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Indonesia News Digest 19 – May 17-23, 2007

News & issues

Papernas attacks Political parties Nine years of reformasi Human rights/law Environment/natural disasters Health & education War on corruption Economy & investment

 News & issues

Policeman, soldiers brawl publicly in busway lane

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2007

Jakarta – A group of soldiers allegedly mobbed a traffic policeman after he tried to warn a military man for riding in the busway lane on Jl. Daan Mogot, West Jakarta, on Tuesday morning.

First Insp. Sulardi of the Traffic Division at the City Police confirmed the fight. Sulardi said his subordinate, Second Brig. Julius Matondang, who was managing traffic on the busy road, tried to stop First Pvt. Adil Nainggolan, a soldier in the army, while he drove through the busway lane on his motorcycle.

"But Adil refused to slow down. He came off his motorcycle when his bike hit Julius' hand. When Julius helped him get up, he tried to attack Julius with his knife," Sulardi said.

Five other soldiers passing by allegedly joined in and attacked Julius, who was alone that morning. "(The attack) was not right and we want to follow this case up legally," Sulardi said.

Julius, who felt nauseous and vomited after the incident, was brought to a nearby hospital by motorists and was later moved to Sukanto Police Hospital in Kramat Jati, East Jakarta, for further treatment, Sulardi said.

The head of the Jakarta Military Command, Col. Iran Saefudin, denied that Adil had attacked Julius. "Adil did not hit the police officer. We have checked and questioned him," he said.

According to Iran, Adil entered the busway lane with other motorists because the street was heavily congested.

"When Adil was about to get out of the lane, Julius tried to hold the handle of Adil's motorbike to stop him. Julius then kicked the motorbike. As a result, Adil fell with his motorcycle (and) his chin hit the road," Iran explained.

Iran said Julius ran away from the accident after he found out that Adil was a soldier, but Adil chased him and found the policeman hiding in the bathroom of a nearby discotheque. He then asked Julius to go back to crash site, Iran said.

According to Iran, not long after the incident, several soldiers who heard about the incident came and attacked Julius. Iran said his office was still investigating the incident.

Two Betawi brotherhood members die in war over parking lot

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2007

Jakarta – Two members of the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) were killed and another injured in a brawl with members of the Association of Betawi Families (IKB) over a parking lot.

The groups were fighting over the right to control a parking area in the Kebayoran Lama market in South Jakarta on Tuesday. The brawl, involving dozens of people from the warring groups, caused major disruptions to daily activity at the market.

Ade Sulishadi, 24, died at the scene, while Syarifudin Juhri, 21, and Sugandi, 53, were badly injured. The three were rushed to Pertamina Hospital in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, but Syarifudin died soon after, the chief of Kebayoran Lama police subprecinct, Comr. M. Priyono, said.

Sugandi was transferred to the Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital in Central Jakarta for further treatment, while the bodies of the deceased were sent to the hospital's morgue for autopsies.

Priyono said members of the FBR allegedly attacked members of the IKB at the market Tuesday morning as they tried to seize control of a parking area. "We are yet to make any arrests, but we are continuing investigations," Priyono said.

He said police had previously facilitated a meeting between the two groups to seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict, but no agreement had been reached.

"Leaders of the two groups have now agreed to end the fight and let police carry out further investigations into the case in accordance with the law," he told The Jakarta Post.

Priyono said at least 200 police had been deployed to the market and its surroundings to secure the area after the incident, and several people had been questioned.

Thuggery and extortion are a fact of life for vendors at traditional markets such as Kebayoran Lama market. However, law enforcers and official market authorities have been ineffective in their efforts to overcome this deep-rooted problem.

In a recent interview with The Jakarta Post, several vendors said they have to pay levies to the IKB, which controls the area.

Max Lane - Indonesia, an unfinished revolution

Suara Pembaruan Daily - May 23, 2007

The national liberation of the people of Latin America, which has been inspired by the people's struggle in Venezuela led by President Hugo Chavez, should be able to inspire similar methods and ideologies in the Indonesian national struggle.

Millions of Latin American people have been inspired by the developments in Venezuela when the people there succeeded in winning back their wealth and culture from the grip of the United States.

"I can imagine a struggle such as this could become the backbone of a political culture in Indonesia, that is one based on a populist ideology", said Australian author Max Lane during the launch of his new book "An Unfinished Nation: Indonesia, Before and After Suharto". Published by the Reform Institute, Lane's book together with the journal Reform Review was launched at the Grand Melia Hotel in Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Tuesday May 22.

Lane is absolutely convinced that by taking up these two weapons, that is the method of mass struggle along with an ideology of national revolutionary struggle, the struggle to liberate the people of Indonesia will find the answers to move forward.

"If this happened, Indonesia will become the Venezuela of the Asia region, and would provide an inspiration for the Asian people", said Lane in a discussion that also included speakers Benyamin F. Intan (executive director of the Reformed Center for Religion and Society), Yudi Latief (executive director of the Reform Institute) and political analyst Daniel Dhakidae.

Lane is of the view that almost all nations are born out of revolutions that involve the ordinary people. This can be seen from the experiences in Britain, France and the US.

If studied closely, the birth of the Indonesian nation was also the result of revolution. Kartini, who came to the fore through her modern revolutionary and feminist thinking, early nationalist figures such as Tirto Adhisuryo, and Indonesia's founding President Sukarno, were all figures that were involved in the Indonesian revolution.

But according to Lane, the national revolution as a process that gave birth to Indonesia as a nation was not in fact completed. "The process froze", said Lane in conclusion. It was only after the Kedung Ombo [land dispute] case in Java sprang up in 1989 that the struggle being carried out by students, farmers and the urban poor was restarted. "The Kedung Ombo case became one fragment of a major process that proceed until the fall of Suharto and his New Order regime", said Lane.

The result of this process was that the people took up the very weapon that was used to win independence, that is the method of mass struggle. "By taking up mass actions again, the Indonesian people became strong and ready to voluntarily take to the streets to demand their rights and [fight for] their interests. This is one of the rich lessons of the national revolution that needs to be taken up again", he asserted.

There are still many rich revolutionary lessons that need to be resurrected including the ideology of populism that is contained in the writings and works of Kartini, Tirto Adhisuryo, Sukarno, and others in the political as well as literary world.

Unfortunately, great works such as Sukarno's "Nationalism, Islam and Marxism", or the works of nationalist figures such as Sutan Sjahrir, Muhammad Natsir and HOS Cokroaminoto, have never been read by Indonesian school children. "How can Indonesia confront the threat of the West if the rich lessons of its own national revolution are unknown by the nation?", he asked.

Daniel Dhakidae added that in Indonesia, the words revolution and nationalism have become forgotten. This short-term collective memory has made us soon forget all kinds of events. The reformasi movement of 1998 has been forgotten, as if it took place centuries ago. The violence that took place in the month of May that year has just been passed by without any resolution, whereas reformasi only took place nine years ago.

Likewise also in addressing globalisation, we have forgotten the aspect of nationalism. By way of example, Dhakidae said that schools in Jakarta require communication in English, but do not allow their students to speak Indonesia. "We have overlooked the fact that globalisation must be accompanied with values or national dignity that is born though its language", he said. [SP/Elly Burhaini Faizal]

[Translated by James Balowski.]

New awakening needed, say historians

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2007

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Historians called on politicians and state officials Sunday to follow the footsteps of Indonesia's founding fathers, each of whom were willing to discard narrow interests for the sake of common good.

Historian Anhar Gonggong of the University of Indonesia said the country's officials and politicians had discarded their sense of nationhood in favor of narrow political interests and gains.

"You should remember the figures who first set up the national organization Budi Utomo came from various backgrounds, yet they were willing to discard (their differences) and unite," Anhar said Sunday. "But now politicians are bickering over cabinet seats."

Formed early last century when Indonesia was still the Dutch East Indies, Budi Utomo was the country's first political organization to fight for independence from Dutch colonial rule. The organization was established on May 20, 1908, an occasion which is today commemorated as National Awakening Day.

The formation of Budi Utomo generated a newfound fervor among activists to struggle for independence through peaceful means. And in the wake of Budi Utomo's formation, dozens of like-minded organizations were born, each one also striving for the country's independence.

Although not realized for another 37 years, Anhar said the archipelagos independence was thanks to figures like Soekarno, Hatta, Wahidin Sudirohusodo and the first Budi Utomo chairman, Sutomo, each of whom were highly educated and driven men.

Anhar said these men could have joined the Dutch political establishment but they were instead willing to risk jail to promote the country's independence.

"Sadly enough, now many educated figures, professors and teachers land in jail accused of corruption," Anhar said. Anhar also said Indonesia's leaders should redevelop the sense of meaning behind National Awakening Day – to ensure it does not become another meaningless annual ritual.

"Our national heroes fought against Dutch colonial rule, their biggest enemy," he said. "Now the number one adversary is poverty and this plagues many of the country's 64 million people."

Historian Asvi Warman Adam of the Indonesian Institute for Sciences (LIPI) said this year's commemoration of National Awakening Day could serve as a gauge to measure what aims and ideals born through the reform movement had been achieved to- date.

"In conditions like these, National Awakening Day could serve as an important tool to evaluate the ideals of reform," Asvi told Antara.

Ever since the fall of former president Soeharto on May 21, 1998, National Awakening Day has taken on a new meaning. Today it represents the country's freedom from its own home-grown tyrant.

But Asvi said the country had not yet been freed from numerous oppressions in politics and the economy. "We have to fight against these oppressions so that we can save the ideals of reform."

SBY finds village life bit of a surprise

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2007

Jakarta – Making an unannounced visit to a village in Bogor, West Java, on Sunday, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was surprised by what he found: gasoline sold in bottles and a frayed national flag.

At Karang Tengah village in Sentul, Bogor, Yudhoyono got an intimate look at the daily lives of villagers, visiting a gasoline kiosk, a small stall selling snacks and other goods, and an elementary school.

During his visit to the gasoline kiosk owned by Rohman Husein, Yudhoyono said he was bewildered gasoline was sold in bottles and jerry cans and asked Rohman who his customers were.

Rohman said the gasoline was for motorcycle taxis and transportation vehicles belonging to locals, and he could sell the gas for Rp 300 more than the official price. "Because the gas station is far from here," he said.

Yudhoyono then inspected one bottle of the gasoline and said he was looking for illicit materials mixed with the fuel. "Don't mix the gasoline," Yudhoyono told Rohman, who said he did not mix his gas with kerosene, a common practice at some kiosks.

At another stall, Yudhoyono spent Rp 500,000 on snacks from Sumarni, before First Lady Kristiani Herawati handed out the snacks to a crowd of gathered children.

When visiting state elementary school Karang Tengah I, Yudhoyono told the principal, Andreas Wasio, to replace the frayed national flag raised at the school. Andreas answered: "We deliberately put up an old flag so people will not steal it."

Yudhoyono then held a discussion with residents, during which he urged heads of local administrations to follow his example and spend time getting a first-hand look at how people are living.

Yudhoyono said only through such field trips would the officials fully grasp whether development programs had reached desired targets. "All governors and regents should make field trips as frequently as possible so they can learn the actual conditions themselves," Yudhoyono said.

Earlier this month, during a meeting with governors and regents from the country's 33 provinces, Yudhoyono asked the local leaders to make regular field trips, on the condition the trips would not strain local budgets.

He called on the local heads to stay at government-owned lodges if necessary to cut costs. After the discussion, Yudhoyono said he would send government staff to research residents' needs including health and agriculture.

"I know this village is in need of help. "And for this visit I didn't inform the governor or regent beforehand... because I want to know the true conditions."

 Papernas attacks

Papernas - Bashed because of Tripanji

Tempo Magazine - May 22-28, 2007

A newly established populist political party is being attacked in a number of towns.

EKO, Rizki, and Ikhsan were chatting on the terrace of the party's office when suddenly some two dozen uninvited guests started pummeling them, ganging up on the young activists that Sunday evening a fortnight ago. After taking Ikhsan hostage for an hour and dumping him 50 meters from the site of the attack, the assailants got away.

Police came and took the badly bruised Eko and friends to the Palu Police Station, Central Sulawesi, where the three were interrogated by two Military Police investigators. A suspect, First Private Makmur of the Raksatama Infantry Battalion Unit was arrested that very night and was charged with assault. However, the Military Police's Investigating Officer, First Lt. Syafruddin, affirmed that this was a personal case. "Please don't politicize this," he said.

Who were they? A number of eyewitnesses described the assailants as a bunch of "husky men with crew cuts." "They were wearing boots normally worn by Indonesian Military (TNI) members," said Martin Sibarani, Chairman of the United National Liberation Party (Papernas) of Central Sulawesi. The three brutalized youths were activists of the newly formed party.

This was not the first attack. Since the time preparations were being made to establish the party last September, Papernas had been subjected to constant opposition. When launched at Kaliurang, Yogyakarta, early last January, hundreds of party supporters came close to a fight with the Indonesian Anti- Communist Front.

The same thing happened in Jakarta. Last March during a peaceful rally at Dukuh Atas and at the Proclamation Monument, the supporters of the new party were attacked by the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) and the Islam Defenders Squad. Some 27 people were injured and 20 cars were smashed. The FPI and the Islamic Propagation Board filed a protest against the existence of Papernas with the Bekasi Regional House of Representatives, West Java, last April.

Thereafter, it was the turn of the Surakarta Muslim Squad to disperse the party's local conference at Sukoharjo. Similar things also occurred in Surabaya, Bandung, Madiun, and Malang. In East Nusa Tenggara, anti-communist pamphlets were distributed amidst the party's branch conference. "Over the past six months, attacks on us have been intense," said Dita Indah Sari, Chairwoman of the Papernas Leadership Board.

Papernas was being branded as neo-communist. The party happens to be supported by the People's Democratic Party (PRD), an organization of workers, farmers and the urban poor. They also adopted Tripanji, a slogan once used by the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI). The acronym stands for the party's three chief programs: wipe out foreign debts, nationalize oil and gas industry, and build a national economy based on people's interests.

Defense of the rights of the victims of the 1965 tragedy was touted as one of their programs. The party was based on populism. "This is a communist party," said Ekajaya, spokesperson of FPI. "Show us the communist elements! Our goal is to expel the imperialists. This is the party of the poor," declared Agus Jabo Priyono, General Chairman of Papernas. Speaking with Tempo, his hand pounded on the copy of the amended copy of the 1945Constitution (UUD).

Indeed Papernas cannot be separated from the PRD. According to Agus Jabo, the Papernas secretariat office in Palu was once used as PRD secretariat. Sibarani, 31, was also head of the local PRD. Unfortunately, the PRD got very few votes in the 1999 General Elections, the first time the leftist activists contested the elections under a democratic system.

Then an internal conflict plagued the PRD. Its founders resigned one after the other. Budiman Sudjatmiko, former Chairman of PRD, is now a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). Andi Arief is now content to become commissioner of PT Pos Indonesia. Haris Rusli Moti crossed over to the National Mandate Party (PAN). "There's limit to militancy. The endurance of those who quit is only so much," said Dita.

In the run-up to the 2004 General Elections, the PRD created a new political party, namely United People's Opposition Party (Popor). Its ideology and network are exactly the same as the PRD, but Popor did not pass the verification of the Department of Justice & Human Rights. Learning from that experience, they once again closed ranks. When Papernas was launched last January, Agus Jabo was appointed General Chairman. Dita Indah Sari, the PRD General Chairwoman, became Chairperson of the Papernas Leadership Board.

"Papernas's mistake is to use the slogan of Tripanji which conjured up past sentiments. This is likened to a snake seeking to be bludgeoned," said Fadly Zon, a young intellectual, who was close to former Commander of the Army Special Forces (Kopassus) Maj. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto. Fadly agreed that the party was anti-imperialist, yet he viewed the assaults against Papernas as a mere local traumatic reaction to the revival of the PKI.

Repeated assaults on Papernas have not made it bow down. Information on their activities is regularly disseminated in international websites such as Green-Left Weekly. In a bid to reach the target in the 2009 General Elections, the networks for laborers, farmers, the urban poor and post-reforms university students are now being revived. "Just wait. Those who attacked us will gradually run out of logistics," said Agus Jabo, laughing uproariously.

- Kurie Suditomo, Darlis Muhammad (Palu), Zaki Almubarok (Jakarta)

Indonesian military attacks leftist party

Green Left Weekly - May 23, 2007

James Balowski, Jakarta – In the early hours of March 13, the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) regional office in Palu, Central Sulawesi, was attacked by around 30 men. Three Papernas members were hospitalised.

This is the latest in a series of attacks against Papernas. Yet this time, instead of using right-wing thugs as proxies, the attack directly involved members of the Indonesian military (TNI).

At around 11.15pm on March 12, Papernas activist Wira received an ominous phone call asking him to go to the nearby Palu Muhammadiyah University. When he refused, the caller said to expect a visit at the party's office. An hour later, several motorbikes arrived. The men were "heavily built, had close- cropped hair and military-style boots", an eyewitness told the Kompas daily newspaper. Shortly after, they stormed the office, seriously injuring Wira, Ikhsan and Eko Haryanto.

The TNI's involvement was later confirmed with the arrest of Private Makmur from the Palu 132/Tadulako sub-district military command. Makmur's immediate superior, Colonel Husein Malik, admitted to Kompas that Makmur was involved but denied the attack was premeditated or organised by the TNI. Yet according to a Tempo Interactive report, residents said the attackers had been buying cigarettes and phone vouchers from local stalls as they kept the office under surveillance.

In an open letter to the president, legislators and foreign embassies, Papernas said that the incident strengthens earlier suspicions of the TNI's involvement in the attacks and that powerful elements within the TNI are seeking to return it to the repressive socio-political role that it enjoyed under the New Order dictatorship of former President Suharto. The statement said the TNI was engaging in "terror, intimidation and violence against the people themselves" and that "the TNI is now caught up in a plot to sow disunity among the people and the nation".

Following an attempt by the Indonesian Anti-Communist Front (FAKI) to break up Papernas's founding congress in Central Java in January, a police informant revealed that the regional military commander had pressured police not to protect the congress and to make it difficult for Papernas to obtain a permit. Several TNI personnel were seen at a recent anti-Papernas demonstration in the East Java city of Madiun.

Dominggus Oktavianus, the head of Papernas's political affairs department, told Green Left Weekly that the TNI's involvement in the May 13 attack may have been due to Papernas's strong base of support in Palu and the TNI's inability to find local proxies to do its dirty work.

Some clearly see Papernas as a threat. According to Oktavianus, Papernas's program of the "Three banners of national unity" – repudiation of the foreign debt, nationalisation of the mining industry and building national industry for the welfare of the people – is finding a strong resonance among ordinary people, who no longer believe that the government can address growing poverty and unemployment and are worried about foreign domination of the economy.

The government and foreign capital are particularly concerned about calls to nationalise the mining industry, which given recent developments on this front in Latin America is starting to be picked up by other sections of the democratic moment. "There is concern that this might snow-ball and has to be stopped before it gets taken up as a wider demand", Oktavianus said. "The new political parties, such as former General Wiranto's People's Conscience Party and the Democratic Party of Reform, also feel threatened because we are getting a hearing among ordinary people, even without the money and resources that these parties have."

Papernas is calling on the government and police to investigate the previous attacks and to make a clear statement affirming Papernas's right to assembly and free expression.

Statements condemning the attack have been issued by the National Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence, the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation, the Indonesian Legal Aid Association, the Indonesian Center for Democracy and Human Rights, the Yogyakarta Muhammadiyah Students Association, the Working People's Association, former President Abdurrahman Wahid and Muslim cleric and rights activist Solahuddin Wahid.

Papernas asks to meet with Yudhoyono to report harassment

Detik.com - May 20, 2007

Rafiqa Qurrata A, Jakarta – The Central Leadership Board of the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) intends to meet with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to report the numerous forms of terror and intimidation they have been experiencing.

In relation to this plan, Papernas has already submitted a written request to meet with Yudhoyono and they hope that the Presidential Palace will respond quickly to the letter.

"We sent the draft on May 18. We are now waiting for his response", said Papernas general chairperson Agus Jabo Priyono at the Papernas offices on Jl. Tebet Dalam in South Jakarta on Sunday May 20.

Priyono explained that Papernas has already asked for an audience with the Department of Human Rights and Justice, the House of Representatives Commission III overseeing legal, human rights and security affairs, and the Constitutional Court.

"We are asking for the government to take a clear political stand, which up until now has been ambiguous. If we have indeed violated the law, okay, explain how, which laws? If [we] haven't violated [the law], then provide protection okay", complained Priyono.

According to Priyono, every time they have held a Papernas event they have always requested a permit from police. But when Papernas is terrorised, the police instead force them to close down the event. "We have tried to go through the political procedures. If it's a dead end we will undertake legal proceedings against the closures", he said. (mly/djo)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

There is a political plot to destroy Papernas

Detik.com - May 20, 2007

Rafiqa Qurrata A, Jakarta – The central leadership board of the National Liberation Party of Unity suspects there is a political plot to destroy them. This is taking a number forms such as terror and intimidation.

This was conveyed by the head of Papernas's department of political and democratic affairs, Dominggus Oktavianus, following a press conference that was held at Papernas's offices on Jl. Tebet Dalam in South Jakarta on Sunday May 20.

"It has turned up in leaflets, SMSs and books that are circulating to abolish Papernas's existence", said Oktavianus.

According to Oktavianus, the repression that Papernas has experienced originates from both civil groups as well as the state apparatus, and has been systematic and intense. "So then we are wandering, is this a democratic country?", said Oktavianus.

Oktavianus explained that Papernas is actually used to coming under pressure. A number of activists in the party were abducted and jailed under the New Order regime of former President Suharto. "But this is a different situation, they say that this is an era of democracy. But still there is discrimination. Why is this?", he asked. (mly/djo)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

 Political parties

Women activists declare new political party in Aceh

Aceh Kita - May 21, 2007

Dara, Banda Aceh – A number of women's activists that are concerned about the fate of women have declared a new local political party that has been given the name the Acehnese People's Alliance Party for Women's Concern (Partai Aliansi Rakyat Aceh Peduli Perempuan, PARAPP). The declaration was held at the Anjong Mon Mata Building at the governor's official housing complex in the provincial capital of Banda Aceh on Sunday May 20. This is the third local political party that has been declared since the ratification of Law Number 20/2007 on Local Political Parties in Aceh.

The party, which is led by Zulhafah Lutfi, says it will focus on programs to struggle for women's rights in Aceh, which up until now have been sidelined in the world of politics in the land of Seulanga (Aceh). Lutfi said that the party was born to empower women in various aspects of their lives by increasing the political role played by women.

Lutfi said that the party was born out of a recommendation at a seminar titled the Acehnese Women's Awakening Committee that was held on 23-24 November 2006. "This is not a women's party. But whoever is in the party is obliged to struggle for and give more attention to women's problems", she said following the declaration.

Ameer Hamzah, the general chairperson of the Star Reform Party and Illiza Saaduddin Djamal, the general chairperson of the Banda Aceh chapter of the United Development party, have welcomed the emergence of local political parties in Aceh. Particularly so if these local political parties focus on struggling for women's rights in Aceh which have received little attention up until now. "This is very positive. This signifies that the process of democracy in Aceh is maturing, particularly in terms of women", they said.

Aside from PARAPP, two other local parties have also been declared by activates and Islamic scholars, that is the Acehnese People's Party (PRA) and the Gabthat Party [gabthat, meaning brave, strong or bold in Acehnese - JB.], which was declared by a number of Islamic scholars and members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Greater Aceh. GAM itself is also planning to change is form of struggle into a local political party but up until now, there are still no indications that GAM will declare itself as a party. [dzie]

[Translated by James Balowski.]

53 new political parties have registered with justice department

Tempo Interactive - May 21, 2007

Yudha Setiawan – As many as 53 new political parties have registered with the Department of Justice and Human Rights. "The total number of parties will continue to grow", said Syamsudin Manan Sinaga, the director general for public legal administration yesterday.

According to Sinaga, the parties that have registered must still fulfil the requirements, which include having a certificate of registration of the party's formation and a minimum of 50 regional management board members. After this the department will conduct a verification. "But the verification must wait until the ratification of the laws on political parties", he said.

The House of Representatives are currently deliberating a packet of new draft laws on political parties. "Hopefully it will be finished this year. If the process drags on it could create problems for political parties that want to take part in the 2009 general elections", said Sinaga.

[Translated by James Balowski.]

New party to raise political bar

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2007

Jakarta – The Republika Nusantara (RepublikaN) Party, a newly- founded political entity, aims to become the first and only party in Indonesia with International Organization for Standardization certification.

RepublikaN's secretary-general, Yus Sudarso, said the ISO certification was aimed at gaining and maintaining the people's trust and ensuring that the party will provide quality management.

"With the ISO 9001:2000, all management is bound to fulfilling the regulations underlining the certification. If the certification is canceled due to misconduct, the public shouldn't vote for our party," Yus said Monday at the party's launching.

The party's ISO consultant, Recky Hendra Saputra, said ISO certification has been rarely used by political parties.

"This party seems to be the first and only party to use ISO in Indonesia. In business, the certification is aimed at customer satisfaction, while in politics it is aimed at gaining constituent confidence," said Recky, who is also the director of PT Talenta Bisnis Indonesia.

He said the ISO certification required that management be held accountable for matters ranging from policy making to program creation.

"There will be requirements for human resources recruitment, infrastructure, working environment and operational work," Recky said. "We will do the certification gradually, beginning with party branches up to chapters."

He said the certification could be finalized within six months and would be valid for three years. The party will undergo surveillance and auditing every six to 12 months.

"We will use an independent certification agency, World Quality Assurance from the United Kingdom, because that country has the oldest parliament," he said.

The party is set to register with the Justice and Human Rights Ministry next week and will establish an organizational structure in the coming month.

Of the party's members, 25 percent are from the transportation community, 15 percent are from the education and health sectors, 10 percent are professionals and 50 percent are from the general public.

RepublikaN co-founder Murphy Hutagalung said the party's goal is to enter a candidate for the presidential election to be held at the end of 2009. The party is hoping to receive between 15 and 20 percent of votes in the earlier 2009 general election.

"The transportation community has existed for 45 years, but our voice has never been heard. By forming this party, we hope to get a more significant response from the government," said Murphy, who is also chairman of the Jakarta Organization of Land Transportation Owners.

The transportation industry alone has some 16 million workers.

 Nine years of reformasi

Compilation of protests commemorating nine years since Suharto's fall

Detik.com - May 21, 2007

[The following is a compilation of abridged translations taken from Detik.com on demonstrations commemorating nine years since the fall of former President Suharto on May 21, 1998.]

'Get ready for an increase in traffic jams'

Nurvita Indarini, Jakarta – Jakartan residents today are haunted with the possibility of facing daylong traffic jams. As well as being the end of a long-weekend, a flood of demonstrations will also mark nine years since former President Suharto resigned. So, watch out for the traffic jams!

"Yeah, get ready for an increase in traffic jams", said Bripka Heri Triyatno from the Metro Jaya Regional Police Traffic Management Center (TMC) when speaking with Detik.com on Monday May 21.

According to the TMC around 100 protesters from the West Sumatra Association for Destitute and Poor Abandoned Children (Isafat) will be meeting at the House of Representatives (DPR) building in South Jakarta. Around 200 students from Jakarta State Islamic University Student Executive Council (BEM) will also be visiting the DPR and well as protesters from Thunder 49.

The TMC also said that protesters from the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation will be holding a demonstration at the State Palace at 10am which will be followed by a protest by students from the University of Indonesia BEM at 12.30pm following a long-march from the Hotel Indonesia roundabout. At 11am the Association of Indonesian Law Student Senates (Ishami) will also be demonstrating at the State Prosecutor's office, the State Palace and the Attorney General's Office (AGO).

The Committee of United Student Organisations (KMBE) which includes students from the Bung Karno University, the National Student League for Democracy (LMND) and Bogor Institute of Agriculture Student Movement (Gema IPB) will hold an actions at the AGO, Hotel Indonesia and the State Palace at 1pm. Also at 1pm, protesters from the Islamic Student Association (HMI) will march from the Indonesian Persada University to Hotel Indonesia.

"As of 9am local time mass mobilisations have already started at a number of points, but they have yet to 'crystallize'", said Triyatno in a disparaging tone. (nvt/sss)

Yogyakarta students call for Suharto and his cronies to be tried

Bagus Kurniawan, Yogyakarta – Hundreds of students from the Gajah Mada University in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta commemorated nine years of reformasi on May 21 by demanding that Suharto and his cronies by tried.

"Seize their assets for the people. The student [movement] must be on guard against the return of Suharto's lackeys in new guises", shouted action coordinator Muhammad Rico from the Student Alliance Against Neoliberalism (AMAN) during a speech.

According to AMAN, nine years reformasi has yet to produce anything, in fact on the contrary, in recent times the old forces from Suharto's New Order regime are rising up again. "Nine years of reformasi has instead left the people facing even more problems", said Rico adding that AMAN is calling on the current regime to try Suharto and his cronies.

The students brought a number of posters and banners to the action with messages such as "Fully investigate human rights violations", "Nationalise foreign assets", "Indonesia is not a province of the US" and "Revoke the Law on Capital Investment". (djo/sss)

Victims of 1965 demand Suharto be brought to trial

Nograhany Widhi K, Jakarta – Even though his body is old an frail, 85-year-old Yasman Setyo Prawiro was still able to gave a spirited speech in front of the State Palace on May 21, demanding that Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) bring Suharto to trial.

Wearing a gray safari suit and black trousers, Prawiro voiced the feeling of people stigmatized as being members of the banned Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).

"The coup d'etat was actually Suharto's doing on the instructions of the CIA. The CIA has admitted this itself. Basically SBY must bring Suharto to trial because he is a gross violator of human rights, slaughtering 3 million people", shouted Prawiro.

Although Prawiro quickly tired and had to rest, his friends continued demonstrating waving placards with demands such as "Suharto is the same as Hitler", "Suharto in the October 1 1965 coup d'etat", "Try General Suharto" and "Rehabilitate the victims of 65 only then reconciliation".

Following the speech, Prawiro was immediately mobbed by journalists, and he related how he had been victimised by the stigma of the PKI. In 1965, Prawiro, who was the head of a trade union, was incarcerated at the Nusa Kambangan Prison without trial for 14 years. He never received his pension after being a civil servant for 41 years and his children were also stigmatised.

"Basically SBY must bring Suharto to trial... if he is not able to try Suharto over 1965 then in the 2009 [elections] we will mobilise the masses not to vote for SBY", threatened Prawiro who claimed to have 20 million people. (ana/sss)

Protesters call Yudhoyono and Kalla 'banci'

Anwar Khumaini, Jakarta – The government has yet to fully investigate outstanding human rights cases after nine years of reformasi. The government of Yudhoyono and Vice President Kalla (JK) are 'banci'.

The epithet 'banci', meaning effeminate or powerless, was expressed in a banner brought by around 100 students from Ismahi during a demonstration in front of the State Palace on May 21.

In speeches they demanded that the government continue with cases involving former President Suharto including the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Fund support scheme, human rights vocations such Tanjung Priok, the Military Operational Zone in Aceh and the Trisakti and Semanggi I and II shootings.

The also brought a number of posters with messages such as "SBY- JK are powerless", "SBY-JK have failed", "Investigated the flow of non-budgetary funds at the Department of Maritime and Fishery Affairs" and "SBY-JK enjoy the funds of corrupters".

Action coordinator Cecep Agam Nugraha said that the action was also held to draw attention to the recent cabinet reshuffle. "The reshuffle was carried out for political reasons so SBY should be removed", he asserted. (nik/sss)

Five 'provocateurs' arrested at State Palace

Anwar Khumaini, Jakarta – Shortly after shouting "Come on fight the police", police arrested five youths who were suspected as being the provocateurs behind a clash between police and City Forum (Forkot) demonstrators at the State Palace on May 21.

Although the attention of protesters was distracted by the arrests, they continued giving speeches. "This is the evidence that the state doesn't side with the ordinary people. We are here to rightly voice our wishes, so why are police acting repressively", said one of the speakers.

Not just that, police also proceeded to confiscate paraphernalia belonging to the demonstrators including pamphlets and five wooden tombstones that were then thrown onto a pile of rubbish. "Why was our stuff confiscated, whereas we didn't do anything anarchic", said one of the demonstrators.

At 2.25pm, some 50 students from the Student Action Front (FAM), LMND and the University of Indonesia's School of Social and Political Science arrived and were almost involved in clashed with police before they gathered in front of the Palace. As of 3pm protesters were still lining up waiting for their turn to speak. (aan/sss)

Protesters burn posters of Suharto, two arrested

Indra Shalihin, Jakarta – Posters of former President Suharto were burnt during a demonstration commemorating nine years of reformasi in front of the State Palace on May 21. As a result two students were arrested and taken away by police.

Police moved in as soon as they saw the Suharto posters being burnt. The two who were arrested initially tried to resist with students and police pushing and shoving each other. In the end however police were able to take control of the situation.

As well as burning the posters, during the action by around 500 students from Forkot and BEM Greater Jakarta they called for Suharto to be tried and criticised President Yudhoyono for failing to bring prosperity to the people. The students also brought posters of Yudhoyono and a wreath of flowers. "SBY's [promises] are just rhetoric", shouted the demonstrators. As a result of the action, the heavy traffic on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara slowed to a crawl. (nvt/sss)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

Fall of Suharto commemorated in several cities

Tempo Interactive - May 22, 2007

Jakarta – The commemoration of nine years after President Suharto's resignation on May 21, 1998, was held yesterday (21/5) by a number of student organizations and non-governmental institutions (NGOs) in many cities in the country by staging rallies and demonstrations.

In Jakarta, the rally of hundreds of students from many groups at Merdeka Palace was colored by tension when the crowd tried to go toward to palace.

Yesterday, at least seven demonstrators were arrested and brought to the Central Jakarta Regional Police HQ. Five people from the City Network group were arrested for being the perpetrators by inciting the crowd to come near the palace.

They were John, Ikhsan, Ricky, Ubay and Riza. "They were arrested so the situation didn't grow tense," said Central Jakarta Regional Police Chief, Chief Comm. Heru Winarko. After being questioned, they were soon released.

The other two students, Kunto and Tufik from the National University were arrested at the palace for setting fire to the picture of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla during the rally.

In Solo, Central Java, several student organizations and NGOs held a rally of Suharto's fall by demanding a trial for the former Indonesian number one. According to the Societies Alliance for the People's Justice and Welfare coordinator, Winarso, the Attorney General's Office (AGO) must reopen Suharto's case and bring his cronies to trial for completing the reformation agenda.

The rallies held in Denpasar, Kediri, Palu and other cities generally put forward the demand of the reformation agenda to be realized soon, one of which is bringing Suharto to trial.

 Human rights/law

Parties slammed for 'monopolizing' Constitution

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2007

Apriadi Gunawan and Ridwan Max Sijabat, Medan/Jakarta – Activists and analysts have criticized political parties which had withdrawn political support for an amendment of the 1945 Constitution to empower the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) and said parties could not claim a monopoly over the Constitution.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party (PD) faction at the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) was the first to withdraw support followed by Golkar Party and United Development Party (PPP) factions. Golkar and PPP withdrew support a day after MPR leadership announced Monday a plan to call a plenary session to revise the Constitution.

The MPR is a joint sitting of the DPD and the House of Representatives. DPD has 128 representatives, each of whom support the amendment. There are 550 legislators in the House.

Spokesperson for the Commission of New Constitution Indra J. Piliang said in a press conference Wednesday the withdrawal of support was an indication parties were not concerned over the imbalance of power distribution between state institutions and ineffective regional representatives.

"Why did we have to establish DPD and elect the regional representatives if they are not empowered?" Indra said. "It is better for the nation to liquidate the council for efficiency. The government allocates Rp 183 billion annually for DPD but it does only a little," he said.

A political analyst of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Indra dismissed the substantial and time perspectives argued by the parties to reject the proposed amendment. He said now was the right time to repair all weak points after four amendments made between 1999 and 2002.

"The amendment is needed to insert regional representatives' limited legislative and budgetary rights in the bill on a composition of MPR, DPD, House of Representatives and regional legislative councils. Parties' monopoly in the political recruitment should also be reviewed and a new institution to protect the people's human rights is also needed," he said.

Coordinator of the Indonesian Forum for Monitoring of Parliament (Formappi) Sebastianus Salman said MPR could hold a plenary session immediately and efficiently if parties put their weight behind the MPR leadership's plan. He said the amendment could be made any time.

"The constitution is not a holy scripture and there is no ruling on when an amendment has to be made," Sebastianus said. "Parties can not claim their monopoly of the constitution."

Deputy Speaker for DPD Laode Ida said in Medan he was optimistic his party would obtain adequate political support from other parties to have MPR stage the plenary session.

After delivering his message during a seminar at the North Sumatra University Laode said the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) had pledged their full support.

"Former president Abdurrahman 'Gus Dur' Wahid has contacted the PKB faction chairman in MPR to lend full party support for the amendment," Laode said. "And PKS president Tifatul Sembiring has given a similar pledge."

DPD has won political support from 10 lawmakers from PKS and four from PKB. Both parties have almost 90 lawmakers in MPR.

Following the withdrawal of political support from the three parties, DPD has been in need of at least two lawmakers to meet the minimum requirement of 226.

Military tribunal reform sought over controversy

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2007

Jakarta – Indonesia's military tribunal should be reformed because it allows notorious officers with abduction convictions against their names to be awarded with promotion, said the human rights monitor group Imparsial on Wednesday.

Imparsial spokesperson Donny Ardyanto said army officers convicted for abducting pro-democracy activists were promoted despite initial verdicts calling for their immediate discharge.

"The military tribunal has to be reformed because it is not clear whether the officers were really put behind bars or not," Donny told Detik.com news portal. "The military does not take into account human rights (violation) records when promoting these officers."

Donny said the Indonesian Military (TNI) might consider the abduction cases as acts of patriotism – but the public considered such behavior criminal.

Eleven special force officers from the Tim Mawar (Rose Team) were found guilty of abducting nine activists in May 1998. The Jakarta Military High Court in April 1999 sent five officers to prison and discharged them from active service. Six others were jailed but remained in the Army. Most of them now hold the rank of lieutenant colonel.

The officers appealed to the Supreme Court but no verdicts have been made public.

Capt. Fausani Syahrial Multhazar was deputy chief of Rose Team. Today, he is the Jepara Military District Commander in Central Java. And Capt. Untung Budi Harto, also from Rose Team, is the Ambon Military District Commander in Maluku. Both officers were given a 20-month jail term and discharged from active service.

Another team member, Capt. Dadang Hendra, is now the Pacitan Military District Commander in East Java. And Capt. Djaka Budi Utama now leads the Macan Leuser 115th Infantry Battalion in Aceh. But both officers, although not discharged, were sentenced to 16 months in jail.

TNI chief spokesman Rear Marshall Sagom Tamboen said based on dossiers at the TNI Legal Department that Rose Team chief, Maj. Bambang Kristiono, was the only officer actually discharged from active service.

"The officers (were) imprisoned at the Military Prison in Cimahi, West Java," Sagom told Detik.com. "The military still needs these officers, we have their career records. Career wise, they are left behind by their classmates."

Civic education bill 'counterproductive'

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2007

Jakarta – Experts have criticized a bill on civic education saying it will be counterproductive as it focuses more on the state's interests than those of the people.

Speaking at a seminar on the bill, Azyumardi Azra, director of the postgraduate school at the Jakarta State Islamic University, said the bill overemphasized the obligation to defend the state.

"This emphasis will trigger opposition from the people as it raises collective memory concerning the previous state indoctrination on the ideology of Pancasila," Azyumardi told participants of the seminar held at Borobudur Hotel on Wednesday.

"Articles in the bill clearly overemphasize the spirit of defending the state. If it becomes a law, it will receive strong resistance from the people. Do we really need to repeat the same old mistake of indoctrination and a militaristic approach to civic education?" Azyumardi asked.

He said that although civic education was very important in pluralistic countries, the bill needed to be reformulated to avoid such opposition. "A good result will not come out of a false approach," he said.

Indria Samego, a political expert from the Indonesian Science Institute, said the bill was counterproductive as it aimed for the state to rearrange and monopolize the standard and content of civic education. He also branded the proposed establishment of a national council for civic education as "structural demolition".

Indria called for a paradigm shift from state-centered to society-centered civic education, with the state to focus on its main functions of providing peace, security, prosperity and law enforcement.

"We do not need civic education like what we had during the New Order regime, but rather a system that respects pluralism, transparency, accountability, effective governance and law enforcement," he said.

"Civic education is ideological and more than just a curriculum monopolized by the state through formal education. It is an effort to give contextual and actual values to nationalism. This is not the time for the state to be so dominant. It is a time to provide more opportunities for non-state powers such as political parties to be more responsible in civic education," he said.

Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono said in his opening remarks that while a formal civic education was important, more important were concrete efforts to improve the social and economic welfare of the people.

"We hope that when the people are better off economically, every ideological slogan will have more meaning," Juwono told reporters at the seminar.

The Defense Ministry has been deliberating the bill since 2004. An initial draft of the bill was formulated in 2005, with the bill being drafted in 2006.

The seminar, attended by more that 150 experts and practitioners from various backgrounds, was organized to seek input into improving the final draft of the bill which will be submitted to an inter-ministerial committee in 2008.

 Environment/natural disasters

Hundreds of families still living in tents after Java earthquake

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2007

Sri Wahyuni, Yogyakarta – Hundreds of families left homeless by the powerful earthquake that devastated Yogyakarta almost a year ago are still living under makeshift tents.

Executive secretary of the national technical team for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of post-earthquake Yogyakarta and Central Java, Danang Parikesit, said of the 300,000 families left homeless by the May 27 quake last year, some 3,000 are still living in tents. "They are scattered across both provinces."

Several factors account for this figure, he said, including the reconstruction fund distribution system adopted by both provinces, and misidentification of recipients in transitional shelters.

Funds were distributed through a priority system, whereby community groups were entrusted to decide which residents would receive the first batch of disbursements.

In many cases, a lottery was drawn to decide who would receive which batch of funding. Unfortunately, only 5 percent of nearly 100,000 families whose houses were damaged by the earthquake have received the second batch of disbursement.

"The rest, or 95 percent, have only received the first batch, which is only about Rp 4.8 million of the total Rp 20 million they are suppose to receive," Danang said.

The earthquake killed some 5,800 people, injured more than 50,000 and displaced more than 1.5 million. More than 300,000 family homes were destroyed.

The overall estimate of the damage is US$3.1 billion. It is the third largest damage estimate caused by a natural disaster in a developing country, after the Aceh tsunami with $4.7 billion in damage and an earthquake in Turkey with $10.3 billion.

In reconstructing the quake-hit regions, the central government adopted a "one-step" policy through directly providing survivors with permanent housing rather than transitional shelters (T- shelters).

As a result, most of the humanitarian aid, which focused on providing survivors with T-shelters, used building materials that could be reused later to rebuild permanent houses.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), for example, has so far helped provide 14,550 T-shelters for survivors in Klaten, Central Java, and Bantul, Yogyakarta.

The International Organization for Migration provided a similar number of T-shelters in both regions, while Muslim Aid provided more than 1,000 T-shelters in Banguntapan, Bantul.

The total number of T-shelters built by both inter-governmental, national and international non-governmental organizations so far has reached approximately 75,000.

The central government, according to Danang, plans to finish the reconstruction of Yogyakarta and Central Java within three years, with a focus in the first two years on housing. "We hope the executing teams at both the provincial and regency levels will be able to rebuild every damaged home by the end of this year," Danang said.

The central government so far has disbursed Rp 2.7 trillion in reconstruction funding from its 2006 state budget. The same amount of funding has also been allocated in this year's state budget.

The amount allocated for the 2008 budget is yet to be decided but will focus mainly on economic recovery.

Aside from the state budget, the reconstruction and rehabilitation program is also being funded by the Urban Poverty Alleviation Program of the Public Housing Ministry, whose funding comes from the World Bank, and a grant from the Java Reconstruction Fund (JRF).

Danang said JRF alone has planned to rebuild some 17,000 homes, 16,000 of which are for quake survivors in Yogyakarta and Central Java and another 1,000 for tsunami survivors in Pangandaran, West Java.

In total, JRF has allocated $76 million in reconstruction funding, of which $60 million will be used to rebuild damaged and collapsed houses. The remaining $16 million will be spent on livelihood programs.

Danang said some 88 percent of displaced families in Yogyakarta and 80 percent in Central Java have been moved to permanent houses.

The rest are either staying with other families, living in T- shelters built by humanitarian organizations, have moved to other areas or are living in makeshift tents, he said.

"Many survivors have used their own funds to finish rebuilding their homes, or at least make them safe to permanently live in again."

The willingness and capacity of people in the community, according to Danang, has also accounted for the relatively quick recovery of the earthquake-hit regions in both provinces.

In fact, Danang said, the government supplied only about 40 percent of the total funding needed to recover from the disaster.

"The rest depended very much on the survivors' willingness to revive and recover on their on feet. The government's funding was only intended to stimulate the initial recovery effort."

Residents flee after waves batter Indonesia's coastline

Agence France Presse - May 20, 2007

Jakarta – More than a thousand people have fled inland along Indonesia's coastline after tidal waves destroyed houses and fishing boats this week, officials said Saturday.

Residents have taken refuge in schools and other government buildings after high waves pounded coastlines from northern Sumatra island to the southern tourist resort island of Bali, officials said.

"The number of people that fled their houses has reached 1,246 people," Setio Sutarto from the National Disaster Management Agency told AFP.

He said West Java and West Sumatra were the regions worst hit by the tidal waves, which started hitting the coast late Thursday. Eleven provinces have been affected, including Aceh, which was devastated by the 2004 Asian tsunami, the Kompas daily said.

Hundreds of homes have been badly damaged and others swept away in fishing villages dotting the coastlines, the newspaper said. Television pictures showed wooden homes flattened and residents searching through water-soaked debris for their belongings. Fishermen have been advised against going out to sea in affected areas, Kompas said.

On the resort island of Bali, tourists and vendors have been warned to keep off the main beach of Kuta after waves pounded the coastline, destroying stalls, officials said. Surfers have also been told to keep out of the water in Bali, they said.

The popular restaurant strip on Bali's Jimbaran beach was shut down on Friday after waves pounded fishing huts and boats, the Jakarta Post said. Metres-high waves, caused by monsoon winds on the Indian Ocean, are set to continue to smash the coastline for several more days, the national meteorology office told AFP.

"Our prediction shows that waves would be reduced tomorrow on Sumatra island but people along coastlines of West Java island must be careful of more possible high waves," said Sugarin from the office, in Jakarta.

A tsunami alert has not been issued for Indonesia, the nation worst hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004. No casualties have been reported.

 Health & education

Poverty seen driving suicide in Central Java

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2007

Purwokerto, Central Java – Banyumas Police have recorded 30 suicides since January in its jurisdiction, which encompasses Banyumas, Cilacap, Banjarnegara and Purbalingga regencies.

Banyumas Police chief Sr. Comr. Emron Putra Agung told reporters on Tuesday that Banyumas regency had seen 13 suicides since the beginning of the year. There have been 10 suicides in Cilacap, five in Purbalingga and two in Banjarnegara. "Most of the cases were prompted by economic hardship," said Emron.

He said several of the suicides involved people facing a terminal illness. "This is shocking. We have never recorded this many cases. Every one must pay great attention to this matter, including the regional administration and religious figures," the officer said.

History textbooks seized in Sleman

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2007

Sleman, Yogyakarta – Local authorities have seized thousands of history school textbooks over reported factual inaccuracies concerning the Indonesian Communist Party.

Employees of the Sleman Education Office have since Monday been seizing books from schools across the city, and plan to continue the operation through the end of the month.

Officials say the operation is in response to a memo from the Attorney General's Office, dated March 5, 2007, reminding authorities of the ban on history textbooks that follow the now changed 2004 national curriculum.

The disputed history books do not discuss the involvement of the Indonesian Communist Party in the 1948 Madiun rebellion and the Sept. 30, 1965, failed coup.

"We have not counted the total number of seized books, but we were able to confiscate 1,400 books on Monday. We will continue the operation until the end of May," Suwarti, head of curriculum and quality control, at the education office, said Tuesday.

She said her office was removing 22 history textbooks from circulation. The seized books will be turned over to the local prosecutor's office for destruction.

"Teachers should be creative and find other historical sources to replace the books being pulled," said Suwarti.

Recall of 'erroneous' history books will be completed this year

Detik.com - May 21, 2007

Melly Febrida, Jakarta – The distribution of 2004 curriculum history books for junior and senior high schools have been banned and the Attorney General hopes that the recall of these books will be completed by this year.

This was conveyed by Deputy Attorney General Muchtar Arifin at the Attorney General's Office (AGO) on Jl. Sultan Hassanudin in South Jakarta on Monday May 21. "The Attorney General has instructed them to be recalled. And local officials from the AGO have already done this. It is hoped that they will be cleared soon", said Arifin.

According to Arifin, up until now the process of recalling the books has proceeded in accordance with existing regulations. "Basically everything has proceeded in accordance with the rules", he added.

A study of the history books was conducted based upon a request by the National Education Minister Bambang Soedibyo. The study was conducted because the books did not contain historical facts such as the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) rebellion in Madiun in 1948 and references to the September 30, 1965 rebellion that did not mention the work PKI.

The prohibition on the distribution of these books was made several months ago on the orders of the Attorney General at the time, Abdul Rahman Saleh. The recall of the books was carried out over concern that they would cause public unease. (nvt/umi)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

 War on corruption

Police hunt Tommy's illegal fortune

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2007

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Paralleling an investigation by the Attorney General's Office, the National Police are assuming a proactive role in tracking down the assets of Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra believed to have been derived from money laundering.

Deputy chief of National Police Comr. Gen. Makbul Padmanegara said Tuesday the police were investigating the assets of the youngest son of former president Soeharto, which are being held in several companies, including his overseas-based Motorbike Corp.

"The police will continue hunting for Tommy's illegal assets, including the 36 million euros he allegedly laundered by depositing the funds in the Bank Nationale de Paris Paribas in London," Makbul told a Regional Representatives Council (DPD) hearing here.

"We are investigating where he obtained the money from. We are also still looking for supporting evidence from a number of companies in which the money had allegedly been invested," he said.

While the National Police have just recently initiated their investigation, the AGO has been intensively investigating the matter under the leadership of the then-attorney general Abdul Rahman Saleh. The office said recently it was also investigating alleged corruption in connection with Tommy's role in the liquidated Clove Marketing and Buffer Agency (BPPC) and the now- dissolved PT Timor Putra National.

Tommy, 44, got an early release from prison in October 2006 after serving only one third of a 15-year jail term for ordering the July 2001 murder of a Supreme Court justice.

Former state secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra and former minister of justice and human rights affairs Hamid Awaluddin were recently sacked from the cabinet partly because of their alleged role in helping Tommy withdraw the money from the French bank.

Makbul called on the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) to speed up its investigation into Tommy's assets and hand over its findings to the police so they could follow them up in accordance with the law.

He also called on the DPD and the House of Representatives to clarify the roles of PPATK and the police in their deliberation of the bill on money laundering in order to avoid overlapping investigations into money laundering cases.

"To us, PPATK has the authority to carry out preliminary investigations into money laundering cases, while the official investigations into such cases should be left for law enforcers, including the police and the Attorney General's Office," he said.

Tommy's defeat a sure thing, AG's office says

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2007

Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is confident a Guernsey court will grant full disclosure and an extension of a freezing order on the allegedly ill-gotten funds of former president Soeharto's son Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra.

"I'm hoping we'll win. Let's see Thursday, they have impartial judges there," said Yosef Suardi Sabda, the AGO's civilian case director for state administrative cases, on Monday.

The British Royal Court in Guernsey, a British crown dependency off the northern French coast, will decide Wednesday on the government's request for a full disclosure of the case and a freezing order extension on US$46 million belonging to Tommy, which is being held at the Banque Nationale de Paris (BNP) Paribas in Guernsey.

The requests – a form of legal intervention – came after the bank refused to release the money, citing the possibility that it was obtained through graft. Tommy's Garnet Investment Ltd., the company the money was deposited on behalf of, then brought the bank to trial seeking the money's release.

The AGO said it had submitted documents asserting that the money – claimed by Tommy to have been collected through the sale of his shares in automotive company Lamborghini – was in fact laundered.

The AGO believes the funds were part of a sum collected through illegitimate means during the reign of Tommy's father, Soeharto, in an era spanning three decades when corruption practices were rife.

"If the government wins, we can withdraw the money through legal and civil avenues. The civil avenue can be worked out in either Indonesia or Guernsey, while the legal one is by demanding funds to substitute the state's loss," Yosef was quoted as saying by detik.com news portal.

Full disclosure of the case would mean that the court will expose the origin and flow of the funds in question, which have been frozen since Jan. 22.

Tommy's head legal representative for the Guernsey trial, O.C. Kaligis, said he had prepared 800 pages of documents stating that the funds were legitimate and free from corruption.

The case surfaced in the wake of the disclosure of another case involving Tommy and $10 million that he withdrew from BNP Paribas in London using a government account at the Justice and Human Rights Ministry's Directorate General of General Legal Administration.

The money, withdrawn in February 2005, is claimed to belong to another of Tommy's companies, Motorbike Corp. The withdrawal was cleared with the alleged approval of Yusril Ihza Mahendra and Hamid Awaluddin.

Yusril was justice and human rights minister when the request for clearance from BNP Paribas was made. He authorized the transfer, but was replaced by Hamid just prior to the withdrawal taking place. Both were recently dismissed in last week's Cabinet reshuffle.

Legal experts have insisted that the use of a government account for private means constitutes money laundering and violates the 2003 UN anti-corruption convention and the 2003 money laundering law.

Fight Soeharto with civil case, AGO told

Jakarta Post - May 22, 2007

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Former attorney general Abdul Rahman Saleh on Monday denied meddling in his replacement's push to bring former president Soeharto to trial for corruption.

Abdul Rahman, who was replaced on May 7 by Hendarman Supandji, said he never asked Hendarman not to continue the investigation into Soeharto.

"What I said in my speech during the transfer ceremony was that it is simply pointless to build a corruption case against Soeharto as the highest legal authority, the Supreme Court, has ruled that he is not fit to stand trial," Abdul Rahman told The Jakarta Post in an interview.

He said he asked Hendarman to continue building a civil case against the former strongman.

Soeharto stepped down on May 21, 1998, following massive riots in Jakarta and other cities..

"Because it is useless to pursue a criminal corruption case, I asked him (Hendarman) to file a civil case, which is something I have been working on for a long time," Abdul Rahman said.

He was responding to a statement by human rights monitoring group Imparsial, which claimed Abdul Rahman asked Hendarman to drop Soeharto's case. This claim was based on Abdul Rahman's speech during the ceremony earlier this month.

Imparsial accused Abdul Rahman of lacking the courage and smarts to investigate high-profile corruption cases.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono replaced Abdul Rahman after two-and-a-half years in office. In late May last year, the Attorney General's Office dropped all criminal charges against Soeharto because it said the former president was too ill to stand trial.

After dropping the criminal charges, the AGO said it would pursue a civil case against Soeharto to hold him accountable for policies that caused the state trillions of rupiah in losses. The civil case, according to the AGO, would focus on the abuse of Soeharto's numerous cash-rich foundations.

A corruption trial for Soeharto opened in August 2000. However, the former president never appeared in court, with a team of doctors declaring him too ill to stand trial.

According to the medical assessment, a series of strokes had left Soeharto with permanent brain damage. The Supreme Court in 2001 ruled the Attorney General's Office would have to help Soeharto recover sufficiently to stand trial before it could pursue the corruption case against him.

Meanwhile, police detained at least five people Monday during a demonstration to mark the nine-year anniversary of Soeharto's resignation, at Merdeka Palace in Central Jakarta.

"We did not arrest them, we just separated them from the crowd in order to prevent further chaos at the demonstration," said Gambir Police chief Comr. Apollo Sinambela.

He said they were separated from the crowd after becoming involved in shouting matches with policemen deployed at the rally. Apollo said apart from that one small incident, the rally from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. was orderly and peaceful.

President not moved by election fund scam

Jakarta Post - May 21, 2007

Jakarta – Despite heated debate over funding sources in the 2004 election, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will not order a thorough investigation into an alleged illegal inflow of funds into his Democratic Party, a close aide said Saturday.

"There is no need to conduct such an investigation because the financial report of the party's election campaign team has been submitted to the General Elections Commission (KPU). It is therefore the responsibility of the commission to conduct the investigation," presidential spokesman Andi A. Mallarangeng said, as quoted by the detik.com news portal Saturday.

He said Yudhoyono and Jusuf Kalla had never received funds from former fisheries minister and graft suspect Rokhmin Dahuri. He also dismissed media reports, which quoted former People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker Amien Rais as saying the SBY campaign team had received funding from the US

The speaker of the House of Representatives, Agung Laksono, also rejected the idea of conducting an investigation into the case.

"We'd better talk about the future. This investigation could distort the validity of all decisions that we have made in the past," he told reporters at a national meeting of the National Democratic Front here Saturday.

He did not elaborate on what he meant by all decisions in the past, but said political parties needed to explain their sources of income as the 2002 law on political parties and the 2003 law on presidential elections stipulates that parties and election candidates are prohibited from receiving donations from abroad, the state budget or anonymous sources.

Jusuf Rizal, director of Yudhoyono's 2004 election campaign team known as Blora Center, accused former fisheries minister and graft suspect Rokhmin Dahuri of fabricating the fact by saying the team had received Rp 40 million (approximately US$4,500) from the ministry.

He acknowledged that Rokhmin had offered financial assistance to the team, but he rejected it as he was not responsible for financial matters.

In a media statement sent to The Jakarta Post on Saturday, Rizal asked Rokhmin to reveal who in the center had received the money.

Calls for an immediate investigation into the case mounted after Amien Rais admitted that he had received money from Rokhmin Dahuri to finance his 2004 presidential election campaign. The admission has supported allegations that other presidential candidates had also received funds from Rokhmin.

Amien, the former chairman of the National Mandate Party, said he accepted Rp 200 million from Rokhmin, which he submitted to the party's treasurer, and another Rp 200 million through a member of the party's 2004 election campaign team.

According to Rokhmin's deposition, he also gave presidential candidate Megawati Soekarnoputri and her running mate Hasyim Muzadi Rp 275 million, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Jusuf Kalla Rp 200 million and Wiranto and running mate Salahuddin Wahid Rp 220 million. All have denied receiving the funds.

Despite their denials, Deputy MPR speaker AM Fatwa has asked the Corruption Eradication Commission to investigate the alleged distribution of non-budgetary funds to presidential candidates in 2004.

Political observer Bara Hasibuan has also called upon the KPU to conduct an investigation into each political party that contested the 2004 elections.

"Such an investigation is very important in order to prevent any illegal fund-raising practices in the future," Bara said, adding that if Yudhoyono and Kalla received the funds, they should admit to having done so. "This would be a good move and may help develop Indonesia into a more transparent state", he said.

He expressed hope that other presidential candidates would follow the example of Amien Rais, who revealed election irregularities and was willing to be held accountable for his wrongdoings.

Abdul Rahman criticized over Soeharto case intervention

Jakarta Post - May 18, 2007

Jakarta – Activists have criticized former Attorney General Abdul Rahman Saleh for allegedly intervening in the Attorney General's anticorruption campaign by asking incumbent Hendarman Supandji not to continue investigations into former president Soeharto's corruption cases.

"We see his (Abdul Rahman's) statement as unethical and politically motivated," said a member of Imparsial – a human rights monitoring group.

"It's such a misleading message because the Attorney General's Office (AGO) still has many cases of corruption and human rights violations to pursue," Donny Ardiyanto said Wednesday.

Abdul Rahman allegedly told his successor during the transfer-of-duty ceremony earlier this month that Hendarman should not prosecute corruption cases involving Soeharto.

But Donny said as a former attorney general, Abdul Rahman must consider cases involving corruption as highly contentious – not only because they had caused huge losses to the state, but also because they usually involved many government and law enforcement officials.

"An attorney general has a heavy task because he has to deal with colleagues from other law enforcement institutions and also government officials," Donny said. "But he should have realized that."

Donny hinted there might be a possibility of Soeharto being granted amnesty for his corruption cases. He said this would be in recognition of Soeharto's contribution to the country and his aging condition.

But Donny said the key to resolving any Soeharto case was to bring him to court. "People will accept whatever the court's decision is, but the most important thing is to put him on trial – he (must) respect the due process of law."

Hendarman should regard his predecessor's statement as merely "post-power syndrome", Donny said.

"Based on his experience as head of the anticorruption investigation team, he has two things Abdul Rahman Saleh did not have – courage and a closeness with the working mechanism at the AGO as a career attorney. (This experience and knowledge) allows him to effectively coordinate all levels of prosecution."

Imparsial member Bhatara Ibnu Reza said bringing Soeharto to court would also provide the former president an opportunity to prove his innocence.

"The country needs courageous prosecutors as they are actually representing the people. Hendarman Supandji, as the top prosecutor in the country, should have the courage to dismiss the order to stop investigations into Soeharto's (conduct)," he added.

Executive director of Imparsial Rusdi Marpaung said Soeharto's corruption cases were only the tip of the iceberg. He said there were many human rights violations cases which had occurred during Soeharto's 32 years in power.

"Soeharto's corruption cases and human rights violation cases are two sides of the same coin," Rusdi said. "If Hendarman can open the corruption cases, everything else will be disclosed – including the flow of funds for military operations and other crimes against humanity."

 Economy & investment

Government's lending target too ambitious, says BI governor

Jakarta Post - May 23, 2007

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – The government's expectation that the banking industry will be able to increase lending by 33 percent by 2008 in order to meet its economic growth target of 7 percent is too ambitious, Bank Indonesia Governor Burhanuddin Abdullah said.

"The highest lending growth ever achieved by the country's banking industry was only 24 percent. I think the government needs to readjust its target," he said on the sidelines of a hearing Tuesday with the House of Representatives' finance commission.

He was commenting on the government's 2008 economic goals unveiled by Finance Minister Sri Mulyani to the same House commission earlier in the day.

Sri Mulyani said a total of Rp 1,296 trillion (about US$147 billion) in investment would be needed to meet the GDP growth target of between 6.6 percent and 7 percent in 2008.

The finance minister said that the government was hoping the country's commercial banks would contribute Rp 210 trillion of this, which according to BI would represent a 33 percent increase in lending compared to the current figure.

The lending-to-deposit ratio, Mulyani said, would hopefully rise to 75 percent from the current level of 60 percent.

While expressing the hope that the country's banks would begin to improve their intermediation function so as to propel the real sector on the back of a relaxation in lending rules and a reduction in BI's key interest rate, Burhanuddin said he was rather pessimistic about the government's target. "It's just that it has never happened in history," he said.

According to Bank Indonesia, bank lending grew by Rp 97 trillion, or about 14 percent, from Rp 690 trillion as of the end of December 2005, a substantial drop from the average 20 percent growth recorded in the preceding years. As of the end of March, lending had risen to Rp 800 trillion from Rp 787 trillion at the end of December last year. The central bank has targeted an increase in lending of 18 percent this year.

"Even if lending growth reaches 24 percent, the highest level ever, the government will still have to look for other alternative investment financing sources," Burhanuddin said.

The government, which will allocate about Rp 170 billion for infrastructure development under the 2008 budget, hopes that the private sector will contribute Rp 460 trillion to the investment target.

With the enactment of the new Investment Law, Mulyani said, 70 percent of 2006's approved domestic and foreign investments, worth about Rp 314 trillion, should be realized next year.

State enterprises are expected to be able to spend Rp 151 trillion on capital investment in 2008, she added.

Mulyani said that in order for the economy to grow by 7 percent, the contribution of personal private consumption to GDP would have to be in a range of between 5.7 and 6.2 percent, compared to this year's target of 5.1 percent.

To make this possible, she said the government hoped the central bank would keep inflation at a level of 6 percent and lower its key rate to between 7.5 and 8 percent. "We will also optimize the poverty alleviation program to increase the real incomes of the public," she said.

She said that the government also expected an increase in the number of villages participating in the National People's Empowerment Program (PNPM) from 2,800 at present to 3,800 in 2008.

The government was targeting a reduction in the poverty rate from 17 percent to between 15 and 16.8 percent, and the unemployment rate from 10 percent to between 8 and 9 percent.

US, Indonesia agree to boost trade, investment links

Agence France Presse - May 22, 2007

Washington – The United States and Indonesia are to launch a set of initiatives aimed at boosting bilateral trade and investment ties, their trade ministers said after talks here Monday.

They agreed to set up working groups to develop "specific initiatives" in areas such as intellectual property rights, agricultural and industrial goods, services and investment, said a statement from the office of US Trade Representative Susan Schwab.

"I am pleased that the United States and Indonesia made additional progress in deepening our trade and investment relationship in our meetings this week," Schwab said after talks with Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Pangestu.

Schwab and Pangestu "directed the new working groups to develop specific initiatives in these four areas to further enhance trade and investment ties between the two countries," the statement said.

The meeting was held under the US-Indonesia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), seen as a pace setter for a free trade agreement.

Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest nation, is the 31st largest trading partner of the United States. Two-way trade totaled 16.5 billion dollars last year, a 9.3-percent increase over 2005. US foreign direct investment in Indonesia hit nearly 10 billion dollars in 2005, the latest data available.

The two ministers also discussed joint efforts to advance integration of the 10 nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Business groups from the two countries also met under the TIFA to exchange views on strengthening trade and investment links between the two countries.


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