Candra Malik, Solo – A day after police shut down a meeting convened in Solo, Central Java, by Sri Bintang Pamungkas to oppose the inauguration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the political dissident continued his protest on Sunday.

Bintang, head of the central leadership board of the Non-Voter Fellowship National Congress, said he was ready to stage a coup if Yudhoyono is inaugurated on Oct. 20.

"If SBY is still inaugurated, we will attempt a coup to prevent him from leading this nation for another five years," he said.

The former head of the Uni Democracy Party, who was jailed during the Suharto era, said the nation no longer trusted Yudhoyono, evidenced by the low voter turnout in the July presidential election.

He said with nonvoters accounting for 51 percent of all registered voters in the election, Yudhoyono only received the support of 27 percent of the nation, ahead of Megawati Sukarnoputri with 12 percent and 10 percent for Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

"Now is the time for nonvoters to prepare to foil Yudhoyono's inauguration on October 20 with a 'people-power movement,'?" Bintang said.

Bintang said Taufik Kiemas's inauguration as chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) solidified Yudhoyono's political regime, which he accused of manipulating the results of the election.

He also criticized Yudhoyono's handling of disasters, saying this was further evidence of his lack of leadership.

"I even heard that [suspended Corruption Eradication Commission chief] Antasari Azhar was arrested not only for murder, but because he wiretapped the first lady's phone. Only time will tell the truth," he said.

Bintang also criticized Yudhoyono for his failure to resolve old human rights abuse cases, including the 2004 murder of human rights activist Munir and the killing of students in 1998 and 1999.

Police, who said the Solo congress did not have the necessary permits, on Saturday moved on the Sarangan Hotel where the conference was taking place with about 100 delegates from around the country.

A police spokesman told the Jakarta Globe the order to shut down the conference came from Insp. Gen. Alex Bambang Riatmodjo, the chief of the Central Java Police.

The officer added that Bintang would not be charged with attempting to foment a coup. "Bintang was expressing his opinion. He and his group are only a minority in Indonesia," Alex said, adding, however, that Bintang would be placed under observation.

Bintang said his movement would be "ready" for Oct. 20. "This country's long history shows that leaders who are not trusted have been foiled by the people, by people-power movements," he said. "Sukarno, Suharto and Gus Dur [Abdurrahman Wahid] could be foiled, why not SBY?"

Prostitution thrives after Ramadan rest

Jakarta Post - October 3, 2009

Agus Maryono, Purwokerto – Hundreds of female sex workers have returned to the tourist site of Baturaden, located in Banyumas regency in the southwestern part of Central Java, after a month's break for Ramadan.

Their numbers are expected to increase as it has been claimed some sex workers will bring new members. "This is common," Baturaden Tourist Community Association (PMPB) leader, Tekad Santoso, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

"After their rest during Ramadan, the numbers (of sex workers) will rise, and Baturaden will be full of new faces." He predicted prostitute numbers would rise by up to 15 percent.

"There are usually about 200 women. But when they finish celebrating Idul Fitri in their hometowns, this figure will grow as they will bring along their friends," Tekad said.

He believes the arrival of new members will change the dynamics of the Baturaden resort. On the one hand, new members would add to the attraction. On the other hand, newcomers might be upset they were brought into the industry.

"After Idul Fitri festivities, it's common for customers to want new prostitutes,' Tekad said. "They are willing to pay high amounts to be divided between pimps and prostitutes."

He added newcomers who were virgins were priced at around Rp 2 million (about US$200) while sexually active newcomers could fetch around Rp 600,000.

"I know the life on Sadar Lane well because I hail taxis from here, and have long been observing the prostitution being practised here.

"Deep in my heart I disagree with the act of prostitution, but even the local administration condones the practice. It has existed here for dozens of years and has prevailed unabated," Tekad added.

According to Tekad, 90 percent of the newcomers follow in the footsteps of their predecessors, and only 10 percent return home.

"They are usually lured into the industry by their predecessors on the pretext they would be offered decent jobs. Members don't tell potential workers until they arrive, because their offers would be rejected," he said.

"When they arrive in Baturaden, new recruits might initially resist, but because they don't have enough money to return home, they gradually give in." He added almost 100 percent of sex workers on Sadar Lane came from outside Banyumas. "Most of them come from West Java, such as Cirebon, Tasikmalaya and Indramayu.

Some workers also come from Central Java's north coast, such as Tegal and Pekalongan."

Tekad said HIV/AIDS activists had often voiced their concern about the prostitution that had occurred in Baturaden. They believed prostitution played a major role in the rising number of people with HIV/AIDS.

"I'm also a member of an AIDS prevention initiative in Banyumas that provides knowledge to prostitutes and pimps to help curb the fatal disease."

The Banyumas regency administration, added Tekad, had been passive on preventing HIV/AIDS. It had provided a Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) clinic in the area to conduct tests, but had not provided routine medication or initiated HIV/AIDS prevention campaigns.

"Banyumas regency currently has the second-highest number of people with HIV/AIDS in Central Java after Semarang. This is cause for grave concern. There are presently 280 people with the disease, and 40 people have died."

Banyumas Tourist Resort Development Agency head, Sudjatmiko, confirmed the matter.

"The local social, tourism and health offices had provided counseling in the past, but no longer do so," Sudjatmiko said. "As it stands, the sex industry has no limits."

Actions, demos, protests...

Protest mars council's inauguration in Kendari

Jakarta Post - October 7, 2009

Kendari – Hundreds of students from various universities staged a protest on Tuesday at the Southeast Sulawesi legislative council building, where its 45 new members were being sworn in.

The protesters urged the new council members to be "more sensitive" with local people's affairs.

"In the past five years, the (outgoing) council members didn't pay any attention to the people's interests. They preferred to collaborate with executive bodies. So, they allocated a smaller share of the budget to public affairs than to the administration," protest coordinator Yusuf said.

Around 70 percent of this year's Rp 1.2 trillion budget for Southeast Sulawesi was allotted to administrative spending, he said. This, Yusuf added, led to a 20 percent increase in the province's poverty rate.

Around 435,000 of the province's 2.2 million residents are now considered poor.

Protests mark inauguration of MPR members

Jakarta Post - October 3, 2009

Jakarta – The first People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) plenary session to swear in new members of the representative body on Friday was marked by several protests.

Shortly after the inauguration ceremony, Gandung Pardiman, a Regional Representatives Council (DPD) member from Yogyakarta, interrupted the forum to ask why President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had failed to attend the ceremony.

Yudhoyono flew to Padang, West Sumatra, instead, to directly oversee mitigation efforts following an earthquake that claimed hundreds of lives and caused major damages.

He returned to Jakarta later on Friday. Vice President Jusuf Kalla was present at both inauguration ceremonies.

House Speaker Marzuki Alie, who presided over the session as the interim MPR leader, explained to Gandung that the President had decided to fly to Padang upon arriving from the United States after he learned about the severe impact of the earthquake. Marzuki represents the Democratic Party founded by Yudhoyono.

There were more interruptions to the MPR's first session as Panda Nababan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) criticized the government for its lack of discipline, which he feared would slow down the deliberation of bills in the future.

"The House has had its share of flaws in the past, but the government's lack of discipline when it comes to attending the House hearings has also cost us some bills, such as the military court bill," he said.

Gandung, who appeared unsatisfied with Marzuki's response, made a second attempt to interrupt the plenary session, but was ignored by Marzuki who asked the forum to proceed. Gandung then shouted at Marzuki, asking the House speaker show him a little respect.

West Papua

Two wounded, houses damaged in tribal clash

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Timika – Members of two warring tribes in Timika, Mimika regency, Papua, the Amungme and Kei tribes, clashed at around 2:30 a.m. local time Thursday at the Kampung Kodok complex in Kwamki Baru district, Mimika, on Thursday.

Two Amungme tribe members sustained serious wounds and were rushed to the Mitra Community Hospital, while a number of homes in Kampung Kodok were vandalized by their fellow tribesmen.

Based on information gathered at the scene, the clash was triggered when two men from the Amungme tribe, Piter Magal and Marianus Yanem, were beaten up by several youngsters from the Kei tribe as they were passing a road in the Kampung Kodok complex after buying alcoholic drinks in a shop in Timika.

The clash stopped when police arrived at the scene. No arrests was made.

Human rights/law

Families ask AGO to review case of vanishing activists

Jakarta Globe - October 7, 2009

Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Heru Andriyanto – The Attorney General's Office was under strong pressure on Wednesday to immediately form an ad hoc team tasked with investigating the disappearances of activists who went missing during the country's 1997-1998 unrest.

Dozens of the activists' family members arrived at the AGO head office in South Jakarta to meet with Attorney General Hendarman Supandji and deliver the request.

Speaking at a press conference held before the meeting, Usman Hamid, coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said the AGO must immediately respond to the House of Representative's previous decision urging President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to form an ad hoc human rights tribunal for the case.

He demanded the AGO immediately begin the investigation without waiting for the establishment of an ad hoc tribunal by the president.

"The AGO is not required to wait for a presidential decree ordering the establishment of the tribunal. Investigation means that evidence is collected. If the evidence is sufficient the AGO moves to prosecute," Usman said.

Separately, Marwan Effendy, AGO deputy for special crimes, said his office had the authority to conduct an investigation, but that it would not be an easy task to bring the case to court.

"The problem now is whether the legal instruments can snare [the kidnappers] or not. Because we already have a pre-existing legal instrument used to bring the case to the trial," Marwan said.

He was referring to the 1999 military tribunal that found Prabowo Subianto, former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve (Kostrad) and Special Forces (Kopassus), guilty of ordering his subordinates to kidnap the activists.

Prabowo was subsequently discharged from the military. Eleven of his subordinates were court-martialed that same year, with one discharged, and 10 other soldiers each given sentences of one to two years in jail.

The country's legal system recognizes the double jeopardy principle, which means defendants cannot be tried twice for the same crime.

But Marwan promised that the AGO would begin its investigation as soon as the president issued a decree stipulating establishment of the ad hoc human rights tribunal.

Meanwhile, the newly-elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, Marzuki Ali, was also urged on Wednesday to follow up the previous House's recommendation for the president to establish the tribunal.

If the AGO wants a presidential decree for the establishment of the tribunal, then give it to them," Amirrudin EL Arab from the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam) said in a press conference in Jakarta.

Labour/migrant workers

2.3 million insured is still not enough, says union

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Hasyim Widhiarto, Jakarta – State worker insurance company PT Jamsostek announced Thursday it had registered 4,200 more companies in Jakarta as members during the first eight months of the year.

"As of August this year, with the workers from those companies, we now cover a total of 2.3 million employees working for 27,500 companies in the city," Agus Supriyadi, head of Jamsostek's Jakarta office, said Thursday on sidelines of a gathering with the Jakarta administration and representatives from the city's workers' unions.

Between January and August, the company paid out Rp 1.6 trillion (US$166 million) in claims, up from last year's figure of Rp 1.5 trillion. "Most of the money went toward paying pension funds," Agus said.

Jamsostek collects premiums from its members until they retire, and in return covers the costs for accidents, dismissals, layoffs and medical care, as well as pensions.

Workers' unions, however, say the numbers are nothing to boast about. Harjono, chairman of the All Indonesian Workers Union's (SPSI) Jakarta branch, told The Jakarta Post the city administration had to get more company to cover their workers.

"The Jakarta administration should run thoroughly check to make sure all employees, whether permanent or contract-based, have insurance," he said.

He pointed out the industrial bonded zone Kawasan Berikat Nusantara in Cakung, North Jakarta, where 50 percent of workers reportedly had no coverage.

"Most of them work in the garment and textile industry," he said. "How come the administration missed them?"

SPSI Jakarta is an umbrella group for 13 workers' federations that boast a combined 350,000 members.

Under existing regulations, a company that employs more than 10 workers, or pays its workers at least Rp 1 million a month, must register its employees for insurance.

With Jakarta's provincial minimum wage (UMP) currently at Rp 1.1 million per month, all 4.7 million workers in the formal sector in the capital are supposed to be covered by insurance.

However, because the 2003 Labor Law allows major companies to subcontract, many companies have sidestepped the regulation by employing workers through the outsourcing system.

Responding to the union's call, Jakarta Deputy Governor Prijanto urged all workers' unions to report to the city administration should they find companies not abiding by the regulations.

"As long as they submit a report with clear data, I'll be more than happy to receive it and follow up on it," he said.

Environment/natural disasters

Aid reaches villagers deep in Indonesia quake zone

Associated Press - October 7, 2009

Eric Talmadge, Kampung Laweh (Indonesia) – Children swarmed into the streets clutching begging boxes and yelling "please help me" Wednesday as an aid convoy reached villages deep in Indonesia's quake zone.

Relief workers slowly making their way up debris-tangled mountain roads to places largely cut off for a week since the Sept. 30 earthquake are still unveiling the true scale of the disaster.

In the provincial capital of Padang, the search for the dead and treatment of injuries have given way to clearing debris and trying to prevent disease outbreaks. In more remote areas, the situation remains more desperate.

Large parts of Padang city and nearby villages in West Sumatra province were destroyed by the quake. The official death toll is 704 but could reach into the thousands. About 180,000 buildings were flattened or severely damaged, Indonesia's Disaster Management Agency said.

Many villages were swept away by landslides in the hilly terrain north of Padang. Severed or badly damaged roads have been painstakingly cleared.

In Kampung Laweh, a village nestled between rice paddies and palm trees, house after house was completely toppled – hundreds of them.

Survivors scrounged items from the rubble for shelter. A makeshift camp has sprung up for hundreds of people displaced from nearby hamlets, with scores sleeping in tents or on plastic sheets.

"I lost everything," said Yur, 42, a mother of six, as she crouched outside her house, which was crushed by a palm tree. "We are living on donations. We sleep in the neighbor's house. I'm scared the baby will get sick."

Only a trickle of aid had made it past the landslides on the narrow road to the region until Wednesday's convoy of Indonesian trucks arrived.

Children swarmed into the streets as the trucks drove into town, waving cardboard boxes they were using to collect donations, and crying for help. The workers handed out bottled water and packets of instant noodles.

In neighboring Lubuk Laweh, an Associated Press photographer saw 10 bodies pulled from the rubble, including several children. Workers dug a shallow grave and offered prayers before burying them.

A Singaporean medical team was working around the clock in the closest town, Pariaman, conducting surgery by the light of desk lamps at the local hospital where the surgical lights weren't working.

"We are still seeing a lot of people with fractures coming down from the hills and we are also seeing more infected wounds," said team leader Dr. Mohamad Rosman bin Othman.

Aid workers from at least 20 countries are descending on West Sumatra, including the largest contingent of US military in Indonesia since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

That disaster killed 230,000 in a dozen countries, roughly half in Aceh, another Sumatran province. The US military's major role in the multinational relief effort improved America's standing here at a time of negative perceptions following the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

In Padang, aid flowed freely but the city still looked in parts like a demolition zone filled with collapsed buildings and heavy machinery.

In 2006, an earthquake that struck the central Javanese city of Yogyakarta killed more than 5,700.

[Associated Press writer Niniek Karmini in Padang and photographers Mae-E Wong and Binsar Bakkara in Lubuk Laweh contributed to this report.]

Padang rescue efforts turn to remote hills

Sydney Morning Herald - October 7, 2009

Jonathan Pearlman with agencies, Padang – Unable to reach the bodies buried beneath them, workers have begun demolishing buildings damaged in Indonesia's giant earthquake. Food and emergency supplies are being airlifted to remote areas cut off by landslides.

The search for survivors was halted on Monday – five days after the 7.6-magnitude quake struck off the coast of West Sumatra – and aid workers are now focused on caring for the hundreds of thousands of survivors. Australian Defence Force personnel have made the supply of clean water a priority.

Crews with heavy digging equipment tore down the collapsed remains of the six-storey Ambacang hotel in the regional capital, Padang, yesterday, where as many as 200 people are believed to have died. They flattened several other damaged buildings, entombing the bodies they could not reach.

Six helicopters shuttled aid to the isolated hillside villages of the Padang Pariaman district, where landslides buried more than 600 people, said Ade Edward, head of operations control at West Sumatra's Centre for Disaster Management.

"We have stopped looking for survivors and are maximising the use of heavy equipment," he said. "We hope to clear the rubble in two weeks so we can start reconstruction."

When all the bodies are counted and the missing declared dead, the death toll from last Wednesday's quake is expected to be in the thousands. The official toll is now 704.

About 200 Australian Defence Force personnel are working in the earthquake-affected areas.

The chief of joint operations, Lieutenant General Mark Evans, said an engineering assessment by the army and air force found there was an urgent need for clean water in Padang.

He said health assessments had found threats from diseases and poor water. "We are moving from a rescue response to a reconstruction response," he said. "The problem has not gone away and continues to be very serious for the people of Padang."

The Defence Force hopes to end its aid effort within four to six weeks. It has deployed C-130 and C-17 aircraft to Indonesia. HMAS Kanimbla is due soon to deliver additional personnel, engineering equipment and aid.

The United States announced on Monday that it is also sending aircraft and navy ships to Indonesia in a multimillion-dollar effort to aid earthquake victims.

Indonesia may declare earthquake villages mass graves

Agence France Presse - October 7, 2009

Indonesia is considering declaring four villages mass graves after they were buried by landslides in last week's earthquake.

Up to 400 people are believed to have been buried alive when hillsides collapsed in the 7.6-magnitude quake and obliterated the adjacent villages in Padang Pariaman district of Sumatra island.

West Sumatra Governor Gamawan Fauzi said most of the dead would probably never be found or would be in such a state of decay that it would be better to leave them where they are.

"If after umpteen days the bodies are broken, if we dig them up probably their arms will break off, their legs will break off, it's no good," he told reporters in Padang, the provincial capital and worst-hit city.

"If the community is willing, from a religious angle it is okay not to rebury them. So that area would be designated a mass grave."

The official death toll from last Wednesday's quake stands at 704 but the Red Cross believes the final number will be more than 3,000, with hundreds of bodies still interred in the debris.

Corruption dims Sumatra quake survivors' hopes for help

Agence France Presse - October 6, 2009

Aubrey Belford, Bunga Pasang (West Sumatra) – Indonesian housewife Edib Mulyati stands in the ruins of her quake-hit house and smiles bitterly at the government's promises of aid, saying most of it will be lost to corruption.

Married to a low-ranking civil servant, she knows how the system works and expects nothing more than a trickle of funds to reach those most in need after the money passes through the various levels of government.

"It gets thinner and thinner and then just a mouse's tail comes out the bottom. That's Indonesia," she said at the village of Bunga Pasang on the outskirts of Padang.

Indonesia ranks 126th on a corruption perceptions index compiled by watchdog Transparency International, putting it on par with African nations Uganda and Libya.

The government has pledged Rp 6 trillion rupiah ($636 million) for reconstruction efforts in West Sumatra, where up to 200,000 homes are estimated to have been damaged in last week's 7.6- magnitude quake.

In Mulyati's house, the family of four has abandoned the wrecked inner rooms for the relative safety of the front lounge, where they sleep with the front door wide open in case they need to make a quick escape.

Her husband, who declined to be named fearing for his job, said his family was already Rp 75 million in debt and could not afford to rebuild without the help of the government.

"I've heard the government wants to give out aid, but we're not convinced we're going to get it," he said. "The ministers at the center said the assistance won't be skimmed. But in reality, it is."

Security guard Ali Lintar, a 36-year-old whose extended family's four homes were levelled in the quake, said he had first-hand experience of how aid vanished on its way to the needy.

When his simple home was toppled by quakes that struck further south on Sumatra Island in 2007, Lintar was promised Rp 15 million rupiah ($1,590) to rebuild, but he says he got half that amount.

"I want to rebuild but I don't have the money," he said at the front door of his mother's crumpled brick and aluminium sheeting home. "Maybe there'll be government help, we hope. If there isn't, we're already poor, so we'll live in tents," said Lintar, who earns about Rp 1 million a month.

Padang Mayor Fauzi Bahar promises a prompt response and says the aid will reach people like Lintar and others made homeless.

"I guarantee 100 percent that there's no such thing as corruption and will never be," he said. "We'll spend all donations and funds on the people. We won't misuse them and let our people suffer."

Lintar's mother, 50-year-old Eti Aslyarti, said the initial reaction had been far from reassuring. A few Red Cross workers passed through to survey the damage and then a handful of government officials appeared to hand everyone a single small packet of cooked rice. "Five minutes and they were out," she said bitterly.

Next door, beneath a precariously leaning two-storey home of concrete and pastel walls, 47-year-old policeman Eroplis sobbed as he recounted how much he has lost.

"For 24 years I worked, I saved and I saved," he said, placing his head in his hands. "I still will rebuild. I'll borrow from whatever bank to rebuild. Even after I die, I want to leave it to my children to live out their lives," he said.

"In this catastrophe, if they want to help us, they should put the money right into our hands."

Sumatra quake: Did slipshod buildings and corruption cost lives?

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Padang – As West Sumatra begins rebuilding after last week's earthquake, questions are being raised about whether corruption and shoddy building standards contributed to the extent of the damage and casualties, and whether those problems could be addressed before calamity strikes again.

In Padang, the worst-hit city, around a quarter of the city's buildings were flattened in the deadly 7.6-magnitude quake and almost all structures suffered at least superficial damage.

Most of the casualties stemmed from people being trapped in collapsed buildings and though almost a week has passed since last Wednesday's earthquake, many of the bodies remain missing.

Padang resident Sribersihwati, 30, suspected that many buildings collapsed because corrupt officials and builders profited by cutting corners and violating construction standards. "Builders can get away with using low-quality materials. Why do you think so many major buildings collapsed so easily?" she said.

Construction contractor Akbari agreed. "There are no local government regulations to ensure buildings in Padang are constructed to withstand quakes," he said.

"The problem is new building contractors only care about profiting from these projects. They failed to construct buildings fit enough to withstand quakes."

West Sumatra Governor Gamawan Fauzi admitted the government needed to improve the quality of construction in an area that lies near one of the world's most volatile fault lines.

Seismologists all agree that Padang will face more earthquakes in the future, and warn that a much larger quake with far greater destructive force is inevitable in the region.

"You can expect an enormous quake in the region at least every 100 years, although we don't know when it's going to hit," Australian seismologist Gary Gibson warned.

Padang Mayor Fauzi Bahar vowed that post-reconstruction work in his city must be up to scratch and building permits need to be handed out much more selectively.

"Of the collapsed buildings that need rebuilding, the construction must be up to standard," Bahar said on Monday.

"We have to have good foundations, good quality iron and steel. We cannot let even one be built below standard. We must be more selective with our building permits."

But Dewi Fortuna Anwar, of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said that what was lacking was enforcement. "The government must stipulate clear and proper building guidelines and ensure that builders comply with the rules."

Gamawan said, "We need to implement new regulations in the future, or at least make the criteria to obtain a building permit stricter."

Public facilities such as malls, hospitals and schools built in Padang are supposed to be able to withstand magnitude-eight earthquakes, Gamawan said. "If the government fails to enforce it, the government can be sued," Gamawan said.

Indonesian Red Crescent secretary-general Djazuli Ambari said corruption, not just poor enforcement, was to blame for much of the damage wrought by the latest quake.

"There's so much corruption in Indonesia. Money is available and it shouldn't be a problem building houses with strong foundations, but unfortunately it's been misused," he said.

"Those who suffer from corruption are the people. Life is precious and people shouldn't die because of the government's mismanagement."

Dodi Nandika, the Education Ministry's secretary-general, said a staggering 887 school buildings had been destroyed by the quake, causing an unknown number of children to lose their lives.

But he denied that corruption had contributed to the disaster. He said the government already had building construction codes in place designed to make new buildings quake resistant, but stronger enforcement was needed.

"The local government could use this disaster as a golden opportunity for better building in reconstruction," said Jan Sopaheluwakan, LIPI's scientific services deputy.

Jan said he believed public education was the key. "The high number of fatalities in the [West Sumatra] earthquake showed that there was a big discrepancy between what the government and the public should do," and what had actually been done, Jan said. (AFP, Reuters, JG)

SMS messages link quakes with Koran, 'warning' from God

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Text messages have been circulating since last week linking the timing of Wednesday and Thursday's earthquakes in Sumatra with verses about immorality and punishment in the Koran, prompting some Islamic leaders to call the disaster a "warning" from God.

Two days after the earthquake shook West Sumatra, the Jakarta Globe received an anonymous text message.

"Padang's earthquake happened at 17:16 and the aftershock happened at 17:58. The next day, there was an earthquake in Jambi at 8:52. Look at the Koran!" the text message stated. The verses corresponding with the earthquake times reference "annihilating" towns where residents and leaders have acted immorally. (Full translations of the passages are below)

Poet Taufiq Ismail told Republika newspaper that the link between the Padang earthquake and chapter 17, verse 16, in the Koran was found by a young ulema.

"It is awesome. I am stunned," Taufiq said. "I think the SMS has spread widely with the purpose that the nation stops doing the things that have angered God," he said.

Abdullah Syah, chairman of North Sumatra's Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said that the earthquake was "a test and a warning for people in West Sumatra as well as in other areas."

"Every one must open their heart and their eyes to the disaster," he said. The earthquake was a signal for the Indonesian government to eradicate immorality, Abdullah added.

Meanwhile, geology experts have said the powerful quake that shook Padang came from a spot near – but not inside – the Sunda Trench, a long undersea crescent of seismic energy stretching from north of Aceh to the east of East Timor.

Tectonic plates from India and Australia are grinding slowly under plates that support Indonesia and Burma at a rate of up to six centimeters per year, causing explosive releases of force.

Quake expert Sri Widiyantoro, from the Bandung Institute of Technology, said the precise cause of the jolt in Padang did not come from the seam between plates, but was triggered by a break in the middle, a type known as an intraplate quake.

Translation of Koran verses referenced in SMS message

Chapter 17, Verse 16 (Al Isra)

"And when We desire to destroy a town, We command its affluent ones, those [inhabitants] of it who enjoy the graces [of God], meaning its leaders, [We command them] to obedience, by the tongue of Our messengers; but they fall into immorality therein, rebelling against Our command, and so the Word is justified concerning it, that it should be chastised, and We destroy it utterly, We annihilate it by annihilating its inhabitants and leaving it in ruins."

Chapter 17, Verse 58 (Al Isra)

"There is not a town – its inhabitants are the ones meant – but We shall destroy it before the Day of Resurrection, through death, or chastise it with terrible chastisement, by killing [its inhabitants] or otherwise. That has been inscribed in the Book, the Preserved Tablet."

Chapter 8, Verse 52 (Al Anfal)

"The way of these people is like the way of Pharaoh's folk and those before them: they disbelieved in God's signs and so God seized them, with chastisement, because of their sins. Truly, God is strong, in what He wills, severe in retribution."

Indonesia calls off search for missing survivors

Associated Press - October 5, 2009

Eric Talmadge and Irwan Firdaus, Padang – Rescue workers called off the search Monday for life under the rubble left by a massive earthquake, focusing instead on bringing aid to survivors in the towns and hills of western Indonesia, despite being hampered by torrential rains.

"The chances of survival while trapped without water and food under the rubble for so long are impossible from now," said Gagah Prakoso, a spokesman for the Indonesian Search and Rescue Agency. "So we will speed up our search to find bodies and clean up the ruins with bulldozers."

The death toll from Wednesday's 7.6-magnitude temblor in Sumatra island is expected to be in the thousands once the missing people are declared dead. The UN has said 1,100 people died, while the government puts the toll at 603.

Ignacio Leon, the head of the UN's humanitarian agency in Indonesia, told the AP that the focus has now shifted away from finding survivors and "we are supporting the government now more in the relief side."

The undersea quake devastated 10 districts in the Western Sumatra province including the capital, Padang, a city of 900,000 people where scores of tall buildings, including hotels, a mall, mosques and schools came down crashing. In addition, the quake triggered huge landslides in the hills of Pariaman district where entire villages were wiped out.

Hiroaki Sano, head of the Japan Disaster Rescue Team, told the AP that international search and rescue teams were winding up operations and preparing to go back home. "We got here quickly but we haven't found any survivors. The first 100 hours are crucial," he said.

Government minister Aburizal Bakrie told reporters that $600 million was needed to repair infrastructure. It had initially said $400 million was needed, but raised the estimate after the scale of the disaster became clear.

Little aid has reached the remote communities in Pariaman as many roads and bridges were destroyed. Landslides also blocked many of the roads leading to villages and an AP crew saw aid workers scrambling to clear the road of dirt, boulders and trees.

One road ended at Kampung Dalam village. The rest of the way had caved in, forcing rescue teams from South Korea, France and Germany to camp there. Villages further up the road were now accessible only by foot.

Heavy rain since Sunday night triggered a landslide on Monday but no casualties were reported, according to Prakoso, the rescue agency spokesman. Still, most aid teams were forced to stay put in Padang because of the rain.

He said the downpour and thick wet mud is making it "difficult for us to reach areas in need of aid."

Authorities are using helicopters to airdrop aid and bring the wounded to hospitals, he said. Two helicopters have conducted six airdrops in isolated areas so far, delivering instant noodles, blankets, milk and dry food, he said.

The Meteorological and Geophysics Agency warned the region could see strong winds and storms for the next two days.

"People who live around the hills should remain alert for potential landslides, due to the high intensity of rain," said the agency's spokesman, Hari Tirto.

It was unclear precisely how many people were without shelter Monday, but more than 88,000 houses and 285 schools were flattened in 10 affected districts, according to the UN and Indonesia's Disaster Management Agency. Another 100,000 public buildings and 20 miles (31 kilometers) of road were damaged.

In Padang, hundreds of children went back to class Monday in schools set up in tents as authorities tried to restore normalcy. UNICEF provided tents and basic supplies for schools in three of 10 affected districts.

The resumption of classes was largely symbolic, giving just a few hundred children an opportunity to meet with teachers and receive counseling to process the trauma of recent days, including the deaths of relatives and being made homeless.

"The government has called for classes to resume as soon as possible so they can create some normalcy," said Amson Simbolon, a UNICEF education officer, as math classes began for around 300 students at one badly damaged school in Padang.

The agency has provided 15 tents, each with room for 50 to 60 children, and is shipping another 220 by boat from the capital of Jakarta, he said.

[Associated Press writers Anthony Deutsch, Niniek Karmini and Vijay Joshi in Jakarta contributed to this report.]

Padang trying to resume normal life after earthquakes

The Australian - October 5, 2009

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Padang (Indonesia) – The earthquake devastated west Sumatran city of Padang is slowly trying to drag itself to normalcy today with school students back in those classrooms that are still standing and public servants returning to offices, where they can.

The rainy season has arrived in full force, with two savage thunderstorms in as many days hampering the cleanup effort, especially Pariaman district north of Padang, where landslides have claimed hundreds of lives.

Many of these landslide victims died after the quake hit last Wednesday will now never be recovered and the area is coming to be regarded as a mass grave.

In Padang, Indonesian and international search and rescue teams have largely abandoned any hope of recovering survivors and a crew from the Queensland fire and rescue service is expected to return home as soon as Wednesday,.

At the worst hit single structure in Padang, the Ambachang Hotel, one of the grandest buildings in a city full of grand Dutch and Chinese architecture, there are likely still dozens of bodies that may also never be recovered.

Teams this morning found one such body in the Ambachang Hotel and recovery work halted as they tried to extract it from the rubble.

The Indonesian government is keen to have life return to normal as soon as possible, which will include demolishing buildings such as the Ambachang, which stand as a reminder of last weeks devastation.

The elegantly coiffed women's empowerment minister, Meutia Hatta, was taken on a tour of the district yesterday, including the former site of a primary school newly repaired after the 2007 earthquake in the same area that killed dozens.

She was told there had been no children in the school when it disappeared in the landslide. But directly below it are thought to be about eight houses, all now invisible under tonnes of mud. More than 40 people were in them, villagers believe.

Farmer Syahrial, 20, told how he held on to a door frame as the quake hit, only to be swept hundreds of metres down the mountain into the river below as the mud crushed his house.

"Now I'm thinking about what I can do next," the young man said, sitting in the shade of a corrugated iron lean-to and nursing a bandaged leg. "My family is gone, my house is gone, my land is gone, my animals are gone. What now?"

Mr Syahrial's parents and a 2 1/2-year-old nephew died in the landslide, but another three siblings survived, also washed down into the river. He thinks it is only because his family's house was higher than all the others in the village that they lived where dozens of others didn't.

Another man who survived the landslide but most of whose family died told how there were four houses slumped containing four of his siblings and their various children. "It's only that I married and now live in the next village that I was saved," he said.

Outside Padang, the scale of the disaster is only now being discovered. Desperate villagers complained to reporters they were being neglected while the focus remained on the city.

"Today the military will be heading to landslide areas which we have not been able to access earlier because roads are closed and broken," Indonesian military spokesman Sagom Tamboen said.

The mayor of Padang, Fauzi Bahar, said that only 60 per cent of the disaster zone had been accessed by emergency teams, and that more heavy machinery and materials to rebuild houses were urgently needed.

Anger about poor construction and lax enforcement of building regulations is beginning to surface as people recover from the shock of the disaster. "The government must introduce new standards when rebuilding the city," said Irwadi, a fisheries ministry official.

Another 5.5-magnitude quake rocked Indonesia yesterday, in West Papua province which is in the far east of the sprawling archipelago about 3500km from the Sumatra quake disaster zone. Authorities said there were no reports of injuries there. (Additional reporting: AFP)

Some Indonesians blame Yudhoyono for quake

Agence France Presse - October 5, 2009

Aubrey Belford, Jakarta – Some superstitious Indonesians are blaming a supposedly unlucky president and not shifting tectonic plates for the latest earthquake.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, popularly known as SBY, has long been burdened by murmurs that he carries the shadow of cosmic misfortune with him.

Natural and man-made disasters since his election in 2004, including the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed 220,000, has resulted in quips that SBY stands for "Selalu bencana ya", roughly meaning "Always a disaster".

The latest catastrophe is viewed by many in this Muslim-majority country of 234 million as further proof that SBY's stars are crossed.

"SBY, because of his birth date, will always attract disasters to this country, according to the Primbon (a Javanese almanac of mysticism)", Permadi, a veteran politician from the opposition Gerindra party and practising shaman, said.

"Just look at the numbers of his birth date – the ninth of the ninth, '49 – that's unlucky. The more he holds on to power, the more great disasters will happen," he said.

If Mr Yudhoyono stayed president, a major disaster would strike Jakarta, Permadi said, referring to the Indonesian capital. "If SBY had a big heart, he would step down."

Not everyone believes this theory – and many see SBY's birthday as enviably lucky – but such talk of supernatural misfortune has deep resonance in Indonesia, where Islam and Christianity are for many merged with older traditions of Hinduism, Buddhism and animism.

The criticism has been long enough standing, that Mr Yudhoyono two years ago lectured local government heads in the quake-hit region of West Sumatra that they should blame the region's volatile geology, and not him.

The Jakarta Post, one of the top-selling English dailies, suggested a link between the disaster and the extravagance of politicians in a Sunday editorial entitled "The Gods Must Be Angry".

"Whether you subscribe to the theological or secular explanation, the 7.6-magnitude quake that killed more than 1100 people came on the eve of the multibillion-rupiah inauguration ball for newly elected members of the House of Representatives and the Regional Representative Council in Jakarta," it said.

Political analyst Bima Arya Sugiarto said that while some, particularly opposition politicians, try to paint the President as a spiritual liability, there were benefits for him in Indonesians' gaze beyond the physical world.

Criticism of the often slow aid response, and the poor planning that allowed shoddy buildings to spring up in the first place, has been muted by fatalism and a widespread belief that the disaster was God's will, Sugiarto said.

"The mystical perspective or the religious perspective is more dominant than public criticism of government policies," he said.

In Padang, a commonly heard refrain has been that the quake was a test, or a punishment, ordained by God.

Indonesian villagers use bare hands to dig corpses

Associated Press - October 4, 2009

Eric Talmadge and Irwan Firdaus, Jumanak (Indonesia) – With no outside help in sight, villagers used their bare hands Sunday to dig out rotting corpses, four days after landslides triggered by a huge earthquake obliterated four hamlets in western Indonesia.

Officials said at least 644 people were buried and presumed dead in the hillside villages in Padang Pariaman district on the western coast of Sumatra island. If confirmed it would raise the death toll in Wednesday's 7.6-magnitude earthquake to more than 1,300, with about 3,000 missing.

The extent of the disaster in remote villages was only now becoming clear. So far, aid and rescue efforts have been concentrated in the region's capital, Padang, a city of 900,000 people where several tall buildings collapsed.

But the quake was equally devastating in the hills of Pariaman, where entire hillsides were shaken loose, sending a cascade of mud, rocks and trees through at least four villages.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla said there was little hope of finding anyone alive. "We can be sure that they are dead. So now we are waiting for burials," he told reporters.

Where the villages once stood, there was only mud and broken palm trees – the mountainsides appeared gouged bare as if by a gigantic backhoe.

The villages "were sucked 30 meters (100 feet) deep into the earth," said Rustam Pakaya, the head of Indonesia's Health Ministry crisis center. "Even the mosque's minaret, taller than 20 meters (65 feet), disappeared."

In Jumanak village, some 200 to 300 wedding guests at a restaurant were buried alive, including the bride, her 15-year- old brother, Iseh, told The Associated Press.

He said his sister Ichi, 19, had come back to the village for her wedding.

"When the landslide came, the party had just finished. I heard a big boom of the avalanche. I ran outside and saw the trees fall down," said Iseh, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.

"I tried to get in front of the house with my brothers. We were so afraid. Landslides started coming from all directions. I just ran and then I waited," he said.

Iseh says he knows of only 10 people from the village who survived. He doesn't know the fate of his parents or brothers.

The adjacent villages of Pulau Aiya, Lubuk Lawe and Limo Koto Timur were also swept away.

Survivors in the area said no government aid or search teams had arrived, even four days after the quake. Only about 20 local policemen had come with a power shovel and body bags.

"My relatives were all killed, washed away by the landslide," said Dola Jambak, a 48-year-old trader, picking through the rubble of his house. "I lost seven relatives. Now all I can do is wait for the search teams. But they don't come."

The landslides cut off all roads, and the villages were accessible only by foot. An AP team reached Jumanak after walking about four miles (six kilometers) for 1 1/2 hours.

Villagers gathered as men used their bare hands to slowly and cautiously pull corpses from a tangle of roots and grit. The bodies were bloated and mutilated, some unrecognizable. One man's body was found because his hand was sticking out of the mud.

Women wept silently as bodies were placed in bright yellow bags.

Aid also had not reached Agam district, which is much closer to Padang. Laila, a villager in Agam district, said she and hundreds of others had no food, clothes and clean water. "Our house is gone... everything is gone," she sobbed.

She said a helicopter dropped some instant noodle packets Saturday. "But we need clean water to cook it," said Laila, who also uses one name. She said the local river had become dirty as people were using it wash.

In Padang, rescuers have all but given up hope of finding any survivors in the rubble of the 140-room, Dutch-colonial style Ambacang Hotel. Some 200 people were in the hotel when it collapsed. Search teams have found 29 bodies so far, and no one alive.

"After four days... to find survivors is almost impossible," said Lt. Col. Harris, the chief of the 50-member rescue team, which comprises military, police and Red Cross personnel. "The smell of decomposing bodies is very strong," said Harris, who uses one name.

According to the National Disaster Management Agency, 83,712 houses, 200 public buildings and 285 schools were destroyed. Another 100,000 buildings and 20 miles (31 kilometers) of road were badly damaged, and five bridges had collapsed.

Meanwhile, hundreds of doctors, nurses, search and rescue experts and cleanup crews arrived Saturday at the Padang airport from around the world with tons of food, tents, medicine, clean water, generators and a field hospital.

But with no electricity, fuel shortages and telecommunication outages, the massive operation was chaotic.

Deliveries came on C-130 cargo planes from the United States, Russia and Australia. Japanese, Swiss, South Korean and Malaysian search and rescue teams scoured the debris. Tens of millions of dollars in donations came from more than a dozen countries to supplement $400 million the Indonesian government said it would spend over the next two months.

The UN said there are sufficient fuel stocks in the area for four days, but with the road to a major depot cut off by landslides, gasoline prices had jumped six-fold. Areas with "huge levels of damage to infrastructure were in need of basic food and tents for temporary shelter," it said.

Wednesday's quake originated on the same fault line that spawned the 2004 Asian tsunami that killed 230,000 people in a dozen nations.

On Sunday, a 5.5-magnitude earthquake shook the eastern province of West Papua, the US Geological Survey said. There were no reports of casualties. The quake's epicenter was 128 kilometers (80 kilometers) northwest of the provincial capital of Manokawar, the only major center of inhabitation. The region is about 3,500 kilometers (2160 miles) from Sumatra.

[Associated Press writers Ali Kotarumalos, Anthony Deutsch, Niniek Karmini and Vijay Joshi in Jakarta contributed to this report.]

Hopes fade for hundreds lost in destroyed city

Sydney Morning Herald - October 3, 2009

Tom Allard, Padang – Hopes for hundreds of people trapped under collapsed buildings in Padang faded yesterday, as diplomats frantically tried to account for as many as 60 Australians missing in the region that was hit by the big earthquake on Wednesday.

Some rescuers used excavators, but most used bare hands to search schools, a large hotel and other destroyed buildings for bodies as criticism mounted about the quality of construction in the city, perhaps the most earthquake-prone city in the world's most seismically active country, Indonesia.

Fuel is running out, almost all shops are closed and residents are finding it hard to get food after the collapse of the city's wholesale marketplace. Power has yet to be restored, and the phone network works infrequently.

"It is very hard to find fuel," said Idris, carrying an empty jerrycan down a street. "We need fuel for generators and for cooking. It is a very bad situation."

Afrini Yeti, a housewife, said: "I can't buy bread any more. All I have is instant noodles."

Authorities are struggling to cope with the scale of the disaster, even as aid comes in from around the world, including two planeloads of supplies provided by Australian authorities that landed yesterday afternoon.

There was one reported rescue yesterday, that of a 19-year-old student, Ratna Kurniasari Virgo, who was trapped inside the STBA Prayoga language school.

The official death toll stood at 715, according to the Indonesian Health Ministry, but hope of finding more survivors is dimming as the stench of decomposing bodies begins to emerge from disaster sites. The United Nations has put the death toll at 1100.

At the devastated Dr M. Djamil hospital, a dozen tents were set up outside as impromptu operating theatres. In one was Sigon, 11, with a compound fracture in his leg. As he waited in pain for his turn in surgery, his mother, Murni, wailed. She had taken her three children window shopping at the Ramayana Hotel. When the quake hit she grabbed her two youngest children in the stampede, but left her eldest son behind in the chaos.

Completely consumed by grief, Murni was too distraught to comment. "We haven't had many kids here. What I'm afraid of is that all the [injured] kids have died," said Dr Boy Sahrial, referring to the collapse of a number of school buildings.

"The excavators don't help us much. We need cranes. I don't know why they haven't arrived. Maybe people are too busy looking after themselves," said Koto, a mobile police commander overseeing rescue efforts at the Ambacang Hotel, where up to 100 guests are feared dead under an enormous pile of rubble and twisted steel frames.

The hotel is popular with foreign tourists, including Australians who stay there before heading out on surfing holidays in the nearby Mentawai Islands.

Padang's Australian consulate warden, Rick Solomon, said it was unlikely there were large numbers of dead Australians, and the return of charter boats full of surfers was narrowing the list of those missing. But he cautioned: "There were lots of foreign nationals in the Ambacang Hotel. It's probable that there have been fatalities of foreigners there."

He said the destruction of several hotels made it impossible to gain access to lists of guests.

An Australian doctor who works for the medical aid group SurfAid, David Lange, was in the restaurant of the Ambacang Hotel when the earthquake hit. He ran from the building just in time and is now heading to some of the areas worst affected by the earthquake to distribute supplies.

Munawir, who had spent the evening making the long journey to Padang from Riau, stood watching the rescue effort at the Ambacang Hotel with growing despair. His brother, Aswar Piraj, had been attending a seminar there. "I am very sad," he said, trembling visibly. "I haven't seen him for eight years. I don't think I will see him again."

Indonesia's President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, toured Padang yesterday, urging residents to be "patient".

Mr Solomon, an architect and president of Island Aid who has lived in Padang for 16 years, said many buildings in the quake- prone city were poorly constructed. An urban planning expert from Trisakti University, Nirwono Joga, called for a complete review of planning regulations. "We can say that weak buildings are the main cause of casualties in an earthquake," he said.

Meanwhile, sympathy for the victims and Indonesia poured in from around world.

The US President, Barack Obama, who spent four years as a child in Indonesia, said: "Indonesia is an extraordinary country that's known extraordinary hardship with natural disasters. I know first-hand the Indonesian people are strong and resilient and have the spirit to overcome this enormous challenge."

The day the ground jumped up and down

Sydney Morning Herald - October 3, 2009

Tom Allard – Nestled in densely forested hills, with spectacular volcanoes in the distance and pitched on a coast a short boat ride from spectacular tropical islands and surf breaks, Padang is the stuff of postcards.

Its spicy dishes are loved across Indonesia. While ethnic distinctiveness has been hemmed by modernity, Padang wears its Minangkabau heritage with pride. Elegant tiered and peaked roofs adorn many buildings.

It is also arguably the most disaster-prone city in the most seismically active country on Earth, sitting atop three volatile tectonic plates.

Six serious tremors have hit Padang and its surrounding regions in the past decade, although Wednesday's quake was the worst many remember.

"The ground jumped up and down like this," said Sarana Aji, general manager of the Ambacang hotel, gesticulating with both arms. "It sounds like a train or something, and I just ran like I have never run before." The death toll has been put at 1100.

Aji had a close call. He was standing in the lobby of his 109- room hotel at 5.16pm on Wednesday. Moments earlier he had been inside tending to guests and staff.

Up to 100 of them are believed to have perished, many of them crushed when a large section of the busy hotel – popular with tourists, local government officials and visiting executives – collapsed. "It swayed and groaned and then it just went. It took less than 30 seconds," Aji said.

It is just one of many destroyed large buildings: hospitals, schools, mosques, government offices, shopping malls, a car dealership. The city is a mess of fallen masonry, twisted steel girders and collapsed roofs.

Grief and disbelief are all around, from hysterical relatives searching the morgues for loved ones to homeless people wandering pitch-black streets for food, water or fuel.

Yet Aji, like all residents interviewed by the Herald, has no thoughts of leaving the city. "Welcome to Indonesia. Welcome to earthquakes," he said. "Wherever you are there will be earthquakes. It's life and death. Time moves on and I'm still here. [I am] lucky I guess."

Across the city, at the Gama Learning Centre, once a four-storey building, distraught parents and supporters, and a fair measure of curious onlookers, watched yesterday as rescue workers used a piledriver attached to an excavator to smash through collapsed concrete walls to reach perhaps 50 schoolchildren trapped inside.

Already, the corpses of 30 youngsters have been retrieved. There is little hope for those under the tonnes of rubble, 11- and 12- year-old sixth graders staying back late to take extra classes, anxious to get the best marks for their high school entrance exams.

Andras Setiabudi, 41, an insurance company worker, was there providing support to grieving parents. His daughter Azizah was supposed to be in an advanced-English class.

"I was going to Medan for a business meeting. Azizah wanted to skip class and come to the airport with me. I said no. I panicked when I heard about the earthquake in Medan. But her mother had let her stay at home."

Again, he had no thoughts of leaving Padang. "I just have to keep being alert," he said. "I guess I will pray more."

West Sumatra is renowned for its deep Islamic beliefs, and a sense of religious-infused fatalism was evident among villagers in Pariaman, about 50 kilometres from Padang and at the epicentre of Wednesday's quake.

"If it is Allah's will, then so be it," said Oyong, as he stood beside the casket containing his aunt Nurlela, greeting mourners from devastated homes coming to pay respects. "I won't leave here. This is my home and my family's home."

Even so, one noted geologist believes that Padang is highly vulnerable to the next big earthquake after the magnitude 9.1 undersea tremor that produced the tsunami that killed more than 200,000 people in a dozen countries on Boxing Day, 2004. Most of the dead were Indonesian.

Kerry Sieh, a Singapore-based professor of geology from the California Institute of Technology, says the coast off West Sumatra is in the middle of a 200-year "mega-thrust" to relieve built-up tensions in the tectonic plates. "The earthquake yesterday occurred right on the edge of this big patch that we identified over the past few years as being about to fail," he told Bloomberg.

"That failure sequence could last anywhere from another 30 seconds to another 30 years. Nobody can say." His worst fear is a quake unleashing a tsunami, devastating Padang.

Rick Cameron, an Australian architect who has lived in Padang for 16 years, has just endured the "scariest thing in my life". But he, too, will stay.

"We are not the only ones who face seismic risk," Cameron said. "We may be going through the peak of the [earthquake] cycle at the moment but if you look at most of Bali, West Java, all of Taiwan, parts of New Zealand, California and Turkey, they can expect the same thing at some time. It's just a matter of when."

He said this week's earthquake should be seen as a human disaster as much as a natural one. "There has been a lot of inadequate construction in Padang," he said. "Well-constructed, reinforced concrete or steel buildings built on solid ground have only suffered cosmetic damage.

"There is going to have to be a massive reconstruction effort, and I hope that these lessons have been learnt."

[Tom Allard is the Herald's Indonesia correspondent.]

Thousands feared dead in quake

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Syofiardi Bachyul and Jon Afrizal, Padang/Jambi – The death toll from Wednesday's powerful earthquake in West Sumatra is believed to be in the thousands, as rescue teams struggle to dig people out of the rubble of buildings.

The Social Services Ministry's crisis center said Thursday at least 529 people had been confirmed dead and 440 seriously wounded, while Health Minister Siti Fadillah Supari said in Jakarta before flying to Padang that the death toll could hit the thousands, given the widespread destruction.

"There are still thousands of victims buried or trapped under the debris of collapsed buildings," West Sumatra disaster mitigation task force secretary Sudirman Gani said in the provincial capital Padang.

They may have died instantly when the 7.6-magnitude quake toppled hundreds of buildings across the bustling port city of 1 million people, he added.

Until late Thursday hundreds gathered around a building where some 60 elementary and high school students were attending extra-curricular lessons when the quake hit, sharing the despair and hope of parents watching the search and rescue work.

"We still heard cries for help as of last night but we can't hear them today," said Refi Effendi of the Padang police, detik.com reported.

The quake was felt across Sumatra, including in Medan, Bengkulu and Jambi, as well as in Malaysia and Singapore.

A series of aftershocks has hit the affected cities, while another powerful earthquake jolted Jambi early Thursday morning, killing at least one person and damaging 1,100 homes in the hardest hit district of Gunung Raya, local officials said.

The 7.0-magnitude quake hit at around 8:52 a.m., with the epicenter located 46 kilometers southeast of Sungaipenuh, Jambi, at a depth of 10 kilometers, said the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency.

Jambi's Kerinci regency spokesman Amirsyam said many residents stayed out of their homes after the latest quake, while officials set up tents and public kitchens for displaced people.

Back in Padang, telephone connections were patchy, making it hard for rescuers to work out the extent of the destruction and loss of life.

"I've been through quakes here before, and this was the worst," American Greg Hunt, at the Padang airport, told Reuters.

"There's blood everywhere, people with their limbs cut off. We saw buildings collapse, people dying." A Reuters reporter in the city said rescuers were pulling people from buildings, but there was little sign of much aid being distributed yet.

Fuel was also in short supply and there was a report of looting, while some shops had run out of food.

President Susilo Bambang Yudho-yono, who visited Padang on Thursday to see the devastation, said the country could coordinate the relief efforts itself, but welcomed help from abroad.

Australia, South Korea and Japan were among nations offering aid or help. The President ordered the military to deploy emergency response teams from Jakarta, West Sumatra and North Sumatra.

A day after it was struck by the quake, Padang remained without electricity, state power firm PT PLN said.

"Major power substations in Lubuk Alung, Padang Industrial Park, Pauh Limo and Simpang Haru are still down," PLN corporate communications head Ario Subijoko said in Jakarta.

Padang's Minangkabau International Airport was operating, although most of the people there were camped out on prayer mats after fleeing the city.

Many people trying to get a flight to West Sumatra were disappointed after arriving at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Thursday because tickets on all flights to Padang had sold out.

Syahrial, a would-be passenger, said he had asked at all the airlines' ticket counters at the airport and at several travel agents, but to no avail.

"I'll likely travel by bus to my hometown in West Sumatra, because I'm really concerned about my family and friends in Pariaman," he said. He added he had tried to contact his family in Pariaman since Wednesday, but mobile phone communication links were down.

Second quake shakes Indonesia after temblor kills 529

Associated Press - October 1, 2009

Irwan Firdaus, Padang – Rescue workers used excavators Thursday to pull out victims, some screaming in pain, from the heavy rubble of buildings felled by a powerful earthquake that killed at least 529 people. The death toll was expected to rise.

The brunt of Wednesday's 7.6-magnitude earthquake, which originated in the sea off Sumatra island, appeared to have been borne by Padang town where 376 people were killed. Four other districts accounted for the remaining deaths.

The region was jolted by another powerful earthquake Thursday morning, causing damage but no reported fatalities.

More than 500 buildings including hotels, schools, hospitals and a mall were destroyed or damaged in Padang. Thousands of people were believed to be trapped in the rubble.

"Oh God, help me! help me!" Friska Yuniwati, a 30-year-old woman, screamed in pain, as she was carried to an ambulance in downtown Padang. She had been pulled out minutes earlier from the rubble of a house, her face covered in bruises and eyes shut.

Padang's main hospital, the state-run Djamil Hospital, was overwhelmed by the influx of victims and families. Dozens of injured people were being treated under tents outside the hospital, which was itself partly damaged.

"Let's not underestimate (the disaster). Let's be prepared for the worst. We will do everything we can to help the victims," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in Jakarta before flying to Padang, a coastal city of 900,000 and capital of West Sumatra province.

A total of 529 people were confirmed dead and 440 were seriously injured, the Social Affairs Ministry's crisis center said. Thousands were believed trapped, said Rustam Pakaya, head of the Health Ministry's crisis center.

The president ordered the military to deploy all its crisis centers in Jakarta, West Sumatra and North Sumatra provinces and said the military will provide earth-moving equipment to clear the rubble.

SurfAid, a New Zealand-based medical aid group, said its program director David Lange, narrowly escaped death when he fled the Ambacang Hotel minutes before it collapsed.

"People are trapped and screaming for help but they are below huge slabs which will take heavy equipment to move," Lange was quoted as saying in a statement by SurfAid.

"I saw dozens of the biggest buildings collapsed in town. Most of the damage is concentrated in the commercial center market, which was fully packed," he said.

At least 80 people were missing at the 5-story Ambacang Hotel, said Indra, a paramedic who uses only one name.

Terrified residents who spent a restless night, many sleeping outdoors, were jolted by the new quake Thursday morning.

The US Geological Survey said the quake hit about 150 miles (240 kilometers) south of Padang. It damaged 1,100 buildings, including mosques and homes, in the town of Jambi, according to Mayor Hasfiah, who uses only one name like many Indonesians. He said there were no deaths but dozens of people were injured.

From Padang, Metro TV showed heavy equipment breaking through layers of cement slabs in search of students missing from a school, where they were taking after-school classes.

Rescue workers said six children were pulled out alive but four others were found dead. They were placed in yellow body bags before being taken away. Another 20 children remained missing. Parents of missing students stayed up all night, waiting for signs of life.

"My daughter's face keeps appearing in my eyes... my mind. I cannot sleep, I'm waiting here to see her again," a woman who identified herself only as Imelda told TVOne, tears rolling down her face. She said her 12-year-old daughter Yolanda was in the school for science lessons.

"She is a good daughter and very smart. I really love her. Please, God help her," she said.

In another building, rescue workers passed a plastic bottle of water through an opening in the rubble to a person trapped underneath.

The quake was so powerful that it caused buildings to sway hundreds of miles (kilometers) away in Malaysia and Singapore. In Padang, children screamed as thousands of frantic residents fled in cars and motorbikes, honking horns. They feared the quake would trigger a tsunami, but no giant waves struck.

The quake severed roads and cut off power and communications to Padang, and the extent of damage in surrounding areas was still unclear.

Indonesia, a poor, sprawling nation, sits on a major geological fault zone and is frequently hit by earthquakes. The latest quakes were along the same fault line that spawned the 2004 Asian tsunami that killed 230,000 people in a dozen nations.

Geologists said the Indonesia quakes were not related to another deadly quake Tuesday that hit islands in the South Pacific.

Padang's mayor appealed for assistance on Indonesian radio station el-Shinta.

"We are overwhelmed with victims and... lack of clean water, electricity and telecommunications," Mayor Fauzi Bahar said. "We really need help. We call on people to come to Padang to evacuate bodies and help the injured."

Finance minister Sri Mulyani said the government has allocated $25 million for a two-month emergency response. She said the earthquake will seriously affect Indonesia's economic growth, because West Sumatra is a main producer of crude palm oil. "This region has been damaged seriously, including its infrastructure," Mulyani said.

[Associated Press writers Ali Kotarumalos and Niniek Karmini in Jakarta contributed to this report.]

Agriculture & food security

Farmers 'still poor' despite rice surplus

Jakarta Post - October 3, 2009

Panca Nugraha, Mataram – Farmers in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) are still living in poverty despite 15 years of surplus rice production in the province, an official says.

NTB Statistics Bureau (BPS) head Mariadi Mardian said the province's farmer exchange value (NTP) index in August was around 96.24, a 0.14 percent decrease compared to July. The minimum NTP for wealthy farmers is 100.

"This means our farmers are not yet wealthy. Their production and living costs are still far above their income," Mariadi said Thursday.

He added that the index was based on the ratio between farmers' operational costs – the expenditure index – and the value of their agricultural products, the income index.

"The harvest is indeed good. Yet, as the cost of staple foods in the villages are also high because of inflation, the NTP index is also affected."

Mariadi said that although the NTP index fluctuated, it was overall stable. The average NTP index never reached 100.

Data at the national level shows that only 13 out of the archipelago's 33 provinces had an NTP index above 100 in July and August.

These provinces include North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Bengkulu, Lampung, Riau Islands, Yogyakarta, Bali, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, West Sulawesi, Maluku and Papua.

The NTB province was ranked 31st, the third lowest after Jambi whose NTP index was 95.8, and Bangka Belitung whose NTP index was 93.99.

Ironically, NTB has been one of Indonesia's rice production centers for the last three years, suppling rice to Bali and NTT.

Mariadi therefore suggested that to help increase the NTP index, the provincial administration needed to find a way to control farmers' production costs, increase the prices of agricultural products, and control the prices of staple foods in villages.

Head of the provincial agriculture, crops and horticulture agency, Pending Dadih Permana, said that during the second dry season, the province had produced 1.8 million tons of dry unhusked rice.

"This exceeded our target of 1.78 million tons this year," he said, adding that the rice needs of its 4.2 million population was between 600,000 and 700,000 tons.

He expressed optimism that rice production would keep increasing until the end of the year. Last year, the province produced 1.7 million tons of dry unhusked rice.

Pending also expressed doubts over the BPS' survey and NTP index data, saying it might have only been carried out in a number of farming areas.

"There are indeed small parts of the regions that experience annual drought but the rest have abundant water resources. If it's the dry regions that are taken as samples, then the result of the survey will be erroneous," he said.

"If it (the survey) represented the province as a whole, the result would have been different."

He added that both the provincial administration and the central government had done a lot to help control farmers' production costs through subsidies and free seedling distribution.

Health & education

Thousands of teachers renew complaint over unpaid allowance

Jakarta Post - October 3, 2009

Agus Maryono, Banyumas – Around 3,000 teachers of private schools in Banyumas, Central Java, have once again complained about the regency administration not paying them an honorarium for the last six months.

Teachers working in private schools in Banyumas are entitled to a monthly functional allowance or honorarium of Rp 350,000 each, which the regency administration has been paying since January last year.

"This is absolutely outrageous. We feel as if we do not even exist," said Teguh Haryanto, a teacher at a private elementary school in Sumbang district.

He said the honorarium was crucial to his livelihood. "We were supposed to receive two payments this October, but so far we have heard nothing about it," he added.

Teguh said the honorarium was usually paid every three months. "The payments were made in 2008, but we have not received any this year," he said.

The honorarium is funded by two layers of administration, the regency and the province. The regency funds Rp 200,000 of the honorarium for each teacher, while the province provides the outstanding Rp 150,000.

Nukman, a teacher at a vocational high school in East Purwokerto, also made the same complaint. He said that the functional allowance had been put in place after being deliberated by the regency administration and the legislative council, and therefore had to be implemented.

"This makes us feel that private school teachers are treated differently to teachers in state-run schools," said Nukman.

Banyumas education agency head Purwadi confirmed the delay in the honorarium payment, saying that the request for payment had been lodged with the regency administration at the beginning of this year.

"I do not know how it has been processed," he said. "I was once informed that the regency administration was experiencing a budget deficit. That was why it had to cancel a number of payments, including the honorarium for private school teachers," Purwadi said.

He added that not only had the honorarium for private school teachers been cancelled, but that the honorarium for the regency's 13,000 public school teachers had also been postponed for two years.

"Last year, we had a Rp 20 billion debt in the form of payments owed to public school teachers, and even up to now, we have only paid 50 percent of them," he said.

Purwadi said he had been tasked with proposing programs to improve education in the regency, but financial matters were beyond his authority. "It's under the authority of the regency's financial agency," he said.

Corruption & graft

Indonesian police clear Chief Detective Susno in KPK case

Jakarta Globe - October 7, 2009

Farouk Arnaz & Nivell Rayda – It's official. Internal investigators on Wednesday cleared the National Police's chief of detectives of all allegations of abuse of power and conflict of interest, saying the accusations against him could not be substantiated.

Comr. Gen Yusuf Manggabarani, head of the National Police's Internal Affairs Division, said a probe had found the decision by Chief Detective Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji to name two deputy chairmen of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) suspects over alleged extortion was procedurally justified and acceptable.

Susno, who has come under increasing public pressure to resign or be suspended, was also declared not guilty of misuse of authority in the issuance of a letter that later allowed a business tycoon to withdraw $18 million from troubled PT Bank Century.

"After we summoned 20 witnesses, including Susno and his men, we concluded that all the allegations are untrue and baseless. He did everything based on procedures and he did not intervene in the investigation process when handling the KPK's case," Yusuf said.

The report had also been submitted to National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri, who said no sanction could be decided upon before the investigation was completed.

Echoing Susno's earlier statement, Yusuf said Susno only wrote a letter to Century executives, at their behest, clarifying that businessman Boedi Sampoerna's funds were not connected to former Bank Century owner Robert Tantular, who was last month found guilty of banking fraud.

"It was not Susno's initiative to write the letter but Century's executives asked for it to clarify the status of the funds.

"There is also no evidence for the allegation that Susno received any inducement from Boedi because the fact is the KPK, which is now investigating this case, did not name him as suspect. It's nothing more than a rumor," Yusuf said.

Yusuf said investigators were now probing another complaint filed by lawyers for two suspended KPK commissioners – Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra Hamzah – Susno had named as suspects.

The lawyers on Monday accused Susno of breaching professional ethics by meeting with fugitive businessman Anggoro Widjaja. Susno met with him in Singapore on July 10, three days after the KPK had named Anggoro a suspect in a corruption case.

The lawyers also claimed Susno had sent a text message to KPK officials threatening them if they did not stop investigating the Bank Century case. Susno could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

Ahmad Rifai, a lawyer for Chandra and Bibit, said the police's decision to clear Susno of misconduct was "disappointing but not unexpected."

"We demand an investigation by an independent team," he said. "A misconduct scandal as huge as this cannot be handled by police internal affairs. There would be too much bias and conflict of interest."

Ahmad said his team is still waiting for an investigation by the National Police Commission and a response from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. On Tuesday, Rifai and his team had sent a letter to Yudhoyono demanding Susno's suspension and the formation of an independent team of investigators.

Teten Masduki, secretary general of Transparency International Indonesia, said an independent team was needed to investigate Susno's alleged misconduct.

"All police investigation documents must be disclosed and examined to see if there was indeed enough evidence to declare Bibit and Chandra as suspects or there are other motives behind the decision," Teten said.

Indonesian corruption showdown: Police chief defends detective

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Farouk Arnaz & Made Arya Kencana – National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri on Tuesday stood fast in the defense of his beleaguered chief detective, saying his institution could not just bend to public pressure and suspend an officer without reason.

"Our organization cannot be put under pressure at the whim of the people," Bambang said while visiting the Bali provincial police headquarters.

He was referring to increasing public pressure, especially from rights and antigraft groups, demanding the suspension, if not dismissal, of the National Police's chief of detectives, Comr. Gen. Susno Duaji, following his decision to name two deputy chairmen of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) suspects for allegedly accepting bribes.

According to Bambang, complaints made against Susno of abuse of power and conflict of interest were being investigated by the police's Internal Affairs Division, and until a final report in the case was issued no sanctions could be applied.

"After I get the complete report, I'll inform you," he promised journalists.

On Monday, lawyers for the two KPK deputy chairmen, who were suspended after being named suspects for allegedly taking bribes, filed a new complaint with the National Police against Susno, accusing him of having abused his authority by meeting with a fugitive businessman.

Taufik Basari, a lawyer for commissioners Chandra Hamzah and Bibit Samad Rianto, said Susno met with Anggoro Widjaja in Singapore on July 10, three days after the commission had named the businessman a suspect in a corruption case. The lawyer said the meeting constituted a breach of professional ethics.

The lawyers also claimed Susno had sent a text message to KPK officials threatening them if they did not stop investigating the Bank Century case, in which Susno is allegedly involved. The SMS, shown to reporters, carried a number identified as Susno's. Susno could not be reached for comment.

The lawyers earlier reported Susno to the police's Internal Affairs Division for suspected abuse of authority for accusing Chandra and Bibit of taking bribes in connection with the lifting of a travel ban on Anggoro this year.

Comr. Gen. Yusuf Manggabarani, the head of the Internal Affair Division, refused to comment on the sanctions Susno could face if found to have violated the police's code of ethics. Internal Affairs officers summoned Susno for a "dialogue" on Monday.

"We will give our final recommendation to the police chief first. I cannot talk to you now," he said after Monday's meeting.

According to a ruling on professional ethics issued by the head of the National Police in 2006, possible sanctions include those of an administrative nature and the obligation to apologize to the victims.

Article 12 of the document, a copy of which was obtained by the Jakarta Globe, states that when police officers are found to have breached professional ethics, "the Ethics Commission may suggest to [the police chief] administrative sanctions in the form of transfer of duty, transfer of area, honorable dismissal or dishonorable dismissal."

Rights activists have said that Susno had a conflict of interest in declaring the KPK commissioners as suspects because he was being investigated by the commission over possible involvement in alleged irregularities in the withdrawal of funds from Bank Century.

Yudhoyono approves three new candidates for KPK leadership

Jakarta Post - October 6, 2009

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – The President has approved three people to serve as interim leaders of the beleaguered Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), after their nomination by a special selection team.

Tumpak Hatorangan Panggabean, currently commissioner of state postal services company PT Pos Indonesia, and Waluyo, general and human resources director at state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, previously served as KPK deputy chairmen between 2003 and 2007.

Another interim KPK leader recommended by the selection team is Mas Achmad Santosa, a senior adviser to the UNDP on human rights, legal reform and access to justice.

The three interim leaders will head up the antigraft body with the two remaining KPK deputies, M. Jasin and Haryono, as soon as they are inaugurated Tuesday.

The selection team was put together by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono late last month to recommend interim leaders for the KPK, after its chairman and two deputies were implicated in criminal cases.

Suspended KPK chairman Antasari Azhar faced murder charges, while his deputies, Bibit Samad Riyanto and Chandra M. Hamzah, have been charged with abuse of power and bribery.

Adnan Buyung Nasution, a member of the selection team and the presidential advisory board, said those nominated would immediately vacate their current posts to focus on their new duties at the KPK.

"We've asked for their utmost commitment, and they've all agreed because this is a call, this is a state duty," Adnan said Monday after submitting the list of names to Yudhoyono.

The current KPK deputies welcomed the nominations, but demanded Bibit and Chandra be reinstated as soon as they had been cleared of all charges.

"These new people are all temporary leaders, so they should be willing to move on once Bibit and Chandra are proven innocent," Jasin said later in the day. Lawyers for Bibit and Chandra insist the police are carrying out a witch hunt against the highly regarded KPK.

State Secretary Hatta Radjasa said the President had ordered him to immediately issue a presidential decree for the three new interim leaders, adding they would be inaugurated Tuesday afternoon.

Coordinating Minister for Legal, Political and Security Affairs Widodo A.S., also from the selection team, said Tumpak had been recommended to replace Antasari, while Waluyo and Mas Ahmad would replace Bibit and Chandra.

Adnan said Tumpak was the most senior of the three, but added the decision on who would lead the antigraft body would be left up to the five leaders. He said the three had been chosen because of their experience in fighting graft.

"We want people who truly have the capacity and background to help the KPK rise again and resume its job," Adnan said. "We need experienced people who are familiar with the KPK and with handling graft cases. This was suggested by people in the KPK itself."

Mas Ahmad once led a team for reform in the Supreme Court and served as a reform consultant to the Attorney General's Office. He was also a former member of the selection team for KPK leaders in the 2007-2011 period.

KPK attorneys accuse national police detective of abuse of power

Jakarta Globe - October 5, 2009

Farouk Arnaz, Nivell Rayda & Heru Adriyanto – Lawyers for two suspended Corruption Eradication Commission deputy chairmen on Monday filed a new complaint against the National Police's chief of detectives, claiming he abused his authority by meeting with a fugitive businessman.

Taufik Basari, a lawyer for commissioners Chandra Hamzah and Bibit Samad Rianto, said Comr. Gen. Susno Duaji met with Anggoro Widjaja in Singapore on July 10, three days after the commission, or KPK, had named the businessman a suspect.

"The KPK had placed Anggoro on its wanted list as of July 7, so when Susno and police investigators met Anggoro in Singapore, it could be considered a breach of the police's code of ethics," Taufik said after filing the complaint with the National Police chief.

Lawyers for the commissioners had previously reported Susno to the police's Internal Affairs Division for suspected abuse of authority for accusing Chandra and Bibit of taking bribes in connection with the lifting of a travel ban on Anggoro this year.

"We hope [National Police Chief] Gen. Bambag Hendarso Danuri takes firm action against Susno and handles this case professionally," said Ahmad Rifai, another lawyer for the comissioners.

"Susno admitted to the KPK's commissioners on July 15 that he met with Anggoro in Singapore," Ahmad said.

He also said that Susno sent an SMS to KPK officials threatening them if they did not stop investigating the Bank Century case, in which Susno is believed to be involved. The SMS, shown to reporters, carried a number identified as Susno's. Susno could not be reached for comment.

The head of the KPK's legal bureau, Chaidir Ramli, said threats had been sent to graft investigation chief Suedi Hussein, graft investigation and prosecution head Ade Raharja, and deputy chairmen Haryono Umar and Mochammad Jasin. Separately, Insp. Gen. Oegroseno, the head of the National Police's Professionalism and Security Division, said his officers had already held a three- hour "dialogue" with Susno.

"We asked Susno, along with the special crimes director [Brig. Gen. Edmond Ilyas] about what he knew about the allegations," Oegroseno said, adding that a report would be sent to the National Police chief soon.

The face-off between the powerful, if beleaguered, KPK and the police has exposed major flaws in the nation's law enforcement system, and led to widespread fears that the police are trying to tame the commission, which has investigated and prosecuted several police officers for corruption.

Ahmad said his team would bring the abuse of authority complaint against Susno to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono today and demand the officer's suspension.

Meanwhile, the South Jakarta District Court began hearing a pretrial motion brought by the Indonesian Anti-Corruption Society (Maki) to have the charges against Bibit and Chandra thrown out.

"We have asked the court to rule that the charges are illegal and order the National Police to revoke the suspect status of Bibit Samad Riyanto and Chandra Hamzah," said Maki Chairman Bonyamin Saiman. "The police had no preliminary evidence to support their accusations against the two," Bonyamin said.

The defense team for the National Police argued that the case could not be challenged through a pretrial motion, and even if it could Maki did not have the authority to file such a motion. "Maki is by law not permitted to file a pretrial motion," said police lawyer Iza Fadri.

Hundreds of KPK officials stage protest

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Jakarta – Some 550 Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) officials voiced their concern on Thursday over recent attempts to weaken the Commission.

They gathered after holding a ceremony to observe the Pancasila Day and said they could not work peacefully anymore. "We ask President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to stop any attempts to weaken KPK," deputy for corruption prevention, Eko Tjiptadi read from a statement.

They also asked the president to maintain the KPK's independence. KPK spokesman Johan Budi said the statement would be sent to the president today.

The KPK chairman and two deputies were arrested for alleged involvement in two different crimes.

Lawyer says police threatened KPK

Jakarta Globe - October 2, 2009

Nivell Rayda – A lawyer for the embattled Corruption Eradication Commission said on Friday staff members had received death threats from a senior police officer, fanning the flames of a bitter rivalry between the two agencies.

Ahmad Rifai said the threats were sent via four text messages to Suedi Husin, the director of graft investigation at the commission, or the KPK, and Ade Raharja, the commission's head of graft investigation and prosecution, demanding that they stop an investigation involving the National Police's chief of detectives, Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji.

Recently, the KPK received a report from the country's money- laundering watchdog, the Financial Transaction Reports Analysis Center (PPATK), alleging that Susno had received illicit money from Bank Century, which changed its name to Bank Mutiara on Friday.

A recent report from the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) suggested that after the government took over the ailing bank and injected Rp 689.4 billion ($71.7 million), state-owned social security provider PT Jamsostek and Boedi Sampoerna of the powerful Sampoerna family withdrew trillions of rupiah from the lender, far above the Rp 2 billion insured by the State Deposit Insurance Agency (LPS). This has led to speculation that Susno, who was investigating the case, had intervened on their behalf.

"There is a strong indication that the messages were from a 'rogue' police officer. The messages contained jargon and terminology only understood by police officers," Ahmad said. "Even if the messages were not from a police officer, or if this was just a prank, this is a serious offense."

A source at the KPK told several media outlets, including the Jakarta Globe, that the threatening messages were sent from Susno's mobile phone number and called Suedi and Ade "dik" or "younger brother," a familiar term of affection. Both Suedi and Ade are Susno's subordinates at the National Police.

"Please check if your men had a special operation... [your men] are now pinned down by East Java [Police] snipers. If they are your men, I will delay [ordering the snipers] to take them down, but only if your men are called off" of their investigation, the message said. Susno could not be reached for comment.

On Friday, Susno and three of his staff members visited the commission's office and met with Haryono Umar and Mochammad Jasin, two active KPK commissioners. Commission spokesman Johan Budi said the text messages were not among the matters discussed at the closed meeting.

Separately, Indonesia Corruption Watch urged the antigraft body to report the threatening messages to the National Police. "The KPK must not be afraid to disclose the matter so the public can find out where the messages really came from," ICW deputy chairman Emerson Yuntho said. National Police spokesman, Insp. Gen. Nanan Sukarnan, said the antigraft body was welcome to file a report.

Anticorruption commission to create courts across Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - October 1, 2009

Nivell Rayda – The Corruption Eradication Commission and the Supreme Court have welcomed the newly passed Anti-Corruption Court bill and are preparing to handle cases outside of the nation's capital.

The bill, which the House of Representatives (DPR) unanimously passed on Tuesday, paved the way for the establishment of special courts to handle graft cases in all 33 provincial capitals. The current Anti-Corruption Court is under the umbrella of the Central Jakarta District Court and has the entire country as its jurisdiction.

Commission spokesman Johan Budi said the antigraft body, also known as the KPK, was ready to send its prosecutors to remote provinces.

"We have been sending our investigators to remote areas for years. Now we simply have to send our prosecutors as well," he said, adding that the bill presents some problems for local corruption cases now under investigation by the KPK.

"We have to wait until the local courts are fully established before the cases can move from investigation to prosecution. We won't have any problems with cases" in Jakarta, Johan said.

The commission is processing at least five cases that are considered to have taken place outside the jurisdiction of the capital, the most remote of them in the Supiori district of Papua.

Supreme Court spokesman Hatta Ali said it would take time to establish the courts outside of Jakarta because the court system lacked judges with the capacity to handle graft cases.

"We need at least six permanent judges at each district court and high court, which means we would require 660 certified judges," he said. "We also need to recruit ad-hoc judges and establish an internal regulation on the composition of judges for each case."

The bill states that there can be either three or five judges, with permanent judges comprising either a majority or a minority, depending on the type of cases under consideration.

Hatta said the internal regulation would determine the best composition of panels for a specific cases so that "there is legal certainty. The determining factor would most likely be the level of government officials involved and estimation of the losses to state."

The bill has drawn widespread criticism from antigraft groups and academics, who say several articles are vague and subject to multiple interpretations, thus leaving open loopholes for corruption suspects.

Such articles concern the power of the commission to prosecute graft cases and the presentation of wiretapped conversations as evidence before the court, which the bill simply states "must follow other laws," without further explanation.

Hasril Hartanto, an expert on law from the University of Indonesia, said the articles should be much more clearly defined to avoid "false interpretations of the law."

War on terror

Midnight burial for Jakarta bombings terror suspect

Jakarta Globe - October 2, 2009

Candra Malik, Solo – The body of a terror suspect shot dead in a police raid last month was buried under tight security and cover of darkness in the early hours of Friday in his hometown of Solo, police said.

The burial was done quietly in an effort to head off potential conflicts between supporters and opponents.

Hadi Susilo, alias Adib, is one of four terrorists killed in a Densus 88 counterterror-squad raid near Solo in Kepuhsari, Central Java, on Sept. 17. His burial sparked outrage among some residents, and opponents nearly came to blows with hard-line supporters.

The two camps squared off last month after hard-liners tried to rip down banners opposing Hadi's burial in Solo.

"We're on full alert anticipating possible clashes between those who support the burial and those who oppose it," said Chief Comr. Joko Irwanto, chief of the Solo city police, adding that the burial time, around 2 a.m., was chosen to reduce the potential for conflict.

Hadi's body was buried immediately after arrival from Jakarta, where it had been kept since the raid. The funeral at the Pracimoloyo public cemetery in nearby Sukoharjo was brief, the grave having been dug two weeks earlier.

Tight security was provided by district, subdistrict and Solo city police, Joko said. Hadi's wife, Putri Munawarroh, is seven months pregnant and has been identified as a terror suspect.

The head of the Solo subdistrict police, Chief Comr. Erry Subagyo, said the burial rites were properly carried out.

Despite the early-morning burial, hundreds of members of the local chapter of the militant Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) and the Indonesian Jihadi Front attended the funeral. They escorted the ambulance carrying Hadi's body to the cemetery, preventing journalists from getting a look at the body or the grave site.

"Even family members could only see his face. There were two large wounds around his neck," said Anies Prijo Anshari, a lawyer for Hadi's family.

Hard-line cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, the caretaker of the Al Mukmin Islamic boarding school in nearby Ngruki, did not attend the burial, though he had said earlier that he would.

However, he expressed relief that the body had been put to rest and had been buried according Islamic rites. "It's a relief and ends a long wait," he said, adding that the "mujahedeen fighter died in a good way."

Joko also said two of the 10 people arrested for ripping down antiterrorism banners in Solo had been officialy named as suspects. Those arrested were members of the local chapter of the FPI and Bashir's new hard-line group, Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid.

Police feared wave of monthly attacks by terrorist leader

Sydney Morning Herald - October 1, 2009

Tom Allard, Jakarta – Saifuddin Jaelani, the man who has emerged as the most wanted terrorist in Indonesia, may have been planning a wave of monthly attacks, Indonesian police say.

It is the voice of Jaelani, a Yemeni-trained preacher and traditional Islamic healer, that is heard on a video calling for the destruction of Australia, America and Indonesia.

The video was recovered from the laptop of Noordin Mohammed Top, the man police believe Jaelani will replace as the emir of the Indonesian terrorist cell that calls itself al-Qaeda for the Malay Archipelago.

Tito Karnavian, a senior officer with the Indonesian counter- terrorism unit Detachment 88, said other evidence found in a series of raids since the July bombings of two Jakarta hotels suggested a disturbing new strategy for the terrorist network.

"In the past, they acted every year," he said, referring to the first big bomb attack in Bali in 2002, the bombing of the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta in 2003, an attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta in 2004 and another bomb attack in Bali in 2005.

"All of them were a year apart. After the last Marriott attack [in July], they planned new attacks," he said. "There would be 'serial attacks'. Every month, maybe, they would launch a new attack."

The next target appeared to be the residence of the President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, which was to have been attacked in August with a vehicle laden with explosives.

Such a strategy, had it been implemented, would probably have been far more effective in creating panic in Indonesia, deterring tourists from coming and dissuading foreign investors.

Mr Karnavian said Jaelani had rebuilt links with Middle Eastern extremists, including groups with ties to Osama bin Laden's al- Qaeda. Those links were previously thought to have been severed after the arrest of Hambali, the Indonesian terrorist and al- Qaeda point man in South-East Asia who was arrested six years ago and is being held in Guantanamo Bay.

"After we unravelled Saifuddin's network, it was also confirmed that they had been able to build new relations with Middle East networks following the capture of Hambali," Mr Karnavian said.

It is believed Middle Eastern money financed the twin hotel attacks in Jakarta in July, arranged by Muhammed Jibril, a member of the radical al-Ghuraba study group with links to al-Qaeda.

The son of the radical preacher Abu Bakar Bashir, Abdul Rohim, is also a member of the group. Indonesian police have revealed that two men arrested in connection with the hotel bombings, Indra and Aris, were members of Bashir's new organisation, Jama'ah Ansharut Tauhid, which translates as Partisans of the Oneness of God.

As well as selling "thibbun nabawi", or medicine of the prophet, Jaelani preached in mosques, where he identified and groomed the suicide bombers who hit the Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels.

His brother Mohamed Syahrir, a former Garuda technician, is Jaelani's right-hand man and also remains at large. Two of Jaelani's sisters married militants in his terrorist network.

Mass killers

Hambali - 2002 Bali bombing ringleader. Now in Guantanamo Bay.
Mukhlas - Executed for his role in the 2002 Bali bombing.
Noordin - Planned embassy and hotel blasts in Jakarta. Killed in September.
Jaelani - To replace Noordin as head of al-Qaeda for Malay Archipelago.

Elections/political parties

Smear campaign, vote buying ahead of Golkar leadership vote

Jakarta Globe - October 7, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea, Pekanbaru (Riau) – The mud slinging between candidates vying for the leadership of the Golkar Party was well and truly thrown into full gear on Wednesday at the party's national congress.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla officially finished his tenure as the party chairman on Tuesday night. The position is being contested by Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie, media mogul Surya Paloh, Yuddy Chrisnandi and Hutomo Mandala Putra, better known as Tommy Suharto. The party congress will vote for its new chairman on Wednesday night.

In the first of the day's scandals, Wednesday morning's headline on Metro Riau, a local newspaper, declared: "Golkar boss candidate allegedly involved in corruption case."

The article said that Paloh was allegedly involved in a graft case connected to the Mobil Cepu Ltd. project. Paloh had reportedly ignored a summons from the Bojonegoro State Prosecutor on Oct. 2, and his failure to appear in court could hamper the investigation process, the paper reported.

But Paloh's team have said they will sue the local paper, asserting that the story amounted to character assisination before the party leadership vote. They have laid the blame on Bakrie's team.

"That's junk news. It's a smear campaign and very embarrassing for candidates like Bakrie to take such an action," said Sugeng Suparwoto, a member of Paloh's campaign team.

Sugeng, who is also a director of PT Surya Energi Raya, said that he had been assured that neither the company or Paloh had been summoned by the prosecutor.

"Our share in the company has nothing to do with the case. The prosecutor has clearly confirmed that we aren't involved in the case," Sugeng said.

Meanwhile, candidate Yuddy Chrisnandi earlier accused other contenders of vote buying. He said that each district branch chairman was offered Rp 500 million to Rp 1 billion to direct votes to a "certain candidate."

"This is from a source who can be trusted," Yuddy said. Yuddy alleged that some branch chairmen who supported him were offered money to back one of the other candidates.

Paloh's campaign spokesman, Victor Laiskodat, denied the accusation, saying that his team never gave out any money to buy votes. "We can't afford to buy the votes. What we offer is the idealism to help this party recover from its critical condition," he said.

The process for selecting the new chairman will commence at 7 p.m. Wednesday night. The vote will go through two rounds. Any candidate that gets less than 30 percent of total votes will be eliminated after the first round. However, if any one candidate secures at least 50 percent of the total votes in the first round, he will automatically be elected the new Golkar chairman.

Tommy Suharto: 'My motivation is to serve the nation'

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Although rival candidates consider Tommy Suharto's 10-year absence from politics as a critical drawback in his chances of being elected chairman of Golkar, others within the former ruling party still view his father, former President Suharto, with affection.

Jailed briefly for ordering the murder of the Supreme Court justice who convicted him of graft, Tommy again stirred up controversy during the party's national leadership conference by promising the chairman of each party branch who voted for him Rp 50 billion ($5.3 million) for "local development projects."

The Jakarta Globe was one of a handful of media outlets given the rare opportunity to penetrate Tommy's heavy security and sit down with a man who – though short of words – promised to revive the fortunes of his strongman father's former political vehicle.

What is the real level of support that you have secured among Golkar branch chairmen?

For sure, we will try to pass the first selection by fulfilling the requirement to meet 30 percent of the total votes. Afterward, we will share our vision and mission with the branch chairmen. I hope that they understand the real condition of the party, and will want to save and build the party with me.

There is a party candidate who says that you have approached him to synergize the support in case you don't pass the first selection stage. Is that correct?

Who said that? I haven't talked to other candidates and neither has my team.

What is your response to Vice President Jusuf Kalla's statement that it is better that Golkar distance itself from the government?

I think it was in line with my vision and mission that Golkar should be managed independently, not support the government's coalition and at the same time not become the opposition. We have to support the government's policies if it does a good job, but we have to be firm in opposing the government if it issues policies that do not support the people.

Do you think Kalla supports you?

I don't know. What do you think? (laughs)

If you fail to be selected as chairman during this congress, are you going to form a new party like other Golkar leaders have done?

No, I will not do such a thing. I will remain with Golkar.

Or join the winning candidate maybe?

No. I will remain outside its leadership.

So you will not run for the next chairmanship?

No.

Three candidates had declared they were running chairman, then three weeks before the congress you announced you were running as well. Why? Don't you trust them?

It's not about trust issues. My motivation was that I just wanted to serve this nation through the Golkar Party.

Why Golkar?

Time is really short. It's time for Golkar to be managed better. After the reform movement, they said that Golkar was to be managed under a new paradigm. But instead of improving, the party actually declined. So I think the new paradigm that they brought should be restored to make a better Golkar.

What's your family's response over your decision to run for chairmanship? Do they support you?

Yes, of course. If they didn't, I would not have come this far.

Many say Aburizal Bakrie and Surya Paloh are frontrunners. Are you confident you can win?

I just hope that the district branch chairmen have some conscience. If they want to make Golkar into a big party, they have to run with me.

Race for Golkar Party's top post kicks off

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea, Pekanbaru (Riau) – Though Golkar yellow dominates the landscape in Pekanbaru, there is an unmistakable undercurrent of black running through Riau's provincial capital, the scene of the party's national leadership meeting.

Though not officially opened until late Monday night by the outgoing party chairman and vice president, Jusuf Kalla, intrigue had begun to build earlier in the day as the four hopefuls started their campaigns in earnest to fill the politically powerful top position of the former ruling party.

If the chairmanship was to be determined on the number of banners and posters fluttering in the Riau breeze, then Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie and media mogul Surya Paloh could be considered frontrunners, with Yuddy Chrisnandi and Hutomo Mandala Putra, familiarly known as Tommy Suharto, trailing in the distance.

However, it is the favored son of former dictator Suharto who has made the initial power play, promising each party district head Rp 50 billion ($5.2 million) to be used as capital to implement local development programs.

Saurip Kadi, Tommy's campaign team chairman, said the money was for development projects, not for personnel needs, and those who accepted the money would have to vote for Tommy.

All 538 voters, comprising one voter from Golkar's central executive board, 33 provincial branch chairmen, 494 district branch heads and 10 Golkar wing organizations, are scheduled to cast their ballots on Wednesday night.

Saurip said that as a result of his proposal, Tommy had secured 307 letters from branch chairmen in which they stated they were willing to support his bid to lead the party to the 2014 legislative and presidential elections.

Senior Golkar figure Ferry Mursyidan Baldan, who was earlier tipped as a candidate for the chairmanship but has withdrawn, said he regretted the tactics used by Tommy to gain favor at a time when the party's voter support was on the wane.

He said the party needed to instead rebuild ahead of 2014, which would not be achieved by promising money to attract votes.

Although Paloh was able to gather 405 district branch chairmen and 17 provincial branch chairmen in Bali over the weekend, he acknowledged he could not be guaranteed of their support in Wednesday's vote.

"There's nothing certain in life. Many things can happen from Bali to Pekanbaru and from Pekanbaru to the voting booth," Paloh said. "But I remind all members to be consistent."

Commenting on the practice of money politics, often resorted to during elections, Paloh said he just wanted the competition to be fair and consistent.

In other developments, hundreds of Paloh's campaign posters were torn down by unknown individuals, prompting the media magnate to speak out against what he said was a black campaign against him. But Paloh said he would not be provoked.

He also said he hoped there would be no outside interference in the leadership meeting, a clear warning to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who is believed to have aligned himself with Bakrie on the expectation that he would bring Golkar back into the fold of the ruling coalition government.

"I think there is no benefit for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to intervene in Golkar's congress," Paloh added.

Saurip said Tommy was unfazed by Yudhoyono's alleged support for Bakrie. "I've know him [Yudhoyono] for quite a long time," Saurip said. "I know him as a smart and careful person in considering a move, so I don't think that he will choose someone who can be a burden for the government."

Golkar congress takes chaotic turn in fight over voting rights

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea, Pekanbaru (Riau) – The Golkar Party's national congress descended into chaos and required a police cool-down on Tuesday morning as members took part in a heated debate over who had the right to vote to select the party's new chairman. The new leader of the party will be decided on Wednesday.

Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie and media mogul Surya Paloh have been considered as the frontrunners for the position, with Yuddy Chrisnandi and Hutomo Mandala Putra, familiarly known as Tommy Suharto, also vying for the post.

Congress members were tense while debating the internal party policy dictating who had the right to vote in Wednesday's poll. A group of Paloh supporters wanted Golkar's 10 wing organizations to be counted as a single vote, while Bakrie's camp demanded that wing organizations receive a vote each.

The heated debate sparked noisy confrontations and some feared fights would erupt between members.

A team from the Riau Police, who were guarding the perimeter of the Labersa Hotel where the congress was taking place, rushed to the meeting room to control the situation and journalists were forced to leave.

After further debate, a decision to give one vote to each of the wing organizations was reached.

Critics say money still big factor for Golkar chair

Jakarta Globe - October 2, 2009

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The Golkar Party will select its new chairman based on wealth, access to the government and desire to bring the party closer to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's ruling coalition government, political analyst Syamsuddin Haris said on Friday.

With Golkar's four-day national leadership meeting set to kick off in Pekanbaru, Riau, on Monday, the race is on to replace the outgoing chairman and vice president, Jusuf Kalla, and potentially become a frontrunner for the presidency in 2014.

With Yudhoyono unable to constitutionally contest a third term, the prospect is a mouth-watering one.

Speaking in Jakarta at a discussion about Golkar's leadership, Syamsuddin Haris, a political researcher from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said it was likely that as with Golkar's 2004 national leadership meeting in Bali, where Yudhoyono-aligned Kalla replaced Akbar Tanjung as head of the party, money politics and power would again feature.

Kalla, he said, had money, a strong political position and vision to bring the party into a coalition with the government. "Most Golkar members who have rights to vote in the next meeting will again use such criteria to choose the next chairman," he added.

There has been a strong current within Golkar to stay in government, Syamsuddin said, which meant forming a political partnership with Yudhoyono's Democratic Party was a must for them.

He said that current Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie was the candidate who best fit that mold. Bakrie is a prominent businessman, with a good political position in the current government and closer ties to Yudhoyono than the other candidates.

Bakrie's main rival for the party helm, media mogul and senior party executive Surya Paloh, meanwhile, has plenty of wealth but no political clout, Syamsuddin said. "And Surya Paloh also tends to be more independent regarding Golkar's political position with Yudhoyono and his Democratic Party."

Chairman of the Indonesian National Youth Committee (KNPI), Ahmad Doli Kurnia, another speaker at the discussion, said the financial prowess of candidates would be the main factor in choosing the next chairman, pointing out that three of the five candidates, Bakrie, Paloh and Tommy Suharto, were all wealthy businessmen.

Ahmad Doli said he laughed at suggestions that Golkar members were confused about who to vote for, instead saying that most would be enjoying the situation of having three candidates with deep pockets contending for their support.

Syamsuddin gave the example of Paloh's advertisements in the Kompas daily newspaper this week, claiming the backing of some Golkar regional heads for his candidacy. He said that he believed the advertisements would only be used by the officials to boost their bargaining power with the other candidates.

Ahmad Doli said such practices should be stopped, with members choosing the party chairman based on their consciences and the candidates' qualifications. "The vision of the candidates to build Golkar as a modern party must be the main consideration," he said.

Alfan Alfian, a political analyst from the National University, Jakarta, said that a change was taking place within Golkar, with more and more businessmen taking up senior positions. It was different from the past, he said, when the party was led by many activist-based politicians like Akbar Tanjung.

Such a transformation, Alfian said, would become a death sentence for Golkar unless the businessmen could adopt a different way of managing the party. "Managing a business corporation is not the same as managing a party. Money is not enough to build a stronger party – there must be good vision for Golkar to stay alive," he said.

Alfian said Golkar's current demise was proof of his theory, caused by the leadership style of Kalla, who was also a businessman. He urged party members to forget money politics when deciding its leadership, saying "Such practices harm the party."

Separately, Golkar's executive board confirmed that the party would go ahead with its national congress on Monday, regardless of the unfolding earthquake disaster in the neighboring province of West Sumatra.

Golkar chair likely to go to highest bidder: Study

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Jakarta – Despite recent claims made by the Golkar Party chairmanship candidates that they had secured most support, most regional leaders will decide who to elect based on the rewards offered, an independent study says.

Golkar is holding a national congress in Pekanbaru, Riau, from Monday until Thursday, to elect a new party chairman to replace outgoing Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

A survey conducted by the Institute of Public Policy Studies (LSKP) identified three factors – namely rewards, the bandwagon effect and heroism – in the Golkar Party members' voting preferences in the election of a new chairman.

"The rewards could be in form of financial (support) or positions (party members) are promised if they elect a certain candidate." LSKP director, Sunarto Ciptoharjono told a press conference on Thursday.

Roughly half of Golkar's regional leaders voting at its national had congress would prioritize rewards in choosing their new leader, Sunarto said.

"But we cannot analyze who the winner will be... because we do not know how much money has been allocated by each candidate in their campaigns," he said. "It is true that Aburizal Bakrie owns a giant business, but Surya Paloh is also a successful businessman," Sunarto said.

The second-most important factor in Golkar members' decisions would be the bandwagon effect, which LKSP says would sway around 30 percent of the party's regional leaders' votes.

The third factor, heroism, would influence 20 percent of regional leaders; those looking for a candidate who could give Golkar a glorious future.

"Surya has more strength in this area, because he has vowed to make the party an equal partner to the government," Sunarto said. "On the other hand, Aburizal will make Golkar a government supporter."

Golkar deputy secretary-general Rully Chairul Aswar insisted that the congress would go ahead as scheduled, despite Wednesday's deadly earthquake that also jolted Pekanbaru.

At present there are apparently two front-runners vying for the Golkar leadership; media magnate Surya is Golkar's chief patron, while Aburizal is a party patron and the Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare.

Young legislator Yuddy Chrisnandi and Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, the youngest son of former president Soeharto, have also announced bids for the party leadership.

Surya, who owns MetroTV television station and Media Indonesia newspaper, has claimed the support of around 90 percent of the regional branches, as published in two-page ads in his newspaper.

Aburizal, who owns TVOne television station, has promised to donate Rp 1 trillion as trust fund for the party, and made similar claims of support.

Rully said the Indonesian public was looking for real development and were not interested in changes to the administration. (adh)

Government/civil service

Taufik's MPR victory spells opposition's end: Analysts

Jakarta Globe - October 5, 2009

Nivell Rayda – Analysts on Sunday warned that Taufik Kiemas's successful bid to become chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly marked the end of the opposition in the country's democratic system.

Arbi Sanit, a political analyst from the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, said power-sharing was the motive behind Taufik's efforts to become chairman of the country's highest institution, which is also known as the MPR.

"Taufik's triumphant bid was virtually unopposed, with the winner already established before the actual election process even started," Arbi said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party, the largest party in the House of Representatives (DPR), along with five of the Democratic Party's coalition partners and the Golkar Party, backed Taufik's candidacy.

Taufik was unanimously selected as leader of the assembly, while Hajrianto Tohari of the Golkar Party, Melani Lemeina Suharli of the Democrats, Lukman Hakim Saefuddin of the United Development Party (PPP) and Ahmad Farhan Hamid of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) were selected as Taufik's deputies.

"The composition ensures that all major parties are represented," Arbi said. "With the DPD making up half of the MPR, the DPD should have secured at least two seats."

Analyst Bima Arya Sugiarto, the executive director of Charta Politika, said that his private political consulting firm predicted that Yudhoyono's power-sharing strategy would again become evident in his choice of cabinet members.

"There might be one or two people from outside Yudhoyono's coalition who become ministers. This is a likely scenario, but the question remains whether they come from Golkar or the PDI-P," he said, referring to Taufik's political party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle.

Taufik is a prominent businessman and the husband of former President Megawati Sukarnoputri, the chairwoman and founder of the PDI-P. Her relationship with Yudhoyono has been strained since the president, who served as one of her cabinet ministers, decided to run against her in the 2004 presidential election.

Arbi said Taufik's bid to form a coalition between the PDI-P and the Democrats before the legislative elections and his recent visit to congratulate Yudhoyono's presidential election victory showed that Taufik wanted to be a part of the new government.

The PDI-P's Budiman Sujatmiko said that Taufik's win did not mean that his party would emerge as an effective opposition voice. "Taufik's win should be seen separately from the party's position. The only person able to control the direction of the PDI-P is Megawati," Budiman said.

Only 25 DPD members took part in the MPR selection process, which DPD deputy chairman Laode Ida said was a sign of protest against political deal-making.

Rp1.2 billion planned for Indonesian President SBY and Boediono

Jakarta Globe - October 5, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – The swearing in of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Boediono on Oct. 20 will "more or less" cost the country Rp 1.2 billion, the General Elections Commission acknowledged on Monday.

Suripto Bambang Setiadi, secretary general of the commission, also known as the KPU, said it had already allotted the funding, equivalent to $126,000, and begun making preparations for the ceremony.

It is unclear whether the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which will host the ceremony, is allocating additional funds for the occasion.

The budget has drawn sharp criticism from observers. However, the cost is a mere fraction of the $4.7 million spent for the swearing in of the 560 new members of the House of Representatives (DPR) and 128 members of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) last week.

Roy Salam, a research coordinator from the Indonesian Budget Center, said the figure was excessive. "It is only for the inauguration of two people," he said, adding that the state would not have to cover expenses such as transportation to the capital.

Roy said that by his calculations, a budget of Rp 200 million was more than enough for the inauguration but poor planning had caused the budget to swell.

"They previously only allocated Rp 900 million for the inauguration, but now, that figure has climbed to Rp 1.2 billion," he said. "It means they have increased the budget without even paying attention to the budget allocations."

Roy said that of the initial Rp 900 million earmarked for the inauguration, there was no clear information on how the funds would be spent.

"Most of it was for [staff] honorariums, but they didn't provide any information about the format of the event, which would have given us a better idea about how much was needed," he said.

Roy also said that reflecting on the recent inauguration for the House members, most of the budget seemed to be allocated to relatively trivial things such as food and drinks at a five-star hotel.

"What is the point of having a big budget for what is, in the end, just a 30-minute swearing-in process," he said. "Could they not plan a less ostentatious event?"

The KPU's Bambang said that the high figure was just an estimate of costs. "It is only a budget," he said. "It doesn't mean that we will use all of it."

KPU member Endang Sulastri said the funds not spent from the budget would be returned to the state. "For the House inauguration, the budget was taken from the KPU," she said. "The budget from the House was not used and will be returned."

Roy, however, said this only exposed the KPU's inability to plan a budget.

Spat over MPR speaker selection sizzles

Jakarta Post - October 3, 2009

Jakarta – The Regional Representatives Council (DPD) and political parties at the House of Representatives have yet to reach an agreement over the composition of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker posts.

"What we have agreed so far is that members will choose in packages of MPR speaker post combinations. However, we have yet to reach an agreement over the posts' composition," newly elected DPD Speaker Irman Gusman told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Irman said the DPD members wanted a clear rule that the five MPR speaker posts must consist of a mixed composition, with elements from both the House and the DPD in the proportion of 3:2.

But the House parties insisted this fixed proportion was not needed, and this should be based on a recent Constitutional Court's ruling, without neglecting the DPD.

Several DPD members recently requested a judicial review on the Legislative Body Composition Law to the Constitutional Court. DPD members wanted that the rule requiring that the MPR main speaker post be automatically given to the House, to be removed.

The Constitutional Court agreed, but consequently the rule that two deputy speaker posts would automatically go to the DPD was also removed. That mean't that the DPD might not even get a single speaker post.

This could arise if the election of MPR speaker posts went to a vote as DPD members are outnumbered five to one by House legislators.

A member of the Democratic Party faction at the House, Ruhut Sitompul, said that his faction insisted to give the DPD only one speaker post, because it wanted fair power sharing with its coalition partners.

"We want to give one of the four deputy speaker posts to one of the members from the National Awakening Party (PKB)," Ruhut said.

"Our other coalition partners – the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the United Development Party (PPP) – have already earned their share of the lawmaking bodies' speaker posts," he added.

PKS Secretary General Anis Matta has been officially named as one of the House deputy speakers along with Marwoto Mitrohardjono from PAN. The former chairman of the PPP faction, Lukman Hakim, has also been named as the party's nominee for one of the MPR deputy speaker posts.

Ruhut confirmed the Democratic Party would support Taufik Kiemas of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) to become the next MPR main speaker.

The endorsement of Taufik, whose wife, Megawati Soekarnoputri, is PDI-P Chief Patron, the arch rival of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has caused some discomfort within the PKS camp.

PKS Deputy Secretary General Fahri Hamzah said that Yudhoyono should have supported Hidayat Nur Wahid, former PKS president, to continue as MPR speaker. The promise to support this extension was made before the July presidential election, which Yudhoyono won by defeating Megawati.

However, Ruhut played down Fahri's remarks and said the PKS should learn about political dynamics. "In politics, everything changes constantly. We cannot depend only on promises. Besides, the Democratic Party aims to embrace everyone," he said.

The election of the MPR speakers is scheduled to take place today at 9:00 a.m. (hdt)

Poll: Public tired of partisanship and desires economic action

Jakarta Globe - October 2, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – Less than 3 percent of Indonesians want to see more politicians than professionals in President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's new cabinet, according to a new survey released by the Institute for Studies on the Free Flow of Information.

The institute, also known as the ISAI, polled 1,300 randomly selected citizens by telephone in 25 cities from Sept. 17 to 24 and has a margin of error of 5 percent.

ISAI research coordinator Ahmad Faisol said the results showed that people didn't want the executive government to be dominated by politicians. "Only 2.8 percent said the ministerial posts should be occupied mostly by politicians," he said.

Meanwhile, 40.1 percent of respondents said that cabinet positions should be filled only by professionals. "The survey shows that people have limited trust in the political parties," Ahmad explained.

The respondents also overwhelmingly said the new government should focus most of its energy on strengthening the economy. Ahmad said that nearly 70 percent of those polled thought that the government's main concern should be boosting development.

"Even many other significant factors, such as law enforcement, did not get much attention," he said. "Most people only want the government to improve economic conditions."

Around 12 percent of those polled said the government should focus on law enforcement. Thirteen percent called for the incoming ministers to focus more on national defense.

Analysts question the need for 'balanced' cabinet

Jakarta Globe - October 2, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – Political analysts on Friday warned President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono against attempting to placate as many factions as possible by offering seats in his cabinet, saying this would only weaken his administration.

Bima Arya Sugiarto, a political analyst and member of Yudhoyono's successful re-election team, said that "judging from the hints from the president, it is likely he will again consider representation for all a wide range of groups."

Bima said the president would start letting potential candidates know they were being considered. The previous cabinet was composed mainly of political party officials, professionals, businessmen, military leaders and those who had already served in the body.

According to data from consultancy Charta Politika, 51 percent of this nation's cabinet members have been professionals, 30.5 percent from political parties and 17 percent from the military.

Ministers from the business world accounted for less than 10 percent of the ministerial seats, and about 30 percent of the cabinet members have been incumbents.

Bima predicted that Yudhoyono would try to represent a spectrum of political, regional, religious and ethnic backgrounds and spread out the appointments among academics, business professionals and bureaucrats.

Candidates who represent multiple groups may have more barriers to a cabinet seat, Bima said, adding that some notable exceptions would be presidential spokesman Andi Malarangeng, sitting State Secretary Hatta Rajasa and Joko Syanto, deputy chairman for the president's re-election campaign.

He said Yudhoyono might also decide to adjust the composition of his cabinet. "There is small possibility that he will change the structure of his cabinet for his second term," Bima said. "However, he probably will increase the number of ministers from professional backgrounds."

Faisal Basri, an economist, said that in order to build a strong cabinet, Yudhoyono should not focus too much on representing as many groups as possible.

"Representing regions or particular groups is not relevant for building strong government," he said on Friday. "It may have some significance, but not all categories should be represented in the next cabinet. For regional representation, we already have House members to represent their constituents and regional legislative councils," he said.

Faisal said that the most important factor in cobbling together a cabinet was a clear five-year plan. "The main problem with previous ministries was the absence of direction," he said. "If the president put his dreams into a clear agenda and strategy, structuring of the cabinet would be easier. He only needs to find people who can hammer out his vision, rather than focusing on representation."

New House of Representatives: Don't get your hopes too high

Jakarta Globe - October 2, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran & Febriamy Hutapea – As the first legislators directly elected to the House of Representatives were sworn in on Thursday, a number of analysts have expressed doubts.

Most of these doubts center around the potential effectiveness of the new lawmakers, given their links to established political parties, blamed by many for repeated failures to tackle endemic corruption that has taken a heavy toll on the nation.

Furthermore, although more than 70 percent of the old lawmakers were rejected by their respective electorates, nearly 30 percent of these legislators remain in office. Their influence on the newer members does not look to be a positive one, given the House's recent unsatisfactory past.

Another area of concern, analysts warn, is the power of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party-led coalition in the House, casting doubt on its role as a check and balance mechanism of the central government, and not simply as a giant, expensive rubber stamp.

Voters made the most of the broom they were able to wield during April's legislative elections, sweeping 71 percent of the lawmakers from office and replacing them with fresh faces from a range of backgrounds.

Hopes that the new legislators would be able to bring change, however, are remote, analysts told the Jakarta Globe, with few likely to have any real clue with what was happening around them – particularly in the short-term.

Sulastio, the director of the Indonesia Parliamentary Center, said that most voters made their selections based on popularity. "[Voters] tended to neglect the capabilities or qualities of the candidates, about whether they know how to draft bills or not."

He said that with low voter awareness of the huge numbers of political parties and candidates, it was guaranteed that unqualified candidates were elected to the House, also known as the DPR.

A number of performing artists, including singers, actors and comedians (real ones), were elected to office, as were a number of faces linked to the families of powerful politicians, including the son and brother-in-law of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, among many others.

Sulastio, speaking generally, said he believed the novice politicians would need at least a year before they would be in a position to be able to do their jobs.

Among the members sworn in on Thursday, nearly one in three won reelection, a cause for concern in some quarters given the track record of the previous House, which had a reputation for corruption, absenteeism and a lack of professionalism.

"The new members will easily learn the bad habits of the old members, including falling asleep during meetings or not even turning up," said Andrinof Chaniago, a political expert from the University of Indonesia.

Andrinof said political parties had the responsibility of implementing rigorous regulations that members had to abide by.

"Political parties should train them to behave like lawmakers," he said. "The parties are responsible for changing their lawmakers' behavior so they will learn to be responsible."

Andinof was referring to the proclivity of most members of the House to avoid attending even the most important sessions convened to pass urgent legislation, and even getting other members to sign their names in the attendance book.

Corruption has been another major complaint, with a number of recent cases highlighting the depths of graft within the institution, which is perceived as one of Indonesia's most corrupt bodies.

Andrinof said that imposing strict rules for the new members was a must. "Meanwhile, since most of them have limited knowledge, there should be effort to enhance the support system," he said. "They should be provided with good expert staff to upgrade their knowledge."

The power of the Democratic Party and its ruling coalition also was a cause for concern among analysts, with many fearing that the House's theoretical function to check the power of the executive was being considerably weakened.

"The leading party that also heads the government will be allowed to manage which bills it prioritizes and which bills it delays, as it may be against their political interests," Sulastio said.

"The leading party, as we know, will also likely chair a number of House commissions. Moreover, it also has the support of its coalition parties and will ensure it is unbeatable," he said.

Four Islamic parties, namely the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), National Mandate Party (PAN), National Awakening Party (PKB) and United Development Party (PPP), have joined the coalition, with the Golkar Party expected to also join the fold.

Sulastio said the bloc would weaken the House's ability to supervise legislation and government budgeting. "The Democratic faction in the House will automatically decide based on the party's preference," he said.

"However, House members are public representatives. Being critical to the government is needed, instead of just nodding to all government policies. Without it, the House will be a total failure in carrying out the function of checks and balances."

The Democratic Party, however, rejected any suggestions that its dominance spelled the beginning of a return to the days under former strongman Suharto.

"The fears are too much," said Anas Urbaningrum, the head of the Democratic Party's faction in House. "It's impossible to return to the New Order era. The political configuration and spirit has been changed and civil society has developed."

House inaugurate new legislators Hollywood-style

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Jakarta – The cameras flashed away as the beautiful people posed on a red carpet, tailored suits for the men and glittery gowns for the women. Their perfume mingled in the air as they wave and smiled at the cameras.

This was no Hollywood premiere, but rather the inauguration ceremony of the 2009-2014 House of Representatives members – the same people who will be accountable for all laws passed in the next five years.

The legislators causing all the brouhaha during the ceremony at the House compound on Thursday were mostly celebrities.

Celebrities make up only 1 percent of the total 560 legislators, but managed to draw the most attention. Several have pledged to work hard to dispel doubts about their abilities.

"I don't think it's fair for the public to assume all we know is how to have fun and party," said comedian Eko Hendro Purnomo, from the National Mandate Party (PAN).

He added celebrities had higher integrity and were more competent than ordinary politicians. "No celebrity has ever been arrested by the KPK (Corruption Eradication Commission)," he said.

Eko added he would put his constituents' interests first. "If I'm forced to approve or disapprove a policy that doesn't benefit my constituents, then I will resign."

Actress Venna Melinda, from the Democratic Party, said she would focus on teachers' welfare. "With a salary of only Rp 50,000, how do we expect them to better teach kindergarten pupils?" she asked.

"They have to moonlight as ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers just to survive. So they've demanded greater attention, like teachers in Malaysia. I think that makes sense." Other legislators posed for pictures with their loved ones.

Zulkieflimansyah, from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), told The Jakarta Post he did not find it surprising that celebrity legislators had managed to draw all the attention, regardless of how few they were. (adh/hdt)

Legislature receives rotten end-of-term report card

Jakarta Globe - October 1, 2009

Emmy Fitri – In response to the simple question of how they would rate the performance of the 550 lawmakers who served the country over the past five years, political analysts and political novices alike immediately give the same response – a big thumbs down.

The 2004-09 batch of lawmakers that officially ended their terms on Wednesday has been little more than a cast of colorful characters in a five-year display of what many consider to be plain incompetence exacerbated by blatant corruption.

"They simply failed," said Sulastio, an analyst from nongovernmental organization Indonesian Parliamentary Center.

Rustiono M, a teacher at an East Jakarta high school, echoed his view. "Only a few of them really represented the people's interests," he said.

The House of Representatives has three main functions: to produce laws, to monitor the executive branch of government and to produce the state budget. In the wake of the post-1998 reform movement, the legislature should have shifted its role from being the New Order government's rubber stamp to a strong political power house that keeps the balance of power among the three branches of government in check.

But the legislators don't appear to have taken this new role seriously. Bickering and grandstanding, it seems, occupied most of the legislators' time, as more news stories on legislative scandals seemed to have been reported in the past five years than actual laws passed.

"The legislators mostly failed to achieve the legislation targets they set. I think they were overly confident when setting targets that they couldn't fulfil," Sulastio said.

The House has only managed to pass 193 bills of the targeted 284, or 68 percent. The failure to hit its target is even more disappointing given that the 2004-09 legislative period was allocated a significant increase in budget.

After the 2004 elections, the government, in an attempt to boost the quality of their work, set aside Rp 6.54 trillion ($680.2 million), or Rp 1.3 trillion more than the previous period – to boost the House's communications, expert staff and operations budget.

"Our legislators use more money from the state compared to legislators in the US and Australia who are allocated less than 1 percent of their respective state budgets. Here, their budget is nearly 2 percent," he said.

"We haven't even talked about the quality of the legislation that they gave us," Sulastio said. "The fact the public strongly reacted to some legislation, as shown in the number of laws brought by the public to be reviewed [in court], is proof that public participation is particularly low or nonexistent during the drafting process."

The 2004-09 House will be known for the number of challenges filed in the Constitutional Court against the laws it passed. The Legislative Election Law alone, for instance, has had 10 judicial review requests filed against it.

House Speaker Agung Laksono had set up a Work Improvement Team, a kind of resource and development center, which was expected to provide assessment and evaluation for the legislators.

But unlike in other countries, Sulastio said, the team did not function as expected, partly because members had to spend most of their time in legislation hearings.

"Isn't it sad that one legislator can sit on eight special committees? How could he work his utmost if he has to divide his time and energy in such a way," Sulastio said.

"With all the improvement and increased budget, we pinned so much hope on these legislators. But alas, they just didn't meet our expectations," he said. "Image wise, there is also nothing to be proud of as some members were implicated in graft cases," Sulastio said.

Indonesia Corruption Watch said around 40 House members have been implicated in graft cases, and most of them are from major parties, including the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Golkar Party and the National Mandate Party (PAN).

Rustiono, the high school teacher, said he believed he was not the only one disappointed with legislators' performance, which didn't match up with promises made during election campaigns.

"The corruption cases allegedly committed by the lawmakers are saddening. In addition, I rarely heard anything about defending of public interests," he said. "They were busy bickering when the government raised the fuel price, for instance. They tend to be reactive when it comes to high-profile cases."

Indria Samego, a political analyst from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), called for the drafting of clear guidelines for future lawmakers so the House could function more efficiently.

Legislators from the 2004-09 term "have taken the easiest path, involving themselves in practical politics to save their seats," he said. He added that, to be fair, the outgoing House had managed to contribute something to the development country's democracy.

"The poor performance of those legislators should be an eye opener for the public. Now they can see for themselves how the politicians they voted for in 1999 performed. They must be more careful and get better acquainted with candidates next time. In a way, it's a good political education for the public if media present a thorough look at" the legislators, he said.

Perhaps, that is why less than one-third of the House members have been re-elected to serve in the next legislature.

Indonesian legislature failed to meet own targets

Jakarta Globe - October 1, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea – In the end, the House of Representatives failed in its legislation-producing aims, even by its own, much- vaunted yardstick.

Although the House had set for itself an ambitious target by claiming that it would pass 70 percent of its 284 targeted bills, it ended the final day of its term having only passed 193, or just 68 percent.

Based on data from the Forum of Citizens Concerned about the Indonesian Legislature (Formappi), not all bills that were passed came from guidelines that prioritized bills in line with the people's needs, known as Prolegnas.

"Only 68 laws came from Prolegnas, or 35 percent," Formappi coordinator Sebastian Salang said.

The remainder were stealth bills, meaning they were proposed were different from what was agreed upon under Prolegnas. Worse, only 14 percent directly dealt with people's welfare. Those include the Hajj Pilgrimage Law, Disaster Law, Library Law, Tourism Law, Social Welfare Law, Transmigration Law, Narcotics Law, Health Law, and Teacher and University Lecturer Law.

Most of the legislation that was produced surrounds regional expansion. Sebastian said such bills became favorites because the process was easy – almost all concepts and content for them were the same – and gave benefits to the lawmakers politically and economically.

"The Prolegnas was ignored," Sebastian said, adding that this system of setting priority legislation was ineffective.

To sum up the House's performance, Sebastian said the House only managed 30 to 40 bills per year, less than its Prolegnas target of 50 to 60 bills per year.

"So, if we only count the substantial laws, the House only passed 92 bills over the past five years, or about 18 bills per year. DPR is still poor in performing its legislation role," Sebastian said.

The performance was, at least, marginally better than the previous DPR performance from 1999 to 2004, which completed 175 laws out of 300 on the Prolegnas agenda.

But Sebastian stressed that this was no comfort. "The House's commitment to fight for people's interest is doubtful. Its performance was further marred by bribery cases and a sex scandal," he said.

The Indonesian Parliamentary Center, on the other hand, said that with only 35 bills passed into law each year, each House committee only managed three laws per year, while there are at least 50 to 60 lawmakers in each committee.

This performance was not in line with the increase in legislation allowance. In 2007, the budget allocated to each bill (for research, food, legislators' allowances, hotel rooms) increased from Rp 560 million in 2005 to Rp 1.5 billion per bill.

"With the tripling of the budget, the legislation output should have also improved," said IPC researcher Hanafi.

He blamed the House's poor performance on the lack of formal deadlines. He said the House should set a regulation defining the ideal timeline of the legislation process, including the drafting process, discussion and endorsement.

House pushes through final two bills before rushing for the exit

Jakarta Globe - October 1, 2009

Febriamy Hutapea & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The House of Representatives ended its mandate on Wednesday much as it did on most days during its five-year term – with hundreds of empty seats and no sense of urgency.

On its final day of business before a new legislature is sworn in today, less than 264 lawmakers appeared in the House chamber, although remarkably enough, 347 signed the attendance record at the end of the session.

The 2004-09 term saw lawmakers pass 193 bills, the final two of which came during Wednesday's plenary session. They passed the fisheries bill, which mandates the establishment of special courts to combat illegal fishing in domestic waters, as well as the 2010 state budget bill.

Outgoing House Speaker Agung Laksono acknowledged that the public's eyes were on the legislature, with significant attention from the media, which over the past five years has often criticized the House's performance, image and ethics.

He did not mention the number of former and sitting lawmakers who were arrested for corruption under his watch. But Agung did say that he hoped that new internal House rules – set to take affect when lawmakers are inaugurated today – would lead to greater efficiency and accessibility.

"So the House can perform its role and duties as real representatives of the people," said Agung, who lost his seat in the April 9 legislative elections.

The House completed 27 bills in its last session, which began this year. These bills included: the Law on the People's Consultative Assembly, House of Representatives, Regional Representatives Council and Provincial Legislative Council; the Film Law; the Narcotics Law; and the Health Law.

On Tuesday, lawmakers also finally passed the Anti-Corruption Court Law after months of delays.

Although many sneered at the House's move to push through numerous bills during its final weeks, Agung said the faster pace showed the House was serious about lawmaking.

"We also kept an eye on quality and accuracy in each bill discussion, so that judicial review requests to the Constitutional Court could be minimized," Agung said, referring to challenges to multiple laws passed by lawmakers in recent months.

Agung blamed the legislative delays on the government's lack of participation in several working meetings with House committees and commissions.

Numerous pollsters, analysts and politicians have agreed that the House's performance over the past five years had been poor. A recent survey by the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) showed that the majority of respondents strongly opposed any salary raises for lawmakers.

Regardless of the criticism, Agung was reflective about life after serving in the House. "The feelings are mixed – happy and sad," he said, laughing.

Regional autonomy/separatism

Road to decentralization littered with hundreds of quashed bylaws

Jakarta Globe - October 7, 2009

Camelia Pasandaran – Hundreds of flawed local bylaws have been quashed by the central government since the country began the shift toward regional autonomy, the Ministry of Home Affairs disclosed on Monday.

The number of regional bylaws has significantly increased since regional autonomy was introduced in 2001 to increase local control over government and economic resources.

However, the central government has been examining the effectiveness of decentralization amid rising concerns about the impact of giving greater autonomy to regional authorities.

Saut Situmorang, a spokesman for the Home Affairs Ministry, said that out of the 7,500 bylaws issued from 2002 to 2009, more than 3,000 could end up being either revised or repealed. "One thousand and sixty-four have been repealed, while 1,199 are now in the process of being repealed," he said.

The central government evaluates regional bylaws affecting local budgets, taxation and land and space management before they come into effect, and many are revised or repealed because they conflict with existing laws or bylaws. The central government has repealed 121 regional bylaws this year.

Saut said the most common problem was a lack consistency with other laws. "We also repeal bylaws that are against the public interest and if they are incompatible with other bylaws," he said.

Indonesia now has 524 administrative regions, made up of provinces districts and municipalities, up from 309 prior to the shift to regional autonomy.

The government has poured enormous sums of money into the regions over the last five years in an attempt to equalize public services and encourage economic development across the country. But many officials now see decentralization as an obstacle to improving public welfare.

Siti Zuhro, a regional autonomy expert from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said her research indicated the high number of flawed bylaws was related to the redistribution of funding from local government tariffs.

"Local governments and the regional legislative councils [DPRDs] try to go around laws of higher legal standing to increase regional income because some of it has to be transferred to the central government," she said.

Zuhro said repealing flawed bylaws was not the solution. "What they should do to stop the problem is to teach local governments the correct procedures for drafting bylaws."

Jakarta/urban life

Fewer cars, more art, please: Jakartans have their say

Jakarta Post - October 7, 2009

Jakarta – On this day two years ago, Governor Fauzi Bowo and his running mate, retired army general Prijanto, were sworn into office after defeating rival Adang Daradjatun and his running mate, Dani Anwar.

Fauzi seized victory after serving the previous five years as deputy to then governor Sutiyoso, and more than 15 years in various posts in the city administration.

The mustachioed man, dubbed "the expert" during his campaign, promised his programs would focus on flood mitigation and traffic alleviation.

"I'm not yet aware [of any progress]," Sentha Setia, a passenger on a public bus who was on her way to Megaria in Central Jakarta, said Sunday. "Jakarta is still synonymous with traffic jams."

She was more optimistic about the flood-mitigation efforts, though, some of which are focused her home in Pedati, East Jakarta.

"I hope [the administration] finishes the East Flood Canal project soon," Sentha said. "They're still digging near my house."

The flood canal, proposed in a 1999 bylaw on city planning, is part of efforts to ease the constant flooding that takes a significant toll on the city's economy.

Last year, Prijanto said losses from flooding ranged from Rp 7 trillion to Rp 8 trillion (US$740,000 to $850,000) a year, vivanews.com reported. Fauzi has promised the project will be completed by the end of this year.

Darwin Silalahi, a tire patcher on Jl. Rasuna Said in South Jakarta, said he was not impressed with how the city had progressed under Fauzi's leadership.

"I live in Tanjung Priok [in North Jakarta], where there are lots of streets with potholes," he said. "During the rainy season, even a little rain causes flooding."

Darwin, who faces the constant threat of raids by public order officials, said Jakartans should establish a forum to voice their demands and improve the quality of the administration's services.

As for traffic jams, Darwin has his own solution. "We have to reduce the number of cars," he said.

Over at Kramat Jati Market in East Jakarta, roadside vendor Anton agrees. "The number of cars and motorcycles must be reduced if we want to ease the traffic jams," said Anton, who has traded in the area for more than 10 years now.

Last month, the market head announced to vendors selling their wares on the roadside that the streets around the market would be repaired, thus shutting out some of the vendors.

"The road [leading to the market] is more spacious now, because some of the roadside vendors have gone," said Martu'ah, who makes Rp 50,000 a day selling strawberries from West Java next to Anton's wife's underwear stall.

The remaining vendors now display their goods on plastic sheets, because they can no longer put up stalls. "We have to follow the rules to keep on trading. It's a shame that drivers had to endure the traffic jams," Martu'ah said.

When Popo, a mural artist, tried to express his support of the capital, traffic and all, he was betrayed by the city administration.

"I painted 'Jangan pucet lihat Jakarta macet' [Don't go pale upon seeing Jakarta's traffic jams] on the walls of the Dukuh Atas tunnel in Manggarai [in South Jakarta]," he said. "A day later, the administration, which had permitted me to do that, erased it."

Popo said he was just trying to explain the nature of the capital to newcomers. The city administration needs to get more in touch with the city's youth and artists, he said.

"There isn't any two-way communication [between the administration and artists]; they should consult artists about what they want and need," Popo said.

"My fellow artists and I celebrated Jakarta's founding anniversary our own way, by making art. We enjoyed it but sometimes we feel unappreciated. "The city's artistic and cultural activities should be taken more seriously," he added.

Much of the support for art events usually comes from private institutions, and not the city administration, said musician and graphic artist Saleh Husein.

"Sometimes organizations like Goethe [the Goethe Institut, the German cultural center] and the CCF [French Cultural Center] are more concerned [about our activities]," he said.

Saleh also pointed out the need for constant communication between the authorities and the city's artists. "[The administration] should consult young, emerging artists to enrich the city's art events," he said. Jakarta needs more, and bigger, art events, Saleh said.

This year, the Jakarta Art Biennale, organized by the administration-sponsored Jakarta Arts Council, attracted large crowds, some from overseas. But that was the only large event partly sponsored by the city last year, and it was not an annual one.

The Biennale organizer also complained that although the art event was the city's own program, the event organizer still had to pay taxes and go through the bureaucratic red tape for permits. "We should organize an event that can take over a whole street, such as Cikini [in Central Jakarta]," Saleh said. (dis)

Two years on, and Fauzi still has a lot left to do: Survey

Jakarta Post - October 6, 2009

Hasyim Widhiarto, Jakarta – Two years into the job, Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo still has to work extra hard to make good on his campaign promises, a discussion concluded Monday.

Husin Yazid, executive director of the Policy and Development Strategy Research Center (Puskaptis), said the city administration had to immediately consider increasing its budget allocation and efforts to promote its programs and policies, since most residents remained unfamiliar with them.

"Our latest survey found 21 percent of respondents couldn't judge the performance of the city administration simply because they had no knowledge about the administration's programs," he said.

The Puskaptis survey was conducted from Sept. 17 to 27, and involved 2,000 respondents from Jakarta's 44 subdistricts. It queried the public's satisfaction with the administration's performance over the past two years.

Fifty-one percent of respondents said they were satisfied with the performance of the city administration, while 28 percent were not. The survey also found a significant number of residents had no idea what their administration had been doing over the past two years.

University of Indonesia urban development expert Rudy Tambunan said the results of the survey were a reflection of the administration's failure to empower residents.

With a lack of dialogue between the administration and the public, Rudy said, it would be hard for the administration to urge the latter to support its programs or policies.

"Many urban problems, including floods and land subsidence, can actually be reduced gradually by changing the way people live," he said. "So it's important for [the administration] to build the capacity of its residents from now on."

In response, Achmad Harjadi, Fauzi's deputy for city planning and the environment, said the administration would consider the survey results and ensuing critiques in its efforts to improve its performance over the next few years.

Sworn in on Oct. 7, 2007, Fauzi and his running mate, retired Army general Prijanto, prioritized flood mitigation and traffic alleviation efforts.

While progress in the latter has hit a dead end following a series of failures to secure funding for projects like the monorail and mass rapid transit (MRT), the administration's attempts to control flooding have proven more successful.

Last week, the administration pledged to have the 23.5-kilometer East Canal Flood finished by the end of the year. Once completed, the Rp 4.5 trillion project should reduce flooding across a 270- square-kilometer flood plain straddling eastern and northern Jakarta.

Of the 18 public service sectors evaluated in the Puskaptis survey, nine, including education and civil registration, were praised by more than 60 percent of respondents.

Three sectors, related to services in local government hospitals, processing title deeds and applying for land and building permits, were at the bottom of the list, with less than 50 percent of respondents happy with them.

Living in Jakarta will likely drive you crazy, say experts

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Andra Wisnu, Jakarta – If you are easily upset or are considered passive in dealing with other people, then you might want to skip town, as experts denounce the city's stress levels as being "too high".

Dr. Ratna Mardiati, director of the Soeharto Heerdjan Mental Institution in Grogol, West Jakarta, says Jakarta's poor planning has inflicted a "high level" of stress on residents, contributing to the number of patients with mental disorders in the city.

"At this hospital, we get 80 to 100 people coming in to check their stress levels every day," Ratna said Thursday at a discussion on Jakarta's urban planning and its psychological impact.

"One to 3 percent of them show symptoms of severe mental illness." She added at least one out of every four of the capital's 9 million inhabitants is stressed out, while 14 percent have experienced mental disorders following untreated stress as of last year.

There were 1.4 million people treated for stress in community medical centers across the city in 2007, she went on, and this was expected to continue increasing every year.

Ratna blamed the high stress levels on the city's notoriously worsening traffic and annual floods, which in turn encouraged people to be aggressive and highly resilient.

She added such traits may be necessary in this environment, but pointed out the lack of rest could lead to decreases in productivity and life expectancy.

"There's no accurate data available on the suicide rate in Jakarta, but the number of bridges and tall buildings in the city does contribute to more people thinking about it," she said.

Furthermore, she went on, the city's lack of space contributed directly to mental disorders, because personal space was required in a social environment.

"I've seen cases where parents can't hide their sexual activities from their children, simply because they have nowhere else to do it but behind the curtains, for instance," she said. "And then the child sees it, and not knowing what to do, starts experimenting at a young age."

She said many aggressive Jakarta residents were suppressing their emotions, which tended to lead to other physiological and mental illnesses in the future.

Firdaus Cahyadi, from the Knowledge Sharing Office for Sustainable Development from One World Indonesia, an NGO that focuses on the country's social issues, agreed.

He said Jakarta faced multiple crises that continued to threaten the people's livelihoods, forcing many to work harder to secure a stable future or move to the city's fringes, where commuting became a struggle all its own.

The crises, he went on, included increasingly high chance of floods, high levels of urbanization and traffic, and lack of clean air.

Water runoff reached 70 percent in 2007, up from 53 percent in 1990, thereby increasing the chance of flooding. Urbanization, meanwhile, sees an estimated 200,000 to 250,000 people flood into the capital every year, contributing to rising competition.

Economic losses from managing the city's pollution by nitrogen oxide and sulfuric oxide has been estimated at Rp 132.7 billion (US$13.8 million) and Rp 4.3 trillion, while the loss of productivity from high traffic cost an estimated Rp 5.5 trillion in 2005.

"With numbers like these, it's easy to see how the city's residents get so easily stressed out," Firdaus said.

Armed forces/defense

SBY urges TNI to accelerate transfer of businesses to government

Jakarta Globe - October 5, 2009

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The country's military got a party pooper of a birthday present on Monday – a reminder from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono that it must phase out its raft of lucrative businesses once and for all.

Yudhoyono made the comments during a low-key celebration of the 64th anniversary of the Armed Forces. The festivities were conspicuously devoid of the noisy parades and aircraft flyovers that have marked celebrations in the past.

Military spokesman Air Vice Marshall Sagom Tamboen said the event was kept simple as a show of respect and sympathy for victims of the West Sumatra earthquake, which left hundreds of people dead and thousands more homeless. He made his remarks at the military's headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta.

Yudhoyono said reforms for the military, also known as the TNI, dictated that its era of profit-oriented businesses was over.

"The TNI must conduct the transfer of its businesses. It is aimed at improving the military's professionalism in executing its task to guard the nation's sovereignty," Yudhoyono said. Yudhoyono also said a new decree was ready to be issued soon to regulate the transfer of those businesses to the government, but he did not release further details.

In the future, he said, all of the military's "business units would be regulated under the decree."

The House of Representatives passed a law in 2004 requiring that the government take over all military-run businesses by 2009.

A team tasked with verifying the military's business interests, led by former Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) member Erry Riyana Hardjapamekas, last year said that an audit of 1,098 military cooperatives and 23 foundations found they were worth a total of Rp 3.4 trillion ($357 million). The TNI also has real estate holdings that include 25,000 hectares of land, malls, hotels and office buildings.

Yudhoyono also urged the military to continue its commitment to reforms that began 10 years ago after the fall of former President Suharto. Yudhoyono said that over the last decade, he had witnessed evidence of the military's commitment to democracy, the rule of law and human rights.

"The TNI is developing to become more professional, highly dedicated soldiers. What has been achieved should continue to be implemented and completed," Yudhoyono said.

He also ordered the military to advance its reform agenda and to maintain the progress it had already made.

The president also said the government would support the TNI's professional development, citing a 30 percent increase in the military's budget for 2010. He pledged to continue increasing that budget in the coming years "for the military to speed up reform," Yudhoyono said.

The president also called on the TNI to continue its support of police counterterrorism efforts. "The military must cooperate with police and contribute to the handling of terrorism," Yudhoyono said.

Nearly 2,000 soldiers attended the ceremony, along with top government officials such as Vice President Jusuf Kalla and Taufik Kiemas, the newly elected chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly.

Indonesian armed forces 'still in need of real reform'

Jakarta Globe - October 4, 2009

As Indonesia's military celebrates its 64th anniversary today, human rights activists are urging it to pursue the reforms introduced following the fall of strongman Suharto in 1998.

"We are calling on the military to reform itself as mandated by the law," Haris Azhar, deputy chairman of the Commission for Disappearances and Victims of Violence, said on Sunday.

According to Kontras, a human rights group established by the late Munir Said Thalib, the military has dragged its feet on reform, particularly of the military justice system, the relinquishing of its business interests and the revamping of its territorial structure.

Military law number 34-2004 mandates that Indonesia have a military tribunal law by the end of 2009. No action, however, has been taken to that end. "The existing military justice is full of impunity for perpetrators," Haris said.

The recently dissolved House of Representatives had planned to endorse a military tribunal law by the end of September, but disagreement between the House and the military over who should question military personnel charged with civilian crimes stalled the deliberations.

Lawmakers in the House had insisted that military personnel accused of civilian crimes be questioned by police and tried in civilian courts. The military wanted military investigators to question them. It is still unclear if the new House would continue deliberating the bill.

Military personnel accused of civilian crimes are now tried in military tribunals that are notoriously lenient. Many critics say the military courts are merely used to placate the public rather than uphold justice.

Also troubling to Haris are the military's many business interests. Under law number 3-2002, the military was to transfer its businesses to the government by September 2009, but nothing has happened.

The military, which runs thousands of businesses in fields as diverse as aviation, finance, logging, agriculture, retail, and travel, has justified its involvement in business by saying that its annual budget is inadequate. Critics respond that its business revenue has not benefited lower-income personnel.

Haris also urged the military to abandon its long-standing territorial structure, which led to severe human rights violations under Suharto.

"Our military still considers the populace at large as a threat, justifying the formation of territorial structure from the provincial to the district level. That is unnecessary," he said.

However, Haris primarily blames the inaction of the civilian leadership for the military's failure to reform. "The unfinished reforms are due to the absence of political will on the part of the government... to pursue the reforms," Haris said.

Police/law enforcement

Seven years on, some are indifferent, some are grateful

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Bekasi – It has been seven years since community policing was adopted in Bekasi, but the concept has yet to penetrate the lives of all residents there.

The negative image the public has of the police force seems to be one of the reasons for the reluctance.

In addition, those living illegally, slums dwellers in particular, have not been involved in the Bekasi Police's target for community policing, leaving them to fester in crime-ridden neighborhoods.

"What? I've never heard about that," Hasan, an ojek (motorcycle taxi) driver said when asked if he knew about the community policing concept.

Hasan is not a Bekasi native. He is from Purwakarta in West Java. "I came here in 2002," he tells The Jakarta Post at his pool near the Metropolitan Mall.

The 35-year-old, with a wife and son, lives in a shack near Kalimalang in Bekasi. He says he has not yet applied for a Bekasi ID card and family card because he is not up to dealing with the bureaucracy and the possibility of having to pay bribes.

Spread over 210.49 square kilometers, the city of Bekasi is home to a huge number of people who, like Hasan, do not have a Bekasi ID card.

The Central Statistic Agency's (BPS) West Java chapter said in 2006 that 837,516 people living in Bekasi regency were unregistered, compared to the 1.9 million registered residents.

This figure directly impacts on the community policing program, which is designed for residents with valid Bekasi ID cards. There are three Public and Police Partnership (BKPM) posts in Bekasi, with 11 more in the pipeline, but none is located near or in the slums.

Bekasi Police chief Sr. Comr. Mas Guntur Laupe says the Bekasi administration is responsible for non-Bekasi residents. "They live illegally in Bekasi, so we can't treat them the same as legal inhabitants," he says.

The police may argue about the lack of knowledge about community policing among illegal residents, but they also face the fact that many legal inhabitants also remain pessimistic and apathetic, despite knowing about the partnership concept.

It is the police's bad image that has caused many people to be reluctant to get involved in any police-related activities, including community policing, the public says.

A study last April by the University of Indonesia (UI), featuring 400 respondents from Depok and Bekasi, showed the basic problem behind the public's reluctance cut the police a little slack was the consistently poor service received at the investigation unit.

"For instance, the public has no idea how to check on whether the police have followed up on their reports," says UI criminologist Kemal Dermawan. "Plus, the police also lack the initiative to announce how cases are progressing, either because they feel they don't have to or because they fear it would tarnish their image."

Desi, 21, a Bekasi resident, echoes the findings in the UI survey. "Yes, I've heard about the BKPM and community policing, but I haven't seen the benefits of it yet," the resident of Kaliabang, Bekasi, tells the Post.

She adds she never feels comfortable dealing with the police, whatever the form of the activity. Desi claims to live in a safe and secure neighborhood, but says that has not nothing to do with community policing.

Heru Makdir, from the BKPM Pondok Ungu, admits not all residents in the neighborhood are thrilled about community policing. "Some are grateful to be involved in the activity, but most of the others show no response," he says.

However, he says, the program has gotten past its growing pains.

"In the early years, people were totally indifferent about us," he says. "But now, as you can see, many residents come to our post even if it's only for a chat or to hang around."

Local resident Ramlan says the crime rate in the neighborhood has dropped significantly since the BKPM was set up.

"There used to be a lot of motorcycle thefts and drunken gamblers who got rowdy here," he says. "Not anymore, though." (bbs)

Nationalism & chauvinism

Police warn vigilantes planning to invade Malaysia

Jakarta Globe - October 7, 2009

Farouk Arnaz – National Police on Tuesday warned they would take firm action against a group of Indonesians who were apparently putting the final touches to a plan to invade Malaysia and wage war, a police spokesman told the Jakarta Globe.

People's Democratic Defense, or Bendera, had announced that Oct. 8 was their D-Day to avenge all the wrongs committed against Indonesia by its neighbor.

Established during this year's presidential election, the group has attracted public attention with protests calling on Indonesians to "kill Malaysians."

Last month, the group set up roadblocks in Menteng, Central Jakarta, in an failed attempt to detain Malaysian citizens.

"We will certainly take firm action if we find they have violated any laws, such as carrying sharp weapons," National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Nanan Soekarna said, adding that any dispute should be resolved rationally.

According to Mustar Bona Ventura, the group's coordinator, the group's anti-Malaysian stance was not motivated solely by claims that the neighboring country had stolen Indonesia's culture like Balinese pendet dance, batik and food.

Mustar said that ownership claims of Indonesian islands, the abusive treatment of migrant workers and an insulting rewrite of Indonesia's national anthem sparked the group's reaction.

Mustar said Bendera had already recruited more than 1,200 members and expects to sign up at least 300 more. The group said it recruited 600 volunteers in Greater Jakarta alone.

On Oct. 8, they have planned for 1,500 Bendera troops to leave for Malaysia by air, land and sea, he said, refusing to elaborate further.

The group also plans to deploy a second batch of troops at a later stage, he said, adding that Bendera would work with Indonesian migrant workers and students in Malaysia to help boost its numbers.

TNI, young activists told to fight for nationalism

Jakarta Post - October 3, 2009

Jakarta – Young activists are urged to join forces with the Indonesian Military (TNI) to fight for nationalism as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration is considered as too accommodating for foreign interests, a discussion was told Friday.

Haris Rusly from the National Forum for Indonesian Youths (FKPI) said Yudhoyono "do not protect our national interests". He pointed to the dispute over Ambalat maritime territory and the spawn of foreign investments in Indonesia as examples.

"The president is too weak in handling issues related to foreign countries but failed to take actions in cases such as the Century Bank fiasco," he said. Haris said young activists and the younger generation of the military once faced each other prior to the reform era in the 1990s but now he said both sides should unite against practices against nationalist values.

Meanwhile, Permadi of the Greater Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra), agreed with Harry.

"The president deliberately weakened TNI at the same time strengthened the police," he said. "He did that because the police is under his direct control."

Permadi said that National Police chief Gen. Bambang Danuri was chosen to the post because Bambang was "easy to control". Permadi said that he would asked his party to struggle for the change of the Police Law.

"I believe that the police should not be under the President control. It should be under the Justice and Human Right Ministry or the Home Ministry. I would ask my party to fight for the change," he said.

The TNI has undergone an internal reform by placing the TNI chief under the supervision of the defense minister to uphold civilian supremacy over the military. The internal reform also saw the military leaving its roles in internal security focusing mainly on defense roles only.

Also speaking at the discussion was former Army chief of staff Tyasno Sudarto.

"The military should not let itself continuously being weakened," he said. "The military should be brave to speak out because it is also part of the society."

Boni Hargens, a political observer from the University of Indonesia, said that he agreed with the strong communication between TNI and young activists. "However, I also believe that there must be civilian supremacy in this country," he said.

Boni believes that TNI could move to be more professional once civilian government manage itself better. "That should be our goal," he said. (mrs)

Economy & investment

Rupiah reaches one-year high as foreign investment increases

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

The rupiah strengthened to its highest level in a year on Tuesday, as the country's strong economic prospects and comparatively high interest rates boosted foreign investment.

It rose 1.2 percent to 9,437 to the US dollar as of the stock market's close and briefly touched 9,428, the highest level since Oct. 3, 2008, at the onset of the economic crisis, said Bloomberg. The rupiah has risen 15.5 percent this year, making it the best performer among Asia's 10 most-traded currencies.

Johanna Chua, a Singapore-based Citigroup economist, said Indonesia's strong economic fundamentals, including attractive interest rates and improved credit rating, were behind the rally.

On Monday, Bank Indonesia's held its key interest rate steady at 6.5 percent, the highest among Asia's 10 largest economies. The bank also raised its 2009 growth forecast to between 4 percent and 4.5 percent, from 3.5 percent to 4 percent, saying a global recovery would help the country's exports rebound.

Budi Mulya, a central bank deputy governor, has said that an upgrade in the country's sovereign risk rating by Moody's Investor Service in September had also helped increase capital inflows.

However, Helmi Arman, an economist at PT Bank Danamon, warned that much of the foreign investment was short-term and could easily be reversed by another downturn in the global economy, creating volatility in the domestic stock market and the rupiah.

"It's important to note that the rupiah's strengthening over the past month appears to have been spurred substantially by portfolio capital inflows," he said. "We think this could mean that the local currency's appreciation may be accompanied by an increase in potential volatility."

A stronger currency directly benefits importers but lowers returns for exporters. However, neither exporters nor importers like high currency volatility because of the uncertainty it brings to their earnings.

Indonesian government spending lagging behind 2009 goal

Jakarta Globe - October 6, 2009

Dion Bisara & Muhamad Al Azhari – Sluggish government spending is giving rise to fears that the country will fail to meet the projected 2009 growth target of 4.3 percent.

Herry Purnomo, director general of the treasury at the Ministry of Finance, on Tuesday said the budget deficit was running dramatically lower than expected as of the end of September.

"Deficit realization up to September 30 stood at Rp 33.23 trillion, compared with the targeted [deficit of] Rp 129.8 trillion [for 2009]," he said.

While a lower budget deficit is normally to be welcomed, it reflects sluggish government spending on projects intended to stimulate the economy, putting the country's growth target in jeopardy.

Government spending this year is targeted at Rp 1,000.84 trillion ($106 billion) under the 2009 budget revisions adopted in August, while total government receipts are projected at Rp 870.99 trillion.

Harry Azhar Azis, deputy chairman of the House of Representatives' budget committee, said he was concerned that the deficit would not even exceed 50 percent of the yearly target if the slow rate of spending continued.

"The good thing is that our debt stock can be reduced. But I'm more worried about projects that are financed by the deficit. As we do not apply a multi-year financing system, these projects could grind to a halt by the end of the year," he said. "This could disrupt the momentum of recovery, although I can't say by exactly how much as yet."

Juniman, an economist at PT Bank Internasional Indonesia, said the country was unlikely to experience a significant multiplier effect from government spending this year, although he said he expected the deficit to reach Rp 100 trillion.

"It's a bad habit, but as we know government spending usually only accelerates in the fourth quarter. At least Rp 100 trillion will likely be spent. But as this is below target, the multiplier effect will only become noticeable next year," he said.

The House approved a higher deficit of 2.4 percent of GDP in the revised budget, up from 1 percent in the original spending plan, partly to finance the government's Rp 73.3 trillion fiscal stimulus package.

Bambang Priambodo, director of macroeconomic planning at the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas), said the slow spending was an indicator of the problems affecting state institutions.

Meanwhile, the government has been doing well on the financing side, especially regarding proceeds from bond sales. At the end of September, the government had sold Rp 85.546 trillion worth of bonds, 86.19 percent of this year's target of Rp 99.256 trillion, Herry said.

Inflation accelerates, exports improve

Jakarta Post - October 2, 2009

Aditya Suharmoko – Prices accelerated in September due to higher demand in the fasting month and Idul Fitri holiday, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), prompting predictions that the central bank will maintain its benchmark rate.

Also on Thursday, BPS announced that August's exports had reached US$10.55 billion, surpassing $10 billion for the first time since October last year, as Indonesia's major trading partners experienced economic recovery.

September saw an inflation of 1.05 percent from a month earlier, BPS head Rusman Heriawan said in a press conference Thursday. "Nearing the Idul Fitri holiday, prices showed an increasing trend."

Year-on-year inflation in September rose 2.83 percent from a year earlier. In the first nine months this year, inflation reached 2.28 percent. BI senior deputy governor Darmin Nasution said full-year inflation this year will likely be less than 4 percent.

Eric Sugandi, an economist at Standard Chartered Bank, said inflation was still within a moderate level, and BI would hold its rate at 6.5 percent to help spur growth.

"My opinion is that 6.5 percent is already the right level for the BI rate, given that the central bank should now pay more attention to accelerating inflation. "With respect to the interest rate, what economy now needs is accelerating credit expansion by commercial banks."

He added another BI rate cut this year would not be effective in bringing lending interest rates down due to several factors, including the high risk premium charged by banks to borrowers; the relatively high cost of funds for the overall banking industry; and the still profitable move by banks in placing their money in government bonds.

Fourteen major banks have agreed to lower deposit rates to as much as 150 basis points above the BI rate, and further cut the rates to 50 points above the BI rate three months from Aug. 20.

Eric said bank lending growth would improve in the coming months, although it would be much lower than last year as banks' concern over the economic slowdown has eased, meaning they can start lowering the risk premium charged to borrowers.

City analyst Johanna Chua said BI would likely keep its rate at 6.5 percent when the board of governors met Monday, adding that Indonesia would see the first BI rate hike in the second quarter of 2010. Eric said BI would raise its rate up to 7.5 percent next year.

August's exports rose 8.89 percent from a month earlier, despite continuing to suffer a 15.41 percent decline on a year-to-year basis. "Exports will likely continue improving in the next four months," Rusman said.

The report also shows that Indonesia had a trade surplus of $1.25 billion in August, after importing $9.3 billion in goods and services.

Analysis & opinion

Indonesia cut from a different cloth

Asia Times - October 3, 2009

Sara Schonhardtm Jakarta – Similarities in culture, language and religious customs should make Indonesia and Malaysia good neighbors. But long-running spats over everything from territorial boundaries to cultural ownership of culinary dishes, dances, instruments and even Malaysia's national anthem have over the years hampered ties.

The staking of claims over each other's culture came to a colorful head this Friday when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recognized batik, a wax-resistant dyeing technique, as part of Indonesia's distinct cultural heritage. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called for a party to celebrate the announcement and asked all Indonesians to wear their best batik garbs.

The Indonesian government expects UNESCO's recognition to add a measure of protection to batik, despite the lack of any legally binding measures. By claiming the recognition, Indonesia agrees to take measures to promote and safeguard the tradition of batik-making, though the distinction does not impose any intellectual property rights over the technique. But it will nonetheless likely come as a snub to Malaysia, which also claims cultural ownership over the patterning method.

Batik is a way of hand-painting wax lines on cloth that is then dyed, explained designer and collector Josephine "Obin" Komara, who has collected batik clothes since the 1970s. "If you're talking about batik made in that way, it is only in Indonesia."

The motifs and colors on the cloth mean different things to different cultures. Indonesian batik typically incorporates folklore and flowers, also a common element in Malaysian batik, given their cultural similarities. In the past, patterns have also reflected one's social status. At present, Indonesia's 240 million people typically wear Western fashions, with batik worn more by government employees or for formal occasions.

A similar cultural flareup between Malaysia and Indonesia broke out in 2007 over the use of an Indonesian folk song, "Rasa Sayange", in a Malaysian tourism advertisement. That dispute sparked a resurgent nationalism among Indonesians, driving a newfound embrace for cultural items such as batik, and moving designers such as Edward Hutabarat to embark on a batik revival that saw a spike in local sales of the fabric.

The revival also saw synthetic batik flood in from China. Although definitions of batik now include cloth that is patterned using a machine, traditional batik is handmade, unlike the mass- market cloth Indonesia imports. With more synthetic batik on the market, vendors at Tanah Abang, Jakarta's largest textile market, have found they could only compete by producing their own machine-made batik, which they also sell to buyers in Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia.

Hera, a 30-year-old vendor wearing a sparkly black t-shirt and jeans, said she doesn't believe cultural protection of batik will do much to boost sales. "Business has been slow," she said. "Protection will only matter if people start buying."

Some designers say UNESCO's recognition comes too late to give Indonesia a market advantage in commercializing the tradition. "Indonesia has been really careless about claiming its heritage," said Sanchia Hamidjaja, 26, who designs leather bags with a trim and lining made from a rare and vibrant hand-drawn batik whose origins are ironically Chinese.

One man in a run-down section of Tanah Abang market believes the problem is not about batik, but rather stems from a lack of government support. "The government just doesn't protect small businesses," he said, explaining that while safeguarding batik is important, it won't help small businesses compete in an increasingly crowded market.

Sibling rivalry

Nor will it do much for regional goodwill. Politicians and academics often compare the relationship between Malaysia and Indonesia to that of two brothers always fighting over possessions. Since the batik spat began in August, Malaysia has claimed a host of shared cultural traditions as its own, including gamelan, a percussion instrument, and laksa, a spicy noodle soup.

These came in addition to the pendet, an Indonesian Balinese dance that sparked a dispute when it appeared in a promotional video for Malaysian tourism aired by the US-based Discovery Channel. "This was the last straw," said Yuli Ismartano, editor of Tempo Interaktif, a weekly news magazine. She said because of the Hindu traditions that make Bali so culturally distinct there was no mistaking that the dance originated in Malaysia. But the origins of many other art forms found throughout Southeast Asia, including batik, are more difficult to pinpoint.

The latest dispute over batik has provoked a spate of harsh newspaper editorials in Indonesia, setting off local protests. In early September, a group named the People's Democracy Defense set up identification checkpoints outside the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta in an effort to screen for Malaysians, though what they would have done to them is unclear because they showed up empty handed. Members of the same group also have launched "sweeps" against the roughly 10,000 Malaysians now living, studying or working in Indonesia.

Indonesians and Malaysians can be fiercely nationalistic when comes to the other. During the 1960s, independence hero and then Indonesian president Sukarno's ultra-nationalism resulted in a campaign of Konfrontasi, or undeclared war with Malaysia, over the then-contested, now split, territory of Borneo. That led to the famous declaration "Ganyang Malaysia" ("Crush Malaysia"), which has appeared on protest banners over the past month near certain government offices.

For their part, many Malaysians tend to look down their noses at Indonesians as poorer and less sophisticated. The bilateral issue important to many Malaysians concerns migrant labor and minimum wage laws for Indonesians, who are valued as an abundant and cheap work source who understands the local language, Bahasa.

On points of contention between the two countries, Ibrahim Suffin, program director at the Merdeka Center, an opinion research firm based in Kuala Lumpur, said Malaysia has taken a more "capitalistic" view. Indonesia has take a more nationalistic one, driving grassroots support for cultural ownership of batik, said Chitra Aziza Subiyakto, a creative buyer at Alun Alun, a Jakarta department store that sells Indonesian cultural products.

Activists and collectors say UNESCO designation will improve international recognition and help educate Indonesian consumers about the need to preserve the country's heritage. "We can't deny globalization and the fact that there is a segment in the market that is always branded," said Tina Sutanto, marketing head for Alun Alun. She calls the UN's recognition "shock therapy" and hopes it will help revive the batik-making industry.

According to an estimate by Indonesia's Industry Ministry, foreign-made batik accounted for 10%, or Rp 290 billion (US$31 million) of the Rp2.9 trillion domestic market in 2008. At places like Alun Alun, local batik retails from anywhere between Rp200,000 and Rp2 million, compared to imported batik from China, which sells for about half that price.

Improving preservation efforts, education and respect is the main purpose of UNESCO's so-called Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which it defines as the "practices, expressions, knowledge and skills, that communities... recognize as part of their cultural heritage." But UNESCO designation is merely a tool to ensure that states take action to protect these traditions from disappearing, said Masanori Nagaoka, program specialist for culture at Jakarta's UNESCO office.

However, it neither puts a patent on batik's production nor grants intellectual property right protection, Nagaoka said, explaining diplomatically that UNESCO's acceptance of Indonesia's application for recognition does not involve a discussion about the relationship between Indonesian and Malaysian batik.

Despite claiming batik as part of its cultural tradition, Malaysia has not submitted its own bid to UNESCO for the technique. Of the 90 items on the UN's intangible cultural heritage list, Indonesia has three – batik, wayang kulit (shadow puppet theater) and the kris, a traditional dagger. Malaysia, which has not ratified the convention, has so far only submitted a bid for Mak Yong Theater, an ancient form of theater that incorporates ritual dancing and acting.

Unlike the heated discussions circulating in Indonesia, the batik issue has not run as hot in Malaysia. Even more economically substantive territorial disputes, such as the rights to the oil- rich region of Ambalat, which both Malaysia and Indonesia claim, are seldom talked about in Malaysia, said the Merdeka Center's Ibrahim.

"The average person doesn't see Indonesia as a threat, and he recognizes that the two countries have many commonalities and shared traditions," said Ibrahim. "Malaysians don't understand why Indonesia is so sensitive about its culture."

A September 9 newspaper editorial written by Malaysian Jamal Ibrahim argued that Malaysia's comparatively higher economic progress has sparked insecurity in Indonesia. Although Malaysia is geographically a third of the size of Indonesia, which spans 17,000 islands, its gross domestic product per capita of nearly US$14,500 is four times larger than Indonesia's.

Indonesian analysts, meanwhile, say that it's their country's poor ability to market its cultural heritage that contributes to its economic underperformance. When it comes to world heritage sites, the UN body likes to use the threat of delisting as an incentive to get governments to temper development plans in favor of preservation.

Whether UNESCO recognition of Indonesian batik acts as incentive for Indonesians to more fully embrace and protect their traditions is unclear. UNESCO, of course, has no authority to ensure that batik and its heritage is protected. But that doesn't matter to people like batik collector Obin. "It makes up what Indonesia is," she said. "Not claiming it would be like disowning your mother."

[Sara Schonhardt is a freelance writer based in Jakarta, Indonesia. She has lived and worked in Southeast Asia for six years and has a master's degree in international affairs from Columbia University.]

Don't hang our hopes too high on the new legislators

Jakarta Post - October 1, 2009

Pandaya, Jakarta – Their main job has been to make laws but while they were doing it the House of Representatives legislators often stirred bitter controversies that ended up with the new law landing at the Constitutional Court for review, sometimes in a matter of weeks after endorsement.

When they were supposed to assemble to endorse a bill, very few would turn up, although more than half of the whole membership of the House would have signed up for the plenary meeting. And when it came to corruption, they stood out as major offenders among graft perpetrators.

Controversial legislative products, laziness and corruption have brought the 2004 – 2009 lawmakers' reputation so low that their legacy will no doubt heavily burden their 2009 – 2014 sucessors for the rest of their term.

Transparency Intrernational-Indonesia has ranked the House of Representatives as the most corrupt institution in its 2009 Corruption Perception Index, followed by political parties and then law enforcement institutions such as the police, courts and public services.

They managed to finish barely 190 of the 284 high priority bills that they were assigned under the Prolegnas (National Legislation Project). At the very end of their term, the lawmakers were toiling to finish more than a dozen bills in a back-breaking bid to reduce the shortfall.

This performance has given the outgoing legislators bad marks from pollsters. Indo Barometer, for example, found that only 51 percent of respondents rated the House's achievement as satisfactory compared to 90 percent for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. A recent survey by Kompas gave a much lower rate, at less than 33 percent.

There seems little hope for better performance from the incoming legislators, who comprise people with the same profiles: academics, businessmen, artists, professionals, with 90 percent having college diplomas. Some have totally unproven records but then they have close ties with, or are relatives of, powerful political figures.

A fundamental weakness lies in the the corrupt candidate selection process, which heavily relies on the candidate's popularity and financial clout rather than on actual competence.

Lest we forget this good example, in the April legislative election the public made fun of the National Mandate Party by twisting its hugely popular acronym PAN into "Partai Artis Nasional" (National Artists Party) when it recruited more than 30 celebrities who had no known political track record, as party candidates.

This year's legislative elections became a free market for political adventurers. Money along with cronyism remained a key factor that determined a candidate's opportunity to win a seat. Some candidates publicly admitted they had spent billions of their hard-earned cash buying their political credentials.

Some became "mentally unbalanced" after they lost the election. Other losers did not mind embarassing themselves by trying to literally dismantle the road project they had funded or reclaiming the praying mats they had given out in exchange for votes.

If candidates are eventually elected in these circumstances, the first thing that may come to their mind is how, within the five years of their term, to recoup the huge sum of money they spent treating people in their electoral districts and to help party leaders to get elected.

Many have become power brokers or middlemen in development projects in their constituencies, as the Corruption Court has heard from numerous trials.

The corrupt recruitment system breeds corrupt practices as revealed, again, in graft trials of legislators involved in instances of power brokerage and collusion with businesspeople in development projects.

The House of Representatives' decision-making process is another stumbling block. In most cases, votes are counted on a factional rather than individual basis. This does not encourage individual legislators to have ideas different from those of the political party they represent.

This system explains why legislators' voices become irrelevant to the aspirations of the people that they are supposed to represent, so they simply become the mouthpiece of the political party they are affiliated to.

The lack of attatchment to their constituents makes legislators strangers to the people. So what happened the other day was that when the public wanted to see an all-out battle against corruption, the lawmakers were busy attempting to curtail the key powers of KPK. When people were desperate for employment, lawmakers insisted that what they needed was better morality. So they made the pornography law.

Legislators become loyal to their political parties more than to their constituents because those who dare to step out of line risk punitive action, although the laws protect them from being recalled.

That the major parties, Golkar and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) plan to join the Yudhoyono's coalition government is another good reason to worry about the performance of the next House.

If every political party joins the government, (regardless of who wins elections) then who else is going to control the government?

The best we can expect is a clumsy, superficial "opposition" because everybody in the Parliament is the President's friend. Activists, academics, the media and the public will have to join forces to control the government.

Questioning stoning to death as a punishment for adultery

Jakarta Post - October 1, 2009

Nurrohman, Bandung – Allowing adulterers to be stoned to death is not just improper but is generally perceived as uncivilized nowadays. Stoning is neither in line with the Indonesian legal system, nor with the spirit of how the Prophet Muhammad dealt with adulterers.

During the time of the Prophet, an adulterer came to the Prophet and confessed he had committed adultery and asked to be punished by death. The Prophet turned his head and refused to listen.

Since the act of adultery had been accomplished in secret, and thus public order and morality had not suffered, the matter concerned only the culprit, who, for his soul and conscience, had simply to beg the Lord's forgiveness.

The man, however, earnestly renewed his confession and his request, so as to prove his sincerity toward God and to deter others from committing the same sin; and again, the prophet turned his head.

The same thing happened for the third time, but when the culprit repeated his words a fourth time, the prophet asked him if he had become insane, or had really admitted to being guilty of the deed.

First by refusing to listen, then by questioning the fact, the prophet prompted him to retract his request, but the man insisted so, that, in the end his demand had to be met.

At the moment of execution, however, the man regretted his declaration of guilt and ran away; the punishment squad ran after him and killed him.

The Prophet then pronounced his famous sentence: "would that you had left him alive: he would have repented, and God would have been merciful to him."

This story indicates that, at the time of the Prophet, a sinful act like adultery, if conducted in secret, could be categorized as a private matter. Thus violators were encouraged to repent and ask God for forgiveness.

It also indicates that punishment, in the case of adultery, of one hundred lashes for unmarried people or stoning to death for a married person, is optional and can be changed to another form of punishment. As part of the unitary system of Indonesia, local regulations in Aceh should not contradict higher law.

It is right that many Muslims, not only in Aceh but also in other part of Indonesia, still uphold the conservative understanding of sharia law (fiqh). A survey conducted by the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) in 2006 with 2000 respondents from various backgrounds showed that 45 percent of them agreed that adultery should be punished by stoning to death (rajam).

Supporters of this kind of punishment often argue that rajam is God's law and, therefore, it must be better than human law. This argument has at least two weaknesses. First, stoning is not directly mentioned in the Koran; there is no single verse in the Koran that speaks of stoning as a form of punishment.

Second, not all punishments mentioned in the Koran were supposed to be applied textually, literally and eternally. There were many kinds of Islamic teaching that were adopted from local, or Arabic, culture at that time.

Mahmoud Mohamed Taha, in his book The Second Message of Islam, among others, said that jihad in the sense of war, slavery, discrimination between men and women, polygamy, divorce and hijab (segregation of men and women) was not genuine Islamic teaching.

Fazlur Rahman, a noted scholar from Pakistan who has significant influence on Indonesian scholars such as Nurcholish Madjid and Syafii Ma'arif, never said the Koran was entirely the word of God, but that it was wholly the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad.

The Koran was a divine response, through the memory and the mind of the Prophet toward the Arab socio-moral situation at that time, especially the problems of Mecca as a trading society. Therefore, the spirit of the Koran is the moral spirit, which stresses monotheism and social justice.

Moral norms are eternal, that is what is called God's laws (hukum Allah). "The eternity of the Koran's specific legal content was laid on its moral principles not in literally wordily norms," Rahman added.

Many Muslims do not realize that respecting human rights is the basic principle of Islamic teaching.

George Maqdisi, in his book The Rise of Humanism in Islam said: Islamic civilization arose out of the notion of the urgency of respecting humanity and humanism, a notion that believes in human dignity as natural or fitrah.

It means there is no contradiction between human rights and Islam. Islam encourages human rights and human rights that are applied in Muslim society will increase Muslims' dignity. Khaled Abou El-Fadl, a professor in Islamic law from UCLA, said that: People who argue that they have to prioritize God's rights over human rights are ignorant about the classical fiqh literature of the previous ulema.

Those ulema stated that human rights must be prioritized over God's right ('haqqul insan muqaddam 'ala haqqil Ilah), because Allah was well capable of defending His rights in the hereafter, while humans had to defend their own rights.

A book written in the third century of Hejra mentioned that when there was a contradiction between laws, the more humanistic one ('arfaq bin nas) should be chosen.

When Aceh Deputy Governor Muhammad Nazar says, "It is final that the Aceh administration will not enforce stoning for Islamic sharia law violators. In Islam, the law must protect its citizens' human rights," he actually has sufficient backing from Islamic history and authoritative references The Acehnese are still able to apply sharia law in their daily lives but they should adopt an inclusive, contextual model instead of an exclusive, formalistic and textual model of sharia application.

[The writer is a lecturer on sharia law implementation policy (Fiqh Siyasah) at Sunan Gunung Djati State Islamic University, Bandung. He has conducted research on sharia law application in Aceh.]

Indonesia: 'Oppositionists' seek cabinet posts

Direct Action - October 2009

Max Lane, Jakarta – In the immediate aftermath of the July 8 Indonesian presidential election, the two losing sets of candidates alleged that there was widespread ballot fraud.

Both the team of outgoing vice-president Jusuf Kalla of the Golkar party and retired army general Wiranto, leader of the Hanura party, and the team of Indonesia Democratic Party-Struggle (PDIP) leader Megawati Sukarnoputri and Gerindra party leader Prabowo Subianto lodged complaints with the courts centred on discrepancies in the voter lists.

However, this argie-bargie between the losers and re-elected President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was soon put to rest as the two losing teams, especially the PDIP and Gerindra, began their attempts to gain cabinet posts in Yudhoyono's government. Not only did the noise about electoral fraud, but all the accusations about Yudhoyono and his new vice-president, economist Budiono, having "neoliberal" rather than the opposition teams' "peoples' economy" approach, appear to have been put aside – at least until it is clear whether Yudhoyono gives them cabinet posts or not.

The PDIP hopes to obtain the support of Yudhoyono's Democratic Party for the election of Taufiq Kiemas, Megawati's husband, to the position of speaker of the Peoples' Consultative Assembly (MPR), a body comprising the House of Representatives and the Council of Regional Representatives. The MPR sets the broad outlines of state policy on a five yearly basis and meets regularly on some other issues. As media discussion on this approach increased, it also became clear that the PDIP wanted to obtain cabinet posts.

During the same period, Prabowo also arranged to have a one-on- one meeting with Yudhoyono where his possible appointment as Minister for Agriculture was discussed. It is not clear who asked whom first, but it soon leaked to the press. It was after these meetings that Prabowo finally held a press conference to congratulate Yudhoyono on his re-election, after holding out from doing this while claiming the election was undemocratic.

There has also been a discussion and struggle inside Golkar as to whether it should be an opposition party or seek to remain in the government. This discussion was overshadowed recently when Kalla stated he would not seek re-election as Golkar chairperson. The party of deceased dictator Mohammed Suharto is now preparing a congress where four of the country's weathiest capitalists will fight it out to be Golkar chairperson. Among the candidates are Aburizal Bakrie, possibly the richest person in the country; media baron Surya Polo; Tommy Suharto, millionaire conglomerate owner, convicted murderer and Suharto's son; and Tutut Suharto, millionaire conglomerate owner and Suharto's daughter. Bakrie is a minister in the current Yudhoyono cabinet.

Little policy difference

These post-election shenanigans simply repeat what happened before the election, during the process of putting together presidential tickets, revealing again that all of the parties involved are willing to cooperate with each other and that there is no real ideological and little policy difference between them. While there has been discussion and mention by all of the elite parties of the possibility of Yudhoyono broadening his coalition from beyond those who supported him during the election to include the PDIP, Gerindra and Golkar, he has still not yet announced his cabinet. Whether his negotiations with the PDIP and Gerindra were a tactic to expose the fakery of their oppositionist stances during the election or a genuine attempt to include them in a new governing coalition is not yet clear.

A number of different orientations have emerged on the left in the aftermath of the presidential election. The Peoples Democratic Party (PRD), formerly led by Dita Sari, had adopted a position of alleged critical support for the Kalla-Wiranto ticket as well as for the Megawati-Prabowo ticket during the election campaign. The PRD organised a series of rallies of its own supporters denouncing Yudhoyono as a neoliberal politician, but not denouncing Kalla, despite him having been Yudhoyono's vice- president for the past five years. Similarly Megawati, who began the neoliberal program of large-scale privatisation of state- owned enterprises during her 2001-04 presidency, was allowed to pass herself off as a supporter of "peoples economy" without any criticism from the PRD.

In one article by a PRD spokesperson, it was also argued that through rhetorical campaigning against neoliberalism in the lead-up to the election, retired general Prabowo had "wiped out his sins" of organising the torture and disappearance of pro- democracy activists during the late Suharto era. It was even argued that the numbers involved – 14 are still missing, presumed dead – were minor compared to the victims of Yudhoyono's neoliberal policies, forgetting that the disappearing of the 14, and the torturing of several others, were actually acts aimed at terrorising the whole pro-democracy movement.

Call for anti-neoliberal coalition

In the immediate aftermath of the election, the PRD has been advocating for a broad anti-neoliberal coalition, calling for the PDIP and Gerindra to lead an anti-neoliberal offensive in the new parliament. To what extent the PDIP and Gerindra deploy anti- neoliberal rhetoric again, however, will depend on whether their pleas to be accepted into the Yudhoyono cabinet are successful or not. If Yudhoyono rejects them, and they revert again to their anti-neoliberal demagoguery, their credibility will have been damaged greatly. The party which Dita Sari and her supporters backed during the May parliamentary election, the Star Reformation Party (PBR), has already joined the Yudhoyono coalition, although it no longer has seats in the national parliament. Dita Sari appears to have resigned from the PRD altogether in order to support Kalla in the presidential election.

While the PDIP and Gerindra are negotiating with Yudhoyono, the success of the PRD's appeal for a PDIP- and Gerindra-led anti- neoliberal coalition appears to be as likely as the PBR's turn to the left that the PRD claimed would happen after its members entered the PBR prior to the April 9 parliamentary election. The PRD's call will carry little weight and will force it rely for cover on the few former PRD members who long before entered the PDIP, such as Budiman Sujatmiko, who has won a seat in the parliament as a PDIP member.

The Committee for the Politics of the Poor-PRD (KPRM-PRD), formed by PRD members expelled for their disagreement with the PRD's entry into the PBR, and who advocated a boycott of the presidential election, continues to emphasise the need for a poor peoples' movement independent of the capitalist parties. It is continuing to concentrate on rebuilding following the expulsions from the PRD in 2007.

There are national congresses planned for January and February for a number of organisations in which KPRM-PRD members play leading roles. These include the National Students League for Democracy-Politics of the Poor (LMND-PRM), Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggles-Politics of the Poor (FNPBI-PRM), National Farmers Union-Politics of the Poor (STN-PRM) and the National Network for Women's Liberation (JNPM). Many of the members of these organisations are also members of the Union for the Politics of the Poor (PPRM). All of these organisations are still rebuilding after the damaging 2007 splits, although the JNPM and SPI were not significantly affected.

The KPRM-PRD's remains oriented to building alliances on the left and among progressive activist organisations, rather than with the capitalist parties. The KPRM-PRD members remain active in the efforts to keep publishing Jurnal Bersatu (Unity Journal), a left regroupment-oriented journal involving members of other left groups as well as non-party left activists. Among these are members of the Working Peoples Association (PRP) and the Peoples Struggle Union (PPI).

Union groups led by KPRM-PRD activists are heavily involved in the Workers Challenge Alliance (ABM), which is the most effective left alliance formation operating at the moment. ABM organised major national mobilisations in late 2008 against a government decision to reduce wages and a number of its regional chapters held mobilisations during the recent election period, supporting the boycott position and opposing the economic policies of all the elite parties.