Nethy Dharma Somba and Evi Mariani, Jakarta – Sorong Police in West Papua province confirmed they ordered a group of people praying on SPG Sorong field on Saturday to disperse and accused the congregation of separatism because the police claim the congregation yelled, demanding independence.

The event was organized by West Papua National Committee (KNPB) to celebrate their eighth anniversary by organizing an event to pray together.

KNPB said the police took all 106 people at the event to Sorong Police office for questioning. Later, they released 99 people and detained the other seven: Agustinus Kossay, Arnoldus Kocu, Jack Badii, Kantius Heselo, Mika Giban, Oskar Solossa and Yance Assem. KNPB said the police accused the seven of treason and provocation.

Sorong Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Edfrie Maith said they only detained seven of them for 24 hours, in compliance with the procedure. "It's our duty to question them within 24 hours. After we questioned them, we released them," Edfrie said.

Veronica Koman, a public interest lawyer with Papua Itu Kita, who often helped KNPB with legal advocacy, said the seven were released on Sunday, but they had to report to the police daily.

Edfrie said the police ordered the event to disperse because in the event notification letter from KNPB, the organization used a symbol that is not an Indonesian symbol. "Of course we didn't let them organize it, they refuse to acknowledge the Republic of Indonesia," he said on Sunday.

Veronica said KNPB produced a notification letter about the event using the KNPB logo, which was the usual procedure for any other organization. "The stamp resembles the Morning Star flag, but I think that's beside the point. This is an attempt to muffle freedom of expression in Papua," she said.

Gema Demokrasi, a Jakarta-based network of 75 civil society organizations, criticized Edfrie's statement in which he made a deal with Sorong journalists not to publish the story.

"Sorong journalists and I have agreed not to make news of the event. They intentionally made such an event to get some outside exposure to be acknowledged," Edfrie said as quoted in tabloidjubi.com.

Gema Demokrasi said Edfrie's attempt was a violation of the 1945 Constitution on freedom of expression. KNPB is an organization promoting self-determination for Papuan people.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/police-ordered-papuan-praying-congregation-to-disperse-accusing-them-of-separatism.html

Indonesia arrests over 100 Papuans in Sorong

Radio New Zealand International - November 21, 2016

More than 100 indigenous activists were arrested by Indonesian police at the weekend in the West Papua city of Sorong.

The police took in 106 activists from the West Papua National Committee, or KNPB, for their involvement in an inauguration of its local governing body last week.

The KNPB is a pro-independence West Papuan political organisation with a wide following throughout Indonesia's Papua region.

The inauguration of the KNPB's Sorong governing structure included a mass worship celebration and drew Papuans from areas such as Tambrau, Ayamaru and South Sorong.

Tabloid Jubi quotes a KNPB Sorong spokesman Aud Augustine as saying Indonesian police, combined with Indonesian military, forcibly disbanded their peaceful event. Mr Augustine said that in making the arrests, police breached the Papuans' basic democratic rights.

The KNPB is one of the organisations represented in the United Liberation Movement for West Papua which has been lobbying for greater international representation for Papuans since last year.

Widespread demonstrations across Papuan cities in support of the Liberation Movement during May and June resulted in mass arrests in some cases. Indonesian police have warned they will not tolerate activities that promote separatism.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/318572/indonesia-arrests-over-100-papuans-in-sorong

Banned Papua flag raised near Indonesian ship in NZ

Radio New Zealand International - November 21, 2016

A group demonstrating in front of an Indonesian naval ship in Auckland raised the Morning Star flag in support of West Papuans.

Indonesia's KRI Banda Aceh is one of numerous warships from other countries currently in New Zealand participating in the New Zealand Navy's 75th birthday celebration.

The demonstration against Indonesian military involvement in West Papua was held by the solidarity groups Oceania Interrupted and West Papua Action Auckland.

Oceania Interrupted spokesperson Leilani Salesa says the demonstrators made sure their presence was felt. She says they stood next to the naval ship holding the Papuan Morning Star flag which is banned in Indonesia.

"And to do an act that we know brothers and sister in West Papua would be punished for was a really powerful for us and it sends a very powerful message that the world is watching and we stand in opposition to the atrocities that they continue to commit."

Raising the West Papuan flag is a crime in Indonesia punishable with years in prison.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/318583/banned-papua-flag-raised-near-indonesian-ship-in-nz

The voice of Papuan workers: the companies came and our income dropped

Awas MIFEE - November 19, 2016

When the oil palm plantation companies first arrive in the villages they promise jobs for indigenous Papuans, an effort to implant dreams of improved economic well-being and higher incomes.

Once work starts however, the promises aren't followed through and the imagined changes never come about. Meanwhile, the land and forest which used to provide the community livelihood disappears and control over the land passes to the companies.

This is the experience of indigenous Papuans who live near oil palm plantation companies. Coercive means are used to take their land and then the people have no other choice than to become labourers for the oil palm companies.

Marta Kandam (19 years old) a Papuan woman who lives in Gententiri village, Jair sub-district, Boven Digoel, told of her experiences before and after the arrival of an oil palm company.

"The economy of the community in Getentiri before the company arrived was based on rubber-tapping and our forest gardens. We used to sell the rubber to Pastor Keis. Our monthly income could be as much as 2.5 or even 3 million Rupiah," she related.

The majority of peoples living along the Boven Digoel river have rubber farms and are dependent on that commodity as their main source of income. According to the head of the agriculture and plantation agency in Boven Digoel, Martinus Wagi, up to 6,000 hectares has been planted with rubber by the local population.

When the oil palm plantation PT Tunas Sawa Erma arrived in Gententiri, Jair sub-district and Ujung Kia, Kia sub-district, they felled and cleared natural forest, sago groves, rubber farms and plantations of fruit trees, which were replaced with oil palm plantation and company infrastructure.

"We stopped tapping rubber and went to work for the company, as unskilled plantation labour. We get paid for every day we work, but it still works out as less than before the company came. After we started working for the company, even if we work really hard, the monthly wage is only one and a half million Rupiah, or a bit less, no more than that", Marta said, who has been working as a plantation labourer.

"We thought it would get better when the company arrived, but it got worse, even though we work every day, the company counts the days, but our pay is less than before the company came", Marta said.

According to her, before the company came, people could tap the rubber when they felt like it and they had time to rest, but their monthly income was better than the income of company workers who work every day.

Paulus Saku, a clan chief and former customary landowner, has had difficulties finding work with the company. "We've asked the company to give us work several times, but the company just keeps telling me 'where do you expect us to get the money to pay you with'", he said.

However, Paulus has seen how workers who come from outside Papua are quickly accepted by the company, and there are more of them then there are indigenous Papuans.

A similar discrimination towards Papuan workers has been the experience of indigenous people living in Anggai village, Jair sub-district, where the oil palm company PT Megakarya Jaya Raya is operating.

"For us as indigenous Papuans, if we want to work for the company we have to pass through several steps and meet various conditions, such as bringing a letter from the village head, from the clan chief, school certificates and identity card, and only then will the HR department take you on, but for non-Papuans, if you arrive at the plantation one day, you'll be working the next", said Stevanus Mianggi, a worker for PT MJR.

Plantation labourers there also complained about the low level of pay, an average of 1.5 million Rupiah per month, which is below the regional minimal wage for Papua province and doesn't come close to providing an acceptable standard of living, based on prices locally.

[From Pusaka: http://pusaka.or.id/suara-buruh-papua-perusahaan-masuk-pendapatan-menurun/]

Source: https://awasmifee.potager.org/?p=1456

KPU Papua improves 'noken' voting system

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura, Papua – The Papua General Elections Commission (KPU) is set to introduce several changes to the noken voting system, which will be used in six of the province's 11 regencies and municipalities during the 2017 simultaneous regional elections.

Voters using the noken system do not vote in the manner regulated by the 2016 Regional Elections Law, in which people attend a polling station and cast a ballot. Under the system, voters are represented by another person, either a tribal leader or someone appointed through a common agreement within a community. The chosen person later reports the result to election officials.

"Such a system is not in line with existing regulations, in which eligible voters must come to polling stations to vote. That's why the KPU Papua composed a module on election procedures using the noken system," KPU Papua commissioner Beatrix Wanane said on Thursday.

She said the module would not abolish the noken system but would introduce some changes. "It's not a problem if they want to discuss who will be elected or to entrust their group or tribal leaders to choose people they will vote for. However, all voters must come to polling stations and bring their C-7 [voting invitation] forms. Election officers will later record their presence on C-1 forms," said Beatrix, adding that the noken system used in the past was prone to manipulation.

The module will be published in December and later introduced in six regencies that use the noken system from January 2017. They are Dogiya, Intan Jaya, Lanny Jaya, Nduga, Puncak Jaya and Tolikara. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/kpu-papua-improves-noken-voting-system.html

Pacific churches up their call for human rights justice

Radio New Zealand International - November 16, 2016

Church groups around the region are calling for justice on long-standing issues undermining the rights of the region's people.

At a recent gathering in Auckland, the Pacific Conference of Churches' general secretary discussed issues such as West Papua, climate change, the legacy of nuclear testing and the militarisation of the Pacific. Indira Stewart was there.

Transcript

In his presentation, general secretary Francois Pihaatae pointed to the Protestant church in French Polynesia and their decision to take France to the International Criminal Court over the impact of decades of nuclear testing.

Mr Pihaatae added that church leaders played a key role in ending French nuclear testing in the territory in 1996. He says this shows that the united voice of church groups should not be underestimated.

"When the church speaks it's not only the church, it's also the people. Because most of the time we have the people with us. We cannot ignore also the unity of the people at the grassroot level because they hold the power to speak."

A New Zealand Humans Rights activist Maire Leadbeater agreed, pointing to the churches' influence in West Papua's bid for self-determination.

"There's only one reason why I think we've had seven pacific nations speak out strongly in the United Nations General Assembly, and that's because the pressure's coming from the grassroots. And a big part of that grassroots pressure in the pacific is coming from the churches."

Mr Pihaatae says more church groups are uniting in pressuring political leaders to speak out about West Papua. For the first time since the body was established 20 years ago, the Papua New Guinea Council of Churches also joined the call to support West Papua's bid for decolonisation. He says council members want Indonesia's government to end what he calls the genocide of West Papuans.

"A call to Indonesia to stop killing these people. That's the only first priority for us to call Indonesia Military or police or whatever means they are using to kill the people. They are not animals, they are human beings like themselves – Indonesians. And the second thing we are trying to do is to take the issue of West Papua on the decolonisation list. You know, for them to enjoy freedom like other Pacific Islands who are independent. Free."

Mr Pihaatae says the council includes West Papua churches and wants them to know that they are not alone.

"We have right now, two member churches in West Papua and we will welcome another two next year. So that means that through our actions, we are trying to bring back our West Papua people to home."

Other issues included the impact of resource extraction on the environment, the non-communicable diseases epidemic, the church's role in combating violence against women, as raised by one member of the Quaker church in a Q-and-A session.

"I was in Tonga last year when the Tongan government was ready to ratify CEDAW, and it was the churches mostly who led the backlash against that which stopped that convention being ratified. I acknowledge it's not an indigenous way of approaching things. But it was a backwards step for Tongan women."

Mr Pihaatae says the church is actively seeking the participation of men in efforts to combating violence against women.

"Dealing the issue of women with women, it doesn't work. Then we started that new approach. We call the men in and create a workshop for men and it works well."

Mr Pihaatae says the council will continue to bring the people of the Pacific together to fight for justice and peace to protect their collective future.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/201823972/pacific-churches-up-their-call-for-human-rights-justice

Human rights & justice

MPR speaker backs rights activists' proposal

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Jakarta – People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Zulkifli Hasan has agreed to deliver a proposal by rights activists to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to accelerate efforts to resolve past human rights abuse cases.

After a meeting with representatives of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS), Zulkifli said he supported the proposal to create a presidential committee consisting of rights experts who could assist the President in drafting ways to settle the cases.

"We don't want the cases to become a historical burden. We want them to be resolved with comprehensive solutions. I will deliver the proposal to the President," Zulkifli told journalists on Wednesday.

KontraS coordinator Haris Azhar said the committee, which would consist of fewer than 10 people with a specific work period, could produce recommendations for Jokowi to settle the abuses case through a judicial mechanism.

However, should the circumstances require the cases to be resolved through non-judicial mechanism, the committee could provide detailed solutions on how the process could take place as well as who should be assigned by the President to lead the efforts, Haris said.

In mid-2016, then chief security minister Luhut Pandjaitan said the government would push efforts to settle six past human rights cases, namely the 1965 Communist purge, the Talangsari massacre, the Trisakti, Semanggi I and II shootings and the disappearance of pro-democracy activists.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/island-focus-mpr-speaker-backs-rights-activists-proposal.html

Sexual & domestic violence

Disharmony among agencies hinders child protection

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Liza Yosephine, Jakarta – The promotion of child protection in the country has been facing hurdles thanks to the lack of coordination across various government institutions responsible for the issue, especially those at the national level, an official has said.

The lack of coordination, which had also been blamed for many other problems in the country, had resulted in confusion at the societal level and among actors in the field, Rini Handayani, deputy of child protection from violence and exploitation at the Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, said on Monday.

While acknowledging that the system of child protection in the country was still poor, she asserted that the government was committed to working toward establishing a comprehensive child protection system under the coordination of the Office of the Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister.

"The [Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry], as the coordinator for child protection as mandated by the [UN] Convention on the Rights of the Child, has made a list of organizations working on issues related to child protection," Rini said while speaking at the 2016 National Conference on Child Protection on Monday in Jakarta. The conference was held 25 years after it was first ratified at the UN convention.

Rini's comment came as a response to a question from an audience member at the conference, Indonesian Representative to the ACWC for Children's Rights Yuyum Fhahni Paryani, who had noted that the existing various government institutions had their own programs and officials, which in practice had created confusion coordinating on the field.

Yuyum cited as an example the different task forces on child protection established by different institutions, which acted interdependently at local administrations.

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), for instance, had not worked in line with the task forces established by the Social Affairs Ministry.

"So they each have their own programs, they wouldn't collaborate or integrate at the lowest level, such as in regencies or cities, which creates confusion among the people who would seek their help," Yuyum said.

She said that in an attempt to improve efficiency without creating more organizations on the ground, the government will also implement public capacity building to develop a comprehensive community-based child protection system.

"We will increase and build the capacity of facilitators and activists, who would even be an extension of the government in the society, because it can't only be a top-down approach," Rini said.

The government's child protection system follows the 2016-2020 National Strategy on the Elimination of Violence Against Children adopted in January this year.

The system refers to the six forms of intervention toward the elimination of violence against children as stipulated in the document, namely legislation and policies, existing social and cultural norms in society, childcare, children's skills and self-resilience, social services and data and information.

In 2013, a survey by the government conducted among children aged 13-17 found that one in seven boys had experienced physical violence, while one in 12 experienced sexual violence. Meanwhile, one in seven girls had also experienced physical violence, while one in 19 girls experienced sexual violence.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/disharmony-among-agencies-hinders-child-protection.html

Labour & migrant workers

Unions plan nationwide strike on Dec. 2 to demand higher wages, Ahok's arrest

Jakarta Globe - November 22, 2016

Jakarta – The Confederation of Indonesian Workers' Unions, or KSPI, announced on Monday (21/11) that a million workers will go on strike across the country on Dec. 2 to demand higher wages and the arrest of inactive Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.

KSPI president Said Iqbal said the strike will be staged in 20 provinces and 250 cities and districts across the country.

"In the greater Jakarta area and Karawang, more than 200,000 workers will take to the streets on Dec. 2 and march towards the State Palace from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle," Said said in a statement. Workers in other provinces will protest at their respective governors' offices, he added.

The protesters will demand the revocation of Government Regulation No. 78 of 2015 on wages and a 15 percent to 20 percent increase in minimum wages. They will also call for the arrest of Ahok, who has been named a suspect in a blasphemy case.

Several Muslim groups also plan to perform Friday prayers at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle and on Jalan Jend. Sudirman and Jalan M.H. Thamrin in Central Jakarta on Dec. 2 as part of another mass protest rally.

According to Said, the workers' rallies are intentionally scheduled for the same day because of the common interests of the protesters, which include the supremacy of the law, better wages, anger over human rights violations committed during forced evictions in the capital, and rejection of the Jakarta Bay reclamation project.

The National Police have officially banned the protest over concerns that it may disturb the public order.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/unions-plan-nationwide-strike-dec-2-demand-higher-wages-ahoks-arrest/

26 activists freed from charges of violating rally regulation

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Safrin La Batu, Jakarta – The Central Jakarta District Court on Tuesday acquitted 26 activists from charges of misdemeanor for disobeying the police's orders during a rally protesting the government's minimum wage formula.

The 26 people included 23 worker activists, two public lawyers from the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) and a university student.

The workers and the student were all participants of the rally in October, last year, while the two lawyers were at the scene to accompany the workers.

Police dispersed the peaceful rally in front of the Presidential Palace, which was joined by hundreds of workers from the Greater Jakarta area, at around 6 p.m., the maximum allowed time for a demonstration.

The 26 people were then named suspects for allegedly disobeying the police's order to disperse the rally after the allowed time.

The panel of judges adjudicating the case argued that the rally participants had followed the law and demanded justice for their work peacefully.

"The rally participants were actually moving to leave the rally scene, but they moved slowly because they were blocked by other participants who were panicked by the police's tear gas," LBH Jakarta director Al Ghiffari Aqsa said in a statement on Tuesday, citing some of the judges' opinions of the case. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/26-activists-freed-from-charges-of-violating-rally-regulation.html

Workers to join next anti-Ahok rally on Dec. 2

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Jakarta – As several Islamic organizations work to recruit more participants, the Confederation of Indonesian Workers Unions (KSPI) is set to join the next planned rally.

Scheduled for Dec. 2, the rally aims to call for the arrest of incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, who had been named a suspect in an alleged blasphemy case.

KSPI chairman Said Iqbal said workers planned to go on strike and join the Dec. 2 rally in protest of the Jakarta administration's minimum wage policy recently imposed in the city.

"Just imagine, the minimum wage for Jakarta is set at Rp 3.3 million [US$246.82] next year, equal to this year's minimum wage in a 'small city', namely Karawang [in West Java]," he said on Friday.

Iqbal further said that in the rally, the workers wanted to express their disappointment over Ahok's allegedly blasphemous remarks and the forced evictions conducted under his leadership. "Around 500,000 workers in Greater Jakarta areas will join the peaceful rally," he claimed.

Ahok triggered anger among Muslims in Indonesia when he cited a Quranic verse in his speech in front of local residents in Thousand Islands regency last September. The National Police subsequently named Ahok a suspect for his remarks and issued a travel ban that prevented him from going overseas.

The Movement of Indonesian Council Edict Supporters (GNPF MUI) announced on Friday that it would carry out a peaceful rally demanding that the police arrest Ahok, who is currently seeking his second term of office in next year's Jakarta gubernatorial election. (fac/ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/workers-to-join-next-anti-ahok-rally-on-dec-2.html

Freedom of speech & expression

Indonesian government wants to protect itself from insults

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2016

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – With the rise of social media, insulting the government for its flaws, or just for fun, has become easier than ever.

However, the government may no longer take such insults lightly if the House of Representatives approves its proposal that insulting the government be made a crime in the new Criminal Code (KUHP) bill.

The House's Commission III, which is tasked with deliberating the bill, has been considering the proposal, asking the government to elaborate on what it means by the terms "insult" or "the government" to prevent any abuses of the legislation if the bill is passed.

"We haven't made any decision yet. We still want to discuss it [with the government]," the commission's deputy chairman, Benny K. Harman, told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

In principle, the House has agreed to the proposal, acknowledging the fact that the government is chosen by the people. Although, it still has reservations.

"First, what constitutes the government? Second, what's the definition of insulting? If they're not clear, there'll be problems," Taufiqulhadi of the NasDem Party said. Further deliberation was needed, he added, as we believe the proposed article would be subject to multiple interpretations.

"The article could easily be abused by regional governments because there is a tendency that the further [a region] is from the capital, the looser the interpretation [of the law by the political leaders] will be there."

Muladi, a former law and human rights minister who is serving as a government representative in the deliberation of the bill, argued that there was a need to protect the government from insults because the public was also protected from insults by the law.

"Individuals are protected by the law. Why is the government, which is formally established, not protected by the law?" he said during a meeting at the House complex last week.

Muladi acknowledged the article was contentious, saying that it was imported from the British Indian Penal Code, which was at the time used to arrest freedom fighters during the colonial era. "The [old] penal code was formulated with loose interpretations and without taking into account the consequences," he said.

Therefore, the government has changed some wordings of the article from the penal code version. "The words 'feud' and 'hatred' have been changed into 'insults'. Insults mean any action that attacks someone's good name and lowers his or her dignity," said Muladi.

"Furthermore, there has to be proof that the insults result in public chaos. With these changes, we hope that [the article] will be more democratic and not easily used by people without any proof."

Pro-democracy activists are not happy with the proposal. The proposed article was still extremely dangerous and had no place in a democratic country like Indonesia, Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) executive director Supriyadi Eddyono said.

"It is certain to create problems because this article was made by the Dutch for its colonies [to protect the Dutch]," he told the Post. "It was taken from the British penal code and inserted into the colonial's criminal code. But now, the Dutch government no longer uses it because the context was to protect the Dutch government during colonialism."

Supriyadi said the article would have the same adverse effects on freedom of speech as another article in the KUHP bill that criminalizes insulting the president. The article on insulting the president was declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court in 2006.

"Criticizing the president and the government should be fair game," Supriyadi said, adding that it was impossible to objectively differentiate between an insult and legitimate criticism. "What makes the government think that it has a higher position than the public that it has to have its own defamation article with harsher punishment?" he asked.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/indonesian-government-wants-to-protect-itself-from-insults.html

Political parties & elections

Parties shift balance

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – Top leaders of the country's two-biggest political parties – Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri and Golkar Party chairman Setya Novanto – met on Sunday as the nation's political landscape appears to be shifting balance amid sustained tensions centering on a blasphemy case involving incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.

Megawati, however, did not face the press after the two-hour closed-door meeting at the former president's residence in Menteng, Central Jakarta.

"As government coalition parties, [PDI-P and Golkar] have to help create a calm and peaceful situation," PDI-P secretary-general Hasto Kristiyanto said when asked if the meeting was connected to a possible shake-up in the government coalition.

Setya said he sought input and advice from Megawati, whose party is the main supporter of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration.

"It's a silaturahmi [friendly meeting] between pro-government parties. [...] we are committed to ensuring the country's plurality and diversity. We must promote peace and prevent moves that threaten our unity," Setya said.

Like Jokowi, Setya has intensified his political tour, especially after the two had a closed-door meeting at the State Palace on Thursday.

Later on Thursday, Setya met with Surya Paloh, chairman of the NasDem Party, which is also a member of the government coalition. Surya said the one-hour meeting resulted in a commitment to maintain national spirit and pluralism.

Setya was previously accused of ethical misconduct in negotiations involving a major mining firm. Following the case, Setya resigned from his position as House of Representatives speaker. He then won the Golkar chairmanship race, after which he declared the party a government supporter.

The series of recent political moves by the country's top politicians have sparked speculation that another coalition shake-up might be imminent.

Political observer Ray Rangkuti of the Lingkar Madani Foundation said the Anti-Ahok Nov. 4 large-scale rally had let Jokowi "see who his real friends are". "The meetings must go beyond talking about diversity. All of them were certainly angered by the three parties," he added.

Ray was referring to the National Mandate Party (PAN), United Development Party (PPP) and National Awakening Party (PKB), whose elites were among the demonstrators in front of the palace on Nov. 4.

Their participation in the rally raised questions regarding their "loyalty" to the government coalition, especially following suggestions that political actors aiming to undermine the government were behind the protest.

PDI-P executive Andreas Hugo Pareira signaled that a coalition shake-up was possible. "There has never been a truly permanent coalition in Indonesian politics. In fact, there's actually no coalition. Right now there is temporary cooperation among parties," Andreas said.

PPP secretary-general Arsul Sani shrugged off the speculation, saying its cooperation with the Democratic Party was limited to the Jakarta election. "The PPP will continue on as a government loyalist," he said.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people gathered on Saturday at the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta to conduct a "unity in diversity" parade. NGO Cahaya Guru Foundation is among organizations promoting unity amid religious tensions.

"We realize that our efforts might not be enough to answer the big challenges in promoting nationalism," Cahaya Guru chairwoman Henny Supolo Sitepu said at an event held to mark International Tolerance Day at the National Museum in Central Jakarta on Saturday.

In Lima, Vice President Jusuf Kalla appreciated the initiative of the march. "We should keep in mind that we should also maintain unity by not mocking differences," Jusuf said in Lima on the sidelines of the APEC summit on Saturday. (fac/vny)

[Haeril Halim contributed to the story from Lima, Peru.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/parties-shift-balance.html

Megawati asks Jokowi to solidify govt coalition

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Ina Parlina and Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo met with Megawati Soekarnoputri, the chairwoman of his Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), at the State Palace on Monday, amid ongoing pressure on the ruling party to expel some members of the government coalition.

The two had lunch hosted by the President after which they had a short discussion on the Palace veranda. It was only four days after Jokowi hosted Gerindra chairman Prabowo Subianto at the Palace, during which they also had lunch and discussions on the veranda.

Jokowi has recently strengthened his power base, with the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the Golkar Party as the latest additions to his coalition.

But cracks in the coalition have appeared especially after three of its members, namely PAN, the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Awakening Party (PKB), decided to take different paths when it came to the Jakarta gubernatorial election.

The national political landscape has become tense in the past weeks after Islamic groups mobilized a large-scale rally on Nov. 4 to demand the government prosecute Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, who is supported by the PDI-P, for blasphemy.

The three parties, which have joined forces to support gubernatorial candidate Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, backed the rally, prompting politicians, especially in Golkar, to question the parties' loyalty to Jokowi.

"I have actually said that it would be better if [those] already committed to supporting the government could also work together in the regional elections," Megawati said at the palace. "But, it is the right of the political parties to decide," the former president added.

Megawati later said that, in her recent meeting with Golkar chairman Setya Novanto, she spoke to him about the matter but Megawati stopped short of saying the composition of the coalition should therefore be changed.

Agus is the son of Democratic Party chairman and former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has long had a fractious relationship with Megawati since the latter's presidency ended in 2004.

However, Jokowi's relationship with his predecessor Yudhoyono has also deteriorated after the latter accused the government of producing a false intelligence report about him masterminding the Nov. 4 rally. When asked if he would also meet with Yudhoyono, Jokowi said, "well, maybe later, we might arrange something".

The increased polarization during regional elections, Jokowi added, was "normal as long as there are no free riders, out of self-interest, posing threats to national stability and undermining pluralism".

"There were certain groups that took advantage of it [the rally]; there were political actors looking to benefit from the situation," the former Jakarta governor added.

Megawati echoed Jokowi, saying the Nov. 4 rally involved "people who were used by certain interests." Megawati also revealed that, in her meeting with the President, she asked Jokowi to call "a meeting of party leaders".

PAN politicians, however, insisted that those who suggested a coalition split and power struggles within the government coalition were just making the situation worse.

"Just because government parties are outside the 'Ahok coalition', it doesn't mean they are outside the government coalition," PAN deputy chairman Hanafi Rais, who took part in the rally along with his father, party patron Amien Rais, said.

Despite being pro-government, the PAN faction at the House of Representatives has held contradictory positions with the PDI-P, particularly regarding the election bill.

The PAN wants to keep the country's open-list proportional poll system as opposed to the PDI-P and Golkar, which want to change it to a semi-closed list system.

Similarly, PPP deputy secretary-general Achmad Baidowi claimed that the Ahok case was minor compared with the national interest. "In the rally, the PPP in fact helped the government to control the situation by bridging a dialog between the palace and the demonstrators," he said.

Following Jokowi's meetings with Prabowo, speculation was rife that the opposition Gerindra Party could soon join the government coalition. "I am ready to help the government at anytime," Prabowo said after his meeting with Jokowi at the palace.

Gerindra deputy chairman Sufmi Dasco Ahmad dismissed the speculation. "It's not true that Gerindra will join the ruling coalition. When we say we're ready to help the government, it doesn't mean we want to trade with it for certain positions in the government," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/megawati-asks-jokowi-to-solidify-govt-coalition.html

State funding for political parties will bring more harm than good: Expert

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2016

Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) recommendation that the state should cover half of the annual expenses of political parties in Indonesia has drawn criticism from a political observer, who says that such a move will not address the core problem of the parties.

Indonesian Parliament Watch (Formappi) analyst Lucius Karus said with widespread corruption currently implicating political parties and their non-transparent financial reports, the funding provided by the state is prone to misuse.

"The KPK recommendation will legitimize parties to manipulate their financial reports, providing greater opportunities for them to misuse the state budget," he told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

Lucius further said the state's funding assistance would not guarantee that the country's political parties would adopt a clean and transparent recruitment process, which currently has become the core problem of the parties.

"Providing better supervision of their recruitment process is a better solution, instead of just providing them with money [...]," he said.

As reported earlier, the KPK recommended that the state cover half of annual expenditures of Indonesian political parties to avoid illicit practices during recruitment processes that had often resulted in the presence of low quality people as members of the party.

KPK commissioner Laode M. Syarif said that should the commission's recommendation be approved, the Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP) would be involved in the audit process of financial reports of the political parties to ensure transparency. (fac/ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/state-funding-for-political-parties-will-bring-more-harm-than-good-expert.html

PPP moves further to the right to gain votes

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – The United Development Party (PPP), the nation's oldest Islamist party, is moving further to the right in its attempt to appeal to increasingly conservative voters ahead of the 2019 general elections.

The party, which only garnered 6.5 percent of the popular vote in the 2014 legislative election, has been pushing a conservative agenda, from the passing of an anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) bill to the implementation of an Islamic criminal justice system, also known as jinayat.

Riding on the rising sentiment against the nation's LGBT community in recent years, the party has taken the initiative to submit a draft anti-LGBT bill to the House of Representatives and targeted to have it deliberated by next year.

The bill would stipulate the definition of LGBT and impose sanctions on those who spread LGBT propaganda, PPP lawmaker Reni Marlinawati The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

Religious figures within the party have backed the bill, saying that homosexuality contradicts the principles of Pancasila and that homosexuals should be punished.

During a party leadership meeting in Jakarta on Monday, the party proposed that LGBT people be "cured" of their sexual orientations in a program covered by the Social Security Management Agency (BPJS).

In the same meeting, chairman Muhammad Romahurmuziy even suggested that the country adopt the Qanun Jinayat (Islamic Criminal Code Bylaw) as part of the nation's criminal justice system.

The Qanun Jinayat has been fully implemented in Aceh, to the chagrin of human rights activists who consider the legislation as inimical to human rights principles. The qanun criminalizes practices not considered as crimes in the Criminal Code, such as drinking liquor, dating in public places and homosexuality.

The party, which has never proposed the implementation of sharia before, also said that due to its implementation of caning and not imprisonment, the Islamic law was the solution to many social problems.

"It can help the government overcome the overcrowding of prisons. We can have alternative ways to punish them instead of putting them in jail," Romahurmuziy said.

The party is currently pushing for the passing of the controversial alcohol bill, which would largely ban alcoholic beverages, at the House. The bill has sparked heated debates among lawmakers and businesses.

Although they seem far-fetched, some of the PPP's policy proposals are part of its strategy to gain support from conservative voters, political observer Rachmat Bagja from Al-Azhar University said. The party wanted to regain a stronger Islamic support base to boost its performance in the next legislative election, he added.

PPP was a big Islamic party during Soeharto's new order regime, and one of the oldest parties in the country. It is now the second smallest party at the House after the Hanura Party.

Its clout as the party of Muslims diminished following the establishment of more nationalistic Muslim-based parties such as the National Awakening Party (PKB), National Mandate Party (PAN) and Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).

"PPP is intelligently reading the situation. And it can help them gain support and sympathy from the public, particularly Muslims. If PKB, PAN and PKS can't accurately read the situation, PPP could beat them in the next legislative election," Rachmat said.

Rights group Setara Institute director Hendardi said that such moves reflected the rise of identity politics in Indonesia. "LGBT issues should not be approached from a legal perspective. And implementing sharia would be a setback for the country's plurality," Hendardi said. "The proposals made [by the PPP] are clearly aimed at reaching certain political goals."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/ppp-moves-further-right-gain-votes.html

Blasphemy & the jakarta elections

'Please calm down, no one is trying to oust Jokowi': Lawmaker

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Fahri Hamzah has said President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his supporters should not be worried about a widespread speculation released by National Police officials on potential attacks against his presidency, saying that it was just the latter's exaggeration.

He said a planned rally scheduled for Nov. 25, during which protesters aim to occupy the House complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta, was just a form of people's rights to enjoy their freedom to assembly and had nothing to do with a revolt against Jokowi's leadership as indicated by the National Police.

"President Jokowi can keep calm. [...] He is safe," Fahri told journalists at the House complex on Tuesday. The lawmaker further said ousting a President required a more complicated mechanism than just occupying the legislative institution compound.

"It is unnecessary to suspect there are people who want to oust [Jokowi]. A President can only be dismissed if he is found guilty of violating laws, committing corruption or involvement in other serious crimes," the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) politician added. Fahri called on the National Police to play its role to make sure the Nov. 25 rally runs peacefully.

Speculations over attempts to demand Jokowi's resignation are rife following an announcement by National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian on Monday, who said that his institution had gathered information about a plan by a group of protestors to impeach Jokowi by occupying the legislative complex on Nov. 25. Another rally, which reportedly aims to pave the way for Jokowi's ousters, is set to take place on Dec. 2. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/please-calm-down-no-one-is-trying-to-oust-jokowi-lawmaker.html

Jakarta police issue official warning against 'acts of treason' during anti-Ahok

Jakarta Globe - November 22, 2016

Jakarta – Jakarta Police chief Gen. Insp. Mochamad Iriawan has issued an official warning against acts of treason and disturbance of public order during planned protests by Muslim groups against the capital's Christian and ethnic-Chinese governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.

The warning letter, signed by Iriawan on Monday (21/11), came following reports that certain groups are attempting to "occupy" the Parliamentary Complex during a street protest planned for Nov. 25, a move police said they will consider as an act of treason.

Another massive street protest in the capital is planned for Dec. 2 by Muslim groups that have been demanding the immediate arrest of Ahok, who was named a blasphemy suspect last week for allegedly insulting a verse from the Koran.

The warning letter said "in a public protest, crimes against the state and acts of treason against the president and vice president are prohibited."

"Those found to have committed such acts can face the death penalty, a life sentence or 20 years in prison as stipulated under the criminal code and other specified laws," Iriawan said.

During a similar protest in the capital earlier this month, Muslim groups had demanded that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo refrain from meddling in police investigation into Ahok's blasphemy case.

During the Nov. 4 protest, the State Palace became the focal point for a demonstration that eventually turned violent, while next week's street protest is planned to take place at Central Jakarta's Hotel Indonesia traffic circle and along Jalan M.H. Thamrin and Jalan Jenderal Sudirman.

The police warning also contains prohibitions on disturbing public order, damaging public facilities and obstructing traffic based on a 1998 law on freedom of expression, according to Iriawan.

"If the protesters break the law, the police will come down hard on them. We have the power to break them up or arrest them," Iriawan said.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/jakarta-police-issue-official-warning-acts-treason-anti-ahok-protests/

Police claim they have enough information on Jokowi's expulsion potential

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Callistasia Anggun Wijaya, Jakarta – The National Police asserted they have enough information to explain to the public about the potential of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's expulsion during mass rallies planned for Nov. 25 and Dec. 2.

National Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said the police first learned about the possible expulsion of Jokowi during the two planned rallies before they shared their concerns to the public.

"The National Police chief [Gen. Tito Karnavian] conveyed the expulsion issue based on information we had reviewed. It's not raw information," he said at the police's Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) on Tuesday.

Rikwanto was speaking to respond to House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Fadli Zon, who criticized Tito's statement on the possible expulsion of Jokowi, during which protesters would reportedly occupy the House compound in Senayan, Central Jakarta, during their Nov. 25 rally.

Speaking to journalists on Monday evening, Fadli said the information still needed further clarification because it might trigger public confusion and increase security tensions. The police must filter raw information received before they release it to the public, he explained.

Rikwanto refused to reveal the basis of the police's conviction on Jokowi's expulsion potential, however. "We can't reveal when and how we received information about it. This information is for internal purposes," he said.

Rikwanto said the police kept collecting information about the President's expulsion potential. Should attacks against the government occur during the rallies, the police were ready to act firmly according to the law. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/police-claim-they-have-enough-information-on-jokowis-expulsion-potential.html

Agus promises cash assistance for homeless

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Jakarta – Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono has revealed that he will endorse a cash assistance program called Temporary Direct Assistance (BLS) if he is elected the next governor of the capital.

Under the program, poor families, including homeless people and beggars, could receive Rp 5 million (US$374) in cash every year, Agus said.

"We hope the assistance will allow them to have a better life and become more competitive," Agus, who is the son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, said during a press briefing at a restaurant in South Jakarta, on Monday. In addition to the cash assistance, he added, poor families could also access training programs.

The Agus-Sylviana Murni ticket has revealed that the BLS program would cost the city Rp 650 million annually.

"The nature of this assistance is temporary. That's why this program is also complemented by long-term programs such as training so they can work and generate income," the former middle-ranking military officer said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/greater-jakarta-agus-promises-cash-assistance-homeless.html

Jokowi meets with Megawati, still reluctant to invite SBY

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2016

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo had lunch with former president Megawati Soekarnoputri at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday to discuss social and political issues, including the regional elections.

"Although I often meet with Megawati, visiting each other, like this, is always very nice and should be established as a tradition," Jokowi told reporters while having tea in the palace backyard with Megawati, who is also chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic party of Struggle (PDI-P).

Jokowi reminded people that the regional elections would be conducted in 101 regions, not just Jakarta, and he called on candidates to respect each other.

Recently, Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, who has been nominated by PDIP, Hanura Party, Golkar Party and Nasdem Party to run in the upcoming gubernatorial elections, has faced protests by groups of people during his campaign.

On Nov. 4, hundreds of thousands people, led by conservative Muslim groups, staged a rally in front of the palace demanding the government to legally prosecute Ahok for alleged blasphemy.

Recently, Jokowi has also had lunch with chairman of Gerindra Party Prabowo Subianto at the palace to discuss similar issues. Gerindra has nominated former education and culture minister Anies Baswedan to run as a Jakarta gubernatorial candidate in the upcoming election.

Asked whether the President would invite former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY), who is also a Democratic Party chairman, to have lunch at the palace, Jokowi said, "we will arrange it later."

The party has nominated SBY's son Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono as a Jakarta gubernatorial candidate. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/jokowi-meets-with-megawati-still-reluctant-to-invite-sby.html

Governor Ahok blasphemy probe, protests prompt worshippers gather in Jakarta to

ABC Radio Australia - November 21, 2016

Samantha Hawley, Indonesia – Tens of thousands of worshippers have gathered at mosques, churches and temples in Jakarta and at the national monument to pray for unity and peace, as tensions simmer over blasphemy charges against the Christian and ethnic Chinese governor.

It comes a fortnight after more than 100,000 protestors led by hard-line Muslim groups took to the streets to demand the Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, better known as Ahok, be arrested and jailed for comments he made about the Koran.

Dubbed the 4/11 rally, the crowd turned violent after dark attempting to break through police lines in north Jakarta, near the Governor's home. Shops were looted and cars destroyed.

Catholic priest Christopher Kristiono Puspo led a congregation at the city's main Cathedral on Friday morning. "The request came from the military chief for us to perform a mass, to pray together," he told the ABC.

"The content of the sermon was about gratitude for the peace that we've had and because of the protest that made us fear we wanted to express gratitude and restate that we are all one nation and one language."

At the city's grand Istiqlal moque across the road and the nearby Monus, Jakarta's national monument, Muslims also gathered to pray amid a large military and police presence.

President shows important sign of unity

The Indonesian President, who cancelled his visit to Australia because of the violent protest, has spent the past fortnight trying to calm tensions.

President Joko Widodo met his former presidential candidate rival, Prabowo Subianto, at the Presidential Palace in an important sign of unity.

The meeting was broadcast live on national Indonesian TV with the men talking of the importance of maintaining diversity in Indonesia saying they did not want the nation to fall apart because of political differences.

Governor Ahok was this week named as a suspect by police and will appear court to answer the blasphemy allegations against him. The offence carries a maximum five years in prison.

Governor to face court, high-profile electoral opposition

In an exclusive interview with the ABC aired this week he welcomed a day in court. "I need to go to court to prove this is political and law," Ahok told 730. "It is not easy, you send more than 100,000 people, most of them, if you look at the news, they said they got the money 500,000 Rupiah."

In a gubernatorial election due in Jakarta in February next year, Ahok will come up against a former education minister, Anies Baswedan and the son of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, who was a surprise late entry in the race. The former president has rejected allegations he was the mastermind behind the 4/11 protest.

In September, the ABC filmed in a mosque in central Jakarta, during which the cleric warned the congregation they were not permitted to vote for a non-Muslim according to verse 51 of the Muslim holy book.

Another rally against Ahok is being planned for November 25 but it is unclear whether it will proceed and whether groups like the hard-line Islamic Defenders Front can organise as large a crowd a second time around.

Source: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2016-11-18/governor-ahok-blasphemy-probe-protests-prompt-worshippers-gather-in-jakarta-to-pray-for-peace/1634160

TNI commander organizes mass prayer in Medan

Jakarta Post - November 20, 2016

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Indonesian Military commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo said during a mass prayer in Medan, North Sumatra, that with the power of prayer people who wanted to break the nation would not be successful.

"Whoever wants to break the nation will be unsuccessful if we pray. Besides, those wanting to create chaos are not religious people," he said on Saturday after the mass prayer to "save the nation".

Besides Gatot, the mass prayer was attended by Bukit Barisan military commander Maj. Gen, Lodewyk, North Sumatra Police chief Insp. Gen. Rycko Amelza Dahniel, a number of clerics, TNI top officers, North Sumatra and Medan administration officials and Medan residents.

"No traitor will ever live comfortably in this country. If you want to challenge us, be my guest, we have proven our strength against DI/TII [Darul Islam/Islamic Armed forces, Islamists aiming for an Islamic state in Indonesia], Kahar Muzakkar [Darul Islam leader in South Sulawesi], and communists. All of them were foiled because we always pray to Allah," Gatot said.

Gatot commented on Islamist groups' plan to hold a third "Defending Islam" demonstration on Dec. 2, saying that if an of the demonstrators committed vandalism or treason, they would face the TNI and National Police.

"My soldiers are ready to carry out jihad to preserve the unity of the republic based on Pancasila [national ideology] and with the support from all people," he said. (evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/20/tni-commander-organizes-mass-prayer-in-medan.html

Jokowi leaves Yudhoyono out in the cold

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Loyalists of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono say they are waiting for a conciliatory signal from President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to ease political tensions triggered by intense competition in the Jakarta gubernatorial race and rumors of a coup attempt.

As of Friday, Jokowi had yet to show any sign that he would meet Yudhoyono, who has lashed out at his successor for making statements based on what he claims is false intelligence suggesting that he masterminded the Nov. 4 rally that ended in a riot in front of the State Palace.

Since the rally, Jokowi has met five party leaders on his political tour, including his former rival in the 2014 presidential race, Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto.

Jokowi said "political actors" had exploited the Nov. 4 rally, insinuating that his political enemies were using the rally to undermine his administration.

Jokowi's perceived reluctance to talk with Yudhoyono has sparked speculations that the former may believe the latter has been engaging in efforts to destabilize the nation.

Democratic Party deputy chairman Syariefuddin Hasan dismissed the speculation, saying that there was no need to question the party's commitment to maintaining peace and democracy in the country.

"We have done it for 10 years [while Yudhoyono was in office]," Syariefuddin said on Friday. "But, if President Jokowi wants to hear us, we are very open to it [a meeting]."

Other senior Democratic Party politicians, including Amir Syamsuddin and Roy Suryo, have said they are ready to attend a meeting, but only if Jokowi makes the initiative.

Relations between Jokowi and his predecessor became visibly tense days after the latter decided to field his son, Agus Yudhoyono, in the Jakarta gubernatorial race.

Agus is competing against former education and culture minister Anies Baswedan and incumbent governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, Jokowi's former deputy when he served as Jakarta governor and arguably one of his closest allies.

Relations between the two worsened after the Nov. 4 rally against Ahok, which forced Jokowi to postpone his visit to Australia and to carry out political visits to the nation's armed forces and Islamic organizations, such as Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah.

The administration seems to have done little to ease tensions between Jokowi and his predecessor. In an apparent attack on Yudhoyono, several members of Jokowi's Cabinet held a press conference on the morning of the Nov. 4 rally to reveal that some 34 troubled electricity projects – which are part of 7,000 megawatts of carryover electricity projects from Yudhoyono's administration – posed a huge potential loss to the state.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said the Palace would let law enforcement bodies investigate possible corruption in the project.

Since assuming office, Jokowi has met Yudhoyono twice, including when the Democratic Party held a major congress last year in Surabaya, East Java. At that time, Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri was absent, although the Democratic Party had invited her to the event.

Jokowi and Yudhoyono also met at the palace in late 2014, when Yudhoyono expressed support for the deliberation of a bill.

"It was different at that time [during the 2015 congress]; it was us who played the role of host of the event, and therefore we invited him there," Syariefuddin added.

Presidential spokesman Johan Budi said Friday that he had yet to receive any information about whether Jokowi would meet Yudhoyono.

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto, who is also the patron of Hanura, one of the pro-government parties, refused to comment on whether the President needed to improve communication with Yudhoyono. But he added that, in politics, communication could be initiated at any time.

"I believe it is better for political figures to continue communication if the initiative is already there," Wiranto said, adding that all political leaders should understand that they had a part to play in building the country.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/jokowi-leaves-yudhoyono-out-in-the-cold.html

Government moves to defuse tension

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Marguerite Afra Sapii, Jakarta – Amid growing polarization among voters ahead of the simultaneous regional elections, the authorities have scrambled to ease the seemingly unabated tension stemming from an alleged blasphemy case.

As President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has been occupied in the past couple of weeks convening with a number of political and religious bigwigs, the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the National Police have taken several soft-approach measures aimed at defusing the tension.

Several conservative Muslim fringe groups have refused to lower the tension although the National Police declared Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja "Ahok" Purnama, a Christian of Chinese descent, a suspect in the blasphemy case on Wednesday.

In anticipation of another round of rallies by conservative Muslims, who will also join forces with labor unions, not only in Jakarta but in other places in the archipelago next week or in early December, the TNI and the National Police held on Friday a joint massive prayer at the National Monument in Central Jakarta.

Aimed at resonating peace and tolerance, around 20,000 personnel from all elements of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force, as well as from the National Police, held a mass prayer under the theme "prayer for the safety of the nation".

A dozen habibs (religious leaders) participated in the event. The event was also participated in by thousands of orphans from orphanage foundations and members of pengajian (Islamic learning forum) groups across Jakarta, and family members of the security personnel.

At the same time, five worship places in the capital – the Jakarta Cathedral, GPIB Immanuel Church, HKBP Cililitan, GKI Kwitang and Pura Mustika Dharma – also held similar mass prayers led by their respective religious leaders.

National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said amid the growing polarization among voters who support different candidates, it was important to remind people not to blend politics with religious, ethnic and racial issues, which had the potential to disturb a democratic election.

"In Jakarta we have witnessed how the road to the gubernatorial election has involved such dynamics, and there has also been escalated tension that has caused security instability," Tito said.

Since a dozen of conservative Muslim groups reported Ahok to the police in October, accusing him of blasphemy, the movement to have him prosecuted has grown bigger, culminating in the violent Nov. 4 rally in front of the State Palace and triggering a minor riot in a Chinese residential area in North Jakarta.

"Security forces will continue to ensure stability and security. However, human efforts won't suffice if we don't have God's blessings," said Tito.

TNI Commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo said the Friday mass prayers served as a reminder that the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia could only be realized with the help of figures from different religious backgrounds who fought for the country's independence.

Shortly after the event, firebrand Islam Defenders Front (FPI) leader Rizieq Shihab confirmed that groups of anti-Ahok protesters would stage a third major rally against the governor on Dec. 2. The groups are under the so-called National Movement of Indonesian Ulema Council Edict Supporters (GNPF MUI).

Rizieq, however, claimed that the demonstration would be "very peaceful" although the protesters would occupy the highway between the Semanggi intersection and the Presidential Palace.

He said the rally would only include Friday Prayer, Quran readings, mass prayers, dzikir (chants), as well as shalawat (prayers to Prophet Muhammad).

"Because Ahok still runs free, we have decided to stage another protest. Ahok should be jailed, it is the legal procedure. All suspects charged under Article 156 (a) of the Criminal Code in Indonesia's history are always imprisoned," FPI spokesman Munarman said.

In opposition to such a movement, a coalition of civil society groups is set to hold a "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika Parade", a theme derived from the country's motto "unity in diversity", in the capital on Saturday.

Participants of the rally are expected to wear red-and-white clothes or Indonesia's traditional clothes and are prohibited from representing any organization, company or political party.

Coordinating Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto has questioned the GNPF MUI's plan to hold another demonstration, saying that since the authorities had already fulfilled their demand to process Ahok through a transparent and fair mechanism, they should just wait for the next legal process.

Police chief Tito was suspicious that the demand to have Ahok imprisoned was politically motivated. "The due process is still ongoing. I suspect those demanding the imprisonment have a certain political agenda for the upcoming elections."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/govt-moves-to-defuse-tension.html

Jokowi should meet with FPI to tone down protests: Lawmaker

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Fahri Hamzah has suggested President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo meet leaders of Islamic organizations, including Habib Rizieq of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) who previously arranged a Nov. 4 mass demonstration, to ease tensions.

"If Pak Jokowi can be friends with Pak Prabowo, why not with them [FPI]?" said the controversial lawmaker on Friday, referring to Gerindra Party chairperson Prabowo Subianto, who lost the 2014 presidential race to Jokowi.

Jokowi has recently met with Prabowo twice, with the latest meeting taking place at the Presidential Palace on Thursday. This has been seen as a move by Jokowi to secure Prabowo's support amid mounting protests against his presidency over allegations the President has not been impartial in his response to the blasphemy case impacting non-active Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.

Jokowi has also conducted a series of visits to state security institutions, including the Indonesian Military and National Police.

"I don't understand why Pak Jokowi doesn't think it's important to meet leaders of the mass demonstration, whom he refused to meet on Nov. 4 [...] but agreed to meet leaders of various other groups?" the Islamic-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) politician added.

Fahri was confident that if Jokowi met with Rizieq and his supporters, criticism against his administration could be eased, particularly ahead of another planned demonstration slated for Dec. 2. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/jokowi-should-meet-with-fpi-to-tone-down-protests-lawmaker.html

Jokowi pushes for unity

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Ina Parlina and Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – His gestures said it all. Welcoming two high-profile guests at the Presidential Palace, Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto and Golkar Party chairman Setya Novanto, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo appeared much calmer than he had been several days ago.

Over an afternoon cup of tea on Thursday, the former Jakarta governor and Prabowo, his former rival in the 2014 presidential race, discussed the state of the country on the veranda of the Presidential Palace. The two had tea after a lunch at the palace. This time, it was Jokowi's treat.

"It was fried rice in Hambalang; here, it was grilled fish," Prabowo said to the media, drawing a giggle from Jokowi. Prabowo was referring to a meeting between the two at his residence in Sentul, West Java, on Oct. 31.

Given the series of recent events making national headlines, the meeting of the two high-profile politicians triggered speculation over a possible connection with massive public pressure on the authorities to charge Jakarta's incumbent gubernatorial candidate Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.

A large-scale rally, staged on Nov. 4 by conservative Muslim groups, pushed for Ahok's prosecution over alleged blasphemy. Jokowi said he suspected political actors behind the rally, with some observers believing the protests were also aimed at undermining Jokowi's administration.

The National Police eventually acted in line with the demands by naming Ahok a suspect on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Jokowi continued a tour of meetings with some of the nation's most influential figures that began last month. Jokowi visited the headquarters of the country's armed forces as well as Islamic organizations and political parties.

"I believe visiting each other and engaging in friendly gatherings is an excellent tradition," Jokowi said in his opening remarks before the media. "And I do hope this tradition will also be seen at the middle and lower levels [of various elements in the country]."

During the lunch, the two shared their commitment to put the interests of the nation first and respect the principles laid out in the state ideology of Pancasila and the motto of "unity in diversity", Jokowi said.

It was the fourth meeting between the two after Jokowi won the 2014 election. "Pak Prabowo and I shared our commitment to maintaining the diversity of Indonesia," Jokowi said.

"We both do not want to see us [the nation] fall apart due to political differences. No, because that would do great harm to the country," Jokowi told the media after the tea talk on the veranda, which Jokowi often uses to talk with state guests or with Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

The meeting, Prabowo added, was aimed at showing the young generation a culture that respected differences and that every leader in the country had a duty to maintain unity and peace. "He once was my rival, but we maintain our friendship," Prabowo said.

Earlier on Thursday, Jokowi met Setya at the Presidential Palace in which Jokowi, according to Setya, had "asked Golkar to play a part in maintaining peace in the country". Unlike the meeting with Prabowo, the talk with Setya was held behind closed doors, with no arranged photo session for the media.

However, the two meetings that day raise questions about whether Jokowi, who has met a total of five party leaders, will also have a meeting with his predecessor Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has been throwing a salvo of accusations at Jokowi recently.

Relations between the two became visibly tense earlier this month when Yudhoyono launched a tirade against the government, accusing it of producing a false intelligence report about him masterminding the Nov. 4 rally. Only hours after the rally, Jokowi firmly said he suspected political actors behind the rally, but, to date, he has not divulged their identity.

Presidential spokesman Johan Budi said he had yet to receive any information on whether Jokowi was planning to meet Yudhoyono in the near future.

Contacted separately, Democratic Party deputy chairman Roy Suryo suggested that the President would meet with Yudhoyono too. "I guess it is just a matter of time, Jokowi will meet Yudhoyono," Roy told The Jakarta Post.

Senior Democratic Party politician and also a deputy chairman, Syariefuddin Hasan, said, "It's only about inviting and being invited. As an opposition party, we just provide our input on governance. If they invite us [to the Palace], it means they respect us and are willing to take our advice," Syarief said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/jokowi-pushes-unity.html

FPI leader calls for Ahok's arrest, plans another protest rally for December

Jakarta Globe - November 18, 2016

Jakarta – The National Fatwa Guard Movement of the Indonesia Ulema Council, or GNPF-MUI, has called for the immediate arrest of Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, who was declared a suspect in a blasphemy case.

The organization indicated that it is planning to stage another mass protest rally against the governor on Dec. 2, if its demand is not met.

In a statement issued on Friday (18/11), the GNPF-MUI demands that Ahok should be arrested because he may leave the country, despite a travel ban imposed on him.

The organization also claims that Ahok may interfere with witnesses or tamper with evidence, including the official recording equipment under his control as governor.

The statement was signed by Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) leader Habib Rizieq Shihab, in his capacity as GNPF-MUI advisory chairman, Abdur Rosyid A.S. (advisor), Bachtiar Nasir (GNPF-MUI chairman) and Muhammad Al Khaththath, M. Zaitun Rasmin, Misbahul Anam and Munarman.

President Jokowi also accused of blasphemy

Meanwhile, Rizieq also accused President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo of having committed blasphemy against the ulemas during the previous protest rally, which descended into violence.

"After receiving advice and inputs from all ulemas and religious and nationalist figures, the GNPF concluded that Mr. President committed blasphemy against the ulemas," Rizieq said on Friday.

He said the president abandoned the ulemas during the protest by refusing to meet with them, and allowed the security forces to repress the protesters.

"They were not disbanding the protest; it was a slaughter of Muslims," Rizieq said, referring to the police using tear gas, rubber bullets and batons to disperse rioters.

The GNPF-MUI has reported the president to the House of Representatives for blasphemy and called on a special committee to investigate the matter. "It should be done because it is a serious violation. Blasphemy against the ulema is a serious matter," Rizieq said.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/fpi-leader-calls-ahoks-arrest-plans-another-protest-rally-december/

NU calls for cancellation of Nov. 25 rally

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Jakarta – Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) chairman Said Aqil Siradj has called on the public not to conduct another rally against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama on Nov. 25.

"Conducting rallies is just a waste of money and energy. We fear that politicians will exploit it," Said said as quoted by kompas.com on Thursday.

The NU leader acknowledged that there was a plan to conduct another rally to demand the prosecution of Ahok for alleged blasphemy.

The police are investigating the alleged blasphemy by the governor in a fair and transparent manner, he said. The police have named Ahok a blasphemy suspect for remarks allegedly made concerning a Quranic verse in Thousand Islands in September.

The governor has been charged under Article 156 of the Criminal Code on blasphemy and Article 28 of the 2008 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law on hate speech.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/national-scene-nu-calls-cancellation-nov-25-rally.html

People rally to promote diversity

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Lita Aruperes Ruslan Sangadji and Djemi Amnifu, Manado, Palu,Kupang – Amid the recent brouhaha over alleged blasphemy by Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama and a Molotov cocktail attack in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, that have grabbed nationwide attention and raised concerns over growing intolerance, local figures have called on the public to strengthen harmony to protect the country's diversity.

Hundreds of members of 10 Minahasa customary organizations rallied at the KONI Sario Manado field in Manado, North Sulawesi, on Thursday, stating that the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia must be defended.

The group also called on the government to prosecute any perpetrators who caused instability. The groups included the Manguni Customary Brigade, Manguni Makasiouw, Maesaan Tuama Minahasa, Lingkan Wene and Tuama Teterusan.

Yongkie Sumual, one of the figures of the groups, said North Sulawesi residents were determined to defend state ideology Pancasila, the Constitution and Bhineka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).

"All violence related to religion and race must be managed quickly," said another member, Wellem Sigar-Kumenaung, during the rally.

Participants of the rally also urged the government to thoroughly investigate the attack on the Oikumene Church in Sengkotek, Samarinda, East Kalimantan.

One toddler, Intan Olivia Marbun, died and three other children were injured when the alleged perpetrator threw a Molotov cocktail at the church on Sunday. "Don't let there be any more victims of violence," shouted the protesters.

North Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Wilmar Marapung said the rally proceeded peacefully without causing any disruptions to other people.

Meanwhile in Palu, the Central Sulawesi Christian Church (GKST) synod held its 46th meeting to discuss efforts on strengthening harmony among all religions in the country.

Daniel Gagarin of the synod said besides internal activities, the event also aimed at encouraging healthy discussions on diversity to bolster harmony among religions.

One of the speakers at the event, the chairman of the Palu office of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), Zainal Abidin, said harmony among all people, regardless of religion, must be improved to create peaceful coexistence. Everyone must uphold ethics and respect people of other faiths without any religious fanaticism that could threaten social coherence.

"In coexistence, we need to respect and uphold people's dignity. Let us not insult others of different faiths from us," said the rector of Palu State Islamic Institute (IAIN) on Thursday.

He expressed hope that the GKST meeting would pave the way to a breakthrough that had a positive impact on harmony among religions.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people under the banner of the Flobamorata Diversity Forum protested in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, on Thursday to demand that the government disband the hard-line Islam Defenders Front (FPI) on the back of threats against diversity.

"The FPI's presence undermines Pancasila, the Constitution, Bhineka Tunggal Ika and the unitary state of Indonesia," forum coordinator Ady Ndi'I said during the protest in Nostalgia Park.

The group protested in response to issues that it said stemmed from intolerance and fear of damaging diversity, democracy and pluralism.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/people-rally-promote-diversity.html

Military, police call for unity in series of public prayers in Jakarta

Jakarta Globe - November 18, 2016

Jakarta – Military chief Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo joined an istigasah, or a public prayer, at the National Monument in Central Jakarta along with tens of thousands of other Muslims, most of them active military and police officers.

The public prayer, which started at 07.00 a.m. on Friday, was organized by the military and the police to send a clear signal to the public that the institutions are ready to keep peace, unity and security in the country. National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian was also present at the prayer.

More than 30,000 people attended the prayer, 22,000 of them officers from the military and the police. The organizers also invited 5,000 orphans and 3,000 members of the public.

The police and the military are bracing themselves for a third protest against Jakarta governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, rumored to take place on Nov. 25 or Dec. 2. The prayer at Monas was led by cleric Arifin Ilham and Habib Nabil Al-Musyafah.

Gatot said the Indonesian military (TNI) will not hesitate to act to punish people who want to break up the nation. "Our number one duty is to keep the Republic of Indonesia united," Gatot said.

Similar prayers were also held at the Jakarta Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Jakarta, and at the Immanuel Church, one of the oldest Protestant churches in Indonesia.

Another prayer was also held at the Cijantung military base in East Jakarta for Hindu police and military officers.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/military-police-call-unity-series-public-prayers-jakarta/

Police urged to drop blasphemy case against Ahok

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Jakarta – The National Police should immediately drop a criminal investigation into Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama's alleged blasphemy, rights group Amnesty International has said.

"By carrying out a criminal investigation and naming Ahok as a suspect, the authorities have shown they are more worried about hard-line religious groups than respecting and protecting human rights for all," Amnesty International's director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Rafendi Djamin, said on Thursday.

The group's call was in response to the police's move on Wednesday to name Ahok a suspect in a blasphemy case filed by several religious groups. Ahok, a Christian, is the first member of Indonesia's ethnic Chinese community to be the governor of Jakarta.

"Among the police, opinion is divided on whether the case should proceed, showing that the decision to open an investigation against Ahok is a controversial step," Rafendi said.

He referred to a statement on Wednesday from the police's Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) head Comr. General Ari Dono, who said: "Although there are different opinions among police investigators, most agreed that the case should be settled in an open trial."

Amnesty International noted that the announcement of the police investigation came after more than 100,000 people demonstrated against Ahok earlier this month, calling on the police to charge him for insulting Islam. The protestors also called for voters to not reelect him next year following the purported comments, it stated.

Ahok has denied making any blasphemous remarks. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/police-urged-to-drop-blasphemy-case-against-ahok.html

NU, Muhammadiyah respect police's decision to charge Ahok

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Nurul Fitri Ramadhani, Jakarta – Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, the country's largest Islamic organizations, have long been deemed as beacons of Islamic tolerance and progressivism, with many foreign observers referring to the two groups as exemplars of Indonesian Islam.

The two Islamic organizations said on Wednesday that they respected the National Police's decision to name Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama a blasphemy suspect for his comment on a Quranic verse while speaking to fishermen in Thousand Islands regency in September.

Muhammadiyah, the country's second-largest Islamic organization, welcomed the police's decision.

Former Muhammadiyah chairman Din Syamsuddin met with President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo in a closed-door meeting at the State Palace on Wednesday, during which they discussed the sixth World Peace Forum (WPF) held earlier this month, and the fate of the Jakarta governor.

"I think [naming Ahok a blasphemy suspect] is a good [call], since law enforcement is the best way out of various problems in the country," said Din, who now leads the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) advisory board.

Muhammadiyah also appreciated the police for processing the blasphemy case professionally and in a timely fashion, and thanked the President for not intervening and protecting Ahok, his former deputy when he served as Jakarta governor from 2012 to 2014.

In Yogyakarta, Muhammadiyah chairman Haedar Nashir said he appreciated the police for being transparent in handling the case. "Don't let this case make us quarrel. We will only waste energy," he said.

NU, the nation's biggest Islamic organization, called on all parties to respect the police's decision. "There is no need to protest any more since the demands have already been fulfilled," NU secretary-general Helmy Faishal Zaini told The Jakarta Post.

When asked whether the police's decision would hamper efforts to promote pluralism and tolerance in the country, Helmy responded by emphasizing the need to uphold the law. "Our country is based on the rule of law, so we leave it up to the authorities to make a decision," he said.

According to Helmy, the main problem was that Ahok's comments had been regarded as offensive. "In his capacity as a governor, he should have chosen his words carefully so that they would not create controversy or discord among the public," Helmy said.

He further emphasized that leaders had the responsibility to speak in such a way that would not inflict disunity or conflict.

Rights groups Setara Institute said the police's move would hamper the country's effort to promote freedom of faith and religion.

"Ahok is now a victim of identity politics designed by certain groups," Setara director Hendardi said on Wednesday. Hendardi said Ahok had not been proven guilty by the court and people should apply the presumption of innocence principle.

After investigating the blasphemy case for almost one month, including questioning a number of Islamic scholars and linguists, the National Police named Ahok a suspect in the case on Wednesday.

Despite apologizing, Ahok's remarks on the verse triggered outcry, with thousands of people taking to the streets to press the police and President to immediately arrest Ahok.

In a rally on Nov. 4, protesters met with National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian, who promised them the police would complete the case within two weeks.

[Safrin La Batu, Corry Elyda, Ina Parlina, Liza Yosephine and Bambang Muryanto contributed to this story.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/nu-muhammadiyah-respect-police-s-decision-charge-ahok.html

Ahok's legal plight another case of majority ruling over minority

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Marguerite Afra Sapiie, Jakarta – The naming of incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama as a suspect in a blasphemy case is another example of how the majority rule over the minority by exploiting the controversial blasphemy law, critics say.

Ahok, a Christian of Chinese descent in the predominantly Muslim country, has been charged under Article 156 (a) of the Criminal Code on religious blasphemy as well as Article 28 (2) of the Electronic Information and Transaction (ITE) Law on hate speech.

The move comes following weeks of protests by some Muslims over the governor's statement that some people had used verse Al-Maidah 51 of the Quran to convince others not to vote for him in the February gubernatorial election.

Ahok's case presented similarities to other previous cases related to blasphemy, where the accused were part of the minority and the accusers were part of the majority, Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM) researcher Wahyudi Djafar said on Wednesday.

"The pattern is always like that. No one belonging to the majority group has ever been accused [of blasphemy] and taken to court," Wahyudi said.

In almost every case, the majority succeeded in pressuring law enforcers, including police and prosecutors, to charge and sentence alleged suspects, even if there was not clear evidence for blasphemy, he said. "The problematic part of the blasphemy conviction is that it was influenced by the majority."

Setara Institute data revealed that from 1965 to 1998 roughly 15 cases were deemed to be in violation of Article 156 (a) of the Criminal Code and the 1965 Blasphemy Law. The number has significantly increased since 2000 with at least 50 total cases, excluding the recent one involving Ahok.

In 2013, Bandung High Court changed Sebastian Joe's prison sentence of 4 years to 5 years after he was reported by the Ciamis chapter of firebrand Islam Defenders Front (FPI) in West Java for his Facebook status, which they considered insulting to Islam.

In another case, in Bali, a Hindu-majority province, a woman named Rusgiani was sentenced to 14 months in prison by Denpasar District Court after allegedly insulting a Hindu offering. Rusgiani said she made the statement because she believed that God does not need offerings in Christianity.

"Law enforcement related to this law is far from credible and instead rather reckless, especially because the verifications are based on public influence politicizing blasphemy," Ismail Hasani of Setara Institute said.

Six years ago, the Constitutional Court rejected a judicial challenge seeking to repeal the law. However, in the ruling, the court's justices acknowledged that Article 156 (a) is problematic and should be revised. Still, neither the government nor the legislators have made significant moves at revision.

Critics have renewed calls for the government to revise the article as well as the 1965 Blasphemy law, saying that more often than not, they are used by the majority to pressurize the minority. The laws provide no legal certainty or justice for citizens, they explained.

In an event that highlighted the flaws of the blasphemy law, National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian explained that investigators were initially divided on whether there were any criminal elements in Ahok's case. However, since some believed there were, they decided to bring the case to an open trial.

Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) senior adviser Choirul Anam criticized the move, saying blasphemy-related cases have always been tainted by public pressure with little regard for fair law enforcement.

"Where is fair law enforcement and equality before the law? If there is not a unanimous decision [to name Ahok a suspect], why promptly declare it as a criminal offense?" Choirul said.

The House of Representatives' Commission III overseeing legal affairs is currently mulling over the revision of the Criminal Code, which many deemed outdated.

Hanura legislator Sarifuddin Sudding from Commission III agreed that the substances of Article 156 should be revised to reduce bias and ambiguous interpretation to better regulate which cases could be considered blasphemy.

"There should be clarity on what qualifies as blasphemy and what qualifies as hate speech," Sarifuddin said, adding that the matter would be brought up during the revision process by the House.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/ahok-s-legal-plight-another-case-majority-ruling-over-minority.html

Rule of mob triumphant

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Moses Ompusunggu, Callistasia Anggun Wijaya and Corry Elyda, Jakarta –The race to City Hall has become more challenging for incumbent candidate Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama after the National Police decided to charge him with blasphemy on Wednesday, less than three months before voting day.

It is uncommon for the police to investigate a regional head candidate during an election season.

Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said police chief circulars issued in 2013 and 2015 actually compelled the force to postpone any criminal investigation implicating an election candidate until the election was over to prevent politicians from using the police as a political weapon.

However, he said he decided to ignore the circulars, given the sensitivity of Ahok's case. "Considering the highly sensitive nature of the case, I had even ordered the head of the [National Police's] Criminal Investigation Department [Bareskrim] to begin investigating this case before Oct. 21," the police chief said, referring to Bareskrim head Comr. Gen. Ari Dono.

The police have faced strong public pressure to resolve the blasphemy case implicating the governor, who has apologized for offending Muslims, but has insisted he did not intend to insult the Quran when he said that some people had been using verse Al-Maidah 51 as a political tool against him.

Tito promised to decide whether Ahok was named a blasphemy suspect within two weeks after thousands of conservative Muslims took to the streets of Jakarta on Nov. 4 to demand his prosecution. The rally, which was the largest in years, was spearheaded by the hard-line Islam Defenders Front (FPI).

True to the promised time frame, the police announced on Wednesday that they would charge Ahok with blasphemy.

Ahok is facing multiple charges under Article 156 (a) on blasphemy of the Criminal Code, which contains a maximum sentence of five years behind bars, and Article 28, point (2) of the 2008 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law on promoting hate speech, which carries a maximum six years of imprisonment.

Ari said on Wednesday that the decision was made after learning the outcome of a closed-door case screening session on Tuesday, which involved 17 expert witnesses brought by the police. Ahok and Muslim groups that reported the embattled governor in October.

In total, investigators heard testimonies from 29 witnesses, including eye witnesses Suhari and Suyandi, who were present when Ahok made his comment in Thousands Islands regency, as well as 39 expert witnesses from various fields of study, ranging from criminal law and psychology to linguistics, during the preliminary investigation of the case.

Ari acknowledged that, during the case screening, there had been stark differences of opinion among the 21 investigators handling the case concerning whether to name Ahok a suspect, which he said resulted from the contrasting opinions of experts invited to the session. "However, the majority of investigators agreed that the case had to be continued and brought to court," Ari told a press conference at the police headquarters in South Jakarta.

Tito said Ahok would not be detained due to his cooperative manner during the preliminary investigation of the case but added that he was barred from traveling abroad.

The police's decision, while welcomed by some Muslim groups, has been seen as controversial by some human rights activists.

The decision was seemingly made to accommodate public pressure and reduce escalating political tension in the country, Setara Institute vice chairman Bonar Tigor Naipospos told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, who is Ahok's former superior in Jakarta, has been courting Muslim leaders to prevent another large-scale rally in Jakarta, which he believes could be used by "political actors" to destabilize the state.

Rumors have been circulating that Muslim groups will stage another rally on Nov. 25, apparently to heap more pressure on the police to expedite the case investigation.

Ari, however, brushed off speculation that the police had bowed to pressure in naming Ahok a suspect in the blasphemy case, saying that the decision was fully based on evidence gathered during the preliminary investigation.

The evidence, he said, included the unedited version of the video of Ahok referring to the Quranic verse handed over by the Jakarta Communications and Information Agency.

Ahok's lawyer Sirra Prayuna has confirmed that his client would not file a pretrial motion to challenge his suspect status, saying that the incumbent had accepted the decision made by the police.

Sirra said Ahok's legal team would focus on preparing their pledge for the case, while Ahok would continue to campaign with his running mate Djarot Syaiful Hidayat, who is the incumbent deputy governor.

"We don't want to prolong the dispute," Sirra told a press conference at Ahok's campaign team headquarters in Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday.

Sirra, however, criticized the lack of stern action taken by the Jakarta Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) to deal with backlash Ahok and Djarot had faced on the campaign trail.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/rule-of-mob-triumphant.html

Police arrest video uploader for defaming Jakarta police chief

Jakarta Globe - November 17, 2016

Jakarta – Police have arrested a 52-year-old suspect for allegedly uploading a video containing accusations that Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. M. Iriawan provoked the rioting that broke out after the mass protest rally by Muslim groups in Jakarta on Nov. 4.

"We have arrested the suspect," Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Awi Setiyono said on Thursday (17/11).

The suspect, who was only identified by the initials M.H.S., is accused of having added inflammatory content to video footage he captured of Iriawan during the rally, which he then uploaded to YouTube.

"So, he edited the video by himself by adding provocative sentences such as, 'you are chasing the HMI [the Islamic Students' Association],' 'you beat the HMI; you are a provocateur,'" Awi said. "The part that is very provocative and constitutes defamation is the sentence, 'are you not the provocateur, general?'"

Awi added that the suspect was arrested at a boarding house in North Bekasi, West Java, on Tuesday.

The video is considered defamation because it propagates information intended to trigger hate for individuals or certain groups based on religion, ethnicity, race, or group-based interests.

The suspect is accused of having violated the Electronic Information and Transaction Law and may face up to six years in prison or a Rp 1 billion ($74,800) fine, or both, if found guilty.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/police-arrest-video-uploader-defaming-jakarta-police-chief/

City's celebs flock to endorse Ahok

Jakarta Globe - November 17, 2016

Jakarta – Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama on Thursday (17/11) secured endorsements from several prominent celebrities amid the on-going blasphemy investigation.

Actress Cathy Sharon threw her support behind the incumbent, while model Sophia Latjuba was appointed a campaign spokeswoman during a string of visits to the the governor's campaign headquarters in Central Jakarta.

He also hosted actress Luna Maya, model/singer Aura Kasih, TV host Edrick Tjandra, celebrity doctor Sonia Wibisono and musician Koes Hendratmo.

Luna, who will return to the big screen next year with "Mantan," said Basuki had made significant process in the city over two years.

"Jakarta is much better than before. We don't need to talk about it because we've seen it," Luna told reporters, before adding that her endorsement of Basuki was volunteered. She called on the community to reject discrimination and promote tolerance.

Aura agreed, saying Basuki is a political figure who can unite and promote tolerance in the country. "I don't like racist people and those who play the religion card," Aura said.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/citys-celebs-flock-endorse-ahok/

Golkar still fully behind Ahok: Setya Novanto

Jakarta Globe - November 17, 2016

Jakarta – Golkar Party chairman Setya Novanto said his party had never thought of abandoning its support for Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama and Djarot Saiful Hidayat in the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial race.

"We remain committed to Ahok and Djarot. We're not backing down," Setya said in Jakarta on Thursday (17/11).

He added that Golkar will let the police do their work to process the blasphemy case against Ahok, and he also urged everyone to respect the ongoing legal process. "We'll leave it to the law enforcers. There's no need to put more pressure on them," Setya said.

Golkar's central leadership board's deputy secretary general Jerry Sambuaga meanwhile said the party will support Ahok in good and bad times, including while facing the blasphemy allegation – in which Ahok is now officially a suspect.

"Golkar supports its candidates not only when the going is good. We support [them] whatever the challenges are," Jerry said.

According to Jerry, Ahok-Djarot's support base has actually become more solid after Ahok was named a suspect in the blasphemy case on Wednesday.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/golkar-still-fully-behind-ahok-setya-novanto/

Muhammadiyah welcomes decision to name Ahok a suspect

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Bambang Muryanto, Yogyakarta – The Muhammadiyah central board in Yogyakarta welcomed the National Police's decision to name Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama a suspect in a blasphemy case.

"Muhammadiyah believes the decision to name Basuki Tjahaja Purnama suspect is based on fair and objective legal principles. This is proof that Indonesia is a law-respecting country," Muhammadiyah chairman Haedar Nashir said Wednesday.

He urged the public to remain calm and respect diversity, as well as maintain order and peace as the legal process continued. He said Muslims must accept the result of the legal process.

"Don't let our nation break apart because of this. We have lost precious energy and time that could have otherwise been used to do something productive," Haedar said.

Haedar said Muhammadiyah appreciated President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, who supports the legal process. He said Muhammadiyah supported Jokowi and his administration. "We also appreciate the National Police for their firm, fast, transparent and fair work," he said.

Muhammadiyah deputy chairman M. Busyro Muqoddas called for the public to monitor the legal process to ensure transparency. (evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/muhammadiyah-welcomes-decision-to-name-ahok-a-suspect.html

Businesses concerned over political turmoil

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Grace D. Amianti, Jakarta – Businesspeople and experts have come forward to urge the government to ensure economic stability amid rising political tension in the nation.

As democracy blooms in Southeast Asia's largest economy, the number of social and political conflicts has also risen in the past few years despite concerted efforts from the President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration to improve the economy and business environment.

"Of course, staging a protest is a form of freedom of speech, but we should control the situation and not let it become violent because that will negatively affect the country's competitiveness and business climate," Shinta Widjaja Kamdani, the deputy chairman for international relations at the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), said on Wednesday.

Shinta, who is also the CEO of conglomerate Sintesa Group, said the latest rally against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama had stirred up worries among business owners with some offices closing early and letting their employees go home on the day of the demonstration due to fear of widespread riots.

Thousands rallied in Jakarta on Nov. 4 against Ahok – who is currently campaigning for reelection – for alleged blasphemy. The rally went peacefully throughout the afternoon but turned violent in the evening.

The rally's violent end has triggered fears among many, particularly minority groups, that the capital will see a situation resembling the May 1998 riots that led to the resignation of former president Soeharto.

According to data from the Indonesian Shopping Centers Association (APPBI), the massive anti-Ahok protest resulted in a 60 percent decline in the number of visitors at Jakarta's shopping centers as people decided to stay home. Indonesia heavily relies on domestic spending for growth as it accounts for more than half of its gross domestic product (GDP).

"We support people's right to free speech, but there are millions of others who aren't involved in the rally who also have the right to conduct their daily activities," said APPBI chairman Stevanus Ridwan.

Prior to the anti-Ahok rally, there were also protests staged by labor unions and truck drivers of state-owned oil and gas firm Pertamina.

There is high expectation that the government will step in to prevent the political unrest from continuing as failure to do so will affect the country's risk perception in the long term and undermine ongoing efforts to improve business certainty, businesspeople say.

Economic growth, which is already suffering a downward trend, is also at stake. GDP growth slowed to 5.02 percent in the third quarter from 5.19 percent in the previous quarter, as shown by the latest data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

Meanwhile, UOB Indonesia president director Kevin Lam claimed that stability, in the wider sense of the term, was very important for the country because medium- and long-term investors might rethink their plans if there was policy uncertainty.

Lam said Indonesia's economy still had the potential to grow even faster if there was regulatory certainty and better logistics, two factors that would improve its ease of doing business, an area in which Indonesia lags behind regional neighbor Vietnam.

Economist and former finance minister Chatib Basri projected that GDP growth could increase to around 5.1 or 5.2 percent in 2017 even with flat private consumption, weak exports and unpredictable demand dampening investment.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/businesses-concerned-over-political-turmoil.html

Jakarta's Christian governor to face blasphemy trial over Islam insult claim

The Guardian (Australia) - November 16, 2016

Kate Lamb – The Christian governor of Jakarta, the capital of the world's largest Muslim-majority nation, has been named a suspect in a case of alleged blasphemy, Indonesian police announced on Wednesday.

The case involving Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama has caused uproar across the country in recent weeks and is being seen by some as a test of Indonesia's commitment to religious tolerance and pluralism.

The police announcement follows mounting pressure by religious hardliners who earlier this month initiated mass protests across the country to demand the popular figure be arrested and charged with insulting Islam. Some analysts believe the protests to be politically motivated.

"Police have decided to declare Basuki Tjahaja Purnama a suspect and bar him from travelling abroad," national police chief detective Ari Dono Sukmanto said on Wednesday morning. "After long discussions, we reached a decision that the case should be tried in an open court," he added.

If found guilty under Indonesia's 1965 blasphemy law Ahok will face a maximum of five years in jail.

Ahok provoked the ire of hardliners after he cited the Al Maidah 51 verse from the Qur'an during a campaign visit to the Thousand Islands in September. He said the verse had been used to deceive voters and justify the assertion that Muslims should not be led by non-Muslims.

The governor later apologised, saying it was not his intention to cause any offence. However, an edited version of those comments was subsequently circulated online, changed in a way to make the governor's comments appear more offensive, angering hardliners further.

As a Christian, and the first ethnic Chinese governor of Jakarta, Ahok is somewhat of an anomaly in Indonesia's political scene.

The capital's willingness to be led by a man who represents a double minority has in the past been hailed a symbol of progress and pluralism, the latter a virtue enshrined in the Indonesian constitution.

In a country where 90% of its more than 240 million people follow Islam, the national motto is, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, or unity in diversity.

But following the police announcement that Ahok is likely to now face trial, Andreas Harsono from Human Rights Watch fears he will be found guilty.

"I have studied more than 200 blasphemy cases in Indonesia since it was written by President Sukarno in 1965. Over this 50-year period I think there was only one case where the suspect was acquitted," he said. "I don't think Ahok can survive this prosecution, he is very likely to end up in jail."

The last acquittal on charges of blasphemy happened to a newspaper editor in 1968, said Harsono.

In 2012, Alexander Aan, a 30-year-old civil servant from Sumatra, was sentenced under the same blasphemy law to two-and-a-half years in prison after he declared on his Facebook page he was an atheist.

The declaration of atheism was deemed offensive to Islam – one of Indonesia's six official religions, together with Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism.

"I think it is going to be difficult for Ahok to defend himself. Why? This is a law, in Bahasa Indonesia, we call it pasal karet, a rubber article. It is always political," Harsono said.

The Chinese Christian governor is campaigning for re-election this February and while drawing criticism – including for evictions and a controversial reclamation project – he has been seen as the frontrunner.

The political stakes for the gubernatorial race are high, with big political players backing the three pairs of candidates, which include former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, whose son Agus is running.

The Gerindra party, headed by former military general Prabowo Subianto, is backing the third pair headed by former education minister Anies Baswedan.

Ahok, who succeeded President Joko Widodo as governor of Jakarta in 2014, has vowed that he would continue his campaign regardless of the investigation.

The hashtag #kamiAhok, or "we are Ahok" was trending countrywide on Wednesday morning, with support flowing in for the beleaguered governor. Noted Indonesian filmmaker Joko Anwar, who has more than 1 million followers on Twitter praised the governor as a good man.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/16/jakarta-christian-governor-to-face-blasphemy-trial-over-islam-insult-claim

Legal expert: FPI should be disqualified from testifying in Ahok blasphemy case

Jakarta Globe - November 16, 2016

Jakarta – Investigators from the National Police's criminal investigation unit should disqualify the testimony of Rizieq Syihab, leader of the Islamic Defender Front, or FPI, in an alleged blasphemy case against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, legal expert Risha S. Halim said.

Risha pointed to FPI as a complainant, as well as multiple public statements made by Rizieq claiming Basuki blasphemed Islam, shows Rizieq has no objectivity in the case.

"In the practice of justice, an expert invited to give analysis is someone who has no conflicts of interest, both in the position of the complainants or the defendants," Risha said in Jakarta on Tuesday (15/11). "Investigators' stance that accommodate Habib Rizieq's wish as an expert in this case should be questioned, as it refers to their independence and neutrality. Legally, Rizieq is unable to act objectively when providing information as a witness, as it carries legal implication," Risha added.

Moreover, he continued, if investigators still put Rizieq's statement in the case expose as part of their consideration, it would taint the entire result of investigations.

"Such an act will make an impression that investigators have lost their sense of neutrality and independence of investigators in the alleged blasphemy case, as the public will question the results of the investigation," Risha said.

"The public will also question how a state institution [police] as law enforcer is easily dictated and controlled by special interest groups, like FPI."

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/legal-expert-fpi-disqualified-testifying-ahok-blasphemy-case/

Police call on Muslim groups to cancel Nov. 25 anti-Ahok rally

Jakarta Globe - November 16, 2016

Jakarta – Police have urged hardline Muslim groups to call off another protest rally against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, as legal proceedings in the blasphemy case against him are already on track.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. M. Iriawan said the groups involved in the anti-Ahok protest rally, which is planned for Nov. 25, must refrain from proceeding with it.

Protesters previously took to the streets of the capital on Oct. 21 and Nov. 4, to demand that police investigate blasphemy allegations against the governor.

"I hope everyone can refrain from staging another protest rally since the legal process is already in motion. Regarding the information on the rally, planned for Nov. 25, that was spread on social media, I urge people to cancel," Iriawan told reporters at the Jakarta Police headquarters in South Jakarta on Wednesday (16/11).

Demands by protesters during the two previous rallies that Ahok should be prosecuted have been met, as the National Police's criminal investigation unit (Bareskrim) is probing the allegations against him, Iriawan said.

He also called on supporters of Ahok to not hold any rallies to protest Wednesday's decision by police in the case.

Police named Ahok a suspect over comments he made in a speech to residents of Pramuka Island in Jakarta's Thousand Islands district two months ago.

In video footage of the speech, Ahok says nobody should manipulate verses from the Koran for political gain.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/news/police-call-muslim-groups-cancel-nov-25-anti-ahok-rally/

Jokowi plays down rumors of coup, says state is 'very safe'

Jakarta Post - November 16, 2016

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – The State Palace has played down speculation that the government is facing an imminent coup attempt, saying President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's tour to the nation's armed forces was mainly aimed at showing the people that the country is safe.

Hashtag #kudetagagal (failed coup) went viral a day after a major Jakarta rally held on Nov. 4 and only hours after Jokowi himself said that "political actors" were behind the largest demonstration the country has seen in more than a decade.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said on Tuesday that there was no attempt to topple the President. The President's dialogues with various elements were "aimed at calming the public, since [public] anxiety would likely undermine the ongoing economic reform", he said.

On Tuesday, Jokowi visited the headquarters of Air Force's Special Forces (Paskhas) troops in Bandung, West Java.

During his visit, Jokowi instructed the Paskhas to show loyalty to the state, maintain stability and play a part in maintaining the country's diversity, echoing calls he had made during recent visits to other elite military forces.

Later that day in Bandung, Jokowi gathered more than 450 commanders of regional military commands and military districts from across the country and instructed them to help give the people a sense of security.

Speaking to reporters after his visit to Paskhas, Jokowi said that a series of visits he had made to military and police headquarters were meant to provide security assurances and not instill fear in people.

"[The armed forces] are ready to safeguard the state, to safeguard the nation. [The visits] are aimed at calming the [people]. The country is safe, very safe," he said.

Jokowi, who is continuing his tour this week and is set to visit the Army's Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) on Wednesday, even revealed that the government was working on what he called an "address to the nation" to calm the public.

Only about a week after the Nov. 4 rally, a former terrorism convict linked to the Islamic State (IS) movement allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail at a church in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, killing a toddler, Intan Olivia Marbun, who died of severe burns. It was the second attack on a church in the past four months and was likely aimed at inciting sectarian violence.

The President, who has never served in the military, has been seen flexing his muscles as the highest commander of the country's armed forces a number of times since the large-scale protest against non-active Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, who has been accused of blasphemy. Ahok is a Christian of Chinese descent.

The President has also met with numerous Muslim groups and ulemas to hear their aspirations and at the same time consolidate Muslim leaders amid speculation that another large-scale anti-Ahok rally might take place next week, with protesters who had joined the previous rally insisting they would not stop their calls until Ahok was prosecuted.

The National Police is set to announce the results of the case screening in Ahok's case on Wednesday, in an unconventional police case screening ordered by Jokowi after the Nov. 4 rally.

On the sidelines of his working visit to Semarang on Monday, Jokowi invited a number of local ulemas to a meeting similar to one he has had recently with representatives of Muslim groups and three Islamic-based political parties, following the Nov. 4 rally.

Jokowi's tour, Pramono added, was also aimed at ensuring Muslims did not stage another massive rally next week and to call on the people to respect any decision the police made in Ahok's case. "Because this country is a state based on the law," Pramono said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/16/jokowi-plays-down-rumors-coup-says-state-very-safe.html

We didn't bow to pressure: Police chief

Jakarta Post - November 16, 2016

Moses Ompusunggu, Jakarta – The National Police have brushed off speculation that they bowed to pressure from conservative Muslims in deciding to charge Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama with blasphemy.

Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said he did not give specific instructions to investigators on how to conclude a recent case screening for Ahok, giving them "full authority" to probe the case to ensure the process remained "objective".

"The presence of external supervision from the Ombudsman and the National Police Commission [Kompolnas] was meant to ensure the screening was concluded in an objective manner," Tito told a press conference at the National Police headquarters in South Jakarta on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, investigators from the National Police's Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) heard testimonies from dozens of witnesses and experts during a 10-hour closed-door case screening. The screening concluded that the police should proceed with the case.

Previously, thousands of conservative Muslims staged a massive rally in Jakarta accusing law enforcers and President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo of protecting Ahok, who was Jokowi's deputy when he served as Jakarta governor. Ahok is now seeking to extend his term in the upcoming gubernatorial election.

During a meeting with the country's top Muslim leaders, Jokowi promised he would not protect Ahok. (ary)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/16/we-didnt-bow-to-pressure-police-chief.html

Police say Ahok video footage was unedited

Jakarta Post - November 16, 2016

Callistasia Anggun Wijaya, Jakarta – The National Police stated on Wednesday that video footage used as evidence to name incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama a suspect in a blasphemy case was original and unedited.

"We conclude that the video is original and unedited. There are no cuts or additions to the frames in the video," said the police's Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) head Comr. Gen. Ari Dono Sukmanto.

Soon after Muslim groups denounced Ahok for blasphemy at a recent rally, the police held a digital forensic investigation of a video featuring the governor commenting on a verse in the Quran during a visit to Thousand Islands regency in late September.

In a case screening to determine Ahok's status on Tuesday, the police played a 20-minute section of the 1 hour and 48 minute video, from the fifth minute to the 25th minute.

Following the screening, the police decided to name Ahok a suspect because of criminal elements in his speech. Ahok has repeatedly said he did not intend to insult the Quran or Islam and has apologized.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/16/police-say-ahok-video-footage-was-unedited.html

Jokowi calls on public to respect blasphemy investigation

Jakarta Post - November 16, 2016

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi Widodo has called on the public to respect an ongoing police investigation into Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama over blasphemy allegations, as he considers the process has run in a fair and transparent manner.

Jokowi, through presidential spokesman Johan Budi, said on Wednesday that "what has been done by the police has met the necessary principles of transparency, fairness and professionalism".

"The President asks all parties to respect the legal proceedings that have been completed and are currently underway," Johan said. "[The President] welcomes the public to monitor the next [phase of the ongoing legal] process [as Ahok has now been named a suspect]."

On Nov. 4, over 100,000 people, mostly from Muslim organizations, including the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), swarmed onto Jakarta's streets to demand that the police prosecute Ahok in response to comments about a verse of the Quran during a visit to Thousand Islands regency in late September.

The peaceful rally, however, turned violent later in the evening with a confrontation in front of the State Palace.

Prior to the rally, a number of Muslim figures accused the President and law enforcers of protecting the governor. Ahok, who previously served as deputy Jakarta governor, replaced Jokowi after the latter won the presidential election in 2014.

The same Muslim groups are reportedly organizing another rally on Nov. 25 in case the police drop the case against Ahok. Johan refused to comment on the possibility that the planned rally would go ahead despite the police having named Ahok a suspect.

Earlier on Wednesday, during a visit to the Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) headquarters in Cilodong, on the outskirts of Jakarta, President Jokowi shared his confidence that "there will be no more demonstrations" in regards to the blasphemy case.

The President has consolidated support from numerous groups in the country, including the military, the police and a number of Muslim groups, in an effort to maintain peace following the rally on Nov. 4. (hwa)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/16/jokowi-calls-on-public-to-respect-blasphemy-investigation.html

Surveys & opinion polls

Pre-suspect status poll suggests Anies now on top

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Safrin La Batu, Jakarta – Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama may lose his reelection bid in the first round after being named a suspect in a blasphemy case, while former culture and education minister Anies Baswedan could be in a leading position, a pollster has predicted.

The Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) released the results of a survey on Friday, which was carried out from Oct. 31 to Nov. 5, before Ahok was named a blasphemy suspect. In the survey the LSI asked 440 respondents who they would vote for if the National Police named Ahok a suspect.

According to the survey, Ahok's electability rating would slump to 10.60 percent if he were named a suspect. Meanwhile, support for Anies would increase to 31.90 percent, followed by former mid-ranking military officer Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono in second place, with 30.90 percent.

"Ahok and Djarot [Djarot Sjaiful Hidayat – Ahok's running mate] have the possibility of losing in the first round of the election [if the election goes into two cycles] because the pair now has a lower [rating] than the other two pairs of candidates," LSI said in a statement.

Before the question was asked, Ahok was favored by 24.60 percent of respondents, which put him as the frontrunner, leaving Agus and Anies in the second and third place, with 20.90 and 20 percent of votes, respectively.

The police named Ahok a suspect in a blasphemy case on Wednesday. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/pre-suspect-status-poll-suggests-anies-now-on-top.html

Journalism & press freedom

As campaigns turn vicious, govt to crack down on fake news

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – "Ahok: Do you think we want to build mosques and send mosque caretakers on the haj?"

That incendiary statement was in fact an edited version of a headline from a kompas.com article regarding a statement made by Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, who was defending himself after making a comment many conservative Muslims have deemed blasphemous. Ahok sought to remind people that many of his programs, such as building mosques, are supporting Muslims.

The original headline was "Ahok: Do you think we're lying about building mosques and sending mosque caretakers on the haj?"

However, the damage had been done. The edited headline was widely circulated on social media and messaging apps and was crucial in mobilizing thousands of people to join a rally against the Christian-Chinese incumbent on Nov. 4. However, the government is finally taking notice.

"Right now, our country is being bombarded with fake news produced by bogus media outlets. We have an example of a website publishing a story saying that China wants to take over the country by citing a bogus claim that there are 10 million illegal Chinese immigrants in the country," Communications and Information Ministry special staffer Henri Subiakto told The Jakarta Post.

Fake news is a powerful tool to sway voters because it can spread from one person to another through social media and messaging apps, without the filters of traditional media channels.

"Maybe the provocateurs only make up 10 percent of the population, but the effect could multiply because it appeals to members of the public who already feel hatred and disillusionment," Henri said.

Henri said that bogus news sites set up for political purposes, whether active or defunct, could help a candidate win an election and destroy their rival candidates.

Over the weekend, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo expressed concern about the polarization of opinions surrounding the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial race.

Jokowi also warned that social media platforms were easily used to spread slanderous information, something that he is familiar with after being the target of several smear campaigns during the 2014 presidential election.

During the race, Jokowi was accused of many things, including being of Chinese descent and a Christian while in reality he is a Javanese Muslim.

On Monday, Google announced that it would ban websites that peddled fake news from using its online advertising service, while Facebook said it would not display ads on sites with misleading or illegal content, including fake news sites.

Following the internet giant's move, the Indonesian government also readied plans to crack down on fake news on the internet. Henri said that the government could launch such an initiative.

"Until now, we haven't adopted that policy. But the new Electronic Information and Transaction (ITE) Law has given us a stronger legal basis [to enforce the policy]," Henri said. "It's about time social media is cleansed of bogus and illegal pages."

According to Article 40 of the ITE Law, the government has the authority to cut access to electronic content that violates the law. Henri said the policy would only be enforced on bogus sites, not legitimate mass media outlets.

Political researcher Arya Fernandes of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said that educating the public was the most effective method to mitigate the impact of false information.

"The internet is like a tsunami. Even if there are attempts to block it, it will still come. So voter education is important," he told the Post.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/as-campaigns-turn-vicious-govt-crack-down-fake-news.html

Press council calls for journalists' protection

Jakarta Post - November 16, 2016

Jakarta – The Press Council has expressed concern about the safety of journalists when covering demonstrations in the country in the aftermath of the massive rally by Muslim groups in Jakarta on Nov. 4, which saw a number of violent acts being committed against several reporters covering the story.

During the Nov. 4 rally, in which around 100,000 protesters from several Muslim groups demanded the prosecution of Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, a number of reporters, from outlets such as Kompas TV and Metro TV, were prevented from covering the event by some protesters who accused them of being partisan.

Press Council chairman Yosep Adi Prasetyo said on Tuesday that the public had to welcome any journalists regardless of their institutions to cover important events such as the recent rally.

"Journalists work in the public interest, therefore, it has to be generally perceived that journalists need protection while on duty," Yosep said in a discussion entitled "Dilemmas In Demonstration Coverage".

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/16/national-scene-press-council-calls-journalists-protection.html

Environment & natural disasters

Landmark court ruling expected to serve as deterrent

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – A landmark Supreme Court ruling ordering a plantation company to pay a high fine for illegal forest clearing is expected to serve as a deterrent for companies that seek to engage in deforestation.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled that PT Merbau Pelalawan Lestari (MPL) was guilty of illegally clearing forests in Pelalawan Regency, Riau, from 2004 to 2006.

The pulp and paper company was ordered to pay Rp 16 trillion (US$1.19 billion) in fines, the highest of any case of environmental destruction in the nation's history.

"The ministry appreciates the Supreme Court's decision on illegal clearing carried out by PT MPL. Hopefully this ruling will have a deterrent effect on others," the ministry's law enforcement director-general, Rasio Ridho Sani, said.

In 2002, then-Pelalawan regent Tengku Azmun Jaafar authorized PT MPL to exploit 5,590 hectares of forest in his regency.

However, the court found that the company had cleared a total of 7,466 ha of forest in the area, meaning that it had illegally cleared 1,873 ha of forest outside of its concession. For this, the company was ordered to pay Rp 4 trillion in damages.

PT MPL's permit was also problematic, as Azmun was sentenced to 11 years in prison by the Corruption Court in 2008 for taking bribes from MPL.

He was convicted of illegally authorizing 15 companies, including PT MPL, to exploit 120,000 ha of forest in Pelalawan between 2002 and 2003, resulting in Rp 1.2 trillion in state losses.

Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) lecturer Bambang Hero Saharjo, who calculated the damages, said the Supreme Court's ruling was in accordance with his calculations. "We appreciate the ruling because it matches our damage calculations based on the facts in the field," he told The Jakarta Post.

The damage includes a loss of forest functions, such as water catchment and erosion mitigation, as well as a loss of biodiversity.

The Environment and Forestry Ministry has been on a winning streak recently in environmental cases against companies responsible for deforestation and land and forest fires. Earlier this year, plantation company PT National Sago Prima (NSP) was found guilty of forest fires in its concession in Meranti Islands regency, Riau, and thus had to pay Rp 1.07 trillion in fines.

In August, the Palembang High Court in South Sumatra found pulpwood firm Bumi Mekar Hijau (BMH) guilty of illegally lighting fires in its concession in 2014.

The High Court ordered BMH, which supplies products to Indonesia's Sinar Mas Group, to pay Rp 78.5 billion in damages, a small fraction of the Rp 7.8 trillion in damages sought by the Environment and Forestry Ministry when it first filed the civil suit against BMH last year.

However, none of the fines match the total of those slapped on PT MPL. "This is the biggest fine in our history," the ministry's environmental dispute settlement director, Jasmin Ragil Utomo, told the Post.

He said that PT MPL could still file for a case review at the Supreme Court. "But it won't halt the execution [of the ruling]," Jasmin said. He added that the court would follow up on the ruling by allowing the company to make a proposal on how it would like to pay the fines.

"We have to study the proposal first, whether the company can pay in installments or not. We have to get input from other ministries because this is non-tax state income," said Jasmin.

PT MPL used to be a supplier to Asia Pacific Resources International Limited (APRIL), Indonesia's second-largest pulp and paper producer.

"However, we have not sourced fiber from MPL since February 2015," APRIL spokesperson Agung Laksamana told the Post, adding that PT MPL was not affiliated with APRIL or with Royal Golden Eagle Group.

With the recent Supreme Court decision, Agung said APRIL would immediately terminate its supplier contract with PT MPL and would not work with the company in the future.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/landmark-court-ruling-expected-to-serve-as-deterrent.html

Health & education

Indonesia urged to take bolder steps to fulfill children's rights

Jakarta Post – November 19, 2016

Jakarta – Indonesia should make greater effort to protect children in the country, even though it has made significant, life-saving progress on children's rights and welfare over the past decades, a UNICEF representative has said.

"Indonesia's commitment to provide children with a fair chance in life has grown increasingly strong. When the world agreed on the Agenda 2030 a year ago, Indonesia already had integrated many of the related Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs] that relate to children in its Medium-Term Development Plan [RPJMN]," said UNICEF Representative Gunilla Olsson to mark Universal Children's Day, which falls on Sunday.

According to UNICEF, Indonesia has recorded tremendous progress on the protection of children's rights since its adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1989. Indonesia was one of the first countries to sign the convention on Jan. 26, 1990, after it was adopted by the UN General Assembly on Nov. 20, 1989.

The mortality rate for children under the age of 5, for instance, has been slashed by more than half, saving more than 5 million children, who would have died had the rate remained at 1990 levels. Almost 98 percent of children aged 7 to 12 attend primary school, and extreme poverty has been significantly reduced.

However, UNICEF says, many of the challenges that frustrate progress on children's rights globally, where nearly 6 million children still die every year from preventable causes, and where the poorest children are twice as likely to die before their fifth birthday compared to the wealthiest, continue to hamper progress in Indonesia.

"Too many children are still excluded," said Olsson. "Sustainable development needs to start with children." (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/indonesia-urged-to-take-bolder-steps-to-fulfill-childrens-rights.html

Population & migration

Suspicious citizens can use e-KTP to catch polygamous spouses

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Anton Hermansyah, Jakarta – The introduction of electronic identification cards (e-KTP) will not only simplify population data management, but also help women discover whether their husbands have more than one spouse, a government official said.

Home Affairs Ministry director general for population and civil registry Zudan Arif Fakrulloh said with the e-KTP's introduction, every person will have a unique citizen identity number (NIK) that allows the person to register his or her name in a Family Card.

"I used to get complaints from people because they could no longer register three Family Cards at once," Zudan said in his remarks during the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding between the ministry and local capital market entities at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) building on Tuesday.

One man, he said, reported that his second wife had gotten angry because she could not register her husband's data in the Family Card. The man had no option but to tell her the truth – that he had another wife.

"So the ladies here should check their Family Cards to ensure whether your husband's data is there," he said, making some members of his audience giggle.

Even if a person tried to register his data under an alias or a different address, the fingerprints and scanned retina kept during the initial data recording would prevent such attempts, Zudan said.

The ministry recorded 1.2 million citizens tried to register multiple IDs, but none of them were able to do so. (hwa)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/suspicious-citizens-can-use-e-ktp-to-catch-polygamous-spouses.html

Graft & corruption

KPK receives report on stunted electricity projects under SBY

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2016

Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has received a report on stalled electricity projects and will carry out investigations soon after it receives an audit report from the Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP), an official of the anti-graft body said.

KPK chairman Agus Rahardjo said his commission had received last week the report on the sluggish progress of 34 power plant projects that have cost the state Rp 4.94 trillion (US$368 million). He added that he would wait for the BPKP audit so that he could synchronize it with the KPK's own findings.

"We received [the report] from a trusted source," Agus said on Monday during the sidelines of an event that discussed the maintenance of confiscated assets. The 34 power plant projects were launched during the administration of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said earlier this month that 12 of the 34 projects cannot be continued and must be terminated, adding that the remaining projects required an additional Rp 7.25 trillion be able to continue.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo expressed disappointment over the stalled projects and threatened to hand the case over to the KPK.

Jokowi has pinned high hopes on the projects, which were initially expected to generate 7,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity, as he aims to provide an additional 35,000 MW to the country's generation capacity by 2019. (fac/jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/KPK-receives-report-on-stunted-electricity-projects-under-sby.html

Terrorism & religious extremism

Court sentences terrorists linked to IS-claimed Jakarta attacks

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Liza Yosephine, Jakarta – Three terrorism suspects linked to the bombing and gun attacks in Jakarta on Jan. 14 have been convicted at the West Jakarta District Court after a lengthy trial.

Ali Makhmudin, 41, and Dodi Suridi, 23, have been sentenced to eight and 10 years in prison, respectively, for their roles in preparing the bombs for the attack in Central Jakarta, which killed four people.

Judge Mohammad Noor, who presided over the trial of Ali on Oct. 25, said the convicted terrorist had been ordered by Dian Juni Kurnadi, a suicide bomber in the attacks, to create a casing for the bomb, which Dian had assembled.

"Dian had asked Ali to make the casing for the bomb, which he had made. Dian, a suicide bomber, died in the attack," Mohammad said on Thursday.

Ali has accepted his sentence and would not appeal, Mohammad said. However, the prosecutors would appeal the judges' decision from the Jakarta High Court, he added.

The court ruled that Ali had violated Article 15 of the 2003 Law on Terrorism. Prosecutors had demanded 10 years for the maximum 20-year imprisonment sentence.

Earlier, on Oct. 20, the court had sentenced Dodi to 10 years in prison after being found guilty for preparing bombs used in the attack.

Mohammad said Dodi had been instructed by Dian to bring him the casing of the bomb that had been prepared by Ali. "Dodi was ordered by Dian to get the casing from Ali and was given Rp 1 million [US$75]," Mohammad said.

The court has also sentenced a number of other terrorists who had links to the perpetrators of the bomb and gun attacks, which unfolded in one of Jakarta's main thoroughfares, Jl. MH Thamrin.

The incident took place in one of the busiest spots in Jakarta, near the State Palace and a number of UN agency offices.

Cunaedi, 33, who is the older brother of Dodi, was sentenced to four years in prison on Oct. 27, Mohammad said. Judge Mohammad was also the presiding judge over Cunaedi's trial.

"Cunaedi had seen his younger brother, Dodi, practice assembling bombs at home. He had told his brother to stop, but Dodi just laughed it off. Unfortunately, Cunaedi did not report what he had seen to the authorities and was also arrested by the police," Mohammad said. Prosecutors requested six years for Cunaedi, he explained.

Another trial Mohammad presided over was that of Lutfhi Rizky Ramadhan, 19, who on Nov. 15 was sentenced to four years in prison. Lutfhi was a friend of Dodi and Dian, Mohammad noted. While he was convicted on the anti-terror law, charges against him were not directly related to the bombing in January, the judge said.

A month earlier, Ali Hamka, 48, on Oct. 17 was also sentenced to four years in prison for helping those responsible for the terrorist attack procure weapons.

The district court has also processed the sentencing of other terrorists with reported affiliation to the Islamic State (IS) group that had admitted playing a role in the attack in Jakarta earlier this year, including Junedi, 35, and Helmi Purnama Fauzi, 30, who were both sentenced to four years in prison during trials that were held on Nov. 8 and Nov. 15, respectively.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/court-sentences-terrorists-linked-is-claimed-jakarta-attacks.html

Five people charged in church attack

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Jakarta – The National Police have named five suspects in a Molotov cocktail attack on the Oikumene Church in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, on Sunday.

"As of today, in regard to the Samarinda church attack, five people have been named suspects, including Johanda," National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Boy Rafli Amar told journalists on Thursday.

Johanda, alias Jo Bin Muhammad Aceng Kurnia, 32, was earlier reported to be the alleged attacker in the incident.

The attack, which occurred just after the Oikumene Church congregation finished Sunday Mass, severely injured four children who were playing in the church compound. One of the children, Intan Olivia Marbun, 3, was pronounced dead at Abdul Wahab Sjahranie General Hospital in Samarinda on Monday as a result of injuries she suffered in the attack.

The alleged perpetrator, Johanda, tried to flee the scene after reportedly throwing the Molotov cocktail by jumping into Mahakam River near the church. Residents caught him and handed him over to the police.

Boy said Densus 88 counterterrorism squad had arrested 21 people but named only five of them suspects, while the rest were still being questioned.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/national-scene-five-people-charged-church-attack.html

Freedom of religion & worship

Human Rights Watch urges Indonesia to repeal Blasphemy Law

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Jakarta – An international NGO has urged President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to take seriously his pledge to promote religious pluralism in Indonesia by removing laws that can be used to persecute religious minorities and have become a basis for religious discrimination.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) Asia deputy director Phelim Kine said President Jokowi should work to have Indonesia's Blasphemy Law, Article 156a of the Criminal Code (KUHP) and similar laws taken off the books.

The Blasphemy Law makes deviations from the central tenets of the six officially recognized religions punishable by up to five years in prison.

He said the Blasphemy Law had been used to prosecute and imprison members of religious minorities and of traditional religions. He cited recent targets of the law, including three former leaders of the Gafatar community following the eviction of more than 7,000 members of the group from their homes in Kalimantan earlier this year.

The Blasphemy Law also had been used as the legal basis for a number of government regulations that facilitated official discrimination on the basis of religion, he went on.

"These include a June 2008 government decree that ordered members of the Ahmadiyah community to cease all public religious activities on the grounds that they deviated from the principal teachings of Islam and threatened violators with up to five years in prison," Kine said in a statement on Tuesday.

Blasphemy charges against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama have sparked renewed calls for the repeal of the law. Ahok fulfilled the National Police's summons for his first questioning as a suspect on Tuesday morning. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/human-rights-watch-urges-indonesia-to-repeal-blasphemy-law.html

Hundreds join Bhineka Tunggal Ika Parade

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Jakarta – Hundreds of residents from Greater Jakarta gathered around the Arjuna Wijaya Statue area on Jl. MH Thamrin, Central Jakarta, on Saturday to join in the Bhineka Tunggal Ika Parade, which is the national motto meaning "unity in diversity".

Wearing red and white clothes and traditional attire, the residents called on the nation to maintain unity amid recent tensions, including the attack on a church in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, which injured four children, one of which passed away.

"We pray for the victims of the Samarinda church attack, our child Intan Olivia. We hope the incident will never happen again," one religious leader who attended said, as reported by kompas.com.

Besides interfaith prayers, the parade also featured music and traditional art performances, like Reog Ponorogo from East Java.

The parade's participants marched to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta. Some of the participants marched to Heroes Monument area in Central Jakarta.

On Nov. 4, hundreds of thousands of people, led by conservative Muslim groups, staged a rally in the area, demanding the government to prosecute Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" for alleged blasphemy. The rally ended in violence as two police vehicles were set on fire.

On Wednesday, the police named Ahok a suspect in the alleged blasphemy case. Conservative Muslim groups said on Friday they would organize another mass demonstration, now to demand police that Ahok be detained. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/hundreds-join-bhineka-tunggal-ika-parade.html

Buddhists pray for peace, tolerance in Indonesia

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan, North Sumatra – Hundreds of Buddhists in Medan, North Sumatra, held a joint prayer for peace and tolerance in Indonesia, amid rising religious tensions across the country.

Around 15,000 followers of all Buddhist sects participated in the joint prayer held at Soewondo Air Force Base in Medan on Saturday. Dozens of Buddhist monks, House of Representatives members and local officials also participated in the event, which will continue on Sunday.

Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin opened the joint prayer on Friday, which was marked by the release of hundreds of doves, which symbolize peace and harmony.

Lukman said the event was very noble, as Buddhists had prayed for peace and harmony in the country. "My presence in this event is not only to fulfil their invitation but the most the important thing is, I want to appreciate this very noble event," said Lukman, adding that hopefully, more joint prayers are held by Buddhists in Indonesia.

North Sumatra Governor Erry Nuradi also appreciated the Indonesian Buddhist followers' joint prayer, themed "For My Country, Indonesia". At the event, he added, all religious followers pleaded for protection from God the Almighty, with a hope that Indonesia could remain in a safe, peaceful condition so that all of its development agendas could run well.

Organizing committee head Sutrisno said that after joint prayers on Sunday, all Buddhists would participate in a blood donation event. "We are holding this event sincerely for peace and harmony in Indonesia." (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/buddhists-pray-for-peace-tolerance-in-indonesia.html

Decision to name Ahok a suspect detrimental to religious freedom: Setara

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Callistasia Anggun Wijaya, Jakarta – The police's decision to name Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama a blasphemy suspect on Wednesday was detrimental to religious freedom in Indonesia, Setara Institute chairman Hendardi said.

Ahok was charged under Article 156 of the Criminal Code (KUHP) on defamation in reference to Article 28 of the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law.

"The article concerning blasphemy restricts the interpretation of religion. Someone's opinion about religion can be criminalized because of this article," Herdardi told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

The usage of that article on religious defamation in this case will set a bad precedent for religious tolerance in the country, he said. "If this condition continues, Indonesians will become more intolerant of differences," he said.

After weeks of investigation, police named Ahok a blasphemy suspect in relation to a comment he made about a Quranic verse during a working visit to the Thousand Islands regency in late September.

Ahok's remarks sparked outrage among Muslim conservatives. Thousands of people staged a rally in front of the State Palace in Jakarta on Nov. 4, demanding the government prosecute the governor.

In 2010, several organizations, including Setara, filed a judicial review on the Blasphemy Law with the Constitutional Court. Judges rejected the request, arguing that the state had the right to regulate religious followers. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/decision-to-name-ahok-a-suspect-detrimental-to-religious-freedom-setara.html

Unresolved violence, discrimination put RI's tolerance in question

Jakarta Post - November 16, 2016

Marguerite Afra Sapiie, Jakarta – Religious conflicts and nationwide violence continue to taint the state of tolerance in the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation, with the recent blasphemy allegation lodged against Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama and a church attack in Samarinda, East Kalimantan exposing the challenges faced by law enforcement when dealing with religious-motivated crimes, activists have said.

Speaking at a discussion to mark International Tolerance Day, which falls on Nov. 16, Setara Institute research director Ismail Hasani said the trend of conservatism among societies had continued to rise and contributed the most to religious-based violence and tension.

With its leniency in enforcing the law without exception while being persistent in maintaining regulations considered discriminatory toward minority religious groups, the government has also given room for conservatism to grow, Ismail said.

"Conservatism has also dominated the government's decision-making process and has influenced many issues, as it has also been used to gain political support. Also, political aspirations tainted with intolerance are [often accepted] in Indonesia," Ismail said on Tuesday.

"Blasphemy tends to be used by actors with a political agenda. They are in fact not being hurt by the alleged action of blasphemy itself," Ismail said.

People demonstrated recently against Ahok, a Christian, accusing him of blasphemy after he made a statement referring to al-Maidah 51, a verse in the Quran.

Critics have long-called for the government to scrap the 1965 Blasphemy Law and its association in the Criminal Code (KUHP) since the regulations have repeatedly been used by hard-liners to launch attacks against religious minority groups.

Members of Ahmadiyah and Shia communities have faced repeated attacks by Sunni Muslims who condemn them for their beliefs. Numerous Protestant and Catholic groups have also faced obstacles.

Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) special adviser Choirul Anam said the government should protect people's right to adhere to their beliefs.

"What [the government] should forbid is intolerant actions," he said. "If our law is still based on 'feelings' there will be no justice served. There is no legal certainty [for minorities]," he added.

The Oikumene Church in Sengkotek subdistrict, Samarinda, was attacked by a man who threw several Molotov cocktails into the parking lot during Sunday morning service.

A similar incident occurred a day after, in which two unidentified men threw Molotov cocktails at Budi Dharma Vihara in Singkawang, West Kalimantan.

Nahdlatul Ulama's (NU) Institute for Research and Human Resources Development (Lakpesdam) chairman Rumadi Ahmad said the country was becoming less tolerant, which in turn had increased the potential for blasphemy allegations to be lodged by intolerant groups against minorities voicing their opinions.

"People are becoming less wise. They are more childish, easily offended and quick to become angry. Something that we used to tolerate is now considered blasphemy," Rumadi told The Jakarta Post.

Indonesia has seen an increase of violations against religious freedom in the country. The Wahid Institute recorded 190 violations against religious freedom in 2015, a 23 percent increase from 154 in 2014.

The violations are mostly in the form of sealing places of worship and the prohibition of their construction, as well as obstructing celebrations or rituals of certain faiths.

Blasphemy is not acknowledged since International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights has asserted that freedom of religion and belief are protected at any cost, Imparsial director Al-Araf said.

"Every country should protect its people's right to religious freedom. Discourse over blasphemy is about perspective and the beliefs of citizens, and it should not be ruled under law," Al-Araf said, adding that the government should immediately repeal laws that discriminate against certain religious groups.

What the government should be concerned about is the circulation of hate speech, which is a threat to democracy since it could spark hatred and lead to radicalism and terrorism in the country, Al-Araf said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/16/unresolved-violence-discrimination-put-ri-s-tolerance-question.html

Religion & morality

Banyuwangi pledges to uphold Islamic values amid tourism boom

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Anton Hermansyah, Jakarta – In the face of a booming tourism industry in its area, the Banyuwangi regional administration in East Java has pledged to ensure that management of the sector would stay in line with Islamic values to respect the majority Muslim population in the region.

Regent Abdullah Azwar Anas said that strong Islamic culture in East Java made him decide not to allow the establishment of bars and discotheques like those on the neighboring resort island of Bali in an effort to minimize alcohol consumption in the region.

Anwar also said his administration had prohibited the establishment of hotels rated with fewer than three stars. The 'cheap hotels', he added, would potentially become venues for sex transactions.

"For cheaper accommodations, we encourage tourists to stay in homestay facilities. It will be much easier to supervise such venues," Azwar said Monday during a meeting of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) in Jakarta.

Islamic teachings prohibit the consumption of alcohol and sexual relations out of wedlock.

To attract more tourists to Banyuwangi, Anwar said, the administration was intensifying efforts to promote an eco-tourism concept, by which visitors can explore the region's natural beauty, food and festivals. "We see a good example on Langkawi, Malaysia. The island attracts a lot of tourists without offering indecent stuff," he said.

Many years ago, most outsiders would probably only have known Banyuwangi as the place of origin of santet (a traditional black magic). The easternmost city on Java Island, however, has now transformed itself into a regional powerhouse, with tourism and agriculture among its leading sectors.

In 2010 the regency attracted 400,000 tourists, but 2 million tourists visited the region during the first 10 months of this year, 50,000 of them foreigners. (hwa)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/banyuwangi-pledges-to-uphold-islamic-values-amid-tourism-boom.html

Land & agrarian conflicts

Activists protest alleged violence against W. Java farmers

Jakarta Post - November 20, 2016

Jakarta – A hundred activists from various organizations have sent a letter to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to protest alleged violence by security personnel in a West Java village where an airport is planned.

The incident reportedly took place on Thursday in the village of Sukamulya, Kertajati district, Majalengka regency.

An altercation erupted when some 2,000 personnel from the Indonesian Military, the National Police and the Public Order Agency were deployed to the village to secure land measuring activities by the National Land Agency (BPN). The government plans to build the West Java International Airport (BIJB), also known as Kertajati International Airport in the area.

According to the Land Reform Consortium (KPA), villagers protested the attempt and police arrested six people. Dozens were reportedly wounded after being beaten, with one sustaining an open head injury.

The activists wanted the government to stop what they called police "repression" and to release the detained farmers. "We also want the government to reassess the planning for the extension of the runway, because the government could avoid the forced eviction of Sukamulya villagers if it planned the extension on the other side of the airport," the letter said.

Previously, West Java Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Yusri Yunus said some villagers had protested the measuring activities. "Residents threw stones and in return had tear gas thrown at them," he said on Thursday, as quoted by tempo.co. Yusri said some villagers who refused to sell their land had provoked others to protest.

The government has announced the plan to procure land in Sukamulya in August, but each attempt to measure the land was met with protests. Majalengka Regent Sutrisno said the airport would become an investment magnet for neighboring Cirebon.

The KPA said the airport project was defined in Presidential Regulation No. 3/2016 as a public transportation project, but did, in fact, amount to an urban development project called Aerocity Kertajati. The KPA said the total land for the urban development was 5,000 hectares, 1,800 ha of which would be for the airport and 3,200 ha of which would be for new city development.

"While the project is ongoing, paddy fields and housing have transformed into the project. Sukamulya village is the only village that stands its ground and refuses to move. There are 1,478 families who refuse to move, defending about 500 hectares of land," the KPA said.

The KPA said besides Sukamulya 10 other villages were affected by the project. (evi)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/20/activists-protest-alleged-violence-against-w-java-farmers.html

Parliament & legislation

PDI-P, Golkar excluded from chairmanship in special committee for elections bill

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – After repeated delays caused by gridlock during lobbying, the House of Representatives' special committee assigned to deliberate the Elections Bill finally elected leaders of the committee in a voting process, which ran until late Monday evening.

During the voting process, 29 committee members elected a chairmanship, which included one chairman and three deputy chairmen. Neither of the two largest factions, namely the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Golkar Party, secured a seat in the chairmanship, however.

National Awakening Party (PKB) politician Muhammad Lukman Edhy was elected as chairman of the committee, which will play a vital role in directing the deliberation process of the bill. The three lawmakers elected as his deputies were Riza Patria from the Gerindra Party, Benny Kabur Harman from the Democratic Party and Yandri Susanto from the National Mandate Party (PAN).

"The election ran smoothly although its results were unexpected," House Deputy Speaker Fadli Zon of the Gerindra Party said.

Although the chairmanship's decision-making process is collective collegial in concept, each leader in the special committee can play a role in determining the course of the deliberation process, including the fate of proposals related to the 2019 legislative and presidential elections submitted by each faction.

Among the much anticipated proposals in the elections system, the legislative and presidential systems will set a minimum percentage of votes required by political parties to be eligible for the 2019 simultaneous legislative and presidential elections. It will also be discussed whether or not to maintain the existing open system that allows voters to choose candidates, (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/pdi-p-golkar-excluded-from-chairmanship-in-special-committee-for-elections-bill.html

Golkar decides to return Setya to House's top post

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2016

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The House of Representatives is expected to see the comeback of Golkar chairman Setya Novanto as speaker in the near future as the party has decided to return Setya back the legislative institution's top post, replacing fellow party member Ade Komarudin.

Golkar's decision was made in a closed-door meeting at the party's headquarters in Slipi, West Jakarta, on Monday as members of the party's executive board agreed on returning Setya to the position. A party executive, Fadh A. Rafiq, confirmed such a meeting and decision had occurred.

"The request [to replace Ade with Setya] were the aspirations from the bottom-up. However, members of the executive board also wanted the decision," he told The Jakarta Post via a telephone interview after the meeting.

"None of those who were present [in the meeting] expressed rejections. All agreed [to reelect Setya as House speaker] with acclaim," Fadh said, emphasizing that "we are waiting for the right time to execute the plan. The party's headquarters will handle the details".

Setya resigned as House speaker earlier in January over allegations of illicit lobbying in relation to a work contract with mining firm PT Freeport Indonesia.

Earlier, the Constitutional Court ruled that a recording used to incriminate Setya was obtained illegally and could not be used against him in court. He has submitted an official letter to the House's ethics council requesting his name be cleared from the Freeport scandal. (jun)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/golkar-decides-to-return-setya-to-houses-top-post.html

Criminal justice & legal system

House defends decision to keep black magic illegal

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Moses Ompusunggu, Jakarta – In what could be seen as a promotional line, a man claiming to be "Ki Barong" – Ki is Javanese and usually refers to a man possessing power – wrote on his Facebook wall that he "is the mightiest of all dukun santet [black magic shamans]. Everything can be done at a distance. Success is guaranteed."

Ki Barong said in his post that he could cast deadly santet spells, so baneful that no victims could be cured by any means.

In Indonesia, where more half of the citizens are now connected to the internet, it is not difficult to find santet shamans like Ki Barong, who has been using the new information technology to offer what he claims to be the powers of the supernatural.

Facebook accounts or blogs offering promises to deliver santet spells that could abruptly plunge a specified target into a life of squalor or make him or her struggle in a job, are some of what you would find if you type "dukun santet" into a search engine.

However, people like Ki Borong may no longer be able to make online ads for their businesses, which may soon be declared illegal.

A House of Representatives team tasked with deliberating the Criminal Code (KUHP) bill on Thursday wants to scrap the original KUHP article that makes it illegal to sell, offer, or distribute items that reportedly have "dark" powers, or to teach black magic, and to replace the article with one that criminalizes anyone who declares or promises "they possess the ability to perform black magic that can cause sickness, death, physical and mental sickness".

The amended article would carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and Rp 300 million (US$22,480) in fines upon conviction.

The lawmakers thought shamans should get a heavier punishment since the current KUHP stipulates that people selling, offering or distributing black magic items and those who teach black magic could only be jailed for three months and ordered to pay a Rp 450,000 fine.

While many would easily jeer at the law, the lawmakers said their decision could be rationally justified. "This is not a crime based on a report. It is the law enforcement officers who will hunt down the people who declare that they are santet shaman, either in a written or a verbal way," Teuku Taufiqulhadi, a member of the team, told The Jakarta Post.

Taufiqulhadi, a Nasdem Party lawmaker, said the agreed provisions were aimed at preventing violent witch hunts and ensuring public order. He cited a number of cases in which people took the law into their own hands by attacking people who declared they practiced black magic or were accused of using santet on others.

For many Western countries, violent witch hunts are a thing of the past, with many only remembering the deadly Salem witch trials in North America in the late 17th century. In Indonesia, the killing by a mob of a man or woman accused of practicing black magic is not part of any distant history.

In March this year, Sulu Island Police in North Maluku arrested dozens of people from Buya village for allegedly abusing and killing a 70-year-old woman over witchcraft allegations. A mob attacked the victim and dismembered her body with machetes.

In between 1998 and 1999, a mass murder disguised as a hunt for santet shamans happened around Banyuwangi, East Java. Analysts, however, suggested that this hunt was politically motivated. More than 100 people were killed.

As the advertisement by Ki Borong shows, many people seem to believe in black magic. "Santet is commonly used by people who lose political battles, business deals, or even in their love life, in order to retaliate," University of Indonesia anthropologist Amich Alhumami told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

It was generally perceived by members of the public that santet had caused several incurable sicknesses, Alhumami added. "This often leads to violence, which is more excessive than what is bear by the alleged victim of santet."

A criminal law expert from Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University, Fatahillah Akbar, however, said law enforcement institutions would find it hard to monitor advertisements offering santet in the public.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/house-defends-decision-keep-black-magic-illegal.html

Lawmakers agree to outlaw black magic

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Jakarta – A team of lawmakers tasked with deliberating a bill has agreed to retain an article within the Criminal Code (KUHP) bill, making it illegal for people to declare that they "possess the ability to perform black magic" and to tell other people they can "cast spells to cause sickness and death".

Article 295 of the bill, known as the santet (black magic) article, stipulates that those found guilty of using black magic could face five years' imprisonment and be fined Rp 300 million (US$22,480).

"They can be charged even if they only declare to have black magic abilities, even if they have yet to commit a crime," said Democratic Party lawmaker Benny Kabur Harman, who chairs the team, said on Thursday.

"So the point is a person's declaration, because there is no way to prove whether someone possesses the ability to practice black magic," Benny added.

In the prevailing Criminal Code, people selling, offering or distributing things that are claimed to have "dark" powers and those teaching black magic can be jailed for three months and ordered to pay a Rp 450,000 fine.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/national-scene-lawmakers-agree-outlaw-black-magic.html

Mining & energy

One fuel price policy unlikely to be effective

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – Despite the government's good intentions, the one-price fuel policy is unlikely to be effective unless the government starts taking development in remote regions seriously.

The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry recently issued a ministerial regulation that will allow people in Papua and West Papua to buy Premium gasoline for Rp 6,450 per liter, diesel for Rp 5,150 per liter and kerosene for Rp 2,500 per liter starting in January next year.

The regulation is a follow-up to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's commitment to make the price of fuel the same in all regions across the country, slashing prices from Rp 50,000 to Rp 100,000 per liter in Papua and West Papua.

The regulation also stipulates that the Downstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BPH Migas) will be tasked with ordering state-owned oil and gas firm Pertamina to supply fuel to new locations, chosen by the ministry. Furthermore, the agency can implement sanctions if the company violates the regulation.

The policy will force Pertamina to allocate Rp 800 billion in subsidies every year.

However, Pertamina remains upbeat about its new challenge. Spokesperson Wianda Pusponegoro said the company was planning to add 22 fuel distribution agents in Maluku, North Maluku and Papua. Pertamina plans to allocate Rp 54 billion for the projects.

"The funds can come from investors in the fuel distribution agents," she told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

As of May, Pertamina had 481 gas stations and 397 distribution agents across the country, including 19 distribution agents in Papua and 13 in West Papua.

Within the first nine months of this year, the company saw a 17 percent annual decrease in revenues to US$26.62 billion. However, renegotiation of existing contracts and operational cost-cutting measures made the company's net profits soar 210 percent to $2.83 billion.

ReforMiner Institute researcher Pri Agung Rakhmanto said the new policy was unnecessary as the government already decided on the prices of non-subsidized fuel every three months. The problem, he said, was mostly related to the lack of gas stations in the region, leading to large numbers of illegal gasoline sellers who often doubled or tripled the selling price.

Although there might be a small decrease in price, Pri Agung doubted that the selling prices would reach the prices in Java and Bali unless the government established policies that would lead to serious infrastructure development, especially in the construction of gas stations.

"President Jokowi must order the construction of more gas stations in those regions. If he leaves it up to Pertamina, they will probably be more business-minded," he said.

Pertamina previously complained that since distribution agents only stocked a small amount of fuel with small profit margins, investors were often reluctant to place their money in the distribution agents.

In order to counter this, the new ministerial regulation stipulates that different profit margins be prepared depending on the region. The regulation also dictates that Pertamina must give a higher margin fee for distributors in those regions. Currently, the profit margin on the sale of premium gasoline in Pertamina's gas stations stands at only Rp 270 per liter.

Although Pertamina is the only company that currently distributes subsidized fuels, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan said the same regulation would apply to other companies that may want to start distributing premium gasoline, diesel and kerosene in remote regions.

"Those who receive appointments to distribute the subsidized fuels must distribute them with the same price. However, this does not apply to other types of fuels," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/one-fuel-price-policy-unlikely-be-effective.html

Non-Java electricity prioritized as 35,000 MW project looks unlikely

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2016

Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – State-owned electricity company PLN will prioritize power plant development outside of Java, in areas with low electrification rates, amid emerging concern that the government's flagship 35,000 megawatt project will fall short of expectations.

Last week, the National Energy Board (DEN) announced that instead of 35,000 MW as the government initially planned, only 19,700 MW of power plants will begin operating in 2019 due to lower than expected economic growth in the past two years, which will affect electricity demand.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's office has acknowledged this shortage, which is based on the volume of development contracts for which PLN can financially close by the end of this year. Although, he has yet to officially decrease the original goal.

PLN president director Sofyan Basir said the company expected approximately 26,000 MW to start operating in 2019 as it would not slow down the development of power plants outside of Java.

"There is already a 30 percent surplus in Java," he said. The International Energy Agency's (IEA) guidelines on healthy electricity reserve margins – the difference between capacity and peak demand – are between 20 and 35 percent.

Meanwhile, the margins are at a meager 7 and 8 percent in Sumatra and Kalimantan, respectively. "We need a lot of effort to reach 30 percent in those areas. We cannot stop building outside Java," Sofyan said.

As of the end of 2015, Indonesia had a total installed power plant capacity of about 55,000 MW, but there are numerous areas, particularly outside Java, with lower ratios and frequent blackouts as the demand is higher than the available capacity.

Java is the most electrified in the archipelago, as 72.6 percent of the country's electricity is distributed throughout Java as Indonesia's manufacturing industry, seaports and airports are, for the most part, better developed on Java, according to data from Bank Mandiri's chief economist's office.

Focusing on building power plants in areas outside of Java is in accordance with President Jokowi's Nawacita (nine goal) program, which aims to decentralize national development, PLN corporate planning director Nicke Widyawati said recently.

The 35,000 MW project was initially proposed to avoid a potential power crisis in the country and to maintain healthy electricity reserve margins of above 20 percent, as well as increasing the electrification ratio to 97 percent by 2019 from the current 88 percent.

However, the target was made under the assumption that Indonesia's economy would grow between 7 and 8 percent this year, while during the past two years of Jokowi's presidency, economic growth has hovered between 4.7 and 5.5 percent, government officials say.

A large majority of power plants to be completed in 2019 are steam and gas-fired power plants, which are typically the fastest to construct.

Furthermore, some of the megawatt total will come from delayed projects under the fast track program (FTP) I and II pioneered by former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, which preceded the existing electricity program.

Institute of Essential Services Reform (IESR) executive director Fabby Tumiwa was doubtful that the electricity procured by 2019 would even reach 19,700 MW, as projects could be delayed for two or three years depending on a project's financial closure.

"There is a risk of an electricity crisis occuring in 2018 through the beginning of 2019. The government must implement measures to ensure this does not happen," he said.

Fabby also noted that the 34 projects in the FTP program had already been stalled for seven years and would not be completed by 2019.

PLN has previously expressed concerns over the government's slow progress when issuing business feasibility guarantees, which some independent power producers (IPPs) required in order to obtain funds from international banks.

The Finance Ministry is responsible for issuing the guarantee, which provides assurance that PLN has the financial capacity to purchase power produced by IPPs.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/21/non-java-electricity-prioritized-35000-mw-project-looks-unlikely.html

Government gives green light to private refineries

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2016

Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – Private companies may now grab their own piece of the oil refinery cake as a new regulation allows them to build refineries without cooperating with state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina.

Indonesia is in dire need of more oil refineries to minimize refined fuel imports in the next decade, which are set to skyrocket in order to accommodate rising demand.

At present, the country's refineries are only capable of processing around 830,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd), a little over half of the current refined fuel demand.

Although Pertamina has already set the ball rolling with plans to build two new refineries and upgrade three others in the next decade, progress has been slower than expected, increasing concern that the fuel supply deficit will remain large in the coming years.

To offset a possible shortfall, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry last Friday issued Ministerial Regulation No. 35/2016, which allows private companies to build refineries of their own as long as they use technology approved by the government and prioritize meeting domestic demand over exporting the final products.

Based on existing regulations, private companies that decide to build oil refineries may be offered fiscal and non-fiscal incentives, including the ability to integrate petrochemical production in the refineries built.

The regulation also allows companies to directly import crude for production and decide freely on the fuel they wish to produce.

The ministry's oil and gas director general, IGN Wiratmadja Puja, emphasized that the private refineries would be allowed to sell their fuel to off-takers other than Pertamina. "They can decide who to sell it to, it will mostly be based on competitiveness," he said on Thursday.

BMI Research, a subsidiary of Fitch Group, expects national fuel demand to increase by an average annual rate of 2.7 percent from 1.78 million bopd to 2.28 million in 2025. However, this estimate does not take into account any proposed greenfield refineries, due to the lack of a concrete time line and the risk of delays.

BMI Research also expects imports of refined fuels to skyrocket to 1.4 million bopd in 2025 from the current 941,000 bopd.

Unlike BMI Research, however, Pertamina projects that demand will only reach 1.8 million bopd by 2030. To accommodate that projected increase, Pertamina is set to upgrade refineries in Cilacap in Central Java, Balikpapan in East Kalimantan, Dumai in Riau and Balongan in West Java.

It will also build several new refineries, including one in Bontang, East Kalimantan, and Tuban, East Java.

Even though these measures are set to increase production to 2.6 bopd, Pertamina still expects to see a small deficit of 231,000 bopd in 2030 – comprising only of gasoline – if the projects complete on time.

Wiratmaja said the ministry had not set a total capacity target for private refineries, as that would depend largely on national demand at the time. Moreover, the ministry did not set a minimum capacity for each refinery.

"There have already been a lot of requests to invest in private refineries. Some have asked to build refineries with a capacity of 100 or 200 bopd," he said, declining to disclose the companies that had shown an interest in private refineries.

Meanwhile, ReforMiner Institute executive director Komaidi Notonegoro applauded the new regulation, saying it would expedite refinery development and support Pertamina's efforts to increase domestic production.

"Pertamina's refinery segment is more of an obligation, because as a business it's not that profitable," he said, adding that the private refineries could fill the production gap Pertamina projects for 2030.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/18/govt-gives-green-light-to-private-refineries.html

Indonesia braces for defeat in 35 GW program

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2016

Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – The government is in "dire need of a miracle" to realize its ambitious goal to generate an additional 35,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity by 2019 in the country, on the back of a sobering projection revealing that the target would most likely be missed.

The National Energy Board (DEN) announced on Monday that only 56.28 percent of the target, about 19,700 MW of electricity, would be added into the grid by 2019. The estimate was based on the actual development contracts that state-owned electricity firm PLN would close by the end of this year.

Furthermore, the lower-than-expected economic growth in the past two years has also raised questions about the feasibility of the program. President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said during his campaign he would aim for 7 percent economic growth next year, but the 2017 state budget draft conservatively set the rate at 5.1 percent.

Presidential spokesman Johan Budi acknowledged that Jokowi was made aware of the projected shortfall in the electricity generating target during a closed-door meeting held at the beginning of the month.

"This was based on an evaluation that says [the 19,700 MW outcome] is likely to be real. We cannot force the 35,000 MW program. However, this does not mean the target has changed," he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

DEN member Rinaldy Dalimi said that unless PLN could expedite the financial closure, it was unlikely that any more than 19,700 MW would be achieved as it took around 36 months to build a power plant after the financial issues were settled.

According to Rinaldy, PLN had yet to submit the location of about 30 power plants to the Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry. While most of the remaining capacity of the 35,000 MW program would probably be completed by 2022, DEN deemed some power plants would be impossible to build on time because of land acquisition problems.

But even so, DEN said it believes it is unlikely that Indonesia would experience a power crisis based on the assumption of a 6 percent economic growth in the upcoming years.

Meanwhile, Institute of Essential Services Reform (IESR) executive director Fabby Tumiwa said it was crucial for the government to reevaluate its target as the total 35,000 MW would be unnecessary if Indonesia's economy only continues to grow at an average 5 percent per year.

"They need to recalculate a realistic demand in [PLN's] electricity procurement business plan [RUPTL] for 2017 to 2026," he said, adding that targets in the RUPTL had never been fulfilled since its conception.

Although PLN could not be reached for comment, the company's data as of September showed that only 232 MW of the total 35,000 MW target are in commercial operation.

The megaproject is basically a continuation of the 10,000 MW policy launched by then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in 2005, to keep the reserve margin – the difference between the existing capacity and the peak demand – within the International Energy Agency's recommended level of 20 to 35 percent.

As the nation was at risk of a power crisis should the reserve margin decline to below 20 percent, Jokowi had taken the initiative during his first days in office in 2014 to boost power capacity to accommodate his 7 percent growth target.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/indonesia-braces-for-defeat-in-35-gw-program.html

Economy & investment

Government spending to drive growth in fourth quarter

Jakarta Post - November 22, 2016

Grace D. Amianti, Jakarta – The country's economic growth will still be able to reach the government's target by year-end, supported by public spending and revenue improvement following a recent state budget cut, experts and officials say.

The government has recently targeted economic growth to be at 5.1 percent this year, slightly lower than the 5.2 percent target in the revised 2016 state budget as it decided to reduce public spending in a bid to maintain a healthy fiscal balance.

The state budget cut, which amounted to Rp 137 trillion (US$10.2 billion), was made in early August as President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo called for efficiency measures on less important spending. The decision has directly impacted government spending, which contracted by 2.97 percent in the third quarter.

"As growth was weak in the third quarter, we hope there will be a little push in the fourth quarter as the budget cut's impact is expected to be smaller. Revenue from the tax amnesty was also higher than expected," Bank Central Asia chief economist David Sumual said on Monday.

The government's tax amnesty, which has been going on for almost five months, received Rp 94.7 trillion in penalty payments as of Monday evening, government data show.

David said consumer demand had yet to show improvement as there remained a time lag between Bank Indonesia's (BI) monetary easing and response from the banking industry. However, he said slightly better government spending supported by revenues from the tax amnesty could help trigger growth to hover at around 5 percent to 5.1 percent as expected.

The central bank had cut its benchmark rate by a total of 150 basis points (bps) year-to-date, but the easing policy transmission had yet to create a stimulus for the economy as lower lending rates in the banking industry did not necessarily trigger demand for credit largely due to the impact of sluggish global economic growth.

With BI's aggressive easing so far, it was seen that the central bank had run out of ample room to continue cutting rates as risks of capital outflows caused by global uncertainty have continued to rise following the US presidential election and the Federal Reserve's plan to hike its fund rate.

"Despite the interest rate [BI's seven-day reverse repo rate], [which] was held at 4.75 percent, it won't disturb economic growth until year-end as government spending will be bigger," Bahana Securities economist Fakhrul Fulvian wrote in his recent note.

"With recent global economic rout, the government should improve its fiscal [situation], particularly expenditure, so that investors will see that economic fundamentals remain under control," he added.

BI Governor Agus Martowardojo said recently that economic growth was predicted to hover above 5 percent at year-end as household consumption remained strong and improvements in several commodity prices were still ongoing, despite the downside impact of the government's budget cut.

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said state revenue improvement was expected to help government spending until the end of this year.

She recently said the government had submitted its proposal of at least seven revised laws related to taxation, fund transfers and regional fiscal balance in order to reform the state fiscal condition and improve revenues in the future.

There are five law revisions related to taxation proposed by the government, namely the General Taxation System Law, the Income Tax Law, the Value Added Tax Law, the Stamp Duty Law and the Land and Building Tax Law.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/22/government-spending-drive-growth-fourth-quarter.html

Anemic sales growth points to limited purchasing power

Jakarta Post - November 19, 2016

Viriya P. Singgih, Jakarta – At the beginning of this year, Jakarta-based programmer Ciptoning Hestomo planned to fulfill his long-held dream of buying a seven-seater car so that he could take his parents on a road trip to their hometown in Yogyakarta.

"It's going to be easier for them to travel around Yogyakarta, where much of the public transportation stops operating in the evening," the 27-year-old told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

However, Ciptoning's plan blew up in his face as he was forced to tighten his belt due to unexpected spending, including on his own tuition. "A few months back, I tried my luck applying for a master's degree and was accepted. So, as for the car, maybe some other time," Ciptoning said.

Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF) senior researcher Iman Sugema said the recent economic slowdown had discouraged people from spending money on expensive tertiary goods, such as cars.

"Amid current conditions, people will be more selective in spending, as their purchasing power has been weakened. Hence, it's natural to see people postpone the purchase of durable goods like cars," Iman said.

Indeed, the slowdown in the country's economy has also affected the automotive industry. Car sales serve as an important indicator of consumer spending, which traditionally contributes the lion's share to Indonesia's gross domestic product (GDP).

The latest data from the Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo), published Thursday, show that 91,990 cars were sold domestically in October. That brings total car sales for the first 10 months of the year to 874,847 units, marking annual growth of only 2.55 percent.

Weak consumer spending appears to be in line with inflation, which climbed by a mere 2.11 percent year-on-year in the January to October period. In October, inflation stood at 3.31 percent.

Gaikindo has set a modest target for car sales this year. It aims to see 1.05 million cars sold before year-end, which would mark only a slight increase from last year's sales of 1.013 million.

"Our target is always based on the country's economic growth. Therefore, as the government has forecast growth of 5.1 percent next year, which is more or less the same as this year's, we predict car sales will only reach 1.1 million units in 2017," Gaikindo co-chairman Jongkie Sugiarto said.

Against the backdrop of a weak global economy, Indonesia saw its GDP increase only 4.79 percent last year, the lowest rate in six years, due to weak domestic demand and lower exports.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration has announced a total of 14 stimulus packages to boost the economy since September last year.

Moreover, Bank Indonesia (BI) has eased monetary policy, including by cutting its seven-day reverse repo rate, the central bank's benchmark interest rate, by 25 basis points to 4.75 percent.

However, Centre of Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) department of economics head Yose Rizal Damuri said those policies were not enough to stoke growth.

"The government has launched many supply-side policies, including its economic packages, that won't have any impact in the short run. We need demand-side policies that are aimed at certain social groups, especially lower-income earners," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/19/anemic-sales-growth-points-limited-purchasing-power.html

Analysis & opinion

Q&A: Melissa Crouch on the Blasphemy Law

Indonesia at Melbourne - November 22, 2016

Tim Mann – Indonesian police last week declared Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, or Ahok, a suspect for blasphemy, over a speech he gave in which he quoted a verse from the Qur'an. In the wake of the police decision, Indonesia at Melbourne spoke to Dr Melissa Crouch, who has published widely on Indonesia's Blasphemy Law (Law No. 1/PNPS/1965), about the growing use of the law in democratic Indonesia, and the possible consequences for Ahok.

Indonesia is a majority Muslim country but the state officially recognises five other religions. Has the Blasphemy Law only been used to prosecute those who blaspheme Islam?

All cases prior to 1998 were for blaspheming Islam. While the majority of prosecutions have been charges of blaspheming Islam, there have been a handful of cases since 1998 where a person has been charged with blaspheming another religion.

For example, in the Pondok Nabi case, a protestant pastor, Mangapin Sibuea, was accused of blaspheming Christianity. He had established his own sect, and there were allegations of abuse and attempted suicide. In 2004, he was sentenced to two years jail in Bandung.

In another case, in 2009, the leader and six followers of a Christian sect known as Zion City of Allah (Sion Kota Allah), were accused of insulting Christianity. The allegations were based on claims that the group instructed its followers not to take communion and forbade wedding ceremonies in church. The Kupang District Court sentenced the seven accused to six months in prison under the Blasphemy Law.

In another intra-Christian dispute, a group of students filed a case against the weekly Tempo magazine. They alleged that a front page photo published in 2008 – which depicted a satirical version of Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" with President Soeharto having dinner with his six children – blasphemed Christianity by suggesting an analogy between Soeharto and Jesus. This case did not proceed to trial, as Tempo publicly apologised.

In 2010, the Central Jakarta District Court ruled that the owner of the Buddha Bar was guilty of blasphemy for using Buddha's name and various Buddhist symbols in the bar.

Some human rights activists and researchers have suggested that the blasphemy charges against Shi'a cleric Tajul Muluk in Sampang, East Java, were motivated by underlying economic disparity and competition for followers between local Shi'a and Sunni groups. Is it common for blasphemy trials to be economically or politically motivated?

Before 1998, many blasphemy trials were politically or religiously motivated. There were two high profile trials of Muslims who had converted to Christianity. There were also trials of some Javanese leaders and students who made jokes about Islam.

Since 1998, however, the reasons blasphemy trials have been brought to court are more complex. Often there are underlying family or community disputes. Sometimes it is a recent convert to Christianity who is seen to be too outspoken in criticising Islam. Other times it is about disputes within a religion over the "correct" teachings and efforts by religious leaders to guard what are perceived to be the orthodox teachings of that religion. In doing so, they also boost their own religious authority and power.

What role is played by the Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI) in driving blasphemy charges?

Most cases are reported to the police by religious leaders, including by leaders of MUI. One of the key pieces of "evidence" that organisations like MUI offer to police is a fatwa that declares a group and its teaching deviant. Although the fatwa of MUI are not legally binding, such decisions appear to have significant persuasive value in court.

For example, MUI issued a fatwa against Lia Eden, the leader of a small sect, and the fatwa was produced in court as evidence that she had blasphemed Islam. The reliance on fatwa by the prosecution as evidence in court is difficult for judges to deny without being perceived as questioning the credibility of the Islamic leaders or organisation that issued the fatwa.

What kind of behaviour has been deemed to 'blaspheme Islam' in the past?

A whole range of behaviour has been declared blasphemous. Groups that teach that praying five times a day is not necessary have been deemed to blaspheme Islam. One person declared himself to be the prophet Mohammad. One woman published her own fatwa in contradiction to that of the MUI. One religious leader whistled during prayers. Another religious leader taught that it was permissible to pray in two languages, Indonesian and Arabic. One group published a booklet that taught that you do not have to be Muslim to enter heaven. All of these actions or words were found by a court to have blasphemed Islam.

How long do blasphemy trials generally take in Indonesia? Is it realistic that the trial would even be heard before the elections?

Blasphemy trials always begin in the lower courts. If convicted, the accused could then appeal to the High Court, and then to the Supreme Court. So it is not uncommon for this process to take over a year.

In Ahok's case, there may be significant pressure on the courts to deal with the case quickly, given that the elections are scheduled for February. Of course, the courts may try to avoid this situation by delaying the trial until after the elections, in the hopes of diffusing some of the tension.

If Ahok is convicted of blasphemy before the elections, what happens? Can he still run as a candidate?

If Ahok is convicted of blasphemy, then he is no longer eligible to run as a candidate. A person is ineligible to run as a candidate for governor if they have been jailed for an offence that attracts a sentence of five or more years. The offence of blasphemy attracts a sentence of up to five years.

Over recent years, the judiciary has demonstrated that it is highly susceptible to public pressure, even in cases where evidence is lacking. Is a blasphemy trial likely to be fair and unbiased?

Blasphemy trials have often attracted the attention of Islamist groups and large crowds have mobbed court buildings, sometimes calling for the death penalty for the accused. This has often led to concerns that such groups, which often threaten to use violence, have unduly influenced court proceedings.

Given that more than 100,000 people rallied against Ahok in Jakarta recently, it is entirely possible that such crowds might be mobilised again if the case proceeds to court. Any judge who anticipates having to hear the case under such circumstances and show of force is likely to have grave concerns for their own safety.

Are these charges of blasphemy really about trying to stop Ahok running for a second term, or is there a bigger issue here?

Certainly on one hand there are political implications for Ahok, and also for the president. The bigger picture, however, is that since 1998, there has been a renewed struggle between Islam and the state. This has historical roots in Indonesia, but is a debate that remains of critical importance today. This struggle has increasingly seen Islamists resort to law, as well as extra-legal means, to assert their authority.

I have suggested that there is a common principle of "religious deference" observable in Indonesia. The Blasphemy Law is in fact very vague – there is no clear definition of blasphemy in the law. This has allowed the state to defer to religious leaders and allow them to determine what counts as blasphemy. But in some sense this is on the proviso that religious leaders accept the broader authority and mandate of the state.

The courts have shown themselves willing to enforce these religious opinions in blasphemy trials. This notion of religious deference is therefore about the competing claims to authority and legitimacy between Islam and the state. In the post-Soeharto environment, this balance between religious authority and state authority remains open to contestation.

[Tim Mann is the editor of Indonesia at Melbourne.]

Source: http://indonesiaatmelbourne.unimelb.edu.au/qa-melissa-crouch-on-the-blasphemy-law/

Jakarta at 30 million: my city is choking and sinking – it needs a new Plan

The Guardian (Australia) - November 21, 2016

Marco Kusumawajiya – Unlike other megalopolises across the world, and in sharp contrast to the trend of global urbanisation, more people are actually leaving Jakarta than arriving. The city's net migration rate has been negative since at least 1990.

Imagining a future for this chaotic metropolis is very difficult for most people who live and work here. If they imagine anything, it's to detach their own future from the city.

Plan Bs are common; the fleeing started in the mid-1990s when famous artists like Agus Suwage moved out to cities such as Yogyakarta, with more attractive ecosystems and lower rents. Young, aspiring Indonesians continue to have faith in their capital as a source of income and social liberation – but not as a permanent home, or even a place to stake their long-term future.

Two of my younger friends (one 34, the other 36) are planning second lives in central Java where they have bought land and are designing houses. They're not alone: South and central Jakarta have actually lost population – in part due to massive land-use changes – and the only thing preventing the entire city from shrinking is the birth rate. As it is, the population of Jakarta has more or less stabilised, at 9.6 million, with roughly 30 million in the greater urban area.

But the issue for Jakarta isn't its 9.6 million residents – it is the 3.5 million commuters. Governing this city is no longer about managing places, but flows.

Traffic is the most visible problem, and you do not need to stay long in the city to experience it. Once limited to rush hour downtown, gridlock has now metastasised throughout the city: average motorised vehicular speed in 2014 was 11mph. Average spending on routine transportation, meanwhile, has risen to between 15% and 35% of income. In cities such as London and Singapore, it is between 5% and 8%.

Flooding, similarly, has become more frequent: from roughly every five years, to every rainy season, and now to almost every time it rains for more than three hours.

What is not visible is even worse: the city is sinking. Land subsidence is happening at a rate of 3cm per year in some parts of the city, 20cm in others. Not only is this causing more flooding, but it has the potential to damage the city's drainage, piping and sewerage systems. The sea level in Jakarta Bay is rising 6mm every year.

Because only 50% of households have piped water – the lowest in Indonesia – residents rely on raw water supply, draining the natural aquifer beneath the city and causing the entire urban area to sink. Ironically, run-off is increasing, as deforestation upstream from the city and concretisation within are causing water to be wasted in alarming amounts. Jakarta now produces more wastewater than clean tap water.

What I hope for Jakarta's future, therefore, is simple. I call it the "old agenda". I would like for an average Jakarta working man or woman to spend no more than 10% of their salary on public transit. I would like piped water to reach at least 80% of households. And I would like land subsidence to stop: we must ban groundwater extraction, its main cause. In turn, this will greatly reduce flooding.

Others megacities have demonstrated that this is possible. Tokyo managed to stop land subsidence 40 years ago. Other cities, such as London, have cleaned their rivers not just of visual garbage but also invisible pollutants. Some have developed advanced public transport systems to free them from choking cars.

For Jakarta this will be difficult, but not impossible. Over the last two decades, research has produced enough knowledge for technical solutions. Bottom-up initiatives, too, are abundant, from zero waste efforts to communal sewerage processing. Schemes and designs to upgrade slums, rather than razing them, have been proposed. Other Indonesian cities have implemented many of these policies.

But forced evictions in Jakarta show that something is terribly wrong with our city's governance. Understandably, we often put our hopes on the shoulders of politicians – but expecting politics to fundamentally change the status quo is delusional. Jakarta's politics – and Indonesia's – is entrenched in an elitist oligarchy, in which party bosses or their corporate backers are the main financiers. Political parties are in effect "owned" by them.

Some politicians have adapted their strategy to conform. There is a new strand of extra-budgetary populism: extracting funds directly from corporations or businessmen, by selling the city's policies to build what pleases the people. This has resulted in a kind of politics that manipulates facts by reducing evidence-based urban science to subjective, anecdotal experience and a strain of anti-intellectualism that ignores the bigger picture.

"My street is cleaner," people say, ignoring the fact that the 6,000 tonnes of garbage collected is being moved unsustainably to other parts of the city. "My TransJakarta bus route is better," people say, despite the fact that the total number of passengers is far below the target, let alone what is needed.

Perhaps it is better to put our hopes on bottom-up initiatives from individuals and communities. Thanks to communication technology and social media, independent initiatives can spread quickly around Jakarta.

Take waste, for example: Adi Wibowo and his colleagues are spearheading zero-waste initiatives at a household level; Dewanto Bachrie's Jakarta Osoji Club, Amaranila Lalita Drijono's Bersih Nyok (Let's Be Clean) group, and architect Martin Katoppo's Design as Generator initiative are all volunteer efforts working to improve public space and reduce waste. On the canal bank near Jakarta Bay, Gugun Muhammad and his informal community have built several rafts dedicated to cleaning the canals themselves, in the hopes that they won't be evicted by the city. These are just a few examples in my limited radar, and I am sure there are more.

I want to mention one other city in Indonesia: Pontianak. Here, citizens are taking the task of cleaning the city's canal system into their own hands. And the local government has responded by collaborating with them. Pontianak is approximately 1/60th the size of greater Jakarta – but if the capital wants to hold on to its vision of being the great megacity of south-east Asia, it should start taking more notice of the smaller things in life.

[Architect Marco Kusumawijaya is director of the Rujak Center for Urban Studies and former head of the Jakarta Arts Council.]

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/nov/21/jakarta-indonesia-30-million-sinking-future

'Proxyphobia': Indonesian military's fear campaign trumps Trump's

New Mandala - November 17, 2016

Terry Russell – Fear. It's one of the most powerful tools in politics, and the fear of foreigners is one of the most powerful fears. We have seen how masterfully Donald Trump exploited this, but know less about how masterfully the Indonesian military exercises this tool.

The Indonesian military has exploited the fear of foreigners by proclaiming that many of Indonesia's social ills are due to the influence of foreign proxies. This campaign has provided two distinct political advantages and can be divided into two phases. In the first phase, in 2014 General Gatot Nurmantyo personally commenced a campaign that helped him rise to Chief of the Armed Forces in July 2015. In the second phase, Indonesia's Defence Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu broadened Nurmantyo's crusade in order to quieten political resistance while increasing military intervention in civilian life in Indonesia.

Phase one of the proxy war fear campaign

During the 2014-2015 campaign Nurmantyo argued that Indonesia was threatened by a Proxy War. As the army's second-in-command, he travelled from province to province, warning local students that foreign powers were seeking to further their own ends via Indonesian NGOs, mass organisations, and social interest groups. Nurmantyo claimed that foreigners were behind East Timor's separation from Indonesia, and could be behind the rampant circulation of drugs among Indonesian youth and demonstrations against palm oil companies. He also warned that Indonesian students who took up scholarships in foreign countries could unwittingly become agents for foreign interests and that foreign interests might seek to buy and control Indonesia's mass media. He even speculated that the media, influenced by foreigners, could be engineering 'conflict between the military and police or between political parties'.

Nurmantyo's campaign may have been motivated by ambitions to increase military intervention in civilian life in Indonesia, or by a genuine concern about foreign proxies. However there is some evidence it was also motivated by personal political aspirations.

Prior to Nurmantyo's campaign, he was not the front runner for the position of Armed Forces Chief. In the post-Suharto era, the position of Armed Forces Chief normally rotated between the army, the airforce and the navy, and an airforce candidate was due to take over in mid-2015. Less normal was an Indonesian military commander travelling from province to province to conduct a fear campaign. In fact, at least one retired lieutenant general reportedly complained in April 2015 that Nurmantyo was trying "to promote his own ideas to the public" and suggested that he "should be pulled into line by either the TNI commander or the president."

In July 2015, after conducting a travelling show more befitting of a politician than a military commander, Nurmantyo was not reprimanded, but instead appointed as Indonesia's Armed Forces Chief. One of the reasons given for his promotion was because he had successfully raised awareness in Indonesia about the threat of proxy war.

Phase two of the proxy war fear campaign

Phase two of the proxy war campaign began when Nurmantyo's 'proxy war' concept was endorsed by the Minister of Defence, Ryamizard Ryacudu. Whether this had any influence over President Jokowi's decision to promote Nurmantyo is unclear. However, the proxy war concept strengthened Ryacudu's hand politically. Ryacudu was in the midst of a highly expansionist year, with his military signing MoUs to guard public and private infrastructure, work more closely with farmers, and assist police with law enforcement. Talks were also underway to insert military personnel into the ministries of transportation and fisheries, and even into the Corruption and Eradication Commission. The proxy war campaign helped make civilians more amenable to Ryacudu's program to expand the role of Indonesia's military in civilian life. Those that opposed military expansion could be muzzled by fear of being labelled foreign proxies.

While newly inaugurated Armed Forces Chief Nurmantyo continued to publicly espouse his proxy war theory, Defense Minister Ryacudu in August 2015 announced plans to provide military training to 100 million Indonesians by 2025 in order to build their militaristic spirit. By the end of 2015, Ryacudu was more openly spreading fear, warning of foreign infiltration in areas as diverse as ideology, politics, the economy, social issues, culture, law and security. Virtually all areas of life were open to suspicion.

2016 has seen no abatement in the military's fear campaign. In February, Ryacudu warned that the emergence of the gay and lesbian rights movement was a form of proxy war because, "another state might have occupied the minds of the nation without anyone realising it." In March, the Commander of the Indonesian Army Command and Staff College expanded the list of foreign proxies, warning that foreign governments could be behind social problems as wide-ranging as provocative news media, student brawls, conflicts between groups, promiscuity and the spread of pornography.

By May, the military was stoking fears of a communist party revival and linking this to foreigners. At the same time, Ryacudu was pushing ahead with his program to provide military training to millions of Indonesians in what the program leader explained was "a direct response to the threats we face from proxy wars." In September, Nurmantyo said that terrorist groups in Indonesia were not only a threat but also part of a proxy war because the groups were receiving funding from Australia, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines. Separately, he announced that he had organised a Pact to Defend Against Media Proxy War, signed by eleven organisations, including the Indonesian Teachers' Union, the Publishers Union, and a major Islamic movement, Nahdlatul Ulama.

Is the military's fear mongering really that bad?

It could be argued that by being vigilant the Indonesian military is just doing its job. But are the threats really so enormous that Indonesian society needs to be whipped into paranoia?

Since 2014, the Indonesian military has urged Indonesians to be suspicious of foreign subterfuge through NGOs, mass organisations, social interest groups, drug traffickers, demonstrators opposing palm oil companies, scholarship winners, gays and lesbians, provocative news media, student brawls, conflicts between groups, promiscuity, the spread of pornography, a communist revival, and terrorists serving foreign interests. That's a pretty wide-ranging list of proxies. And they could be infiltrating areas as diverse as ideology, politics, the economy, social issues, culture, law and security. It's hard to think of any other military in the world that is interpreting its role in such a loud, wide-ranging, paranoia-spreading way as the Indonesian armed forces.

It's true that sometimes, in Indonesia and elsewhere around the globe, foreigners are indeed trying to assert influence via proxies. Indeed, Indonesians have good reason to fear foreign intervention due to their experience of the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997 (which was a significant factor, along with military excesses and foreign pressure, in the separation of East Timor).

Absent from the above list of threats are the two powerful groups who collaborated in the major undermining of Indonesia's economy in the 1990s – Suharto-era cronies (many of whom still exercise great influence in Indonesia) and the World Bank/IMF.

Former World Bank Chief Economist Joseph Stiglitz noted that many American firms at the 1994 APEC meeting in Jakarta gained agreements "at highly favourable terms (with suggestions of corruption greasing the wheels – to the disadvantage of the people of Indonesia)" [see Globalisation and its Discontents, p 71]. He argued that Indonesia's economy ultimately collapsed in 1997-98 because Suharto's government had collaborated with the World Bank to rapidly 'liberalise' Indonesia's banking sector, creating easy access to loans but making Indonesia highly vulnerable to foreign currency speculators.

Yet instead of urging vigilance against military excesses and back-room deals between international financiers and local cronies, the Indonesian military's fear campaign targets NGOs and social interest groups – both of which are – a key cog in any nation's defence against military excesses and non-transparent deals. Nurmantyo seems to be taking aim at small fish while ignoring the bigger.

Of course the Indonesian military is not alone in exploiting a weakness universal in all human beings. It's the same weakness that is being exploited by Donald Trump, persuading millions of Americans that foreigners are to blame for economic problems in the United States. Earlier this year, Pauline Hansen in Australia and Nigel Farage in Britain gained political mileage out of stoking fear of foreigners.

Going back further, Australian Prime Minister John Howard seized on unsubstantiated claims of children being thrown overboard by illegal immigrants to sow fear of foreigners and gain last-minute political mileage in the 2001 Australian election. And Pentagon insiders like former US Secretary of State Colin Powell and former head of the US Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan have all but admitted that US President George W Bush used fabricated claims of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to sow fear of Iraq's dictator president and gain political support for his oil-driven invasion of Iraq.

The Indonesian military's fear mongering will probably not be as globally disruptive as Bush's manoeuvring over Iraq, nor as globally televised as Trump's election campaign. However not even Bush or Trump could match the breadth of fear that has been whipped up in Indonesia.

The Indonesian military faces a tough task maintaining peace in a vast, ethnically diverse archipelago of over 250 million people, where roughly half the population still lives on less than US$2 per day. It should be appreciated for its role in maintaining relative peace in Indonesia since conflict in Aceh was resolved in 2005.

The military should also be appreciated for its calm role on 4 November 2016, when demonstrators took to the streets of Jakarta, calling for the execution of the city's Governor, 'Ahok'. Instead of seeking political mileage by blaming the demonstrations on foreign proxies, Ryacudu called upon Ahok's critics to allow tensions to be resolved through the country's law courts. Some of the demonstrators, possibly emboldened by the military's fear mongering, screamed messages of hate against local Chinese (Ahok is of Chinese descent), but the military was not blaming any particular group for the tensions.

The military's noisy proxy war campaign is marketed as a strategy to defend the nation but its astounding breadth and omnipresence make it look more like a strategy to increase the military's role in civilian affairs. In 2017, will the military revert back to their own calm steadfastness in the 2005-2013 period? Will they acknowledge that most of Indonesia's tensions are home-grown; that very few actually require the involvement of the military? Orwill Nurmantyo and Ryacudu, following the success of Donald Trump's xenophobia campaign and their own xenophobia campaign in 2016, subject Indonesians to another year of proxyphobia?

[Dr Terry Russell worked as a teacher and aid practitioner in Indonesia for 15 years. He is currently based in Australia, working in the international aid sector (with an organisation that has no involvement in Indonesia).]

Source: http://www.newmandala.org/proxyphobia-indonesian-militarys-fear-campaign-trumps-trumps/

The rule of mob, not law

Jakarta Post Editorial - November 17, 2016

The police's decision to name incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama a suspect in a blasphemy case on Wednesday came as no surprise given the uphill challenge facing law enforcers, as evident in the massive Nov. 4 protest against the gubernatorial candidate.

Still, the much-anticipated prosecution of Ahok has cast doubts over the nation's respect for the rule of law as an inseparable part of the democracy that Indonesia claims to embrace.

Satisfactory responses from those who demanded that Ahok face trial on blasphemy charges and those who wanted to see him declared a suspect in order to prevent national disintegration and calm the political climate only point to the need for a graceful exit in favor of them.

Prior to the police's announcement concerning Ahok's case, calls had circulated for a larger rally on Nov. 25 if the police failed to name him a suspect.

Ahok's case regretfully is not the first to show the vulnerability of law enforcement to public pressure, either through mass mobilization or opinion building in both mainstream and social media.

No matter how credible the integrity of the law enforcers or judiciary power, without independence on their part, including from public bullying, we cannot expect a fair criminal justice system to prevail.

Several weeks ago the Central Jakarta District Court found Jessica Kemala Wongso guilty of premeditated murder, capping off a four-month trial that turned the case into a media circus.

The woman was convicted despite the dubious evidence of her role in the crime, amid persistent use of conventional and social media to portray her as a mentally unstable person, which therefore built assumptions that she was the perpetrator of the murder.

In a similar display, common sense should have quashed allegations that Ahok had a motive in insulting Islam, hence Muslims, through his statement during a visit to the Thousands Islands, otherwise he would not have had it uploaded onto YouTube.

The blasphemy accusation was indeed debatable, given the split decision reached among the police investigators during a case screening on Tuesday.

If a heavyweight politician like Ahok, whose candidacy is supported by a coalition of the country's largest political parties, let alone Jessica, could fall prey to the power of a mob that tends to force its will, it is likely that many more citizens could be deprive of their access to justice.

The use of a mob at the expense of the rule of law is a serious threat to democracy as anyone with a certain political agenda could hide behind the masses, or people power as they might say, to reach their goals.

In the case of Ahok, who will contest the Jakarta election in February, the mobilization of angry people is a far easier way to seize power than rely on democratic practices through an election.

After nearly 20 years of reform, the consolidation of democracy remains elusive in the country. Unless the rule of law is upheld, we cannot hope to reach that stage.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/11/17/the-rule-mob-not-law.html

Ahok, the FPI and PilPres 2019

New Mandala - November 16, 2016

Russell Dunne – The lack of love between Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, or 'Ahok', and fundamentalist Islam is not news.

During the 2012 gubernatorial campaign Ahok was targeted in a smear campaign that attacked not only his Chinese ethnicity but also his Christian background. This is odd, because Christians in high places in Indonesia are not particularly unknown. In 1964 Sukarno installed the artist Henk Ngantung as governor of Jakarta. Ngantung like Ahok was both Christian and not from Jakarta. Suharto also promoted Benny Murdani a Christian from Central Java to run the Indonesian military.

Ahok's race isn't the issue for Islamic fundamentalist groups such as the Front Pembela Islam (FPI or Islamic Defenders Front). Instead they are targeting his religion. The Indonesian constitution is structured so that it is impossible for a non-Muslim to become president, meaning Ahok has risen as far as he is ever likely to go in Indonesian politics. Ahok who is known for his blunt language and inability to tolerate both the corrupt and the incompetent is being accused by his enemies of committing blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad.

The fact that the FPI and other Islamist groups were able to organise a protest on 4 November that brought an estimated 200,000 people onto the streets of Central Jakarta decrying Ahok and his rumoured blasphemy is nothing short of amazing. This is even more so when it's remembered that the protests when Ahok first became governor in 2014 drew less than 10,000 people.

Next year's vote for Jakarta governor, and the promise of the presidency after that, also has a lot to do with the recent popular outpouring of outrage.

Ahok, along with Agus Yudhoyono, the son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, is a candidate in the February 2017 gubernatorial elections. Yudhoyono, unlike Ahok is also almost certainly campaigning with an eye on securing candidacy for the 2019 presidential elections. Ethnic Chinese Christians from Jakarta visiting Australia over the weekend of November 5-8 told me that there is the understanding in Jakarta that the anti-Ahok rally was simply part of the process of politics.

There is clearly more to it than religion. In the past with President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo as his immediate boss, Ahok has been a nuisance for certain elements in Indonesia. Until now Ahok has been protected. With the 2017 gubernatorial election in play that protection has been significantly reduced. In order to be seen as democratic Jokowi cannot overtly protect or favour his friend. The President has already indicated that he won't "intervene" in the blasphemy probe.

Ahok has been busy as both a friend to 'Jokowi' and as a governor. He has cleaned out canals, which has limited the usual monsoon-related flooding of Jakarta. Ahok has also threatened to turn Jakarta's red light district into a park. He has also continued Jokowi's campaigns against corruption and has pursued the relocation of street markets into Tanah Abang, a modern market with an estimated $US 19 million per day turn over.

Between them, Ahok and Jokowi have been relocating street vendors into modern centralised and government supervised centres – centres that the Preman, members of Indonesia's organised crime groups, don't control. By relocating hawker stalls and street vendors into properly run and policed centres such as Tanah Abang, Ahok is effectively targeting the revenue stream of Preman groups such as the FPI and corrupt officials in local government.

The FPI have long been associated with gangsters. Greg Fealy and Sally White tell us in "Expressing Islam: Religious Life and Politics in Indonesia", the FPI also engages in "morality racketeering". As Ian Wilson notes, this sees the group use vigilantism and populist Islamic militancy to build and enforce a socially conservative agenda against the perceived liberal excesses and moral corruption of contemporary Indonesian society, while also capturing and keeping control of local neighbourhoods.

And this is the real reason why 200,000 people were on the streets of Jakarta on a sticky Friday afternoon. Ahok is being Ahok. He is being honest, blunt and effective. Ahok like Jokowi, the previous incumbent of his job, is enforcing laws. In being effective at his job Ahok is hitting the FPI and their Preman associates where it hurts them the most – in their wallets. If Ahok was either incompetent and or corrupt, the FPI and other Preman would be able to buy him off or dismiss him.

Because Ahok is popular, honest and effective, and as a result is affecting Preman-FPI cash flows, the FPI and Ahok's political opponents have to find another tactic to prevent him from becoming governor in 2017. If the FPI announced that they were protesting against Ahok because he was hurting their cash flow no one would care. Ahok committing blasphemy and being an evil 'kaffir' is something that serious Muslims in Jakarta care about. It is literally the only way that Ahok as the effective governor that he is can be dealt with by his opponents.

We should expect to see more of this in the coming months.

[Russell Dunne is studying for a Masters of International Relations at Monash University, and holds a specialist Indonesia BA and honours degree from the same university.]

Source: http://www.newmandala.org/ahok-fpi-pilpres-2019/