose their Indonesian citizenship."

He went on to say that the support also contradicts Article 139 of the Criminal Law, which declares that "getting involved with people or rebellious groups overseas that have an intention to overthrow the government is a crime" and can be legally punishable by imprisonment.

But senior lecturer Bantarto Bandoro of the Indonesian Defense University said the establishment of local branches does not necessarily mean that support will turn as violent as it has in Iraq and Syria. He added that support does not only come from the end of a gun.

"Regarding the poor situation now in Iraq, it could be one symbol of empathy of Islamic groups in Indonesia. As what they have declared, it's a solidarity movement. It wouldn't be something dangerous as long as they don't commit anarchy or get involved in extremist activities," Bantarto said.

"Yet, it would be a different story if the branches are used for defending political interests of the group or the interest of the one they're supporting for. The BNPT should be on full alert with the activities of the ISIS branches. They have to anticipate the worse possible scenario from the establishment of an ISIS branch," he continued.

Anticipation needed

Even though the BNPT has already had a legal basis to take action against the activities to support the Iraqi militancy, Ansyaad said it would not be enough to bring them to court or to ban the branches.

"From now on we are going to be keeping a close watch and monitor the activities of the members of the branches. Thorough coordination with several other security institutions is needed because ISIS has been declared a terrorist group throughout the world," he said.

"Many of these supporters left Indonesia to support the group and many of them have been detained [in Iraq]. Some of them are still in Iraq, and some are here now. We will take this matter seriously."

Bantarto echoed the sentiment, saying that the government and police needed to cooperate and maintain a high level of security.

"Retrospectively, we had been attacked before by several disruptive terrorist groups. That is why we need to keep a close eye on this matter. We don't want these branches to develop into a bigger network," he said.

"ISIS is a radical movement in Iraq. While in Indonesia, we don't clearly know the goals of the branches created by their supporters. But if they succeed to attract more and more support, we have to be more careful. We do not want this support to grow as a movement which could surprisingly threatens and attacks our official authority," he said.

"The national safeguard needs to study these branches and their followers. Will it disrupt the continuity of this country and spread extremist dogma?"

Bantarto said even though the branches of ISIS in this country have not yet indicated treacherous motives against the Indonesian government, preventive steps are needed in order to combat disruptive activities against the nation.

"The supporters of the ISIS movement should be closely monitored regularly to prevent them from seeking public support. The police and security- related institutions should observe the development of this branches," he said.

"One of the branches was established in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta while another one was established in West Nusa Tenggara, which seems to have been strategic moves," he said.

"Our government also needs to find out about the relations between these branches and existing extremist groups in Indonesia such as JI, JAT and others... The monitoring should be done actively and continuously," he said. "Early prevention is the most important thing we can do right now."

Jakarta Police spokesman Col. Rikwanto has also emphasized the importance of monitoring the groups, saying that it would be key to having a better understanding of the current situation.

"There will have to be an in-depth and comprehensive study before we can draw any conclusion about ISIS branches in the country," he said. "We don't know the intention behind their establishment. So what we need to do right now is to find out whether they have a common ideology and purpose."

The Globe attempted to contact National Police spokesman Boy Rafli, but he could not be reached for comment.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/isis-presence-indonesia-raises-concern/

Ba'asyir already funds, helps ISIL: BNPT

Jakarta Post - July 15, 2014

Yuliasri Perdani and Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – Although Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, the spiritual leader of the region's terrorist network, only recently voiced his support for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), his network is already financing and fighting for ISIL.

National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) head Ansyaad Mbai told The Jakarta Post on Monday that Ba'asyir had been actively helping ISIL for the past couple of months.

"Ba'asyir claimed he had not pledged the ba'iat [oath of allegiance] to ISIL leader [Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi]. That's just a ruse. In reality, he and his network are involved in seeking donations and recruiting fighters for ISIL," said Ansyaad.

"We have prevented many of Ba'asyir's followers from leaving the country to join ISIL. From questioning them, we have uncovered the scale of his involvement."

The BNPT has estimated at least 30 Indonesians are involved in the jihadist movement in Iraq under ISIL and in Syria with Jabhat al-Nusra (JN), a prominent Salafi jihadist organization with links to al-Qaeda.

Ansyaad said Ba'asyir's declaration of support for ISIL would motivate hard-liners to raise more money and join the fray. The support would also help unite extremist groups to fight under the banner of an Islamic state, or caliphate, according to Ansyaad.

ISIL, which is also known as ISIS, proclaimed a "Caliphate of the State of Islam" with territory stretching from northern Syria to the Iraqi province of Diyala.

"All groups originating from JI [Jamaah Islamiyah], Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid [JAT], Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia [MMI] and the Islamic State of Indonesia [NII] are sympathizers of ISIL as they have the same ambition," said Ansyaad.

Ba'asyir, a former leader of JI who founded JAT, declared his support of ISIL in front of high-ranking JAT leaders and his family last week in the maximum-security Pasir Putih Penitentiary on Nusakambangan Island near Cilacap, Central Java. Ba'asyir is serving a 15-year prison sentence for terrorist offenses.

JAT chairman Mochammad Achwan said that although Ba'asyir had voiced his support, he had yet to pledge the ba'iat to ISIL's leader due to JAT's ties with JN.

"There seems to be discord between JN and ISIL. That's why we've chosen to refrain from declaring the ba'iat, but our position is clear. We support the formation of a caliphate and the territorial control established by ISIL has [helped the movement] gain traction," said Achwan.

Albeit sharing the same ambition of reviving the Islamic caliphate that ruled the Middle East and beyond over the course of Islam's 1,400-year history, JN and ISIL are largely in dispute over how to attain the dream.

National Police spokesperson Brig. Gen. Boy Rafli Amar said that the police would only act against ISIL supporters if they were a threat to national security. "We will closely monitor individuals participating in the ISIL movement, and will assess whether or not they will pose threats when they return," he said.

The BNPT's deputy for international cooperation, Harry Purwanto, meanwhile, warned of the possibility that Indonesians fighting alongside Palestinians in Gaza would also be lured into joining ISIL. "The situation in Gaza has ignited the fighting spirit in some Indonesians. Later on, certain parties may persuade them to go to Iraq," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/15/ba-asyir-already-funds-helps-isil-bnpt.html

Hard-line & vigilante groups

Islamic Defenders Front sends volunteers to Gaza

Jakarta Globe - July 21, 2014

Abdul Qowi Bastian, Jakarta – Some 15 Islamic hardliners from Indonesia have left for war-torn Gaza where they hope to provide aid to the Palestinian people, the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) said on Friday.

"Five days ago, two of our members departed, along with 13 other volunteers from MMI and JAT, to Gaza from Yogyakarta," FPI Central Java chapter head Syihabudin said, as quoted by news portal Kompas.com.

The two other organizations he referred to were hardline groups Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia (MMI) and Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid (JAT).

Fighting in Gaza has intensified over the past 24 hours after Israel launched a ground invasion in an a attempt to stop rocket fire from Palestinian militants on Thursday night.

The campaign follows violence over the grisly murder of a Palestinian teenager, which was itself an apparent revenge for the kidnap and killing of three Israeli youths in the occupied West Bank.

Since July 8, 482 Palestinians – mostly civilians – have been killed, Reuters reported on Monday. Israel has said 18 of its soldiers have also died along with two civilians.

In addition to the 15 traveling from Central Java, FPI Jakarta head Salim Alatas told the Jakarta Globe on Friday that he had "just finished lodging a visa application to Egypt today," adding that he and 10 others planned to enter Gaza from Egypt.

Salim did not explain why he expected he – and other foreign hardliners – would be allowed to enter Gaza along the heavily controlled Egypt-Gaza border.

"The volunteers need to have skills; those who have experience in nursery, cooking and hisbah [war skills]," Syihabudin said. He said that the volunteers had funded their own trips.

The Jakarta Globe was unable to reach FPI national spokesman Munarman for comment.

Salim said he would lobby the Indonesian embassy in Cairo to find them a way into the Palestinian territory, but did not elaborate further. "We just place hope in their kindness to allow us to go," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/islamic-defenders-front-sends-volunteers-gaza/

Jokowi hammers Prabowo in FPI enclave

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Rendi A Witular, Jakarta – Presidential frontrunner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has reportedly secured most votes during the July 9 election in an area that is home to the headquarters of hard-line Islam Defenders Front (FPI).

According to data from the General Elections Commission (KPU), Jokowi secured 7,010 votes in Petamburan subdistrict in Central Jakarta, while rival Prabowo Subianto, who is supported by the FPI, netted 5,027 votes.

FPI chairman Habib Rizieq and his extended family, as well as followers of the organization, live close to one another in the Petamburan area, which is also known to be inhabited by many Indonesians of Arab descent.

During the campaign period last month, the FPI and its senior leadership pledged allegiance to Prabowo and mobilized their followers across the archipelago, particularly in Jakarta, to campaign for the dismissed three- star Army general.

The FPI is a well-known vigilante group with a record of violence that regularly ransacks bars, nightclubs, restaurants, massage parlors and karaoke bars, which the group deems are contrary to Islamic teachings. (ren)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/jokowi-hammers-prabowo-fpi-enclave.html

Freedom of religion & worship

Church conflict in Yogyakarta ends with peace agreement

Jakarta Post - July 16, 2014

Bambang Muryanto, Yogyakarta – The Sleman regency administration in Yogyakarta province has brokered a peace agreement between the heads of the El Shaddai Pentecostal Church and Muslim community leaders that result in the sealed church securing a building permit and reopening its doors in Pangukan, Sleman.

"Please help us, so as residents we can still worship. All we want is to be able to perform our religious activity," said church leader Nico Lomboan after signing the peace agreement with Pangukan community leader Turmudzi at Sleman Police station on Monday.

Nico also pointed out the central government and the Sleman regency administration were responsible for guaranteeing the church remain open, as its existence was allowed under a 2006 joint ministerial decree and had already been operating for some time.

At the signing – witnessed by lawyers from both sides, Sleman regency administration officials, a local neighborhood unit chief and members of the local Interfaith Communication Forum – Nico and Turmudzi shook hands with one another. "Peace is beautiful," Turmudzi said briefly.

The fourth point of the agreement states that the Sleman regency administration is responsible for facilitating the building permit of the church in accordance with the law.

Sectarian strife began on July 1 when Nico and his followers conducted a Sunday service in the church, which was sealed by the Sleman administration in 2012 because it had not obtained the proper building permit.

Nico defended the action, saying they were forced to do so because additional rent costs at another location had made worshipping at that location unfeasible.

The action enraged local residents and hard-liners, who, led by Turmudzi, later that day hurled stones at the now-empty church. Police and military officers did nothing to stop the them.

"I apologize and hope to still be regarded as a Pangukan resident, because I have been holding a Pangukan identity card since 1991," Nico said at the signing.

Turmudzi acknowledged his actions were wrong and apologized. "We have achieved clarity and peace, hopefully there will be wisdom," he said. Both promised not to repeat the same mistakes in the future and not to file a lawsuit against each other.

A member of Nico's team of lawyers, Yanuar Nahak, said he expected the Sleman regency administration would help the church obtain the proper operating license. "Perhaps a land exchange can become a solution. The Sleman administration can find the place and facilitate the building license," said Yanuar.

Deyong, another of Nico's attorneys, said a land exchange deal would be an effective way to resolve the issue. He added such a measure had been proven effective in Bali.

Meanwhile, Guntarwan Indar Wibowo, a member of Turmudzi's legal team, said both parties had agreed to make peace and his client would respect the administration's policy.

"If the Sleman regency administration gives the green light to the El Shaddai Church, the people of Pangukan will respect it," said Guntarwan. He added that both sides would also meet the Sleman regency administration after the peace agreement.

Sleman Deputy Regent Yuni Satia Rahayu said her administration was willing to help resolve the licensing issue and was ready to facilitate a land exchange deal if it was part of the solution. "The community should accept the presence of a church or mosque, which are no different," said Yuni.

She added the construction of all houses of worship should follow the right procedures and communicate with the local community. Yuni said her administration was also currently curbing the presence of a number of mosques in the regency.

"A majority of the mosques and small mosques in Sleman do not have building licenses," said Yuni.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/16/church-conflict-yogyakarta-ends-with-peace-agreement.html

Foreign affairs & trade

SBY says Indonesia doesn't need foreign interference

Jakarta Globe - July 16, 2014

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono swore he would not let foreigners meddle with Indonesia's presidential election dispute, ahead of a visit to the country by former US president Bill Clinton.

"I pray to God. I swear and I ask all Indonesian people, we will solve our own problems without foreigners coming here and playing referee or peacemaker to our conflict. We can solve it ourselves," Yudhoyono said while breaking his fast at the house of Irman Gusman, speaker of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD), in Jakarta on Monday.

Yudhoyono's remarks are the latest warning against anti-foreign involvement in Indonesia's election, one that has been a close and polarized race between former military general Prabowo Subianto and Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo.

Split decision

Both candidates claim to have won the election by a single-digit margin, and all eyes are now on the announcement of the official result from the General Elections Commission (KPU) on July 22.

Earlier, Prabowo's tycoon brother, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, questioned Clinton's motive for visiting Indonesia, claiming that those inviting the former president were connected to Joko.

Hashim suggested Clinton rethink his plan to stop in Indonesia as part of an Asia tour, calling the timing "inappropriate." "We'd like President Clinton to not get involved in our domestic political affairs," Hashim said, according to Australia Network News. "I don't know whether this visit was planned a long time ago to coincide with the elections, but we're concerned that the trip may be used for other purposes."

Clinton is scheduled to arrive in India on Wednesday for the start of his week-long Asia-Pacific tour that includes Vietnam, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia. He will pay a visit to projects by the Clinton Foundation in those five countries, according to a press statement from the charity organization he founded, which deals with global health, climate change and economic development issues.

Clinton is set to arrive in Aceh province on Saturday. There is no mention of Clinton meeting any Indonesian officials or politicians during his visit. Joko's camp has denied inviting or hosting Clinton.

Indonesian officials also slammed US Ambassador to Indonesia Robert O. Blake Jr., accusing him of pre-election meddling after he wrote in an e- mail to the Wall Street Journal that the United States "takes seriously allegations of human rights abuses, and urges the Indonesian government to fully investigate the claims" – which Prabowo's camp has interpreted as a reference to the candidate's alleged role in the massacre of civilians in East Timor in the mid-1970s and abduction of pro-democracy activists in Jakarta in the late 1990s.

Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said in a text message to the Jakarta Globe that "while the statement may be a reiteration of the US's long-held and general view on addressing accusations of past human rights abuses, in Indonesia and elsewhere; however given the current context, its timing and nature reflect a lapse of judgement that is difficult to accept."

Marty's newly installed deputy, Dino Patti Djalal, previously said that Indonesian voters must not be swayed by the US ambassador's statement. "Don't give any room to outsiders to make guerrilla maneuvers in our domestic politics," said Dino, the former Indonesian ambassador to Washington.

He said it was common for foreign powers to try to sway opinion on the ground through accusations, and stressed there was no need for Indonesians to be outraged at such attempts. "Overreacting may signify our low self- confidence and undetermined nationalism," Dino said.

Allan Nairn

On Tuesday, Hashim and Fadli Zon, a deputy chairman of Prabowo's Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), told a press conference at the camp's headquarters in East Jakarta that a litany of allegations against the candidate by US freelance journalist Allan Nairn, based on an interview conducted in 2001, was part of foreign intervention.

"We don't want foreigners spreading lies and ruining our election," Fadli said. He said that Prabowo's camp had reported Nairn to the police. "We hope the National Police's detectives squad quickly investigate our report," Fadli said.

Hashim accused Joko's camp for Nairn's moves to discredit Prabowo. "Why did Nairn suddenly appear? Why now, when my brother Prabowo is running for president? Why not when he was running with Megawati in 2004?" he said, referring to Megawati Soekarnoputri, chairwoman of Joko's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). Hashim said Nairn had been used by Prabowo's rival to tarnish his image.

Mature democracy

Yudhoyono said that Indonesia's election was peaceful and would not end in conflict because the people had a mature understanding of democracy. He said that if there were no problems then there was no reason for other countries to be involved in Indonesia's internal affairs.

"If there is a dispute, we should give the KPU a chance. Of course, the KPU must also be professional and credible when they do the vote counting. All of us must also monitor the process," he said.

Yudhoyono called on the KPU to ask both Prabowo and Joko to monitor the counting process. "So whoever wins on July 22, the other side will accept it. Of course, there will always be a winner and a loser. Those who don't accept it can always go to the Constitutional Court," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/sby-says-indonesia-doesnt-need-foreign-interference/

Mining & energy

Next government plans to cut fuel subsidies in first 100 days: Jusuf Kalla

Reuters - July 19, 2014

The top priority of Indonesia's likely next government will be to cut fuel subsidies to control the country's widening budget deficit, a move it hopes to accomplish within the first 100 days in office, the vice presidential candidate said on Saturday.

Energy subsidies, which mainly benefit the rich, cost the government around $20 billion a year and are the main factor behind a current account deficit that is expected to be above 3 per cent of gross domestic product this year.

"There is no alternative. We have to reduce fuel subsidies," Jusuf Kalla, the running mate of presidential frontrunner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, told Reuters when asked what they would do in the first 100 days in office.

"There is nothing you can do if 25 per cent of your budget goes to the middle class (through fuel subsidies). This is crazy."

Jokowi and Mr Kalla are expected to be announced the winner of the July 9 presidential election when the Elections Commission concludes its nationwide vote count within the next few days. An official election result is expected to be announced by Tuesday.

Private groups tracking counting of the ballots show Jokowi ahead of ex- general Prabowo Subianto with around 53 per cent of the vote in the closest presidential election ever in the world's third largest democracy.

If confirmed the winner, Mr Kalla said reducing fuel subsidies would be the new government's top economic priority once it takes office in late October.

Mr Kalla said he was keenly aware of how politically sensitive it was to cut fuel subsidies in Southeast Asia's largest economy after hiking prices three times when he first served as vice president during the first term of outgoing president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"From my experience, you will not spark any protests if you do it in good time and with good style," he said.

Protests over fuel price increases contributed to the downfall of the long-serving autocrat Suharto in 1998.

Mr Kalla declined to say by how much it would initially reduce fuel subsidies. Jokowi has previously said he would gradually reduce fuel subsidies over a four or five-year period.

Indonesian fuel prices are some of the cheapest in the world, currently priced at 6,500 rupiah ($0.56) a litre for gasoline and 5,500 for diesel.

"Indonesia is one of the biggest socialist countries in the world when 25 per cent of its budget is going to only energy subsidies. Only Venezuela and Iran maybe have cheaper oil prices than Indonesia," Mr Kalla said.

Source: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2014-07-19/indonesias-likely-next-government-plans-to-cut-fuel-subsidies-in-first-100-days-says-jusuf-kalla/1345297

Analysis & opinion

Indonesian general Prabowo's post-election bluff nears use-by date

Sydney Morning Herald - July 21, 2014

Michael Bachelard – In the almost two weeks since Indonesia's presidential election on July 9, the big question in Indonesia has been: "What does Prabowo Subianto think he's doing?"

It was clear from credible "quick counts" of the election result just two hours after the polls closed that the former general had lost and his rival, Jakarta governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo had won with a margin of between four and six percentage points.

From the start, though, the former military general has refused to concede. First he claimed victory himself on the basis of information from other quick count pollsters which he must have known were dodgy (because he had bought and paid for them).

Then he warned his followers to be on guard for any attempts to fix, buy or steal the vote. The crucial day, he told them, was July 22 when the Electoral Commission, the KPU, came up with its final tally.

Then he did a flurry of interviews with international media outlets (interviews he had not done when he was campaigning) to express his confidence in victory. In a bizarre encounter on the BBC he said: "All the 'real count' coming in shows that I'm leading, so I think I am very confident".

In The Wall Street Journal he said Mr Joko had engaged in "massive" vote buying in "many, many places" – a feat no reasonable Indonesian would believe the disorganised Jokowi campaign capable of.

But July 22 was always going to be crunch day. And, in the real world, it was always going to show Prabowo losing. The crowd-sourced tally of Electoral Commission figures shows Prabowo's loss, as does, by this late stage in the process, anybody with a calculator and enough time to crunch the numbers. Jokowi will be the next president with a comfortable margin of approximately 52.8 per cent to 47.2 per cent.

Yet, on the eve of the announcement, still Prabowo is refusing to concede. So now he has turned his attention to trying to bully the umpire, the Electoral Commission. On Sunday, after a day-long meeting with his closest advisers, he burst out saying he was calling into question the "legitimacy of the process".

To the extent that there is a plan here, it appears Prabowo will now try to build as much of a grievance as he can to give him grounds to take the issue to the Constitutional Court. Perhaps he hopes he can bully or bribe the court to hold a re-election or reverse the result.

Until recently, this might have seemed to be a risk – the court's last chief justice was sentenced this month to life imprisonment for taking massive bribes to change results in local elections. But, with that sentence in mind, the current court will be more careful. Besides, a presidential election on a 6 per cent margin is an order of magnitude more important, and more closely watched than a regency somewhere in East Java.

People are also wondering if Prabowo has a "ground game" – riots, looting, violence of the kind that ended Suharto's era – to perhaps create such profound unrest that somebody orders a new election.

"You want me disclose our game plan?" said Prabowo's brother, Hashim, when asked about this recently. "There is nothing in our game plan that foresees taking to the streets."

But protests also are likely to fail. The Idul Fitri feast takes millions of people out of Jakarta, and the exodus will begin on Wednesday, the day after the Electoral Commission's announcement. Besides, there is general weariness with the fight, and the pretty clear indication that Prabowo has lost should stop any widespread feelings of injustice emerging.

In the end, all Prabowo's positioning seems little more than bluff and bluster.

So, we return to the original question: "What does he think he's doing? How do we explain these weeks of living petulantly?" In The Wall Street Journal interview, Prabowo himself gives a clue.

"There was always this feeling that maybe I'm destined to be called to serve my country as the national leader, as the president," he said. His brother, Hashim, was to be successful in business so he could help him.

Prabowo was told on his mother's knee that his purpose in life was to rule the country. He has done everything he can to make it happen, but, for the third time, he's failed.

Now, battered and bloody, he simply refuses to believe, will not accept, that he's lost his last, best shot at the title.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/indonesian-general-prabowo8217s-postelection-bluff-nears-useby-date-20140721-zv8y0.html

The public eye

Jakarta Post Editorial - July 17, 2014

Despite reports of irregularities in the manual vote tabulation, there is widespread confidence that the transparent and democratic process, which was largely thanks to public participation, will result in a new president as chosen by the public.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) and the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) also deserve, at least so far, their fair share of praise. However, it is civil society groups – and their passion for a fair and democratic process – that, come the announcement of the official results on July 22, will have played an integral role in the 2014 presidential election.

The website kawalpemilu.org is such an example. With the help of hundreds of volunteers who closely monitored vote recapitulation, the website administrators are doing the real vote-counting job of the KPU: Collecting vote tallies from each polling station and uploading the data for the public.

Of course, the vote recapitulation is a la kawalpemilu, which literally means guard the election, must and should not be considered official despite the data being exactly the same as the KPU's.

Following the data entry of 93.45 percent of the archipelago's 472,672 polling stations as of Wednesday, the website found that presidential candidate Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla secured over 60.9 million votes or 52.83 percent of the vote, with rival pair Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa behind by nearly 6.6 million votes.

Whatever the outcome of the KPU's official results, public monitoring, by the likes of kawalpemilu.org and other civil society groups, will prevent the KPU from compromising its credibility. That is democracy. And Indonesia should thank proponents of the reform movement for ensuring their ideal of "rule by the people" could become reality.

Former Mathematical Olympiad champion Ainun Najib, the man behind kawalpemilu.org, said the website was created in response to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's call for public participation in monitoring vote recapitulation.

But even without the President's appeal, civil society moved to exercise its right to safeguard the tabulation process after widespread reports of irregularities. Some media suspect the attempts to rig the votes are organized, although their allegations are yet to be proved.

In its investigation, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) found that manipulation might have occurred in 13 provinces where it had conducted election monitoring activities. Chairman of the rights body, Hafid Abbas, said that with only a slim margin separating the two presidential pairs based on numerous quick-count results, the potential for vote rigging had never been higher.

No doubt civil society's involvement in the election process is a development we should cherish. Amid widespread distrust in state institutions' commitment to impartiality, the public's awareness proves Indonesia is fertile ground for democracy to flourish. It is, therefore, very difficult, if not impossible, to deny the publics demand for the leaders it knows deserve the mandate – Jokowi-Kalla, at least as the manual vote recapitulation kawalpemilu.org has shown. It is the only possibility for the nation.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/17/editorial-the-public-eye.html

MSG manoeuvres: What next for West Papua?

Lowy Interpreter - July 16, 2014

It hasn't taken long for the West Papua National Council for Liberation (WPNCL) and other pro-independence groups to to respond to Melanesian Spearhead Group's (MSG) recent announcement on the WPNCL's membership application, made during the MSG summit in Port Moresby. And the response can be characterised as something of a 'good news, bad news' story.

The good news was that the WPNCL, with strong support from Marcus Haluk (Chairman for the Working Group of the all West Papua pro-independence organisations), announced that a conference of reconciliation would be held in Port Vila, Vanuatu at the end of August.

The aim of this meeting is to put forward an application for membership of the MSG by an umbrella group of all West Papuan people, as recommended by the MSG leaders in Port Moresby. The conference organisers have expressed their confidence that this new application will be ready by the end of the year.

The conference is being supported by the Vanuatu Council of Churches, the National Council of Chiefs and the government of Vanuatu. The conference chair is Pastor Alain Nafuki, who has already expressed his hope that the government of Indonesia will assist in facilitating the travel of delegates from West Papua to Port Vila. (This may be something of a vain hope as, despite what others may say about the importance of West Papua to Indonesia's 'Look East' policy overall, there is no evidence to suggest that Jakarta will be a willing contributor to a pro-independence convocation being held in another country.)

The bad news is that hard on the heels of this announcement came the news that pro-Indonesia West Papua Autonomy campaigners, Franz Albert Joku and Nicholas Simion Messet, would not be invited to said conference.

This is not surprising, given the longstanding antipathy felt towards pro- Indonesia Melanesians by those who have advocated, lobbied and fought for the independence of West Papua for more than 50 years. However, this decision means the conference may fail to meet the criteria contained in the Port Moresby communique, which states that MSG leaders...

Agreed to invite all groups to form an inclusive and united umbrella group in consultation with Indonesia to work on submitting a fresh application... (Emphasis added.)

Meanwhile, the government of Vanuatu has stated its intention to continue its lobbying for the self-determination of the people of West Papua through UN processes. Despite having accepted the group-think in Port Moresby, the Natuman government is maintaining the stance that sets Vanuatu apart from the other sovereign state members of the MSG.

Of course, Vanuatu has little to lose, as it no longer has a defence cooperation relationship with Indonesia and there is nowhere near the level of Indonesian investment in Vanuatu as is the case in other MSG countries, notably Fiji and PNG. And, perhaps more significantly, Vanuatu does not have PNG's financial resources to influence fellow members through provision of development assistance. Nonetheless, Vanuatu got the West Papua issue on to the agenda of the MSG and will undoubtedly do everything to ensure it remains there for as long as is needed or can be sustained.

Source: http://www.lowyinterpreter.org/post/2014/07/16/MSG-what-next-West-Papua.aspx?COLLCC=3468701534&

Maire Leadbeater: Election offers ideal chance to review aid for West Papua

New Zealand Herald - July 15, 2014

It is not every day that a government rejects a foreign aid scheme just as it is about to begin. But that is what happened in May when the Indonesian Government called a halt on a New Zealand aid project training local police in community policing after four years of extensive planning.

The Eastern Indonesia Community Policing Programme had been intended to train members of the Indonesian National Police in conflict-ridden West Papua, with nearby Maluku also receiving some input. New Zealand was committed to tutor some 1000 police over a three-year period at a cost of more than $6 million.

For those of us who had opposed the programme from the outset, the news was welcome. Community policing is fine for Mt Albert or Tokoroa but the brutality of the police in West Papua cannot be corrected by instruction. The systematic practice of police torture as a means of control has been documented by academics such as Dr Budi Hernawen.

Why was the scheme called off? The Ministry of Foreign Affairs offered a non-explanation: "Indonesia could not support the programme at this time."

Subsequently a Jakarta-based Kiwi journalist sussed out a more revealing explanation. Deputy Chief of the Indonesia National Police, Commander General Badrodin Haiti, said the reason was "concerns about the programme's motives".

On the face of it New Zealand's motive is simple – to help the Indonesian police work more closely with their communities and thus improve community safety. The Government also hoped to stave off domestic criticism that it was ignoring the evidence of ongoing gross human rights abuses in the territory.

However, until recently this agenda seemed to dovetail quite nicely with Indonesia's interests. I know from Official Information Act requests that our diplomats had important meetings with top brass in West Papua last year. The New Zealand Ambassador and his team made sure to emphasise that New Zealand supports Indonesia's "territorial integrity" and what they described as the Indonesian Government's "welfare and prosperity approach".

Our diplomats felt at ease with Chief of Police Tito Karnavian, an old boy of our Defence Command and Staff College and the Massey Security Studies course. He told our team that his police needed to "train police as serving local communities, not as oppressors".

Local activists view Inspector-General Karnavian far from favourably. Since his appointment in 2012 oppression has increased, and political arrests doubled last year.

The design documents for the community policing project confront the problem that allegations of human rights abuses might surface during the project. If New Zealand had to speak out how could this be handled diplomatically?

Did the Indonesian authorities worry about this potential risk of bad publicity? Or could it be that Indonesian authorities were concerned about media inquiries?

A new president will soon take office in Indonesia – the vote count is not final but it is likely to be Joko Widodo. He is a new broom, with fewer links to Indonesia's autocratic past. What better time to promote human rights and peaceful dialogue instead of police aid of dubious value.

[Maire Leadbeater is a member of West Papua Action Auckland.]

Source: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11293307

Equality before the law

Jakarta Post Editorial - July 15, 2014

Jakarta – If one asks why the country's corruption index score remains disappointingly low despite the hard-fought campaign against graft over the last decade, the answer is, among other things, resistance from within the House of Representatives.

In a blatant move to undermine the war on corruption, the grand coalition of political parties that are supposed to control the House for the next five years passed last week a bill on legislative institutions, popularly known by acronym MD3, that will shield politicians from corruption investigations launched by law enforcement agencies, including the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

Despite criticism of the bill from corruption watchdogs and a walkout by representatives of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the Hanura Party, the coalition's show of force was billed as a victory by presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto in a televised statement after voting on Wednesday.

Indeed, the House factions that passed the bill on the eve of the July 9 presidential election are supporters of Prabowo and his running mate Hatta Rajasa. Not any single party represented in the House is free from graft allegations, as seen in the slate of ongoing KPK investigations, but passage of the bill last week seems to us a conspiracy aimed to revive the immunity and impunity politicians used to enjoy in the New Order era and in the period before the KPK was formed back in 2004.

Among the proponents of the bill is the Democratic Party, whose chairman President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has always claimed to encourage equality before the law in the fight against corruption. In fairness, he has fulfilled that pledge, as he has let the KPK bring to justice party leaders and members of his Cabinet implicated in graft. But his commitment has apparently faltered in the case of the MD3 Law.

Article 245 of the new law says law enforcement agencies require the consent of the House's ethics council before they can summon lawmakers implicated in criminal cases. That approval is null, however, in the event of a lawmaker being caught red-handed committing crimes or being suspected of perpetrating crimes punishable by life in prison or death.

The House's move to undermine corruption eradication is not new, as seen in recent initiatives to amend the KPK Law, the Criminal Code and the Criminal Law Procedures Code, all aimed at reducing the extraordinary powers the commission needs to combat the extraordinary crime of corruption.

KPK chief Abraham Samad insists the anticorruption body will not heed the MD3 Law, but only the KPK Law, which allows the KPK to bypass bureaucratic procedures that help suspects remove evidence or obstruct the law. Abraham says that as a lex specialis, the KPK Law will supersede the MD3 Law.

Unfortunately Abraham's pledge is wishful thinking, given the legal uncertainty that prevails in the country. The Constitutional Court must therefore hear any judicial review filed against the MD3 Law.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/07/15/editorial-equality-law.html