Human rights, religious and youth organisations were also present at the campaign. The event is in collaboration with the World Social Justice Day, which is commemorated on February 20 annually.

Ecumenical Centre for Research, Education and Advocacy (ECREA) director Sirino Rakabi said they wanted to share with the people of Fiji an important message to support the fight against what he called the sufferings faced by the people of West Papua.

"It is also a time to reflect on ourselves and that the churches, human rights groups, civil societies need to be the voice of the West Papuan people in their fight for freedom," Mr Rakabi said.

He said this was a social justice mission for all of them. "I believe social justice is the care for all people, for our environment so that everybody enjoys the luxury of society that God offers us," Mr Rakabi said.

Human rights activist and co-ordinator of the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre (FWCC), Shamima Ali, said as good human beings, men and women, we all must support the cause of justice.

"We must uphold democracy, the rule of law and equality, human rights and everything else that makes us human beings," Ms Ali said.

She said freedom was fought and struggled for and we must continue the struggle whether we are here or anywhere else in the world.

The president of the Fiji Council of Churches, Manumalo Tuinanumea, said our West Papuan brothers and sisters have long been oppressed and were calling on us to stand in solidarity with them.

"For this reason that I stand here to be the voice of the member churches of FCC and other churches that support the cause and to publicly declare our solidarity with our West Papuan brothers and sisters," Mr Tuinanumea said.

He said it was their hopes and prayers that the morning star would rise; that the freedom for West Papua be achieved peacefully.

Meanwhile, president of the Methodist Church in Fiji, Reverend Tevita Banivanua, said for too long, we have failed to speak out against what he called the brutal oppression of the West Papuan people.

"As we mark World Social Justice Day, each one of us is called to commit to practicing the golden rule – the source of morality; the act of empathy, of putting yourself in the place of another – to be in solidarity with those oppressed and less fortunate brothers and sisters of ours,"

"In particular we are called to speak for those whose voices are ignored or silenced," Reverend Banivanua said. "We are called to speak the truth in love".

Source: http://fijisun.com.fj/2015/02/21/suva-rally-over-papua/

Jokowi's Papuan promises ring hollow to those on the ground

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2015

Jakarta – Papuans and human rights advocates are concerned that President Joko Widodo's visits and campaign promises to the province are merely ceremonial rather than indicative of real change for Papua.

Joko's inaction so far toward fulfilling his campaign promises to Papua has raised doubts among Papuans and activists over whether Papuan issues will be addressed or redressed at all under his leadership.

His populist ideals were originally heralded as a new hope for Papuans, who for nearly 50 years have lived under Indonesian governance and are often exposed to arbitrarily administered rule of law by armed forces and government officials.

The government frequently arrests and jails Papuan protesters for peacefully advocating independence or other political change, with currently more than 60 Papuan activists in prison on charges of "treason," says Human Rights Watch.

Benny Wenda, the exiled leader of the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP), told the Jakarta Globe that West Papuans "do not trust Jokowi, nor his false promises."

"We have seen many presidents come and go, all promising much for our people but only delivering more killings, oppression and Indonesian migrants. Under Jokowi, we have seen the massacre of West Papuan children and further burning of villages," Benny said, referring to the president by his nickname.

Joko's lack of movement signals an administration that is continuing the legacy of former governments, following in their failure to address Papua's multitude of grievances including brutality and impunity of the armed forces, freedom of expression restrictions, and the diminishing of land, civil and human rights.

Numerous promises were made to the Papuans during the lead-up to, and immediately after, Joko's inauguration.

Some of his pre-election proposals included opening the province to foreign media and providing health care and education funding cards to residents to address lagging development.

The latter has been implemented but there is little evidence to suggest policy measures or directives are being implemented to fulfill media access and transparency, said Andreas Harsono, HRW's Indonesia researcher.

Joko needs to end the isolation through releasing the stranglehold on foreign media access to Papua, he added.

It is difficult to see how the government could be monitored in Papua without transparency, openness to foreign media and the formation of a safe working environment for local journalists, Andreas said.

He added that the government should immediately release Papuans such as Areki Wanimbo, who is currently in custody for assisting two French foreign journalists at his home.

Two French journalists, Valentine Bourrat and Thomas Dandois, were sentenced to two-and-a-half months' imprisonment for using a tourist visa rather than a journalist visa to go to Papua.

Wanimbo, alongside two local journalists, was initially charged with attempting to procure ammunition from the journalists. However, the police found no evidence, Andreas said.

He added: "Wanimbo is now facing trial for treason in Wamena with the only evidence being a letter that Wanimbo co-signed, asking for donations to help Papuan delegates to attend a conference in Vanuatu."

Latifah Anum Siregar, Wanimbo's lawyer and the head of the Alliance for Democracy in Papua, cited the Paniai shooting, in which security forces shot dead five unarmed protesters and injured 17, including school-aged children, as another example of Joko's inaction.

"During Christmas celebrations in Jayapura [on Dec. 27], Joko said the Paniai shootings should be immediately solved, but to date there has [been] no further investigation into the case... as if the case has disappeared," she said.

Latifah questioned what the outcome would be for previous cases of injustice, when current cases were responded to in this manner.

"Especially knowing that Jokowi is supported by military leaders such as [Defense Minister] Ryamizard Ryacudu or [former intelligence chief] Hendropriyono, who were involved in wrongdoings in Papua in the past," she said. Ryamizard has also been linked to past human rights abuses in East Timor.

The people of Papua are counting on Joko to do the right thing, Latifah said. "After winning the presidential election, Joko has been visited by and visited the representatives of Papuan communities," she said.

"At the beginning of his rule, there was an idea of transmigration, of forming a new regional military command, of constructing a headquarters for the police's Mobile Brigade in Papua, and of starting dialogues with Free Papua Organization [OPM] leaders."

But the military policy was slammed by Papua, with the seemingly Java- centric proposals surrounding transmigration and subdivision of the provinces also met with alarm.

Transmigration is not new to Papua. Indonesian migrants are shuffled from heavily populated islands such as Java and Sumatra into Papua to fill primarily trade-related roles. But it has proved economically, culturally and politically destabilizing for indigenous Papuan people.

Latifah has raised concern about the motives of Joko's administration over his campaign comments that he only wanted to show support for Papuans.

"What is the most interesting thing in Papua for the government? It's Papua's natural resources, its marine biodiversity, its abundance of wood- producing trees, its mines, Freeport," she said.

But Latifah added that Joko had stated in past campaign speeches that problems in Papua were not restricted to education, health, economy and infrastructure, but that the government never truly listened to the people of Papua.

"Developing Papua should start with changing the government's point of view," she said.

But while some are keen to see change elicited incrementally into Papua, Benny and many pro-independence advocates will not be satisfied until full independence is achieved.

"The reason that we West Papuans are still suffering now is because our country was illegally taken by Indonesia in 1969 without the agreement of the West Papuan people," Benny said. "We are still demanding our UN- guaranteed referendum on independence for all Papuans, to fulfill our self-determination.

"Therefore, the only way Jokowi can actually help West Papuans is by giving us this referendum and in doing so, help to fulfill our right to self- determination. West Papua cannot be free within Indonesia."

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/jokowis-papuan-promises-ring-hollow-ground/

Micah: O'Neill serious on Papua

Post Courier - February 16, 2015

Port Moresby, PNG – Papua New Guinea Enterprises and State Investment Minister Ben Micah has rejected suggestions that the Prime Minister's announcement of a policy shift on West Papua was a knee-jerk announcement.

Prime Minister Peter O'Neill announced on 05 February, at a Leadership Summit, that it was time for Papua New Guinea to speak out on the oppression of "our brothers and sisters" in West Papua.

Since this announcement, the mainstream and social media had been awash with support for this major shift in attitude to Melanesians living under Indonesian rule.

There had however been certain critics who say this announcement was not well thought out and lacked a definite policy platform.

Micah is a long time avid supporter of a greater Melanesia, and the cause of the West Papua people. During Grievance Debate in Parliament on Friday, he seized the opportunity to hammer the critics.

"The Prime Minister did not speak about West Papua just to colour his speech. This is an issue he feels strongly about," Micah said.

He said the Prime Minister in fact discussed this issue when he met president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during an official visit to Indonesia in 2013.

"I was with the Prime Minister when he raised the issue with President Susilo. In that meeting we agreed that there would be no peace or harmony if the West Papua issue was not given the attention it deserved. "We will engage with the Indonesian Government to pursue this," he said.

Leaders who have been vocal about the plight of the West Papuan people included NCD Governor Powes Parkop, and Northern (Oro) Governor Gary Juffa.

Source: http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/papua-new-guinea/6565/micah-oneill-serious-on-papua/

Government lifts demand on Freeport to build Papua smelter: Report

Reuters - February 16, 2015

Jakarta – The government has dropped its demand that Freeport-McMoran Inc build a $1.5 billion copper smelter in Papua province, saying a regionally owned enterprise would take on the project instead, news website Detik.com reported, quoting the mining minister.

The ministry in December said Arizona-based Freeport, which runs the world's fifth-largest copper mine in Indonesia, should agree to build the Papua smelter in five years if it wanted a mining contract extension beyond 2021.

The latest decision could ease pressure on Freeport, which has already agreed to a $2.3-billion expansion by 2017 of its copper smelting facility in East Java, currently the only one in the country.

The government has been pushing the company to comply with rules that force miners to process and refine minerals domestically.

"If Freeport is burdened in two locations it would be uneconomical," Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said said on Sunday, according to the Detik report.

A regionally owned enterprise would build the Papua smelter and could team up with other investors on the project, the ministry said in a document obtained by Reuters.

An investor from China has already approached the Papua administration, Detik's report cited Sudirman as saying, without providing details. "A smelter on its own is not economical so we are building an [industrial] zone to make it more attractive," the minister said.

A ministry spokesman was not immediately available to confirm the comments.

The 650-hectare industrial zone in Papua's Mimika area is not far from Freeport's concentrate pipeline and already has a port and electrical infrastructure, according to the document.

The zone will also include a cement packaging plant, a liquefied petroleum gas filling plant, a fertilizer plant and a petrochemicals plant. "This is a win-win solution," Sudirman said, adding that Freeport would be contractually required to supply copper concentrate to the Papua smelter.

"Whoever is tasked to build the smelter in Papua, Freeport Indonesia will form a business-to-business contract with them to supply concentrate," Freeport Indonesia CEO Maroef Sjamsuddin said in the document.

Freeport is expected to produce 2 million tonnes of copper concentrate from its Indonesian operations in 2015, up from 1.4 million tonnes in 2014.

Indonesia aims to develop 4.5 million tonnes of copper concentrate processing capacity nationally, Said said, up from 1.2 million tonnes at present.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/business/govt-lifts-demand-freeport-build-papua-smelter-report/

Pacific churches press Jokowi over Papua

Radio New Zealand International - February 16, 2015

Pacific churches have urged Indonesia's President, Joko Widodo, to honour an election promise to address human rights abuses in West Papua.

The moderator of the Pacific Conference of Churches, Reverend Dr Tevita Havea, says despite Mr Widodo's assurances last year, security forces have continued to torture and kill West Papuans.

The Reverend Havea says there is no place in the Pacific for wanton violence and the region's leaders must act decisively to stop police and military officers from taking power into their own hands.

He also called for the lifting of a ban on foreign journalists from entering West Papua.

Source: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/266214/pacific-churches-press-jokowi-over-papua

Police shoot two more civilians in Kontiunai, Yapen, killing one

West Papua Media - February 16, 2015

More information has emerged that Indonesian police have shot two more West Papuan civilians in the Yapen Island village of Kontiunai, killing one, after the unprovoked killing of another civilian the day before by a Police patrol.

According to credible local human rights investigators interviewed by West Papua Media, Indonesian Brimob police shot Soni Fairumbab (25 years), and Yosias Sineri (35 years) in an unprovoked follow up action close to the February 11 shooting of Faris Rumanggito, which was at the 5km mark of the main Trans Yapen road.

A silver Toyota Avanza police van with eight fully armed police officers was seen at 8pm on February 11 by witnesses driving towards Serui city, having passed Angkaisera Police station, through the village of Kontiunai and on towards the north coast of Yapen.

However at the 4 kilometre post of the Trans Yapen (Serui to Saubeba) Road, the Avanza parked and the eight police inside it set up an impromptu roadblock, using a 2 metre piece of timber.

The two victims, Soni Fairumbab and Yosias Sineri, arrived at the roadblock on motorbikes as they were returning from buying food at the local store. They were employees of a businessman named Sala, who is handling the North Shore drainage project along the North Shore.

According to statements from Sineri, the surviving victim, the "actors" (Police perpetrators) shone their police torches and floodlight into the victim's faces at the road block, to disorient them and preventing their further movement, and proceeded to beat Fairumbab in the face with the torch, injuring him severely. Sineri panicked and broke away from the police officers, and started to run, where without warning several officers opened fire simultaneously from their automatic rifles, hitting both Fairumabab and Sineri in each's right leg.

Fairumbab's right calf wound, combined with his head and face injuries were mortal and he was quickly dead at the scene, whereas Sineri was struck by a minor bullet wound to his right foot, and fearing for his life, jumped into the surrounding jungle darkness.

From his hiding place and backed up by other independent witnesses, Sineri witnessed the eight officers get back in the car and leave at very high speed back towards Serui city. Local villagers separately to a WPM source reported that at precisely 10pm two trucks (almost 50 paramilitary police) of heavily armed POLRES Yapen Dalmas (Brimob "public order" commandos) descended on Kontiunai village to commence a patrol and occupation. According to local sources, civilians in the village asked each other "What else is going to happen later?," as at the time they did not know if there was a shooting that occurred nearby.

At 8am the next morning (February 12) the severely injured Yosias Sineri, who had been hiding through the night, made his way to Kontiunai to tell the news that he and Fairumbab had been obstructed then shot by the police in the silver Avanza, and villagers knew then that a shooting had occurred.

At the crime scene Soni Fairumbab was found lifeless, together with 11 used bullet casings from used in the shooting, and also one ejected unused bullet. Yapen police were contacted by WPM for comment, but hung up when asked.

Source: http://westpapuamedia.info/2015/02/16/police-shoot-two-more-civilians-in-kontinu-at-not-ai-yapen-killing-one/

Sexual & domestic violence

Women, men rise to end violence

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2015

Dewanti A. Wardhani, Jakarta – Valentine's Day is traditionally known as a day couples spend together celebrating their love. But for hundreds of volunteers and visitors at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Central Jakarta on Saturday, Feb. 14 was day to put an end to violence against women.

Not only women, but also dozens of men took part in the One Billion Rising movement, dancing in a sea of red for the cause.

In Jakarta, the event was first held in 2013 in the National Monument (Monas) Park in Central Jakarta. It has been an annual event since then. Event coordinator Efi Sri Handayani said the event aimed to increase awareness of violence against women, which is still rampant in Indonesia.

"There are still many acts of violence against women in Indonesia, a lot of which go unreported. Indonesia is a patriarchal society and the law often does not favor women," Efi told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the event.

She cited last year's Transjakarta sexual assault case where four employees sexually harassed an unconscious woman. The four men were sentenced to mere months in prison while the victim must endure a lifetime of trauma.

"We still have a long way to go to put a stop to violence against woman in Indonesia. However, I know that we can put a stop to it, even slowly," Efi said.

She said the event in Indonesia this year was not only held in Jakarta but also in Makassar, Surabaya, Poso, Malang, Semarang, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Medan. The campaign is also marked on Feb. 14 in hundreds of other cities around the globe.

Aside from the flash mob, events included flying lanterns and performances from Chikita Fauzi, Titi Jalanan, Yacko and DJ Bolski, DJ Dylan and DJ Indra 7, as well as poetry reading.

"We also have a corner where visitors can voice their concerns about violence against woman by writing a note that everyone can read," Efi said.

Volunteer Alfa Gumilang said he was concerned about increasing cases of violence against women and had signed up as a volunteer to understand more about the movement. "I have learned a lot from One Billion Rising. I think the most important thing is how I will apply what I've learned to bring an end to violence against women," he said.

Alfa went on to say that violence against women in Jakarta, whether physical or psychological, was common. Yet, he said, most violence was seen as justified or went unreported.

Moreover, he said, the government had so far not done enough about the issue and said he hoped the country's leaders could learn from the movement. "Because in the end, the government is responsible for what happens to its people."

One visitor, Aquino Hayunta, said the event was a fun way to increase awareness among both men and women. "Each year, we see an increase in violence against women. This means that women are becoming more aware, while men aren't getting any smarter," said Aquino, who is also a member of the Aliansi Laki-Laki Baru (New Men's Alliance), a community that strives for women's rights on the assumption that the patriarchal mentality that supports men's dominance also harms men.

He went on that Indonesia's patriarchal mentality forced men to act powerful and tough against women, a common cause of violence against women. "It's actually really tiring and really unnecessary to act more powerful and tougher than women."

Aquino said he hoped more men would learn from the movement and help bring an end to violence against women.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/15/women-men-rise-end-violence.html

Labour & migrant workers

'Domestic workers' conditions at home no less worrying'

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Indra Budiari, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo vowed to stop sending Indonesians to work as housemaids abroad, because the poor treatment they received was humiliating for the nation. The President, however, apparently did not realize that the situation at home is no better.

Speaking at a congress of the Hanura Party in Surakarta, Central Java, over the weekend, the President said he felt humiliated during a recent visit to Malaysia when he raised the issue of Indonesian migrant workers, including housemaids, with his host Prime Minister Najib Razak.

"This is about our [nation's] dignity. In my bilateral meeting with Malaysia, I did feel very ashamed," said Jokowi, as quoted by Antara news agency.

National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) member Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, however, reminded the President that the situation was no better at home, citing the absence of legal protection for domestic workers.

The House of Representatives has not been able to pass a bill on domestic workers' protection although it was presented to the House 11 years ago, she said.

"How come we expect other countries to protect [housemaids] when even in their own country they are unprotected?" the former House member said in a discussion at the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH) on Sunday.

Housemaids are also prone to mistreatment. Based on data released by the National Network for Domestic Workers Advocacy (Jala PRT), there were 332 cases of mistreatment and violence against domestic workers in 2013, slightly increased from 322 cases in 2012.

Domestic worker Santi also spoke in the discussion, which was held to commemorate National Domestic Workers Day. The 35-year-old said the government did little to protect workers like her. There is almost no legal protection, including in relation to the minimum wage and other workers' rights, for those in her profession.

"It is sad that our profession is not categorized as 'worker' and has no legal basis," Santi noted.

Santi, who works for a Japanese family, said that she received Rp 1.8 million (US$141) per month for working from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, and added that she also had to work on national holidays.

"When I asked my boss why I don't get a day off during national holidays, he argued that there were no clear regulations about my profession that prohibit me from working during holidays," she said.

Another housemaid, Ana, said that she earned Rp 1.2 million per month for working from Monday to Saturday for a family in Kemang, South Jakarta, and added that the money was not enough to cover her and her 5-year-old daughter's daily needs.

"My boss also reduces my salary if I do not show up for work, even when I told him that my daughter was very sick," she said. She said that the salary included her meals and transportation allowance, adding that she was not allowed to eat anything from her boss' house.

Budi Irianti, a housewife, said she was not aware that there was a National Domestic Workers Day in Indonesia. "My maids do not work on Sunday, but if the domestic workers' day fell on a work day, I don't think I could give them the day off because the commemoration is still not common yet," Budi said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/domestic-workers-conditions-home-no-less-worrying.html

Jokowi's ban on migrant workers unconstitutional: NGO

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2015

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's planned ban on the dispatch of Indonesian migrant workers would be a big 'setback' for the country's efforts to create decent work for its citizens, no matter where and under what conditions, and violates the Constitution, an NGO concerned about migrant-worker protection has said.

"All Indonesian citizens have the right to seek decent work and it is the responsibility of the state to protect them no matter where they work," Migrant Care executive director Anis Hidayah said on Sunday.

The workers' rights activist said she was speaking in response to President Jokowi's plan, revealed during his speech at the opening of the Hanura Party's national congress in Surakarta, Central Java, on Friday that he would ban Indonesian women working abroad as domestic helpers as they had become a source of the country's problems and lowered the nation's dignity.

Explicitly, Anis said, the President had ordered Manpower Minister Muhammad Hanif Dhakiri to create a road map and a target for bringing to an end the dispatch of the migrant workers.

"It seems that President Jokowi has forgotten or broken his vision and mission compiled in the so-called Nawacita in which he promised to guarantee and was committed to protecting the rights of female domestic workers both in Indonesia and abroad," she said.

Jokowi delivered his nine-point Nawacita agenda during his presidential nomination in the 2014 election. "President Jokowi ought not to forget that one of contributors to his victory were Indonesian voters abroad, who are mostly Indonesian female domestic workers," said Anis.

Migrant Care policy analyst Wahyu Susilo said in the perspective of human rights, poor working and living conditions experienced by Indonesian female migrant workers, and their increased vulnerability, must be responded to with improved state protection and a total reform of institutional bureaucracy, which had been long dominated by corrupt elements, at the Manpower Ministry and the Agency for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (BNP2TKI).

"They have long taken advantage of the exploitation of our migrant female domestic workers," he said.

Migrant Care urged President Jokowi to be more serious in improving the management of the dispatch of Indonesia's female domestic workers, which should be based on the fulfillment of human rights and be non- discriminatory toward women. (ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/15/jokowi-s-ban-migrant-workers-unconstitutional-ngo.html

Political parties & elections

Newly endorsed law keeps party power to pick candidates

Jakarta Post - February 18, 2015

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – There will be no significant reform in regional elections – either at provincial or regency/municipal levels – as politicians have decided to limit public involvement in the process the political parties will use to nominate leadership candidates.

A plenary meeting at the House of Representatives on Tuesday endorsed an amendment of Law No. 1/2015 on regional elections, which – despite the controversy that eventually forced lawmakers to return the right to elect local leaders to eligible voters instead of members of the Regional Legislative Councils (DPRD) – still maintained the unchallengeable power of parties to install their representatives as candidates to become regional leaders.

The limitation was possible after lawmakers decided to scrap a stipulation requiring a three-month public review by an independent committee, which according to Article 38 of the annulled law would have consisted of academics, public figures and members of the local General Election Commission (KPU).

The amended law thus grants political parties or coalitions of political parties the full power to "democratically" recruit candidates to run in the elections. This, according to political observer Siti Zuhro from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), can be considered a big challenge since most parties have so far failed to exercise democracy internally.

"Such a requirement for a public review should not be scrapped. It will help the search for candidates with integrity and competence [to run in the elections]," she said.

As the House and the government agreed to remove such a requirement, political parties thus should make assurances that they would nominate good-quality candidates, Siti emphasized.

Unlike the annulled law that allows local leaders to install their deputies, the newly endorsed law requires political parties or coalitions of political parties to each nominate one paired ticket, which critics say will allow for transactions between parties.

During the deliberation of the amendment, the majority of lawmakers from the House's Commission II, which was tasked to discuss the law, expressed their preference for maintaining the power of local leaders to choose their deputies in order to prevent internal rifts.

Lawmakers then cited a quarrel between former Jakarta governor Fauzi Bowo and his deputy Prijanto when both were in office in 2012 in order to justify their preference.

However, they changed their stance, as mentioned by lawmaker Rambe Kamarulzaman, chairman of the commission that oversaw governance, regional autonomy, state apparatus and agrarian affairs, because pairs of candidates running in the election would later be required to sign team-up pacts. "By signing an agreement to concurrently complete their job, [local] leaders and their deputies can prevent internal conflicts," he said.

However, Siti saw the pact as an opportunity for horse-trading among political parties as they would seek to build alliances in endorsing tickets.

The new law also lacks stipulations that would impose punishment for practicing vote buying by candidates, although it sets limitations for campaign funds as well as on resources for all individuals who run in the elections.

Article 74 of the law limits donations to Rp 50 million (US$4,000) for individuals and to Rp 500 million for private companies.

Articles 75 and 76 of the law further details the conditions required from prospective donors in handing over their funds to support a ticket and the procedures imposed on candidates for receiving donations to finance their campaigns. However, the rest of the stipulations do not explain any punishments to be imposed on candidates who fail to follow the regulations.

Rambe said that a rigid stipulation banning vote buying was unnecessary. He also welcomed law enforcers to take action when such cases were found.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/18/newly-endorsed-law-keeps-party-power-pick-candidates.html

Wiranto reelected chief of Hanura Party

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Jakarta – Former Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Wiranto has been unanimously reelected chairman of the Hanura Party and will lead the party until 2020.

"I will prepare our future leaders in the next five years," he said after being inaugurated during the party's national congress on Saturday. He said that he was expecting young leaders from the party to be ready to take over party leadership by 2019.

After failing to win the 2004 presidential election, Wiranto and several retired Army generals formed Hanura. Last year, Wiranto attempted to run for president with running mate media tycoon Hary Tanoesoedibjo but failed to garner enough support from other political parties to nominate himself.

Hanura later joined the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) to nominate then presidential candidate Joko "Jokowi" Widodo. Industry Minister Saleh Husin and Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Minister Yuddy Chrisnadi are both Hanura members.

Hanura held its national congress last weekend, which was attended by President Jokowi, PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri and other leaders of the President's Great Indonesia Coalition.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/wiranto-reelected-chief-hanura-party.html

Government, House agree to scrap public-review mechanism

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Haeril Halim and Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The government and the House of Representatives have agreed to drop a public-review mechanism from the newly passed Regional Elections Law, arguing that the procedure would limit the ability of political parties to select qualified candidates.

The public review was a new procedure introduced in the law that has also mandated concurrent local elections for regional heads.

The chairman of House Commission II overseeing governance, regional autonomy, state apparatus and agrarian affairs, Rambe Kamarulzaman, said the revision, which was currently being discussed at the House, aimed at reinstating the right of political parties, or coalitions of political parties, to independently select their preferred candidates for local leadership posts.

However, Rambe dismissed suggestions that the recent maneuver on the local election law would remove the public's right to give input to political parties regarding the proposed candidates, as people could exercise their political rights at the polls by selecting their "best candidate" on the ballot papers.

"Only political parties have the right to decide who should and should not be endorsed on the local leaders' tickets [not the public]. The House and the government have the same shared vision on [the exclusion of] a public- review mechanism," Rambe said over the weekend.

Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo, who is a politician from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), supported Rambe's arguments.

"Don't let the public-review mechanism annul the right of political parties to endorse candidates or independent candidates in local elections. The plan is also meant to protect the dignity and authority of political parties that have screened their candidates through a number of tests," Tjahjo said.

Tjahjo added that political parties would do their best to select qualified candidates to be endorsed as candidates "to make sure that people can choose the best from among the best candidates" by the time the local election was held.

Separately, executive director of the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem), Titi Anggraini, lashed out at the House and the government for planning to scrap the public-review mechanism, saying the plan must be rejected.

Titi said the public-review mechanism was established based on the spirit of transparency and aimed at ending the elite-based endorsement system of local-leadership candidates, which had been ongoing for decades among political parties.

Titi acknowledged that the public-review mechanism stipulated in the new law was far from perfect as more discussions at the House were needed to find the best way to implement it in the future.

"Instead of scrapping it, the House of representatives should find ways to improve public participation. The concept stipulated in the new local election law is not yet in its optimal form but for sure the spirit of its establishment could trigger many positive things in the future," Titi said on Sunday.

Titi said that if political parties had high confidence that they could select the best candidates for regional leadership posts then they should not be afraid of holding a public review to confirm their abilities to the public.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/govt-house-agree-scrap-public-review-mechanism.html

Police vs KPK

Problems pile up for controversial Judge Sarpin

Jakarta Post - February 21, 2015

Jakarta – South Jakarta District Court Judge Sarpin Rizaldi appears to be in more trouble with additional members of civil society organizations taking action against his controversial pretrial decision on Monday in favor of National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan.

On Friday, a coalition of civil society organizations filed a report with the Supreme Court (MA) against what it deemed as an ethics violation committed by Sarpin.

The coalition considered Sarpin had gone beyond his authority in challenging the Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) decision to name Budi a graft suspect.

"There are two counts of violations. First, he overstepped his authority and he used his personal interpretation of the Criminal Law Procedures Code [KUHAP]," said the coalition's Miko Ginting, after filing the complaint with the MA oversight body on Friday.

The coalition called on the MA to hand down punishment to Sarpin, commensurate with his error in judgement.

In a pretrial hearing presided solely by Sarpin, the court annulled the suspect status slapped on Budi by the KPK in relation to bribery allegations.

Although a pretrial hearing has no authority to determine the validity of a suspect's status, as stipulated in the Criminal Code (KUHP), Sarpin argued that the legality of naming an individual a suspect was an appropriate object of examination in such a hearing.

Sarpin also argued that the KPK's determining of Budi as a suspect was not valid and not based upon the law because Budi accepted gifts that caused no state losses.

He also said the KPK had no authority to investigate alleged graft cases involving Budi when he served as the National Police's Career Development Bureau head, an Echelon II position. Citing Law No. 30/2002 on the KPK, the judge said the agency only had the authority to investigate alleged corruption involving state officials with Echelon I positions as well as law enforcers.

A number of activists earlier filed a report against Sarpin with the Judicial Commission (KY).

Sarpin has previously been reported to the KY for allegedly accepting bribes with regard to a number of controversial rulings he made in the past.

The controversial rulings include his decision to acquit a former Ciracas subdistrict head, whom prosecutors said deserved a seven-year prison term for graft.

He was also deemed as too lenient in handing down a prison term to two drug convicts in 2008.

The KY has said some of the reports are unsubstantiated and that it is still working to find evidence for any of Sarpin's alleged wrongdoings.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/21/problems-pile-controversial-judge-sarpin.html

Budi Waseso says investigations against KPK leaders will continue

Jakarta Globe - February 20, 2015

Farouk Arnaz, Jakarta – The National Police will continue the investigation of cases involving former and current Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, despite a truce between the two national institutions.

Comr. Gen. Budi Waseso, the National Police detective unit chief, declared on Friday there will be no order to halt the investigation.

"The criminal cases will continue. We can't treat the law however we like; we can't violate the law. We cannot stop [the cases]," Budi said. Even if Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, the current National Police deputy chief and sole candidate for the top position, gets inaugurated as the National Police chief, he is unlikely to order the investigation to stop, Budi said.

"[Badrodin] really understands the police corps and law enforcement. That is why he was chosen. He must be the best among the good ones," Budi added.

Badrodin has previously said, notwithstanding his willingness to improve relations between the National Police and the KPK, the cases will proceed. "Law enforcement is a legal matter. Just because I am the chief, it doesn't mean I'll be able to do all that I want," Badrodin said.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/cases-against-KPK-leaders-will-advance-national-police/

Budi Gunawan case is far from closed, KPK says, as appeal is prepared

Jakarta Globe - February 20, 2015

Ezra Sihite, Fana F.S. Putra & Erwin Sihombing, Jakarta – Indonesia's newly inaugurated antigraft chief has vowed to continue investigating the cases currently being handled by the anti-corruption commission, but stopped short of saying whether this includes the case of former police chief candidate Budi Gunawan.

"There are a number of suspects still being investigated," Taufiequrachman Ruki, the interim chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, told reporters after his inauguration at the State Palace in Central Jakarta on Friday.

"Of course it is the KPK investigators' job to finish [the cases]. We will see what the resolutions will be."

Ruki dodged questions about whether the KPK would resume its probe into Budi, a police general whom the antigraft commission last month named a suspect after identifying at least Rp 54 billion ($4.2 million) in transactions through his personal bank accounts between 2003 and 2006.

Ruki did, however, indicate that even if the KPK could not pursue the case, the police or the Attorney General's Office should take over. "The KPK doesn't have a mechanism for dropping a case; what it does have is the ability to pass it on to the police or prosecutors," he said.

Budi's naming as a suspect prompted a seemingly retaliatory backlash from the police, who launched a series of dubious probes into the KPK's commissioners based on cold cases up to a decade old.

More than a month after tensions broke out, President Joko Widodo earlier this week withdrew his nomination of Budi and suspended two of the KPK's four commissioners who were named criminal suspects by the police: chairman Abraham Samad and deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto.

The president also named Ruki and two others, Johan Budi and Indriyanto Seno Adji, to serve as interim KPK commissioners. Ruki, who chaired the KPK from 2003 to 2007, will stand in for Abraham, while Johan, the KPK's former spokesman and current deputy for graft prevention, will replace Bambang.

Indriyanto, a criminal law professor at the University of Indonesia, takes the post left vacant by Busyro Muqoddas, a deputy chairman whose term in office ended in December and was not renewed.

Appealing the pretrial ruling The KPK's current spokesman, Priharsa Nugraha, indicated that the commission would continue to pursue its case against Budi, by challenging a ruling on a pretrial motion that declared the KPK's naming him as a suspect flawed.

"The decision has been made and we will carry on with the legal process by filing an appeal against the pretrial motion," Priharsa said.

He added that the KPK had studied the legal options available to it and consulted with notable lawyers and legal experts including Refly Harun, Denny Indrayana, Zainal Arifin Mochtar and Saldi Isra. The Supreme Court said separately that it would accommodate the appeal.

Legal experts contend that the judge hearing the pretrial motion at the South Jakarta District Court, Sarpin Rizaldi, exceeded his authority by revoking Budi's status as a suspect.

Under the Criminal Code Procedures, the purpose of the pretrial motion was simply to determine whether the KPK's procedure to name Budi a suspect was valid; the court did not have the authority to revoke the suspect status, no matter its findings.

Judge Sarpin, in his ruling, argued that at the time of the alleged transactions, Budi served as the National Police's human resources chief and was thus neither a law enforcer nor a public official, hence not subject to the KPK's jurisdiction.

The KPK is, by law, authorized to investigate any cases of suspected corruption involving sums of at least Rp 1 billion – a fraction of Budi's suspect transactions.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/KPK-appeal-budi-gunawans-pre-trial-ruling/

Bambang Widjojanto lawyer says received several death threats

Jakarta Globe - February 20, 2015

Fana Suparman, Jakarta – A lawyer for suspended Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto said on Thursday she had received numerous anonymous death threats from different numbers via SMS.

"Just step down as B.W.'s attorney. You don't need to defend him. If you don't step down, we will pray for you at your funeral," read one message sent to Nursyahbani, Bambang's lawyer.

Nursyahbani said she had previously received threats when she worked for the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), but she had not received death threats before.

"Since I have been defending Bambang Widjojanto, I've been receiving more than 10 threats from different numbers. The text messages also threatened my family. I have to be careful," Nursyahbani said on Thursday.

With the escalation of the threats, Nurshaybani reported it to the National Police's Crime Investigation Unit (Bareskrim), and also to the National Police deputy chief, Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, who said that the Bareskrim would immediately conduct an investigation.

"The criminalization of the KPK will continue. Not only the KPK, it will also happen to the investigators," Nursyahbani said.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/bambang-widjojanto-lawyer-says-received-several-death-threats/

Credentials and histories of new KPK and police leaders

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2015

Haeril Halim and Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on Wednesday took what experts deemed to be a compromise in the current standoff between the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the National Police.

Jokowi dropped the nomination of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, who has been named a bribery suspect by the KPK, as National Police chief and replaced him with police deputy chief Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, while the President also appointed three acting leaders to replace KPK chairman Abraham Samad and Bambang Widjojanto, who were named suspects by the police just days after the two named Budi a suspect.

While many call the appointments convenient, the track records of the figures are far from spotless. Taufiqurrahman and Indriyanto, for example, are known for their close relationships with the National Police, fanning speculation that the agency will soon drop Budi's case and other cases related to the force and certain political elites.

Indriyanto Seno Adji

His appointment as an acting KPK commissioner surprised the public as he had a track record working as a lawyer in a number of graft cases, including the Bank Century case, which is currently being investigated by the antigraft body.

Recently, he had also been in the spotlight following his comments supporting the controversial decision issued by Judge Sarpin Rizaldi in a pretrial hearing at the South Jakarta District Court, which approved Budi's petition asking the court to declare that his status as a KPK graft suspect as illegitimate.

Despite Sarpin's decision not having been based on the Criminal Law Procedure Code (KUHAP), which grants no authority to a judge to examine someone's legal status through a pretrial hearing, Indriyanto applauded the verdict and considered it "objective".

Indriyanto became an expert witness favored by graft suspects. He was summoned as an expert during the trial of former Constitutional Court chief justice Akil Mochtar, who was later sentenced to life in prison in 2014 for accepting bribes in connection with dozens of local election disputes being adjudicated at the court.

He also appeared as a legal expert during the trial of former Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison for graft in 2013.

While teaching at the University of Indonesia (UI) and several other universities, including Krisna Dwipayana University, Indriyanto also wrote a number of books on his expertise in the field of law.

During his profession as a lawyer, he was part of former president Soeharto's legal team when the country's former strongman fought a legal battle against Time magazine, which published an investigative report on Soeharto's family fortune.

He also made headlines in 2010, when Comr. Gen. (ret) Susno Duadji, a graft convict who was tried and found guilty in two corruption cases, revealed in an open hearing in the House of Representatives that Indriyanto worked as the lawyer of two Bank Century owners, Hesyam Al Warraq and Rafat Ali Rizvi, who are currently at large.

Indriyanto has often been invited to be an expert witness to support police investigations, including in the cases implicating former KPK commissioners Chandra Hamzah and Bibit Samad Rianto. Police named both suspects after Bibit and Chandra, along with other KPK leaders, named Susno a suspect.

His presence as an acting commissioner may create a conflict of interest when KPK leaders make a decision on the Bank Century case, which is currently ongoing at the KPK, in the near future. The KPK has said it will determine former vice president Boediono's fate in the Bank Century cause after the Supreme Court upheld the verdict against former Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Budi Mulya in the case.

Taufiqurrahman Ruki

During the recent standoff between the KPK and the police prior to being appointed as acting KPK commissioner by Jokowi, Taufiqurrahman appeared antagonistic by launching strong criticism toward the performance of the KPK during Abraham's tenure and by questioning the KPK's decision to name Budi a graft suspect without first questioning him as a witness.

Unlike two other KPK chairmen, Abraham and Antasari Azhar, Taufiqurrahman finished his tenure as the first KPK chairman, under then presidents Megawati Soekarnoputri and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono between 2003 and 2007, without being prosecuted in a criminal case.

Antasari was convicted of murder after making a bold move to arrest high profile figures, including mayors, a police general, legislators and ministers – even Aulia Pohan, the father-in-law of Yudhoyono's son – while Abraham managed to prosecute Budi and two-star general Djoko Susilo and former Democratic Party chairman Anas Urbaningrum, as well as pledging to step up an investigation into the Bank Indonesia liquidity support (BLBI) case that could implicate Jokowi's patron Megawati.

Taufiqurrahman, in his public comments during the standoff, claimed that his "successful" tenure, which had seen no conflict between the KPK and the police, was due to his leadership capability in harmonizing the two law enforcement institutions, despite the fact that the KPK did not prosecute a single police officer during his tenure. One of his biggest achievements during his four-year leadership was the prosecution of an active Aceh governor, Abdullah Puteh, in the scandal plaguing the purchase of the Mi2 helicopter.

Taufiqurrahman, who has a degree in law, was the best police academy graduate in 1971. Prior to joining the KPK in 2003, he worked at the police corps for around 32 years. He served as KPK chairman from 2003 until 2008. After serving his time at the KPK, he was appointed as a commissioner for state-owned steel company PT Krakatau Steel. In 2009, he was appointed a member of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), from which he retired in 2013. He is currently the commissioner of publicly listed Bank Jabar Banten (BJB).

Many doubt that he would continue the investigation into Budi because of his background as a former police general and because of some of his comments made during the standoff, which tended to support Budi instead of showing support for the KPK in the time of crisis.

"With the public expectations to solve the current standoff being high, I am aware that it is not easy for me to satisfy the public demands, but I am sure the KPK will move forward in eradicating corruption in the country. I appreciate all your support for me," Taufiqurrahman said when asked about his independence in handling Budi's case in the future.

Johan Budi

"The first thing I will do after being inaugurated is to meet with the police chief to solve the standoff," according to the first public statement Johan made after Jokowi announced on Wednesday that he would be among the three acting KPK commissioners.

An alumnus of the UI School of Engineering, Johan, who received a "best practitioner" award from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Public Relations Network and the Golden Speaker award from the Rakyat Merdeka Group in 2013, was among the first batch of officials recruited to join the KPK in 2005.

Prior to joining the antigraft body, Johan worked as an editor at the Forum Keadilan magazine between 1995 and 2000 and then he moved to Tempo daily from 2000 to 2005.

In his first two years at the KPK, he worked in the public relations division before being officially appointed as KPK spokesman in 2007. In October 2014, KPK leaders promoted him to be the deputy for the prevention unit, which was around three months before Jokowi appointed him to be an acting commissioner.

In January, Johan rejected an offer from the State Palace to become a presidential spokesman for Jokowi. Johan said he turned down the job because he wanted to spend the rest of his career at the antigraft body.

Badrodin Haiti

Newly nominated National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti said that his nomination took him completely by surprise when it was announced by Jokowi on Wednesday.

"I saw my nomination on television. The President and I had never discussed my nomination before he announced it. I was only told that the President would hold a press conference about the tension between the KPK and the National Police," he said on Thursday at his residence.

Now 56 years old, Badrodin has had an impressive track record throughout his career. He was the best graduate in his 1982 police academy class. From then on, the current National Police deputy chief soared up the ranks. Badrodin was the chief of the Banten Police, the Central Sulawesi Police, the North Sumatra Police and the East Java Police from 2004 to 2011 before he became the operations assistant of then National Police chief Gen. (ret) Timur Pradopo.

Badrodin himself said that he had a knack for problem solving and explained that his problem-solving skills might have been the main reason for his recent nomination. "One example was that during my time as the Central Sulawesi Police chief I was able to diffuse the conflicts that were raging in Poso. Hopefully, I will be able to resolve any future problems."

However, his track record is not completely spotless: the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) once accused Badrodin of having committed human rights violations in Poso, Central Sulawesi in 2007 during his tenure as the province's police chief.

Police raids in the area during the prominent sectarian conflicts resulted in the deaths of 110 suspected militants at the hands of the police. However, Badrodin insisted that if the militant groups had not been handled with a firm hand, more civilians would have fallen victim.

Badrodin was also listed as one of the high-ranking police officers who possessed inflated bank accounts, based on a report from money laundering watchdog. "I have also clarified this issue in the past with the PPATK and the KPK are more than welcome to confirm it again," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/20/credentials-and-histories-new-KPK-and-police-leaders.html

Tensions ease, 'back to work'

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2015

Haeril Halim and Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Political tension is likely to ease following President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's decision to drop the inauguration of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, whose nomination as the next top cop created a political storm that threatened to derail some of Jokowi's policies.

Leadership at the House of Representatives and major factions in the legislative body pledged that they would support Jokowi's decision to drop Budi and name National Police deputy chief Gen. Badrodin Haiti as his replacement.

Jokowi has proposed Badrodin's name for a confirmation hearing at the House, which is scheduled to take place in mid-March, when lawmakers are expected to return from a month-long recess.

The President also appointed three acting leaders to replace Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Abraham Samad and Bambang Widjojanto, who were named suspects by the police just days after the KPK named Budi a suspect on Jan. 13.

"As the House speaker, I respect the President's decision," House speaker Setya Novanto of the Golkar Party said on Wednesday, shortly after Jokowi made the announcement.

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker Zulkifli Hasan of the National Mandate Party (PAN) called on all political factions at the House to allow Badrodin to undertake a fit-and-proper test.

"I think that what has been decided by the President is something that has gone through careful consideration. We welcome the decision. Let's give a chance to the new National Police chief candidate."

Zulkifli said that the appointment of Badrodin was a win-win solution for the sake of the Indonesian people.

Although members of civil society groups have called Jokowi's decision a compromise that would allow for the continued prosecution of the KPK – given his decision to also dismiss Abraham and Bambang – many believe that it could mark the end of a month-long political standoff.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla said he expected that the political situation could return to normal next week. "Next week will be the best week. The political situation will turn normal. There are no longer maneuvers against and for the government. We should all get back to work," he said.

Many have predicted that given the House's unanimous support for Budi, lawmakers may reject Jokowi's pick to replace him. Even the United Development Party (PPP), which until Jokowi's announcement on Wednesday continued to back Budi's candidacy, made an about-face on Thursday.

PPP chairman Romahurmuziy said that his party would support Jokowi's decision in nominating Badrodin. "We support the legality of his nomination," Romahurmuziy said.

Jokowi's own political party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), however, expressed its opposition to the decision. Some of the party's politicians have expressed outrage over Jokowi's surprise move to drop Budi's candidacy.

PDI-P lawmaker Trimedya Panjaitan, who is a deputy chairman of the House's Commission III, which would conduct a confirmation hearing on the National Police chief candidate, was visibly angered by the decision.

"We are really disappointed because Budi is not inaugurated," Trimedya told reporters after the PDI-P faction's internal meeting at the House on Wednesday, which wrapped up at about the same time as Jokowi's announcement.

Earlier, only hours before Jokowi's announcement, outspoken PDI-P lawmaker Effendi Simbolon warned that "even a President must obey the law" and reminded Jokowi to honor and comply with the House's official endorsement of Budi's candidacy.

He also cited that Jokowi's "disobedience" toward the House's decision could be considered in contempt of the legislature, which would consequently allow lawmakers to use their interpellation rights or even investigative rights to force the President to explain his decision before a formal House meeting. Effendi, however, declined to elaborate when asked if he and the PDI-P's 108 lawmakers would also exercise the rights.

Badrodin said on Thursday that following his nomination he would make the normalization of ties between the KPK and the police a priority.

"On a personal level, there is good communication with the KPK commissioners. However, since neither institution is very open with the other, there is often distrust even though everything seems well on the surface," he said.

When asked about whether the police would drop the case against Abraham and Bambang, Badrodin said he could not give a guarantee.

"Like any other criminal case, there are some requirements that must be fulfilled before it is dropped. We can't just drop cases willy-nilly," he said.

[Margareth S. Aritonang and Fedina S. Sundaryani contributed to this report.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/20/tensions-ease-back-work.html

In Jokowi's move, few positives for beleaguered KPK

Jakarta Globe - February 19, 2015

Jakarta – President Joko Widodo's decision not to go ahead with his controversial pick for National Police chief has earned praise from observers and activists, but more bumps appear in sight in the country's fight against corruption.

Joko has faced a massive public outcry over his nomination of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, who was last month named a graft suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK.

On Wednesday, though, nearly six weeks since his Jan. 9 announcement of Budi's nomination, Joko finally declared that he was scrapping the nomination and instead putting forward Cmr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, the deputy police chief, for the top post.

"As the conflict has sparked division in society, I feel the need to do something to calm the situation and unite the police corps," he said. "The National Police need a leader. I am now putting forward a new candidate for National Police chief: Commissioner General Badrodin Haiti. I also urge both the National Police and the KPK to abide by their codes of ethics in order to maintain harmony between state institutions."

At the same time, he also announced that he would immediately order the suspensions of KPK chairman Abraham Samad and deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto, who face criminal charges leveled by the police in what appears to be a retaliation to Budi being named a graft on Jan. 13.

Joko announced that the KPK would get three temporary commissioners to replace Abraham and Bambang, as well as former deputy chairman Busyro Muqoddas, whose term in office ended in December and was not renewed.

"The substitute [commissioners] are Taufiequrachman Ruki, Indriyanto Seno Adji and Johan Budi," Joko added.

Taufiequrachman was the KPK's inaugural chairman, helming the commission from 2003 to 2007; Indriyanto is a professor of criminal law at the University of Indonesia; and Johan is the KPK's former spokesman and current chief for corruption prevention.

'Consistent' Joko?

Political pundits were quick to laud the decision, saying it showed the president was not afraid to go against the House of Representatives and elites within his own Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, who have insisted that Budi be inaugurated after passing a House confirmation hearing.

"The president's move is consistent with his pledge to eradicate corruption," said legal expert Umbu Rauta from Satya Wacana University.

The president has been indecisive on whether to inaugurate Budi, as he tried to find a balance between halting a slide in his approval and appeasing elites in his political circle."

Budi was widely believed to have been pushed onto Joko for the post of police chief by PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri, whom he served as a security aide during her presidency from 2001 to 2004.

Gede Pasek Suardika, a former Democratic Party official and now a member of the Regional Representatives Council, or DPD, said the president's latest move would help get the "back on track" in its fight against graft.

He said the criminal charges against Abraham and Samad threatened to cripple the much-vaunted KPK, but that with Ruki, a former police general, now in place, there might be an easing of tensions between the antigraft commission and the police.

Separately, Badrodin said he was eager to mend ties with the KPK, saying he wanted to "stop the conflict from dragging on any further," as well as to push much-needed reform within the police force, long considered among the most corrupt government institutions in Indonesia.

He added that most of the cases against the KPK commissioners, dug up by the office of chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Budi Waseso, an ally of Budi Gunawan's, "don't necessarily need to be investigated criminally."

Mending ties with the KPK, Badrodin said, "is a challenge that I must face. And this is a tough one. "There must be synergy [with the KPK]. How this work technically, we will discuss with the new KPK leaders," he added.

More trumped-up charges?

Antigraft watchdogs, though, are far from satisfied, saying the president has failed to address the likelihood of the police continuing their onslaught of the KPK.

"There should be protection for the temporary commissioners because I'm afraid they will be targeted too," said Zainal Arifin Mochtar, the director of Gadjah Mada University's Center for Corruption Studies.

Alghifari Aqsa of the Legal Aid Foundation said only time would tell if Badrodin was really serious about stopping the attacks against the KPK.

"The president must ensure that the next police chief will conduct a massive overhaul inside the police force and remove all those responsible for weakening the KPK, particularly by demoting or suspending Budi Waseso," he said.

Rights activists from the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence, or Kontras, on Wednesday filed a complaint against Budi Waseso with the police's internal affairs department over his handling of the investigation into the KPK's Bambang.

Kontras said the police arrest of Bambang on Jan. 23 (he was released several hours later) was "thick with political intrigue," coming just days after the KPK had named Budi Gunawan a suspect.

PDI-P peeved

Another group dismayed by Joko's announcement, though for an entirely different reason, is the House, which previously threatened to launch impeachment proceedings if Joko failed to inaugurate Budi as police chief.

"Of course we're disappointed because until the announcement, we were still hoping for him to inaugurate Budi Gunawan," legislator Trimedya Panjaitan, of the PDI-P, told Detik.com.

"We're now waiting for the nomination letter, then we will take decide on whether to accept it or not. We'll discuss it when we're in session again [on March 23]."

T.B. Hasanuddin, another veteran PDI-P legislator, said a court ruling last week that declared flawed the KPK's naming of Budi as a suspect should have paved the way for him to be sworn in.

"I want to ask what has Budi Gunawan done that led to his nomination being suspended. He's no longer a [graft] suspect and the House has agreed to his appointment, so there's no reason that he shouldn't be inaugurated," Hasanuddin said.

"What was the point of waiting for the pretrial motion ruling if it didn't even have an effect on [Joko's] decision?"

PDI-P deputy secretary general Ahmad Basarah chimed in that in light of the cancellation "it's hard for the PDI-P to shield [Joko] from attempts to impeach him."

The impeachment threat ironically came from the PDI-P, the party that nominated and ostensibly supports Joko. The president, though, has found an unlikely ally in House Speaker Setya Novanto, from the opposition Golkar Party.

"We appreciate whatever move the president makes. I'm sure his decision comes from great consideration of what is best for the police force," Setya said.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla, also of Golkar, said he was confident that Badrodin would pass the House confirmation hearing, which must be held within 20 days of legislators reconvening from recess on March 23.

State Secretary Pratikno said his office had sent Joko's letter nominating Badrodin to the House on Wednesday.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/jokowis-move-positives-beleaguered-KPK/

Activists say canceling Budi's nomination too little too late

Jakarta Globe - February 18, 2015

Dessy Sagita, Jakarta – Anti-corruption activists have given the cold shoulder to President Joko Widodo's decision to dump graft suspect Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan as sole police chief candidate, saying the damage has already been done.

During a televised press conference on Wednesday, Joko said he would drop Budi to maintain peace and order following public discontent over his nomination. Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, the acting National Police chief, has been nominated for the role instead.

While the decision was not a surprise, says Haris Azhar, a coordinator at human rights group Kontras, it is not enough to deescalate the tension between the the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, and police.

"What's the use of appointing a new police chief if he [Joko] doesn't stop the criminalization of KPK leaders," Haris told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday.

KPK chief Abraham Samad and deputy chief Bambang Widjojanto have been named suspects for allegedly falsifying state documents and committing perjury, respectively. Deputies Adnan Pandu Praja and Zulkarnain have also recently been named in historic legal cases by the National Police.

Haris said ideally Joko should have canceled Budi's nomination, appointed a new police chief and ordered him to review or even drop the investigation into the under-fire KPK commissioners.

Joko's indecisiveness on whether or not to inaugurate Budi, who was named a graft suspect last month, has been criticized widely and blamed for worsening the bitter feud between anti-graft agency and police over the past few weeks.

Joko also announced on Wednesday he would issue a presidential decree temporarily suspending Abraham and Bambang due to the criminal cases brought against them.

The president has appointed former KPK chief Taufiequrachman Ruki, legal professor Indrianto Seno Adji, and KPK deputy for corruption prevention, Johan Budi, to step in and lead the corruption watchdog.

Haris said the cases against the KPK leaders are politicized and replacing Abraham and Bambang would only throw the organization a life-line. "If he keeps on going this way Jokowi will disrupt the rule of law," Haris said.

Zainal Arifin Muchtar, the director of Gadjah Mada University's Center for Corruption Studies, or Pukat UGM, said Joko's decision to replace Budi with Badrodin should be appreciated – but it was not enough.

The president should have done more to protect the KPK from efforts to hobble it, Zainal said. "There should be protection for the temporary deputies because I'm afraid they will be targeted again," the academic said.

The National Police's chief detective, Comr. Gen. Budi Waseso, recently said more than 20 KPK investigators might be implicated in legal cases for the illegal possession of firearms.

"Stop criminalizing KPK leaders and investigators because if they are all dragged into legal cases, KPK's work will be disrupted," Zainal said.

Johan Budi, one of the temporary substitutes for the KPK leadership, has been reported to police by a civil society group, which has claimed he violated the organization's code of conduct when he met with politicians – including graft convict Muhammad Nazaruddin – in 2007.

The allegation has been dismissed by the KPK ethics committee and Johan has stated repeatedly that he was only at the meeting to accompany former KPK deputy Chandra Hamzah.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/activists-say-canceling-budis-nomination-little-late/

Activists report judge Sarpin to KY

Jakarta Post - February 18, 2015

Jakarta – A number of activists on Tuesday filed a report against judge Sarpin Rizaldi with the Judicial Commission (KY) following his controversial pretrial decision on Monday ordering the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to stop an investigation into National Police chief hopeful Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan.

Sarpin, who has previously been reported to the KY for allegedly accepting bribes with regard to a number of controversial rulings he made in the past, made the decision, which also ordered the antigraft body to lift the graft-suspect status it earlier slapped on Budi, although the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP) did not grant him any authority to do so.

The activists included Erwin Maposmal of the Indonesian Legal Roundtable (ILR), Julius Ibrani of the Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI), Erasmus Napitupulu of the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) and Febi Yonesta of the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation (LBH Jakarta) as well as Siti Aminah of the Indonesian Legal Resources Center (ILRC).

"We want to report judge Sarpin on allegations of violating the judges' code of ethics in his decision," Erwin said at the KY office on Tuesday.

The KUHAP only grants a judge authority to approve a pretrial hearing with regard to improper arrests or unilateral stoppage of graft investigations by a law enforcement institution. There is not a single article in the KUHAP that allows a judge to lift or order to stop an investigation carried out by law enforcement institutions through a pretrial mechanism.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/18/national-scene-activists-report-judge-sarpin-ky.html

Jokowi drops Budi Gunawan's nomination as national police chief

Jakarta Globe - February 18, 2015

Farouk Arnaz, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo has dropped Budi Gunawan as candidate for chief of the National Police, citing the need to maintain peace and order following public discontent over Budi's nomination.

Joko said in a televised press conference on Wednesday that he will nominate another candidate, Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, who is interim head of the National Police, as its chief.

"As the conflict has sparked division in the society, I feel the need to do something to calm the situation and unite the police corps," Joko said.

"The National Police needs a leader. I am now giving out a new candidate for the National Police Chief position: Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti."

"I also urge both the National Police and the KPK to abide by their codes of ethic in order to maintain the harmony between state institutions," the president added.

Badrodin 'ready'

Badrodin replied that he was ready to take up the task. "I've just heard that – I am ready to take up this responsibility," Badrodin told the Jakarta Globe. "I hope the entire process will be smooth and that 2015 will be a good year for the National Police."

Joko said he also wanted Budi to keep contributing to the corps despite not becoming its next top commander. "I also ask Budi Gunawan to continue contributing to the National Police to become the best [institution] in the nation," Joko said.

Budi, a three-star general, was named a graft suspect last month, just days after Joko nominated him for the role of Indonesia's top top.

Joko's indecisiveness on whether or not to inaugurate Budi has been panned by analysts and blamed for worsening a bitter feud between the Corruption eradication Commission, or KPK, and the National Police over the past few weeks.

House still in recess

Vice President Jusuf Kalla said in a reaction that he was confident that Badrodin would pass the fit-and-proper test administered by the House of Representatives.

"We have spoken with our friends at the House about our considerations [to nominate Badrodin]. This is for the public peace and the country's best interest," Kalla said after Joko announced Badrodin's nomination.

"Hopefully, this will also end the debate [regarding the conflict between the National Police and the KPK]," Kalla added. "Let's start working hard next week."

State Secretary Pratikno said that Badrodin's presidential nomination letter would be sent to the House on Wednesday, adding however that it would take some time before lawmakers would discuss the matter.

"The House has just completed their sitting period and they're now in recess. We will send the letter today, but the process will only start after the recess is over," Pratikno said after Joko's address. "To be a National Police Chief, he needs to be approved by the House, so he's still the deputy chief for now."

Lawmakers will return to Senayan on March 23, and will then have 20 days to discuss Badrodin's nomination.

PDI-P disappointed

Politicians of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) immediately expressed their disappointment about Joko's decision.

"Of course we're disappointed because until the announcement, we were still hoping for him to inaugurate Budi Gunawan," lawmaker Trimedya Panjaitan told Detik.com.

"We [in Commission III at the House] are now waiting for the nomination letter, then we will take action, accepting it or not. We will discuss it when we're in session again."

T.B. Hasanuddin, another senior PDI-P senior politician, questioned Joko's decision to not inaugurate Budi.

"I want to ask what has Budi Gunawan done that led to his nomination being suspended? He's no longer a [graft] suspect and the House has agreed to his appointment, so there's no reason that he couldn't be inaugurated," he said. "What's the point of waiting for the pretrial motion result if the ruling didn't even have an effect on [Joko's] decision?"

The South Jakarta District Court on Monday granted a pretrial motion filed by Budi against his naming as a suspect by the KPK, ruling that the antigraft body had not followed proper procedure.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/breaking-joko-drops-budi-gunawans-nomination-national-police-chief/

South Sulawesi police name KPK chief a suspect in forgery case

Jakarta Post - February 17, 2015

Farouk Arnaz & Muhammad Kiblat, Jakarta – The South Sulawesi Police on Tuesday has named Abraham Samad, chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, a suspect for allegedly forging state documents.

"After conducting several case investigations by the crime unit of the South Sulawesi Police, Abraham Samad has been named a suspect in a document falsification case," Sr. Comr. Endi Sutendi, spokesman of the South Sulawesi Police, told the Jakarta Globe in a phone call from Makassar on Tuesday. The South Sulawesi Police has also issued Abraham with a travel ban.

Chairil Chaidar Said, chairman of the KPK and National Police Care Institution, reported Abraham on Jan. 29 to the National Police for being involved in helping Feriyani Lim, who has already been named a suspect in the same case, obtain a passport at the immigration office in Makassar, South Sulawesi in 2007.

The National Police on the same day that Chairil filed the report handed over the investigation process to South Sulawesi Police. KPK and National Police Care Institution is an organization that monitors both KPK and National Police activities.

In a case that is now with the South Sulawesi Police, Feriyani allegedly attached Abraham's family certificate and identification card which stated that both Abraham and Feriyani are citizens of the Panakkukang subdistrict in Makassar – Feriyani has no family relation with the KPK chief.

However, after several investigations, the police discovered that Abraham and Feriyani were never listed as local citizens of the Panakkukan subdistrict. Feriyani is listed as a citizen of Pontianak, West Kalimantan.

Abraham was born and raised in South Sulawesi but is not from the Panakkukan subdistrict. "Abraham Samad is stated as the family leader, while Feriyani Lim was a relative," said Endi.

Endi added that the decision to name the KPK chief a suspect was made on Feb. 9 after the police had confiscated enough evidence such as the family certificate, Feriyani's ID card and the passport that was processed with the allegedly forged state documents.

"So far, the investigators have questioned 23 witnesses, including people from the immigration office, the subdistrict leaders and other related people," the South Sulawesi Police spokesman said.

Abraham was the second KPK leader to be named a suspect after KPK deputy chief Budi Widjajanto was named on Jan. 23 a suspect in a election-dispute case.

Endi says that the police on Tuesday have also sent Abraham a summons letter for questioning to be held on Feb. 20 at the South Sulawesi Police headquarters.

Endi rejected speculation that the police purposely made the announcement a day after the South Jakarta District Court handed down its verdict to reject KPK's decision to name National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan a suspect in a graft case.

"This is not related with Budi Gunawan. We were late to announce the decision to name Abraham Samad a suspect purely because of technical issues in the investigation process," Endi said.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/s-sulawesi-police-name-KPK-chief-suspect-forgery-case/

Impact of judge's rule: A weakened antigraft fight

Jakarta Post - February 17, 2015

Ina Parlina and Haeril Halim, Jakarta/Bogor – A historic court decision invalidating the move of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to name a politically wired police general a graft suspect has set a bad precedent for the future fight against graft in Southeast Asia's most corrupt nation.

The decision handed down by the South Jakarta District Court in a pretrial hearing presided solely by controversial judge Sarpin Rizaldi on Monday annulled the suspect status of National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan.

As a pretrial hearing has no authority to determine the validity of a suspect status, as stipulated in the Criminal Code (KUHP), Sarpin's decision will pave the way for future graft suspects to seek similar decisions from pretrial hearings to get off the hook, although the Indonesian judicial system does not apply a principle of precedence as is practiced in the US.

"Sarpin has overstepped the authority of the pretrial hearing. He has violated the existing law. This will jeopardize the fight against graft," said Djoko Sarwoko, a former Supreme Court justice for special crimes and a former Indonesian Judges Association (Ikahi) chairman.

"His verdict may encourage others to follow suit, although we have seen no precedent in the past in which a pretrial decision has been used to justify the outcomes of other hearings," said Djoko, who just retired last year.

Budi, a confidant of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's patron Megawati Soekarnoputro, filed for the pretrial hearing on Jan. 20 following the KPK's move to name him a suspect on Jan. 13, less than 24 hours before Budi's confirmation hearing at the House of Representatives.

After naming Budi a suspect, the KPK received threats and attempts to prosecute its leaders on numerous alleged crimes that are suspected to have been engineered by the police amid calls from Jokowi's powerful allies to immediately inaugurate Budi regardless of his status.

Andi Hamzah, a senior criminal law expert and a former member of the team that drafted the KUHP amendment bill, also raised a similar concern, saying that Sarpin's decision would encourage other suspects to file similar petitions.

"If I was the lawyer of Suryadharma Ali [former religious affairs minister and a KPK graft suspect], I would tell him to file a similar pretrial petition," said Andi.

Andi argued that the investigators have the full authority to name a suspect and a pretrial hearing could not overrule the status regardless of the arguments presented by the judge.

"The KUHP does not authorize a pretrial judge to proceed with a petition challenging the suspect-naming procedure like in Budi's case," he said. "Even the draft of the KUHP amendment has not included such an authority."

Judicial Commission (KY) commissioner Eman Suparman said the watchdog would hold a plenary meeting to discuss Sarpin's decision. Eman said that the agency would investigate whether there was a law violation in the court's decision made by the lone judge.

"We will seek clarification from the judge about his decision," he said, adding that even if the KY found violations, the commission could not overrule the decision, as only the Supreme Court had the authority to influence the court's decision.

The KUHP stipulates that the outcome of a pretrial hearing cannot be challenged in a higher court of law.

Sarpin argued that the legality of naming an individual a suspect was an appropriate object of examination in a pretrial hearing. He explained that the determining of Budi as a suspect by the KPK was not valid and not based upon the law because Budi accepted gifts that caused no state losses.

The judge also said the KPK's move to name Budi a suspect was illegal because the commission had no authority to hold an investigation into alleged graft cases involving Budi when he served as the National Police's Career Development Bureau head, an Echelon II position.

Citing Law No. 30/2002 on the KPK, the judge said the antigraft body had the authority to investigate alleged corruption involving state officials with Echelon I positions and law enforcers.

Sarpin said Budi's position in the Career Development Bureau was limited to helping his superiors carry out police career development programs in the National Police's human resources division. In his position Budi was not carrying out duties related to law enforcement.

The KPK has alleged Budi of receiving kickbacks from fellow police officers in order to smooth out their careers.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/17/impact-judge-s-rule-a-weakened-antigraft-fight.html

After court's ruling on Budi, an 'easy out' seen for graft suspects

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Jakarta – Indonesia's fight against corruption has come under threat with the South Jakarta District Court's decision on Monday to revoke the suspect status of National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, analysts and activists warn.

Budi was charged last month by the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, over suspiciously large transactions flowing through his bank account between 2004 and 2006 during his time as the police's human resource development chief.

The transactions totaled at least $54 billion ($4.2 million), far too large a sum for even a high-ranking police officer, raising suspicions that they might be bribes.

But the court on Monday ruled in favor of Budi, dismissing as invalid the KPK's decision to charged Budi. "The decision to name [Budi] as a suspect doesn't have a legally binding basis," said Judge Sarpin Rizaldi.

Judge Sarpin argued that the case was outside the KPK's jurisdiction, saying that Budi's position as human resource development chief meant that he was neither a law enforcer nor a senior public official.

Anti-corruption lawyer Nursyahbani Katjasungkana condemned the ruling, arguing that it effectively presented a get-out clause for members of the police force, widely perceived as the most corrupt government institution in Indonesia.

"The court has made a wrong legal interpretation of what constitutes a law enforcer," she said. By law, all members of the police force can be considered law enforcers, Nursyahbani argued. The KPK also has jurisdiction in graft cases involving sums in excess of Rp 1 billion.

Budi's case "is well within the KPK's jurisdiction," Nursyahbani said. "This will set a bad precedent, serving as a huge and dark roadblock for the fight against corruption."

Indonesia Legal Roundtable researcher Erwin Natosmal Oemar said Sarpin acted beyond his authority, noting that by law, a pretrial hearing was not a venue for a suspect to have the charges against them dismissed. A pretrial hearing is only for challenging the technical aspects of an arrest or confiscation, and not the charge itself. "The ruling is good news for all corruption suspects," he said.

Law expert Abdul Fickhar Hadjar of Jakarta's Trisakti University said the ruling "opens a Pandora's box," giving all those named suspects by the KPK an easy out to challenge the charges against them.

Supriyadi Eddyono, executive director of Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, said the ruling would not only affect cases investigated by the KPK. "The National Police must also brace themselves for a possible influx of pretrial motions set against them," he said.

Former Supreme Court chief justice Harifin Tumpa said the Supreme Court must immediately reverse the ruling. "The Supreme Court must act quickly," he said, adding that the future of Indonesia's fight against corruption "rests in the Supreme Court's hands."

Retaliation will get worse

The president has delayed Budi's inauguration pending the decision from the pretrial hearing, as he seemingly seeks to appease Budi's supporters, notably his own Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P.

Joko had earlier signaled he might drop Budi's nomination, but Monday's ruling means he now has few excuses left not to inaugurate Budi.

With the last hurdle for Budi to become the country's top cop cleared, the KPK could face a massive retaliation from the police, warned Indonesia Corruption Watch researcher Agus Sunaryanto.

Since Budi was declared a suspect, the police have charged KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto with compelling a witness to commit perjury during a 2010 election dispute hearing in which he represented one of the candidates.

KPK chairman Abraham Samad is also under investigation in two separate cases: for violating the KPK's code of ethics – in itself not a criminal matter – by meeting members of the PDI-P, reportedly to discuss chances of him becoming Joko's running mate ahead of last July's election; and doctoring his family card, a state-issued document.

Legal experts are unanimous on the need for an ad hoc ethics tribunal of the KPK, and not the police, to hear the first case; while the second, even if proven, can be considered a misdemeanor at best.

Two other KPK commissioners are also under police investigation. KPK deputy chairman Adnan Pandu Praja is accused of fraudulently acquiring shares in a timber company while advising it during an ownership dispute in 2006; while deputy chairman Zulkarnain is accused of receiving bribes when he was chief prosecutor in East Java province in 2009. The accuser in his case is the former provincial council speaker who Zulkarnain successfully prosecuted and jailed for four years.

ICW researcher Agus said that Budi becoming police chief "will only exacerbate [the police's] retaliation against the KPK."

"If Joko proceeds with inaugurating Budi, that would be the same as ending the KPK," he said. "It's now time for Joko to prove [...] his commitment to corruption eradication."

With dozens of former legislators jailed by the KPK and some serving members calling for the commission's disbandment, the House, considered almost as corrupt as the police force, will also question the KPK's authority in light of Monday's ruling, Agus said.

The House on Monday aired plans to form a special working committee to investigate the ethical violation allegations against KPK chief Abraham in relation to his meeting with the PDI-P officials.

Politics before the public interest

In a study conducted last month by the Indonesian Survey Circle, only 24 percent of respondents believed that Budi should be inaugurated as police chief, while 70 percent said Joko should not swear him in.

Another survey published by the same pollster showed just 45 percent of Indonesians were satisfied with Joko's performance, down drastically from 72 percent in August, just after he was elected.

A study by the Joint Data Center, or PDB, a research division of BeritaSatu Media, with which the Jakarta Globe is affiliated, found that only 15 percent of respondents believed the investigations against the four KPK commissioners were purely legally motivated.

Veteran lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis said Joko faced a dilemma: go with the popular sentiment and side with the KPK, or appease the demands of the political elites who wanted Budi named top cop.

"The pressure on Joko will become bigger and bigger, particularly after Budi's pretrial verdict. It's all up to him, whether he wants what's best for this country or not," Todung said.

Analysts have cited Joko's month-long dithering and lack of a clear stance for exacerbating the fiasco.

Joko reportedly received information that Budi was on the KPK's radar last October, when he submitted a list of potential cabinet appointments to the KPK to vet. The KPK red-flagged Budi and advised him not to consider the police general for a senior government post.

But despite this warning, Joko named Budi as his sole candidate for National Police chief on Jan. 9, prompting an outcry from activists, analysts and the public.

The KPK announced four days later that it had named Budi a corruption suspect. But Joko refused to drop Budi's nomination, saying "I must respect the political process at hand," referring to a confirmation hearing scheduled the next day by the House of Representatives' Commission III, which oversees legal affairs.

The House held – and quickly concluded – a confirmation hearing for Budi, ultimately approving his nomination and endorsing Budi as the next police chief.

Joko has even ignored recommendations made by an ad hoc team he created to weigh in on the debacle. Early this month, the independent team recommended Joko not proceed with inaugurating Budi. Joko has not made a decision since.

Shortly after Monday's ruling, the House quickly wrote a letter to the palace, urging the president to inaugurate Budi.

Police deputy chief Badrodin Haiti said he would respect any decision Joko made. "Whether or not [Budi] will be inaugurated is entirely up to the president," he said.

But Budi's lawyers were less tolerant, saying they would challenge the president if he did not inaugurate their client.

Not over yet

Budi on Monday afternoon arrived at the Bogor Palace, south of Jakarta, to meet the president. He later said in an interview with Metro TV that Joko wanted to congratulate him on the ruling. "I've just met the president to report on the pretrial ruling," Budi said.

"He congratulated me – he said thank God that the truth has been achieved. That's the most interesting thing. My status is innocent and it is a legally binding ruling."

Budi said he would leave the final decision to the president. "What I'm fighting for in this case is justice. Being the police chief is not everything to me," he said.

The KPK is considering appealing the pretrial ruling to the Supreme Court, KPK graft preventions chief Johan Budi said.

"The [KPK] leaders along with the legal bureau and several investigators staged a meeting to decide on what to do following the pretrial ruling," he said. "Some options were discussed but there hasn't been any conclusion on whether we should take the next legal step."

The KPK, Johan said, was still waiting for official notification of the ruling to study the court's decision. "The KPK, as law enforcers, respect this legal process," he added.

Ronald Rofiandri, director of the Legal and Policy Study Center, said that while legally binding, the ruling did not prevent the KPK refiling charges against Budi.

"The KPK is still authorized to investigate this case and rename Budi Gunawan as a suspect," he said. "Aside from that, the KPK can still lodge a case review on the basis that the court has made an error in interpreting the law in its decision."

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/courts-ruling-budi-easy-seen-graft-suspects/

A timeline to a legal fiasco: The president's inaction in a time of crisis

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Nivell Rayda, Jakarta – The South Jakarta District Court's decision to revoke the suspect status of President Joko Widodo's candidate for National Police chief, Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, has renewed calls for the president not to proceed with Budi's inauguration. But Joko's moves over the past month suggest he is likely to go against the public sentiment.

July 2014

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Abraham Samad reveals for the first time that Budi has been on the antigraft body's radar over indications that he may have laundered at least Rp 54 billion ($4.24 million) through his personal bank accounts between 2003 and 2006.

October 2014

The KPK notifies Joko that it has "red-flagged" Budi, after the president includes his name in a list of potential cabinet members. The KPK advises Joko against appointing Budi to a ministerial post, Abraham later says.

Jan. 9, 2015

Despite the warning from the KPK, Joko goes ahead and names Budi his sole candidate to become National Police chief, prompting an outcry from activists, political analysts and members of the public.

Jan. 12

The KPK names Budi Gunawan a corruption suspect but delays making any announcement until the next day.

Jan. 13

Joko refuses to drop Budi's nomination in light of the corruption charge, saying: "I must respect the political process at hand," referring to a confirmation hearing scheduled the next day by the House of Representatives' Commission III, which oversees legal affairs.

Jan. 14

House Commission III holds – and quickly concludes – a confirmation hearing for Budi Gunawan, ultimately approving his nomination for a floor vote at a House plenary session. Joko says that he will await the result of the plenary vote before making his next move.

Jan. 15

All parties at the House plenary, with the exception of the Democratic Party, endorse Budi Gunawan to become the next police chief.

Jan. 16

Joko announces he will postpone the appointment of Budi as police chief due to the legal troubles faced by the three-star general: "Because Commissioner General Budi Gunawan is facing a legal process, I believe it is necessary to delay his appointment. So it is delayed, not canceled. That needs to be underlined."

The president signs a letter to honorably discharge National Police Chief Gen. Sutarman and appoint his deputy, Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti, as acting chief.

Joko says he will wait for the South Jakarta District Court to issue a ruling on a pretrial motion lodged by Budi against the KPK's charge.

Jan. 23

Officers from the National Police's detectives unit arrest KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto over a cold case police had dropped in 2010. Bambang, who is handcuffed while about to take his daughter to school, is charged with compelling witnesses to commit perjury in a 2010 regional election dispute in which he represented the candidate who was declared the winner of that election.

He is named a suspect and released from custody in the early hours of Jan. 24.

Jan. 24

Joko summons deputy police chief Badrodin and KPK chief Abraham to the Bogor Palace, where he asks both sides to "maintain strong ties."

Despite the instruction, the police continue to dig up cold cases against the KPK leaders, including Abraham and deputy chairmen Adnan Pandu Praja and Zulkarnain.

Jan. 25

Joko summons several prominent political figures, including former KPK commissioners, to the State Palace to form an independent team tasked with providing insight on the debacle.

Feb. 2

The South Jakarta District Court delays hearing the pretrial motion lodged by Budi for a week after KPK representatives fail to show up.

Feb. 4

The independent team recommends Joko not to proceed with inaugurating Budi. Joko, however, says he will make an announcement the following week, saying "There are things I must sort out first," but declining to say what those things might be.

As of Feb. 16, Joko has made no announcement regarding Budi's nomination.

Feb. 9

The South Jakarta District Court begins hearing Budi's pretrial motion to have the charges against him dropped.

Feb. 16

The court rules in favor of Budi.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/a-timeline-to-a-legal-fiasco-and-the-presidents-inaction-in-a-time-of-crisis/

Pre-trail hearing cannot examine suspect's legal status – Polri 2009

Detik News - October 5, 2009 (archive)

[The following is a translation of a 2009 article by Detik News related to a previous attempt by the national police to criminalise the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in which trumped-up charges were leveled, and later debunked, against KPK deputies Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M. Hamzah.]

Irwan Nugroho, Jakarta – The national police headquarters (Mabes Polri) is asking that the judge reject a pre-trail challenge by the Indonesian Anti- Corruption Society (MAKI) against a decision to name non-active Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputies Chandra M Hamzah and Bibit Samad Rianto suspects.

The reason for this is that a decision to name someone a suspect cannot be examined in a pre-trial hearing.

"Based on Article 77 of the KUHAP [Criminal Procedural Code], a pre-trial hearing does not have the competence to examine a decision to name someone a suspect", said Mabes Polri legal attorney Iza Fadli after reading out a response to MAKI's motion at the South Jakarta district court on Jl. Ampera Raya on Monday October 5, 2009.

According to this article, continued Fadli, a pre-trial hearing can only be held to examine the validity or not of a decision to end a criminal investigation by the authorities. A pre-trial hearing can also be held to hear a request for compensation by a suspect or defendant whose case has been halted.

Because a decision to name someone a suspect cannot be heard in a pre-trial hearing, Fadli is asking that the judge rule that the South Jakarta district court does not have the authority to hear the challenge presented by MAKI.

"The naming of a suspect is an authority held by the national police", he explained.

Fadli also questioned MAKI's legal standing as plaintiff because the non- government organisation does not have the quality or capacity to present a challenge.

MAKI's right to present a challenge, he continued, is only valid if the organisation is representing a community in a case that is related to three issues. What are these? Issues related to forestry, consumer protection and the environment.

"Based on Article 80 of the KUHAP, MAKI is not qualified to present a pre- trial [motion]", he asserted.

[Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service. The original title of the report was "Mabes Polri: Penetapan Tersangka Tak Bisa Dipraperadilankan".]

Source: http://news.detik.com/read/2009/10/05/180901/1215782/10/

Jokowi urged to swear in Budi as new police chief

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Jakarta – The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which with other parties in the Great Indonesian Coalition has supported the nomination of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan as new National Police chief, has urged President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo immediately to inaugurate Budi after the South Jakarta District Court declared the latter's suspect status invalid.

"[Budi] has to be inaugurated, it is President Jokowi's task to swear in Pak Budi today," said Trimedya Panjaitan, chair of the party's law and human rights department, on Monday.

According to Trimedya, with the court's decision, the President no longer has any reason to continue delaying Budi's inauguration. He said he believed the President would fulfill his promise to make a decision on the matter following the announcement of the result of the pretrial.

Judge Sarpin Rizaldi, who alone tried Budi's pretrial petition, declared on Monday that the Corruption Eradiation Commission's move to name Budi a graft suspect on Jan. 13 was not valid.

Separately, Setara Institute coordinator Hendardi concurred, adding that the result constituted a means to bring to an end the mounting conflict between the police and the KPK.

"The President now has no choice but to inaugurate Budi as the new police chief because the district court has annulled the KPK's move to name Budi a graft suspect," Hendardi said as quoted by Antara news agency.

He added, however, that the President could decide to replace Budi after the latter was sworn in. "If the President inaugurates Budi today, it is based not on his interest to save Budi amid the KPK-police conflict but on his compliance with the law," he argued. (rms)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/jokowi-urged-swear-budi-new-police-chief.html

Law expert: Budi Gunawan ruling inconsistent and unfair

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Jakarta – Judge Sarpin Rizaldi, who presided over Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan's pretrial hearings, has ruled inconsistently and unfairly on the case, says Refly Harun, a constitutional law expert at the University of Indonesia (UI).

The judge ruled on Monday that the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK)'s declaration of Budi as a graft suspect was unwarranted under the law.

"The judgment is inconsistent," Refly said on Monday, as quoted by news portal Kompas.com. "On the one hand, [Judge Sarpin] chose a favorable interpretation of Budi's bureaucratic standing. On the other hand, he was overly indulgent when it comes to what Budi could dispute in his motion."

Also, in line with the opinion of other legal experts, Refly disputes Judge Sarpin's position on whether the KPK's graft suspect determinations fall under the purview of pretrial hearings.

"In the criminal code, only detentions, arrests and requests for rehabilitation can be disputed in pretrial hearings," Refly added.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/judge-sarpin-is-inconsistent-and-unfair-ui-constitutional-law-expert/

No Polri decision by Jokowi for a month

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo may have enough political backing to nominate a new National Police (Polri) chief, but the nation is likely to wait at least one month for an end to the prolonged uncertainty.

The President told his Great Indonesian Coalition on Saturday that he would nominate a new police-chief candidate regardless of the result of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan's pretrial motion at the South Jakarta District Court. The court is expected to issue its ruling on Monday.

The House of Representatives will enter a recess period and resume activities on March 18. After the President submits the name of the new candidate to House Commission III, a plenary session will formally decide whether to endorse the candidate.

"It's impossible to insert such an item in the agenda of the last plenary session on Wednesday [Feb. 18]. It's only possible to process it after March 18," said Desmond Junaidi Mahesa, a legislator from the Gerindra Party faction on Sunday.

South Jakarta District Court judge Sarpin Rizaldi is scheduled to issue his verdict on Budi's pretrial petition on Monday. Budi has asked the court to void his status as a graft suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

The President has breached his own promise to issue his final decision on the fate of Budi made last week. He later said he would postpone his decision until Monday.

Meanwhile, former Supreme Court chief justice Harifin Tumpa warned Judge Sarpin that approving Budi's request had no legal basis.

Harifin said the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP) limited the scope of a pretrial petition to only challenge improper arrests and the unilateral stoppage of an investigation by law enforcement institutions because any other acts carried out by investigators must be tried in court.

"The judge [Sarpin] must stick to his authority as allowed by the existing law. I don't think there is such a legal basis [to authorize a judge to approve a pretrial petition to challenge a suspect's legal status]," Harifin said.

Meanwhile, University of Indonesia (UI) legal expert Junaedi said the Supreme Court could impose sanctions on Sarpin if he insisted on declaring Budi's graft-suspect status as "illegitimate".

"He [Sarpin] could be demoted as happened to the judge who handled a pretrial hearing involving PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia," Junaedi said.

Meanwhile, in a significant departure from its previous stance, senior Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggles (PDI-P) politician Hasto Kristyanto said that the party would support whatever decision Jokowi made with regard to Budi's candidacy.

"As Vice President Jusuf Kalla said earlier, any decision on the matter is up to President Joko Widodo. The PDI-P will always support the President as long as the decision is based on the Constitution. We don't want to make things worse," Hasto said over the weekend as quoted by kompas.com.

Meanwhile, NasDem Party politician Patrice Rio Capella said party founder and leader Surya Paloh would respect Jokowi's decision on Budi's fate.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/no-polri-decision-jokowi-a-month.html

Court rejects KPK's decision to name Budi a graft suspect

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Basten Gokkon, Jakarta – The South Jakarta District Court on Monday granted a pretrial motion filed by National Police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan against his naming as a suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, possibly clearing the way for President Joko Widodo to inaugurate him.

"The court has decided that [the KPK's investigation letter] was invalid and therefore the decision to name [Budi] a suspect doesn't have a law binding basis," said judge Sarpin Rizaldi, who led the hearing, which was broadcast on television.

The KPK said in a reaction that it would study the verdict before deciding on its next move. "We had a meeting earlier with all KPK leaders," said Johan Budi, deputy for prevention at the antigraft body. "The KPK, as a law-enforcement institution, respects the legal process and the verdict."

Johan said the KPK leaders had started discussing their next move, including the possibility of submitting a judicial review request to the Supreme Court.

"We won't decide on our next move yet, at least until we've received an official copy of the verdict from the court and studied it thoroughly," Johan said.

Budi himself was not present at Monday's hearing. Before the hearing, Budi's lawyer Maqdir Ismail had received a text from Budi telling him not to give any "controversial comment," news portal Tempo.co reported.

Maqdir was also quoted as saying that that Budi would abide by the court's verdict and he had decided that he would not pursue any further legal action.

Frederick Yunadi, another of Budi's lawyers, said that the court decision was just and the KPK must now clear his client's name.

"KPK chief Abraham Samad has told a public lie by carelessly accusing our client Budi Gunawan of involvement in a graft case," Frederick told the Jakarta Globe. "However, during the pretrial process, the KPK's investigators failed to present authentic evidence."

The Jakarta Police deployed at least 500 officers to boost security at the South Jakarta District Court on Monday morning, as hundreds of demonstrators gathered – both supporters and opponents of the three-star general.

Police also beefed up security at the KPK headquarters in South Jakarta, dispatching two armored vehicles equipped with water cannon and around 700 officers from the Jakarta Police as well as 15 officers from a unit tasked with guarding vital objects.

"This is a state asset that has to be secured," Sr. Comr. Kadarusman of the Jakarta Police said about the KPK building.

Critics have lamented the president's stalling on making a decision since Budi was named a suspect by the KPK on Jan. 13. The president's reluctance to drop the nomination – despite vocal public objection – has been attributed to his inability to defy orders of his political patron, Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri. Budi has long been known to be a close associate of Megawati, serving as her adjutant during her presidency in early 2000s.

Immediately after the verdict was read out on Monday, Commission III of the House of Representatives called on Joko to soon inaugurate Budi as the next National Police chief.

"We urge [the president to inaugurate Budi] immediately – the verdict is already out," Trimedya Panjaitan, a PDI-P lawmaker on Commission III, was quoted as saying by news portal Republik.co.id.

Trimedya added that the commission expected Joko to make up his mind about Budi's inauguration before the end of the day.

Over the past month, the case has snowballed into a major KPK versus National Police saga, worse than previous conflicts involving the two law enforcement institutions, which critics have largely attributed to Joko's failure to make a decision over the matter.

In what has been widely perceived as the police's retaliation against the KPK's move, Budi had filed the pretrial motion against the antigraft body with the South Jakarta court, arguing that the KPK's naming of him as a suspect was illegitimate, citing among other reasons that such a decision should be made by a complete set of five KPK leaders.

The KPK is run by four leaders only after one of the deputy chairmen, Busyro Muqoddas, entered his retirement age in December, while lawmakers last month decided against selecting Busyro's replacement until the end of the four other KPK leaders' terms at the end of the year.

The four of them, meanwhile, are currently facing different legal charges by police over old cases that only recently resurfaced, some of which are based on reports filed by PDI-P politicians.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/court-rejects-KPKs-decision-name-budi-graft-suspect/

Environment & natural disasters

Illegal logging rampant in spite of government initiatives

Jakarta Post - February 18, 2015

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Despite government plans to eradicate illegal logging that have been in place over the past five years, encroachment on the country's forests remains rampant, a recent report says.

The report, released by a number of NGOs grouped under the Coalition against Forestry Mafia and the Washington-based Forest Trends, said that more than 30 percent of the timber used by the country's industrial forest sector could be considered illegal.

"It stems from the unreported clear-cutting of natural forests and other illegal sources instead of legal tree plantations and well-managed logging concessions," Forest Trends said in a press release.

The report came to such conclusions after comparing the amount of legal timber reported to the forestry ministry with the actual output of the industrial forestry sector.

The report found that the raw material used by the country's mills exceeded the legal supply by the equivalent of 20 million cubic meters, enough wood to fill more than 1.5 million logging trucks – all from illegal sources.

According to the report, while the source of this illegal wood was unclear, it was likely from trees harvested during the clear-cutting of natural forests from new oil, palm and pulp plantations.

Given the area reportedly planted in oil, palm and pulp, the gap could easily be met by a conversion to timber.

In 2013, the forestry ministry reported that 53 percent of the timber harvested from natural forests came from this conversion of timber, 4,000 percent more than the ministry predicted in 2007.

In order to meet the demands from the industrial forestry industry, the government had pledged to boost the number of industrial forestry plantations as the primary source of legal wood in Indonesia.

The plantations produce fast-growing species of trees like acacia. However, the report found that the plantation sector was dramatically underperforming. In 2007, the forestry ministry predicted that by 2014, plantations would be producing at almost twice the rate reportedly achieved.

"If all companies implemented environmental commitments, such as zero deforestation pledges, it would be impossible to meet the current demand for timber. Instead of allowing new mills to be built, it would be advisable for Indonesia to put a hold on future expansion of the pulp and paper industry until they successfully increase the number of tree plantations," Forest Trends president Michael Jenkins said.

Forest Watch Indonesia head Togu Manurung, who is a researcher at the Bogor Agriculture University, said the industrial forestry sector was not working efficiently.

"In the future, it is hoped that the main source of timber will not be natural forests anymore, but industrial forests. But the industrial plantations are growing at a snail's pace," he said. Togu said the slow growth was caused by the combination of the government's ban on log exports as well as the presence of paper giants like Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and Asia Pacific Resources International Holdings (APRIL).

He said domestic sales alone had driven the prices of timber down to US$125 per cubic meter, half the international price. "In addition to that, the two paper giants control up to 80 percent of Indonesia's total pulp and paper production. This is what causes the log price to be cheap and discourages other companies from opening up industrial plantations, since the price is too cheap," he said on Tuesday. "The ones who benefit [from the monopoly] are those two giants."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/18/illegal-logging-rampant-spite-government-initiatives.html

Sinking poachers' boats doesn't float with environmentalists

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2015

Basten Gokkon, Jakarta – Indonesia's fisheries minister, Susi Pudjiastuti, has fast become one of the most popular ministers in President Joko Widodo's cabinet, thanks in large part to her trigger-happy policy of sinking foreign fishing vessels caught poaching in Indonesian waters.

The sinkings began on Dec. 5 when three vessels flying the Vietnamese flag were scuttle off the Riau Islands.

Since then, the minister has been on a crusade, with the Navy behind her, to sink more boats, the most recent being on Feb. 10, when another Vietnamese vessel met a fiery fate in the pristine waters of the Raja Ampat archipelago in Papua.

But while the policy has earned Susi brownie points with the public (a survey last month identified her as the most popular minister in the cabinet), environmentalists are appalled at the gung-ho sinking of vessels, using explosives, in delicate maritime ecosystems.

"The debris of the vessels can end up becoming trash floating around in the sea," says Arifsyah Nasution, an oceans campaigner at Greenpeace Indonesia.

"The use of explosives to sink the boat disturbs and threatens the fish near the location of the explosion – in a way, it has the same effect as using dynamite to catch fish."

There is also no indication that the Navy properly cleans out the vessels of their highly polluting diesel and bunker oil before sinking them.

"The bigger the boat, the more oil is left over in the tanks, and that oil will contaminate the sea," says Anton Wijonarno, the manager of the marine protected area for fisheries program at WWF Indonesia.

Both Arifsyah and Anton conceded that there has been little research on the impact to maritime ecosystems of blowing up wooden boats, but say the explosions need to stop, at least for now.

"There should be a discussion among maritime ecosystem experts on this matter as a precautionary approach before the government carries on sinking more vessels," Arifsyah says.

Anton says the government must consider several factors to minimize damaging delicate ecosystems, such as Raja Ampat, which is an important habitat for manta rays and other rare marine species that flock to its extensive coral reefs.

"Any explosion should be conducted in an area where the water depth is at least 40 meters, not in shallow areas where coral grows," Anton says.

He notes that while sunken wrecks can and often do serve as artificial reefs in coastal waters, the "excessive use" of explosives by the Navy can end up "destroying the vessels completely, thus rendering them useless as artificial reefs."

President Joko claims that destroying illegal foreign fishing vessels has proven an effective deterrent against poachers. There are, however, no statistics available on the proliferation of such boats in Indonesian waters before and after the sinkings began to corroborate this.

For her part, Susi claims the government has, through the new hard-line policy, managed to slash the number of illegal vessels operating in the country's waters by 90 percent – another figure that cannot be independently verified – and prevented them from "stealing the archipelago's underwater natural resources."

Greenpeace's Arifsyah said that no matter how effective the government made the policy out to be, it should still consider sinking boats in the middle of the sea using explosives as an act of last resort.

"There are two other ways: sinking them without any burning or use of explosives, or towing them back to shore and breaking them up and selling the parts," he says.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/sinking-poachers-boats-doesnt-float-environmentalists/

Graft & corruption

Labora Sitorus arrested, returned to prison

Jakarta Post - February 21, 2015

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Convicted money launderer, fuel stockpiler and illegal logger Labora Sitorus is back in prison after prosecutors from the Sorong Prosecutor's Office, assisted by some 720 police and Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel, arrested him at his home Friday morning.

"Pak Labora Sitorus is currently in a cell waiting to undergo prison orientation next month. He will then be moved to a different cell. Pak Labora was sent here by prosecutors and later handed over to the prison warden," Sorong Penitentiary warden Maliki Hasan told The Jakarta Post.

Labora was arrested at his home in Tampa Garam, East Rufei, Sorong, West Papua, despite hundreds of family members and supporters vowing to fight to protect him.

"The arrest took place peacefully [...] There was no resistance because we have communicated with his family, community and religious leaders, and the National Commission on Human Rights [Komnas HAM]. So, everything went peacefully," West Papua Police chief Brig. Gen. Paulus Waterpauw told the Post.

In an interview with the Post last week in Tampa Garam, Labora said he would commit suicide if he was arrested again by force.

He said committing suicide would ensure that his company, PT Rotua – upon which 600 employees depend – would remain operational and could be managed by his wife and children.

Labora's resistance to his arrest, said Waterpauw, was the result of a misunderstanding. After a meeting between Labora's relative, Fredy Fakdawer, and Otto Nur Abdullah from Komnas HAM, an agreement was reached.

"Labora can file for a case review for being ill and can seek treatment with permission from the prison warden. He doesn't understand these things yet. However, everything is now clear and understood," Waterpauw said.

Labora was picked up by two police cars at his home. He used his private car to go to the prison, accompanied by Fredy and Otto.

Separately, Sorong Prosecutor's Office head Damra Muis said that after detaining Labora, the office would seize his assets. "The important thing is today we have recaptured Labora and the others will follow as described in the ruling," said Damra.

Labora's family said they had not yet decided to file for a case review.

"The family hasn't decided anything yet; maybe we'll discuss it tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Personally, I want our old lawyer, Johnson Panjaitan, to remain his lawyer should we decide to file for a case review, because he understands the case. A new lawyer would need a long time to study the case," said Fredy.

Labora, who achieved notoriety as a low-ranking police officer with some Rp 1.5 trillion in his bank account, was convicted by the Sorong District Court and sentenced to two years in prison and a fine of Rp 500 million. He filed multiple appeals, but all were rejected, ending with a Supreme Court ruling required him to serve 15 years in prison and pay Rp 5 billion in fines.

He left Sorong Penitentiary in March last year for medical treatment and escaped.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/21/labora-sitorus-arrested-returned-prison.html

ICW: Corruption cases cost Indonesia Rp 5.29 trillion in 2014

Jakarta Globe - February 17, 2015

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – A new report from Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) has recorded more than 600 reported corruption cases in Indonesia last year, with an estimated cost of trillions of rupiah in state losses.

"In 2014, there were 629 corruption cases with 1,328 graft suspects and the total state loss was about Rp 5.29 trillion [$414 million]," Lais Abid, a member of the investigation and publication division at ICW, said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The report compiled cases between Jan. 1 and Dec. 27 that have been alleged but not yet investigated, as well cases that were being looked at by the police, prosecutors and the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK.

Politicians from the House of Representatives (DPR) and members of the police and judiciary were among the 2014 tally, as were 81 members of Regional Legislative Councils (DPRD).

Former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali, who is accused of mismanaging the hajj pilgrimage fund, and former energy minster Jero Wacik, who has been accused of extortion, were two high-profile politicians named suspects in 2014.

Former Constitutional Court chief Akil Mochtar was sentenced to life in prison after he was caught red-handed by the KPK taking bribes to issue favorable verdicts in election disputes.

The findings won't do anything for Indonesia's reputation as one of Asia's most corrupt nations. Indonesia was ranked 107th out of 175 nations by Transparency International last year.

On a scale from 0 (perceived to be highly corrupt) to 100 (perceived to be very clean), Indonesia scored 34, which is slightly better than last year's 32.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/icw-corruption-cases-cost-indonesia-rp-5-29t-2014/

North Sumatra anti-corruption activist injured in airsoft gun attack

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Arnold Sianturi, Medan, North Sumatra – An antigraft activist in Medan, North Sumatra, was hospitalized on Sunday after four unknown people opened fire on him with airsoft guns, amid an increase in violence against anti- corruption activists after a similar attack in East Java last month.

Muchtar Efendy, secretary of the North Sumatra People's Fight Against Corruption Movement (Gebraksu), a local NGO, was shot near the house of a colleague. He is being treated at Delima Hospital in Martubung, North Sumatra, after suffering injuries to his arm, thigh and leg.

"After the shooting, we found eight airsoft gun pellets," 41-year-old Muchtar said at the hospital on Sunday. "There were four [attackers] and they just drove off fast after they saw me slumping. I don't know any of them."

Muchtar said his attackers opened fire when he was leaving his colleague's house at the Permata Hijau residential complex in Martubung at around 1:30 a.m. local time, with his friends.

Four people on motorbikes approached the group and started shooting. "I thought they wanted to ask directions, but then they started firing," Muchtar said. "I tried to run but eventually I got hit."

Muchtar claimed that the attack must have something to do with his involvement in Gebraksu's antigraft activities. The organization is currently overseeing investigations into three alleged graft cases in Medan and Langkat district, also in North Sumatra.

"Our activities must have made some people angry and they must have ordered someone to attack me," Muchtar said. The activist added that his wife intended to submit a report to Medan Police.

Medan Police chief Sr. Comr. Nico Afinta said police would investigate the shooting, but noted that it was unclear if the attack was indeed motivated by Muchtar's activist involvement with Gebraksu.

This is the second attack this year against an anti-corruption activist, after two gunmen in Bangkalan, Madura, in East Java, shot Mathur Husairi on Jan. 20.

Mathur, 47, is the director of the local organization Islamic Center for Democracy, and was treated for injuries at Soetomo General Hospital in Surabaya, East Java.

The activist was discharged and given permission to return home to Bangkalan, where he will continue receiving treatment as an outpatient.

Aldi Alfarisi, who heads a commission at the Bangkalan City Council, was arrested along with three other men for their alleged involvement. Police said the "commission head of the city council is the mastermind behind the shooting."

The remaining suspects were identified as Reza, 27, and Sadi, 43, who are believed to have been the attackers, and Mas'ud, 40, the owner of the homemade pistol allegedly used in the assault.

Police said the gunmen appeared to have been waiting for him. As Mathur stepped out of his car to open his garage door, a motorcycle with two people on it drove up to his car and the person riding pillion fired at Mathur, Awi said. The gunmen then fled the scene.

Mathur was taken to a nearby hospital, but due to the severity of his injuries, was transferred to a better-equipped facility in Surabaya. The activist's condition improved after doctors performed surgery to remove the projectile lodged in his stomach.

Mathur had been tipping off the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) about corruption cases plaguing his home district of Bangkalan.

In December, the KPK arrested Fuad Amin Imron, the speaker of the Bangkalan district legislature, for allegedly taking a kickback from an energy company in connection with a natural gas concession in the area. The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) expressed fears that antigraft activists across the archipelago have been facing increasing threat in recent months.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/n-sumatra-anti-corruption-activist-injured-airsoft-gun-attack/

Freedom of religion & worship

Religious freedom protection bill close to completion

Jakarta Globe - February 20, 2015

Jakarta – The Ministry of Religious Affairs has almost completed drafting a bill on protecting freedom of religion in Indonesia, saying a new law is necessary to keep the peace in society by, for instance, clarifying what exactly constitutes blasphemy.

"We have prepared the legislation draft and are still perfecting it," Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin told newsportal Tempo.co on Thursday.

Under the proposed law, the ministry will be better able to deal with, for example, expressions of support for groups like the Islamic State movement, the minister said.

The law draft will be open in April for public comment, especially from religious leaders and human rights activists.

Lukman said late last year that the bill on religious tolerance that would guarantee one's right to freedom of religion, including protection of minority religious groups.

Earlier, in July, Lukman won praise from rights activists and minority groups as he said he recognized Baha'i as a faith, although he later clarified that it was his personal opinion, not a policy of the government.

Indonesia recognizes six official religions: Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism.

Haris Azhar, coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), has emphasized the need for real actions in the form of law enforcement against those who commit violence on behalf of religion.

"So far, there haven't been real actions made by the government to address intolerance cases in many areas in Indonesia. Although there has been statement from the minister, I'm afraid it could be no more than a saccharine promise," Haris said in December.

"The government often forgets that intolerance cannot be addressed by mere stack of papers consisting of regulations. No matter how many laws you propose, without firm actions by from law enforcers, there will still be groups that commit violence on behalf of religion."

He further added that the drafted bill would be useless if the government did nothing to revoke bylaws that were against the spirit of the bill.

Bylaws in several regions in Indonesia have been subject to rights activists' criticism because they are considered discriminatory, most notably in Aceh, the only province in Indonesia allowed to adopt Shariah- based bylaws following its history of secessionist rebellion.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/religious-affairs-ministry-prepares-religious-freedom-protection-law-draft/

Islamic law & morality

Dozens detained for doing 'the nasty thing' on Valentine's Day

Jakarta Globe - February 15, 2015

Jakarta – Dozens of Indonesian couples suspected of doing "the nasty thing" have been detained in Valentine's Day raids in several major Indonesian cities.

Uptight authorities, concerned about residents' morality, staged raids in Surabaya, Pontianak and Malang on Saturday, barging in on lovers during hotel room trysts.

In Surabaya, where Mayor Tri Rismaharini has declared war on Valentine's Day, police and members of the public order agency, or Satpol PP, swooped on 22 hotels and detained 189 unmarried lovers by 7 p.m.

"The mayor instructed [residents] not to use Valentine's Day to do the nasty thing," Irvan Widyanto, chief of Surabaya Satpol PP, told Detik.com. "We will send the detainees to Social Center in Keputih. "They can go home on Monday if their family come to get them."

In Pontianak in West Kalimantan, Satpol PP officers were also busy targeting unmarried lovers.

"We captured around 15 couples doing immoral acts, so it was around 30 people," Pontianak Satpol PP Chief Haryadi S. Tribowo told Tribunnews.com on Sunday. "We also detained 14 underaged kids and 4 people without identity card. In total, we got around 50 people."

Fifteen couples were also detained in Malang, East Java, local news portal Beritajatim.com reported. "We raided guest houses in Lawang and Kepanjen district," said Adj. Comr. Ainun Djariah, from Malang Police. "Some were students and didn't even have ID cards."

Young, unmarried couples in particular run the risk of detention every Feb. 14 when authorities crack down on romantic rendezvous.

The Indonesian Council of Ulema, or MUI, which is Indonesia's highest Islamic authority, tells young people every year that celebrating the event can lead to promiscuity and other acts that are not in line with their interpretation of religious teachings.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/lovers-beware-dozens-detained-nasty-thing-valentines-day/

Governance & administration

Government spending in spotlight

Jakarta Globe - February 16, 2015

Tassia Sipahutar and Satria Sambijantoro, Jakarta – Having achieved lawmakers' approval, the government must now step up the disbursement of state funds and improve its capacity to channel the money into growth- generating projects, economists say.

After a month of deliberation, lawmakers and the government finally approved the revised 2015 state budget late on Friday, which, in contrast to previous budgets, has a strikingly high allocation of funds for infrastructure development and social spending.

Atma Jaya University economist A. Prasetyantoko argued that the failure to optimize the disbursement of state funds would lead to the economy growing at a yearly pace of only 5.3 percent compared to the government's target of 5.7 percent.

By tackling infrastructure bottlenecks that range from roads and dams to power plants, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo aims for 7 percent economic growth over his five-year term. The economy expanded by 5 percent last year.

"[The government] must improve coordination among ministries as well. That way it can expedite funding disbursement and achieve a faster disbursement rate," Prasetyantoko said on Sunday.

As much as Rp 290 trillion (US$22.67 billion) has been earmarked for capital spending across ministries and agencies – more than double last year's allocation – which includes growth-generating infrastructure projects.

The funds will be used, among other things, to construct roads (Rp 57.82 trillion), to manage water resources (Rp 30.53 trillion) and to develop regional infrastructure (Rp 500 billion).

"[With the new budget], the government is apparently trying to say, 'Hey, we are very serious about developing the economy'," Ari Kuncoro, the dean of the University of Indonesia's (UI) School of Economics, said recently.

However, the massive expansion in funding has also raised new concerns over the capacity of related ministries and agencies to make the best use of the money.

"The next question will be about the implementation because we still need to see whether [the government] can really disburse the huge funds earmarked for infrastructure," Ari added.

Data from the Finance Ministry reveals that state budget disbursement rates never reached 100 percent between 2010 and 2013, ranging at around 90 percent during that four-year period.

Similar rates were also recorded on the expenditure of ministries that were connected to economic activities. The Transportation Ministry – which is slated to receive more than Rp 20 trillion in additional funds – posted an absorption rate of only 78.9 percent in 2012.

Meanwhile, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry posted a rate of 57.5 percent in 2011 and the Public Housing Ministry – now named the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry – booked a 67.5 percent disbursement rate back in 2012.

The two ministries stand to receive Rp 5 trillion and Rp 33.31 trillion, respectively, in extra funding, as shown by the revised state budget.

Gadjah Mada University (UGM) economist A. Tony Prasetiantono said that low absorption was not a new issue and that it had been a problem since the era of former finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

According to Tony, the problem is a Catch-22 situation for the ministries. "Many of the tender processes are slow because there is an element of fear that they will be entangled in corrupt activities if the processes are carried out in haste," he said.

He proposed that the government offer more incentives for private investors to attract their participation in the projects, adding that the government should also develop "a business sense".

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/govt-spending-spotlight.html

Parliament & legislation

House drops showbiz ban for lawmakers

Jakarta Post - February 18, 2015

Jakarta – The House of Representatives has dropped an article that was set to ban lawmakers appearing publicly for entertainment purposes. The article was eliminated during a plenary meeting on Tuesday to pass the House's ethics code.

"The House's Ethics Council said that Article 12 point 2, which prohibits lawmakers being involved in advertisements, films and [TV series], should not be included [in the code]," said Ethics Council chairman Surahman Hidayat in the plenary meeting at the House.

Surahman said that the article overlapped with other articles that mandate lawmakers to prioritize their legislative responsibilities and act accordingly.

The meeting also dropped other articles that ban smoking, eating and activating ringtones during meetings. The House also dropped an article that mandates lawmakers to report official travel and associated costs to House leaders.

Several artists and musicians who have been inaugurated as lawmakers are still seen on television, taking advantage of their celebrity status to garner more advertising jobs and reality show roles.

National Mandate Party (PAN) politician Anang Hermansyah, previously known as a music producer and a jury member for a singing competition, came under fire for airing the birth of his child on a free-to-air television channel.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/18/national-scene-house-drops-showbiz-ban-lawmakers.html

Transport & communication

Ministry slammed for inaction

Jakarta Post - February 21, 2015

Nadya Natahadibrata, Jakarta – The Transportation Ministry has been placed in the spotlight for its quiet response to flight delays that have left thousands of Lion Air passengers stranded at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, since Wednesday evening.

Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan's late response caused unrest among the public, who questioned the double standard applied on budget carrier Lion Air and AirAsia, which had its route permit suspended immediately following the crash of flight QZ8501 in December last year.

The government has been perceived as unwilling to slap harsh sanctions on Lion Air given the fact that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo swore in Lion Air co-founder Rusdi Kirana, a National Awakening Party (PKB) top politician, as a member of the Presidential Advisory Board (Wantimpres) last month.

"There's no connection [between the severity of the sanctions placed on Lion Air and Rusdi's position as one of the President's advisors]. We will question the management soon," Minister Jonan said on Friday.

He also said the ministry had suspended the airline's permit to operate new routes until an evaluation of the delayed flights was complete.

The minister also called on Lion Air to improve its management of the delayed flights to prevent miscommunication between the airline and its passengers.

At least 2,000 passengers have been impacted with a series of flight delays since Wednesday night, paralyzing Soekarno-Hatta airport's Terminal 3 as many passengers vented their anger by infiltrating the supposedly restricted airport tarmac area and surrounding several of Lion Air's parked aircraft.

Such a dragging situation is a setback to the recent aggressive expansion of the airline's parent company, Lion Group, including striking two of the world's largest plane-order deals worth US$46 billion and plans for a 2016 initial public offering.

Tulus Abadi of the Indonesian Consumers Protection Foundation (YLKI) said the government did not place enough sanctions on Lion Air. He said the ministry should suspend Lion Air's permit to serve all its routes.

"Most of the complaints we've received over the years have come from Lion Air passengers, ranging from complaints about delayed flights, missing luggage to booking issues," Tulus told The Jakarta Post. "The government, however, has yet to take action against Lion Air."

Just a week after the crash of AirAsia flight QZ8501, which claimed the lives of all 162 passengers and crew on board, Minister Jonan issued a regulation to change the airline ticket price formula to prevent budget airline operators from offering unrealistically low fares, in an attempt to improve safety.

The measures also included an overall review of the business and technical operations of all airlines operating in the country and the suspension of flights and dismissal of officials under the ministry.

Jonan also decided to end the operation of the Indonesia Slot Coordinator (IDSC) and eliminate summer and winter periods for domestic-slot allocation.

The ministry's director general for air transportation, Suprasetyo, said that the ministry could not suspend Lion Air's routes. "This is a business problem between the airline and passengers, unlike AirAsia, which failed to meet safety standards," Suprasetyo said. "The government can only take action in accordance with the standard procedures regarding safety and security."

Aviation analyst Gerry Soejatman said the government should review Lion Air's performance to ascertain whether it can competently run its business.

"The airline clearly violated PM 77 as it failed to provide refunds to its passengers and left them stranded for more than one day," Gerry said, citing Ministerial Regulation No. 77/2011 on air transportation providers' responsibilities. "Swift action against their inadequacies should be taken."

Indonesia National Air Carriers Association (INACA) chairman Tengku Burhanuddin said the ministry should look deeper into the problems surrounding the mismanagement of the airline, questioning the airline's management in handling the delayed flights.

"Lion Air's delayed flights not only hurt the passengers but also affected other airlines operating in Terminal 3. However, we should give the government time to evaluate the airline," Tengku said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/21/ministry-slammed-inaction.html

Armed forces & defense

Military given authority to secure vital transportation hubs

Jakarta Post - February 21, 2015

Nani Afrida, Jakarta – All seaports, airports, railway networks and bus stations in the country will officially be under the protection of the Indonesian Military (TNI) following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Transportation Ministry and the TNI on Friday.

Under the agreement, signed by Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan and TNI chief Gen. Moeldoko at the TNI headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, the military could deploy personnel and weapons to secure the vital transportation hubs.

"As a matter of fact, the military has secured our vital installations for quite some time; this agreement is the formalization of the military assistance," Jonan said, adding that the ministry had also signed a similar agreement with the National Police.

Jonan said that the security protection was needed to protect the assets, which, if left unguarded, could cause instability. "There are many threats toward the activities of vital installations. We are thankful for the support from the military," he said.

When pressed about what kind of threats could disrupt transportation services, however, Jonan said that the threats were of low intensity.

Under the agreement, military personnel would be deployed especially to vital transportation hubs in border regions, as well as to disaster-prone and remote areas. Moeldoko said that the MoU was consistent with what had been ordered by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

He said that the agreement was part of the TNI's contribution to the program for accelerating national development. "We have concluded several agreements with other ministries as well," Moeldoko said.

Moeldoko said it would be incumbent on the TNI to respond to military threats to vital installations.

As for non-military threats, Moeldoko said that the relevant ministries would handle them. "We will back up the effort," he said.

Earlier, Moeldoko said the military had agreed to deploy 1,000 personnel to help the Transportation Ministry secure key facilities.

The military personnel will help the Transportation Ministry provide security in ports, airports and other important locations under the supervision of the ministry.

Following the deployment of the 1,000 personnel in the first phase, the military would add another 1,000 personnel in the next stage.

Moeldoko said the deployment of the personnel would not compromise the TNI's overall capability as most of the soldiers involved in the program were ones approaching their retirement.

"The personnel to be dispatched for the program are those who are about to retire. This is also part of our retirement preparation program," Moeldoko said.

Jonan declined to give details on the budget needed for the operation, saying state-owned enterprises under the transportation ministries would foot the bill.

Currently, the country has 1,246 seaports, 237 airports and 579 railway stations. The ministry is planning to construct an additional 100 ports, 49 airports and 120 railway stations within the next five years.

Under Jonan's leadership, the Transportation Ministry inaugurated 20 ports and 10 airports in regions across Indonesia last year.

The ministry plans to keep developing infrastructure for air, sea and land transportation, including railways, to boost economic development in the country.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/21/military-given-authority-secure-vital-transportation-hubs.html

Military to create joint force in western Indonesia

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2015

Nani Afrida, Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) said it would focus its operations in the western part of the country, especially in Sumatra and Kalimantan, to deal with foreign threats.

The TNI said such efforts would be directed by a joint command known as Kogabwilhan.

"In the future, we expect that the South China Sea will be a flash point. So, a task force, such as the Kogabwilhan, will be very important," Indonesian Military Chief Gen. Moeldoko said at the military headquarters in Cilangkap, West Jakarta, on Wednesday.

Kogabwilhan aims to pool the regional resources of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force into multi-service groups that will be positioned at certain defense flash points integral to preserving the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The operational areas will be divided into three parts, western, eastern and central.

Military expert and researcher in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Iis Gindarsah said it made sense for the TNI to prioritize Sumatra and Kalimantan.

"Most immediate flashpoints are located near the land and sea borders of Sumatra and Kalimantan," Iis said.

Besides prioritizing Sumatra and Kalimantan, Moeldoko said Kogabwilhan was part of an effort to rearranging of the whole organization of the military in order to improve its operation. The TNI is expected to set up a new operation command for the Air Force and a new division of the Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) under Kogabwilhan.

Moeldoko said President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo had been briefed on the plan, since it would involve transferring resources from local military commands, Air Force operation commands and the Navy to the new Kogabwilhan joint command.

"He has been informed about it and is considering when to make it official. We will just wait for a response from the government," Gen. Moeldoko said.

Last week, Defense Ministry spokesperson Brig. Gen. Djundan Eko Bintoro confirmed that the Defense Ministry drafted regulations and budget proposals for the Kogabwilhan.

The TNI expects Kogabwilkan to be in place by 2024. President Jokowi approved the plan and called on the TNI to swiftly implement it.

"As soon as possible, we will implement the plan. But first details for the plan should be finalized and then given to me," Jokowi said after a meeting with TNI leadership in November last year.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/20/military-create-joint-force-western-indonesia.html

TNI appoints new chief of general staff

Jakarta Post - February 16, 2015

Nani Afrida, Jakarta – Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Moeldoko on Monday appointed Air Marshal Dede Rusamsi as the new chief of general staff (KASUM), replacing Air Chief Marshal Agus Supriyatna.

Prior to his appointment, Dede was the National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) deputy governor.

Moeldoko said KASUM was responsible for coordinating and communicating the TNI commander's policies on the development of weaponry systems in its military divisions, comprising the Navy, Army and Air Force, to lower- ranking officers.

In the space of three months, the KASUM position has been occupied by three officials: Vice Admiral Ade Supandi – who is now the navy chief of staff (KASAL) – , Vice Marshal Agus Supriyatna, who is now the Air Force chief of staff (KASAU), and Dede.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/tni-appoints-new-chief-general-staff.html

TNI to help secure vital installations

Jakarta Post - February 16, 2015

Nani Afrida, Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) has agreed to deploy 1,000 personnel to help the Transportation Ministry secure its vital facilities.

"The soldiers will help the Transportation Ministry provide security in ports, airports and other important locations under the supervision of the ministry," said Indonesian Military commander Gen. Moeldoko after a meeting with Transportation Minister Ignatius Jonan in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Monday.

Moeldoko went on that after the dispatch of 1,000 personnel in the first phase, the military would increase deployed personnel to 2,000 in the following phase. "The personnel to be dispatched are those who are about to retire. This is also part of our retirement preparation program," Moeldoko said.

Besides discussing security at vital facilities, high-ranking officials from the two institutions also discussed an agreement on cooperation between the TNI and the ministry.

Under Jonan's leadership, the Transportation Ministry inaugurated 20 ports and 10 airports in regions across Indonesia last year.

The ministry plans to keep developing infrastructure facilities for air, sea and land transportation, including railways, to boost economic development in the country.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/16/tni-help-secure-vital-installations.html

Criminal justice & prison system

#Coin for Abbott: Indonesians' angry backlash at PM's Bali nine diplomacy

Sydney Morning Herald - February 21, 2015

Tom Allard, Bali – Prime Minister Tony Abbott is facing an Indonesian social media backlash over his linking of $1 billion in tsunami aid to the mercy campaign for Bali Nine death-row inmates Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, with a campaign urging people to collect coins to return to Australia.

On the streets of Indonesian cities people were asking motorists and passersby for spare change. Meanwhile, social media users were posting pictures of the money they had gathered and hurling insults at Mr Abbott and Australia.

Many also expressed their support for death by firing squad for Chan and Sukumaran.

The twitter campaign, using the hashtags #KoinuntukAustralia, #coinforAustralia and #coinforAbbott and growing rapidly in popularity, highlights how Mr Abbott's remarks have backfired badly in the country.

Social media is huge in Indonesia, with its citizens among the biggest adopters of the technology in the world

Speaking on Wednesday, Mr Abbott said: "Let's not forget that a few years ago when Indonesia was struck by the Indian Ocean tsunami, Australia sent a billion dollars worth of assistance.

"I would say to the Indonesian people and the Indonesian government: we in Australia are always there to help you and we hope that you might reciprocate in this way at this time."

Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop was forced to call Indonesia's vice president Jusuf Kalla the next day to clarify the comments.

Her diplomacy seemed to soothe the concerns of Indonesia's leaders. Its president Joko Widodo said he was satisfied by the explanation on Friday, while also revealing that his government had been preparing a formal rebuke to Mr Abbott. But many ordinary Indonesians remain enraged.

#koinuntukaustralia #coinforaustralia #boycottbali @TonyAbbottMHR GO TO HELL WITH YOUR AID BOGANS OZ pic.twitter.com/yiNBVCOvlQ – hendradunz (@hendradunz) February 21, 2015

Dear, Mr. @TonyAbbottMHR: We will give ur money back. Please send the bill. Thank you. #CoinForAustralia pic.twitter.com/Kyzfyohxhc – Iwan Rasta (@rastajovi) February 21, 2015

Aceh doesn't need Australia to survive! Please join #CoinForAustralia and let @TonyAbbottMHR #SendUsTheBill pic.twitter.com/99NTrxz1mO – junita christan (@junitachristan) February 20, 2015

Is it enough? Ur bank account please, Mr. @TonyAbbotMHR... #KoinuntukAustralia #CoinforAustralia pic.twitter.com/str5xDV66L – Andy Satria (@satriaandy) February 20, 2015

The campaign originated in Aceh, the Indonesian province that was hit hardest by the Boxing Day tsunami of 2004 that killed more than 100,000 people there.

Among those behind the campaign are victims of the tsunami. Muhammad Riza, a victim of the tsunami, said Mr Abbott's comments were "childish"

"It's not making any sense. How can aid be mentioned again?," he said. "If they weren't sincere, the community will give it back" he told Tempo, an Indonesian media outlet.

On Twitter, Mr Riza said the Australian prime minister was "seungke", referring to an Acehnese saying that those who take back a gift will suffer a skin condition on their elbow.

Meanwhile, supporters of Chan and Sukumaran brought more than 100 bunches of flowers to Kerobokan prison to thank the governor and guards – as well as the Australians – for their efforts to introduce rehabilitation programs in the penitentiary. The flowers were organised by the Mothers for Mercy organisation, a Bali-based group.

While there is sympathy for the duo in Bali, especially among expatriates, it does not extend much beyond the confines of the holiday island.

Unlike the rest of Indonesia, many Balinese are aware of the extraordinary reforms at Kerobokan instigated by the Chan, Sukumaran and the prison staff.

[With Amilia Rosa.]

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/coin-for-abbott-indonesians-angry-backlash-at-pms-bali-nine-diplomacy-20150221-13l5n2.html

Australian PM plays down bullying allegations in spat with Indonesia

Reuters - February 19, 2015

Jane Wardell, Sydney – Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott attempted on Thursday to play down allegations of bullying Indonesia as a diplomatic rift deepens between the uneasy neighbors over Jakarta's planned executions of two Australian drug smugglers.

Australia has been pursuing an eleventh-hour campaign to save Myuran Sukumaran, 33, and Andrew Chan, 31, convicted in 2005 as the ringleaders of the so-called Bali Nine plot to smuggle heroin out of Indonesia.

Abbott drew strong criticism from Jakarta on Wednesday for linking his pleas for clemency for the pair to Australia's aid to Indonesia after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

In a harsh rebuke, Indonesian Foreign ministry spokesman Armanatha Nasir warned that "threats are not part of diplomatic language and no one responds well to threats."

Abbott, under pressure after a recent internal party challenge, said on Thursday he was referring to "the obvious strength of the relationship" between the two countries.

"I was pointing out the depth of the friendship between Australia and Indonesia and the fact that Australia has been there for Indonesia when Indonesia has been in difficulty," Abbott told reporters in Tasmania state.

Asked if his earlier comments were intended as a threat, Abbott said they were intended as a reminder of that friendship.

On Wednesday, Abbott said Australia would feel "grievously let down" if the executions proceeded despite the roughly A$1 billion in assistance it gave after the 2004 disaster, which killed hundreds of thousands of people in Indonesia's Aceh province.

Indonesia postponed on Tuesday the transfer of Sukumaran and Chan, and three other death-row inmates, to another prison for execution because of what authorities said were medical concerns and families' requests for more time with the prisoners.

Abbott and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have appealed to Indonesia, which resumed capital punishment in 2013 after a five-year gap, not to execute prisoners for drug crimes.

Also facing execution in Indonesia for drug offences are citizens of Brazil, France, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria and the Philippines.

Australia and Indonesia have a long history of diplomatic tension, which has periodically complicated cooperation on issues such as people- smuggling. Indonesia recalled its envoy and froze military and intelligence cooperation in 2013 after reports that Canberra had spied on top Indonesian officials, including former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's wife.

Full diplomatic cooperation was restored last May but Australia has foreshadowed withdrawing its ambassador fromJakarta if the executions go ahead.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/australian-pm-tony-abbott-bullying-allegations-death-penalty-spat-indonesia/

Bali 9: President did not have all the documents when he refused clemency

Sydney Morning Herald - February 19, 2015

Tom Allard and Jewel Topsfield – Indonesia's President Joko Widodo refused clemency for the Bali nine duo facing execution without all the documentation of their cases due to the chaotic handover to his office from his predecessor.

A source familiar with the events, who asked not to be named because of the extreme sensitivity of the case, told Fairfax Media Mr Joko had little more than a list of drug offenders on death row when he made the decisions.

"Look, the current President simply takes over all pending applications of the death felons from the previous government, which the latter did not touch at all," said the source.

"And there was just a few pieces of papers listing names of people on death row. No documents attached to the lists."

The source said that the President did not have a complete understanding of the rehabilitation of Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan, or documentation outlining the testimony from a former governor of Kerobokan prison.

The governor, Siswanto, testified that their transformation was genuine and had profoundly affected the penitentiary.

The two organisers of the Bali nine heroin smuggling ring have run numerous vocational education courses inside Kerobokan, counselled drug addicted inmates and raised money for medical procedures for their fellow convicts and to improve facilities in the prison.

Mr Joko was sworn in as President in October and refused the clemency of Sukumaran and Chan in December and January respectively.

His predecessor Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had failed to consider their clemency for years and, after he left, the complete documentation for the clemency bids was not forwarded to Mr Joko's staff.

Fairfax Media understands the main list of 64 convicts on death row used by Mr Joko contained only the most scant information – names, nationality, ages when they were arrested and sentenced, the status of their legal appeals, and the province in which they are incarcerated.

The revelations that Mr Joko had been making his clemency decisions without full information comes as lawyers for the pair prepare an appeal to Jakarta's administrative court arguing the process around the clemency rejection was flawed.

They argue that the President rejected all the clemency petitions without reviewing them individually.

"Without wanting to disrupt the President's prerogative [to granting clemency], we submitted the lawsuit only due to the lack of clarity of reasons behind the President's decision to not grant pardon," said Todung Mulya Lubis, a lawyer for the pair.

After the decision on Tuesday to delay the transfer of the pair from Kerobokan to the execution island of Nusakambangan, the families and the duo's lawyers have expressed relief that they have been given more time to press their case.

However, Prime Minister Tony Abbott's comments that Indonesia should show mercy because of the $1 billion in aid provided to the country after the devastating 2004 tsunami in Aceh have not gone down well in Jakarta.

"Threats are not part of diplomatic language," said foreign affairs spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir. "And from what I know, no one responds well to threats."

Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop said earlier that the postponement of the men's transfer from Bali was a positive sign.

"While Mr Sukumaran and Mr Chan are still alive, there is always hope," she said. "We are continuing to press the case, just as Indonesia seeks clemency and seeks stays of execution for its nationals who find themselves facing the death penalty overseas."

Tim Lindsey, a professor of Asian law at Melbourne University, said the delay suggested the "headlong rush to execute has been interrupted and that is something". "It does represent an opportunity for the government to take a breath about where it goes from here," he said.

He added the situation was becoming more difficult for Indonesia as international criticism mounted over its "blatant double standards" when it came to executions.

"The next time they have a maid facing decapitation in Saudi Arabia and they are seeking to get clemency for her, the government is going to say you haven't shown any similar mercy to those executed in your country. Imagine if someone was decapitated because of that – the government would be hugely criticised."

Professor Lindsey said presidential candidate General Prabowo Subianto got political mileage during last year's election campaign out of Indonesia's blood money payment to spare the life of a maid in Saudi Arabia.

"You have two populist policies colliding – execute drug smugglers and save Indonesians overseas. That is unsustainable." A solution, he said, was to adopt the Constitutional Court recommendation that prisoners have their death sentences commuted to life imprisonment if they have been on death row for 10 years and have reformed.

The Bali nine duo have been on death row for almost 10 years over their role in the foiled attempt to smuggle 8.3 kilograms of heroin to Australia.

The head of the Bali correctional facility, the Bali police chief and the head of the Bali paramilitary unit met at Kerobokan prison on Wednesday.

The head of the Bali correctional facility, Nyoman Putra Surya Atmaja, said the police chief wanted to see the location and meet Chan and Sukumaran. He said the brief meeting was "very relaxed" and the Australians didn't ask any questions.

"They had other things to do like meeting with family, so the meeting was very brief, maybe a minute or two. Andrew was with his family and Myuran was painting," Mr Atmaja said.

He said they were ready to hand over the prisoners but the timing was up to the Bali prosecutor's office.

Meanwhile, the lawyer for Brazilian man Rodrigo Gularte, who was convicted of smuggling 19 kilograms of cocaine in his surfboard in 2004, said the Attorney-General's office would seek a second opinion on whether his client had paranoid schizophrenia.

Ricco Akbar hopes Gularte will not be executed because he has been diagnosed with symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia. "They will get another doctor to examine him and provide a second opinion before they decide what to do with Rodrigo."

He said it was against the law to execute a mentally ill person or a pregnant woman.

Gularte is one of the nine other prisoners slated to be killed with Chan and Sukumaran in the second round of executions to be held in Indonesia this year.

Two others among the 11 – Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso from the Philippines and Serge Areski Atlaoui from France – have both reportedly been given a reprieve to pursue legal appeals.

[With Karuni Rompies and Amilia Rosa.]

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/world/bali-nine-executions-indonesias-president-did-not-have-all-the-documents-when-he-refused-clemency-20150218-13ii16.html

Infrastructure & development

Land rule revised to speed up projects

Jakarta Post - February 17, 2015

Nadya Natahadibrata, Jakarta – The government is to issue a revision to a land-procurement regulation to expedite land acquisition, which has proved an obstacle to a number of infrastructure projects.

A presidential regulation (Perpres) on the implementation of the 2012 Law on Land Procurement for Public Infrastructure has been revised twice, but the intended faster land acquisition has yet to be seen.

For that reason, the government will issue a third revision with the aim of fixing previous problems by relaxing land acquisition procedures for existing projects, as well as easing financing procedures.

Firstly, all ongoing projects would benefit from the new land-acquisition law – which can force people to sell their property for public infrastructure projects, with fair compensation – said Luky Eko Wuryanto, an assistant to the coordinating economic minister.

Previously, infrastructure projects that had acquired three-quarters of the required land were subject to the old 1960 law, while those whose land- acquisition process was less than 75 percent complete had to start again, acquiring land using the new law. This complication drew bitter complaints from many investors.

The second major change to the law is that the government will allow the private sector to finance land acquisition to speed up the process, instead of waiting for state budget disbursement, which can be time-consuming, to help fund the projects.

The government will then reimburse the spending if obliged to do so. "This is because the private sector has more flexibility to finance projects than the government, which has to wait for state budget disbursement," Luky told reporters.

Private companies carrying out infrastructure projects could either be assigned by the government through a tender process or work under a public-private partnership with the government.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's infrastructure push has won acclaim from investors, who hope that his programs – which include a redirection of almost Rp 200 trillion (US$15.7 billion) from the state budget to basic infrastructure, capital spending, 35,000 megawatts (MW) electricity procurement and food self-sufficiency – could bolster growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy.

The President, for his part, is hoping that these programs will boost Indonesia's annual economic growth to 7 percent within his five-year term, from 5 percent at present.

Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry land director M. Noor Marzuki said that land procurement had become increasingly crucial as a result of the government's ambitious growth-generating infrastructure projects.

As stated in the 2012 Law on Land Procurement, land acquisition should take a maximum of two years.

"The government has revised the regulation twice, yet the law has not yet effectively expedited the land-acquisition process," said Tri Agus Riyanto from the Indonesian Toll Road Association (ATI). "The new regulation should be supported by the readiness of the government institutions in charge, the funds as well as the monitoring team."

Last week, lawmakers and the government approved the revised 2015 state budget, earmarking Rp 290 trillion for capital spending across ministries and agencies. The funds will be used, inter alia, to construct roads (Rp 57.82 trillion), to manage water resources (Rp 30.53 trillion) and to develop regional infrastructure (Rp 500 billion).

Over the next five years, the government aims to build 5,000 km of railway, 2,600 km of roads, 1,000 km of toll roads and 49 dams.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/17/land-rule-revised-speed-projects.html

Economy & investment

Court bans monopoly on water resources

Jakarta Post - February 20, 2015

Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – In a move to maintain access to clean water, the Constitutional Court has revoked a law that had allowed the private sector to monopolize water resources.

The landmark decision puts an end to the 2004 Water Resources Law, which paved the way for concessions of water resources by companies that sold packaged tap water.

While delivering the verdict on Wednesday, the panel of justices argued that the law contravened the Constitution, which stipulates the right to water as a basic right and mandates the state to control and regulate water resources.

The judges later decided that the private sector could not be granted exclusive rights to water resources, such as rivers, springs, lakes and swamps, but may apply for licenses to sell a specified amount of water that would be decided by the government and local residents.

"The private sector cannot monopolize water resources and can only sell a limited volume of water," said justice Aswanto.

The court has also banned the sale of clean water to other countries. The verdict also reinstates the previous 1974 Water Law until a new law is deliberated.

Experts applauded the decision, saying that it had returned full control over water resources to the government. Energy and mining law expert Bisman Bakhtiar heralded the court's decision, saying that it would push the government to be stricter on water distribution companies nationwide.

"The private sector should not have full control over water resources. The commercialization of water is not prohibited but the government can now be stricter on the companies to ensure that no one company is monopolizing the water resources," he told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Since the government had the power to distribute water-use permits, Bisman said, it must specify the amount of water and where water distribution companies were allowed to extract water.

He added that the government must also impose strict sanctions on companies that draw water from resources they are not permitted to. "This should not be imposed just on big companies. The government should also closely monitor the smaller companies for violations," he said.

Sudaryatmo, a member of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI), echoed Bisman's sentiment, adding that the government should draw up an essential commodities act to prevent interference from outside forces, much like India did in 1955.

"The court's decision has made it clear that water is an essential commodity. If the government creates an essential commodities act, it can dictate which commodities it fully controls," he said.

Sudaryatmo said that in the current system, bottled-water prices followed market fluctuations. If an essential commodities act was imposed, the government would have the power to adjust price limits and penalize those selling such commodities above the set limits.

Both Bisman and Sudaryatmo said that the revocation of the law would have little impact on those who currently relied on bottled water due to a lack of clean-water resources.

"I don't think there will be a water crisis. It is unlikely that the companies will stop selling the amount of water they do now. The change would only affect how companies produce and distribute their products," Bisman said.

Edo Rakhman of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) said the repeal of the law should be a boon for locals living near water resources. "This should push the government to protect locals and ensure that their water is not over-extracted by companies," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/20/court-bans-monopoly-water-resources.html

Analysis & opinion

Badrodin for chief is no better than Budi

Jakarta Globe Editorial - February 19, 2015

If Megawati Soekarnoputri can claim credit for establishing Indonesia's Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, then it's her hand-picked president, Joko Widodo, who could very well be overseeing its demise.

Joko on Wednesday suspended two of the KPK's commissioners, including chairman Abraham Samad, after the latter was formally named a suspect by the police in a document forgery case that is clearly trumped up.

Tellingly, Joko never moved to suspend Budi Gunawan, the would-be police chief, after he was named a graft suspect by the KPK last month, in a move that prompted a torrent of transparently retaliatory criminal charges by the police against the KPK commissioners.

Joko has, though, finally decided to scrap his nomination of Budi for police chief, putting forward instead the current deputy chief, Badrodin Haiti.

This, of course, only constitutes a step forward on a purely Lilliputian scale – Badrodin was among the police generals identified by the government's anti-money-laundering watchdog for having suspiciously large amounts of money flowing through their bank accounts, a "fat account" tag he shares with Budi.

Let's put that into perspective: Joko swapped out one shady police general for another, while suspending half of the KPK's leadership.

That it took him more than a month to effectively do nothing except allow the KPK to be further undermined is deplorable. His predecessor, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, often criticized for being indecisive, took to Twitter on Sunday to plead for divine aid to "guide our leaders to prioritize the interests of the country, and not their own."

Allowing the most respected and most effective law enforcement agency in the nation be torn apart by what is arguably the most corrupt is decidedly not in the interests of the Indonesian public.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/opinion/editorial-badrodin-chief-better-budi/

Court verdict puts us back to square one

Jakarta Globe Editorial - February 16, 2015

It's a Black Monday for Indonesia. Corruptors must be celebrating now that Judge Sarpin Rizaldi ruled that all the national antigraft agency's charges against Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan were unlawful.

While we are afraid that the ruling will force President Joko Widodo to inaugurate Budi as the National Police chief, the stakes are far higher for the country than a mere police chief job. The nation seems to have lost a decade of battles against graft.

Sarpin's decision is almost like a death penalty for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), because if Joko inaugurates Budi as police chief, we don't know what he is capable of doing. Even now, we see how the police have implicated all KPK leaders in criminal cases.

If the police really seek to name the four KPK leaders, whose terms end in October, as suspects and put them behind bars, then Joko will have to issue a decree to appoint new KPK commissioners until the House of Representatives picks new leaders.

We doubt these leaders can work independently – and considering what happened to the current commissioners – can freely pursue corruptors, especially among police officers.

The verdict also opens a hole for all graft suspects to file pretrial motions to courts, and win. After a decade of fighting corruption, Indonesia faces an uphill battle. We're back to square one now.

Corruption is the number-one enemy to progress as the nation's wealth goes to only a few people rather being used for the good of all Indonesians. The corruptors' victory means the people will suffer.

The public must continue to support the KPK in this lowest point while pushing for the Judicial Commission and Supreme Court to review Judge Sarpin's decision and the case itself. We have reason to believe that his verdict is seriously flawed.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/opinion/editorial-court-verdict-puts-us-back-square-one/

Indonesia's stance on the death penalty has become incoherent

The Conversation - February 16, 2015

Tim Lindsey – For months, Indonesian President Joko Widodo – popularly known as Jokowi – has repeatedly stated his determination to show no mercy to drug offenders facing execution.

Jokowi is even reported as having rejected the applications for clemency by drugs offenders without reading them. That includes those submitted by Australians Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan.

Last week, the pair filed a last-ditch request with the Administrative Court to reverse this. Allegations of attempts by judges to extract bribes from the two Australians in exchange for lighter sentences have now also been reported to the Judicial Commission.

Regardless of these two new proceedings, Indonesian Attorney-General H.M. Prasetyo has reiterated the government's determination to execute death row inmates in the coming weeks, including Sukumaran and Chan. There are reports that all 58 drugs offenders now awaiting execution could be dead by the end of the year if Jokowi has his way.

Despite this, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi announced only last week that Jokowi had ordered new support, including legal assistance, for 229 Indonesians facing execution overseas. Many of these are said to be drug offenders.

This announcement is an extraordinary development. It makes it hard to understand exactly where Indonesia stands on the death penalty.

Is it really the case that Indonesia is determined to execute drug offenders – both foreign and local – if they are caught in Indonesia, but will spend money to help Indonesian drug offenders avoid execution provided they are caught overseas?

This position seems internally contradictory both in regard to the death penalty and drugs policy. It is also discriminatory. It makes it hard to avoid the conclusion that the Jokowi administration's approach to drugs and death is driven more by populism than principle.

The death penalty under SBY

No doubt the Indonesians on death row overseas attract great sympathy in Indonesia – so much so that in 2011 then-president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's (SBY) government set up a well-funded and very effective taskforce to provide them with legal assistance. There are claims it has saved around 60 Indonesians from execution. In at least one case in Saudi Arabia, it paid "blood money" to have a death sentence commuted to imprisonment.

SBY's taskforce was a response to popular horror at the fate of Indonesian domestic workers – many of them maids – who had murdered their employers after abuse and, in some cases, rape and then faced hanging or, in Saudi Arabia, decapitation. But not all Indonesians facing death overseas are abused maids. They include drug offenders too.

SBY had a deep dislike for the death penalty and agonised over clemency decisions. This influenced his policy, even if he avoided making his personal position public and was not always consistent in practice.

In any case, during his administration Indonesia remained unenthusiastic about the death penalty. SBY personally put in place an unofficial moratorium on the death penalty from 2008 to 2013 (when he allowed some executions to take place). This approach had its shortcomings, but it generally sat well with the help he offered Indonesians on death row overseas.

Jokowi's policy lacks even this level of coherence. He has reversed SBY's hesitation on executions but also confirmed his commitment to helping Indonesians on death row overseas – presumably because walking away from them would be very unpopular in Indonesia.

Jokowi's struggles at home

Jokowi is a weak president who lacks a clear majority in the legislature. His compromised performance in his first 100 days has shocked many of his supporters. Some fear he has fallen under the sway of powerful elite figures like his own party head, former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, the intimidating former intelligence head, A.M. Hendropriyono, and media mogul Surya Paloh.

Jokowi also seems paralysed in the face of the latest round of an epic struggle between corrupt police, supported by many in his own party, and the Anti-Corruption Commission, which the public see as a threatened bastion of good governance. Senior leaders of both institutions face tit- for-tat charges of corruption. Jokowi's credibility depends on finding a solution to this high-stakes face-off.

With little elite support, Jokowi needs to maintain his popular appeal. He knows his chief political rival, Prabowo Subianto, won plaudits for spending some of his own (extensive) funds to help Wilfrida Soik, an Indonesian maid, beat capital charges in Malaysia last year. Prabowo even flew there to attend court hearings.

Prabowo also won votes with his aggressively nationalist and tegas (firm) image. Jokowi seems to feel real pressure to match this, even to the extent of executing foreigners in the face of growing international condemnation.

This came first from a range of countries whose nationals face execution in Indonesia. They are now being joined by international figures – most recently UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who called for Indonesia to scrap the scheduled executions. Some senior Indonesians feel their country's international reputation is at stake.

However, the basic problem for Jokowi is that he seems stuck with two inconsistent populist policies. He is committed to the executions as a "shock therapy" solution to what he says is a rising drugs "emergency", while promising to continue saving Indonesian offenders facing death overseas.

Anti-death penalty campaigns gain momentum

There are signs of increasing discomfort about this in Indonesia. Quite apart from the lack of any credible evidence that the death penalty has any impact on crime rates anywhere, the statistics on which Jokowi bases his claims that 50 Indonesians die every day from drugs are highly dubious at best, as Indonesian media have pointed out.

Prominent Indonesians, from former judges of the Constitutional Court (including its influential former Chief Justice, Jimly Asshiddiqie) to prison officials to the National Human Rights Commission chairman, have also argued that it is time to consider ending executions for good. Prominent law reform and human rights NGOs have been calling for this for years, and are starting to step up their campaigning.

The abolitionists have not achieved critical mass. But last week, Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly did say that the government should reconsider whether to proceed with executions. But the same day as Marsudi's announcement on aid to Indonesians on death row overseas, Yasonna backed down, suggesting executions might instead simply be delayed because the government is preoccupied by the police corruption scandal.

Yasonna is right. Nobody – Indonesian or foreign – should be executed in the current highly charged political climate in Indonesia. They would be casualties of incoherent policy-making, a struggling new government and Jokowi's image problems, their clemency applications unread.

Despite the obvious contradictions in his position, Jokowi is unlikely to be willing – or politically able – to abolish the death penalty now. However, he should immediately suspend all executions indefinitely until calmer and more measured consideration can be given to his now-incoherent policy, the arguments against the death penalty and the implications for Indonesia's international standing.

At the very least, long stays should be given so the individual circumstances of all prisoners on death row can be properly considered in a less-pressured context. This would include their arguments for clemency and, in the case of Sukamaran and Chan, the new allegations of judicial corruption in their cases.

On death row, time means hope. For the Indonesian government to rush ahead with its plans for mass killings would be a travesty of justice.

[Tim Lindsey is a Malcolm Smith Professor of Asian Law and Director of the Centre for Indonesian Law, Islam and Society at University of Melbourne. Tim Lindsey has received funding from the Australian Research Council to research drugs law and the death penalty in Southeast Asia. He is chair of the Australia Indonesia Institute but this article reflects only his own personal views.]

Source: https://theconversation.com/indonesias-stance-on-the-death-penalty-has-become-incoherent-37619

Labora standoff makes mockery of our law enforcement

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2015

Pandaya, Jakarta – His case may have been eclipsed by the embarrassing conflict pitting the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) against the National Police over graft charges leveled against one of its suspiciously rich generals, Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan.

But the legal scandal over the release and the failure to reincarcerate Labora Sitorus, a police chief brigadier convicted of laundering Rp 1.5 trillion in West Papua, is just too enormous to be covered up.

Labora, 54, now lives as a free man at his mansion in Sorong – almost a year after wardens allowed him to leave the prison for medical treatment and six months after his name was put on the list of most-wanted fugitives. The whole episode of his fooling the long arm of the law is a perfect comedy about how Indonesian law enforcers do their job in a country long sneered at as a "corruption haven".

In early 2013, the Sorong District Court sentenced Labora to two years in prison and fined him Rp 50 million for illegal logging and hoarding fuel. The local High Court rejected his appeal and added a further six years to his term. In September last year, the Supreme Court in Jakarta also found him guilty of money laundering, lengthened his term to 15 years and inflated his fine to Rp 5 billion.

Yet since the verdict, Labora has served barely any time at all, the prison chief warden permitting him to undergo medical treatment at the Navy Hospital in Sorong in March 2014.

Prosecutors were shocked, or pretended to be shocked, to be told that Labora was no longer in prison: Sorong chief warden Maliki Hasan released Labora because the convict's detention period had expired on Oct. 24 with the Supreme Court yet to announce its verdict.

Then Labora was declared a fugitive. The subsequent surprise came when it turned out that Labora had not gone anywhere. In fact he remained at his 40-hectare home that also houses a timber-processing plant run by umbrella firm PT Rotua, which employs hundreds of people.

His generosity has earned him comparisons to Robin Hood. On Monday, an estimated 1,000 employees and local residents rallied at the Sorong Legislative Council in his defense, demanding that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo form a team to investigate the "conspiracy" behind Labora's case.

He is interestingly frank about his case. He gives interviews to all media, to make public his claim that he shared his financial fortunes with his backers, including senior police officers in Papua and Jakarta.

Last week, he accused the police, the prosecutor's office and the correctional institution of "public deception" by declaring him a fugitive while the fact was that they knew he had not gone anywhere.

He insisted that he had done nothing wrong and refused to go back to jail. He said he had been "victimized" by senior police officers in Sorong and Jakarta. "The Indonesian government uses the law of the jungle," he complained.

As for the letter of clearance, he maintained it was delivered to his home by prison officials and that if it was unlawful, it was the chief warden who ought to be punished. He promised to spill the beans to the court, provided that he was covered by the Witness and Victim Protection Agency.

When Labora's whereabouts became known and the public asked why he was not promptly arrested as a fugitive, police and prosecutors simply passed the buck between themselves.

West Papua Police chief Brig. Gen. Paulus Waterpauw and Attorney General M. Prasetyo in Jakarta have repeatedly called on Labora to voluntarily surrender because the legal process over his case had been completed. Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly, meanwhile, sensed something fishy about the Sorong chief warden's clearance for Labora and has promised an investigation.

Waterpauw, who pledged 630 officers to recapture Labora six months ago, has repeatedly said that the police were refraining from using force because Labora was fiercely defended by hundreds of his workers willing to sacrifice their lives for their boss. "If you were in my shoes, would you risk bloodshed?" he asked.

Labora has revealed that his superiors often treated him like an ATM. From one of his accounts, he claimed that he once gave Raja Ampat police precinct chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Taufik Irfan Rp 600 million in cash to be transferred to Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian. Tito has denied the accusation.

In one media interview, he accused police officers of seizing his timber and auctioning it for Rp 24.7 billion, leaving him only Rp 6.5 billion.

Labora openly challenges state authority. It is a shame that the government is unable to quickly and transparently settle the issue. Besides sending Labora back to prison, the authorities should also investigate senior officers and other bureaucrats who may have collaborated with him. Waterpauw's and other officials' concerns about bloodshed laughable. Where are all the crowd-control skills and equipment bought with taxpayers' money?

The government's soft stand on Labora is but one of the growing signs of the Jokowi regime's weak commitment to stopping the rot.

[The author is a staff writer at The Jakarta Post.]

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/15/view-point-labora-standoff-makes-mockery-our-law-enforcement.html