Len Garae – The Chairman of Vanuatu Free West Papua Organisation, Pastor Allan Nafuki, has expressed utter disappointment at leaders of the Melanesian Spearhead Group for not fulfilling their promise to push through West Papua's application to become a full member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group this year.

On the other hand he wishes to be placed on record as congratulating Prime Minister Charlot Salwai for standing his ground and proclaiming Vanuatu's unchangeable position on West Papua to 50 West Papuan leaders in his Office last week, for the Melanesian country to be allowed its God-given freedom to decide its destiny by itself.

In an exclusive interview with the Chairman of the MSG Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting in Port Vila last week, Milner Tozaka said their Meeting did not deal with Indonesia's Associate Membership of MSG or West Papua's Observer Status of the same organization.

Instead he said the meeting proposed new guidelines or recommendations to qualify an applicant to become a member of MSG. The new guidelines will be considered by the MSG Prime Ministers early next month most probably in Papua New Guinea.

But Chairman Nafuki said the meeting should be held in Vanuatu, saying the MSG Leaders have been making promises which they seem not ready to keep.

"The leaders and people of West Papua have completed weaving the mat for the MSG Leaders to sit on to approve their application for full membership of MSG," Chairman Nafuki said.

"They have been struggling for 50 years for their freedom, so please MSG Prime Ministers, give the people of Melanesia in West Papua what they are dying for, over 500,000 have already been killed since 1969 for a simple request – to be allowed to enjoy the same freedom that you and I are taking for granted."

Source: http://dailypost.vu/news/nafuki-disappointed-with-msg-leaders/article_47ff73cf-1b59-534c-b833-5ea402b2b6f2.html

MSG discussions highlight Indonesia schism

Radio New Zealand International - December 27, 2016

Differences in approach between Indonesian and West Papuan representatives reached a head at Melanesian Spearhead Group meetings in Vanuatu last week.

MSG senior officials and foreign ministers had meetings at the group's secretariat in Port Vila, with the findings of a review of MSG rules on membership the main agenda item. This comes as the MSG considers a full membership application by the United Liberation Movement for West Papua.

The Liberation Movement, which has observer status in the MSG, protested at efforts by Indonesian officials at the meeting to dictate terms on the wording of discussions. Indonesia, which has associate member status, wanted wording to ensure that the Liberation Movement cannot become a full member.

Full member states of MSG including Papua New Guinea and Solomon islands also protested at what was seen as a breach of Melanesian discussion procedure.

Tabloid Jubi reports that the Indonesian delegation, as well as the ULMWP, was asked to leave the meeting room briefly while other delegations continued the formulation of criteria for membership. Their views were still considered as written statements.

Meanwhile, the Director-General of the MSG secretariat, Amela Yauvoli said preparation of MSG membership criteria is not a new agenda and has been discussed since the beginning of 2016.

He said that currently some neighbouring Melanesian countries want to become members of the MSG, and not only the Liberation Movement, therefore membership criteria must be clarified.

MSG decisions about new membership will be decided in the meeting of the leaders of the MSG in January next year.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/321302/msg-discussions-highlight-indonesia-schism

West Papua, Indonesia not discussed

Vanuatu Daily Post - December 25, 2016

Len Garae – The Melanesian Spearhead Group Foreign Affairs Ministers' Meeting at the Secretariat in Port Vila this week has not dealt with Indonesia's Associate Membership of MSG or West Papua's Observer Status of MSG.

The Chairman of the meeting who is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and external Trade of the Solomon Islands, Milner Tozaka said his team has reviewed the procedures to be dealt with by the Leaders early next year.

Asked what the new recommendations are the Chairman explained, "One of the important recommendations is a guideline whereby any new application for membership, will have to be forwarded firstly to the Director General (of MSG), who will be consulting the leaders for their direction as to whether to consider the application or not, and subject to their approval, then they would consider the application".

He made it clear the meeting this week did not deal with either of the two applications.

"The (MSG) legal institution to revisit the application for membership as well as the associate membership has been done and we have not gone into considering the applications for either of them," the Chairman explained.

Asked if the meeting has agreed that the two applications are in order, he replied, "The status quo remains the same. Nothing has changed in relation to Indonesia as an Associate Member and West Papua as an Observer".

The Chairman said any changes would only take place after the leaders meet to consider the new criteria have been recommended by the Legal Committee to the leaders for their deliberations next year. The current Chair said the next meeting will depend on the new Chairman of MSG in consultation with his colleagues but that it is expected to be held early next year.

While farewelling the staff of MSG Secretariat and wishing them and their families "merry Christmas" over kava and snacks at the Secretariat yesterday, the Chairman said, "Following the appointment of Ambassador (Amena) Yauvoli, a Governing body meeting was convened and hosted by Fiji in the beautiful city of Lautoka in early June this year.

"The outcome of the meeting was politically significant for MSG as members re-energised their deliberations on the agenda of membership issue and guideline.

"The outcome of this particular discussion in our meeting this week has further paved the way for our Leaders to deliberate on the issue in 2017."

http://dailypost.vu/news/west-papua-indonesia-not-discussed/article_a4d1312a-1a37-52aa-a97f-96d3aaa57f2f.html

Four more charged with treason for Papuan demos

Radio New Zealand International - December 23, 2016

Four more people have been charged with treason after demonstrating for West Papuan self-determination on Monday.

Monday, which was the 55th anniversary of the first Indonesian military invasion of Papua, was marked by demonstrations in at least 14 Indonesian cities. About 500 people were reported to have been arrested for participating in the demonstrations.

Police in the Papua provincial capital Jayapura confirmed they had charged two Papuans for inciting treason against the state, and provoking other demonstrators to commit treason.

Now, reports from Indonesia indicate that four more people have been charged under the rebellion law after demonstrating in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province. A treason charge could lead to a jail term of up to 15 years.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/321123/four-more-charged-with-treason-for-papuan-demos

Indonesian govt talks to Nauru about relations

Radio New Zealand International - December 23, 2016

Nauru's government has confirmed that an Indonesian government delegation visited the country this month.

An official with Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Jauhari said the purpose of the visit was to discuss how to increase bilateral relations.

He said the delegation met with Nauru President Baron Waqa and his cabinet, and discussed development in Indonesia, including in Papua region.

President Waqa invited Indonesia to attend celebrations for Nauru's 49th anniversary of independence at the end of January next year. Among the delegation was an Indonesian government consultant on West Papuan affairs, Franzalbert Joku.

Mr Joku said on Facebook that a visit to the Refugees Processing Centre on Nauru was an important part of his delegation's engagements with the host government.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/321152/indonesian-govt-talks-to-nauru-about-relations

Aceh

Aceh marks 12 anniversary of tsunami

Jakarta Post - December 26, 2016

Jakarta – Hundreds of people gathered at a mass grave of tsunami victims in Ulee Lhue, Banda Aceh, on Monday as they prayed for the souls of those buried there.

The victims were among more than 200,000 people killed in one of the biggest tsunamis ever recorded on Dec. 26, 2004.

The people, mostly relatives of the victims, began arriving at the grave, which has become a center of commemorations, from early in the morning.

Among the crowd were acting Aceh governor Soedarmo and a number of officials of the provincial and other local administrations. Many more people also visited other mass graves such those in Aceh Besar, Siron, Lambaro and Lhoknga.

In his speech, Soedarmo said the commemoration was not aimed at opening old wounds caused by the disaster, but to learn lessons from it.

"I hope that we will always improve our knowledge of disaster management," he said as reported by tempo.co, adding that the people also needed to always remain on the alert for possible disasters to prevent any unnecessary loss of life.

M. Yacob, an executive of Ulee Lheu mosque, said that some 14,500 victims of the tsunami were buried at the mass grave. Yacob was a survivor of the tsunami although he was swept away more than 2 kilometers.

Aceh was the region worst affected by the tsunami, which also hit other countries including India, Thailand and Sri Lanka. The disaster occurred following a strong earthquake measuring 9.3 on the Richter scale.

Apart from killing more than 200,000 people, the disaster left hundreds of thousands of others homeless. People from across the globe participated in helping to rebuild the province. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/26/aceh-marks-12-anniversary-of-tsunami.html

Human rights & justice

Lawmakers contributed to underperforming Komnas HAM: Activist

Jakarta Post - December 24, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – A human rights watchdog has called on lawmakers to carefully exercise their role in the selection of new commissioners for the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), as they will play a pivotal role in setting the future course of human rights promotion and protection in the country.

"The selection of Komnas HAM commissioners is not free from political interests through their representatives at the House," Jakarta-based Setara Institute chairman Hendardi said on Friday.

"Therefore, the [selection] team must search for the best individuals for the House of Representatives to pick".

Lambasting the poor performance of the 11 commissioners that currently serve Komnas HAM, Hendardi said the problem was a result of poor recruitment and selection from the previous term.

Like members of other government-sanctioned commissions, candidates for Komnas HAM commissioners must undergo a fit-and-proper test organized by the House's legal affairs commission, which also has the final say in the recruitment process.

"The current commissioners have been preoccupied with internal power struggles instead of focusing their time and energy on their main assignment; to solve past rights abuses, which involves high level politics," Hendardi said. "There is absolutely nothing to be proud of with the current commissioners".

Komnas HAM currently has 13 commissioners who were inaugurated in 2013. Infighting over leadership and facilities has drawn nationwide attention to the commission. Komnas HAM was again under the public spotlight earlier this year because of budget irregularities allegedly involving one of its commissioners, Dianto Bachriadi.

The selection team welcomes candidates to become new Komnas HAM commissioners until February next year. Selected individuals will sit for a fit-and-proper test later in October next year before they officially take over the posts from current commissioners whose terms will end also in that month. (hwa)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/24/lawmakers-contributed-to-underperforming-komnas-ham-activist.html

Lawmakers want 'nationalist' figures for Komnas HAM

Jakarta Post - December 23, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – As the recruitment of new commissioners for the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) kicks off, a number of lawmakers have said they will endorse candidates who can put local values above so-called universal human rights.

Gerinda Party legislator Desmond J. Mahesa, who serves as a deputy chair for the House of Representatives' Commission III overseeing legal affairs, said that the commission would carefully review candidates applying for the positions to ensure that future Komnas HAM members supported national interests instead of catering to outside demands.

"The current commissioners tend to benefit foreign interests instead of Indonesia's," Desmond told The Jakarta Post on Thursday. "Therefore we prefer commissioners that possess an Indonesian view of human rights instead of an international one."

Desmond repeatedly emphasized that future Komnas HAM commissioners must have "nationalistic view", as the House and the government were now considering granting commissioners legal immunity to be able to carry out the job effectively.

Commission III chair and Golkar Party lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo supported Desmond's view, saying that "[common] understanding of what human rights actually are will matter for the commission's members."

A government-sanctioned selection team, headed by legal expert Jimly Asshiddiqie, has been tasked with recruiting potential candidates to undergo a fit-and-proper test with Commission III next year, as the current 11 commissioners will end their terms in October next year.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/23/lawmakers-want-nationalist-figures-for-komnas-ham.html

Labour & migrant workers

Rumor about influx of 10 million Chinese workers a hoax: Justice minister

Jakarta Globe - December 29, 2016

Jakarta – Justice and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly said the rumor about the influx of 10 million illegal Chinese workers into Indonesia was a hoax spread by irresponsible groups to provoke public unrest.

"We know who disseminated the information. It is a hoax," Yasonna said on Thursday (29/12).

The minister reassured the public that only 31,000 Chinese workers entered Indonesia, with 21,000 of them employed on a temporary basis, according to data provided by the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration.

The remainder only entered the country for short periods, based on Justice Ministry data. There are 71,000 foreign workers in Indonesia in total.

"If anyone has valid information, hand it over to us. If anyone is trying to cause provocation, we call for immediate action," Yasonna said.

The minister added that the Directorate General of Immigration has deported 7,887 foreign nationals in 2016, with around 300 having been prosecuted. Yasonna said this demonstrates that the government is maintaining tight supervision of foreign nationals in Indonesia.

He also urged the public to be objective regarding the issue of foreign workers, because there are more Indonesians working abroad than foreigners working in this country.

"What matters is supervision. We must also be fair when considering this issue. There are 2 million Indonesian workers in Malaysia, but [their citizens] do not complain. In Singapore, there are around 200,000 of our workers, not to mention Hong Kong," Yasonna said.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/rumor-influx-10-million-chinese-workers-hoax-justice-minister/

Domestic worker abuse in Malaysia highlights lack of action from Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - December 27, 2016

Jakarta – A local NGO fighting for migrant workers has pleaded for the Indonesian government to do more to protect Indonesian domestic workers facing abuse in Malaysia.

The NGO, Migrant Care, said swift actions are needed after Suyanti became the latest Indonesian domestic worker to be assaulted by her employer in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur earlier this month.

"There's a bilateral commitment from both Indonesia and Malaysia to respect, meet and protect the rights of migrant domestic workers," Migrant Care executive director Anis Hidayah said on Monday (26/12).

According to Anis, the Indonesian embassy in Kuala Lumpur brought Suyanti to the University Malaya Medical Center's intensive care unit on Sunday for treatment, and reported the incident to the Malaysian Police, who had at that time arrested her employer.

19-year-old Suyanti suffered from multiple wounds and heavy bruising on the eyes after she was beaten by her boss.

Suyanti said she arrived in Malaysia on Dec. 7, and was sent to her employer's home by her agent a day later. The physical abuse began a week after that, and Suyanti eventually fled the house after being threatened with a knife by her boss on Dec. 21.

The Indonesian embassy has sent a note to the Malaysian foreign affairs ministry to protest the incident, and demanded that Suyanti's employer be put on trial according to the local law. Meanwhile, Suyanti's boss has now been released on bail.

Anis said the case highlights how the 2012 International Convention agreement on migrant care rights has been very lackadaisically implemented.

According to Anis, the Indonesian government should put pressure on the Malaysian government to process the case quickly and fairly, and use the existing Law on Placement and Protection of Indonesian workers in foreign countries as a guide to make sure that justice is done for Suyanti.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/domestic-worker-abuse-in-malaysia-highlights-lack-of-action-from-indonesia/

Jokowi calls for arrest of people spreading rumor about massive influx of

Jakarta Post - December 23, 2016

Jakarta – A rumor that millions of Chinese workers are being allowed into Indonesia has irked President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo so much he has asked the National Police to pursue and arrest those spreading it.

Jokowi said that currently only about 21,000 Chinese nationals are working in Indonesia, not the 10 million the rumor has claimed.

"This is under the authority of the police, but the rumor monger should be arrested," Jokowi said as quoted by kompas.com in an event in Karawang, West Java, on Friday.

He said 10 million was not the number of Chinese workers in Indonesia, but the number of tourist visits the government wants from China. "If they do not have the data, they should not spread it [the rumor]. It deceived society and it was irritating," Jokowi said.

The President said the number of Chinese workers in Indonesia was still smaller than the number of Indonesian workers in other countries such as Malaysia and Hong Kong, where there were 2 million and 153,000, respectively.

He said foreign workers would be unlikely come to Indonesia to work. "They will not come to work here, which offers lower wages. I convey this with a hope that the rumor would not spread further," he said. (saf/ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/23/jokowi-calls-for-arrest-of-people-spreading-rumor-about-massive-influx-of-chinese-workers.html

Freedom of speech & expression

Police arrest author of 'Jokowi Undercover'

Jakarta Post - December 31, 2016

Jakarta – Police have arrested Bambang Tri Mulyono, the author of a book titled "Jokowi Undercover". Bambang has been accused of spreading hatred against President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Rickwanto said in Jakarta on Saturday that the suspect was being held at the Jakarta Police detention center after being arrested and interrogated on Friday.

"Everything written in the book 'Jokowi Undercover' and on social media is based on his personal opinion," Rikwanto said as reported by kompas.com on Saturday, adding that it was not based on valid data and was without any supporting references.

According to the book written by Bambang, Jokowi had falsified data before he registered himself as presidential candidate in 2014. Bambang also wrote that Giriroto, Boyolali regency, Central Java was the basis of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI), which was disbanded in 1966. Giriroto is reportedly the village where Jokowi's mother, Sujiatmi Notomiatdjo, was born.

Bambang also claims that Jokowi and Jusuf Kalla were elected as president and vice president because of the success of the press in fooling the public. "The motive of the suspect is based on his wish to make the book more interesting and to get public attention," Rikwanto added.

Bambang has been accused of violating Article 16 of Law No. 40/2008 on the elimination of racial and ethnic discrimination and Article 28, paragraph 2 of Law No. 11/2008 on electronic information and transactions, by spreading hatred. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/31/police-arrest-author-of-jokowi-undercover.html

Unemployed man arrested for defaming Jokowi, Tito

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Jakarta – Police arrested a man named Jamil Adil, 47, on Thursday morning for allegedly defacing a wall under the Kebon Baru toll road in North Jakarta with profane words directed at President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian.

"The suspect wrote on the wall and a container under the toll road. It could be considered defamation," North Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Awal Chairuddin said on Friday as reported by tribunnews.com.

Jamil, an unemployed man, had claimed to be a member of the Islamic State (IS) movement, as written on the wall.

"Jamil said that he didn't know why he had written those words. However, he has admitted that he wrote those profane words against the President and the National Police chief," said Cilincing Police station head Comr. Ali Yuzron.

Meanwhile, the head of the North Jakarta Criminal Investigation Department, Adj. Sr. Comr Yuldi Yuswan, said that Jamil was being detained in the North Jakarta police office for further investigation.

"We don't know whether this man is pretending to be insane or not," he said, adding that Jamil had also written similar words on other containers and poles. (cal/jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/unemployed-man-arrested-for-defaming-jokowi-tito.html

Political parties & elections

Ex-TNI chief Moeldoko elected for Hanura leadership

Jakarta Post - December 27, 2016

Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – After making a surprise move to appoint an outsider to chair its party, Hanura Party elites have reverted to a more typical rationale by appointing a former military commander to a senior position.

The party has elected former Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Moeldoko as a member of its advisory board, alongside former party chairman Wiranto, also a former military chief.

Right after the party inaugurated its new chairman, business man turned-politician Oesman Sapta Odang, it placed Wiranto, who had to vacate the party's top post to be able to serve in the Cabinet as Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister, as the head of its advisory board.

The presence of Wiranto and Moeldoko is expected to boost Hanura's electability in the 2019 legislative election.

"[Wiranto and Moeldoko] as patrons will create synergy. Oesman, Moeldoko, all party cadres and those who have just joined the party will mutually synergize each other," Hanura executive Sarifuddin Sudding said.

Political expert Rachmat Bagja from Al-Azhar University said patron-client relationships in political parties were common and that Hanura was a typical of party that needed influential figures.

"Hanura is in a need of influential figures to join the party and boost its electability and human resources," Rachmat said. "Wiranto and Moeldoko continue to enjoy popularity because many people are still interested in a military-led system," he added.

Although it was Oesman at the helm, the party would likely still be under the control of Wiranto, alongside Moeldoko, because Oesman was a newcomer, Rachmat said.

Another political expert, Hendri Satrio of Paramadina University, said the presence of Wiranto, Oesman and Moeldoko would bring the party, who had the least seats at the House of Representatives, to another level. "All the big parties should be careful of Hanura's crafty political maneuvering," Hendri said.

Oesman is also People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) deputy speaker, his second time in the position, and is a member of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) for West Kalimantan.

The businessman is expected to help the party financially and increase the party's influence, something that Oesman has showed in his first few days since being inaugurated.

A day after Oesman's inauguration on Wednesday, former Democratic Party (DP) chairman Anas Urbaningrum reportedly instructed his supporters to jump ship and join Hanura.

Anas is currently behind bars serving an eight-year sentence for his role in the Hambalang sports complex graft case. "We will welcome them all. Why not? As long as they have good work [backgrounds]," Oesman said.

DPD member Gede Pasek Suardika, who is also a former DP politician and Anas loyalist, has declared his allegiance to Hanura. Gede added that a number of DPD members were willing to join the party.

Hanura politician Miryam S. Haryani said there were 34 DPD members, including those from East Nusa Tenggara, Bali, West Java and East Java, who wanted to join the party, where 17 had officially become members.

"Oesman's appointment has been a breath of fresh air for the party. The possibility of Hanura winning in the next legislative election has greatly increased. We shouldn't miss the opportunity," Miryam said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/27/ex-tni-chief-moeldoko-elected-for-hanura-leadership.html

Blasphemy & the Jakarta elections

Ahok apologizes to residents still affected by flooding

Jakarta Post - December 31, 2016

Jakarta – Incumbent Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama has apologized to residents of Jatipadang subdistrict, Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, who are still affected by the recent flooding due to the ongoing rainy season.

Ahok visited the subdistrict on Friday as part of his reelection campaign for the Jakarta gubernatorial election on Feb. 15.

"I apologize to everyone for the flooding that is still affecting [your area.] We have managed to reduce flood prone areas from 2,000 to 400, and we will keep working," said Ahok during the door to door campaign to residents of the Jatipadang subdistrict as reported by kompas.com.

A resident said the water reached two meters during the recent flooding. "The water was high here, as high as my neck. But it soon receded," one of the residents told Ahok.

The residents expressed the hope that the Jakarta administration would build higher walls along the bank of Serua River to prevent the flooding because it was caused by the overflow of the river.

Ahok explained to the residents that many parts of South Jakarta have been allocated for water conservation. Therefore, he added, people have to be ready to move to low-cost apartments to avoid future flooding. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/ahok-apologizes-to-residents-still-affected-by-flooding.html

Another police report filed against FPI's Rizieq Shihab

Jakarta Globe - December 31, 2016

Jakarta – An interreligious youth organization known as Rumah Pelita reported Rizieq Shihab for alleged hate speech on Friday (30/12), adding to a long list of allegations against the leader of the hardline Islamic Defenders' Front, or FPI.

The group accuses Rizieq of having violated Article 156 and Article 156a of the criminal code by committing hate speech and blasphemy.

"Rumah Pelita filed a complaint against Rizieq Syihab to the Jakarta Police for a peaceful Indonesia. We reported a religious speech he made in Pondok Kelapa, East Jakarta, in which he mocked the Christian belief," group spokesman Slamet Abidin said.

Slamet said since Indonesia is a nation based on law, every element of the nation, and every religion or mass organizations should promote tolerance and diversity.

"Do not recklessly mock the beliefs of others, and refrain from using certain edicts based on religious teachings to make fun of what others believe," he added.

The organization said freedom of speech should not be interpreted too wildly and bluntly as it may lead to defamation of other religious groups. Rumah Pelita believes the police will follow up its report.

Rizieq was recently reported to police for defaming Indonesia's first president, Sukarno, and for insulting Christians. The first report was filed by Sukarno's daughter, Sukmawati Sukarnoputri, while the second report was filed by the Indonesian Catholic Students Association (PMKRI).

A group of Muslim students calling themselves the Student Peace Institute, also reported Rizieq to the Jakarta Police for hate speech.

Student Peace Institute director Doddy Abdallah said Rizieq's recent public remarks regarding Christmas constituted hate speech and could damage religious harmony in Indonesia.

Several watchdog organizations and experts have called on the National Police to fast track their investigations against Rizieq.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/another-police-report-filed-fpis-rizieq-shihab/

Ahok's lawyers prepare appeal against court decision

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Callistasia Anggun Wijaya, Jakarta – Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama's lawyers are preparing an appeal against an interlocutory decision made by the North Jakarta District Court on Tuesday in which it rejected Ahok's refutation.

"We are preparing an appeal because in their decision, the judges did not consider a Constitutional Court ruling. The court stated that a blasphemy charge should be preceded by a stern warning, which never occurred in this case," one of Ahok's lawyers and younger sister, Fifi Lety Indra, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Fifi cited a 2012 Constitutional Court decision that Article 156 section a of the Criminal Code, with which Ahok has been charged, could only be invoked after the religious affairs minister, the attorney general and home minister had issued a joint warning in accordance with the "prevention of religious abuse" and/or the Blasphemy Law of 1965 (PNPS 1/1965).

Based on PNPS 1/1965, if the blasphemy continues after a warning, the person can be charged under the Blasphemy Law, Fifi said.

Fifi went on to say that the appeal would be submitted to the Jakarta High Court. "We hope that judges [at the high court] will have the courage to release Ahok from the blasphemy charge," she said.

On Tuesday, presiding judge Dwiarso Budi Santiarto said the Constitutional Court decision referred by the lawyers in the objection was not relevant to Ahok's case as the decision referred to a specific case. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/ahoks-lawyers-prepare-appeal-against-court-decision.html

Police will process FPI leader's blasphemy case

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Safrin La Batu, Jakarta – Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen Mochamad Iriawan has given his assurances that the police will process the lawsuit filed by a group of university students against Islam Defenders Front (FPI) leader Rizieq Shihab for allegedly defaming Christianity in one of his speeches.

Iriawan said the police would treat the case just like any other case. "Why wouldn't we have the guts [to investigate Rizieq]?" Iriawan asked when a journalist questioned whether the police would dare to process the case against the leader of the mass organization whose members had been involved in many raids against places they considered "un-Islamic".

"We are still investigating the case. If we feel it is necessary to carry out a case reconstruction, we will do so," Iriawan said.

Rizieq has been reported by the Indonesian Catholic Students Association (PMKRI) for allegedly committing blasphemy in a speech circulated on the Internet. Rizieq was reported along with two other people who allegedly uploaded Rizieq's video on Instagram and Twitter.

In the 22-second long video, Rizieq is recorded as saying: "If God gave birth, then who would be the midwife?"

Rizieq is accused of violating Article 156 section (a) of the Criminal Code on blasphemy. The charge carries a maximum punishment of five years in prison. The FPI has said it will report the people who filed the lawsuit against Rizieq for defamation or slander. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/police-will-process-fpi-leaders-blasphemy-case.html

They may look down at me, but I will prove them wrong: Agus

Jakarta Post - December 29, 2016

Agnes Anya, Jakarta – Riding merely on his father's coattails, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, 38, was once touted as an unlikely rival to challenge the overwhelmingly popular incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama in the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Not only that, the eldest son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has no knack for politics and was considered too young and lacking management experience. His 15-year career in the military was largely spent studying overseas.

But Agus' "guerilla strategy" to win the hearts and minds of middle to lower-income voters seems to have paid off. Agus has ascended to become the frontrunner, according to several recent surveys, amid a blasphemy case that has hurt the electability of Ahok, a Christian of Chinese descent, as Muslim voters find an alternative in Agus.

"I have been underestimated, as many said I am only riding on the popularity of my father. But that's OK. I consider such an assumption as a whip on my back for me to prove that they are wrong," said Agus in an emotional tone during a visit to The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Agus said his father had not dictated his campaign strategy and that he considered his father a mentor from whom he could learn the best things in life.

"I've never carried around my father's picture during campaign stops," said Agus, whose body language and speaking manner closely resembles that of his father. "I would like to be known as AHY [his initials], not SBY. I have my own distinctive character and strengths," he said.

When asked of his strategy to win the election, Agus said he would primarily focus on luring voters in the middle- to lower-income bracket, which he believed to account for around 70 percent of voters.

Agus also took the time to clarify his enormous wealth, which was fielded to the authorities as a requirement to participate in the election.

As an Army officer with the rank of major and a take-home pay of less than Rp 6 million (US$447) a month, Agus has accumulated a wealth valued at Rp 15.2 billion and US$551,332.

The amount is higher than his father's wealth in 2009 when Yudhoyono ran for a second term as president. At that time, the retired three-star army general reported wealth of Rp 7.6 billion.

Agus claims his wealth came mostly from his wife, who is a model and celebrity. "Before she married me, Annisa [Pohan] was an artist with income, which certainly was much higher than mine," said Agus. Agus refused to elaborate, and affirmed that he had the right to not reveal the details of his wealth to the public.

His wealth report previously aroused heated debate on social media platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, with internet users questioning the source of his wealth, considering that he was only a middleranking officer.

Some even focused their attention on Annisa's expensive clothing and accessories, including a Hermes bag, and said Agus would not likely be able to afford such goods. The debate grew harsh with some netizens starting to mock him and his family, including his 8-year-old daughter.

In response to the critics, the graduate of Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government disabled the comment section on his personal Instagram account.

"This is my personal account, and it is in my power to disable the comment section," said Agus, adding that all feedback from the public pertaining to the election should be directed to his social media accounts. "Don't get me wrong, I love criticism. Constructive criticism is wonderful, but I just don't have time to respond to haters."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/29/they-may-look-down-at-me-but-i-will-prove-them-wrong-agus.html

NasDem to report Anies to election watchdog for support declaration

Jakarta Post - December 28, 2016

Jakarta – The Nasdem Party says it will report the Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno pair to the Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) for organizing a public declaration of support from NasDem party members for the pair's bid in the Jakarta gubernatorial race. NasDem says the move was a violation of election regulations.

"We will, first, report the backdrop at the Anies-Sandi campaign headquarters that uses the name of the NasDem East Jakarta chapter. It certainly misleads the public," said NasDem's Jakarta chapter secretary Wibi Andrino as reported by tribunnews.com on Wednesday.

Wibi referred to an event on Tuesday at the Anies-Sandi campaign center on Jl. Panglima Polim IX, South Jakarta, at which a number of NasDem members announced their support for the pair. Officially, the party has endorsed the incumbent Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama-Djarot Saiful Hidayat pair for the Feb. 15, 2017 election.

Wibi said the Anies-Sandi camp's claim that all NasDem members in East Jakarta supported the pair was only campaign propaganda.

He acknowledged there were a few members of the party that supported Anies-Sandi, but said they certainly did not represent all NasDem members in East Jakarta.

Wibi said NasDem East Jakarta chapter officials would report Anies-Sandi to Bawaslu on Thursday for the misleading announcement. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/28/nasdem-to-report-anies-to-election-watchdog-for-support-declaration.html

Indonesian court gives go-ahead to blasphemy trial of Jakarta governor Ahok

Reuters - December 27, 2016

An Indonesian court will proceed with a controversial blasphemy trial against Jakarta's Christian governor, who is accused of insulting the Qur'an, a judge said on Tuesday.

The case is seen as a test of religious freedom in the Muslim-majority nation.

A panel of judges rejected a call by lawyers defending governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, who is known by his nickname Ahok, to strike down the case because it had violated the ethnic Chinese politician's human rights and breached procedures.

"The exception by the defendant will be considered and decided by the court after examination of all evidence. The defendant's exception is not accepted," said judge Abdul Rosyad.

A tearful Ahok denied at his first hearing on 13 December that he had intended to insult the Qur'an while he was campaigning ahead of elections in February for the governorship of Jakarta, capital of the world's largest Muslim-majority nation.

Ahok angered religious conservatives after he referenced a verse from the Islamic holy book, Al-Maidah 51 of the Qur'an, rather boldly telling voters they should not be duped by religious leaders using the verse to justify the claim that Muslims should not be led by non-Muslims.

On Tuesday hundreds of white-clad Muslim protesters chanted "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest) outside the court in north Jakarta and called for the jailing of the governor.

A smaller group of his supporters were also present outside the courthouse, which was flanked by lines of police.

The presiding judge on the panel, Dwiyarso Budi Santiarto, said the defence could appeal to a higher court if they did not agree with the decision to proceed with the case. Ahok, after consulting his lawyers, told the court he would consider doing so.

The governor was named a suspect after hundreds of thousands of people, led by Muslim hardliners, attended rallies in recent months calling for his arrest.

Blasphemy convictions in Indonesia can carry a jail term of up to five years and nearly always result in conviction. Amnesty International has criticised the law for hurting freedom of expression and for targeting religious minorities.

President Joko Widodo, seen as an Ahok ally, has blamed "political actors" for fuelling the protests, but declined to elaborate.

As governor, Ahok has won credit for cutting red tape and improving the performance of Jakarta's bloated bureaucracy. However, his abrasive language and insistence on clearing city slums has alienated many voters.

After suffering a slide in support in opinion polls, Ahok has rebounded to become the frontrunner again in the election race to lead Jakarta, according to a poll by the Indonesian Survey Institute earlier this month.

The next court hearing is scheduled for 3 January and will be moved to an auditorium in the agriculture ministry in the south of the city for security reasons, authorities said.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/27/indonesia-court-blasphemy-trial-ahok-jakarta-governor

Indonesian blasphemy saga: Islamic hardliner accused of insulting Christianity

Sydney Morning Herald - December 27, 2016

Jewel Topsfield and Amilia Rosa, Jakarta – There has been a new twist in the blasphemy saga gripping Indonesia with Islamic hardliner Habib Rizieq reported to police for allegedly insulting Christianity during a sermon on Christmas Day.

The latest drama came as the North Jakarta District Court ruled it would proceed with the blasphemy trial of Jakarta's Christian governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as Ahok, who is facing a maximum five years' jail for allegedly insulting Islam.

Rizieq is the founder of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), the group that has spearheaded three mass rallies calling for the imprisonment of Ahok for telling voters they had been deceived by his opponents using a Koranic verse.

But the Union of Catholic University Students of the Republic of Indonesia reported Rizieq after viewing a video of a sermon in which he allegedly said: "If Jesus is the son of God, who is the midwife?". They also reported two people who uploaded the video on social media.

While explaining why Muslims should not allow others to wish them a Merry Christmas, Rizieq said it was wrong because it was saying happy birthday to the child of God.

He said a verse in the Koran (sura 112) says: "He (God) neither begets nor is begotten". "If Jesus is the son of God, then who would be the midwife?" Rizieq says on the video, which went viral on social media. His comments were greeted with much mirth from those attending his sermon in East Java.

Catholic University Students Union leader Angelo Wake Kako said: "We felt insulted and hurt by the hate statement from Habib Rizieq. It mirrored the lack of tolerance towards diversity in Indonesia, which has been nourished by our ancestors and by us."

Jakarta Police spokesman Argo Yuwono said the case would be investigated. "It will be studied to determine whether a crime has taken place," he told Fairfax Media. "We will have an internal meeting to discuss the case."

University of NSW academic Melissa Crouch, an expert in Indonesia's blasphemy laws, said there were precedents of people being convicted of blaspheming Christianity but usually it was intra-Christian disputes.

In 2009, for example, the leader of a Christian sect known as Zion City of Allah and his six disciples were jailed for six months for instructing their followers not to take communion and forbidding wedding ceremonies in church.

Leaders of the local Timor Evangelical Church agreed with the provincial leaders, saying the sect was illegal, according to the 2010 international religious freedom annual report to Congress.

"I think it is probably unprecedented for a Catholic group to lodge a complaint against a radical Islamist leader," Dr Crouch told Fairfax Media. "I think we are in uncharted waters."

Indonesian cleric Ustadz Alfian Tanjung, who was protesting outside Ahok's trial, told Fairfax Media Rizieq had not committed blasphemy. "It was just a logical question. If God has a child, then logically there must be someone who assisted with the birth. Who was it?"

The founder of the Indonesian Legal Resource Centre, Uli Parulian Sihombing, said blasphemy cases were subjective.

"If you ask a Muslim they might not see it as blasphemy, if you ask a Christian, they might see it as blasphemy. It depends on who sees it. From a legal point of view, there really is no blasphemy. We oppose the existence of the blasphemy law."

Ahok's trial will resume on January 3.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/indonesian-blasphemy-saga-islamic-hardliner-accused-of-insulting-christianity-20161227-gtifue.html

Ahok 'victim of criminalization' says community watchdog

Jakarta Globe - December 24, 2016

Jakarta – The Alliance of Civilian Community for the Constitution, or AMSIK, watchdog group has hit out at the legal proceedings against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, saying the governor is a victim of criminalization.

An official statement released on Thursday (22/12) said the two trial sessions have violated Basuki's human rights as well as demonstrated a lack of due process with the legal proceedings based on satisfying public pressure rather than strong evidence.

AMSIK added prosecution is based on an edict issued by the Indonesia Ulema Council (MUI), despite such edicts not being legally binding.

"Since MUI never clarified with Basuki Tjahaja Purnama before stating their opinion and assessments, there has been a 'trial in absentia' and 'trial by mob,'" AMSIK said in the statement.

The organization said state prosecutors have presented an illogical and unprofessional legal argument which has damaged the legal system. "It is a bad precedent over the law enforcement for future cases that have political elements."

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/ahok-victim-criminalization-says-community-watchdog/

Calls for Ahok to be nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

Jakarta Globe - December 23, 2016

Jakarta – A website has started a campaign to promote Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama as next year's Nobel Peace Prize nominee, claiming the governor – at the moment embroiled in a blasphemy scandal which may have cost his re-election next year – is "an outstanding political phenomenon."

No Indonesian has ever been awarded the prestigious prize. Nobel nominees are kept a secret for 50 years, but anyone can submit a nomination.

The website ahokfornobel.com says the governor, known as a tough reformer since he started leading the capital of 10 million people in 2014, is "a clean politician who fights against corruption to make Jakarta a successful global city."

The Christian and ethnic-Chinese governor is also considered as "a symbol of tolerance, diversity, harmony and peace" in the world's largest Muslim-majority democracy.

Ahok, known for his no-nonsense style of leadership, assumed office in late 2014, but his rise to power has drawn widespread protests from Muslim hardliners.

He is currently seeking re-election in next year's Jakarta gubernatorial race, amid mounting protests from Muslim hardliners accusing him of blasphemy.

"As a non-Muslim leader, Ahok has become a constant target for Islamic hardliners and extremists who threaten his life and try to bring him down by all means," the website says.

"Despite these threats, Ahok continues bravely to fight for Jakarta and Indonesia, cracking down on corruption and graft and making Jakarta a better city to live in."

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/calls-ahok-nominated-nobel-peace-prize/

Agus to build hang out spots called 'Kedai Jakarta' if elected

Jakarta Post - December 23, 2016

Callistasia Anggun Wijaya, Jakarta – Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono said he would provide hang out spots, called 'Kedai Jakarta', for residents in the city if he was elected next year.

"I have a program called Kedai Jakarta, which would feature comfortable places for city residents to hang out," Agus said during a campaign visit in Tebet, South Jakarta, on Thursday.

Calling it one of his featured programs, Agus said he planned to develop 100 Kedai Jakarta outlets across the city within five years. Food stalls would be erected in each subdistrict, he said.

Residents could use the stalls, which would be completed with free internet access, to sell food and drinks, he added.

Agus said Kedai Jakarta would be built by adopting a Betawi cultural style. It would function as a resident hall where people could socialize in a comfortable atmosphere, Agus said.

He further said that the planned stall would be able to accommodate 200 to 300 residents. Each building would be located on 1,000 to 2,000 square meters and constructed as a two or three-story building. Kedai Jakarta's construction would be funded by regional budgets, Agus said. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/23/agus-to-build-hang-out-spots-called-kedai-jakarta-if-elected.html

Surveys & opinion polls

Less than 1% of public hates Chinese people: Pollster

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Marguerite Afra Sapiie, Jakarta – A survey by the Jakarta-based Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC) has found that only 0.8 percent of the public admit to disliking the Chinese ethnic group, which comes in contrast to the recently growing claims of anti-China sentiment in the country.

"Statistically, we can say there is no problem [against Chinese groups] in society because the number is insignificant," SMRC founder Saiful Mujani said during a discussion on Thursday.

"If it seems as if the anti-China sentiment was growing recently, the source was not the public. We should be clear on that," he added.

Even in long term survey data, which the SMRC collected from 2001 to this year, public sentiment against ethnic Chinese remained constant as it never went above 1.5 percent.

Saiful viewed recent anti-China sentiments as having been heated up by some parties to gain support for certain issues, such as the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election.

The Islam Defenders Front (FPI), a group that has long objected to Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, for example, has used the momentum to gather more people to rally against him, a Christian of Chinese descent in the predominantly Muslim country, Saiful said.

Of the more than 1,000 respondents who had been interviewed about intolerance in November this year, 25.5 percent cited the Islamic State (IS) as the group they disliked the most, followed by the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) group with 16.6 percent and communists with 11.8 percent. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/less-than-1-of-public-hates-chinese-people-pollster-1483099152.html

Journalism & press freedom

LBH Pers calls for transparent, fair assessment in hoax eradication plan

Jakarta Post - December 31, 2016

Fachrul Sidiq, Jakarta – The Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers) has called on the government to be fair and transparent when attempting to combat the spread of false news.

LBH Pers executive director Nawawi Bahrudin said that the method and criteria should be made transparent to the public. He added that sufficient evidence was needed to ensure that the government's crackdown would not breach press freedom and the freedom of expression.

"The government should make the assessments fair and transparent. The Press Council should also be involved in the process," he told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The government previously declared a war against the spread of false news that it considers to be haunting the country. President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has repeatedly expressed anxiety over the disinformation on social media, including about the latest false news claiming an influx of millions of Chinese workers into Indonesia that had circulated widely in many online media outlets.

"The government should bring a case to court and not immediately shut down the media that has allegedly spread fake news," Nawawi said. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/lbh-pers-calls-for-transparent-fair-assessment-in-hoax-eradication-plan.html

Violence against journalists worse in 2016: LBH Pers

Jakarta Post - December 28, 2016

Jakarta – The Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers) recorded an increasing number of incidents of violence against journalists in 2016, most of which, allegedly, were committed by police officers.

"During 2016, the LBH Pers notes that at least 83 cases of violence against journalists occurred," LBH Pers executive director Nawawi Bahrudin said in Jakarta on Wednesday while presenting his year-end report. The figure is almost double that of last year, which recorded 47 incidents.

Nawawi said the most recurrent form of violence involved the prohibition of journalists from carrying out their reporting responsibilities alongside oppression and terror. He claimed that most of the violence was committed by police officers.

"The most vicious case is the one against a female journalist in Medan, North Sumatra [who was allegedly sexually harassed]. Also, the case of Zuhdy Febriyanto in Riau was very brutal. He was allegedly beaten up by several police officers," he said.

On Friday, a year-end report from the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) revealed that violence against journalists had reached its highest level in a decade.

According to the report, 78 cases of violence against journalists and one murder occurred between January and December, almost double the figure in 2015. (fac)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/28/violence-against-journalists-worse-in-2016-lbh-pers.html

Violence against journalists reaches 10-year high

Jakarta Post - December 24, 2016

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Violence against journalists has escalated to its highest level in a decade, a year-end report from the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) says.

According to the report, there have been 78 cases of violence against journalists and one murder between January and December, almost double the number of cases in 2015, which was 42.

"This is the largest number in the past 10 years," AJI chairman Suwarjono said during the launch of the report in Central Jakarta on Friday.

AJI head of advocacy Iman D. Nugroho said that the worsening violence against journalists had shown that the 2014 election of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, the first democratically elected civilian President in the post-Soeharto era, had failed to make a difference.

"This is shocking because we know that when Jokowi was elected, many people hoped [that his election would ensure better protection for journalists]. But that's not the case," he said.

Based on data from AJI, civilians were responsible for most cases of violence against journalists at 36 cases, followed by the police, who were responsible for 13 cases.

"This has been going on for the last three years. It means that the police, whom we hope would be law enforcers, turn out to be promoting violence and leaving perpetrators unpunished. Therefore, we dub the police as enemies of press freedom," Suwarjono said. (evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/24/violence-against-journalists-reaches-10-year-high.html

Internet & social media

NU warns of the spread of hatred, radicalism on social media

Jakarta Post - December 31, 2016

Fachrul Sidiq, Jakarta – Indonesia's largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) has urged the public to be cautious with news from social media because some information circulating on the internet is purportedly spread by irresponsible parties to deteriorate the country's unity.

NU chairman Said Aqil Siroj highlighted the growing use of social media to spread hatred and slurs by referencing ethnic, religious, racial and inter-group (SARA) issues.

"The issues of the Jakarta gubernatorial election and the Middle East conflict, for example, have been exploited to fuel hatred against certain groups. It will endanger the country's plurality," he said on Friday during the organization's year-end reflection.

He added that the public needed to be vigilant of extremist groups that take advantage of social media's extensive coverage to spread their radical teachings.

The government, he added, should take firm action against social media content promoting extremism and step up efforts to create a counter narrative against radicalism.

"We think the government has failed to build a counter narrative that would prevent radicalism from growing in the digital sphere. Values of tolerance have been met with the intensive spread of radical content that is easily accessible and shared on social media on a daily basis," he said.

Recently, the Singapore and the Turkey authorities deported two and three Indonesian men, respectively, for allegedly attempting to join Islamic State (IS) militants in war torn Syria. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/31/nu-warns-of-the-spread-of-hatred-radicalism-on-social-media.html

Government plans to monitor chats in messaging apps

Jakarta Post - December 29, 2016

Fachrul Sidiq, Jakarta – The government might enter the private sphere of its citizens when it implements a plan to monitor conversations in instant messaging applications.

Communications and Information Minister Rudiantara said his ministry plans to monitor conversations on applications, including WhatsApp and Blackberry Messenger, as he alleged that many hate-fueled, false and provocative messages were widely circulating through them.

"Chatting is included on social media. We will have a different approach [to monitor it]," the minister said after a limited meeting at the State Palace on Thursday as reported by kompas.com.

He said that the minister would file a police report when it finds messages deemed provocative or slanderous. "We can trace the initial source," he added.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on Thursday met a number of ministers and law enforcement leaders in a closed meeting to discuss the government's strategy to clamp down on provocative rumors and hoaxes on social media.

One of the circulating rumors is the claim that millions of Chinese workers had arrived in Indonesia and taken jobs from locals. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/29/govt-plans-to-monitor-chats-in-messaging-apps.html

'Om Telolet Om': How an Indonesian bus horn took the world by storm

Sydney Morning Herald - December 23, 2016

Jewel Topsfield, Jakarta – "What does om telolet om" mean? American DJ duo The Chainsmokers, who have 729,000 Twitter followers, tweeted at 1.22am on December 21.

Dutch DJ and electronic music producer Oliver Heldens tweeted that when he read it he thought of omelettes or eggs.

But in social media-obsessed Indonesia, there was not a kid with a smartphone who did not know about the om telolet om meme that was taking the world by storm.

Put simply, telolet is the onomatopoeic word for the uniquely melodic sound of the horns some intercity bus drivers in Java have installed.

Children have long held up signs urging drivers to "Om Telolet Om" (Uncle, honk your horn, Uncle) along Indonesian National Route One, (Pantura), which passes through five provinces in Java.

But it has become an obsession in Indonesia since a video of children lustily beseeching drivers to honk their horns in Jepara, a regency in Central Java, was uploaded onto Facebook.

"I think that's how people try to kill the time because Jepara lacks places of entertainment," Kusumodestoni, an information technology lecturer at NU College of Technology and Design in Jepara, told Fairfax Media. But now the children of Jepara have created entertainment for the world.

Tech blogger Aulia Masna suspects there was an organised plot to spam DJs on Twitter and Instagram with cryptic Om Telolet Oms. "After a while, they would say: 'What is this?' and DJs started looking up YouTube," Mr Masna says.

Musicians included Dutch music producing duo Firebeatz started putting out dance remixes of bus horns.

Billboard wrote that it had found a video clip of the telolet noise and it did sound quite like an electronic arpeggiator. "Perhaps it could make a sampled appearance in the next festival anthem."

By the afternoon of December 21, Om Telolet Om was the number one trending tweet in the world.

"It's incredible, it's hilarious," says Mr Masna. "When you think you got 2016 figured out this comes at the end. A lot of people are happy this is happening after all the depressing events of 2016 we get this to close it up."

You know something has jumped the shark when not only the mainstream media starts writing about it (sorry) but the Indonesian Transport Minister announces a bus honking contest in three weeks time.

And of course the virus has infected politics. One of the tickets in next February's gubernatorial elections, former education minister Anies Baswedan and Sandiaga Uno, posted an "Om Telolet Om" video on YouTube.

"Do you think I am your uncle," the 47-year-old Anies asks after being urged to "Om Telolet Om" by his running mate.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/om-telolet-om-how-an-indonesian-bus-horn-took-the-world-by-storm-20161223-gthazu.html

Environment & natural disasters

Extreme weather hampers Indonesia's fish farming production

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Anton Hermansyah, Jakarta – Indonesia expects to see its aquaculture production fall below its annual target this year, mainly due to the impact of the La Nina weather phenomenon on sea water conditions.

The Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry's director general for aquaculture, Slamet Soebjakto, said excessive rains in some parts of Indonesia had reduced salinity in the sea water. Most sea fish, he said, required high salinity of between 33 to 35 parts per thousand (ppt) to maintain an optimum mating process.

"The rains made temperatures fluctuate in an extreme manner. Acidic raindrops are also not good for fish reproduction," Slamet said Thursday during a year-end press conference at the ministry's headquarters in Jakarta.

The ministry reported that Indonesia, during the first nine months of 2016, had produced 13.3 million tons in aquaculture production, around 15 percent higher than the 11.5 million tons recorded during the same period last year.

Slamet estimated that the figure would end up at 15.8 million tons by year-end, much lower than the government's target of 19.46 million tons. (hwa)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/extreme-weather-hampers-indonesias-fish-farming-production.html

E. Nusa Tenggara people urge Jokowi not to visit Australia

Jakarta Post - December 26, 2016

Djemi Amnifu, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara – East Nusa Tenggara people have asked President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to cancel his planned to visit Australia next year in protest at the lack of a Montara oil spill settlement.

"The Australian government keeps avoiding responsibility for the Timor Sea pollution," said Ferdi Tanoni, the mandate holder of the customary rights in the Timor Sea, on Monday.

An example, Ferdi said, was Prime Minister Julie Bishop's statement that Australia did not have jurisdiction and the Indonesian government had yet to approach Australia to help the people in dealing with the pollution.

The fact was, Ferdi said, the Indonesian government had sent a letter to Australia seeking cooperation and help for the victims of the pollution.

The Australian Embassy in Jakarta told The Sydney Morning Herald earlier this month that "the Australian government had shared all relevant information about the spill with the Indonesian government including Australian response efforts. We have also shared long-term operational monitoring reports and environmental monitoring studies undertaken in Australian waters since 2009."

The Indonesian government agreed that the Australian government was not legally responsible but nonetheless said it could at least tell the Montara oil rig operator, PTTEP Australasia, to act in good faith.

"For the sake of Indonesia's dignity and sovereignty, we ask President Jokowi to cancel his Australian visit," Ferdi said. (evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/26/e-nusa-tenggara-people-urge-jokowi-not-to-visit-australia.html

Health & education

Teen pregnancy rate remains high in Yogyakarta

Jakarta Post - December 29, 2016

Bambang Muryanto, Yogyakarta – The number of adolescents giving birth following premarital sex in Yogyakarta has remained high, reaching at least 720 from January to November this year, data from an NGO concerned with sexual and reproductive rights showed.

The director of the Yogyakarta chapter of the Indonesian Planned Parenthood Association (PKBI), Gama Triono, said that although the number of teen pregnancy cases might not be as high as in the previous year, 1,078, this year's figure was alarming.

"Sexual abuse among young couples is one of factors that have led to the high pregnancy rate among adolescents in Yogyakarta. After the couples were aware that their premarital sex had gone too far, they took marriage as the solution for the unwanted pregnancy. They decided to keep their baby," Gama said.

The data reveals that from 2013 to 2016 the average number of young pregnant women was 957 per year and the average number of young women giving birth was 79 per month.

Gama said the 1974 Marriage Law, which set 16 years as the minimum age for girls to get married, also contributed to the high number of young females giving birth in the province. The PKBI recorded hundreds of under-age marriages occurring in three regencies, namely Bantul, Gunungkidul and Sleman, in 2015.

Another reason that contributed to the high rate of pregnancy in adolescence was the failure to provide them with proper education on reproductive health because of cultural taboos.

"If teens can get access to proper education on sexual and reproductive health, the number of unwanted pregnancy that may lead to under-aged marriage could decline because they know the risk of engaging in premarital sex," Gama said.

Research in 2010 showed that 70 percent of unmarried couples did not use any contraceptives when they engaged in their first sexual intercourse. "This is why the number of unwanted pregnancies remains high," the Yogyakarta Health Agency's head of family planning, Sutarti, said.

While dating among youth has become more acceptable in Indonesia, premarital sex still faces strong resistance, especially among devout Muslim families in this predominantly Muslim country. This is why it is quite hard for young and unmarried couples to obtain contraceptives.

Many unmarried youths still do not have access to information about family planning, although Indonesia has long advocated a family planning program.

Regional Development Planning Agency head Sri Mulyani said leaders of local administrations and experts from universities had improved their efforts to relay information about sexual and reproductive health rights. "Education from parents should be strengthened," she said.

Jazelyn, a youth from Gunung Kidul regency, said a strong relationship between parents and children was very important to keep children from committing mistakes.

"Parents should not easily get angry at their children and forbid them [from doing anything]. Parents should be able to discuss with their children, understand their problems and help them find solutions," she said. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/29/teen-pregnancy-rate-remains-high-in-yogyakarta.html

Economic factors major setback in improving school graduation rates

Jakarta Globe - December 24, 2016

Jakarta – Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection has found that 35.90 percent of children in urban and rural areas have never attended school or dropped out due to a lack of financing.

"Out of the several reasons given, lack of financial support has been the dominant cause for children aged seven to 17 years not to attend school or discontinue schooling," Minister of Women Empowerment Yohana Yembise said on Saturday (24/12), as reported by state news agency Antara.

The minister claimed the government has established the "Nine Year Compulsory Basic Education Program" to ensure future national development. It urges Indonesian children to attend school for a minimum of nine years, or to graduate by junior high school (SMP).

However, Yohana believes the program has yet to be optimized after seeing high numbers of children dropping out of school. "The affordable or free education, which has always been discussed, will definitely help families if economic factors are an issue," she said.

Nevertheless, Yohana added that other factors should also come into consideration in resolving why these students have dropped out.

She believes that psychological, geographical and social environments are factors that could possibly lead to children discontinuing their studies. According to the ministry's data, other factors which discourage students to further their education include working, and taking care of the household.

Almost 5 percent of these students believe their level of education was sufficient, while 4.5 percent stopped going to school due to a disability.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/economic-factors-major-setback-improving-school-graduation-rates/

Terrorism & religious extremism

Terror tops Indonesia's security agenda

Jakarta Post - December 29, 2016

Safrin La Batu and Marguarite Afra, Jakarta – Terrorism, which is thought to have been one of the biggest threats confronting national security in 2016, will continue to threaten the country next year along with the distribution of fake news through social media, which the National Police said had the potential to create grassroots conflict.

National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said in his outlook on the country's security situation in 2017 on Wednesday that the force would make combating terrorism and clamping down on individuals responsible for fake news and hoaxes a priority.

As part of efforts to deal with terrorism, the police, Tito said, would continue with Operation Tinambola in the restive region of Poso in Central Sulawesi to hunt down members of the terrorist group the East Indonesia Mujahidin (MIT). The MIT was founded by Santoso, one of the country's most infamous terrorists. Santoso was shot dead in July this year after police ramped up their offensive operations in the area.

Tito also said the police would monitor people flying to and coming back from Syria to prevent the dissemination of the radical ideology espoused by the Islamic State (IS) group. In doing so, Indonesia expects to work with countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Turkey.

"Our priority is [to monitor] those returning to Indonesia. Once they are found [to have joined IS] we will name them suspects," Tito said.

Around 600 Indonesians are thought to have traveled to Syria to engage in jihad. Some have remained in the country while others have made their way home or have lost their lives in the war.

With regard to hoaxes, half-truths and fake news, which mainly circulate on the internet, Tito said they could grow into a severe security threat in 2017 and that the police were working to improve their capacity in dealing with threats coming from online sources.

The statement came as government officials scrambled to counter rumors that millions of Chinese workers have arrived in the country.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has insisted that the rumors claiming that more than 10 million Chinese nationals had been permitted to work in Indonesia were baseless and that in reality there were only 21,000 Chinese nationals legally working here.

National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Boy Rafli Amar said rumors about millions of Chinese workers staying in the country had been spread to damage the government's reputation. "The people will say 'oh the government has been doing this and that' while in fact it is not true," he said.

Separately, Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo said the rumors and hoaxes were planned and orchestrated by "external parties" that wanted to create unrest, which could eventually tear the nation apart. "It is aimed at provoking and dividing our people," he said.

Tito said to deal effectively with hoaxes and fake news would require concerted effort from numerous government agencies. He said the government was now devising a mechanism to deal with the threat.

"Tomorrow, the President will hold a meeting on how to integrate all ministries and agencies to crack down on provocations on social media," Tito said.

Tito himself has taken the issue of fake news seriously, especially after a legislator claimed that the police had decided to ramp up their counterterrorism campaign to create a diversion from the blasphemy case implicating Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.

Tito, who once served as chief of the Densus 88 antiterror squad, said he would resign from his post if any evidence could be found that the police had orchestrated the antiterrorism campaign as a diversion from the politically-charged case involving Ahok.

The use of the internet to spread radical ideology will also become a concern of the police. Indonesian militants such as Bahrun Naim, a tech-savvy jihadist who is waging war in Syria, has allegedly used the internet to recruit new militants. It is thought that Bahrun has created a number of cells across the country through online chat groups.

In the past 12 days following the foiled plot to attack the State Palace on Dec. 10, Densus 88 has uncovered at least 13 terrorist cells in West Java, Central Java, Banten, North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Batam, arresting a total of 21 people and shooting dead five suspects, who were allegedly planning attacks during Christmas and New Year's Eve this year.

Tito said such raids were only possible because the police had stepped up their cybersurveillance efforts.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/29/terror-tops-indonesias-security-agenda.html

Indonesian police point to Islamic State after 2016 spike in terrorism cases

Sydney Morning Herald - December 29, 2016

Jewel Topsfield, Jakarta – Indonesia's police chief has attributed a sharp rise in the number of alleged terrorists handled by his force to the influence of Islamic State and the defeats it is experiencing in the Middle East.

The number of alleged terrorists dealt with by Indonesian police in 2016 was more than double the previous year, as IS encouraged terror cells to carry out attacks beyond Syria.

National police chief Tito Karnavian revealed there had been 170 alleged terrorists processed by police this year, compared to only 82 in 2015.

Of the 170 cases, 40 militants were sentenced, six were returned to their families, 36 are facing trial, 55 are being investigated and 33 were killed.

General Tito said that as IS came under attack from Western forces in Syria this year it encouraged its networks to stage terrorist activities overseas.

"That's why there were attacks in Europe, Turkey and Pakistan as well as Indonesia," General Tito said. "No wonder the numbers in Indonesia increased because of instructions from [IS] to... attract world attention."

On January 14, eight people were killed – including four militants – in a terror attack in front of the Sarinah department store in central Jakarta.

It was the first attack in Indonesia and indeed South-east Asia for which IS claimed responsibility, the first major attack in Jakarta since 2009 and the first in which armed gunmen shot at civilians, no doubt inspired by the Paris attack in November 2015.

The 33 alleged terrorists killed by police this year was also a steep increase from the seven killed in 2015.

The 33 dead included the four terrorists in the Sarinah attack and Indonesia's most wanted Islamist militant, Santoso, who was killed in a shootout in the jungles of Poso in Central Sulawesi in July.

Five people suspected of plotting terror attacks over the holiday period have been shot dead by police in the past month alone.

General Tito said police were permitted to kill if officers or members of the community were being threatened. "It has nothing to do with, say this year the numbers have to be higher, or this year less."

Jakarta-based terrorism expert Sidney Jones said the high number of terrorists killed this year could be explained by the ongoing Operation Tinombala in Central Sulawesi.

Fifteen alleged terrorists have been killed in Poso this year alone, as part of an operation aimed at capturing all members of the East Indonesia Mujahideen dead or alive.

Its former leader, Santoso, eluded capture for years and was seen as a symbol of resistance to the government until he was shot dead in July.

Ms Jones said militants were overwhelmingly targeting police but there were also an attack on a Protestant church in Samarinda, which killed a toddler, and an attack on a Catholic church in Medan, allegedly inspired by the killing of a priest by IS militants in Rouen, France.

"We had a couple of plots aimed at avenging violence against Muslims in Myanmar, none of which came off," Ms Jones said. She said the Sarinah attack on January 14 was initially aimed at police but what the terrorists wanted to do was reproduce the Paris attacks.

"Starbucks (the site of a suicide bombing on January 14) was an attraction but I don't think we have hard evidence there was a specific targeting of foreigners. It was more trying to produce a large scale attack, as if to say: 'You are not safe here either'."

Despite the large number of arrests and foiled terrorist plots, only one police officer was killed and 11 injured in terror activities this year. (with Amilia Rosa)

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/indonesian-police-point-to-islamic-state-after-2016-spike-in-terrorism-cases-20161229-gtjeug.html

Terrorism index should highlight intra-religious conflict: Expert

Jakarta Post - December 28, 2016

Jakarta – The government's plan to establish the Terrorism Risk Index, which aims to detect potential terrorism acts in regions across the country, should underline intra-religious conflict amid growing sectarian hate, an expert has said.

Terrorism analyst Al Chaidar said conflict within the same religion driven by different schools of thought should not be undermined because it often served as the primary cause that has led a person toward extremism.

"The inter-religious conflict between followers of different schools of thoughts can vastly influence the growth of intolerance," he said on Wednesday.

He said that if the matter was overlooked, the government might fail to detect and identify the roots of radicalism in Indonesia. He said that, for example, many Indonesians aiming to join militants in war-torn Syria were propelled by the escalating Shiite-Sunni tensions.

"A comprehensive terrorism risk index that measures key and determining factors will eventually help regional governments to know better what has pushed the increase in terrorism activities in their respective areas. It's important so that they will know how to deal with it," he said.

On Tuesday, the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) and the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) agreed to work on establishing the first ever Terrorism Risk Index in a bid to better identify the root of terrorism amid fear of growing radicalism in the country. The factors gauged will include, among others, ideology, economics, politics, social issues and culture. (fac/evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/28/terrorism-index-should-highlight-intra-religious-conflict-expert.html

Police detonate bomb in Magelang, Central Java

Sydney Morning Herald - December 27, 2016

Jewel Topsfield and Amilia Rosa – Police have detonated a bomb found near a food stall in a street in Magelang in Central Java as Indonesia continues to be on tenterhooks over a possible terror attack over the holiday period.

Central Java police spokesman Djarod Padakova said police found dangerous items including nails, pipe, a switch, wiring and a battery in the debris after they blew up a suspicious package.

He said police were yet to determine who was responsible for the package but given it contained a low explosive bomb the intention was to create terror.

The bomb was found wrapped in duct tape inside a bag at about 6am near a portable food stall known as a kaki lima, that sold fried meat balls and tofu.

Police have already killed five suspected terrorists and arrested multiple others over plots that have included a suicide bombing of the presidential palace in Jakarta, an attack in Bali, and attacks on police postings in South Tangerang and Purwakarta.

National police chief Tito Karnavian said 150,000 personnel including police and the military had been deployed to secure the capital over Christmas and the New Year as part of Operation Candle.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/police-detonate-bomb-in-magelang-central-java-20161227-gtika1.html

Suspected terrorists allegedly plotting New Year's Eve attack on police in West

Sydney Morning Herald - December 26, 2016

Jewel Topsfield and Amilia Rosa, Jakarta – Indonesian police say that suspected terrorists who were arrested and killed on Christmas Day had been plotting to attack a police post in West Java on New Year's Eve.

Two suspected militants were shot dead in a floating house on the Jatiluhur dam in West Java on Sunday after attacking police officers with machetes. The police had been led to the floating house after arresting two other men in nearby Cibinong.

Police had earlier warned of potentially catastrophic results if they had intended to target Jatiluhur dam, which could have caused massive flooding.

National Police spokesman Rikwanto said a statement was found in the floating house, which was like an instruction to fight police, whom they considered evil.

"When they (the alleged militants) were on land they also did a survey of police posts," Mr Rikwanto said. "They found a police post (in Purwakarta) and they planned to do their action on New Year's Eve."

Mr Rikwanto said police had not received any statement suggesting Jatiluhur dam was a target just an indication the men had fled to the floating house from a rental property in Bandung, after the locals started getting suspicious.

He said at the rented house in Cibinong police found nails in different sizes, scales, a mobile phone with many SIM cards, disks, books about religious studies and handwritten notes, which were crucial for their ongoing investigations.

No bombs materials had been found but the scales indicated they intended to weigh something so it was possible the materials were yet to arrive. "Detachment 88 (the special counter-terrorism police force) will continue to expand (the investigation) based on the arrests," he said.

"We estimate there are people still from their group who will disrupt events like Christmas and New and police station attacks on officers in the field. To anticipate these, Detachment 88 have never stopped investigating."

West Java police chief Anton Charliyan had earlier told Fairfax Media the water dam wall was only a few hundred metres from the floating home. "That's why we are now combing the area, diving, as a precaution, they might already have something there we don't know."

Mr Anton said the Christmas day arrests were related to arrests in South Tangerang earlier this month over a plot to attack the state palace in central Jakarta using a female suicide bomber.

He said the suspects were linked to the Jamaah Anshar Daulah network which is affiliated with Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian-born IS fighter who is believed to be in Syria. "There are indications of more network cells. Their target is different now," Mr Anton said.

The statement in the floating house warning that "infidels" and those who imprisoned mujahideen [holy warriors] fighting for Allah would be targeted with knives.

The statement, which appeared to be aimed at police, said: "We will come to you wherever you are, we will stake out your posts, your houses, in crowded or quiet place, day or night... Earth belongs only to Allah, it is improper for you uphold other than Allah's law, you uphold the devil's law."

Mr Anton said no bombs were found at either of the two sites on Christmas Day but eight machetes had been seized.

Police have now shot dead five suspected militants and arrested multiple others allegedly plotting terror attacks in the lead-up to the holiday period.

Security has been beefed up, with 85,000 police and 15,000 military personnel deployed during the Christmas and New Year period as part of the annual Operation Candle.

Meanwhile three Indonesians were reportedly deported after allegedly trying to join militants fighting in Syria. They are being interrogated by police.

The Australian government updated its travel warning to Indonesia on December 21, warning that Indonesian authorities continued to arrest terrorists who had allegedly been in the advanced stages of attack planning.

"The terrorist threat level in Indonesia remains high. Terrorist attacks could occur anywhere at any time in Indonesia, including Bali. Be particularly vigilant during the Christmas and New Year period as gatherings of Westerners could be targeted," it said.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/suspected-terrorists-allegedly-plotting-new-years-eve-attack-on-police-in-west-java-20161226-gti18r.html

Intolerance gives birth to terrorism: Activist

Jakarta Post - December 23, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The government must further promote religious tolerance in schools throughout the country as part of its effort to curb the early growth of terrorism, an activist says.

The chairman of a Jakarta-based human rights watchdog, the Setara Institute, Hendardi, said counterterrorism efforts have so far focused on law enforcement but failed to touch the roots of terrorism: intolerance.

"Intolerance is the initial step for terrorism; thus education really matters," Hendardi said on Friday. "This why I believe that efforts to counter terrorism must also involve students and teachers. That is still lacking from de-radicalization programs."

Hendardi emphasized that it was becoming more urgent to promote tolerance in schools throughout the country as students were more vulnerable to radical views.

In order to get a picture of the situation, Setara published the results of a study it conducted early this year to examine the tolerance of high school students in Jakarta and Bandung. It found that although most students could still be considered tolerant, intolerance had caught the interest of more students.

The study, which involved 760 students throughout the two cities, found that 61 percent of students were tolerant, but 35.7 percent of students could be considered passively intolerant and 2.4 percent were radical, while 0.3 percent were prone to becoming terrorists.

"Law enforcement efforts by the police is a final stage action. It is dealing with the first stage issue, which is intolerance, that really matters," Hendardi emphasized. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/23/intolerance-gives-birth-to-terrorism-activist.html

Hard-line & vigilante groups

Police pursue suspects of Surakarta resto raid

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Suherdjoko, Semarang, Central Java – Central Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Condro Kirono said the police have been searching for several suspected perpetrators of a raid at Social Kitchen Resto in Surakarta, Central Java.

"We have arrested 11 people, six of them were allegedly directly involved in the raid while the five others were accused of orchestrating the incident," he said during a press conference in Semarang on Thursday.

As reported earlier, a group of people launched a raid at Social Kitchen Resto early on the morning of Dec. 18. The angry mob injured nine restaurant patrons.

Sri Asmoro Eko Nugroho, 39, alias Eko Wahid and alias Eko Luis, was one of the three alleged perpetrators arrested by the Central Java Police and one of the leaders of Askari Hisbah, an Islamic organization with a strong influence in the Surakarta area.

"He has about 300 men," Adj. Sr. Comr. Nanang Haryono of the Central Java Police's general crime investigation directorate said on Tuesday.

Eko and his two colleagues, Mujiono Laksito, 46, and Kombang Saputra, 26, alias Kumbang and alias Azam, respectively, were arrested at Regency, a shop/house in Kartasura, Sukoharjo, Central Java. The police listed 74 names allegedly involved in the attack.

Condro said the raid suspects were not cooperative during the police's investigation. "We found messages on their phones, which instructed them to escape and remove any evidence."

Condro further explained they planned the attacks on Dec. 17. "They each had a task, beginning with sealing the restaurant to documenting the attacks they carried out," he said.

The suspects will also be charged with theft because the police noticed that there were theft attempts during the raid. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/police-pursue-suspects-of-surakarta-resto-raid.html

Freedom of religion & worship

Religious tolerance weakens in 2016: NU

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Fachrul Sidiq, Jakarta – Indonesia's largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) declared that religious tolerance weakened in 2016, marred by discriminatory acts against followers of different religions.

Religious intolerance has taken its toll on the country this year because of intolerant acts committed by hardliner groups that violate the freedom of people to practice their religious beliefs, said NU executive council (PBNU) chairman Said Aqil Siraj.

He gave an example of intolerant acts, like the one in Bandung, where the Reformed Injili Indonesia Church canceled a Christmas service after a protest by dozens of Islamic group members. Other acts of religious intolerance include attacks against followers of Ahmadiyah and Shi'a.

"These acts of religious intolerance could deteriorate the country's commitment to Bhineka Tunggal Ika [Unity in Diversity]," he said during the organization's year-end reflection at its headquarters in Jakarta on Friday.

The growing intolerant acts contravene the true value of religions and could likely lead to extremism and radicalism, the NU chairman said, adding that the government should take firm action to prevent intolerance from growing.

"Without strong law enforcement, the state will bow down to pressure from intolerant groups that use force to impose their own agendas," he said. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/religious-tolerance-weakens-in-2016-nu.html

14 witnesses questioned over Christmas tree adorned with word "Allah"

Jakarta Post - December 26, 2016

Jon Afrizal, Jambi – Jambi Police intensified an investigation over a Christmas tree decorated with the word "Allah [God]" in Arabic script allegedly erected by a four-star hotel in Jambi and questioned 14 people following the suspension of the hotel's operation.

"Those questioned are people who knew about the ornaments," Jambi police chief Brig. Gen. Yazid Fanani said on Sunday.

Several journalists and the employees of Novita Hotel are among witnesses questioned by investigators over the tree. Police also urge people not to be easily provoked by the incident and not to cause public tension.

Meanwhile, the chairman of Jambi's Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) Adri Hasan slammed the hotel for the incident, which he claimed was blasphemous. "We want this case to be thoroughly investigated to prevent restlessness among Muslims," he said.

Jambi Governor Zumi Zola also called on all parties to monitor security and tolerance in Jambi and not to get involved in any misconduct. However, Zumi also expressed regret over the incident that could have stemmed from the hotel's negligence.

The Jambi municipal administration decided to temporarily suspend the operation of Novita Hotel over the word Allah as one of the ornaments decorating the Christmas tree in the hotel's lobby.

Jambi Mayor Syarif Fasha said on Friday the decision to close down Novita Hotel was made to ease religious tensions related to the matter.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/25/14-witnesses-questioned-over-christmas-tree-adorned-with-word-allah.html

Bandung Mayor attends Christmas service, apologizes for intolerance

Jakarta Post - December 24, 2016

Arya Dipa, Bandung – Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil attended a Christmas celebration at Sasana Budaya Ganesa on Friday night, asking for forgiveness for the past service that was disrupted by conservative Muslims.

"Whatever has happened in Bandung, as a leader, I ask for forgiveness for the disruption of the past KKR," he said to about 3,000 members of the congregation led by Rev. Stephen Tong.

Ridwan referred to the Spiritual Awakening Service (KKR) on Dec. 6 that was dispersed by supporters of two groups, namely Pembela Ahlu Sunnah (PAS) and Dewan Da'wah Islamiyah Indonesia (DDII).

He admitted that his approval of a permit for the Christmas service would create tensions, but he said he had to be fair. "I always remember my mother's message, asking me to be a fair leader," he said.

He said his administration along with religious organizations had come to an agreement on religious freedom.

"I have circulated the letter across Bandung. So please [report to us], if [you] find any disturbances," he told the congregation. He added that his administration had established a task force on tolerance.

Besides Ridwan, West Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Anton Charliyan and West Java Military Commander Maj. Gen. Muhammad Herindra also attended the Christmas celebrations and delivered speeches. (jun).

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/24/bandung-mayor-attends-christmas-service-apologizes-for-intolerance.html

Pluralism in peril: Is Indonesia's religious tolerance under threat?

Sydney Morning Herald - December 24, 2016

Jewel Topsfield, Jakarta – Every Christmas the youth wing of Indonesia's largest Islamic organisation provides security outside churches to protect them from attacks by radical groups.

The volunteers put their lives on the line. On December 24, 2000, Riyanto, a 25-year-old Muslim, screamed for the congregation of Eben Haezer church in Mojokerto, East Java, to get down after he spotted a suspicious package. He was killed when it exploded in his hands as he tore out of the crowded church.

Al-Qaeda-linked terrorists detonated bombs in churches throughout Indonesia that fateful Christmas Eve, killing 18 people. Were it not for Riyanto's act of heroism, the death toll could have been far higher.

"To feel scared is human, however we think that if we protect humanity it is the same as carrying out jihad [striving for a noble cause]," says Dendy Zuhairil Finsa, the head of the youth wing of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in Jakarta.

"The teaching of Islam is that we have to protect people of other faiths who are carrying out their religious rituals. Because of that I don't feel fear."

This noble act embodies Indonesia's national motto of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).

Indonesia is often lauded as a model for Muslim democracy. About 90 per cent of its 250 million people are Muslim but it has a secular government and sizeable Christian, Hindu and Buddhist minorities. The country's 1945 constitution guarantees freedom of religion and the government recognises six official faiths.

"I have a deep and personal appreciation of Indonesian President Joko Widodo's commitment to promoting a tolerant and inclusive Islam," Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said in his 2016 Lowy lecture.

"He says again and again, Indonesia is proof that democracy, tolerance, moderation and Islam are compatible."

But there are fears that Indonesia's pluralism is in peril amid growing discrimination against minority groups and the explosive allegations that Jakarta's governor, a Christian, insulted Islam.

Under the authoritarian New Order regime, the ideology of Islamic groups was repressed. However following the fall of president Suharto in 1998, they had new-found freedom to advocate their views on morality and, for some, a desire to see a rigid interpretation of Islamic practice implemented in Indonesia.

Although homosexuality has never been outlawed in Indonesia – indeed transvestites, known as waria, have been a feature of life for hundreds of years – this year there were a wave of attacks on LGBT people.

Religious minorities such as the Ahmadiyya – a Muslim sect considered deviant in many Islamic countries – Shiites, the Baha'i and the Druze regularly face persecution.

Early this year an angry mob torched a remote farming community in West Kalimantan belonging to former members of the Gafatar, which the government suspected of being affiliated with "deviant teachings".

The members were forcibly returned to their home villages to be "re-educated" in Islam and three of the former leaders were charged with blasphemy and treason.

"Incidents of discrimination against religious minorities and attacks on religious properties continue to occur in Indonesia," says the 2016 United States Commission on International Religious Freedom report.

"Radical groups perpetrate many of these attacks and influence the responses of local government officials when violence occurs."

A survey this year by the Wahid Institute, which promotes a moderate form of Islam, found the number of violations against freedom of religion jumped from 154 in 2014 to 190 in 2015.

The majority were in West Java and Aceh and largely involved closing places of worship and obstructing religious ceremonies.

"Muslims are being bombarded by these very black-and-white ways of framing issues," the institute's director, Yenny Wahid, said at a recent forum.

"For example with the case of the Ahmadiyya: 'If you love the prophet, you cannot support the Ahmadiyya'. That would be the argument of the radicals to convince the lay Muslims."

Wahid believes the debate over the allegedly blasphemous comments made by Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as Ahok, is being fuelled in the same way.

"If you love the Koran, then you have to be against the one who blasphemes against the Koran," she says. "It is really hard when it is framed that way."

When Ahok became governor of Jakarta in 2014 – the first openly Christian, ethnically Chinese in the role – it was heralded by many as a new era in Indonesian democracy and tolerance.

But there were those who vociferously opposed his appointment on the grounds that a non-Muslim should not be governor of Jakarta.

The hardline Islam Defenders Front (FPI) rallied outside the city council protesting he was arrogant, had insulted civil servants and used his authority to carry out "Christianisation". However the FPI was broadly considered a fringe radical group and not taken seriously.

Ahok has turned out to be a polarising governor. He was applauded by middle-class Jakartans for reforming the bureaucracy, his strong stance against corruption and his attempts to improve intractable Jakarta problems such as flooding and traffic.

However the urban poor railed against mass forced evictions of slums and environmentalists criticised his plan for reclamation of Jakarta Bay. Others questioned whether he was really so squeaky clean after he was called as a witness in a couple of corruption cases.

But Ahok's undoing proved to be a provocative speech he gave on Indonesia's Thousand Islands on September 27, while campaigning for re-election in February's gubernatorial poll.

The mayor told fishermen they had been deceived into not voting for him by his opponents who cited verse 51 from the fifth sura, or chapter, of the Koran, al-Maida.

Some Muslims interpret al-Maida as a prohibition on Muslims living under the leadership of a non-Muslim. Others say the scripture should be understood in its context – a time of war – and not interpreted literally.

Here was the chink in the armour his opponents had been looking for. A video of the speech went viral on Facebook. Three mass rallies were held demanding Ahok be jailed for blasphemy. Police named him a suspect and he is now on trial in the North Jakarta District Court for allegedly insulting Islam.

Australian National University professor Marcus Mietzner believes the "trumped-up blasphemy charges" have provided a narrative to cloak anti-Chinese sentiment.

"My sense is that deep-seated racial and religious sentiments were able to be mobilised by a case that allowed ordinary Indonesians to justify towards themselves and towards the outside world these very sentiments," he told the Carnegie Council.

Chinese Indonesians make up just a fraction of the population but own a disproportionate amount of the country's wealth, and resentment runs deep.

Many Chinese Indonesians are still haunted by the 1998 riots in some cities in Indonesia which were triggered by unemployment and food shortages. The mob vented their rage on the Chinese community, who were perceived to be better off. Chinese shops were looted, scores of Chinese women raped and an estimated 1000 people killed.

Din Syamsuddin is the chairman of the advisory council of the Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI), Indonesia's top Islamic scholarly body. The council issued a fatwa, or opinion, in October that Ahok had insulted the Koran.

Din estimates that 60 to 70 per cent of those who attended the December 2 rally were from the Muslim middle class and not Islamic hardliners. "There is an accumulation of feeling of injustice and discrimination especially in the field of the economy by many Muslim groups," he says.

Din believes the sheer scale of the rallies and the level of discontent they have exposed should prompt the Indonesian government to take steps to alleviate economic disparity. "Those people are getting a hard feeling when others blame them of being anti-plurality," he says. "I think the majority of Muslims in this country are tolerant."

Human Rights Watch's Andreas Harsono is far more pessimistic. According to Amnesty International 106 people were jailed for blasphemy between 2005 and 2014. Their offences included leading prayers in Indonesian rather than Arabic, pulling the plug on a mosque loudspeaker and punctuating prayers with whistling. The number of acquittals was negligible.

Harsono believes Ahok will be jailed, possibly for the maximum five years. He also believes there will be more pressure to have Muslim leaders in predominantly Muslim communities.

"There will also be more provisions of the sharia [Islamic code of conduct] in Indonesia, whether it is compulsory to wear hijab, whether it is not going out at night for a Muslim woman, whether it is more and more restrictions with the Ahmadiyya, the [Shiites] and others. LGBT violence is also going to increase. This is going to be a very, very difficult time for Indonesia."

Memories of the 2000 Christmas Eve bombings are still raw and Indonesia always feels jittery at this time of year.

Just four days before Christmas police killed alleged Islamic State-linked militants suspected of plotting attacks over the holiday period. An Islamic group shut down a Christmas service in Bandung. There was the usual flurry of controversy over whether Muslim shopworkers were being forced to wear Santa hats.

A fatwa was issued banning Christmas costumes for Muslims which Islamic hardliners sought to enforce at shopping malls in Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city.

But amid all the noise, the selfless actions of the youth wing of NU give cause for optimism. Police have asked them, as they do every year, to provide security outside churches, including the Jakarta Cathedral and Immanuel Church, over Christmas.

"We are always ready to protect pluralism," says Dendy. "In Islam we have to maintain good relations with people of all faiths."

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/pluralism-in-peril-is-indonesias-religious-tolerance-under-threat-20161223-gth09i.html

Gus Dur would have loudly condemned recent acts of intolerance: Activist

Jakarta Post - December 23, 2016

Safrin La Batu, Jakarta – Former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, known as a supporter of pluralism, would have been at the forefront of those condemning recent intolerant acts in the country if he were still alive today, a human rights activist said on Friday.

Hendardi, chairman of human rights organization the Setara Institute, said Gus Dur had contributed a great deal to building up Indonesian pluralism and his vision in this field meant that he deserved to be called a "humanitarian figure".

"Seeing developments in Indonesia recently, Gus Dur would have loudly condemned intolerance, identity politics and all the things that threaten Indonesian diversity," Hendardi said in a statement on Friday.

Gus Dur was widely respected for his policy of protecting minority groups. Taking power in 1999, Gus Dur, for example, issued a regulation one year later declaring Confucianism, a religion adhered to by many Chinese-Indonesians, as a religion recognized by the state.

Gus Dur was impeached in 2001 and he died in late 2009. The anniversary of his death is remembered every year. President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is scheduled to attend the anniversary of Gus Dur's death on Friday in Ciganjur, South Jakarta.

"Although he is no longer able to speak, Gus Dur's teachings are in the hearts of many who struggle to maintain Indonesia's diversity," Hendardi said. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/23/gus-dur-would-have-loudly-condemned-recent-acts-of-intolerance-activist.html

Indonesian scholars stand up against growing intolerance

Jakarta Post - December 23, 2016

Jakarta – Indonesian scholars are standing up against religious intolerance, which has gained a stronger foothold in the country recently. The scholars say such intolerance goes against the values embedded in Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).

Scholars, politicians and lecturers gathered at the headquarters of the Wahid Foundation on Thursday to discuss the country's identity crisis after the emergence of interfaith disharmony this year.

"Diversity is our collective awareness and identity. Therefore, we decry any kind of violent or intolerant actions against other beliefs and races," University of Indonesia law professor Sulistyowati Irianto said at the event.

Other figures present at the event included sociology researcher Geger Riyanto, Wahid Foundation executive director Yenny Wahid, University of Indonesia philosophy lecturer Rocky Gerung and politician Kartini Sjahrir.

"Nowadays, one can easily become intolerant because of the wrong perceptions that are disseminated excessively. For example, a lot of religious leaders preach and emphasize violence in jihad," Yenny said.

Recently, the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) took the law into its own hands and demanded that shopping centers in Surabaya, East Java, refrain from asking Muslim workers to wear Christmas-related apparel.

The move from the hard-liners came about after a fatwa issued by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) banning Muslims from wearing paraphernalia related to other faiths.

"The country has allowed many houses of worship to be demolished, religious rituals to be stopped and hatred to be excessively disseminated. Therefore, we want to represent scholars here and say that we are against intolerant actions," Sulistyowati said. (adt/evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/23/indonesian-scholars-stand-up-against-growing-intolerance.html

Poverty & social inequity

Indonesia's rich list stacked with palm oil billionaires

Mongabay - December 26, 2016

Forbes' annual catalog of the country's wealthiest people reads like a who's who of industry tycoons.

Billionaires aren't the only ones who have profited from Indonesia's palm oil industry. But a high proportion of the nation's wealthiest citizens owe their fortunes at least in part to the production of the commodity.

It makes sense - Indonesia's is the world's top palm oil producer, and it is also one of the most unequal societies.

Fourteen of the 32 Indonesian billionaires identified by Forbes magazine are palm oil tycoons, having accumulated their wealth at least in part through the industry. That includes six of the country's 10 richest, and 12 of its wealthiest 20.

They are Budi and Michael Hartono; Susilo Wonowidjojo; Anthony Salim; Eka Tjipta Widjaja; Chairul Tanjung; Murdaya Poo; Theodore Rachmat; Putera Sampoerna; Peter Sondakh; Sukanto Tanoto; Martua Sitorus; Ciliandra Fangiono; Prajogo Pangestu; and Bachtiar Karim.

Almost all of these men established themselves as members of the Southeast Asian nation's oligarchy during the 33-year reign of strongman President Suharto, who fell in 1998.

During the palm oil boom of the 2000s, Indonesia surpassed Malaysia to become the world's top producer of the commodity. So too did the number of Indonesia's billionaires rise during the decade, from two to 11.

The industry's expansion has continued into the 2010s, driving economic growth but also crippling the archipelago country's rainforests, fueling a land-grabbing epidemic and desiccating Indonesia's vast peat swamp zones in such a way as to fuel the disastrous fires that each year blanket the region in a choking haze.

Oil palm plantation in Riau, Sumatra. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Mature oil palm trees in Riau, Indonesia's top palm oil producing province. Photo by Rhett A. Butler.

The nation's richest haven't completely monopolized the spoils of palm oil, used in around half the goods one finds on supermarket shelves, from chocolate and cooking oil to soap and makeup. The industry is said to employ nearly 4 million people in Indonesia, although a substantial portion of them are day laborers who earn next to nothing.

While the processing of crude palm oil into other chemicals happens in a few giant refineries held by conglomerates like Golden Agri-Resources (owner: Eka Tjipta Widjaja, $5.6bn), Wilmar International (Martua Sitorus, $1.44bn) and Musim Mas (Bachtiar Karim, $1.2bn), there are thousands of mills across the country that turn palm fruit into oil, not all of them corporate-owned.

So too at the plantation level are there a number of smaller players, from local entrepreneurs who bankroll plantations to farmers who cultivate oil palm on their own land, typically selling the fruit to a middleman transporter who can bring it to a mill for processing.

But the billionaires' wild success perhaps speaks to modern Indonesia's status as one of history's most unequal societies. The country "represents a particularly extreme example of oligarchic dominance and distortion" in part because wealth "is unusually concentrated," political scientist Jeffrey Winters wrote in 2012.

Some of those on Forbes' list are relative newcomers to the sector. That's the case with Budi and Michael Hartono ($17.1bn) and Susilo Wonowidjojo ($7.1bn), each of whom made their fortunes in cigarettes before diversifying into palm oil.

Others, though, have long been some of the industry's biggest players. They include Anthony Salim ($5.7bn), whose father, Liem Soe Liong, was one of Suharto's closest business associates; Sukanto Tanoto ($1.45bn), whose Asian Agri operates dozens of plantations, mills and refineries; and Ciliandra Fangiono ($1.4bn), whose First Resources is mired in what is arguably Indonesia's highest-profile conflict between an agribusiness and an indigenous community.

Below is a list of Indonesia's palm oil billionaires, with the caveat that the figures provided are but an estimate of their wealth, much of which is likely to be held secretly. Widjaja, Salim, Tanoto and Prajogo Pangestu ($1.3bn), for example, were named by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in 2013 to have over 140 offshore companies between them, mostly in the British Virgin Islands.

Budi and Michael Hartono (1, $17.1bn) – The brothers' Djarum Group has expanded into oil palm via PT Hartono Plantations Indonesia, which presides over tens of thousands of hectares in Kalimantan.

Susilo Wonowidjojo (2, $7.1bn) – His Makin Group presides over a total planted area of 140,000 hectares in Sumatra and Kalimantan, as well as 13 mills, according to the company's website.

Anthony Salim (3, $5.7bn) – The Salim Group conglomerate has a land bank spanning hundreds of thousands of hectares in Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua. The country's biggest food company, Indofood, is also part of the Salim Group and is a major palm oil user.

Eka Tjipta Widjaja (4, $5.6bn) – Golden Agri-Resources is an arm of his Sinar Mas conglomerate, which also owns Asia Pulp & Paper, Indonesia's biggest paper company.

Chairul Tanjung (6, $4.9bn) – CT Agro is the agribusiness arm of CT Corp. Its website says it has 60,000 hectares of plantations in Kalimantan and plans to invest in mills and refineries.

Murdaya Poo (9, $2.1bn) – His Central Cipta Murdaya Group is heavily involved in the agribusiness megaproject planned for Merauke district, Papua province. His wife, Siti Hartati Murdaya, was jailed for bribing the head of Buol district in South Sulawesi province in order to obtain a permit for an oil palm plantation there.

Theodore Rachmat (11,$1.92bn) – His Triputra Agro Persada is one of Indonesia's fastest-growing palm oil companies, with a land bank of around 300,000 hectares.

Putera Sampoerna (12, $1.8bn) – Sampeorna Agro is another major palm oil producer. In August the company was ordered to pay $76 million over fires that burned across one of its concessions in Riau province in 2014.

Peter Sondakh (14, $1.69bn) – His Rajawali conglomerate's Eagle High Plantations owns plantations in Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua, plus seven mills. Sukanto Tanoto (16, $1.45bn) – His Royal Golden Eagle conglomerate owns Asian Agri, one of the major palm oil refiners.

Martua Sitorus (18, $1.44bn) – His Wilmar International is biggest palm oil processor. It owns a huge network of refineries, mills and plantations in Indonesia.

Ciliandra Fangiono (20, $1.4bn) – His First Resources is one of the largest oil palm planters, especially in Kalimantan.

Prajogo Pangestu (25, $1.3bn) – His Barito Pacific is a diversified conglomerate with oil palm plantations and mills in West Kalimantan.

Bachtiar Karim (27, $1.2bn) – His Musim Mas is another major refiner.

Source: https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/indonesias-rich-list-stacked-with-palm-oil-billionaires/

Land & agrarian conflicts

Luhut calls for acceleration of Benoa Harbor expansion project

Jakarta Globe - December 31, 2016

Jakarta – Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Panjaitan has called for the acceleration of an expansion of Bali's Benoa Harbor, saying that it was in the state's interest.

Luhut also called on the regional administration, including members of the Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) to assist in the process.

"I hope that in the near future, the project will continue as there are no problems with permits, including the availability of an environmental impact assessment," Luhut said during a work visit to the island on Friday (30/12).

The minster said the administrative and permit requirements for the expansion have been fulfilled, and that he expected officials to speed up the issuance of the permit.

"All these developments are for our benefit, as there are no more reasons to delay processing of the permits. In terms of the administration, everything has gone through the process and all [requirements] have been met," he said.

Luhut added that he was ready to meet with officials to start the expansion project early in January, in keeping with the planned completion target. "All developments are part of the government's program and the maritime sector will see several harbors being improved," he said.

The minister was accompanied by several officials, including Denpasar regional secretary Anak Agung Rai Iswara and Denpasar Transportation Agency chief Gede Astika.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/luhut-calls-acceleration-benoa-harbor-expansion-project/

Governance & administration

Jokowi denies cabinet reshuffle rumors

Jakarta Globe - December 29, 2016

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on Thursday (29/12) denied rumors he is considering another cabinet reshuffle. "No such thing," he told journalists in South Jakarta.

The comments come after Vice President Jusuf Kalla and presidential spokesman Johan Budi also denied the reports.

"I have yet to hear directly from the president on another [cabinet] reshuffle plan," Johan said at the Presidential Palace complex in Central Jakarta on Wednesday.

Nevertheless, he reiterated that the reshuffle is part of the president's prerogative rights. "Reshuffling the cabinet is entirely the jurisdiction and prerogative rights of President Joko Widodo," he said.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/jokowi-denies-cabinet-reshuffle-rumors/

Transport & communication

Transportation Ministry vows to improve safety control over airlines

Jakarta Post - December 31, 2016

Jakarta – Following an incident involving an allegedly drunk on-duty pilot, the Transportation Ministry says it will enhance its supervision over airlines to ensure passenger safety.

A pilot of low-cost carrier Citilink was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol after he made a garbled announcement just before the plane was due to take off from Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, East Java, to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Cengkareng, Banten, on Wednesday.

Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said on Saturday that Citilink had violated aviation safety procedures for its cabin crews, including health checks and pre-departure briefings.

"We will thoroughly evaluate existing rules as well as enforce the law more strongly," Budi said as quoted by Antara news agency during his visit to Blimbingsari Airport in Banyuwangi, also in East Java.

After the incident, the pilot in question, Capt. Tekad Purna, underwent initial tests for drugs and alcohol, which proved negative. Nevertheless, Citilink decided to dismiss him.

Two executives of the carrier, namely president director Albert Burhan and operational director Hadinoto Soedigno, announced their resignations on Friday although the resignations still await approval from its board of commissioners as well as the board of directors of its parent company, national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia.

In response to the proposed resignations, the minister expressed his appreciation, saying that the incident should serve as a lesson for the domestic aviation industry. "This incident must become an opportunity to reform Indonesia's aviation industry," Budi said.

Scandals involving drug and alcohol abuse among cabin crew have lingered in the country in recent years. Among the latest incidents was a raid on a drug party in Tangerang, Banten, last year, in which a pilot of the country's biggest low-cost airline Lion Air was taking part. (lnd)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/31/transportation-ministry-vows-to-improve-safety-control-over-airlines.html

Pilot accused of being drunk after video shows him staggering through airport

Associated Press - December 31, 2016

An Indonesian budget airline has fired a pilot suspected of trying to fly a plane while he was drunk, and two of its executives are resigning.

Citilink president director Albert Burhan announced on Friday that he and the airline's production director would resign over the incident. Citilink is a subsidiary of national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia.

Passengers became suspicious when they heard slurred words and unclear announcements from the cockpit. Some of them left the plane and asked for a replacement of the pilot they believed to be either drunk or under drug influence.

Citilink assigned a new pilot to fly the Airbus A320 about an hour behind schedule. The flight had 154 passengers but a number reportedly decided to cancel.

The flight on Wednesday was heading from Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city, to the capital, Jakarta. Aviation is a main mode of travel in the sprawling nation of 17,000 islands, and the incident has raised safety concerns.

YouTube footage showed the pilot appeared to stagger through a metal detector at a security checkpoint and security guards picked up his belongings that were falling on the floor as he seemed out of control.

"The pilot had committed serious violation of standard operation procedure that endangered passengers," Burhan said. "We apologise for the discomfort. I have to be responsible for that and therefore I and my production director resign."

The airline previously had dismissed reports that the 32-year-old pilot Tekad Purna was drunk, saying initial tests of drug and alcohol were negative.

Director general of Air Transportation Suprasetyo has asked Citilink to make sure the pilot underwent a medical check.

Purna is under investigation for possible drunkenness or drug use. Minister of Transportation Budi Karya has banned him from flying pending the outcome of the investigation. If proven, his license would be revoked.

In December last year, three crew members, a pilot and two flight attendants were arrested for allegedly consuming crystal methamphetamine, known locally as shabu-shabu, at a hotel.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/31/pilot-accused-of-being-drunk-after-video-shows-him-staggering-through-airport

Film & television

Broadcasting bill has neoliberal, authoritarian characteristics: Coalition

Jakarta Post - December 29, 2016

Bambang Muryanto, Yogyakarta – The National Coalition for Broadcasting Reforms (KNRP) has criticized a broadcasting bill being deliberated by the House of Representatives, saying it has neoliberal and authoritarian characteristics that favor the interests of the government and businesspeople.

"This is a disappointing gift on the anniversary of Law No. 32/2002 on broadcasting, which 14 years old today. This law revision is a setback because it doesn't apply the principles of democracy," said Rahayu of the KNRP in Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

The bill being deliberated is a House initiative. "The draft is nothing more than a marriage between neoliberalism and authoritarianism, a marriage between market interests and the government," said Rahayu.

The communications lecturer at Gadjah Mada University's School of Political and Social Sciences said the bill did not regulate the ownership of electronic media, namely radio and television. The bill also did not stipulate requirements for private broadcasting institutions to have local partners.

"The portion of advertisements in every broadcasting program also increases to 40 percent from the current 20 percent," said Rahayu.

Authoritarian characteristics of the bill reportedly appear in articles that require public broadcasting institutions to serve the interests of the state. It is not clearly explained what it refers to as "the state", however. The bill also reportedly reduces the authority of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI).

Wisnu Martha Adisaputra of the School of Political and Social Sciences said there seemed to be an effort to recentralize broadcasting-related matters. "The bill does not accommodate the growth of local broadcasting." (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/29/broadcasting-bill-has-neoliberal-authoritarian-characteristics-coalition.html

Armed forces & defense

Indonesia's security might be threatened by global energy conflicts: TNI Chief

Jakarta Globe - December 28, 2016

Jakarta – Indonesia's security might be threatened as conflicts in the pursuit of the world's dwindling energy sources are likely to shift towards equatorial regions, the military chief said in Jakarta on Wednesday (28/12).

Conflicts have been frequently erupting in several Middle Eastern countries – the leading oil producers – but sources of fossil fuel are expected to be exhausted soon, with the world's increasing population and power consumption.

The world is now struggling to meet the power demand. Indonesia and other equatorial countries, which are rich in renewable energy sources, may cater to it, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo said.

According to him, this situation may spark conflicts in the region and put Indonesia under increasing threat.

"Our nation has been beleaguered. But we are not aware of it and remain calm. In the years to come, also conflict-linked food shortages might be present around the equator," Gatot said.

In 2040s, the world's population is projected to rise to 9.8 billion and the equatorial regions are expected to be home to 2.5 billion people, he added.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesias-security-might-threatened-global-energy-conflicts-tni-chief/

Criminal justice & legal system

HRWG appreciates Indonesia's stance on UN death penalty moratorium

Jakarta Post - December 28, 2016

Jakarta – The Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) expressed appreciation of Indonesia's stance which, along with 31 other countries, has abstained from using the death penalty in response to the UN resolution made during the UN General Assembly in New York, the United States, on Tuesday.

HRWG executive director Muhammad Hafiz said Indonesia's choice to abstain from using the death penalty, favoring the UN's resolution, should be appreciated amid the current implementation of the death penalty in the country.

"Indonesia's stance to abstain is a moderate choice in the current situation related to the implementation of the death penalty in Indonesia, including the current deliberation of the Criminal Code at the House of Representatives, which still considers the death penalty as a legal punishment," Hafiz said in a statement in Jakarta on Wednesday.

At the UN general assembly, 117 countries favored the resolution while 40 countries rejected the resolution. Among the ASEAN nations, the Philippines was abstain and Cambodia was in favor of the resolution while Malaysia and Singapore rejected it.

"ASEAN countries are at a cross roads dealing with how to solve crimes, especially related to the drugs," ASEAN HRWG program manager Daniel Awigra said.

Daniel said the death penalty went against human rights and had been proved to not actually deter perpetrators nor decrease crimes related to drugs.(jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/28/hrwg-appreciates-indonesias-stance-on-un-death-penalty-moratorium.html

Foreign affairs & trade

Indonesia's free-visa policy here to stay

Jakarta Post - December 30, 2016

Marguerite Afra Sapiie and Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – The government says the free-visa policy will remain in place to boost tourism despite growing concern that some foreign tourists have exploited it to work illegally in the country.

During a year-end press conference on Thursday, Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly brushed off suggestions that the free-visa policy had led to a rising number of illegal workers in the country – those who first entered the country on tourist visas.

The minister defended President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's signature policy, arguing it could propel Indonesia's tourism, which has been lagging behind its Southeast Asian neighbors. The free-visa policy is expected to bring 20 million foreign tourists annually by 2019.

"What's important with regard to the free-visa policy is monitoring. If there are 9 million foreign tourists entering Indonesia, [we should ensure] that the same number of people are leaving," Yasonna said.

Tourism Ministry data revealed recently that the country saw 9.4 million visits by foreign tourists from January to October, a 9.54 percent increase from the corresponding period last year. The total number of visits by foreigners to Indonesia in 2015 was 10.4 million, a 10.2 percent increase from the previous year.

First introduced in June last year, the policy initially allowed visitors from 30 countries to stay in the country for 30 days for tourism purposes on a free tourist visa. By the end of 2015, 90 countries were able to enjoy the facility. In March, 84 more countries were added to the list, bringing the total number of countries included in the policy to 174.

Indonesia has seen arrivals dominated by Chinese tourists every month, with 121,880 visitors in October alone. At 12.43 percent of the overall figure, China has topped other countries of origin, including Malaysia and Australia.

Following the wave of Chinese tourists this year, the Tourism Ministry aimed to attract 2.4 million Chinese tourists from greater China, including Taiwan and Hong Kong, in 2017, higher than its target of 2.1 million tourists this year.

The government is confident it can curb the number of overstaying tourists. The Law and Human Rights Ministry is developing an app to track foreigners overstaying their 30-day free visa. Tourists entering Indonesia would get barcodes in their passports, which should be used whenever they purchase transportation tickets.

"We have a list of overstayers, so we can just look at our data. [With the app] it will be easier for us to track their movements," Yasonna said.

The move comes following a crackdown on foreigners violating visas in Indonesia this year. Data from the Law and Human Rights Ministry's Directorate General of Immigration revealed that in 2016, 7,787 foreigners, 1,837 of whom were Chinese, were punished for violating immigration regulations.

The crackdown has sparked a rumor that 10 million Chinese people have been working illegally in the country. Government officials said the rumor was started to fuel anti-China sentiment. President Jokowi has repeatedly rebuffed the rumor and called on law enforcers to take action against those who orchestrated it.

According to Manpower Ministry data, the total number of foreign workers officially employed in Indonesia as of November 2016 stands at 74,183 people, 21,271 of whom are Chinese. The ministry has intensified inspections amid concerns of illegal foreign workers.

In its latest crackdown, the ministry allegedly found 18 Chinese workers that had breached the conditions of their work permits at PT Huaxing in Bogor, West Java. Some of them had allegedly been assigned to positions different from the specified occupation on their permits.

Several lawmakers at the House of Representatives, however, have called for the government to review the free-visa policy on account of transnational security issues. Democratic Party senior politician Syarief Hasan told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday that the government must evaluate the policy, otherwise it could threaten the country's sovereignty.

"There must be a total review and evaluation. The policy gives no advantage to our country at all because it has no reciprocity basis," said the member of House's Commission I overseeing information and communications, defense and foreign affairs.

National Mandate Party (PAN) lawmaker Saleh Partaonan Daulay even suggested that the government revoke the policy because the country had yet to be able to monitor the foreigners entering Indonesia.

"As a consequence, foreigners can misuse the policy. In addition, coordination among ministries and related institutions haven't worked well," Saleh said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/30/indonesias-free-visa-policy-here-to-stay.html

Indonesia to reconsider memberships in international organizations

Jakarta Globe - December 23, 2016

Jakarta – The Foreign Ministry said Indonesia will evaluate its memberships in 75 international organizations, retaining only those that offer real benefits to the country's interests.

"We'll look into how we can benefit from these memberships, and what we can contribute to the international community through these organizations," Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said in Jakarta on Friday (23/12).

The re-evaluation was made on President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's order. The president wanted to make sure Indonesia stays true to its "free and active" foreign policy.

The government is currently considering to give up Indonesia's memberships in six international organizations.

On the other hand, to improve its standing in global politics, Indonesia started bidding for a temporary membership in the United Nations Security Council in November, a campaign led by Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesia-reconsider-memberships-international-organizations/

Economy & investment

Trump's Indonesia projects, still moving ahead, create potential conflicts

New York Times - December 31, 2017

Richard C. Paddock, Jakarta, Indonesia – One resort, planned as the largest in Bali, will overlook a spectacular Hindu temple. The other, in the verdant hills of West Java, will adjoin a theme park. The properties will be so luxurious, the Trump Organization says, that even an impressive five-star rating will not do them justice. So it will give them six stars instead.

Even as President-elect Donald J. Trump promises to end foreign business deals that could pose conflicts of interest - there will be "no new deals" while he is in office, he has said - his company is moving ahead with two Indonesian projects that illustrate how tricky that pledge might be.

None of the construction work to build or renovate structures at the Indonesian resorts has even begun, but Mr. Trump has forged relationships with powerful political figures in Indonesia, where such connections are crucial to pushing through big projects.

That tangle of relationships includes an Indonesian business partner who aspires to high office; a powerful politician accused of trying to extort billions of dollars from an American mining company; and Mr. Trump's new adviser on regulatory issues, Carl C. Icahn, a top shareholder in the mining company.

The resort projects, which a Trump spokeswoman said this past week were "binding contracts," have created a gray area of conflicting interests that could be hard to separate from an array of issues facing the United States and Indonesia, including trade and contested claims over the South China Sea.

Mr. Trump's local partner on the resorts, Hary Tanoesoedibjo, is a billionaire media mogul with his own political ambitions. He ran for vice president of Indonesia in 2014 and is organizing a political party for another possible run at national office in 2019. If Mr. Hary or his party wins a major role in government, the potential conflicts could escalate significantly.

"You could have two world leaders that are business partners," said Richard W. Painter, who served as a White House ethics lawyer during the George W. Bush administration. "It makes it almost impossible to conduct diplomacy in an evenhanded manner. That does not work."

Through the partnership with Mr. Hary, Mr. Trump has gained access to some of Indonesia's top political figures, including Setya Novanto, the speaker of the House of Representatives, who was temporarily forced to surrender his leadership post because of corruption allegations in 2015. Mr. Setya was heard on an audio recording seeking a $4 billion payment from the American mining giant Freeport-McMoRan.

Months before the recording came out in December 2015, Mr. Trump met with Mr. Setya during the presidential campaign at Trump Tower. After their lunch, Mr. Trump pulled Mr. Setya before the cameras at a news conference and called him "a great man," adding, "We will do great things for the United States."

The knot of potential conflicts includes Mr. Icahn, the billionaire investor who will serve as a special adviser to Mr. Trump. He is one of the largest shareholders in Freeport, which does so much business in Indonesia that it is the country's largest taxpayer and has been seeking to extend its mining contract with the Indonesian government.

"This stuff is so murky," said Karen Hobert Flynn, president of Common Cause, a nonprofit group that has called for Mr. Trump to sell off his businesses to avert conflicts of interest. "It is not going to be clean moving forward. There are going to be complications as these projects move forward."

So far, Mr. Trump has provided little clarity about what he means by "no new deals," a vow made in a Twitter post he sent out in mid-December. His aides suggested in a series of interviews during the past week that even if construction had not started on a project, the Trump Organization would move ahead if it had a binding agreement.

For Mr. Trump, the Indonesian deals are licensing and management agreements in which he provides the use of his name and his company manages the resorts.

Even though no structures were built, Mr. Trump secured a considerable payout on the two deals, according to a financial disclosure report that listed payments ranging from $1 million to $5 million for each of the projects between January 2015 through last May. That is far more than the $400,000 salary paid to the president, which Mr. Trump has said he will decline.

Mr. Trump created the corporations that manage these projects - including DT Bali Hotel Manager and DT Lido Hotel Manager - in late June 2015, just a week after he declared his intention to run for president.

His companies already have operations in at least 20 countries, including the Philippines, India, Turkey and Britain, but the full extent of his foreign financial ties is unclear because he has refused to release his tax returns or disclose the identity of his lenders.

In addition to the no-new-deals pledge, Mr. Trump has said that his sons, Eric and Donald Jr., along with other executives, will manage the family's global real estate business.

The Trump Organization has recently moved to resolve potential controversies, in part by closing family foundations. It has also dropped a number of its proposed projects, including Trump Office Buenos Aires in Argentina; Trump Towers Rio and Trump Hotel Rio de Janeiro, both in Brazil; Trump International Hotel & Tower Baku in Azerbaijan; Trump Tower Batumi in Georgia; and Trump Riverwalk in Pune, India, representatives from the Trump Organization have said in the past week, in response to questions from The New York Times.

But other projects - including some on which construction has not started or is not well underway - are moving ahead, including Trump Tower Mumbai and a Trump tower in Gurgaon, both in India; Trump Tower Punta del Este in Uruguay; Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, and Trump World Golf Club, Dubai, both in the United Arab Emirates; and Trump International Hotel & Tower Vancouver, in Canada, the Trump Organization confirmed.

Amanda Miller, the Trump Organization spokeswoman, said of the two Indonesian projects, "Construction is well underway and will proceed as planned."

In fact, construction has started only on a golf course and toll road as part of the Lido Lakes resort in West Java. Separating the enterprise from politics may also be difficult because Mr. Hary's MNC Group is building the road to the site as part of a government highway project.

No new structures have been built at Lido Lakes or at the resort near the stunning Tanah Lot temple in Bali. A 20-year-old hotel, the Pan Pacific Nirwana Bali Resort, stands on the Bali property and could be renovated to create a Trump hotel, but that work has not begun.

In a recent interview in his Jakarta office, where an autographed Make America Great Again cap sits prominently on a table, Mr. Hary said he believed that his agreements with Mr. Trump did not present a conflict of interest for the president-elect.

"His family and children have the freedom to do business as long as it is arm's length and unrelated to the president's position," he said.

The two resorts will give the Trump brand a high profile in Indonesia - which has the world's largest Muslim population - with the Trump name adorning two luxury hotels and premier golf courses as well as high-end villas and condominiums.

Yet the American president's name on the projects could also make them potential targets. During the campaign, Mr. Trump made statements about Muslims widely viewed as inflammatory. American hotels in Jakarta have been attacked by terrorists several times.

Mr. Hary said he began the partnership with Mr. Trump in 2015 when he was looking for a hotel partner for the resorts, but said he had negotiated a deal with his children before ever meeting with Mr. Trump. "It's the children who run the company," he said.

After signing one deal and negotiating the other, he helped arrange a meeting in New York in September 2015 between Mr. Trump and his good friend, Mr. Setya, the House speaker, and Fadli Zon, the deputy speaker, whose district includes the city of Bogor, where the Lido project is.

Mr. Trump met the two politicians and several others for lunch at Trump Tower, where, among other things, they discussed the resort projects, the participants said.

"He was very warm, very enthusiastic," Mr. Fadli said. "He likes Indonesia. He knows about his investment in Indonesia, in Bali and Bogor. And he likes Indonesia, a big democratic Muslim country."

After lunch, Mr. Trump invited the Indonesians to join him downstairs for a campaign news conference, they said. When the event was ending, Mr. Trump brought Mr. Setya to the lectern and introduced him to the crowd, calling him "one of the most powerful men, and a great man."

Mr. Trump then turned to Mr. Setya. "Do they like me in Indonesia?" he asked. Mr. Setya smiled and replied "yes."

The event drew criticism in Indonesia, where some accused the Indonesian politicians of meddling in a foreign election. But Mr. Setya and Mr. Fadli said they had been invited to the news conference and it would have been impolite to refuse.

"Nowadays, after Trump became president-elect, people came to appreciate what I did," Mr. Setya told The Times in a recent interview.

Mr. Setya, who heads Parliament's second-largest party, said he had requested another meeting with Mr. Trump before his inauguration to discuss a possible business deal, although he declined to say what it was. He said he also would carry a message to Mr. Trump from the Indonesian president, Joko Widodo.

Soon after returning from the New York meeting with Mr. Trump in 2015, Mr. Setya became embroiled in scandal. He was heard on the audio recording asking for 20 percent of the shares of Freeport's Indonesian subsidiary in exchange for helping the company extend its operating contract with the government. The value of the shares was about $4 billion.

The episode exploded into a Watergate-style moment, with the local news media repeatedly playing the damning portions of the recording to a rapt public. Mr. Setya defended the demand as a joke. Mr. Setya was recently reinstated as speaker after a court ruled the recording was inadmissible as evidence.

Freeport is a frequent target of complaints by labor unions and environmentalists, and nationalist politicians want it to pay the government higher royalties. Its operating contract expires in 2021.

Mr. Fadli said he could see a role for President Trump in resolving the thorny Freeport issue. "Definitely he has to be involved in that because it is a big investment," he said.

Mr. Painter, the former White House ethics lawyer, said these complications demonstrated why Mr. Trump's company should not be involved in foreign property deals like those in Indonesia. "They should be trying to pull out of deals around the world like this, rather than trying to expand," he said.

On Wednesday, Mr. Trump accused the news media of exaggerating any potential conflicts presented by his business holdings. "It's not a big deal; you people are making it a big deal, the business," Mr. Trump said on the steps of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, where he was spending the holidays. "They all knew I had big business all over the place."

[Richard C. Paddock reported from Jakarta, and Eric Lipton from Washington.]

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/31/world/asia/indonesia-donald-trump-resort.html

Thirsty consumers, businesses suffer in festive season

Jakarta Post - December 24, 2016

Winny Tang, Jakarta – Indonesia is "drier" this festive season as obtaining alcoholic beverages has become more difficult following a recent string of government policies, such as a ban on the sale of alcohol in minimarkets, higher excises and the ongoing deliberation of the alcohol prohibition bill.

With Christmas and New Year's Eve celebrations just around the corner, Phineas Steven, 26, who lives in Cikokol, Tangerang, Banten, said he was planning to go to nightclubs to celebrate the festive season while enjoying a few drinks.

"Although on the one hand the prohibition of alcohol sales in minimarkets may have reduced crime rates, I am personally disappointed because now I have to go to clubs or other places far from home more frequently just to get a beer," he told The Jakarta Post over the telephone on Friday.

Over the past several years, the government has intensified its restrictions on the sale of alcoholic drinks at convenience stores, insisting that they are needed to protect Indonesians from the dangers of alcohol abuse.

Since 2015, convenience stores across the country – except in some tourist areas – have been prohibited from selling liquor. Under a Trade Ministry regulation, beverages with alcohol content ranging from 1 to 5 percent can only be sold at supermarkets.

The policy has had a negative impact on convenience stores, as previously they reaped a windfall from higher sales during the festive season. Minimarket chain 7-Eleven, for instance, suffered huge losses and has already closed 25 of its stores this year.

Besides banning the sale of alcohol in minimarkets, the government has also shown a strong commitment to combatting the smuggling of liquor, including approaching New Year's Eve.

On Friday, thousands of alcoholic drinks that entered Indonesia illegally from various countries, including the US, the UK, the Netherlands and China, were destroyed.

"Getting closer to New Year's Eve, the demand [for illegal goods] increases; therefore the supply also rises. We have to be more vigilant," National Narcotics Agency (BNN) chief Comr. Gen. Budi Waseso said.

The Tanjung Priok customs and excise office seized a 40-foot container packed with 36,400 bottles of soju (Korean vodka) on Wednesday, which had been imported by PT SPMB. The container's contents were wrongly declared as elevator parts.

Indonesian Malt Beverage Producers Association (GIMMI) executive committee member Ronny Titiheruw said that it supported the government's action to combat illegal alcoholic drinks, but urged paying closer attention to the industry.

With so many regulations limiting alcohol consumption, Institute for the Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF) economist Aviliani acknowledged that it was customers who had to bear the consequences.

"The government should not be too excessive because each person has his or her own behavior. Such a regulation is good for children under 17 years of age, but we can't prohibit adults because it is their own right," she said.

Entrepreneur Andris Juliawan, 30, who moved to Bali a few months ago, now feels glad about living in a major tourist destination because he can easily find alcoholic beverages everywhere, even inside a warung (food stall).

"I am glad that here in Bali, I can find beer everywhere, even in a warung! It was so troublesome in Jakarta because I couldn't buy beer at minimarkets," Andris said, adding that he drank beer three times a week while socializing with friends.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/12/24/thirsty-consumers-businesses-suffer-in-festive-season.html