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Indonesia News Digest 26 – July 9-15, 2008
Jakarta Post - July 12, 2008
ID Nugroho, Surabaya – The national defense industry remains
unable to meet the demand of the Indonesian Military (TNI) for
quality weaponry at competitive prices and quick delivery times.
During a quarterly forum on military weaponry here Friday, the
TNI said the national defense industry needed to improve its
products to meet military standards.
"We must improve ourselves and not be easily tempted by offers
from the West. We only need their technology," the assistant to
the TNI chief for planning, Rear Adm. Amirullah Amin, said.
With 20 percent of TNI weaponry having been operational for 30
years or longer, the country's defense system is feared to lack
capability to keep territorial integrity intact.
A series of accidents involving old war machines since December
last year prompted President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to order
the TNI to withdraw all aging military equipment.
Also attending the trimonthly forum were Defense Ministry
secretary-general Lt. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsuddin, logistics
officials from the Navy, Air Force and Army, directors from state
defense companies PT Pindad, PT Dirgantara Indonesia (DI), PT PAL
and PT Dahana, and representatives from the Finance Ministry,
State Ministry for State Enterprises and the National Development
Planning Board.
During the meeting, the Air Force said state aircraft
manufacturer PT DI was unable to produce aircraft that met its
demanded specifications; the Navy complained said PT PAL was
unable to produce much-needed submarines; and the Army questioned
why PT Pindad remained unable to produce cannons.
State enterprises ministry secretary Muhammad Said Didu
attributed the inability of the state enterprises to meet the
TNI's demands to the "unhealthy" condition of the companies.
He suggested the government set up a holding company focused on
the military industry.
According to data from the National Development Planning Board,
the government plans to inject US$200 million in fresh investment
into PT Pindad and PT DI for weaponry production projects, such
as tanks and military aircraft.
The government will also allocate up to $3 billion for arms
purchases through 2010.
"The government will provide domestic lending to the armed forces
to modernize its weaponry. A regulation on this will be signed by
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono soon," said Eril Herliyanto,
an official with the Directorate General for Defense Planning at
the Defense Ministry.
He said the government had emphasized the domestic production of
arms to end the country's dependency on foreign arms suppliers.
Jakarta Post - July 11, 2008
Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – The Indonesian Press Council on
Thursday said press freedom remains restricted in the country
after four readers who had their letters of protest published in
newspapers were taken to court.
The council said all articles published in the media, including
readers' letters, were technically journalistic works, and as
such fell under the auspices of the 1999 press law.
Four stall owners – Kwee Meng Luan, Khoe Sengseng, Vivi Tanang
and Pan Esther – were sued by property developer PT Duta Pertiwi
after protesting in the readers' letters columns of several
newspapers two years ago, accusing the company of allegedly
manipulating the status of building use certificates (HGB) for
stalls bought from the company.
The council says this incident is the first of its kind in the
country.
In April 2008, the North Jakarta District Court found Pan guilty
of defamation and ordered her to pay Rp 1 billion (US$108,108) in
damages. However, in the same court, Kwee was found not guilty by
a different panel of judges who tried his case under the press
law.
Leo Batubara, the council's deputy chairman, said it was odd the
same court issued different verdicts in identical cases.
"It shows law enforcers do not embrace the same legal standards
when handling similar press-related cases," he said.
Leo said all published articles, be they opinion pieces or
letters of protest, were journalistic works because the media was
responsible for editing and publishing them.
"Therefore, courts should use the press law rather than the
Criminal Code when dealing with cases relating to journalistic
works," he said, adding the use of the Criminal Code would in
effect criminalize the press.
The council and other press organizations, including Media Watch
and Press Legal Aid, urged police, prosecutors and judges to
include the council in matters relating to the press.
"Because this is a matter of press freedom, the press should be
allowed to facilitate such cases first before they turn into
legal cases," Leo said.
"President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in a 2005 meeting with
us legal process was the last resort when someone had a dispute
with the press. Before that, the President said the person should
first use their right to respond by sending a letter of protest.
If it doesn't work, the person should ask the council to
facilitate the dispute."
National Police senior detective Brig. Gen. Badrodin Haiti said
police could not prevent people from filing charges with them.
"We can't force people to use their rights to respond or to ask
advise from the council. They might not like those ideas and
prefer to file a report," he said.
The council also said strict disclaimers should be printed in
readers' letters columns, providing guidelines on how readers
should express their ideas.
"We must keep media spheres free from disputes and clashes. We
must also make sure all readers' letters use factual and unbiased
language," council member Bekti Nugroho said.
The council suggested the media share the policy implemented by
The Jakarta Post of confirming all incoming complaints and giving
the accused party two days' notice to respond. This would allow
the media the chance to publish both the complaint and response
on the same day.
Demos, protests, actions...
Aceh
West Papua
Human rights/law
Labour issues
Environment/natural disasters
Health & education
War on corruption
War on terror
Elections/political parties
Economy & investment
Opinion & analysis
News & issues
TNI says can't rely on local arms
Press freedom still restricted in Indonesia
Police continue hunt for car vandals from student rally
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Indah Setiawati, Jakarta – The Jakarta Police have received photographs of more alleged vandals who damaged cars during a student protest in front of Atma Jaya university, Central Jakarta, last month.
"We received pictures of six fugitives from our officers who witnessed the protests. We call on people to contact police if they recognize the fugitives or have information about them," city police spokesman Sr. Comr. Ketut Untung Yoga Ana told reporters Tuesday.
He said police could not confirm whether the fugitives were students. The police had previously named six of the alleged car vandals, but have so far not arrested any of them.
A group of around 1,000 people, including students, graduates, activists and paid thugs on June 24 staged a protest in front of Atma Jaya University in response to being refused entrance to the House of Representatives during a plenary session discussing the government's fuel increases.
During the protests, nine cars were damaged, including one that was completely burned out. The protesters also broke down a section of gate outside of the House of Representatives on Jl. Gatot Subroto, Central Jakarta, and vandalized public property on Plaza 89 in Kuningan, South Jakarta.
The students also protested against the death of National University student Maftuh Fauzi, who died on June 20 from injuries sustained a month earlier in a clash with police on his campus in South Jakarta.
Five riot suspects are currently under custody at the city police headquarters, while the allegedly financier of the protests, Ferry Yuliantono, is being held at the National Police headquarters.
Police are still calling on graduates, including activists involved in the 1998 protest against late former president Suharto, to come forward as witnesses.
| Demos, protests, actions... |
Tempo Interactive - July 16, 2008
Reza M., Jakarta – A number of main thoroughfares in the capital city of Jakarta will be enlivened by protest actions this morning, Wednesday July 16. Based on information from the Metro Jaya regional police Traffic Management Centre (TMC), seven demonstrations will be held today – five of which will take place at offices or agencies located on busy roads.
At around 10am, the State-owned Enterprises Federated Trade Union (FSP-BUMN) will hold an action in front of the Ministry for State Owned-Enterprises on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta.
At around the same time, United Indonesian Solidarity (SIB) will hold a protest at the offices of the Corruption Eradication Commission and the Anti-Corruption Court on Jl. HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta.
At around 11am, a section of Jl. HR Rasuna Said in front of the Grand Melia Hotel will be enlivened by a demonstration. Also at 11am, a protest action will take place in front of the House of Representatives on Jl. Gatot Subroto in Central Jakarta. The protesters plan to continue the action at the central office of the state-owned oil company Pertamina on Jl. Medan Merdeka Timur in Central Jakarta. There, at around 2pm, they will join up with students from the Red-and-White Student Executive Council (BEM- MP) and the University of Indonesia Student Action Front (FAMI).
Non-protocol roads will also not be spared protest actions. The TMC also reports that at around 9am representatives of victims of the Brantas Lapindo mud disaster from the Besuki village in Kedung Cangkring and Penjarakan, Sidoarjo, East Java, will pay a call on the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) offices on Jl. Latuharhari in Central Jakarta.
Transport workers from the PT Mayasari Bhakti bus company meanwhile will be continuing their strike action and demonstration at the company's office on Jl. Lapangan Tembak in East Jakarta.
[Translated by James Balowski.]
Detik.com - July 15, 2008
Nadhifa Putri, Jakarta – It appears that protest action are again to became a part of the capital's daily routine with one of today's demonstrations being marked by a strike.
According to information released by the Metro Jaya regional police Traffic Management Centre for Tuesday July 15, Jakarta will be enlivened by four demonstrations.
The first action will be held between 9am and 3pm in front of the State Palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta.
The next protest will take place at PT Mayasari Utama on Jl. Lapangan Tembak in the Cibubur area of East Jakarta at 9.30am. The action will be accompanied with a strike by employees from the company.
At 10am, a group will hold protests at three different locations including the office of the Minister for State-Owned Enterprises on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta, in front of the State Palace and at the Attorney General's Office on Jl. Sultan Hasanuddin in South Jakarta.
A second group will also hold a protest action at the AGO at 10am. (ptr/gah)
[Translated by James Balowski.]
| Aceh |
Jakarta Post - July 12, 2008
Hotli Simanjuntak, Banda Aceh – Six local Aceh parties now eligible to contest the 2009 elections, are determined to make a clean sweep of the 96-seat provincial legislative council, now dominated by national political parties.
The Aceh Party (PA) representing ex-combatants and leaders of the closed-down Free Aceh Movement (GAM) said it was optimistic it could win 80 percent of provincial legislature seats as part of its attempt to reform the government of the province.
PA spokesman Adnan Beuransyah said his party would revamp the provincial administration to enable it to speed up economic development and democratic change.
"Our main target is to revamp the provincial administration and change its official symbol, anthem and flag in accordance with the peace agreement signed in Helsinki on Aug. 15, 2005. Then, the party will fight for remaining points in the peace agreement which have yet to be implemented," he said.
Adnan said his party was consolidating its position with officials and supporters in regencies and municipalities, without violating the 2008 election law.
"This consolidation includes recruitment of former rebels and GAM leaders to sit in the provincial legislative council," he said.
PA chairman Muzakir Manaf called on all party officials and members to focus on the consolidation program and to improve preparedness for the legislative election.
Acehnese People Party (PRA) secretary-general Thamrin Ananda said his party had to be realistic in adopting its target of 17 seats in the provincial legislature, but that it would work hard to improve its representation at regency and municipality level.
"With this realistic target, we will be able to influence the provincial government's policies and fight for pro-poor budgets and government policies," he said.
The PA and PRA are two of six local parties that passed the verification process conducted by the Independent Election Commission (KPA), which was set up under the peace agreement.
The election commission successfully held the first-ever Aceh gubernatorial election in 2006 which was won by current governor Irwandy Yusuf and vice governor Muhammad Nazar. The two, both former rebels, contested the election as independent candidates and won a convincing majority of votes to give them a five-year mandate to lead the province until 2011.
Four other local parties were named as approved, including the Safe and Prosperous Aceh party (PAAS), the Acehese People's Independent Aspiration (SIRA), the United Aceh Party (PBA) and the Aceh Sovereignty Party (PDA).
The six local parties were announced as being eligible when 34 national political parties passed the General Elections Commission (KPU) verification process.
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) representative Erwin Schweissheim hailed the six local parties as part of post-conflict political reintegration in the province.
"With the emergence of local parties, Aceh is expected to maintain peace, develop a true democracy and improve the people's social welfare," he said. He said that FES has been involved in several programs, including political reintegration, labor training and a women's program, to help implement the peace agreement.
He said so far up to 500 ex-combatants and GAM leaders have been educated on Indonesia's political system, constitution, law and the unitary state, while other young men and women were trained in small-scale enterprises to allow them to integrate into society.
The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) said that it regretted the intimidation and beating by Aceh Party cadres of PKS party staff in Pidie Jaya, saying the police should investigate thoroughly to avoid such incidents on the eve of the general election.
"A PKS member named Zulfikar was beaten during a protest over the presence of a PKS office in the regency," he said.
| West Papua |
Jakarta Post - July 16, 2008
Jakarta – Greenomics Indonesia, an NGO conducting studies on the environment, says 60.42 percent of forestry companies in Papua and West Papua perform poorly on local community empowerment and investment in sustainable forest development.
Greenomics coordinator Vanda Mutia Dewi said an evaluation of forest concession holders in the two provinces also shows very poor financial performance.
Performance indicators were based on a sample of 12 forestry companies managing 1.92 million hectares of forests in the two provinces, representing 26 percent of forest areas. The evaluation cited was conducted by a Forestry Ministry team between 2005 and 2007.
Vanda said that 60 percent of forestry companies did poorly in empowering adjacent communities to improve their social welfare.
According to the team, 75 percent of forestry companies harvested their forests in contravention of the legal requirements on selective cutting laid down by the 1999 forestry law and government regulations.
Forestry companies performed poorly in practicing selective cutting based on wood volume, forest size and forest types. "Rapid action is needed, or the two provinces will be deforested and abandoned, while local people living in and near these areas will remain poor," she said.
Asked what should be done to improve forestry companies performance to benefit stakeholders, including on the environment, Vanda said the government should conduct a comprehensive evaluation as required by ministerial decree on the criteria and indicators for sustainable management of production forests.
"Central and provincial governments and an independent evaluation team should conduct a field visit and comprehensive evaluation. They should take action against poorly performing forestry companies and revoke their concessions," she said.
Only 9 percent of forestry companies fulfilled all the criteria and indicators required by the ministerial decree, while the poorer performance of most companies reflected mismanagement.
Jakarta Post - July 14, 2008
Nethy Darma Somba and Angela Flassy, Jayapura – At least 16 have died of HIV/AIDS in Puncak Jaya regency, in Papua, and millions more are at risk in the country with the world's highest rate of spread of the disease.
The disease has spread to the country's coastal regencies, including Jayapura, Sorong, Mimika and Merauke.
Mulia General Hospital in Puncak Jaya said as of June 2008 16 carriers had died from complications, including diarrhea, lung damage and vomiting.
"All the victims were of reproductive ages, between 15 and 30, and several of them were junior and senior high-school students. Even worse, one of the victims was a three-year-old child suspected of inheriting the disease from his mother," director of the hospital Nasir Ruki told The Jakarta Post by telephone over the weekend.
"They were in critical condition and were not aware that they were infected when they were admitted to the hospital," he said.
Nasir said the patients had come from remote coastal areas with no access to public transportation.
"The women with HIV/AIDS were infected by their husbands who frequently made trips to the coastal regencies, while the infant victim was infected by his mother, who contracted the disease through her husband," he said.
The hospital is currently treating 42 patients with HIV, many of whom are suspected of having had sex with prostitutes in the coastal regencies, he said.
Nasir said he feared the number of those living with the disease had exceeded government figures as many in remote regencies were unaware of their condition and knew little of about the virus.
It is estimated 4,200 people in Puncak Jaya regency live with the disease, and the figure is expected to increase by 200 percent within the next five years.
Mulia General Hospital is conducting a survey in conjunction with French non-governmental organization Medicine de Monde to gain an accurate estimate of the number of infected.
Nasir said a family of four living with HIV/AIDS in a village had been evicted from their house by locals.
"According to the family's confession, they are seeking another regency where they can live normally without being forced into isolation or discriminated against," he said, adding that health workers and government officials were required to keep secret the identities of those living with HIV/AIDS.
A women's organization in the city has opposed a government- sponsored campaign promoting the role of condoms in preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS, saying the program is un-Christian and that it encourages sex among the young.
"We oppose the use of condoms because besides their being against Christianity, there is no evidence to suggest the contraceptive device can prevent infection," deputy coordinator of the Papuan Solidarity for Women Rika Kapisa said in a seminar of HIV/AIDS recently.
The group also called on the government to amend a draft bylaw on healthcare regulating the campaign and the use of condoms as a preventative measure.
The group called on the government to provide sex education for elementary and high school students and to close down brothels in the province to prevent the spread of the disease.
Antara News - July 9, 2008
Jayapura – A local religious leader said the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has so far not paid any attention to or touched suspected corruption cases involving serving and former office-holders in Papua's executive and legislative branches at provincial and district or municipal levels, creating the impression the KPK was "discriminative" in carrying out its mission.
Rev Socratez Sofyan Yoman, chairman of the Papua Baptist Churches Association, said corruption was being committed at all government administrative levels without anything being done to fight it, causing people to lose confidence in the government.
"People want the executive and legislative branches of government to remain clean but in reality enormous sums of money meant to improve the community's welfare have been embezzled or misappropriated by executive or legislative officials. The KPK seems still unwilling to come to Papua to solve this complex problem," he said.
Socratez predicted, if the KPK failed to take up and solve suspected corruption cases in Papua, the people in Indonesia's most-eastern province would sooner or later lose their belief in a legitimate, clean and corruption-, collusion- and nepotism-free government, followed by discontentment about the government and finally the outbreak of vertical and horizontal conflicts.
There were many suspected big-time corruption cases in Papua but none of them had so far been investigated seriously, much less settled in court. All reported cases ended up being shelved by police, public prosecutors or judges under all sorts of pretexts such as "lack of evidence' or the conclusion that the cases merely involved "administrative errors." he said.
Among the suspected corruption cases that had so far remained untouched by the KPK were one involving tens of billions of rupiah in the Waropen district administration, one in the Mimika district administration when it was led by former district chief Klemen Tinal, another one in Timika district affecting a state- owned building.
Anther big case happened in Puncak Jaya district, namely in relation with the Mulia Hydropower Plant project costing Rp11,275,465,000 and managed by Papua province's energy and mineral resources office in cooperation with PT Bumi Cipta Alam Selaras.
"If the KPK does not come to Puncak Jaya, Mimika and Waropen and other districts soon to handle the corruption cases, the local people's discontent and loss of confidence could turn into nationally disintegrative attitudes and actions," Socratez warned.
Papuan people knew the central government had allocated trillions of rupiah in funds to develop their region, especially for the benefit of the province's indigenous people. Yet there were no signs of improvement in the people's health care, family nutrition, education, infrastructure facilities and economic welfare in general, the clergyman said.
| Human rights/law |
Tempo Interactive - July 16, 2008
Jakarta – The National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has said there was a human rights violation when the police arrested students at the National University (Unas) on May 24.
"The police entered the campus without following procedures," said Nur Kholis, a Komnas HAM member who is head of the investigative team for incident at Unas, yesterday (15/7).
This conclusion was included in a 112-page report presented at the Komnas HAM's plenary meeting.
The meeting is being continued today for further discussion. "We will decide about this tomorrow (today)," said Nur Kholis.
The investigative team has been working for seven weeks ago. Some 12 people were examined as witnesses, and 91 pieces of evidence were collected including documentation, damaged vehicles, 15 rubber bullets, and two grenades.
According to Nur Kholis, the police broke police regulation No.16/2006 regarding crowd control.
The police attacked campus without clear reason. "It just because the police were tired and emotional," he said.
The police are also considered to have broken criminal code article 170 for attacking the students.
The commission recommended the police to conduct an internal investigation into their members. "Who made the decision to attack the campus."
Nur Kholis said he believed that the police will follow the recommendations as they are committed to reform their institution. "When violations are discovered, sanction will be imposed," he said.
Regarding the death of Unas student, Maftuh Fauzi, Nur Kholis was not prepared to comment.
"There is a regulation forbidding me to talk about it," he said. "The autopsy report will be presented in a court as evidence."
The commission recommended that the Health Department to punish the hospital for announcing the Maftuh's death without permission from Maftuh's family. "This is a criminal offense," he said.
Head of public relations at the Indonesian police, Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira, refused to comment over the commission's investigative report. "We have not yet received it," said Abubakar.
- Suseno, Mustafa Silalahi, Muhammad Nur Rochmi
Radio Australia - July 16, 2008
In the same week that a major report on Indonesian military involvement in human rights abuses in East Timor, another former Indonesian military commander has announced his candidacy for next year's presidential election.
Both Prabowo Subianto and the current president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, entered Indonesia's Military Academy at the same time, and both became three-star generals within a month of each other. But that where many of the similarities end.
Presenter: Adam Connors
Speakers: Robert Gelbard, former United States ambassador to Indonesia and current foreign policy advisor to Barack Obama; Marzuki Darusman, for Indonesian attorney-general; Professor Ronald Palmer, former ambasssador and emeritus professor George Washington University
Connors: The former army special forces chief and son-in-law of the the late former president Suharto, Prabowo Subianto, declared his run for the presidency on Saturday, representing the Gerindra Party. The party could be in a bit of trouble, with Gerindra's vice-president, Muchdi Purwoprandjono, having been detained in Jakarta since June 19 – a suspect in the 2004 murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib. Prabowo helped Muchdi push through the ranks of Indonesia's military in the 1980s and 90s, with Muchdi succeeding him as the Kopassus special forces commander in 1998. The former United States ambassador to Indonesia and current foreign policy advisor to Barack Obama, Robert Gelbard, says investigations into Muchdi could be the beginning of something wider.
Gelbard: Dealing with people like Prabowo and Wiranto are really the next steps.
Connors: Muchdi and Prabowo served together, with former General Wiranto, overseeing East Timor and Indonesia's Papua, as well as other hotspots, throughout the 1980 and 90s. Former ambassador Gelbard is not shy in expressing his feelings about seeing Prabowo and Wiranto now remaking themselves as politicians.
Gelbard: There were always people who, as they saw Suharto getting older, imagined themselves as the potential successor. Wiranto certainly saw himself in that role. What impresses me, in fact astonishes me, is that Prabowo would think that he could come back at this point after alll the horrors that he was behind.
Connors: On May 12, 1998, six university students were murdered in what was to begin a chain of events leading directly to the fall of the Suharto regime. The killings were followed on May 13 by thug-inspired rioting, looting, arson and the raping of perhaps hundreds of Chinese girls and women. A Joint Fact-Finding Team, the TGPF, found the May riots were orchestrated by Lieutenant-General Prabowo. The chair of the fact-finding team was Marzuki Darusman, who is now a former Indonesian attorney- general.
Darusman: There were some views that this was of course linked to the so-called competition between Mr Wiranto and Mr Prabowo.
Connors: So you're saying that Wiranto commissioned the investigation to some extent?
Darusman: Yes. The Habibi government at that time. The results were accepted in the general sense that massive or systematic abuse on women of Chinese descent took place on a scale. That [ruling] was clearly accepted by the president at that time. But then there was this changeover to the new government which then did not immediately address this matter because there was a number of immediate issues to take up. So very now and then this has been taken up, brought to the attention of the government.
Connors: Prabowo has therefore never faced a court over the issue. Former ambassador Gelbard.
Gelbard: Prabowo certainly is somebody who is perhaps the greatest violator of human rights in contemporary times among the Indonesian military. His deeds in the late 90s before democracy took hold, were shocking, even by TNI standards – involving extraordinary human rights violations, particularly in 1998. It is certainly for this reason that he has been denied an American visa for life. And it is quite remarkable, in terms of his own ego, that he would now put himself forth as a candidate for the presidency.
Connors: The man who penned a definitive accound of the jostle between the generals in the 1980s and 90s, Professor Ronald Palmer, is also pessimistic about Prabowo's chances.
Palmer: It's my sense that Prabowo relates more to the things that were going on in the past. Not many of those things are things that are attractive to contemporary people.
Connors: With the Gerindra Party's Muchdi facing trial – the first in Indonesia's history for a former high-ranking military official – there may well be more for this race to run.
Jakarta Post - July 15, 2008
Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) said Monday it will return the case file of Maj. Gen. Muchdi Purwopranjono, a suspect in the 2004 murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib, to police.
"We have found the dossier incomplete and will return it to police before July 21," said M. Ismail, the AGO pre-indictment director at the deputy attorney general for crimes office.
He said the case file lacked the signatures of detectives in charge and witnesses. "We informed the police on July 11, and we'll provide them a guideline on how to complete it," Ismail said.
The National Police handed over Muchdi's dossier to the AGO on July 8, after completing its investigation of Muchdi, who has been detained since June 19.
Muchdi, a former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) deputy chief, was mentioned by BIN agent Budi Santoso in a written statement that was read out during the court trial of Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, who was later sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for the same murder.
Jakarta Post - July 15, 2008
Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – Many Indonesians will recall the serial murders of alleged criminals more than 25 years ago as the National Commission on Human Rights this week launches an investigation into the killings.
The commission's deputy chairman for external affairs Hesti Armiwulan said Monday its ad hoc team would start seeking evidence to determine whether gross human rights violations had occurred.
Known as penembakan misterius (mysterious shootings), or Petrus, the incidents revolved around the execution of alleged criminals without trial between 1983 and 1985, which then president Soeharto said in his biography was "shock therapy" he himself condoned.
Almost every day, corpses with gunshot wounds were found in streets, rivers, forests or open spaces for the public to see during the anti-crime drive. The rights body estimates the operation claimed between 6,000 and 8,000 lives.
To kick-start the investigation, the rights commission members on Monday heard the testimony of Bathi Mulyono, a former Golkar Party member who claimed to have survived a number of murder attempts during the three-year crackdown.
Bathi told the hearing that not all of the victims were criminals. "Some of them were named political foes of the (New Order) regime and came under the target of elimination," Bathi said.
He said he was responsible for the 1982 riot in Lapangan Banteng in Central Jakarta as part of a campaign to discredit the United Development Party (PPP), the strongest rival of the ruling Golkar in Jakarta, ahead of the election.
He said he and his friends were hunted down and experienced many threats following the riot, which he suspected were part of the regime's attempts to remove evidence.
"Some of my friends were killed in front of their family members, while I managed to escape and hide for many years," he said. "Now that this case is opened for investigation, I hope the truth of history can be revealed."
Edwin Partogi of the Commission for Missing People and Victims of Violence (Kontras) said the rights group had filed the report on the alleged extrajudicial killings to the rights body in January.
Kontras' initial investigation found the murders occurred in 11 provinces: Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, East Java, Yogyakarta, South Sumatra, Lampung, North Sumatra, Bali, West Kalimantan and East Kalimantan. In Jakarta alone some 1,300 victims were identified between 1982 and 1984.
Hesti said the rights body's investigation would last six months. "We can extend it if necessary," she said, adding the commission expected support from the Attorney General's Office and the House of Representatives to bring the case to an ad hoc human rights court.
Jakarta Post - July 12, 2008
Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – After a decade of reform, the government has yet to recognize basic economic, social and culture rights, said the National Commission on Human Rights in a review Friday.
Unlike civil and political rights, which have garnered international recognition, economic, social and culture rights – including to housing, health, education and employment – are still low on the government's list of priorities due to uncontrolled liberalization, the commission said.
"Liberalization has allowed corporations to appropriate the government's role, causing it to lose control in our society," the commission's deputy chairman, M. Ridha Saleh, told The Jakarta Post.
Under liberalization, corporations have succeeded in taking advantage of Indonesia's regulations and bureaucracy, forcing the government to permit corporate management of the state's natural resources, which restricts their public benefit, he said.
"National regulations have served corporate interests. As firms are supported with existing regulations, their legal status is recognized, strengthening their position in society," Ridha said after a four-day national meeting.
Since Indonesia's bureaucratic culture supports practices like bribery, no strict measures exist to control corporations, which have exploited the political elite, further weakening governmental authority, he said.
"Our political elite lacks the commitment necessary to support citizens' basic rights. Corporations can too easily manipulate them."
In order to restore threatened rights, the commission has called on the government to reclaim control from corporations.
"The commission will prepare an official standing paper to address these issues and provide the government with several recommendations," Ridha said.
One recommendation is to force the business sector to be more responsible toward the public. "Corporations have not fulfilled the public's economic, social and cultural rights. They will have to shift their mind-set and become responsible to the public," he said.
The commission will also push the government to address corporate violations of such rights and to consider criminal punishment for such violations, he added, citing cases involving Freeport, Newmont and Lapindo as examples.
"To do so, we are urging the government to ratify the optional protocol of the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment," he said.
The government has pledged to ratify 10 other international human rights agreements by 2009, according to the commission.
Jakarta Post - July 11, 2008
Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – The National Commission on Human Rights urged the government to immediately ratify the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Ifdhal Kasim, the Commission's chairman, on Thursday said ratification of the statute would provide victims of rights abuse the opportunity to appeal to the ICC if local courts failed to protect them, and could also prevent people in power from committing crimes against humanity.
"If rights abuse cases in Indonesia meet a dead end, or if rights courts here fail to settle cases, then victims can demand justice through the ICC," he said at a discussion organized by the Coalition of Civilians for ICC and local radio station KBR68H as part of commemorations for World Day for International Justice on July 17.
"The ICC will be ready to put leaders on trial if they commit crimes against humanity."
The ICC was established in 2002 as a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression, although it currently has no jurisdiction over the latter. The court can only prosecute crimes committed on or after July 1, 2002 – the date of its inception.
As of July 2008, 106 states are members of the court. Forty other countries have signed but not ratified the Rome Statute, while several other nations – including China, India and the United States – have refused to recognize the court.
Harkristuti Harkrisnowo, director general for human rights at the Justice and Human Rights Ministry, said the Indonesian government had in 2004 planned to ratify the Rome Statute by 2008. The plan, however, will likely be delayed because the government has only recently begun the process of drafting a bill on the ratification.
"Joining the ICC is part of our national human rights action plan in 2008. But, we still have a lot of work to do," Harkristuti said. "We need to ratify some other international documents. Hopefully the draft on the Rome Statute ratification will be submitted to the House of Representatives this year."
She said an inter-ministerial meeting to discuss the issue would be held next week. She added Indonesia had adopted parts of the statute by endorsing the 2000 law on human rights courts, which deals with on genocide and crimes against humanity.
Harkristuti said because past crimes could not be tried by the ICC, the government was not averse to ratifying the statute. Ifdhal said past rights abuses should be settled under existing national laws.
Agung Yudhawiranata of the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM) and a member of the local ICC coalition, said the ratification of the statute would mean rights criminals would no longer be able to "hide behind the bureaucracy and their influence over the nation".
The ICC, whose official seat is in the Hague, the Netherlands, in currently investigating four cases in Africa.
Tempo Interactive - July 10, 2008
Sahat Simatupang, Medan – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) urged the police to uncover a murder case in North Sumatera. In March, the Kontras reported police commissioner Anjasmara was involved in the murder of Edi Sarianto.
According to the Kontras coordinator from North Sumatera, Diah Susilawati, Edi Sarianto is a farmer found dying four months ago. "Witnesses said Anjasmara brought Edi Sarianto to a car when he was still alive," said Diah.
The Kontras suspected the murder of Edi Sarianto is related to his activity defending farmers' rights of PT Perkebunan Nusantara II (PTPN II). "Anjasmara acted as security commander in the field when conflict between farmers and PTPN II took place," said Diah.
With information from witnesses, the Kontras reported Anjasmara to police at North Sumatera. "But there is no significant progress yet," said Diah. The Kontras claimed the police do not have the intention to uncover the murder case.
Besides that, the Kontras also urged the police to investigate the death of Edi, SH, the attorney found dead on the riverbank in Medan, three years ago. His death is allegedly due to his activity as a lawyer that had the opposite effect with the investigator.
Head of regional police in North Sumatera, Inspector General Nurudin Usman, only said, "Please ask about it to my deputy."
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the regional police in North Sumatera, Commissioner I Baharudin Djafar, said, "Police will not stop the investigation, we are still working on it," he said.
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Andra Wisnu, Jakarta – A missing letter connecting the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) to the murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib may reappear as evidence against former BIN officer Muchdi Purwoprandjono.
A.H. Ritonga, deputy attorney general for general crimes, said Tuesday that one of the pieces of evidence in Muchdi's case was the missing letter, first mentioned in the trial of former Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Prijanto, who was sentenced to 20 years for his role in the murder.
Indra Setiawan, a witnesses in the Pollycarpus trial, said he received a classified letter from BIN asking that Pollycarpus be assigned as a security crew member for Munir's flight to Amsterdam. Munir was killed by arsenic poisoning during a stopover at Singapore's Changi Airport in September 2004.
Indra claimed robbers stole the letter from his car, creating a missing link between BIN and Munir's murder. Ritonga said Tuesday police had obtained a soft copy of the letter, though he stopped short of confirming whether it would be presented in court as evidence.
"We just received the case file yesterday... we are still examining the dossier to determine whether we can go to court with the new evidence," Ritonga said.
Last month, police named Muchdi, a retired two-star general who at the time of Munir's death was BIN's deputy chief, a suspect in the murder. During the trial of Pollycarpus, Muchdi was named several times in written testimony from BIN agent Budi Santoso.
Budi testified that Muchdi gave Pollycarpus Rp 10 million (US$1,085) on June 14, 2004, and another Rp 3 to 4 million when the latter was under investigation in connection with the case. Both Muchdi and Pollycarpus have denied knowing each other.
Ritonga said other evidence that had appeared in the Pollycarpus trial could also be used in court, including a record of 41 phone calls between numbers allegedly used by Pollycarpus and Muchdi before and after the murder. He said Muchdi could be charged with premeditated murder, which carries a maximum sentence of death.
Former BIN deputy chief M. As'ad has also been linked to the murder. The missing classified letter from BIN was reportedly signed by As'ad.
Human rights activists and lawmakers have demanded that police also investigate former BIN chief A. M. Hendropriyono for a possible connection to the Munir murder.
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – After 10 years of reform, Indonesia continues to lag in the implementation of human rights regulations, the National Commission on Human Rights said in a review Tuesday.
"Indonesia only succeeds in embracing human rights as a standard setting exercise, rather than a program of implementation," commission chairman Ifdhal Kasim said at the opening of a four- day meeting.
The country's lackluster efforts to promote human rights are evident from minimum adjustments to national law following the ratification of international human rights instruments.
Former commission chairman Marzuki Darusman said that even though the Indonesian government had ratified many international human rights conventions, it remained uncertain whether this would facilitate addressing cases of human rights violations.
"Amendments to the Constitution have promoted protection of human rights. However, it is still unclear whether the new articles on human rights are applicable or not," Marzuki said.
He said Indonesia could learn from the United States, where human rights values were enshrined in the constitution, resulting in positive law enforcement to bring charges against perpetrators of rights abuses.
As of June of this year, Indonesia has ratified only five out of 15 international human rights conventions that it pledged to adopt between 1998 and 2009.
The ratified conventions include the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights plus its two optional protocols.
Indonesia has not ratified the convention on the trade of children, child prostitution and pornography; the prevention and punishment of genocide crimes; the status of refugees and the protection of rights of migrant workers and their families. Other international instruments are the Rome statute on the international criminal court; the optional protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflicts; the optional protocol on the elimination of discrimination against women and the protocol on the status of refugees.
Ifdhal said violence and discrimination against minorities had been widespread as human rights standards had not been brought into harmony with existing laws and regulations.
"It was clear enough to see that there was unwillingness within the executive bodies, for example, to resolve cases of human rights violations or provide protection to followers of certain religions," Ifdhal said.
The government recently issued a joint ministerial decree that bans followers of Ahmadiyah from propagating their faith, saying the Islamic sect was "deviant".
Commercialization of education that gives opportunities only to the rich is also an obvious failure of government to comply with human rights principles, Ifdhal added.
Sociologist Daniel Sparringa said that after 10 years of reform, democracy had failed to truly embrace human rights because the focus had been shifted from the quality of discourse to the quantity of participation.
"This has caused the voice of the majority to replace the voice of humanity," Daniel said. "When people are talking about human rights, they don't focus on what are the values behind them. They just take it for granted".
| Labour issues |
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Sixteen years have passed since 40-year-old Rina (not her real name) started working as a cleaner at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
In that time, her job has not changed: she cleans airplane cabins and mops out departure lounge toilets and other areas throughout the airport terminal. Not much else has changed either, in her employment status or monthly salary.
Rina continues to supply the same contract labor that, despite years of working eight hours a day, six days a week, still earns only Rp 800,000 (US$86) a month.
As a contractor, she receives no lunch, health allowances or other benefits that permanent employees are entitled to, and even a minor slip up could lead to her dismissal at any time with no severance pay.
And Rina is not alone: She shares these conditions with hundreds of other cleaners working at the airport.
"I have to renew my contract every year. Toward the end of each contract, I always worry about whether they will still employ me. Of course, I hope they will," she said. Rina said following the annual tender for cleaning services at the airport, the winning company could bring in its own staff at any time.
Working as a researcher at a prominent state research institution for almost five years did not necessarily give Olivia (also not her real name) a better life than Rina's.
During the first two years of her contract, the 28-year-old received take-home pay of Rp 750,000 per month. Over the following three years, the amount rose slowly to between Rp 1 million and Rp 1.3 million, depending on the research projects she did.
Olivia said she held on at the research institution with the hope she would be promoted to civil servant status and have the chance to get a scholarship. But five years was not long enough for her to be rewarded with such privileges.
"I liked the research job. In terms of satisfaction, it was more rewarding. But with prices going up, my salary was used up for transportation. Nothing much was left for my family," said the mother of a 3-year-old girl.
Olivia has now been head of a laboratory for a private firm for several months.
According to the 2003 Labor Law, there are two types of outsourcing: human resources outsourcing and contract work outsourcing.
The Confederation of Indonesian Prosperous Labor Unions (KSBSI) said in its proposal presented recently to the House of Representatives' Commission IX overseeing labor, health and population, that human resources outsourcing should be banned.
"Those working in this field are usually kept on a contract continually with no job security and with minimum wages. And they're prone to termination of employment if they try to protest against their working conditions," KSBSI president Rekson Silaban told The Jakarta Post.
He said with outsourcing and contract labor practices not likely to be eradicated given the "current political reality", there should be measures to offset the negative impacts on outsourced and contract workers.
Rekson said the government should provide a better definition of "core jobs" and "supporting jobs" because different interpretations had resulted in "mounting violations of outsourcing practices that are and are not allowed".
According to the labor law, only five kinds of jobs can be outsourced: cleaning services, security, catering, mining support services and employment delivery services.
| Environment/natural disasters |
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Agus Maryono, Purwokerto – Two-thirds of the natural springs in Banyumas regency, Central Java, have dried up due to conversion of catchment areas into human settlements, says a forestry official.
These springs are the main source of water for residents in the regency.
"Based on our survey in 2001, there were still around 3,000 springs, but they dropped to 1,013 in 2007," Wisnu Herwianto, head of the Banyumas Forestry Office, told the media recently.
According to Wisnu, residents' wells and farmland are parched due to these conditions. "This is a matter for concern because it will require dozens of years and excessive land acquisition to restore the drying springs," said Wisnu.
He said a survey conducted by officers at the local agricultural and forestry office indicated there were 3,002 springs in 2001. The office recorded 545 springs had dried up by 2004 and only 1,013 springs were still running in 2007.
According to Wisnu, most of the springs are located on the slopes of Mount Slamet, in Cilongok, Kedungbanteng and Baturaden districts.
"As many as 800 are located along Mount Slamet's slopes, but only 55 are currently active. They are the main water source for households not connected to the state-owned tap water company," said Wisnu.
He added that the main cause of drought was conversion of catchment areas to make way for human settlements. "Excessive housing construction and logging have led to environmental destruction," said Wisnu.
He said forests that had once functioned as a barrier to prevent runoff had been converted into concrete buildings. This damages the soil's ability to absorb rainfall, which then flows directly into rivers.
Wisnu said restoring the springs would be a very challenging mission, due to many factors, For example a minimum plot of 10- hectares needs to be set aside, then each hectare needs replanting with 500 hardwood trees.
"It's not easy to find a 10-hectare idle plot of land due to rapid population growth and urban development, the main setbacks," he said.
Residents are starting to face water shortages due to the springs diminished by this year's drought. Meanwhile most village wells have dried up and residents face an impending water crisis.
| Health & education |
Jakarta Post - July 15, 2008
Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – While millions of students across the country began the new academic year Monday, many parents were busy dealing with a problem that has yet to be addressed.
Every year, parents have to pay several types of levies before their children can begin studying at new schools. The levies take the shape of application, uniform, and student organization activity fees, in addition to donations for school building maintenance and renovations.
The National Education Ministry's director general of management of basic and secondary education, Suyanto, said schools across the country – except high schools – were forbidden to collect application fees from new students.
The central government, however, does not prohibit schools from seeking money for other types of levies, as the government is only responsible for financing school operational costs, such as electricity, telephone and water bills, and salaries for public school teachers, Suyanto said.
Many provinces in Indonesia have banned schools from collecting any type of levy from new students. The Jakarta Education Agency, for example, has made the ban official in its schools, for kindergarten through junior high. Banten, West Java, Central Java, West Sumatra, North Sumatra, North Sulawesi, South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara and East Nusa Tenggara have also enacted such regulations.
Despite this, many schools continue to charge new students. Hundreds of parents have filed complaints regarding the problem with Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) and its NGO partners. The corruption watchdogs have opened dozens of service posts in 11 provinces to accommodate complaints of levies imposed on new students.
ICW's Ade Irawan told The Jakarta Post that 90 percent of the complaints concerned illegal levies. He said such levies continue to be imposed because local administrations fail to enforce sanctions when schools violate levy regulations. "Local administrations issued the bylaw, only to avoid their obligation," he said.
Ade said ICW would report the schools either to the Corruption Eradication Commission or the Attorney General's Office.
Last week, Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes Marwan Effendi said Attorney General Hendarman Supandji had ordered provincial and district attorneys' offices across the country to monitor illegal levies charged by schools and universities for new student admissions.
"Every levy without a legal basis is illegal, and illegal levies constitute fraud," Marwan was quoted by Antara. "Corruption within public services has till now been ignored, but starting this year it will become our priority. This includes fraud taking place at schools."
Jakarta Post - July 12, 2008
Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – About 3.5 million babies will be born in Indonesia every year if the current birthrate continues. But if the family planning program breaks down, the birthrate will at least double – putting Indonesia on the verge of a baby boom.
The population has now reached 225 million, according to the National Family Planning Coordinating Board (BKKBN).
BKKBN head Sugiri Syarief said Friday the country's birthrate had remained stable over the past five years, with the average number of children born to each Indonesian woman holding steady at 2.6 from 2002 and 2007 – a remarkable decline from 5.6 children per woman in the early 1970s, when the birth control program was nonexistent.
According to the World Bank's World Population Day report, globally birthrates have fallen the fastest in Asia. In East Asia fertility rates are at or below 2.1 children per woman, in Central Asia they are between 2.5 and 2.6, while in the Middle East and South Asia they are between 3.3 and 3.4.
Sugiri said the growth rate of Indonesia's population had slowed from 2.3 percent in 1970 to 1.4 percent in 2007. The rate is predicted to fall further to 1.3 percent.
He added that, for a country of this size, the birth of an additional 3.5 million babies every year meant Indonesia had a higher birthrate than any other Southeast Asian country.
The total Asian population is growing by 1.2 percent per year, according to the World Bank.
Sugiri said if the family planning program improved, Indonesia could further slow the growth rate so the population would increase by only 15 million to 240 million by 2015.
"We're optimistic the family planning program will improve as long as the government, politicians and stakeholders throw their weight behind the program," Sugiri said at a press conference to commemorate World Population Day, which falls on July 11.
According to a report from the US-based Population Reference Bureau, in 2050 Indonesia will still be the world's fourth most populous nation after India, China and the United States, with its population reaching 308 million. India will emerge as the world's most populous nation with 1.6 billion people, replacing China with 1.4 billion people.
In a bid to improve the family planning program, Sugiri said the BKKBN would launch two programs next year, designed to improve access to contraception for poor people living in slum areas and disadvantaged and remote regions. He said the government would distribute free contraceptives to the poor under the Health Ministry's health insurance scheme for the poor (Jamkesmas).
The United Nations Population Fund has reported that the unmet need for contraceptives in Indonesia has remained stagnant at 9 percent over the past five years.
In developing countries, the World Bank says, 51 million unplanned pregnancies occur every year to women who do not use contraception despite a huge increase in contraception use globally.
Another 25 million pregnancies occur because women's contraception fails or they use it incorrectly.
According to the BKKBN, 61.4 percent, or 28.7 million, of Indonesian couples of childbearing age have taken part in the family planning program, an increase from 500,000 in 1970.
The family planning program in the reform era has never been as large as that run during the New Order regime.
| War on corruption |
Jakarta Post - July 16, 2008
Andreas D. Arditya, Jakarta – House of Representatives lawmaker Yusuf Emir Faishal admitted Tuesday to receiving money related to a forest conversion in Banyuasin, South Sumatra, but claimed to have given the money to his party.
The National Awakening Party (PKB) politician showed journalists two receipts for transfers worth a total of Rp 800 million (US$87,200) to two PKB deputy chairmen, before he faced questioning as a suspect at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) office.
Neither of the receipts specifies the money is related to the forest conversion.
One bank transfer receipt, dated Nov. 14, 2006, shows that Emir sent Rp 300 million to PKB deputy chairman Aris Junaidi. However, according to the payment details, the money was to pay a hospital bill for Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, chief patron of the party.
On July 20, 2007, Emir transferred Rp 500 million to Muamir Mu'in Syam, another PKB deputy chairman, for the construction of a party building.
Aris Junaidi denied the money he had accepted was related to the conversion or that it was a hospital bill payment.
"The party had given him Rp 900 million for a regional election campaign. He had used Rp 50 million for a PKB anniversary celebration and returned Rp 300 million to me, but it remains unclear what happened to the rest of the money," Aris said.
The KPK named Yusuf a suspect last week, accusing him of accepting money in connection with the conversion of 600 hectares of Tanjung Api-api mangrove forest into a seaport. He is the second lawmaker declared a suspect in the case after Sarjan Taher of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party. The KPK has detained Sarjan, who has admitted accepting Rp 260 million in the forest conversion.
Both Yusuf and Sarjan were members of House Commission IV overseeing food, forestry and fisheries when the forest conversion permit was passed by the House in July 2007.
The forest conversion procedure requires the forestry minister to seek approval from House Commission IV before a ministerial decree concerning the conversion can be issued.
Commission IV approved the forest conversion and recommended that the forestry minister issue the permit.
Yusuf claimed that commission leaders and representatives of the House factions who attended a meeting in the same month decided to allow lawmakers to accept money.
"The law on political parties also does not forbid lawmakers from accepting donations, especially if it is related to their constituents," he said.
Later Tuesday, the KPK searched Yusuf's house in Serpong, Tangerang. KPK investigators have collected documents from the house.
Yusuf's bribery case has also implicated Al Amin Nasution, who was a member of the commission at the time of the related events. Amin, a member of the United Development Party, has also been named a suspect in another bribery case in a forest conversion in Bintan regency of Riau Islands.
Yusuf is the sixth active House lawmaker to have been named a suspect for alleged bribery this year.
| War on terror |
Agence France Presse - July 10, 2008
Jakarta – The recent breakup of an alleged Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) militant cell shows terrorism is still a threat in Indonesia despite improved security, the US ambassador reportedly said Wednesday.
The United States lifted a warning against travel to Indonesia in May, citing "objective improvements" in the security situation.
But the arrest of 10 terror suspects with a cache of powerful bombs in South Sumatra between June 28 and July 2 underscored that the danger remains, ambassador Cameron Hume was quoted by Antara news agency as saying on the resort island of Bali.
"We believe the threat of terrorism in Indonesia has in the past few years been reduced and the country is now safe," Hume said. "But the arrest of several terror suspects in Palembang, South Sumatra, recently proves the threat of terrorism still exists in Indonesia."
JI is blamed for multiple attacks in Southeast Asia including the Bali bombings in 2002 and 2005 that killed more than 200 people. The US travel warning was issued in 2000 after a string of bombings in the capital Jakarta which were also attributed to the militant Islamist network.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has urged Australia to lift a similar travel warning but Canberra has resisted, citing what it says are persistent threats to foreigners.
| Elections/political parties |
Jakarta Post - July 16, 2008
Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – Golkar and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) remain the most popular political parties ahead of next year's national elections, while incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's popularity has dropped below that of predecessor Megawati Soekarnoputri, according to a new survey.
The survey by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) found that Golkar remained the most popular party, with 20.3 percent of respondents saying they would vote for it. Support for the PDI-P was at 18.1 percent.
The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) was in third with 11.8 percent. The National Awakening Party (PKB) and the Democratic Party ranked fourth and fifth, with 6.8 percent and 5.2 percent, respectively.
"The popularity of the Democratic Party was only a temporary phenomena, with only 18.7 percent of 251 of its voters in the 2004 elections saying they would vote for it again in the next elections," survey coordinator Nico T. B. Harijanto said Tuesday.
The survey was conducted in May and involved 3,000 respondents in 13 provinces. The survey, with an estimated margin of error at 1.79 percent, claimed to represent 85 percent of the country's population and 76 percent of the House of Representatives' seats.
Nico said Golkar overtook other parties due to its high number of loyal voters and its reputation for experienced and qualified leaders. He added leaders of the PDI-P were considered the most pro-workers.
"Golkar was the most popular party among younger voters aged less than 22 years old, with 19 percent of respondents saying they would vote for it," he said, adding this came as a surprise.
The survey also found support for the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Mandate Party (PAN) had fallen, with many former supporters turning to the PKS.
The survey also showed a decline in Yudhoyono's popularity, with a favorable rating from just 14.7 percent of respondents compared to 23.2 percent for former president Megawati.
"Yudhoyono's popularity has continued to decline due to his failure to improve the country's economy. The public has seen him put more focus on security issues," Nico said, adding that respondents put the strongest emphasis on welfare issues like basic commodity prices and poverty, compared to corruption, education, health and security.
"The popularity of Yogyakarta Sultan Hamengkubowono X soared as an alternative candidate, placing him third with 8.8 percent of support," he said.
The sultan was followed by People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid and former Indonesian Military chief (ret) Gen. Wiranto, with 7.9 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively.
Next was Golkar Party chairman and Vice President Jusuf Kalla and former president Abdurrahman Wahid, with 4.2 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively.
The survey also found that 35 percent of respondents would make up their mind on both presidential candidates and political parties on the day of elections. "Most people tend to have a wait-and-see attitude," Nico said.
He said the survey also found Indonesians were no longer easily manipulated and intimidated, with only 21.4 percent of respondents saying they would vote for parties that offered them money or other compensation.
Agence France Presse - July 12, 2008
Aubrey Belford, Jakarta – Indonesia kicked off a mammoth nine- month legislative election campaign Saturday with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's ruling coalition under pressure over soaring food and fuel prices.
Indonesia's election committee (KPU) opened the campaign with restrictions on public rallies and a warning to the 34 eligible parties to avoid the rowdy street protests and cash payments to voters that are common to elections here.
"To mark the nine-month campaign, we have invited leaders of the political parties to sign a peaceful declaration on Saturday. We hope it will prevent them from engaging in 'black' campaigns," KPU member Abdul Azis was quoted as saying by The Jakarta Post.
The April election will see the parties vie for places in Indonesia's 682-member parliament in a prelude to the presidential poll next year, setting the stage for frenzied deal-making in the world's third-largest democracy.
The reformist Yudhoyono faces a resurgent threat from former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, who was trounced by Yuhdoyono in the country's first direct presidential election in 2004.
Recent polls show support for Megawati's People's Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) surging, while her position as preferred president has moved ahead of Yudhoyono for the first time since his election.
Anger over a government decision to hike fuel prices by 30 percent in May to cope with the ballooning cost of multi-billion dollar subsidies was pushing voters away from key Yudhoyono supporters, said Muhammad Qodari from polling company Indo Barometer. The price rise triggered angry protests across the archipelago nation.
Yudhoyono's largest coalition partner Golkar, the former political vehicle of dictator Suharto, has suffered a string of upset defeats in recent provincial elections because of its support for the price rise. "People will vote for the challenger, in spite of who the challenger is," Qodari said.
Yudhoyono is also suffering from a voter perception that he has failed in fulfilling his central 2004 campaign pledge to tackle widespread corruption, he said. "Law enforcement and fighting corruption have been the trademark of Yudhoyono. If people rate this as bad what else can people support Yudhoyono for?"
The long election campaign will also be a test of support of the Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), whose rise has triggered fears by secularists of a creeping Islamisation in the world's largest Muslim-majority country.
The PKS, which has its ideological roots in the hardline Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, says it is uninterested in imposing sharia law and has positioned itself as a clean alternative to Indonesia's graft-riddled parties.
Leaders say the party aims to nearly triple its 2004 result to 20 percent in next year's poll, riding a wave of voter disillusionment to a possible crack at the presidency, or at least a vice presidential berth.
The PKS's fortunes could be helped along by a steady drip of sleazy scandals from within the established parties. In the latest such scandal, House of Representatives member Bulyan Royan was arrested this month with almost 75,000 dollars in alleged bribe money for the procurement of patrol ships for the country's transport ministry.
Continuing scandals and the slow pace of reform mean many Indonesians will approach the nine-month campaign with cynicism, The Jakarta Post wrote in an editorial this week.
"There is a growing public perception that many – some even say most – Indonesian politicians use political parties as mere vehicles to enrich themselves and/or achieve their political ambitions," it said.
Jakarta Post - July 12, 2008
Desy Nurhayati and Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – There will be no changes to the list of political parties eligible to run in the 2009 elections, despite a recent verdict by the Constitutional Court, the General Elections Commission (KPU) has said.
The KPU had named 34 parties as eligible for the election before the court issued its verdict, and so the verdict would not have no impact, KPU chairman Abdul Hafiz Anshari said Friday after meeting with the Constitutional Court chief Jimly Asshiddiqie.
On Thursday, the court annulled Article 316(d) in the 2008 election law, which allows parties that hold seats in the House of Representatives to run in next year's polls even if they had failed to meet the electoral threshold in 2004.
The article is not legally binding and the parties' privilege of automatic qualification breaches the constitution, the court said.
"We declared the 34 parties as election contestants on July 9 or nine months before the poll takes place, as stipulated in the election law. At that time, Article 316(d) was still legally binding as the court verdict had yet to take effect," Hafiz said. "We will not change or annul anything in our decision because it is final."
Jimly said the court verdict did not apply retroactively, and so could only take effect after it was issued. "Any laws drafted afterward have to comply with the verdict because it is final and legally binding," he said.
The privilege of automatic qualification went to the Crescent Star Party (PBB), the Reform Star Party (PBR), the Prosperous Peace Party (PDS), the National Concerned Workers' Party, the Justice and United Indonesia Party, the National Democratic United Party, the Marhaenism Indonesian National Party, the Pioneers' Party and the Indonesian Democracy Upholders Party.
The nine are among 16 parties that secured House seats in 2004, but none of them passed the electoral threshold.
A coalition of election watchdogs welcomed the court's ruling, saying it was a good lesson for the country to push lawmakers in the House to make decisions according to the Constitution rather than their political interests.
But the coalition – consisting of, among others, the Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro), Indonesian Parliamentary Center (IPC) and the Network Voter Education for People – was divided as to whether the KPU should conduct verifications of the nine parties.
"There is no need for the KPU to conduct verifications of the nine parties. Let the KPU go ahead with the next step in the elections," Cetro senior researcher Partono said.
Coordinator of the coalition, Julianto, insisted the court ruling bound the KPU to conduct both administrative and factual verifications for the nine parties. He admitted the verifications could be expensive for the state and might cause delays in the general elections.
Hafiz insisted the KPU would not conduct verifications of the nine parties.
Jakarta Post - July 11, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Although most of the 34 parties running in next year's election are divided along the nationalist-Islamic line, voters made it clear in a recent survey their choices will driven by the parties' performance.
Of the 16 established players, eight parties are defined by voters as nationalist-oriented parties, seven as religious – six Islamic parties and one Christian party – and one as a socialist party.
Among the 18 newcomers, three appear to follow socialism, two represent Islamic views and 13 embrace nationalism.
The National Sun Party (PMB) and the Ulema National Awakening Party (PKNU) are associated with Islam. The Indonesian Workers and Employers Party (PPPI), the New Indonesia Party of Struggle (PPIB) and the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) promote socialist ideals.
The PMB was formed by ex-PAN members and plans to try to woo Muhammadiyah followers, whereas the PKNU is banking on support from Nahdlatul Ulama constituents.
Of the nationalist parties, the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) led by former TNI chief Wiranto and the Democratic Reform Party (PDP) led by former minister for state enterprises Laksamana Sukardi are viewed as the strongest.
"The competition for us is very stiff because there are many nationalist parties fighting for support from the same voters," Indonesian National Populist Fortress Party (PNBKI) secretary- general Suhardi Sudiro said.
But observers warn parties are on the wrong track if they rely on ideology to predict voter behavior and to woo voters.
"People vote for a party not because it is an Islamic or nationalist party, but because they believe it cares and can bring in prosperity," Muhammad Qodari, executive director of Indo Barometer, said.
A recent Indo Barometer poll of 1,200 people in 33 provinces, conducted between June 5 and 16, found voters took a pragmatic approach, with 34.2 percent choosing a party they believed was in touch with people and honest.
About 10.8 percent of respondents said they put faith in a party because they believed it to be free from corruption. Only 4 percent of respondents said they would vote for a party because it was Islamic, and 1.6 percent said they could choose a nationalist party, the survey found.
Most respondents did not care about the differences between Islamic and non-Islamic parties.
Political observer Indra J. Pilliang of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said more parties were trying to change their Islamic image as they came to realize the brand of Islam was no longer selling.
"The PAN and the PKB, for instance, have tried hard to free themselves of their Islamic image to woo more voters. We can see the PPP lost a large number of voters when it tried to redefine itself as an Islamic party," he said.
Political scientist Syamsudin Harris of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences said the survey results showed that the PKS, the most promising Islamic party, could attract voters not because of its Islamic brand but for its reputation for being clean and honest.
Reuters - July 10, 2008
Sara Webb and Olivia Rondonuwu, Jakarta – A small, influential Islamist party in Indonesia is alarming moderates who fear this secular but predominantly Muslim country may head for wider use of sharia law and become less tolerant of other religions and cultures.
The sprawling Southeast Asian archipelago, home to the largest Muslim population in the world as well as to substantial Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist minorities, has enshrined religious freedom in its constitution.
But with the rising influence of the PKS party, some moderates fear Indonesia will tilt towards more conservative Islamic and nationalist policies such as Islamic laws requiring women to wear hijabs and permitting polygamy, curbs on minority religions, and perhaps a cooler welcome for foreign investors.
"You can forget about the 1945 Constitution, which guarantees freedom for all kinds of minorities," said former president Abdurrahman Wahid, who remains influential in Indonesia's biggest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama or NU.
"They would try to enact Islamic law," he said, referring to the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), an Islamist party which draws inspiration from Egypt's banned Islamist party the Muslim Brotherhood.
Already, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a reformist ex- general who depends on a coalition including Islamist parties, has bowed to pressure from militant Muslims by ordering restrictions on a controversial Islamic sect last month.
In the decade since former president Suharto's ouster, which ended 32 years of autocratic rule, democracy has flourished.
Indonesia has new political parties, direct elections for the president and local leaders, and greater freedom of speech, including a wide range of moderate and extremist religious views.
Among the new parties was the PKS, which has won a string of recent local polls, rattling established rivals such as Golkar, Suharto's political machine, and PDI-P, headed by former President Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Now the PKS aims to increase its political clout by winning a fifth of the votes in next year's elections so it can take a stab at the presidency, to the alarm of moderates. In Indonesia, parties with a strong showing in the parliamentary election can field a candidate in the presidential ballot.
Tackling corruption
Some moderates see the PKS as a non-violent, Indonesian version of Palestinian Hamas. Both were inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood, and its founder Hassan al-Banna, and owe much of their success to the fact they focus on non-corrupt government and an effective network to win grassroots support.
Promising "clean, caring and professional" government, the PKS has wooed ordinary Indonesians frustrated by widespread graft and the lack of jobs. It has also won respect by responding quickly to disasters, such as the tsunami in Aceh, with offers of medicines, food and money. "The political map of Indonesia, it's changed," said Tifatul Sembiring, PKS chairman.
The PKS won 7.3 percent of the vote in the 2004 general election, earning a handful of cabinet posts. Now the party wants to shake off its Islamist reputation and has adopted a more pluralist approach in order to win 20 percent in 2009. "We want to try to change our image," Sembiring, dressed in a suit and tie, said at his modest office in south Jakarta.
Key to the PKS's success is its efficient network of cadres. At the end of last year it had 722,000 activists, many of whom spread the word during weekly study sessions, or tarbiyah, and go door-to-door to recruit new members. "Tarbiyah is a program of political education," said Sembiring, a computer sciences graduate who studied international politics in Islamabad.
Classes cover the main topics of Islam – God, the prophet, and Islamic regulations – and are compulsory for all cadres, regardless of rank, he said.
"It's like a hierarchy. I give the command... and the person will distribute this. We have no media, like TV, radio, newspaper. But we try to create this system, and it's effective."
Moderates alarmed
Leaders of Indonesia's two biggest Muslim groups, NU and Muhammadiyah, as well as rival political parties, are alarmed by the PKS and its effectiveness as a grassroots organization.
Haedar Nashir, vice chairman of Muhammadiyah, has accused the PKS of infiltrating his organization, and has warned that a PKS takeover would destroy Muhammadiyah and Indonesia because the PKS does not separate politics from religion. Muhammadiyah also issued a decree formally banning the PKS from its ranks.
"Of course we will influence all the people, even Muhammadiyah, even NU. We want to get more support from the people," said Sembiring.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla, chairman of the mainstream Golkar party, said he doubts the PKS will be a threat in the 2009 poll.
"They meet regularly. Not only in the mosque. Mostly outside, working on social problems, education, health. They will have good growth, but in my opinion they cannot reach a large number," said Kalla. "PKS is a very disciplined party. Their ideology is Muslim ideology," while their organization is based on political cells, added Kalla.
Earlier this year, the PKS romped home with the governorship of West Java, the biggest province by population, and of North Sumatra. It came a close second in last year's race for governor of Jakarta, with 42.5 percent of the vote, despite fears it might introduce sharia-style laws and curb the capital's nightlife.
A recent survey showed 6 percent of those polled supported PKS, while 17 percent chose PDI-P and 15 percent picked Golkar. A separate presidential poll showed that PKS founder Hidayat Nurwahid, who is Javanese, would get 5 percent of the vote, while Sukarnoputri would get 30 percent and Yudhoyono 21 percent.
With several months still to go, the PKS "probably have the potential to increase" their share of the vote," said Saiful Mujani, of political polling agency Indonesia Survey Institute.
"Don't forget that PKS voters are young, educated voters who serve as socialisation agents with good skills in mass mobilization. They are skilled, determined, and ideological. That ideological element is hard to find in other parties." (Editing by Megan Goldin)
Jakarta Post - July 10, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has widened its lead over the Golkar Party by more than 11 percent, according a new survey released Wednesday.
The Survey, conducted by pollster Indo Barometer in 33 provinces between June 5 and 16, found 23.8 percent of 1,200 respondents would vote for the PDI-P, with only 12 percent supporting Golkar and 9.6 percent backing the Democratic Party.
The rising Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the National Awakening Party (PKB) were tied in fourth place with 7.4 percent each, with the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the newly established People's Conscience Party (Hanura) following up with 3.5 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.
The United Development Party (PPP), the country's fourth-largest party, which took about 11 percent of the vote in the 2004 elections, was dealt the most serious blow, with only 1.6 percent of respondents supporting the party.
About 29.4 percent of the respondents were undecided over which party they would vote for, the survey said.
The survey indicated a sharp and persistent decline in the popularity of Golkar, which won the 2004 elections with 21.5 percent of the vote. The PDI-P, chaired by former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, won 18.5 percent of the vote.
Golkar, which is led by Vice President Jusuf Kalla, is the country's largest political party.
A similar survey undertaken in May last year showed Golkar was trailing the PDI-P by only 1 percent. Another survey conducted six months later found Golkar's popularity had fallen further – to 18 percent compared with the PDI-P's 25.3 percent.
"The survey shows consistent results about the likely victory of the PDI-P (in the 2009 elections)," Indo Barometer executive director Muhammad Qodari said at the survey launch Wednesday. "Golkar will have to make a massive effort to reverse its position in the next nine months."
He said the PDI-P was leading in opinion polls because it was viewed as in touch and honest. More than two-thirds of respondents said they believed the PDI-P cared about and was in touch with the people, whereas only 20 percent had a similar view of Golkar.
About 28 percent of the respondents perceived the PDI-P as honest and free from corruption – whereas only 5.4 percent said the same of Golkar.
The PKS also could further boost its popularity by building on its image as a clean and honest party, Qodari said.
The Democratic Party's main drawcard seemed to be President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as most people who support Yudhoyono will also vote for his party, he said.
The PKB could continue to grow in popularity because most Nahdlatul Ulama followers in East Java will remain loyal to the party, said Indra J. Pilliang, a researcher from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.
The survey also showed Islamic parties would lose voters to nationalist parties, with only 21.1 percent of the respondents saying they would vote for Islamic parties, compared with 49 percent supporting nationalists.
Indra said the PPP had taken a severe blow in the survey for maintaining its image as an Islamic party. Of the 18 new parties, only Hanura managed to get a good showing in the poll, with its popularity rising from 0.6 percent in May 2007 to 2.3 percent last month.
Jakarta Post - July 10, 2008
Desy Nurhayati, Jakarta – Normally elections are about campaign funds and strategy but, believe it or not, some political parties consider which number they draw for the 2009 polls a clue to their success or failure.
In a nation where mysticism still prevails, party executives believe the numbers, drawn on Wednesday, could prove lucky – or not.
"We expect the number one will trigger positive changes to this party," People's Conscience Party (Hanura) chairman Wiranto said on the party's official website after the draw. "Number one will also encourage us to work harder to win the election."
Wiranto was seen smiling and gesturing excitedly when the number one went to his party in the draw at the General Elections Commission (KPU).
With support from former military generals and seasoned politicians, Hanura is dubbed a strong contender for the 2009 election anyway.
The National Awakening Party (PKB) was given number 13, as if to reflect its grinding internal dispute, which it has still not overcome even as the election draws nearer.
But Helmy Faisal, the PKB deputy secretary-general loyal to the camp led by Muhaimin Iskandar, dismissed any concerns about the bad luck long associated with the number.
"We are grateful to qualify for the election, no matter what number we get. We will prove that 13 is not a jinxed number," he told The Jakarta Post. "So just accept the number 13, otherwise it will be a self-fulfilling prophecy."
Nevertheless, PKB party executives would have preferred number nine to emulate the nine stars that mark its symbol, Helmy admitted. That lucky number went to the National Mandate Party (PAN).
But PAN member Alvin Lie said the number would have no impact on the party's performance in the election. "The most important thing for wooing voters to our party is our achievements in either the legislature or the executive, not the number," he said.
PAN has distanced itself from the government in the past year, despite having three members in the Cabinet of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Alvin referred to the 2004 election, when PAN was listed number 13, but managed to finish fifth in terms of House of Representatives seats won. "We don't believe in such superstitions, so number nine means nothing," he said.
Number nine is reportedly also the favorite of Yudhoyono, whose date of birth is Sept. 9, 1949. Indeed, there has been speculation the President was behind the new election date, which was originally set for April 5. The KPU has denied the rumors, saying the election day was rescheduled to accommodate minority Christian and Chinese-Indonesian communities.
Leaders of the 34 parties that will contest the April 9 election attended the draw, including Golkar Party chairman and Vice President Jusuf Kalla. "Great, great," Kalla said as he walked to a waiting car, commenting on the number 23 that went to Golkar.
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and Yudhoyono's Democratic Party drew number 28 and number 31, respectively.
Tempo Interactive - July 10, 2008
Rohman Taufiq, Surabaya – About a hundred high school (SMA) students from Surabaya, Gresik, and Sidoarjo, demonstrated together at the Negara Grahadi building in Surabaya, today (10/7).
They asked people in East Java to participate in a governor's election on July 23. "Being a member of the white-group is not a solution, yet it is not a mature political attitude," said Melinda, student from SMA Kartika Surabaya, the coordinator.
They suggested that people not be involved with money politics by not receiving anything from governors' candidates.
"People thought it was right keeping the money while not voting for the candidate," she said. "It is wrong. People should not take the money nor vote for the candidate."
In this demonstration, students waved the banner saying 'Use your heart to vote'; 'Being a member of the white-group is not a solution for East Java'; and stickers written, 'Different Choices, But Peace'
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Desy Nurhayati and Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The 18 new parties contesting the 2009 legislative election are unlikely to transform the political face of the country, analysts said Tuesday.
The new parties will be unable to bring about any real change because they represent the interests of old political players, Arbi Sanit of the University of Indonesia said.
"There will be no repeat of the success story enjoyed by the Democratic Party in 2004. No surprise is expected to mark next year's elections," Arbi said.
The General Elections Commission passed the 18 parties to contest the elections, along with 16 other parties that automatically qualified for the polls under election laws.
While several parties will be making their debut in next year's elections, they were founded by long-established political players, including retired military generals and politicians who broke ranks with their old parties following internal disputes.
These include the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) founded by former Indonesian Military chief Gen. (ret) Wiranto, the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), which was set up by the former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command, Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto, and the Democratic Reform Party (PDP) formed by former Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle politicians.
Indra J. Pilliang of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said the new parties would struggle to get their names out and connect with voters.
He said only four to five of the new parties would meet the 2.5 percent electoral threshold that would automatically qualify them for the 2014 legislative election. These four or five parties are, according to Indra, Hanura, PDP, the Ulema National Awakening Party (PKNU), Gerindra and the National Sun Party (PMB).
"Wiranto's popularity at the national level and the party's well-organized machinery as well as financial capability will help Hanura win a significant number of votes," he said.
Hanura's key figures include former Army chief Gen. (ret) Subagio HS, former Navy chief Adm. (ret) Bernard Kent Sondakh and seasoned politicians such as former finance minister Fuad Bawazier.
Political observer J. Kristiadi expressed doubt the election would improve democracy, saying the political process had been compromised when the House reduced the electoral threshold from 3 percent to 2.5 percent following "backroom" dealing.
"The problem is not about the number of new parties, but is more about how these parties emerged. They are the result of political processes dominated by backroom deals," he said.
Earlier on Tuesday, several parties that failed to pass the KPU's verification process demanded to know the reason for their failure.
Among the parties was the Freedom Party, Labor Party, National Democratic Party of Devotion (PDKB) and the Indonesian Christian Party (Parkindo). An official said the KPU would cross-check the data to make sure no mistakes were made in the verification process.
"If we find significant mistakes in the data, it is possible for us to revise our decision," the official said.
Jakarta Post - July 9, 2008
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – With the General Elections Commission having announced 34 parties eligible to run in the 2009 elections, old players and newcomers are gearing up for the nine-month campaign, which will kick off this Saturday.
More experienced parties established teams tasked with winning votes in the legislative elections (Bapilu) long before the parties were announced, with the country's two biggest parties, the Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), preparing hundreds of billions of rupiah for the nationwide campaign.
Golkar said it had consolidated its political machinery right down to the village level and had prepared around 14,000 candidates for the national and regional legislative elections. "Our Bapilu lineup comprises 700 of the most influential members, and we have prepared about Rp 200 billion to finance the national campaign until next April," the party's deputy secretary-general Rully Chairul Azwar told The Jakarta Post.
He expressed optimism that Golkar could achieve its target of winning 30 percent of votes nationally, surpassing its 2004 election achievement of about 22 percent.
Taking a different approach, the PDI-P said it would try to propose fresh candidates with clean track records to woo voters.
Learning from recent regional elections, in which new faces tended to win, the PDI-P Bapilu chief Cahyo Kumolo said at least 40 percent of the party's legislative candidates would be fresh and untainted members.
"We are now concentrating our resources, money and energy at the district, subdistrict and village levels to make sure we have a firm grip on the grass roots before election day. Our party leaders will directly meet as many people as possible," he told the Post. Cahyo said the party was optimistic it could improve on its 2004 election result of 18.5 percent of the vote.
The rising Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), which has set an ambitious target of 20 percent of the vote, up from 7.34 percent in 2004, is already throwing money at voters, several days before the campaign officially kicks off. Last Sunday, the party launched in Jakarta a national program giving away millions of rupiah in the form of working capital to small businesses.
However, long before the parties began their unofficial campaigns, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla were criticized for using state facilities to promote themselves or their own parties – the Democratic Party and Golkar, respectively.
Newly established parties expressed optimism they could pass the minimum threshold of 2.5 percent of the vote in the upcoming elections, required to be eligible to run in the 2014 elections.
The Democratic Reform Party (PDP), founded by former chairman of PDI-P's Jakarta chapter Roy BB Janis, former minister for state enterprises Laksmana Sukardi and oil tycoon Arifin Panigoro, said it had consolidated its members at branches across the nation to get as many votes as possible.
"We will have at least 2 million members across the nation by April next year. So we will have no difficulties in reaching the 2.5 percent threshold," Roy, the party chairman, told the Post.
| Economy & investment |
Jakarta Post - July 16, 2008
Jakarta – Indonesia has low tariffs to encourage trade but fails to provide good bureaucratic procedures and law enforcement, a World Bank report says.
The report, World Trade Indicator 2008, shows that Indonesia has low import tariffs and good trade facilitation, but still scores poorly in providing the necessary supporting conditions for efficient business.
All the factors put Indonesia at 68 of 160 countries in terms of trade outcome.
Indonesia's low average applied tariff is comparable to the tariffs applied by high-income Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries and around half the tariffs of China, South Africa and ASEAN countries. It is about one-third of Brazil's and India's.
Indonesia's import tariffs are even lower in various special trade arrangements with partners such as Japan, Korea, China and ASEAN members.
Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu said lower tariffs were part of efforts to make Indonesia's internal production processes more efficient without taking away protection from strategic sectors like rice production.
She said Indonesia would push for lower tariffs from other countries through negotiation, including during the coming World Trade Organization meeting she was due to attend next week in Geneva.
"At the WTO, we need to get lower tariffs not only from developed countries, but also from India and Brazil," Mari said after the report presentation in Jakarta on Tuesday.
In terms of trade facilitation, Indonesia provides a slightly higher cost of export than import but takes fewer days to export goods overseas. Export takes five days and import six.
"The short export import days manifest our work in improving customs operations in the past two years and toward the National Single Window (NSW) system that simplified customs procedures.
The NSW is also hoped to address some corruption concerns and ease legal transactions to lower costs.
"Traders and businesses continue to face high costs due to corruption, a weak legal system, poor tax and customs administration, rigid labor regulations, complex licensing and approval procedures, skills inadequacies and the mushrooming of local nuisance taxes," the report says.
Indonesia ranks among the bottom 40 of 178 countries studied in regard to the ease of starting and closing businesses and the enforcement of legal contracts.
But, in a reversal of the usual business complaints, the report shows good logistics performance and competitive transportation costs.
A research director of the Institute for Economics and Social Research, Arianto Patunru, said logistical matters including infrastructure and transportation costs were some of the weaknesses in Indonesia's trade and industry. (mri)
Jakarta Post - July 11, 2008
Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Bank lending grew by 9.4 percent until May from the end of last year to Rp 1,096.21 trillion (US$119.7 billion), with half of the lending going to productive sectors as working capital, the central bank reported Thursday.
Compared to a year earlier, lending rose 31.4 percent. Bank lending rose Rp 34.44 trillion in May, a 3.24 percent increase from Rp 1,061.77 trillion in April, with working capital loans rising Rp 17.04 trillion to Rp 573.5 trillion.
According to the central bank, the trade and industrial sector secured 41.38 percent of total lending in May. The business service sector and the agriculture sector absorbed 11.16 percent and 5.4 percent of total lending, or Rp 122.39 trillion and Rp 59.21 trillion, respectively.
Since the start of the year, the industrial sector has enjoyed the most significant growth of Rp 19.39 trillion, from Rp 205.61 trillion in December 2007 to Rp 225 trillion in May.
Bank Indonesia deputy governor Muliaman D. Hadad said earlier bank lending had recorded significant growth so far this year, and banks had been careful in channeling their loans on fear of increasing their non-performing loans (NPLs). In May, net NPLs stood at 1.78 percent, down from 1.83 percent in April, Muliaman said.
Consumer credit, the most prone to NPLs, grew by 12.02 percent this year to Rp 316.53 trillion, accounting for 28.87 percent of total lending.
Investment credit, meanwhile, grew by 10.72 percent from Rp 186.22 trillion in December 2007 to Rp 206.19 trillion in May.
Bank Indonesia said lending to micro, small and medium enterprises reached Rp 553.5 trillion in May, a 29.2 percent increase from a year earlier. Total lending to MSMEs accounted for half of total bank lending, the central bank said.
The central bank's governor, Boediono, has said banks need to support MSMEs as the country's economic backbone.
Bank Indonesia has targeted lending to grow by between 22 and 24 percent this year, which it hopes will help the economy expand by 6.2 percent, in line with the government's target.
Jakarta Post - July 10, 2008
Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The economy has grown by 6.2 percent in the first half of the year on the back of strong consumption and investment, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said Wednesday.
"The growth in the first semester was boosted by private consumption, investment and exports. High import of capital goods indicates investment will increase in the third and fourth quarters," Mulyani told a press conference.
According to the ministry, the economy in the second quarter grew by 6.1 percent with private consumption growing by 5.3 percent, investment by 10.5 percent and exports by 12 percent.
Wednesday's presentation was a prelude to the Central Statistics Agency's (BPS) upcoming announcement of the official figure on economic growth.
Sri Mulyani said robust car and motorcycle sales contributed greatly to the high private consumption, which were supported by rising bank lending.
In the first semester, car and motorcycle sales grew by 40 percent from a year earlier, while bank lending recorded a growth of some 32 percent, far above the central bank's growth estimate of between 22 percent and 24 percent.
Sri Mulyani also said the country recorded above-expectation revenue in the first semester with tax collection growing by 50.3 percent from the previous year.
The ministry's directorate general of taxation, she said, obtained Rp 307.5 trillion (US$33.40 billion), with non-oil-and- gas income tax and value added tax contributing the most. Non-oil-and-gas income tax grew by 39.4 percent from a year earlier, while value added tax grew by 48.9 percent.
"Income tax of the manufacturing industry – food and beverages industry, chemical industry and electronic industry – rose by 37.5 percent," Sri Mulyani said.
"Value added tax of the trade, hotel and restaurant sector rose 24.4 percent, supported by wholesalers and retailers. It proves that the micro sector is moving."
On the spending front, despite the revised 2008 state budget being wrapped up in April, the government still managed to spend 36.7 percent of state expenditure, from the total of Rp 989.5 trillion.
A third of the spending went to subsidies, with a fuel subsidy of Rp 60.5 trillion, an electricity subsidy of Rp 26.4 trillion and non-energy subsidies of Rp 4.8 trillion.
| Opinion & analysis |
Jakarta Post Editorial - July 16, 2008
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was very quick in implementing one of the recommendations of the joint Indonesia-Timor Leste Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF) – expressing regret.
"We have conveyed our very deep regret for what happened in the past, which caused casualties and material damage," President Yudhoyono said in Bali on Tuesday, after receiving the commission's report along with Timor Leste President Jose Ramos- Horta.
But the Indonesian President also was quick in confirming the international community's skepticism that Indonesia would do anything to uphold justice against those responsible for the gross human rights violations around the 1999 independence referendum in East Timor (now Timor Leste).
"We cannot move forward and reach our dreams if we always focus our attention on the past," Yudhoyono insisted. This means that for Indonesia the CTF report is final, and it will not be followed up with any action, as demanded by the United Nations.
Yudhoyono intentionally expressed "regret" and not "apologies". But even an apology is meaningless when it is not followed with concrete measures to correct the mistake and ensure it never happens again.
It is very clear that in the years to come, Indonesia will be haunted by its former colony and become a pariah among civilized nations, because we can not rid ourselves of our narrow-minded nationalism and continuous self-denials over our brutal track record. As proven by our persistent refusal to punish any gross human rights violators, there is no hope that the victims of massacres, rapes and violence in 1999 in East Timor will get justice.
Impressive. That was the first reaction of many people, including human rights activists, after reading the CTF conclusions that gross human rights violations occurred before, during and after the 1999 referendum in the then Indonesian province. The commission – comprising representatives of both countries – also concluded that there was systematic (Indonesian) institutional involvement in those atrocities.
"The commission concluded that the evidence left no doubt that pro-autonomy militias were the primary direct perpetrators of gross human rights violations in East Timor in 1999...," the CTF says in its executive summary of the report.
In the next paragraph it writes, "TNI (Indonesian Military) personnel, police and civilian authorities consistently and systematically cooperated with and supported the militias in a number of significant ways that contributed to the perpetration of the crimes enumerated above."
But then there will be a different reaction: Ridiculous. Especially from those who believe any violations of human rights should not be left unpunished. Their disappointment is not a surprise, because as reflected in its name, the commission does not have the authority to recommend legal prosecutions.
It was understandable that the two leaders described the CTF's findings and its recommendations as impressive. But it would also be understandable if President Horta had described the commission's recommendation as "ridiculous".
On Tuesday, President Horta said, "Justice is not and cannot be only prosecutorial in the sense of sending people to jail. Justice must also be restorative."
President Yudhoyono is misguided if he hopes an expression of regret and the acceptance of the CTF report settles the human rights violations. Indonesia has no choice but to follow up on the CTF findings with strong legal action if the country wants to be regarded as a truly civilized nation.
President Yudhoyono and his Timor Leste counterpart emphasized Tuesday the importance of moving forward for the two countries. But how can we move forward when the two nations have not gone through the truth enforcement and reconciliation process?
The nation needs to remember that thousands of people were killed, raped, tortured and displaced in 1999. It is right when we demand that Timor Leste also punish human rights abusers on their side. But as indicated by the CTF report, as a nation, Indonesia was the party most responsible for the atrocities.
Will we let ourselves be haunted by the 1999 massacres? The country must be ready to face severe consequences from the international community if we continue stubbornly to defend our human rights violators at the cost of Indonesia's future.
The Australian - July 15, 2008
Mark Aarons – When Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Jose Ramos Horta receive the Truth and Friendship Commission's (CTF) report today, the Indonesian President will be hoping that it is the final chapter in this long-running and tragic saga.
Established in 2005 as a joint Indonesian-East Timorese inquiry, the commission has investigated the campaign of violence that marred Timor's 1999 independence vote. Leaked copies of its report confirm the findings of Timor's Reception, Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CAVR) that the campaign of terror, murder and forced deportations was directed, funded and carried out under the command of the Indonesian government and military, a fact widely known at the time.
The report's release coincides with the start of the lengthy campaign that will culminate in next April's Indonesian election. The President's party is behind in the polls and there is speculation that former Indonesian armed forces commander Wiranto could emerge as a serious contender for president. This would be ironic, as the 1999 campaign of destruction was carried out on Wiranto's orders, which he denied under Koranic oath when he voluntarily appeared before the CTF in May 2007.
Wiranto's denial is symptomatic of the attitude adopted by the Javanese military elite, which still dominates Indonesian life.
Behind the 1999 events stands a series of crimes carried out by the armed forces that have run the country since 1965. The CAVR report detailed the horrors inflicted on Timor between 1975 and 1999, in which almost 200,000 people were killed or starved to death and the survivors rounded up and forcibly resettled in what were, in effect, concentration camps, where many were tortured.
In 1969, the army rigged the Act of Free Choice to ensure West Papua was incorporated into Indonesia.
In the preceding seven years the indigenous population was subjected to a regime of terror and murder to prepare for the vote, which was recognised by the international community despite widespread knowledge of the methods that had been used to secure the rorted result. The massacre of 500,000 to one million alleged communists in 1965-66 set the tone for military rule, followed by the establishment of a brutal police state replete with gulags full of political prisoners.
Reminiscent of Turkey's continuing denial of responsibility for the Armenian genocide during and after World War I, Indonesia refuses to confront this decades-long history of criminal behaviour by its army leaders. Indeed, the families of those slaughtered in the mid-1960s still cannot disinter their bodies for dignified reburial. Such denial infects Indonesian society and, while it persists, gravely restricts the country's ability to develop its institutions in a democratic and tolerant way.
It also infects Australian attitudes to Indonesia and skews our policies towards our most important neighbour. Successive Australian governments embraced the New Order ushered in by general (later president) Suharto's massacres as a welcome development. There are also indications of Australian assistance in these bloody events.
This condoning of mass murder was recently brought into sharp relief by former prime minister Paul Keating, who launched a blistering attack on his robust critic, Paddy McGuinness, at the time of his death, but travelled to Jakarta to praise the mass murderer Suharto at his funeral.
Keating's warmth for Suharto echoes another prime minister, Harold Holt, who in 1966 cheerfully welcomed the ostensible reorientation of Indonesian politics that had been brought about by "knocking off" up to one million people.
In between, there has been an unedifying array of prime ministers who have explicitly or inferentially condoned the criminal policies of the Indonesian military. John Gorton and William McMahon continued Holt's approach, while Gough Whitlam initiated "batik diplomacy", welcoming Suharto to Australia and encouraging Timor's incorporation into Indonesia.
Malcolm Fraser remained silent about the deaths of 180,000 Timorese between 1975 and 1982, although Australian intelligence knew the terrible details. Bob Hawke changed ALP policy to reaffirm Australia's formal recognition of Indonesian sovereignty over Timor, then approved the notorious Timor Gap Treaty. Keating made a secret deal with Suharto that included upgrading military ties. In 1998, John Howard initiated the process leading to East Timor's independence vote, but failed to act against Indonesian- controlled violence until forced to do so by the worst atrocities that followed the August 1999 vote.
During the past 40 years, such policies have been supported by influential Australians. James McAuley and Heinz Arndt greeted the Suharto regime with enthusiasm in journals such as Quadrant and Australian Outlook; reporting for the Australian Financial Review, McGuinness took an Indonesian helicopter trip around Timor at the height of the military-induced famine and declared it did not exist; Paul Kelly has written in support of international recognition of Jakarta's control of West Papua in this newspaper; in his weekly newspaper column, Gerard Henderson has minimised the role of the Indonesian military in organising, financing and directing the 1999 crimes in Timor, despite evidence to the contrary.
Just as Indonesia cannot move forward without coming to terms with the dark side of its recent history, so too Australia cannot build a secure and lasting relationship with its most important neighbour without being honest about our quiescence towards – and sometimes active support for – the crimes of the Indonesian military.
Just as sections of the Left need to re-evaluate their support for murderous communist regimes, it is time to reconsider the equally immoral support given to Suharto and his cohort. The CTF report is a good starting point. Continuing criminal behaviour in West Papua makes this even more relevant.
There were alternatives to Australia's obsequious policies in the past. By taking a stronger stand on human rights abuses in West Papua and revisiting the rorted 1969 plebiscite, we would avoid once again dragging our national honour through the mud.
[Mark Aarons is the co-author of East Timor: A Western Made Tragedy.]
Jakarta Post - July 14, 2008
Hanan Nugroho, Jakarta – While domestic demand for oil is escalating uncontrollably (12 percent for gasoline and 15 percent for diesel fuel in 2007) and domestic oil production has been on a continuous slide for the last 13 years, it is sad to find that oil prices are skyrocketing and our energy infrastructure is deteriorating. What will happen next?
Oil refinery capacity in Indonesia has not expanded since Balongan EXOR (West Java) started operating in the mid 1990s. The total capacity is stuck at 1.055 million bpd, even decreasing since Pangkalan Brandan was shut down recently.
Except EXOR, all the refineries are old, most of them having started operation before the 1980s (Sei Pakning in 1957, Plaju in 1930 by Shell). Four out of nine refineries (about one-third of national capacity) are located in Sumatra, far from the middle and eastern islanders who also need oil.
Geographical constraints, old technology and capacity does not fit the changing domestic demand, resulting in the increasing cost of importing fuels.
Infrastructure for distributing oil across the archipelago is also decaying. There has been no significant development except in gasoline stations, which currently number about 3,000.
A middle-high pressure pipeline for oil products is still very limited and has not been expanded for the last three decades. The country's 170 oil storage sites are not sufficient, but the progress to build new sites has been very slow.
Nevertheless, infrastructure for distributing oil in western parts of Java is sufficient; oil fuel in this region is transported efficiently through a transmission pipeline from Cilacap refinery (Central Java) to demand centers close to Bandung/Jakarta.
But for the rest of the country, even in other parts of Java – the island consuming three-fourths of the country's fuel – the oil distribution system is far from efficient. There is no refinery or oil distribution pipeline operating in East Java. A distribution system relying on trucks, train, ships, barges and small aircraft in the country's remote areas results in very expensive transportation costs.
Indonesia's energy consumption will continue to grow in line with the growth of the country's economy, urban population and changes in lifestyle that consume more energy. This trend of energy consumption will continue to take place despite rising oil prices.
Energy demand does not have to be fulfilled by oil alone, as it can be replaced by other fuels such as natural gas for electricity generation, industry, households and transportation. Coal may substitute for oil, particularly in electricity generation and the industrial sector, while coal briquette can replace kerosene for cooking. Natural gas is cheaper, cleaner and more efficient than oil and Indonesia has larger reserves of natural gas than of oil.
Unfortunately, our capacity to switch from oil to natural gas is very small, constrained largely by the availability of infrastructure.
Only the South Sumatra-West Java natural gas transmission pipeline is ready to operate, brining natural gas from Jambi (southern Sumatra) to Banten's industrial estates and further to power plants near Jakarta.
Large parts of our gas are still exported by pipeline to Singapore and Malaysia, and to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan as LNG. Combined cycle power plants in Java, constructed under a crash program during the 1990s, are still facing difficulties in getting natural gas delivered to them, forcing the plants to burn expensive oil.
The development of city gas distribution systems faltered in the 1990s, leaving only about 75,000 households receiving gas deliveries. Below 1 percent of all households in Indonesia rely on natural gas, far lower than in the United States, major European countries or even Japan and Korea, whose gas consumption depends on LNG imports from Indonesia.
Recently, there was an attempt to move people over from using kerosene to LPG. LPG may substitute for kerosene for cooking, but the benefits of this switch will not go far since our LPG production capacity (coming from oil, small LPG and LNG refineries) is limited and the price of LPG is expensive (compared to that of natural gas). LPG technology is not intended to provide energy for a large number of households; piped city gas normally does this job.
Coal provision faces similar obstacles. Compared to for export – Indonesia became the world's largest exporter of coal three years ago – the infrastructure needed to deliver coal to the domestic market is very limited.
This could derail prospects for the government's ambition plan to build coal-fired plants with a combined capacity of 10,000 MW.
Following the New Order regime, the implementation of a 2001 law on oil and gas and other laws on regional autonomy and business competition, as well as the annulment of the 2002 law on the electricity industry by the Constitutional Court, have done nothing to improve energy security. The implementation the 2001 law on oil and gas has not resulted in the development of any new downstream infrastructure.
The master plan for the national gas transmission and distribution network was officially released by the government in 2005, but so far there has been no new transmission pipelines or distribution areas built in accordance with the master plan.
A national master plan for oil downstream infrastructure (refineries, storage sites, transmission and distribution) has not been released.
It is not clear now who should be responsible for the development of the country's energy infrastructure. The government, which for too long relied on state companies (Pertamina, PGN, PLN) for the provision of energy infrastructure, seems ill prepared to perform the task as an effective regulator.
State-owned oil and gas company Pertamina does not prioritize development of downstream oil and gas infrastructure; rather, it prefers to run its business by receiving government subsidies for the procurement of fuels.
There are good concepts on infrastructure development in the 2001 law on oil and gas, such as an "interconnected network, third- party access, efficient toll fees, preventing small customers and households, etc." But those will not work as the country's infrastructure is still poor and plans to increase the capacity have always been delayed.
The deteriorating energy infrastructure might jeopardize Indonesia's energy security and economy. The state budget might collapse in the next three to five years if the current trend of providing energy subsidies continues and if the construction of new energy infrastructure is not seriously carried out.
[The writer is a lecturer in energy and natural gas economics for the Graduate Program in Natural Gas Technology and Management, University of Indonesia. He can be reached at hanan_nugroho@yahoo.com.]
Power rationing until 2009
Jakarta Post Editorial - July 11, 2008
The electricity sector today faces at least one certainty. Acute power shortages that require power rationing through rotating electricity blackouts or changes in industrial operating shifts will continue until late 2009.
Businesses are now calculating the losses they will suffer during the rotating blackouts. But most industrial companies seemed resigned to the tragic fact that the Indonesian government is virtually powerless to cope with the power supply crisis until some of the new power plants currently under construction, with combined capacity of 10,000 megawatts (MW), come on line in early 2010.
Hence, instead of asking for an assured power supply, let alone for additional electricity, they simply beg the state electricity monopoly PLN to give them a guaranteed schedule for the impending power blackouts.
Businesses have suffered big losses due to the increased frequency of sudden, unannounced power blackouts over the past two months. Unexpected power outages cause losses not only due to the stoppage of operations or production but also the severe damages inflicted on production processes and equipment. For example, in many industrial plants, the raw materials might be wasted if the production process abruptly stops due to power outages.
The Jakarta Japan Club complained early this week that 42 of its members had suffered total losses of Rp 42 billion (US$4.5 million) in May and June alone due to production interruptions caused by power blackouts. The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) and the Japan Club therefore asked PLN to provide a definite schedule for the planned blackout periods.
Such advance notifications as those PLN has issued in Jakarta and its surrounding towns for rolling power blackouts during the next two weeks will enable industrial firms to at least adjust their operations schedules to minimize losses.
Industries have asked that advance notification be clearly stipulated in the joint ministerial decree on power rationing which will take effect in October.
The power supply crisis is the culmination of ignorance, misguided energy policy and extreme lack of political leadership in pushing forward the development of badly needed basic infrastructure.
Analysts and industrialists had warned as early as 2002 of a looming power supply disruption in Java and Bali in view of the anticipated steep increase in demand when the economy began a robust recovery, while the prospects of new investment in power generation seemed quite bleak, due to financing and regulatory problems.
Legal foundations for private participation in the electricity sector were severely weakened in 2004 when the Constitutional Court annulled the new electricity law.
So until some of the power plants currently under construction start operations, forget all the big talk about bold reform measures to improve the investment climate. Without a reliable, adequate supply of power, not a single investor will come to this country.
Forget all the optimistic projections of more than 6.5 percent economic growth this year and next year. Lack of power or frequent blackouts could kill all the bullish sentiment.
The power supply crisis should therefore serve as a strong warning to the government that the current crash program to add 10,000 MW to the PLN grid only offers a medium-term solution.
This power crisis will continue to loom over the country as long as the government fails to improve the electricity rate structure. The current universal rate structure imposed on PLN cannot provide it with adequate revenues for achieving long-term financial sustainability.
Just look at how the government was forced to put up financial guarantees for investors and contractors, without which they would have been unwilling to take part in the implementation of the crash program.
The universal rate structure the government imposed on PLN, irrespective of the varying costs associated with providing electricity in different regions, places the company in a financial quandary as it cannot cover its supply costs.
The distorted rate structure also sends the wrong signal to private investors and creditors whose participation is badly needed in power supply. Still more damaging, other provinces outside Java are at a great disadvantage for attracting new investment in power generation because the costs of electricity supply in the outer islands are much higher than in Java.