INFID, May 19, 2004
INFID's Short News Overview No. VI/17: May 13-19, 2005
General News
Overseas Loan for Defence
The Department of Defence is sounding out the possibility of foreign loans to fund the
development of the Indonesian defence system. Efforts would be made to obtain this
loan in the form of export credits.
"We don't know whether [the proposal for] this loan would be put forward to a foreign
government or institution," said the Director-General for Defence Facilities, Air
Marshal Pieter Wattimena on May 12.
He said that the thinking behind obtaining a loan was to [further] equip the Indonesian
defence system because the government's capabilities were still limited for funding
the defence budget. Currently the government could only provide budgeting for defence
to the tune of 0.8 per cent of Indonesia's gross domestic product, or around 21 trillion
rupiah.
This year the government had increased the defence budget to around 23 trillion
rupiah. Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono, however, said the final decision would
be made during the upcoming state budget revision meeting with the House of
Representatives Budget Committee.
The additional funds, approved by the President on May 18, are lower than the initial
Rp 5 trillion demanded by the Ministry of Defense, as Minister of Finance Jusuf Anwar
had repeatedly rejected the proposal due to limited capacity of the state budget.
Should the new military spending budget be approved by the House, Juwono said it
would help cover the cost of repairing and modernizing TNI equipment, which was
either not functioning or too old.
Next year, Indonesia is expected to increase its military spending by Rp 24 trillion.
Source: BWM 13/05, JP 19/05
BPK finds Rp 8.82 trillion (US$929.32 million) missing from the 2003 state
budget
A BPK regular audit on the government's 2003 state budget report, recently submitted
to the House, discovered that the balance recorded at the end of the 2003 state
budget period should have been Rp 34.58 trillion instead of only Rp 25.75 trillion.
The state budget was managed under the administration of Megawati Soekarnoputri,
with Boediono as the minister of finance. The enormous discrepancy between the
figures, according to the BPK, resulted from the weak internal control system in all
government institutions and violations of finance regulations.
The BPK ended up not giving any opinion to the government's report due to the
ever-present problem of an absence of a standardized auditing system in government
institutions, which has often led to poor documentation and reporting of fund
management. It is the fourth time the BPK has rendered no opinion to state budget
expenditure, but the discrepancy seems to be more extensive than in the past few
years.
The alleged discrepancy was also caused by, among other things, unreported grants
received by ministries, undocumented purchases by the state, inappropriate debt and
grant management, and unreported use of balance.
Although indications of corruption have not been detected as yet, the House
budgetary commission is likely to ask the BPK to carry out an investigative audit.
Minister of Finance Yusuf Anwar acknowledged there was a discrepancy, but placed
the guilt on the absence of regional accountant offices in some areas, unskilled
human resources in accounting, as well as poor information and technology
infrastructure. Yusuf said the government was not obliged to formally explain such
discrepancies because the law on the state budget only orders the report for the
realization of the state budget. However, the government will make formal reports of all
uses of and spending for the 2004 state budget, as obliged in Law No. 28/2003 on the
2004 state budget.
Source: JP 14/05
Munir case
The fact-finding team tasked to assist the investigation into the death by poisoning of
Munir Thalib Said revealed incriminating evidence of the involvement of the State
Intelligence Body (BIN) in the case, saying the main suspect in the murder kept in
touch with a top BIN official after the rights activist died.
Asmara Nababan, the team's deputy head, said after a meeting with President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono on May 18 that Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Prihanto
called the BIN official via his cellular phone several times after Munir's death last
September.
Asmara, a former secretary-general of the National Commission on Human Rights,
declined to identify the BIN official, citing the presumption of innocence.
So far, the investigators and the team have questioned Nurhadi Djazuli, the BIN
secretary-general when the case took place. The fact-finding team has not questioned
Hendropriyono, who was the BIN head at that time.
Meanwhile, flag carrier Garuda Indonesia has suspended three employees who have
been named suspects in the poisoning death of noted human rights activist Munir.
Ari Sapari, the company's operations director, said after a meeting with Vice
President Jusuf Kalla on May 17 that the move was in accordance with Garuda's
internal regulations. The police have declared pilot/aviation security officer Pollycarpus
Budihari Priyanto and flight attendants Yeti Susmiyarti and Oedi Irianto suspects in
the case and detained them.
Nurhadi & More BIN Members Face Questioning:
http://www.infid.be/munir_morebin.htm.
Sources: JP 18/05 19/05
Newmont case
Activists condemned a suggestion by a minister that the government might consider
an out-of-court settlement with U.S. mining company Newmont in a civil lawsuit
involving alleged pollution of Buyat Bay, North Sulawesi, warning that it would set a
bad precedent for the enforcement of environmental law.
Raja Siregar of the Indonesia Forum for the Environment (Walhi) said that if the
government acceded to Newmont's offer of mediation, this would prove its
half-heartedness in enforcing the law in the environmental field.
"Money defeats everything, including the law," he said.
Indo Sugianto of the Indonesia Center for Environmental Law (ICEL) concurred with
Raja, saying that the government was placing foreign investment ahead of the need to
protect the environment.
"This regime is an investment-obsessed regime," he said, referring to the government
of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who is set to meet U.S. investors during a
visit to the U.S. later this month.
On May 13, Coordinating Minister for the Economy Aburizal Bakrie said that the
government might drop a US$133.6 million lawsuit against Newmont unit PT Newmont
Minahasa Raya (NMR) should both sides reach agreement on an out-of-court
settlement.
But State Minister of the Environment Rachmat Witoelar denied on May 16 that the
government had decided to drop its lawsuit against NMR. However, he confirmed that
the government was attempting to negotiate an out-of-court settlement.
NMR has denied allegations that its mining operations near Buyat Bay resulted in
pollution that caused villagers to develop skin diseases and tumors. A string of
scientific tests on samples taken from the bay and from residents by the government,
Newmont and other parties produced conflicting results.
Sources: JP 16/05 17/05
Regional News
Aceh
Indonesia 's government lifted on May 18 the state of emergency in Aceh but
maintained military operation as a part of programs to safeguard the rehabilitation and
reconstruction of the tsunami-ravaged province.
The new status of Aceh was stipulated under a Presidential Decree announced by
Minister of Justice and Human Rights Hamid Awaluddin at the state palace.
Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi said the decision to end military rule and the state of
emergency was based on evaluation of the latest condition in Aceh and a recent
consultation between the government and the Parliament, which recommended the
need of peace to smooth the development of the province.
Separatist rebels, however, claim Indonesia's lifting of emergency rule in the
tsunami-hit Aceh province as a "cruel joke" that came even as the armed forces were
stepping up military operations.
"Jakartas declaration of the end of emergency rule for Aceh seems a cruel joke to
most Acehnese here in Aceh," Free Aceh Movement (GAM) military spokesman
Sofyan Daud said in a statement. "Despite the loudly trumpeted end of emergency
rule, tens of thousands of troops continue to impose a terrifying peace on our people."
Representatives of the government and the exiled GAM leadership in Sweden
reopened their dialogue in January, raising hopes for peace, even though the military
has reported continued clashes since then.
Daud warned in the statement that the GAM remained "a well-organized military
force" that is "capable of stronger steps than we have taken so far".
In the latest clash on May 18, two rebels were killed and two soldiers seriously
wounded, the Banda Aceh-based Serambi daily said. At the same day, an Indonesian
court in the district of Pidie sentenced Tengku Muhammad Arif, a senior leader of the
Free Aceh Movement, to life in prison for illegal possession of weapons and
committing treason against the legal government.
Non-government organisations from the Aceh Working Group (AWG) have welcomed
the reduction of the status change. They support the position taken by the
government and are urging other state institutions such as the TNI (armed forces), the
national police and civil society to respect the government's decision.
"A state of emergency of any kind is no longer relevant especially in the context of a
society which has been through the experience of [the tsunami] disaster and
prolonged conflict", said Rafendi Djamin from AWG in a press statement in Jakarta on
May 17.
The state of martial law and civil emergency in Aceh has clearly had an adverse
impact particularly in terms of the restrictions on political space for the social
movements and even on the movement of domestic and foreign humanitarian aid has
been restricted.
Another AWG activist, Khoirul Anam, said however that with the end to the civil
emergency there are a number of important points which must be given attention
because it is obvious that there has been no significant change in the social, political
and security situation in Aceh.
Anam gave as an example the continued dominance of the military's role in Aceh,
where the reduction of a state of emergency to one of civilian authority has not been
followed by a reduction in troops but instead troop numbers have been increased by
as many as 900 personnel from the East Java 512 Malang Battalion. "It should be that
if it
has already become a civil authority only organic troops should remain in Aceh and
non-organic troops be withdrawn", he said.
Jakarta to Reject Key Aceh Rebel Demand: http://www.infid.be/aceh_reject.htm.
Aceh Killings Continue Ahead of Status Change:
http://www.infid.be/aceh_continue.htm.
Sources: AP 18/05, AFP 19/05, INS 18/05
Papua
Security personnel arrested three alleged Papuan separatists during a raid recently in
Sarmy regency, some 150 kilometers west of Jayapura, a senior military officer said
on May 18.
The arrest took place on May 13 last week, when Indonesian military (TNI) personnel
raided a group of 24 alleged Papuan separatists in a kampong in a remote Sarmi
village, said chief of Jayapura resort military command Col. Asis Wanto. Twenty-one
separatist fled the scene, and the security personnel captured the rest, said Col.
Asis.
"The three people surrendered voluntarily. Not a single shot was fired during the
incident," said Asis.
According to Asis, after investigation, the group of Papuan rebels were believed to
have been responsible for an assault four years ago in Jayapura that left four soldiers
of the Special Forces Command (Kopassus) dead. For the time being, the three are
being charged with possession of firearms that could land them in jail for 20 years,
said chief of Jayapura police Adj. Sr. Comr. Robert Djoenso.
The Campaign for Peace in Papua: http://www.infid.be/papua_peace.htm.
Overcoming Papua Repression Through Peace:
http://www.infid.be/papua_peace2.htm.
Source: JP 19/05
Abbreviations
AFP Agence France-Presse
AP Associated Press
BWM BBC World Monitoring
INS Indoleft News Service
JP The Jakarta Post
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