Andrew Janes – Freeport McMoRan's Grasberg copper mine in Indonesia, the world's second-largest for the metal by capacity, reopened Saturday after a worker roadblock stopped production for five days and helped push the metal's price to a two-month high.

Access to the site, located in the mountains in Papua province in eastern Indonesia, was restored this morning and normal operations are resuming, Daisy Primayanti, a spokeswoman at Freeport Indonesia, said in a phone interview.

The roadblock has been cleared, said Juli Parorrongan, a spokesman for the Freeport Indonesia workers' union. "The union has said to the workers that they should go back to work," she confirmed on Saturday.

Grasberg has been plagued by labor strife in recent years. Workers seeking higher wages held a strike in 2011 and the mine was closed for months following a tunnel collapse in 2013.

The protesters, who the union said numbered around 100 on Friday, had been demanding bonuses as an incentive for not taking part in a work stoppage last year. Shipments of concentrates from stockpiles continued during the closure.

Copper for delivery in three months rose 3.3 percent to $6,045 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange on Friday, following a 3.3 percent advance the day before. The metal touched $6,082.5 on Friday, the highest since Jan. 12.

Freeport Indonesia didn't reach any agreement with the workers on their demands and dialog is continuing, spokeswoman Primayanti said. Shares of Phoenix-based Freeport, the largest US miner, rebounded 6.7 percent in New York on Friday to close at $18.41, recouping a 5.3 percent loss on Thursday.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/business/freeports-indonesia-grasberg-copper-mine-opens-5-day-blockade/

Freeport Indonesia blockade enters 5th day, output still halted

Jakarta Globe - March 20, 2015

Dennys Kapa, Jakarta – A blockade by workers at Freeport-McMoRan's Indonesian mine extended into a fifth day on Friday, a union official said, with output still halted but maintenance workers allowed into the Grasberg site by protesters.

A lengthy disruption to supplies from one of the world's biggest copper mines could support benchmark metal prices that have dropped around 7 percent so far this year.

"The blockade is still happening today," Albar Sabang, a senior official at a Freeport union told Reuters on Friday. "The management is in dialogue with the protesters but we are not involved."

"Yesterday they allowed some technicians to go up to the mine site to take care of the machines," Sabang said about the demonstration, which relates to a settlement reached with other employees at the end of a previous dispute and is not union-backed.

Freeport Indonesia, which employs about 24,000 workers and is seen producing 43 percent more copper concentrate this year at 2 million tonnes, could not be reached for comment on Friday.

Although copper ore production had been halted since Monday, stockpiles of copper concentrates were ready for shipment at a port used by the US-based miner, union officials added.

Around 50 people are involved in Friday's blockade, Sabang added, which is a similar number to Thursday but down from more than 300 workers that protested earlier in the week.

Relations between Freeport and the workers' unions have been strained in recent years. Late in 2014, a planned one-month strike following the death of four workers was canceled at the 11th hour.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/freeport-indonesia-blockade-enters-5th-day-output-still-halted/

Police assaulted and gun stolen in Papua at fundraiser

Jakarta Globe - March 19, 2015

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura – A policeman was assaulted and his firearm stolen during a fundraising event in the separatist eastern province of Papua on Thursday, Indonesian police told the Jakarta Globe.

Police said a member of the pro-independence West Papua National Committee (KNPB) attacked 2nd. Insp. Budi Santoso while police were trying to disperse a fundraising event in Yahukimo district on Thursday.

Police believe the KNPB is affiliated to the armed Free Papua Movement (OPM) separatist organisation, which continues to stage a low-level armed insurgency against Jakarta's rule over Papua.

"When the police were trying to dismiss the KNPB fundraising event, one of the officers was attacked and his revolver was snatched," Papua police spokesman, Patrige Renwarin, told the Jakarta Globe.

Police believe one of the KNPB members snatched the firearm and have launched a search operation. "After snatching the gun the perpetrator ran away and we are still searching for him," Patrige said.

Patrige said the police decided to disperse the event because the KNPB did not have a permit to hold a fundraiser.

The KNPB responded angrily to the police intervention and tensions quickly escalated between the crowd and officers at the scene. Patrige said the situation in Yahukimo remained tense on Thursday afternoon.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/police-assaulted-gun-stolen-papua-fundraiser/

Minister to focus on Papuan women

Jakarta Post - March 18, 2015

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – In conjunction with the recent International Women's Day, the government has laid out its plans to protect Indonesian women from violence, with this year's focus being on the eastern part of the country.

Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Yohana Susana Yembise said on Tuesday that the eastern part of the country, especially Papua, needed special attention from the government as it had long been neglected in many respects.

"My attention has shifted to that area at the moment," Yohana said during an event held to commemorate International Women's Day in Central Jakarta.

Data from the National Commission on Violence against Women (Komnas Perempuan) in 2013 showed that Papua had a high prevalence of violence against women, with 1,360 cases reported for every 10,000 women in the province.

Domestic violence made up 56 percent of the cases, followed by sexual violence with 24 percent and trafficking of women at 18 percent.

While Jakarta has a higher rate of violence against women, with 1,699 cases in every 10,000 women, the ministry said that the figure was higher in the capital because women could have their reports heard compared to women in Papua.

Yohana, who is the first female minister from Papua, blamed patriarchy for violence against women in Papua. "We are living in a male-dominated society," said Yohana.

Regina Muabuay from the Rising Papua Women Coalition said that the patriarchal culture of Papua had prevented women from achieving their true potential.

"So when there is a woman who has goals or ambitions, sometimes men will not approve of that due to tradition," she said on Tuesday.

The tendency for Papuans to maintain their traditions also resulted in poor law enforcement. "Because people perceive tradition as higher than the law, when someone reports a case to the police, they will ask that person to settle the case amicably through tradition first," Regina said.

There is also a tradition where men give dowries to their brides, which results in men feeling that they are entitled to women. "So when men hit their wives, they feel it is acceptable since they have already 'paid' for their wives," said Regina.

Some men reportedly cannot accept the fact that their wives earn more than they do. "Men who abuse their spouses usually lack confidence. They could be offended by income disparity," University of Indonesia (UI) psychologist Rose Mini said on Tuesday.

Yohana said that she planned to roll out programs to change the patriarchal system in Papua to make it more flexible, although it is not yet clear how she would do that.

Yohana also said she would tackle the wide distribution of alcoholic beverages in Papua, which she suspected of having contributed to the high prevalence of violence against women. "There is a need to control the distribution of alcohol in Papua," she said.

Yohana also said she would take initiatives to prevent domestic violence cases in Papua by handling the problem of women's trafficking.

"Trafficking of women in Papua has destroyed the fabric of families in Papua. Women trafficked to Papua ended up being mistresses and after I investigated the cases, these women came from Manado, North Sulawesi," she said. "I need to go to Manado to meet religious leaders and regional government and ask them to stop sending young girls to Papua."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/18/minister-focus-papuan-women.html

Churches demand KPP HAM for Paniai tragedy

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Church leaders grouped under an ecumenical cooperation forum in Papua have urged President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to establish a Commission of Inquiry into Human Rights Violations (KPP HAM) to probe the Paniai tragedy.

"Entering the fourth month since the shootings were committed on Dec. 8, 2014, there are no signs of finding the perpetrators. The investigation doesn't seem to have given a bright light to the victims' families," chairman of the Papua Baptist Churches Synod, Soctares Yoman, said in a press conference at the office of the Papua Kingmi Synod in Jayapura on Monday.

The Papua Police's investigation report on the case as presented during a meeting on March 5, Socrates said, seemed to be of a low quality and protected police personnel.

"It gave an impression of trying to break the one intact case into separate cases, making it blurred and difficult to find the perpetrators," he said.

Five people aged between 16 and 18 were killed and 21 others were injured in the incident. Witnesses said the residents were performing the waita tribal dance after setting fire to a black SUV believed to belong to a group suspected of assaulting residents assembled at a Christmas event in Ipakiye village, East Paniai.

The Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) had earlier submitted its findings on Paniai – which concluded that Indonesian Military (TNI) soldiers were responsible for the shootings – to President Jokowi.

Meanwhile, Papua Gospel Camp Church Synod (KINGMI) chairman Benny Giai said local residents felt it was useless to give information to a party that had committed the killing. "In people's minds, why should they give testimony to the perpetrators? It's wasteful," Benny said.

That accounted for why, according to Benny, the President should establish the KPP HAM to make the case very clear. Otherwise, the case would be like other cases of shootings in Papua, in which the perpetrators were never revealed.

Indonesian Evangelical Church president Dorman Wandikmbo concurred, saying that the conflict in Papua was like a winding rope, difficult to unravel and requiring the President's focus to do so.

"The President should appoint a high official at minister level to take care of the Papua-Jakarta conflict through peaceful dialogue mediated by neutral third parties," he said.

Responding to the church leaders' demand, Papua Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Rudolf Patrige said all components in the community should be communicating to find a solution to the Paniai tragedy.

"The main challenge investigators face is people are not really aware yet about giving testimonies on what they heard, saw and experienced [in regard to the case]," Rudolf said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/churches-demand-kpp-ham-paniai-tragedy.html

PM wants strong ties with Indonesia

Solomon Star News - March 16, 2015

Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare and the new Indonesian Ambassador to Solomon Islands, Ronald Manik said they want to see a strengthened bilateral relationship between their two countries.

The duo expressed this desire when they met Thursday in Honiara during a courtesy visit the Indonesian envoy paid the prime minister. Mr Manik was in Honiara to present his letters of credence to the Governor General Sir Frank Kabui.

"My Minister for Foreign Affairs who was here recently wants to see the relationship between our country and your country strengthened and she is working to ensure this," he said.

"She was very happy with her visit to Honiara. She said it has had very fruitful discussions with your deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister."

In response, Mr Sogavare said: "Solomon Islands and Indonesia are next door neighbours. We both share borders with Papua New Guinea and I would also like to see our relationship kept intact and bolstered.

"Our relationship has always been based on mutual understanding in that you respect our sovereignty and we respect your sovereignty.

"When issues affect our mutual interests we should continue to see each other as friends and address them through our diplomatic missions."

Ambassador Manik also used the opportunity to advocate for Indonesia as a young but vibrant democratic country.

"Indonesia has been a free and open country since our leadership change in 1998. There is now freedom of speech and expression in that people can freely speak their minds and the media can freely report on issues.

"Claims that four people in West Papua died in December 2014 as a result of genocide by the Indonesian Government were unbelievable. We are now living in a global village and Indonesia is not too ignorant to commit genocide."

He said an investigation has been launched into the claims by a national commission for human rights and the Indonesian Government is determined to make the outcome public.

Prime Minister Sogavare welcomed the news of Indonesia's adherence to the rules of democracy in the last 16 years and urged Jakarta to tell the world of these positive developments.

"This is indeed good news to us. It's good to hear that you are now enjoying the freedom of speech and expression but you need to tell world of all these positive developments because all we've been hearing is bad news.

"As far as Solomon Islands is concerned, when it comes to the issue of human rights, it is a concern that we will have but there is a better way of addressing such issues.

"It's good to know you have an independent human rights council in Indonesia, you also the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva to fully address human rights violations.

"As far as Solomon Islands as a member of the international community is concerned, we would like to see that the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva take active part in addressing human rights violations in Indonesia if there are any."

Source: http://www.solomonstarnews.com/news/national/6199-pm-wants-strong-ties-with-indonesia

Workers block access to Grasberg mine in labor dispute

Jakarta Globe - March 16, 2015

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura, Papua – Freeport's operations at the Grasberg mine in Papua are being hampered, the company confirmed on Monday, as hundreds of upset employees were blocking access to the facility.

"It is true that we have received a report that some employees have staged a protest this morning," Freeport spokeswoman Daisy Primayanti told the Jakarta Globe.

Angry workers from seven mining areas in Papua were blocking the access to the mine to express their disappointment with Freeport management, accusing the company of firing and suspending a number of their colleagues for going on a strike recently.

The protest on Monday cut off completely the supply of food for miners still underground. "The access to the mine... has been interrupted," Daisy said.

The spokeswoman added however that there was no unsafe situation at the mine as a consequence of the blockade and that management was communicating with the protesters. Freeport Indonesia is a local unit of US mining giant Freeport-McMoRan.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/workers-block-access-grasberg-mine-labor-dispute/

Military ties

US, Indonesian marines launch joint exercise in East Java

Jakarta Globe - March 19, 2015

Jakarta – Operators of an elite reconnaissance unit of the Indonesian Marine Corps kicked off a joint training with their American counterparts in Situbondo, East Java, on Thursday.

Maj. Gen. Achmad Faridz Washington, commandant of the Indonesian Marine Corps, said the training with Special Forces operators of the United States Marine Corps would improve his troops' readiness for battle.

"Marines are required to have high standards – both in terms of techniques and tactics – to face any developing threat to our security," Achmad was quoted as saying by state-run owned news agency Antara. "This training will help them achieve such standards."

As part of the training, which is code-named "Iron Lantern," soldiers from both nations will share experiences, knowledge and skills needed on land and at sea.

Indonesia's Maj. Freddy Ardianzah, who leads the joint exercise, said the training would also help strengthen ties between the units. The training will run through April 10.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/us-indonesian-marines-launch-joint-exercise-e-java/

Human rights & justice

Indigenous people still suffer human rights violations, says report

Mongabay - March 18, 2015

Loren Bell, Mongabay-Indonesia correspondent – Indonesia's indigenous population has suffered a long history of human rights violations says a report to be released by the country's National Commission on Human Rights in May.

"We are finding violations of the right to property, to live, to a fair trial, to feel safe, to an adequate standard of living," said Sandra Moniaga, a commissioner and researcher involved in the first National Inquiry on the Violations of Indigenous Peoples Rights within Forest Zones. Moniaga spoke at a press briefing in Jakarta last week organized by the Indigenous Peoples' Alliance of The Archipelago (AMAN).

The report will compile the findings of several months of inquires held in Sumatra, Java, Bali-Nusa, Sulawesi, Kalimantan, Maluku and Papua. During the proceedings, investigators looked into the root causes of indigenous human rights violations by examining around 40 cases reported to the commission.

"We are seeing a lack of legal certainty for the recognition of indigenous peoples in Indonesia," said Moniaga. "There is no effort being made to designate the boundaries of their territories on official maps and documents; they face legal obstacles in their efforts to claim legitimacy; indigenous women face discrimination on multiple levels; government agencies (including the police) and the military have been working for the private sector, and not for the indigenous communities, and there is no ministerial level institution with the mandate to resolve the prolonged land conflicts."

Abdon Nababan, Secretary General of AMAN, hopes the report will compel Indonesia's new president to take concrete steps toward ensuring justice for the country's indigenous population. AMAN represents 15 million people belonging to 2,244 indigenous communities throughout Indonesia-a number of whom have been arrested for resisting efforts to block their community's access to lands they have depended upon for generations.

"Indigenous peoples are very easy to criminalize," Nababan said. "They often do not have legal protections, or they don't know their rights. This is an unacceptable situation." AMAN is calling for a presidential task force to re-examine over 150 cases of indigenous leaders who have been incarcerated unfairly while acting in defense of their constitutional rights. Although the constitutional court ruled in 2013 that customary use forests should not be classified as state forests, local officials often ignore the ruling and issue conflicting development permits.

Source: http://news.mongabay.com/2015/0318-lbell-indonesia-indigenous-rights.html

Women's rights

Komnas Perempuan meets Jokowi, calls for end to discriminatory bylaws

Jakarta Post - March 22, 2015

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo received the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) on Friday, discussing several women's rights issues, including rising discrimination and the request to ratify several laws that would help women's rights.

Among the things discussed with the President included the concerns over rising cases of violence against women and an urging to abolish 365 bylaws deemed discriminatory against women, especially in Aceh and West Java.

"Regarding discriminatory laws, the President has asked the Cabinet secretary to arrange a meeting between the commission and the Home Affairs minister, as it is the relevant institution to answer those concerns," Komnas Perempuan said in statement obtained by The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

The commission also asked the former Jakarta governor to speed up the implementation of several laws, including the Sexual Violence Eradication Law and the Domestic Worker Protection Law, as well as to ratify the International Labor Organization (ILO) convention 189 and the revision of the Indonesian Migrant Worker Protection Law.

There were also calls to increase the funding of the commission. Komnas Perempuan said that it only received Rp 10 billion (US$766,885) annually, which in comparison represents only 5 percent of the funds allotted to the Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM), while it actually needed Rp 40 billion a year.

Both President Jokowi and Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Yohana Yembise supported the funding request.

Minister Yohana also said that her ministry will hold monthly meetings with the commission to synergize in solving women's rights issues in the archipelago. (dyl/nfo)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/22/komnas-perempuan-meets-jokowi-calls-end-discriminatory-bylaws.html

Sexual & domestic violence

Sexual abuse of children on the rise

Jakarta Post - March 19, 2015

Corry Elyda, Jakarta – Experts and activists have urged all stakeholders to pay serious attention to sexual violence against children as the number of reported cases has increased over the years.

The co-founder of Rifka Annisa Women's Crisis Center (WCC), Sri Kusyuniati, revealed in a recent discussion that cases of sexual violence against children kept increasing.

According to the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas PA), the number of reported abuse cases nationwide had increased 15 percent from 2,636 in 2012 to 3,039 in 2014.

About 70 percent of the cases were reported in Greater Jakarta. "Fifty percent of the cases involved sexual violence," she said.

Sri said the increasing number of cases of sexual violence against children showed that the country lacked an effective way to fight it.

She also said that the most worrying phenomenon was that both victims and perpetrators were getting younger. "Variation in the violence is also increasing," she said.

Before, abuse rarely went as far as sexual penetration, but it is now more frequent, she explained. Sri criticized law enforcers for not showing commitment to creating a deterrent effect for perpetrators.

She said that it was therefore important to give sex education to children from an early age. "Our government thinks that sex education will prompt children do inappropriate things. That's why it is so difficult to urge it to include sex education in the national curriculum," she said.

Forensic psychologist Kasandra Putranto said sexual abuse cases, especially against boys, had begun to be reported in the 1990s. "Psychologists screamed and tried to make everyone pay attention to the issue. However, no significant effort has been made," she said.

Kasandra said the number of cases increased significantly in 2011, with the number becoming more worrying over the years.

She said victims of sexual abuse were likely to become perpetrators themselves when they grew up. "However, it can be avoided if the victims are properly treated," she said.

Kasandra said that both female and male children were prone to sexual violence. "Ninety percent of perpetrators are known by the victims," she said.

She elaborated that 30 percent were family members, 60 percent were family acquaintances like neighbors, teachers, spiritual leaders and sport trainers, and the remaining 10 percent were strangers.

Kasandra said victims of sexual violence who were left psychologically untreated would have many mental problems.

"They are usually diagnosed with post-traumatic disorder, anxiety, eating disorders and low self-esteem and can have self-cutting or suicidal tendencies.

She said many children were neglected by adults these days. "They are not fed with good psychological nutrients," she said.

Kasandra gave an example of the dearth of new children's songs in Indonesia. "Children now sing adult songs, the lyrics of which are inappropriate for their age, such as 'Cinta Satu Malam' [One Night Stand]," she said.

The psychologist said that parents in urban areas did not make enough time for their children.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/19/sexual-abuse-children-rise.html

Political parties & elections

KPU to form ethics committee to monitor dodgy pollsters

Jakarta Globe - March 18, 2015

SP/Hizbul Ridho, Jakarta – The General Election Commission, or KPU, has announced it will form an ethics committee to oversee pollsters, a move it hopes will squeeze out unreliable survey institutions.

KPU commissioner Sigit Pamungkas said the measure was in response to an increasing number of biased survey foundations.

The issue was highlighted in the wake of last year's presidential election, where dodgy quick counts issued by pollsters sowed confusion among the public and led both candidates to declare themselves victorious.

Two survey institutions were subsequently booted from the Indonesia's polling association – the Public Opinion Survey Association (Persepi) – after they refused to be audited. They both declared losing presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto victorious.

Eight of Indonesia's most respected survey companies showed that Joko Widodo won the election by a margin of between 3 and 5 percentage points.

Sigit said the ethics committee would have authority to impose sanctions if pollsters were found to have manipulated the data.

"The KPU will be able to prohibit the survey groups from making a survey and impose punishments by banning them from participating in the next local election for instance," Sigit told reporters on Wednesday.

Organisations will have to register with the committee, which would consist of experts in survey methodology, academics and activists, and will obtain a certificate to show they are bound by KPU regulations.

Groups that were not deemed credible would be named publicly, Sigit said. "We can let the public judge whether or not the survey group is credible," he said.

The KPU, however, would not have authority to impose legal sanctions on groups that did not meet standards.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/kpu-form-ethics-committee-monitor-dodgy-pollsters/

PDI-P, Golkar seal partnership

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Golkar Party have agreed to team up in the legislative institution in order to smooth the way for President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's policies.

The chairpersons of both parties formally discussed the future partnership when Agung Laksono, who recently secured government recognition as Golkar's legitimate chairman, met with PDI-P's Megawati Soekarnoputri at the latter's residence on Jl. Teuku Umar, Central Jakarta, on Monday.

"This silaturahmi [friendly visit] is part of ongoing visits to introduce [Golkar's] legitimate leadership with a hope that the PDI-P and Golkar can team up in the legislative institution as well as for other aspects," Agung told the media after a more than one-hour closed-door talk with Megawati.

Accompanied by an entourage, comprising executives of his camp such as deputy chairmen Priyo Budi Santosa, Yorrys Raweyai and Agus Gumiwang, Agung said further that the partnership could achieve a lot at the House of Representatives, including regarding the deliberations of bills. Megawati, however, did not comment on the meeting.

With colleagues accompanying her in hosting the guests, including party executives Pramono Anung Wibowo, Hasto Kristiyanto and Bambang Wuryanto, the former president stopped short after Agung's remarks and quickly went back inside her house after shaking hands with Agung for a photo shoot.

After the media briefing, Pramono, in responding to reporters' queries, elaborated that the collaboration between the PDI-P and Golkar at the House would include, among other things, the selection of definitive commissioners for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the deliberation of the national security bill, which has been stalled for years due its contentious content.

"We have an agreement to work together to complete unresolved legislative affairs in upcoming House sessions," said Pramono, a lawmaker on House Commission I overseeing defense, foreign affairs and information.

Although the PDI-P and Golkar have agreed to back up each other, Golkar, however, has yet to join the ruling PDI-P-led Great Indonesia Coalition.

In his remarks, Agung repeatedly stressed Golkar's support for Jokowi's administration, but left any talk of Golkar possibly joining the ruling coalition out of the discussion.

He did the same during previous visits to leaders of other parties within the Great Indonesia Coalition as well as to the National Mandate Party (PAN), an existing official member of the opposition Red-and-White Coalition.

Agung will bring in an additional 91 House seats to the coalition's existing 204 seats if he joins it, taking control of the House away from the Red-and-White Coalition.

Agung and his loyalists, however, first must face Aburizal Bakrie and his camp, who declined to concede defeat to Agung in the Golkar leadership battle and has proceeded with moves to challenge Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly's decision to recognize Agung's leadership.

While Agung and his camp approach the ruling coalition, his rivals from Aburizal's camp are preparing for an inquiry to investigate Yasonna with the support of members of the opposition coalition. Lawmakers from the opposition coalition plan to exercise their right of inquiry as soon as the House reconvenes on March 23.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/pdi-p-golkar-seal-partnership.html

Hatta loyalists forming mass organization

Jakarta Post - March 16, 2015

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Following a loss in the recent National Mandate Party (PAN) chairmanship race, former chief Hatta Rajasa and his loyalists are preparing to set up a mass organization.

Once officially introduced to the public, the organization is expected to be an independent new group that will not be affiliated to PAN, although the majority of its members will consist of current PAN members, according to Sulisyowati, a loyalist who was a deputy secretary-general during Hatta's 2010-2015 ruling period.

Although the organization was expected to host PAN members who remained loyal to Hatta, Sulistyowati told The Jakarta Post on Sunday that it would also be a home to outsiders who shared the same dreams for change.

"It will extend beyond PAN," she said, adding that the founders of the mass organization were still expecting a blessing from Hatta before an introduction to the public slated to take place next week.

While waiting for a final say from Hatta, Sulistyowati and her colleagues have also nominated PAN's former deputy chairman Drajad Wibowo and PAN executive Tjatur Sapto Edy, who were both involved in Hatta's campaign team, as chairman and secretary-general, respectively, of the mass organization to be called Harapan Rakyat Indonesia (Indonesia's New Hope).

Drajad and Tjatur had tendered their resignations as soon as a PAN national congress early this month declared Zulkifli, who is Speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the winner over incumbent Hatta in a tight vote. Hatta lost the race by six votes.

After leading the party for five years, Hatta should have given up the PAN chairmanship to Zulkifli after the latter secured 292 of the total 584 votes.

While Drajad resigned from his post the day after the announcement, Tjatur officially tendered his resignation as leader of PAN's faction at the House of Representatives last week, despite encouragement from Zulkifli to stay.

Tjatur referred to his insistence to leave the post as an act needed to "find a new atmosphere". Both Drajad and Tjatur have yet to comment on the matter.

The plan to set up such an organization seems to confirm the escalating rift within PAN following the tension between two distinguishing factions within the party; however, Hatta emphasized that he would forever belong to PAN.

"I am one of the founders. It's impossible for me to leave PAN," Hatta said in responding to queries on the matter. He, however, refused to comment and only smiled when asked further about the establishment of the mass organization by his loyalists.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/16/hatta-loyalists-forming-mass-organization.html

Surveys & opinion polls

Jokowi more desirable to lead PDI-P: Study

Jakarta Post - March 23, 2015

Margareth S. Aritonang – The ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) is seeing more rising potential young leaders but is struggling to regenerate due to a dynastic system that grants party leadership to the descendants of former president Sukarno remaining unchallenged, a study says.

A recent study by Jakarta-based Poltracking Indonesia placed three popular party members – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, lawmaker Pramono Anung Wibowo and Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo – at the top of the list of potential future leaders, overtaking current party executives including chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri.

The study, which involved 200 experts from various disciplines, from politics to law, found that Jokowi, Pramono and Ganjar had secured the three highest scores in ten categories: integrity and track record; competence and capability; vision; communication skills among the elites; ability to communicate with the public; acceptability; leadership achievement; ability to lead a party; ability to lead a political coalition; and ability in leading the government.

It in particular placed Jokowi at the top of the list of all categories, securing the three highest scores of 7.55 on average, from a scale of 0 to 10 – excluding on the ability to lead a party in which he lost to Pramono, a former House of Representatives deputy speaker.

"The study shows that the three leading individuals [Jokowi, Pramono and Ganjar] are also cited as the most recommended potential leaders of the PDI-P in the future as they are seen as promising fresh faces for the party's chairmanship," Poltracking director Hanta Yudha told a press briefing on Sunday.

The three leading individuals outshone Megawati and her two children – Puan Maharani and Prananda Prabowo – who secured the three lowest scores.

Besides Jokowi, Pramono and Ganjar, the study also recognized other growing members within the PDI-P such as acting secretary-general Hasto Kristiyanto, lawmaker Maruarar Sirait and Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo.

Despite the growing number of potential senior members in the PDI-P, a majority of 41.6 percent of experts engaged in the study, which took place from December last year to February this year, cited regeneration as the greatest challenge for the PDI-P to actually witness any of its rising members taking a lead; while 26.4 percent cited a lack of democratization as the other issue to deal with.

Two renowned analysts – Hamdi Muluk of the University of Indonesia and Ikrar Nusa Bhakti of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) – who also attended the launch of the study on Sunday, highlighted that despite the fact that the PDI-P had more potential leaders, Megawati would still be unchallenged during the party's national congress next month, which is aimed at selecting a new leader as well as determining the course of the party in the coming years.

"Bu Mega has been successful in nurturing more potential members to grow but not yet in encouraging and allowing them to replace her," Ikrar said. "We will see an unchallenged election of her in the party's congress [next month]," he added.

Meanwhile, Hamdi concluded that the study in general showed that "like most political parties in the country, democratization remains a challenge for the PDI-P".

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/23/jokowi-more-desirable-lead-pdi-p-study.html

Environment & natural disasters

Activists call on Jokowi to extend forest moratorium

Jakarta Globe - March 23, 2015

Jakarta – Environmental group Greenpeace has demanded that President Joko Widodo extends a moratorium on new forest concessions, which is due to end in less than three months, after the government and the national antigraft agency signed a joint agreement last week to stamp out corruption in the forestry industry.

"Greenpeace welcomes this anti-corruption approach to protect Indonesia's natural resources," said Bustar Maitar, the global head of Greenpeace's Indonesia Forest Campaign.

"President Joko Widodo has the power to save Indonesia's remaining forests. Overlapping concessions and weak management of natural resources, especially forests, are connected to corruption," he added.

Bustar believes the memorandum of understanding would take time to deliver results. "When he visited Riau's embattled peatlands last November, the president promised to extend the forest moratorium, but we have not yet seen a follow-up on that promise," the activist said.

Since the current moratorium is due to expire in less than 60 days, the most urgent step, Bustar said, is for Joko to extend it.

In addition to urging an extension of the forest moratorium, Greenpeace also seeks the cancelation of plans to build Southeast Asia's largest coal power plant in Batang, Central Java, after Japanese and Indonesian environmental groups joined the affected community to oppose the project.

Friends of the Earth Japan; the KIKO Network; Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society; the Network for Indonesian Democracy; and Greenpeace Indonesia joined community members in raising their concerns with the Japanese government, Itochu, J-Power and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

"Japanese civil society stands shoulder to shoulder in solidarity with the people of Indonesia, who will be affected by this dirty coal project. We do not want our public money to pay for human rights abuses and pollution, no matter where it is," said Hozue Hatae from Friends of the Earth Japan.

The Japanese government and JBIC have pledged to support development of the Batang coal power plant, which is expected to destroy the environment and livelihood of fishermen and farmers in Batang.

Human rights abuses

The project has already created several problems in the proposed area. According to community groups, the project has been rife with abuses, including human rights violations, illegal acquisition of land and criminalization of peaceful protests.

The financial closing of the project has been delayed three times between 2012 and 2014, due to strong opposition from the community and landowners, who refused to sell their land – even in the face of reported threats, violence, and intimidation.

Sofyan Basir, director of state-owned utility firm PLN, recently visited Batang and asked remaining landowners to sell their land.

"Again, we repeat that we strongly reject the building of the Batang coal power plant in our village. Jokowi should listen to our voices since we were his strong supporters during the presidential election," said Roidi, a community leader, referring to the president by his popular nickname.

"Almost 100 percent of Batang's people voted for him, since we trusted that he would listen to us. We believe Jokowi will consider food security as his top priority, and our lands and our seas are some of the most fertile and productive on Java Island.

"So the land should not be used for dirty energy, it should be used for achieving Jokowi's vision of food sovereignty."

The proposed site for the Batang coal power plant lies on fertile paddy fields and productive fishing areas.

"The government of Indonesia, PLN, and other companies must stop with their intimidation and repression of the local community," said Arif Fiyanto, climate and energy campaign team leader at Greenpeace Indonesia.

"It is crystal clear that the community strongly opposes the building of the dirty Batang coal power plant on their lands. The government must listen to people's voices rather than to corporations," Arif said.

Members of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) visited Batang to show support for the community and to express concern about their grievances.

The commission recommended to both the governor of Central Java and the central government that the coal power project be canceled, due to human rights violations and social problems.

The Environment and Forestry Ministry also visited the site earlier this year where after it expressed strong concerns about the situation, recommending the cancelation of the project.

"Indonesia has abundant resources of renewable energy, from geothermal to wind to solar to micro-hydro [power]. The country must quit dirty coal, not only because coal is the single largest contributor to climate change, but also because coal brings more harm than good to the people," said Arif of Greenpeace Indonesia.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/activists-call-jokowi-extend-forest-moratorium/

Health & education

Child smoker rate alarming: KNPT

Jakarta Post - March 19, 2015

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Activists have lambasted President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo for his lenient approach to tobacco use.

The National Commission on Tobacco Control (KNPT) has said that while concerned about narcotics, the government is seemingly paying less attention to the negative impacts of tobacco on younger generations despite the fact that tobacco poses more harm to the young.

"There were 240,000 people in Indonesia that died in 2013 because of tobacco, meaning that 660 people died every day, or 27 people per hour. That number is more dramatic than narcotics," KNPT commissioner Hakim Sorimuda Pohan said on Wednesday.

The problem is more poignant as children and teenagers suffer the most from the wide-acceptance of smoking in Indonesia, according to him.

Data from the Health Ministry shows there are 60 million smokers in Indonesia and that more than 3.9 million children aged between 10 and 14 become smokers every year.

There are also more than 40.3 million children aged 0 to 14 who become passive smokers because of the high prevalence of adult smokers, 2010 data from the Health Ministry shows.

But more alarming is the figure on toddlers and children who become active smokers.

According to the National Commission on Child Protection (Komnas PA), at least 239,000 children under the age of 10 have started smoking. In 2012, Komnas PA chairman Arist Merdeka Sirait said almost 2 percent of children had started smoking at the age of 4.

Despite the staggering number, Jokowi seems to be ignoring the problem, choosing to focus his attention on drugs instead, according to him.

"He repeatedly says that we have to fight drugs because 40 to 50 people die every day because of drugs. That number alone is enough for him to state the number over and again and again," Hakim said. "But what about the 660 people who die every day because of tobacco?"

Hakim said that nicotine was more addictive than morphine, which is a level 5 addiction, and heroin, a level 4. It is also more addictive than alcohol, marijuana and coffee.

"The government says that it protects children while at the same time we enjoy cheap cigarette prices, making it affordable for kids to purchase cigarettes with their allowance," said Hery Chariansyah, the executive director of an NGO focused on children, Lentera Anak Indonesia.

With a high prevalence of child smokers, Indonesia will not be able to enjoy the so-called demographic bonus, which is predicted to occur in 2025-2035, when the number of people within the productive age bracket is expected to be higher than the number of elderly people and children. Hakim said that smoking caused stunted growth and lower IQs among kids.

Kartono Mohamad, the chairman of the Indonesia Tobacco Control Network, meanwhile, said that children exposed to nicotine grew up to be aggressive, rebellious and anti-social. "If the government lets children smoke, then that means it is letting the country become stupid," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/19/child-smoker-rate-alarming-knpt.html

Graft & corruption

KPK calls on pretrial judges to act by the rules

Jakarta Post - March 23, 2015

Haeril Halim – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) said on Sunday that it was ready to face lawsuits lodged by four graft suspects who had sought to challenge their suspect statuses.

A recent lawsuit filed by National Police Education Institute (Lemdikpol) head Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan to challenge his graft suspect status went in his favor because of a historic decision by the South Jakarta District Court, prompting others who have been named suspects in graft cases by the KPK to follow suit.

The antigraft body's actions are currently being contested by four graft suspects: former Democratic Party lawmaker Sutan Bhatoegana, former Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) head Hadi Poernomo, former religious affairs minister and United Development Party (PPP) politician Suryadharma Ali and a former director of state oil and gas operator Pertamina, Suroso Atmo Martoyo.

KPK legal bureau head Chatarina M. Girsang said that apart from anticipating any possible controversial decisions made by judges in the four pretrial hearings, the KPK legal team was optimistic about winning them as Sutan, Suryadharma, Suroso and Hadi met the criteria as state officials who could be investigated by the KPK.

"Sutan was former chairman of House of Representatives Commission VII overseeing energy and minerals, while Hadi was former Finance Ministry's director general of taxation and Suryadharma was former religious affairs minister, all of whom were state officials who are the subjects of KPK investigations," Chatarina said.

In an unusual pretrial process that regularly does not hear challenges on the suspect status, judge Sarpin Rizaldi of the South Jakarta District Court ruled that Budi was not subject to a KPK investigation as it could only investigate a police officer who had investigative authority, hence annulling the three-star general's suspect status. Budi was the National Police's career development bureau head in 2004, during which time the KPK alleged he was involved in bribery.

"We cannot prevent judges from deciding [other controversial verdicts]. We will just follow the rules and present our defense statements as best we can. We expect that the judges will make their decisions based on the Criminal Law Procedures Code [KUHAP]," Chatarina said.

The KUHAP grants no authority for a judge to rule on the legality of someone's legal status through a pretrial mechanism, but Sarpin said that as a judge he had the right to interpret what was not regulated under the KUHAP by ruling that a judge could order law enforcement institutions to lift someone's legal status.

Sutan's pretrial hearing is slated to kick off on Monday, while Suryadharma's, Hadi's and Atmo's will start all at once on March 30. Chatarina said that she had asked for help from KPK prosecutors to join the legal bureau division members to fight the upcoming pretrial hearings.

KPK spokesman Priharsai Nugraha said the KPK had sent Sutan's dossiers to prosecutors to prepare his indictment for an upcoming trial of a high profile bribery case despite Sutan's refusal to sign the transfer of his dossiers from KPK investigators to prosecutors.

"His rejection to sign the investigation completion document will not affect the ongoing process at the KPK," Priharsa said on Sunday.

Separately, South Jakarta District Court insisted on processing Sutan's pretrial hearing despite criticism that a pretrial hearing would automatically be voided as soon as the dossier of a suspect reached the district court.

"A pretrial hearing will remain valid until the district court kicks off the first trial hearing on the respective case," South Jakarta District Court spokesman Made Sutrisna said on Sunday.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/23/KPK-calls-pretrial-judges-act-rules.html

PDI-P named most corrupt political party

Jakarta Post - March 19, 2015

Margareth S. Aritonang and Ina Parlina, Jakarta – A government plan to ease a remission regulation for corruption convicts has been described as a way of protecting members of the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI-P) from legal charges, the party having suffered more corruption convictions than any other over the past decade.

Alvon Kurnia Palma from the Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) cited a study on the corruption perception index of political parties by watchdog group Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Watch that revealed PDI-P politicians had been involved in the most graft cases between 2004 and 2014.

The organization conducted its study based on data provided by several anticorruption organizations, including the KPK, Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) and Transparency International Indonesia.

According to the study, politicians from the party had been involved in 157 cases in a decade, with Golkar Party members in second place with 113 cases and the Democratic Party third with 47 cases.

"This is an interesting finding, and may have something to do with that dubious plan," Alvon, who is also an attorney to former KPK deputy leader Bambang Widjajanto, said on Wednesday. "We must suspect that the political agenda is stronger than the legal one behind the plan," he added.

Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly has mooted a plan to revise a 2012 government regulation that imposed stricter remission requirements for crimes including drugs, graft and terrorism.

Yasonna argued that a graft convict had a right to remission. He also argued against the KPK's authority to recommend sentence cuts, which makes it hard for convicts to propose reductions.

Abraham Todo Napitupulu from the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) advised Yasonna to drop the plan and instead conduct a comprehensive study on the impact of the regulation, which is rarely implemented by the ministry.

The Law and Human Rights Ministry has continued to grant sentence cuts and parole to convicts since the regulation came into force, including the release last year of businesswoman Hartati Murdaya, who is also a former patron of the Democratic Party.

Yasonna hit back at his critics, saying that the plan was aimed at improving the legal system. "It has nothing to do with [the PDI-P]; I merely want to fix the system," he said.

Yasonna said further that he had reported to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo his idea to revise the 2012 regulation, telling the President that the idea had been widely misunderstood.

Yasonna said he supported stricter requirements for those involved in extraordinary crimes, such as corruption, to receive sentence cuts.

"In this context, we want to impose stricter requirements. For example, those involved in general crimes may get remission if they behave well for six months in prison, while those involved in corruption cases may get remission only if they show good behavior for a year or a year and a half," he said.

As another example, Yasonna suggested that those involved in general crimes could receive sentence cuts of one month, while graft convicts could get a maximum remission of 15 days.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/19/pdi-p-named-most-corrupt-political-party.html

Supreme Court must act to stop 'Sarpin effect'

Jakarta Post - March 18, 2015

Jakarta – Former Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman Busyro Muqoddas on Tuesday called on the Supreme Court to issue a circular ordering all courts in the country to reject pretrial petitions from graft suspects seeking to challenge their legal status through a pretrial mechanism.

In a phenomenon called the "Sarpin effect", more crime suspects in the country have challenged their legal status through a pretrial mechanism after judge Sarpin Rizaldi of the South Jakarta District Court in February controversially approved a pretrial motion filed by Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan to order the KPK to stop investigating him for bribery.

The court made the ruling despite the Criminal Law Procedure Code (KUHAP) granting no authority to a judge to challenge a suspect's status through a pretrial hearing.

"The Supreme Court as the highest authority in the country's judicial system must be responsible for the influx of graft suspects challenging their legal statuses. To solve the problem, it must issue a circular to all state courts across the country," Busyro said on Tuesday.

Apart from scores of graft suspects who have challenged their legal status at courts through a pretrial mechanism across the country, grafts suspects Democratic Party co-founder Sutan Bhatoegana, former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali and former Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) chairman Hadi Poernomo recently followed in Budi's footsteps to thwart the KPK's investigation through a pretrial hearing.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/18/national-scene-supreme-court-must-act-stop-sarpin-effect.html

Former BPK chief latest to file pretrial petition against KPK

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – The precedent set by a recent and controversial pretrial verdict is breathing new life into the legal strategies of graft suspects in the country, with Hadi Poernomo the latest figure to file a petition on Monday with the South Jakarta District Court that challenges the Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) ongoing investigation into his alleged corruption.

Hadi, a former Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) chairman, follows in the footsteps of fellow graft suspects Democratic Party cofounder Sutan Bhatoegana and former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali. All three are attempting to replicate the success of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, who in February won a pretrial hearing that ordered an end to the KPK's investigation into his alleged acts of bribery.

In the verdict, South Jakarta District judge Sarpin Rizaldi approved Budi's pretrial petition and ordered the KPK to lift the latter's graft suspect status, despite the law granting no authority to a judge to rule on the legality of a suspect's status through a pretrial mechanism.

"We have registered our pretrial proposal at the court today [Monday]," Hadi's lawyer, Yanuar Wasesa, told The Jakarta Post on Monday. On Friday, the lawyer had ruled out the possibility of taking such a legal step.

The KPK named Hadi a suspect for his decision during his time as the Finance Ministry's director general of taxation between 2002 and 2004 to unilaterally approve a request by Bank Central Asia (BCA) for income-tax leniency. The decision caused Rp 375 billion (US$28.3 million) in state losses – the amount in taxes that BCA should have paid to the state.

Hadi's petition amounts to a last-ditch effort to avoid detention after failing twice to answer a KPK summons.

On March 6, Hadi failed to inform the KPK about his absence for a questioning, while on March 12 he claimed to be receiving treatment at a hospital in Jakarta for a heart problem. Suryadharma behaved similarly before registering his pretrial petition at the same court last month.

Meanwhile, Sutan, who earlier said he had no intention of filing a pretrial petition, decided to challenge his graft-suspect status after Budi's pretrial lawyer, Razman Arif Nasution, convinced him to do so.

Yanuar said he had crafted his petition with strong arguments. "According to Article 25 and 26 Law No.9/1999 on the taxation directorate, the KPK cannot investigate any decision made by the taxation directorate unless the decision is involves bribes or kickbacks. In Pak Hadi's case, there were no bribes or kickbacks at all," Yanuar said.

The case began on July 12, 2003, when BCA issued a request at the income tax directorate for a tax write-off after a bad-loan restructuring in 1999 worth Rp 5.7 trillion.

The tax office rejected the request on March 13, 2004, but one day before the deadline for the bank to pay taxes, Hadi, acting in his capacity as tax boss, annulled the decision and granted BCA's request.

"The KPK was wrong when it used the letter as evidence in its investigation, because the letter is just Pak Hadi's opinion [about the directorate's refusal of BCA's request]," Yanuar said, adding that the KPK's calculation of state losses was fabricated, as the BPK never issued an audit of state losses on Hadi's decision.

Separately, KPK acting commissioner Johan Budi said that, to no avail, he had asked the Supreme Court to issue a circular allowing the KPK to challenge Budi's controversial pretrial verdict through a cassation mechanism to prevent more graft suspects from doing so in the future.

"After a discussion with Supreme Court chief justice [Hatta Ali] it is unlikely that the court will issue such a circular," Johan said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/former-bpk-chief-latest-file-pretrial-petition-against-KPK.html

Jokowi wants KPK to focus on fisheries, forestry

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – Rather than honoring his campaign pledge to strengthen graft prosecutions, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo told the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Monday at the State Palace to double down on preventing corruption in the fishery and plantation sectors this year.

KPK acting deputy chairman Johan Budi said the antigraft body would sign an agreement along with 29 ministries and state institutions, as well as 21 provincial administrations, to fight corruption in the natural resources sector on March 19.

"The President will attend the signing and will give further directives to the 29 ministries and state institutions," Johan announced after the meeting at the palace.

The Monday meeting took place just two weeks after the State Palace announced the President would issue a decree instructing all government bodies to accelerate efforts to prevent corruption because "ministries and other government bodies are obliged to help prevent corruption".

Over the past decade, the KPK has tended to focus on prosecuting graft, sending dozens of former lawmakers and ministers to prison. Antigraft activists have lambasted Jokowi's directive to the KPK for diverting the antigraft body's focus away from prosecuting corruption.

"It is important to prevent corruption because we can save a huge amount of state money in the natural resources sector [if we can fix the system there]," acting KPK chairman Taufiequrachman Ruki said at the State Palace.

Johan and Ruki are two of three acting KPK leaders appointed by Jokowi to replace suspended leaders KPK chairman Abraham Samad and KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto, both of whom were well-known for their aggressive prosecution efforts during their tenure, following the National Police's decision to name them suspects in two separate cases.

Abraham and Bambang were named suspects after former National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan was named a bribery suspect by the KPK on Jan. 13.

In addition to his prevention efforts, Johan, who served as KPK deputy for the prevention unit before being appointed an acting KPK leader, said the antigraft body had, since 2013, been studying various ministries to see how their efforts were being compromised.

Johan said after conducting the studies, the KPK announced its findings and directed certain ministries take appropriate corrective measures. The commission now holds routine check-ups to gauge the extent to which its proposed reforms are being implemented.

As a result of the assessment and subsequent reforms, Johan added, as much as Rp 20 trillion (US$1.5 billion) in state money has been saved from corruption in the coal and mineral sector.

"The difference between what we were doing back in 2014 and what we are doing now in 2015 is that this year we will expand prevention efforts to the fisheries and plantation sectors," Johan added.

According to data from the KPK, studies conducted in 2014 in the fisheries sector found that more than 70 percent of some 1,444 companies operating 30-gross-ton vessels lacked tax identification numbers (NPWP).

Separately, Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) researcher Ade Irawan criticized acting KPK leaders for the plan to favor an escalation of prevention rather than prosecution in the fight against corruption in the country, adding the KPK needed to continue Abraham's legacy, which was to apply strong prosecution measures against corrupt officials.

"Theoretically, prevention and prosecution efforts should be balanced, as both are important, but at this current juncture where corruption is rampant, it is more important to emphasize prosecution," Ade said.

Ade also reminded Jokowi that the KPK had been established in 2003 because the graft-ridden Attorney General's Office (AGO) and the National Police had failed to eradicate corruption.

"Don't let the KPK become Corruption 'Prevention' Commission because it is actually the Corruption 'Eradication' Commission. It is the KPK's main job to eradicate corruption, especially the corruption in the political and law-enforcement sectors," Ade added.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/jokowi-wants-KPK-focus-fisheries-forestry.html

Justice minister blasted for bid to go easy on graft convicts

Jakarta Globe - March 17, 2015

Jakarta – Antigraft officials have greeted with dismay a plan by the justice minister to make it easier for corruption convicts to qualify for sentence reductions, in what is shaping up to be the latest concession by the administration of President Joko Widodo in the fight against graft.

The Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, said on Monday that it had never been consulted by Justice Minister Yasonna Laoly on the proposal to revise the regulation for sentence cuts. Johan Budi, an interim chairman of the KPK, said that if anything, the process should be tightened up, not loosened.

"We at the KPK of course hope that the government won't make it easier for corruption convicts to receive remissions" – sentence cuts – "and that the process is instead made more stringent," Johan told reporters at State Palace in Central Jakarta on Monday, after a meeting between KPK commissioners and the president.

"The regulation was drawn up to make it harder for those convicted of extraordinary crimes to get remissions," Johan said.

"And no matter the crime, be it corruption, drug offenses or terrorism, I feel it would be a step backward if we were to ignore the spirit of the regulation. It will go against efforts to eradicate corruption, in which we're trying to create a deterrent effect" through long prison sentences.

Yasonna, a politician from Joko's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, announced last Friday that his office would "correct" the 2012 regulation on remissions because, according to him, it gave the KPK greater say than the Justice Ministry in deciding whether a corruption convict qualified for a sentence cut.

"The criminal law process sees the police investigate, the Attorney General's Office prosecute, and the courts rule. After that, the responsibility for corrections is the Justice Ministry's task. It can't be allowed to hinge on another institution because then it would be discriminatory," the minister said.

The involvement of the KPK in approving sentence cuts for corruption convicts – and the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) in the case of terror convicts – was formulated in the regulation precisely because the state, under the previous administration of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, viewed these offenses as extraordinary crimes and sought to punish them as such.

The Yudhoyono administration drew up the regulation a year after it drew the ire of the PDI-P for denying parole to a PDI-P politician convicted of taking bribes to vote for a top central bank official.

The PDI-P, which has long appeared to champion the rights of graft convicts, is the top-ranked party in Indonesia in terms of the number of its members convicted and jailed in corruption cases investigated and prosecuted by the KPK.

Discriminatory approach

Antigraft activists have balked at Yasonna's bid to go easy on graft convicts, calling it yet another sign of the Joko administration's lack of commitment to fighting corruption.

"It's strange if the government claims to be committed to ending corruption yet acts permissively by selling off sentence cuts for these big-time criminals," said Busyro Muqoddas, a former deputy chairman of the KPK.

"The facts show that certain crimes, in our case corruption, terrorism and drug crimes, are extraordinary crimes. And for these crimes we need to discriminate [against the offenders] as a form of positive discrimination."

Any effort to water down the terms of the 2012 regulation, Busyro warned, would go against the public's sense of justice.

"There is no justification whatsoever for treating corruption convicts as ordinary criminals. The discriminatory approach is the right one if we want to build a justice system that provides a deterrent against corruption," he said.

Indonesia Corruption Watch, the country's leading independent antigraft group, agreed that making it easier for corruption convicts to receive sentence cuts could not be justified.

"We're questioning the anti-corruption commitment of the Joko Widodo-Jusuf Kalla administration," Emerson Yuntho, an ICW coordinator, said as quoted by Tempo.

He added it was "strange" that Yasonna wanted to "go against the regulation," and denied that the minister had invited ICW to talks on the issue.

Johan said separately that the KPK had also been left out of the discussions, even as Yasonna claimed to have sought input from both the KPK and ICW.

Going limp on graft

Sentence cuts typically range from 15 to 90 days, and are handed out during major national holidays. To qualify, a convict must have served at least six months of their sentence, and exhibited good behavior for at least the same period.

Under the 2012 regulation, though, corruption convicts must pay all fines and damages imposed by a court before they can qualify. They must also cooperate with law enforcement authorities investigating others implicated in the same case, and must have approval from the KPK on whether they deserve a sentence cut.

Yasonna's bid, if it goes through, will be the latest apparent move by the Joko administration to cede ground in the fight against corruption, after the president earlier this year allowed the KPK to be severely undermined by a police force universally perceived as corrupt.

Joko suspended two of the KPK's commissioners in March after they were charged by the police in cases widely seen as fabricated, following the KPK's naming of Joko's nominee for police chief, Budi Gunawan, a bribery and money-laundering suspect.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/justice-minister-blasted-bid-go-easy-graft-convicts/

KPK's oversight of sentence cuts under threat

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Jakarta – Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly said Monday he was considering stripping the authority of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to decide on remission proposals for graft convicts.

The Indonesian Democratic of Struggle (PDI-P) politician said the antigraft body already had the power to prosecute and sentence corruption suspects, and that it would be "a big leap" to allow the body to retain its authority to decide whether a convict was eligible for remission.

"A judge hears the KPK's prosecution of a suspect and then sentences him. When later the convict applies for a sentence reduction, he or she has to gain a letter of acknowledgement for being a whistle-blower for the KPK. If the KPK declines to give the letter, [it] punishes the convict twice," Yasonna said at the State Palace on Monday.

Yasonna has unveiled a plan to revise a 2012 government regulation that introduced stricter remission requirements for drug, graft and terror convicts. The 2012 regulation requires a graft convict to fulfill two criteria before qualifying for a remission.

First, they must prove themselves as a justice collaborator, or a "whistle-blower", with a letter from the KPK. Second, they must pay back the state losses they caused as well as the fines imposed by the court.

Yasonna declined to respond to speculation that the revision plan on the regulation was aimed at making punishment for corruption convicts more lenient.

Instead, he said that he was proposing a maximum sentence reduction since existing regulations were unclear, adding that the government was open to other suggestions.

Despite the strict government regulation, several high profile convicts still managed to obtain remission or even parole during former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration.

Among those pardoned include the businesswoman Hartati Murdaya, a former Democratic Party patron board member, who was released in 2014 a little over a year after she was sentenced by the Jakarta Corruption Court to two years and eight months in prison for paying Rp 3 billion (US$309,000) in bribes to Amran Batalipu, the former regent of Buol in Central Sulawesi, to expedite the issuance of a business permit for her palm oil plantation company, PT Hardaya Inti Plantations.

KPK acting deputy chairman Johan Budi said the plan to revise the regulation was a setback in the fight against corruption. "[Easier sentence cutting procedure] goes against the spirit of eradicating corruption and would limit the deterrent effect on convicts," he said.

Johan said the antigraft body was not consulted by the government in discussions about the new regulation.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/KPK-s-oversight-sentence-cuts-under-threat.html

Government grilled for going soft on graft

Jakarta Post - March 16, 2015

Hans Nicholas Jong and Haeril Halim, Jakarta – While the crisis between the National Police and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) recedes, the government has drawn further ire with a plan to relax a 2012 remission policy for corruption convicts, allowing them more sentence reductions.

Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly has detailed a plan to revise a 2012 government regulation that imposed stricter remission requirements on drug, graft and terror convicts.

The regulation requires graft convict to fulfill two criteria before they can be granted a remission. First, they must be a justice collaborator. Second, they must pay back the state losses they caused as well as the fines imposed on them by the court.

Yasonna said he would amend the regulation, arguing that receiving remissions was the right of graft convicts.

While the plan has drawn fierce criticism from antigraft activists, a lawmaker in the House of Representatives Commission III overseeing law and human rights, Abubakar Al-Habsyi, said critics should not hastily oppose it.

"This issue is not something that is comfortable to be raised because it makes us look like we are defending corruptors. But there is a need to protect people that get mistreated [by the law]," he said over the weekend.

The deputy faction head of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), which saw its former chairman, Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq, sentenced to 18 years in prison for his role in a graft case in 2013, said the law had to treat every citizen fairly, including graft convicts.

Abubakar said that sometimes graft convicts received much harsher sentences than they deserved. Moreover, he said law enforcers could go overboard in prosecuting graft suspects.

"For example, Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan could win his pretrial hearing. It means there's something wrong [with naming him as a suspect]," he said.

Abubakar was referring to the former National Police chief candidate, whose pretrial request was fulfilled by South Jakarta District Court judge Sarpin Rizaldi in February, who said that the KPK's investigation into Budi was invalid.

The 2012 regulation has been seen by many convicts as draconian. The Law and Human Rights Ministry under former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono issued parole to high-profile convicts such as businesswoman Hartati Murdaya.

Supporting the proposal is former Constitutional Court justice Jimly Asshiddiqie, who is also a member of an independent team assigned by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to resolve the current standoff between the KPK and the National Police. "Graft convicts have the same rights as other convicts," he said on Saturday.

However, Jimly believed that graft convicts should receive fewer remissions so the public would not be angered, and added it was enough for the government to give remissions once a year, during Independence Day on Aug. 17, as opposed to the current practice of giving remissions twice a year.

Transparency International Indonesia (TII) secretary general Dadang Trisasongko said the Jokowi administration, which vowed to eradicate corruption, must ensure that those who committed graft received punishments that acted as deterrents. "The statement [made by Yasonna] could decrease the spirit of law enforcers to win cases against graft defendants in court. Law enforcers' efforts to successfully convince judges to give harsh sentences to graft culprits will be useless if later on graft convicts are able to receive sentence reductions," Dadang said on Sunday.

Due to the classification of corruption as an extraordinary crime, Dadang went on, the prosecution and sentencing of individuals involved in graft cases had to be different from that of other criminals. "This is a setback in the country's commitment in the war against corruption," Dadang added.

Former KPK deputy chairman Busyro Muqoddas said the treatment of graft convicts had to be discriminative and that Yasonna was wrong to attempt to reverse the situation.

"A theory says that discriminative prosecution [for graft convicts] is something normal and it is strange if the government says it wants to fight corruption but it is still permissive in terms of remission," Busyro said.

"Corruption has caused systemic problems in the country. It's against logical reasoning if the government insists graft convicts should be treated the same as perpetrators of general crime," Busyro went on.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/16/govt-grilled-going-soft-graft.html

Attorney General says Budi Gunawan case lacks evidence

Jakarta Post - March 16, 2015

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) said on Sunday that its investigators had found that the dossiers of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, who was accused of being involved in bribery by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), lack evidence.

The antigraft body officially transferred Budi's dossiers to the AGO on Tuesday, which later intended to pass the case over to the National Police, following a controversial pretrial decision that ordered the KPK, which is prohibited by law from dropping a graft investigation, to stop investigating the police general.

"That's what I have heard from the team investigating [Budi's case]. I will soon convene the team members to get further information about it," Attorney General Muhammad Prasetyo told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.

The pretrial decision, which according to experts has no legal basis, annulled Budi's graft suspect status and the lack of evidence in Budi's dossiers, as claimed by the AGO, could further be used as a justification for the AGO not to rename Budi a suspect in its investigation.

Prasetyo said that the lack of strong evidence given by the KPK in Budi's dossiers was due to the KPK's failure "to try its best" to investigate the police general, who suspiciously had billions of rupiahs worth of total deposits in his bank accounts.

In Jan. 13, the KPK named Budi a suspect for financial misdeeds in his capacity as head of the Career Development Bureau at the National Police headquarters from 2004 to 2006, when he amassed a total of Rp 95 billion (US$7.2 million) that he allegedly collected from bribes and gratuities, including bribes paid by officers in pursuit of higher positions in the force.

Prasetyo, a former politician from the pro-government Nasdem Party, once again reiterated his intention to transfer the case to the National Police should the AGO not find enough evidence to name Budi a suspect by citing an agreement signed in 2014 by the KPK, the National Police and the AGO.

"The agreement is about the handling of cases by the three law enforcement institutions. One of the points agreed in the agreement is if one of the three institutions has conducted the same investigation in the past then the respective institution will be allowed to investigate the case," Prasetyo said.

Budi will likely be cleared of charges should his case be transferred to his office because in 2010 the National Police had investigated his large bank accounts and later claimed that they did not find any irregularities in the huge amount of money that went in and out on Budi's accounts.

Acting KPK commissioner Johan Budi said that the antigraft body would not intervene in any future decision made by the AGO on the fate of Budi's case.

"We have officially transferred the case to the AGO," Johan said. Former KPK commissioner Haryono Umar reminded current KPK leaders that they still had the right to supervise Budi's case through a joint expose forum to ensure the AGO investigators make progress in their investigation.

"The KPK has the authority to conduct coordination and supervision with the AGO. Through this mechanism the KPK could watch all the progress made by the AGO on Budi's case," Haryono said.

Separately, former KPK adviser Abdullah Hemahahua emphasized that the KPK had never named someone a suspect without collecting at least two strong pieces of evidence in its graft investigations, reminding the AGO not to rashly transfer Budi's case to the police without informing the KPK beforehand.

"KPK leaders cannot just give away the case to the AGO without watching the progress of the investigation at the AGO. If the AGO needs more data then it simply asks the KPK leaders for more in the future," Abdullah said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/16/attorney-general-says-budi-gunawan-case-lacks-evidence.html

Jakarta & urban life

Basuki: No more demonstrations on Car-Free days

Jakarta Globe - March 23, 2015

Jakarta – Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama says he likes the idea of banning any political activities on the weekly car-free day in parts of Jakarta.

Basuki said the idea came from his deputy for demography, Syahrul Effendi. The governor was quoted as saying by Kompas.com on Monday that he thought most demonstrations during car-free Sundays were in his support, but that it was a good plan anyway.

Saefullah, the city secretary, said earlier that Jakarta's car-free days were often misused for political activities, and that the original purpose of the measure was to improve air quality and give residents the opportunity to use several stretches of key roads for physical activity, such as jogging or biking.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/jakarta/basuki-no-demonstrations-car-free-days/

Jakarta budget dispute subsides after weeks of deadlock

Jakarta Post - March 20, 2015

Dewanti A. Wardhani, Jakarta – In an unexpected turn of events, the 2015 Jakarta budget dispute seems to have subsided, with councilors signaling support for the draft budget and the city administration beginning to enact changes recommended by the Home Ministry.

The city administration and councilors have been at odds for several weeks over different versions of the draft budget. Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama has accused the councilors of including in their draft "sneaky items" worth Rp 12.1 trillion (US$926.4 million) of the total Rp 73.08 trillion.

Hundreds of city officials gathered at City Hall in Central Jakarta on Thursday to make changes to the draft 2015 city budget through the e- budgeting system, grouped according to their agency. The officials are set to work around the clock, for days if necessary, to make changes to 3,260 programs, based on recommendations from the ministry.

Ahok said that the city administration had invited the City Council to view the e-budgeting process so that councilors could monitor the process and get to know the system. Ahok said that the administration would also give Council Speaker Prasetio Edi Marsudi a password to access the e-budgeting system.

"We will give a username and password to the City Council to access the system so they can monitor the process as well. However, the City Council's account will not be able to make changes to the budget. The City Council can only view and lock allocations if they find a dubious program. Once an allocation is locked, the funds for that program cannot be disbursed," Ahok announced to reporters.

He said that he would continue to fight for transparency in the Jakarta administration although he acknowledged that it would not be easy. Ahok revealed that in 2012, then council speaker Ferrial Sofyan of the Democratic Party had threatened the city administration that the council would reject that year's draft budget if then Financial Management Board head Sukri Bey was demoted. Sukri, Ahok said, had been responsible for inputting dana siluman or "sneaky allocations". In the end, the city administration gave Sukri early retirement, and the City Council approved the budget nonetheless.

Prasetio, meanwhile, said he gave his full support to the city administration's draft budget, expressing appreciation for Ahok's drive to achieve transparency. Prasetio has until now been one of the most vocal councilors in the dispute with the governor.

"Now the budgeting process is very open, very transparent. Our communication has also improved. The most important thing right now is that residents benefit from the city budget," Prasetio said after visiting Ahok at his office.

Prasetio went on to say that he personally had agreed to exclude the Rp 12.1 trillion of additional funds from the councilors' version of the budget, and that he would sign the draft budget once the improvements were made.

A number of councilors were also present during the e-budgeting process, including Nasdem Party politicians Bestari Barus and James Arifin, Golkar Party politicians Ashraf Ali and Tandanan Daulay and Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politicians Pandapotan Sinaga and Maruarar Siahaan. It was the first time that the councilors had viewed the e- budgeting process.

Bestari said that the e-budgeting system was "quite good" and asked that the city administration teach the councilors how to access the system. "We are very happy with this system because it will be very useful," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/20/jakarta-budget-dispute-subsides-after-weeks-deadlock.html

Armed forces & defense

TNI deputy commander post 'unnecessary'

Jakarta Post - March 19, 2015

Nani Afrida, Jakarta – A proposal to reactivate the deputy commander post in the Indonesian Military (TNI) is being criticized as an unnecessary reform that could promote inefficiency.

Military expert Khairul Fahmi said the government should have a stronger reason for proposing such a move.

"I hope the post was [proposed] not just to accommodate the current military chief, who will retire soon," Khairul said on Wednesday. It has been reported that TNI chief Gen. Moeldoko will retire this year.

According to Khairul, if the government creates a deputy chief post, it may indicate that whomever is on deck to replace Moeldoko may not be up to the task.

On Tuesday, Moeldoko unveiled a series of structural reform proposals in a Cabinet meeting at the State Palace, one of which was the revival of the long-abandoned post of deputy commander. Moeldoko said bringing back the post would allow the TNI to respond faster to security threats.

"The TNI is all about response. It is expected that the deputy commander can act [on behalf of the TNI commander] should the TNI commander be absent," Moeldoko said.

Hanafi Rais, a legislator from House Commission I overseeing defense, foreign affairs and information, said President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo should be held responsible for elaborating on the necessity of the move should he decide to approve it.

"[If not,] people may think Jokowi has yet to complete some [power-]sharing [obligations] after being elected president," he said.

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno said reviving the deputy TNI commander post required further study, because above all, it was clear to him the military needed "more infrastructure and personnel".

The deputy commander position was created in 1998 when Gen. (ret.) Wiranto led the military, then known as the Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI), while serving as defense minister.

Then president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid abolished the post in September 2000 in order to streamline the TNI.

Military expert Mufti Makarim said the deputy commander position would create new problems, including overlapping lines of authority and violating the institutional vision of a strong military chief.

"The idea should be reviewed. Currently, the TNI chief controls three military forces, as he is a commander beyond a commander," Mufti said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

According to Mufti, the precise balance of power between a TNI commander and a TNI deputy commander remained unclear, especially with respect to the Defense Ministry.

"The TNI's main duty is defense operations, while administrative matters are left to the Defense Ministry. The presence of a deputy chief may create overlapping authority that will weaken the military itself," Mufti said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/19/tni-deputy-commander-post-unncesessary.html

Another military figure arrested for illegal logging

Jakarta Post - March 18, 2015

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Mount Leuser National Park (TNGL) rangers have arrested a Navy sailor on suspicion of illegal logging in the Leuser Park protected forest in Langkat regency, North Sumatra.

The latest arrest brings the number of Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel arrested in the past year for illegal logging to four, according to TNGL center head Andi Basrul.

Andi said Tuesday that the sailor, "H", was arrested along with two civilians as they attempted to haul away 4 tons of illegally logged timber from the Sekoci Block in the Leuser Park's Besitang district, Langkat regency, early on March 16.

Andi added that soon after H's arrest, his colleagues from the Marines in Pangkalan Brandan came to the TNGL office in Medan, North Sumatra, to demand their colleague's release.

"There were 15 Navy personnel who came to the office. They demanded that H be released, but we refused. Fortunately, they did not turn violent," said Andi.

He added this was the first time the office had been approached by Marine personnel demanding the release of a colleague. Andi said although they did not resort to violence, their presence was a form of intimidation.

"It was tense when they arrived, but it did not deter us from thoroughly investigating the case involving the soldiers," Andi said.

He added that his office handed all illegal logging cases involving TNI individuals over to the Military Police, and would do so for H as well. The TNGL office expressed the hope that the maximum punishment would be imposed.

So far, punishments on illegal loggers have been exceedingly lenient. Earlier, three state agency heads in Kotacane and Tapaktuan, Aceh, were sentenced to just six months probation for their involvement in illegal logging.

Andi expressed concern that continuing to hand down light sentences for illegal loggers would actually encourage more individuals to engage in the illegal activity.

"Currently, 30,000 hectares in TNGL in North Sumatra have been deforested. I'm sure destruction will worsen without stern law enforcement," said Andi, adding that damaged areas in TNGL currently reached 140,000 hectares.

Sgt. Maj. Rojali, from the Navy Military Police detachment in Belawan, North Sumatra, said H's case would be processed in line with applicable law. Rojali added his office would not enforce the law selectively against errant soldiers.

A study by the Wildlife Conservation Society Indonesia Program (WCSIP) recently found that rampant poaching and habitat loss in the biggest forest block in Northern Sumatra was reducing populations of already endangered animals, including Sumatran tigers, rhinoceroses, elephants and orangutans.

The WCSIP noted that the rhinoceros population in TNGL currently stood at between 20 and 30 individuals, a drop from around 60 in the 1980s, while the Sumatran tiger population currently stood at only 100 compared to 150 in the 1990s.

The current population of orangutans in the Leuser ecosystem area has dropped to 6,600 from 7,500 10 years ago.

With habitats in supposedly protected forests threatened by deforestation, more and more orangutans have reportedly been invading human settlements and destroying crops near TNGL areas in Aceh and North Sumatra over the past decade.

The central government made the Leuser area a national park in 1980 and UNESCO named it a biosphere reserve in 1981. The park is reportedly the only place in the world where orangutans, tigers, elephants and rhinoceroses still live together.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/18/another-military-figure-arrested-illegal-logging.html

TNI deputy chief post to be reactivated

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Jakarta – Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Gen. Moeldoko submitted on Tuesday a series of reorganization steps to a limited Cabinet meeting at the Presidential Palace.

One of the reorganization items was the reactivation of the post of TNI deputy chief. "The deputy chief can take action when the TNI chief is absent," Moeldoko said after the meeting as reported by kompas.com.

This short-lived post started in 1998 when Gen. Wiranto led the then Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI) as well as being the defense minister. Then president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid abolished the post in September 2000 to streamline the TNI.

Other than the TNI deputy chief post, Moeldoko said there were also discussions to increase the division-level units in each service from two to three units.

In the Navy, there would be the Central Fleet Command in addition to the Eastern and Western Fleet Commands. The Air Force would have its third Air Force Operations Command (Koopsau) while the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) would get its third division.

Moeldoko said the reorganization steps had been studied in terms of recent conditions and needs. He said the reorganization would improve the TNI's performance. "The President has approved the reorganization with a request it be done in stages," he said. (nvn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/tni-deputy-chief-post-be-reactivated.html

Criminal justice & prison system

No executions of foreigners in near future

Jakarta Post - March 19, 2015

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – High-ranking government officials said on Wednesday that no executions of drug convicts would take place in the next few months, as the country's judiciary was still processing their appeals and case reviews.

Attorney General M. Prasetyo said that although all preparations for the drug convicts' executions had been completed, prosecutors were still waiting for the final verdicts on their appeals.

Prasetyo went on to say that all death-row convicts in the second batch had to be executed simultaneously, including Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso of the Philippines and French inmate Serge Atlaoui, whose case reviews are now being handled by the Supreme Court.

"If they were not executed simultaneously, it would create further problems for us," Prasetyo said at the State Palace on Wednesday before a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

Prasetyo claimed the AGO had no deadline for the executions, adding that it was waiting for the ongoing legal proceedings to wrap up.

"There are several ongoing legal proceedings. We must wait for them [to reach their conclusion]," he said, adding that the appeals and case reviews included those filed at the Jakarta State Administrative Court (PTUN) by two Australian drug smugglers on death row, Andrew Chan, 31, and Myuran Sukumaran, 33.

Prasetyo maintained that the executions' delay was not due to foreign pressure.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla backed up the attorney general's remarks, saying that the government was unlikely to execute the death-row convicts for weeks or even months, until the courts ruled on their last-minute legal appeals.

Kalla was quoted by Reuters as saying, "We're waiting for the decision of the courts," adding that it could take "weeks or months". Kalla also said that Indonesia was being especially careful with the legal appeals in light of diplomatic efforts to save the prisoners.

"We will always hear and consider opinions not only from Australia but also France and Brazil," he said. "That is why we are very careful in [...] following the process of the law," he explained.

Four death-row inmates have appealed against their sentences after the President rejected their clemency pleas late last year.

Australia has made repeated calls for mercy on behalf of Sukumaran and Chan but Jokowi has refused to budge, turning down offers of a one-off prisoner exchange and to have the Australian government bear the cost of the convicts serving life sentences.

Kalla said relations with Brazil had been harmed and Indonesia was now reviewing all its military contracts with Latin America's largest economy.

"We're not reviewing contracts with other countries because Australia and the Netherlands did not harm our diplomatic relations like Brazil," he said, referring to Brazil's refusal to let Indonesia's envoy take part in a ceremony.

Brazil and the Netherlands recalled their ambassadors in January after Indonesia executed a group of six drug offenders, including citizens of those two countries.

A Brazilian national is also among a second group of 11 prisoners due to be executed. Rodrigo Gularte's family has pleaded for clemency on the grounds of mental illness.

Others facing imminent execution on the prison island of Nusakambangan include citizens of France, the Philippines, Ghana, Nigeria and Indonesia.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/19/no-executions-foreigners-near-future.html

Executions could be delayed months as judges re-examine Filipina case

Sydney Morning Herald - March 17, 2015

Jewel Topsfield, Jakarta – The Indonesian Supreme Court has agreed to review the case of a Filipina drug courier scheduled to be shot at the same time as the Bali nine duo, potentially delaying the executions for months.

The decision is significant for Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan because Indonesian authorities have consistently said they intend to execute all 10 drug felons simultaneously.

Supreme Court spokesman Suhadi said a panel of judges would be appointed this week. "After that the panel will examine and study her case. It will take months," he said in Kompas newspaper on Tuesday.

Filipina domestic worker Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso was sentenced to death in 2010 for attempting to smuggle 2.6 kilograms of heroin from Malaysia to Yogyakarta – Veloso maintains she was deceived by an acquaintance and did not know the drugs were in her suitcase.

Her lawyer argued she deserved a case review because the translator during her trial was only a student who did not have a license from the Association of Indonesian Translators. Case reviews take up to three months to be determined.

On March 12, Attorney-General spokesman Tony Spontana said Indonesian authorities would wait on the result of all legal processes lodged by the felons on death row before proceeding with the executions.

He said simultaneous executions were "more efficient and effective". "We don't want one to have to wait for another's execution before his own. That will affect the convicts' psychological state," he said.

Nine of the 10 drug felons are now understood to have launched legal proceedings. Chan and Sukumaran will have an appeal against the rejection of their clemency plea heard on Thursday. The Judicial Commission is also investigating claims the judges who sentenced them to death offered a lighter sentence in exchange for bribes.

And the family of Brazilian Rodrigo Gularte, who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, are fighting for his life to be spared on the grounds he is mentally ill.

Meanwhile, the head of the Central Java Prosecutor's Office, Hartadi, warned Indonesia's sovereignty was at stake if the second batch of executions failed to take place.

In a speech at a ceremony to induct new officials, Hartadi reportedly said the president said the executions must go ahead despite foreigners manoeuvring to have the executions cancelled or at least delayed.

"The Prosecutor's office as part of the law enforcement system must not be daunted by the diplomatic approaches," Mr Hartadi said in Kompas.

[With Karuni Rompies.]

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/bali-nine-executions-could-be-delayed-months-as-judges-reexamine-filipina-maids-case-20150317-1m182b.html

Police release grandmother accused of stealing teakwood

Jakarta Globe - March 16, 2015

Carlos Paath, Jakarta – A 63-year-old woman, who was arrested three months ago on suspicion that she had taken wood from a teak plantation managed by state-owned forestry firm Perhutani, was released from an East Java jail on Monday following a public outcry.

Asyani was sent into a police detention center in the East Java district of Situbondo on Dec. 15, after Perhutani reported her to police for the alleged theft.

The company reportedly noticed that 38 wooden beams had disappeared from its plantation, and that the items were found at Asyani's house in Secangan village in Jatibanteng subdistrict, not far from the plantation.

The alleged theft apparently took place five years ago. Asyani works as a traditional masseuse in her village. Her son-in-law, though, is a carpenter based in the same village.

The court in Situbondo ordered her release on Monday, but added that the case against her would still proceed. Asyani has been charged for violating the forest protection law and may face up to five years in prison.

Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya said on Monday that she and President Joko Widodo would continue to monitor the case.

"The president is concerned about this case. Pak Jokowi is quite sensitive about such things," Siti said. "Last Friday, he asked me about the progress of the case and I have reported all the details to him."

The minister said Asyani, who was first reported as being 45 years of age, was granted a release due to her age and health condition. "The alleged offense also occurred five years ago. We have to understand Asyani's condition," Siti said.

"This also serves to show people that our law is non-discriminatory," she added, in reference to criticism that law is only enforced when the perpetrators are poor people, while corporate executives guilty of larger crimes of deforestation have remained largely untouchable.

Asyani's lawyer, Supriono, has maintained that the teak beams found at Asyani's house did not belong to Perhutani. He said the beams were made when Asyani's late husband cut down his own teak trees five years ago, when he was still alive.

Perhutani claims that it had lost Rp 4 million ($300) because of the alleged theft. The case has drawn attention from students, politicians and environmentalists, who have urged the police to release Asyani.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/police-release-grandmother-accused-stealing-teakwood/

Bali nine executions: Phone-tapping rumours surround delay

Sydney Morning Herald - March 16, 2015

Jewel Topsfield – Indonesian parliamentarians are publicly questioning the fact that 10 prisoners on death row, including Bali nine organisers Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, have not yet been killed.

The delay to the executions is being linked to everything from phone- tapping rumours to Prime Minister Tony Abbott's lack of popularity in Australia.

The Indonesian government initially said the prisoners would be killed in February. However, it now says their executions are on hold pending the outcomes of several legal challenges by those on death row.

Elnino Husein Mohi, a parliamentarian from the same party as defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, said the government would lose the trust of the people if the executions continued to be delayed.

He said it was legitimate for people to ask the president and vice- president whether the executions would be delayed until Mr Abbott's domestic popularity improved.

"Hopefully, the delay is truly due to technical reasons," Mr Mohi was quoted saying in news website Tribunnews.com. However, he pointed out there had been no delays to the execution of six drug felons in January, five of whom were foreigners.

There were also rumours swirling that the delays relate to Mr Joko's phone being tapped.

Indonesia is still smarting over the 2013 revelations that Australia attempted to monitor the mobile phone calls of former Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, his wife and senior officials.

And, earlier in March, it was revealed Australian and New Zealand spies targeted Indonesia's largest mobile phone network, Telkomsel. On March 9, Deputy House Speaker Fadli Zon said friendly countries did not wire-tap. "Who does it has an interest and regards us as an enemy," Mr Fadli was quoted saying in news website Viva.co.id.

He said at the time he did not know whether the phone tapping related to the 2014 presidential election. "We don't know yet what the content is and who was tapped. We are just guessing; we cannot make any comment yet."

Mr Mohi said on Sunday that if the executions continued to be put on hold or even cancelled, it was reasonable for people to be suspicious that Mr Joko was concerned his phone had been tapped. "If the tapped conversation contained nothing, Mr Joko should have just ignored it," he said.

Parliamentarian TB Hasanuddin, who is in the same party as Mr Joko, said he was puzzled about why the Government was yet to execute those on death row.

"I don't know what else they are waiting for or why it keeps on being delayed," he was quoted saying by news website Okezone. "The longer the delay, the more disturbed the felons' psychological state will be."

A senior editor and commentator at the Jakarta Post, Endy Bayuni, said the delay to the executions had resulted in "all sorts of speculation". This included that Mr Joko was under pressure from members of his cabinet, that he was reconsidering the executions and that he was being "blackmailed" because his phone had been tapped.

"I doubt that one is true," Mr Bayuni said. He said it was based on the assumption that Australia had phone-tapped Indonesian officials in the past and still had the technology to do so.

Mr Bayuni said Mr Joko had made it clear he wanted to proceed with the executions. "However, they want to make sure they are on the right side of the law because it is a matter of life and death," he said.

Meanwhile, Chan and Sukumaran, who are incarcerated in Besi prison on Nusakambangan, were on Monday visited by their mothers, Helen and Raji, Sukumaran's sister Brintha, Chan's fiancee Febyanti, Australian Consul- General to Bali, Majell Hind, and Melbourne lawyer Julian McMahon.

The men's brothers, Michael and Chinthu, have returned to Australia. It is understood the other family members will fly from Cilacap to Bali after visiting Chan and Sukumaran again on Wednesday.

[With Karuni Rompies.]

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/bali-nine-executions-phonetapping-rumours-surround-delay-20150316-1m0drr.html

Economy & investment

Surplus in trade, but material imports for manufacturing dip

Jakarta Post - March 17, 2015

Linda Yulisman, Jakarta – Concerns over a widening current account deficit have temporarily eased as Indonesia posted a larger than-expected trade surplus in February despite signs of slowing manufacturing activities.

Due mostly to lower oil prices, trade surplus in January continued into February when exports declined by 16 percent year-on-year (yoy) to US$12.2 billion while imports contracted at a quicker pace of 16.2 percent to $11.5 billion, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

A surplus of $738 million was recorded in February, albeit at a slower pace than $744 million in January.

"Given that the trade surplus for the first two months of 2015 already totalled $1.48 billion [as against $399 million in the same period of 2014], we think a large trade surplus will be registered for Q1 [the first quarter]," said Barclays analyst Wai Ho Leong in a note.

A positive trade account will help narrow the current-account deficit and eventually help ease the volatility of the rupiah, which is already Asia's worst-performing currency this year.

The rupiah's Jakarta interbank spot dollar rate, a benchmark issued by the central bank, declined by 0.03 percent to Rp 13,237 from Rp 13,191 on Friday.

Lower demand for the rupiah is likely in the first quarter as imports of oil as well as capital and raw materials for manufacturing activities slowed, according to the BPS.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch said in a research note that the narrowing of the oil-trade deficit, due to lower oil prices, would translate into a sharp narrowing of the current account deficit in the first quarter.

"By our estimates, Indonesia's current account gap will likely narrow to below 2 percent of GDP [gross domestic product] in Q1, from 2.8 percent in Q4 last year."

However, the BPS has underscored a 40.6-percent plunge in shipments to China, Indonesia's biggest trading partner, in the first two months of the year as against the same period last year. In what appears to be the largest drop in history, Indonesia could only sell $2.03 billion worth of coal, palm oil, rubber, wood and chemical products to China, which accounts for around 11 percent of Indonesia's export share. "Temporarily, China's inventory of raw materials is sufficient because in the past they imported a lot. But they will need to buy again when the stock runs out," said BPS deputy head for distribution and service statistics Sasmito Hadi Wibowo.

"The business confidence index in China fluctuates and this will affect their demand for our primary commodities that feed their manufacturing activities. Their purchase of our commodities will apparently shrink until up to the end of the first half," Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) economist Latif Adam estimated.

Exports to the US also declined by 4.43 percent to $2.45 billion, while shipments to Japan dipped by 2.17 percent to $2.28 billion.

Aside from the low demand for raw materials, Indonesia is also facing continued weak demand for manufacturing productions as indicated by contraction in the imports of raw materials and capital goods.

Imports of raw materials and intermediary goods, which account for 76 percent of total imports, dropped by 15.88 percent to $18.38 billion. The purchase of capital goods, which usually support direct investment, fell by 16.05 percent to $4.17 billion.

"Manufacturing [excluding palm oil] was the main source of weakness [in February], with exports falling by 10.6 percent yoy [as compared with -6.8 percent in January and -2.8 percent in December]," Leong said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/17/surplus-trade-material-imports-manufacturing-dip.html

Analysis & opinion

Inequality before the law

Jakarta Post Editorial - March 20, 2015

Since its birth almost 70 years ago, this nation has tirelessly promoted equality before the law; but the latest two cases of poor elderly persons being forced to stand trial for minor criminal charges show that sense of justice is missing entirely.

The arrest and trial of Asyani, 70, a woman from the East Java town of Situbondo, and Harso Taruno, 67, a man from Gunungkidul regency, Yogyakarta, for allegedly harvesting teakwood belonging to state forestry company PT Perhutani is a testament to strict, indiscriminate law enforcement, which is a must.

Indeed, nobody – not public officials or ordinary citizens, old or young, rich or poor, man or woman – should stand above the law in this country. But law enforcement here turns out to follow its own tragic logic: those who have access to money and power can defy, or even bend, the rules.

Unlike the defenseless Asyani and Harso (whose cases immediately received government attention only after persistent media coverage), certain businessmen convicted of stealing trillions of rupiah in state money manage to flee the country just before state prosecutors come to arrest them: The son of a top government official can escape prison after the car he drove killed people in a traffic accident; a heavyweight politician can evade criminal charges despite a defendant's testimony against him; and a law enforcer can fight back and criminalize his arraigners.

Someone should explain why state prosecutors managed only to arrest a prominent convict five years after the Supreme Court upheld a jail sentence handed down to him for assault. This is beyond our common sense to comprehend.

The rampant phenomenon of the "untouchables", or "nearly untouchables", is an acute problem that has prevented the country's justice system from working effectively. As critics have said, the law is strictly enforced against the weak, but leniently enforced against the powerful.

Such an allegation would have been confirmed had the government not backed down from its plan to relax a regulation that would allow corruption convicts to enjoy generous remissions. The plan not only ignored the public's sense of justice, but also contradicted the national consensus that classifies corruption as an extraordinary crime.

As in the cases of Asyani and Harso, our law enforcers have considered the Criminal Code (KUHP) and the Criminal Law Procedure Code (KUHAP) holy books they dare not violate. They seem to follow the two codes to the letter in order to uphold the law, but this reduces law enforcement to a merely procedural matter, and the substance is lost in the process.

The will to uphold the law indeed is a requisite and all citizens must abide by the law as a result of the social contract. A law-abiding society warrants orderliness that will be attractive to foreign investors.

But because law is created to deliver justice for all, defying the sense of justice is a transgression of the law itself.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/20/inequality-law.html

A disturbing pattern of permissiveness to graft

Jakarta Globe Editorial - March 17, 2015

It's hard to look at the government's recent capitulations in the fight against corruption and write them off as minor setbacks, misguided policies, or sheer ineptitude on the part of the officials responsible. The administration of President Joko Widodo has already allowed the highly regarded Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to bear an assault of highly dubious criminal charges mounted by the police, an institution whose track record on fighting graft is far from stellar.

The interim antigraft chairman named by the president has already drawn criticism for vowing to shelve an investigation that until recently had pointed squarely at Joko's political patron, Megawati Soekarnoputri of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P); and both of Joko's picks for police chief are part of a clique of controversial generals with "fat" bank accounts.

Add to this the fact that the PDI-P holds the distinction as the party with the most members investigated and jailed by the KPK, and it comes as little surprise that Justice Minister Yasonna Laoly, a PDI-P politician, now wants to make it easier for corruption convicts to receive sentence cuts.

The previous administration labeled corruption an extraordinary crime, and rightly so. If the minister is to roll back years of efforts meant to eradicate what is undoubtedly the most serious crime in the republic, then what does that say about the government? That it is permissive of corruption? That it is more loyal to the interests of the ruling party than to those of the people?

It would be tempting at this point to say that we are on the brink of going down a slippery slope – except that we already went over that edge when the president named a police general with a cloud over him, and close ties to Megawati, as his nominee for police chief.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/opinion/editorial-disturbing-pattern-permissiveness-graft/