INFID, April 20, 2006
INFID's Short News Overview No. VII/4: April 14-20, 2006
General News
Weapons business
An Indonesian accused of conspiring to smuggle weapons out of the United States is
a supplier of spare parts for the Indonesian military, a spokesman said on April 15.
The hundreds of weapons that Hadianto Djoko Djuliarso allegedly tried to buy in the
United States "were not ordered by us," said military spokesman Rear Adm. Moh
Sunarto. Djuliarso, 41, and three others suspects were arrested a week ago in Hawaii
after meeting with people they believed would provide the military hardware, U.S.
authorities say. The weapons were to be shipped to Indonesia through Singapore. All
four men were charged with conspiring to violate the U.S. Arms Export Control Act,
which is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Djuliarso "is a
supplier of spare parts, not guns and missiles" for Indonesia's armed forces, said
Sunarto.
He said Djuliarso had been in the U.S. to inspect radar systems for F-5 Tiger jet
fighters. Djuliarso was arrested along with Singaporean Ibrahim Bin Amran, Briton
David Beecroft, and another Indonesian, Ignatius Ferdinandus Soeharli. Sunarto said
he knew nothing about Soeharli. The men were being held in Hawaii but will be
transferred to Detroit to answer charges filed by federal authorities.
Related articles:
Weapons purchaser claims order was for TNI:
http://www.infid.be/military_weapons.htm.
War Business: http://www.infid.be/military_war_business.htm.
Source: AP 15/04
Govt claim victory in war on logging
The government claimed success on April 18 in its war on illegal logging, saying that
a recent clampdown on the industry had cut national deforestation by up to 70 percent
during the past year. However, an environmentalist doubted the government's claims
and said there was evidence illegal logging in many areas was continuing unchecked.
Forestry Ministry statistics show during the past 12 months, Indonesia lost an
estimated 3 million cubic meters of timber from illegal logging, compared to about 10
million cubic meters annually the previous years.
Speaking at his official residence in Central Jakarta, Forestry Minister Malem Sambat
Kaban said: "I believe we can end illegal logging this year." Last year, the
government, the National Police and the military launched a series of security
operations, mostly targeting illegal loggers in Kalimantan and Papua. Officials
arrested hundreds of perpetrators and confiscated more than 500,000 cubic meters of
timber and many units of heavy machinery. Kaban said one indication the war on
illegal logging had been successful was the increasing number of timber processing
companies going bankrupt because of a lack of wood.
However, Yayat Afianto of environmental group Telapak doubted the minister's claims.
He said Telapak's evidence showed timber smuggling from the country was still
rampant and smugglers were finding new ways to evade the authorities.
"The fact that the world's timber industry still growing shows that it still has enough
supply. And this supply is mostly covered by logs cut here illegally," Yayat said.
Telapak still received reports of massive timber smuggling operations from Sumatra,
Kalimantan and Papua and there were many actions the government should take
before claiming victory over illegal logging, he said.
Related articles:
For Timber Trade, Many Routes Lead Through Singapore:
http://www.infid.be/logging_tomber_trade.htm.
Tarkett AG Denies Illegally-Sourced Merbau From Papua:
http://www.infid.be/illegal_logging_tarkett.htm.
S'pore can do more to rein in illegal logging:
http://www.infid.be/illegal_logging_spore.htm.
Source: JP 19/04
May Day Strike
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called on unions to drop a plan to stage a
general strike on May 1. Yudhoyono voiced concerns that the strike would be highly
damaging to the economy and scare off investors.
The labor unions are planning a general strike to mark May Day in an effort to attract
world attention to labor conditions in Indonesia.
"The government doesn't want to see a strike as an agreement has been reached
between unionists and employers to discuss the labor law revisions in a tripartite
dialog. The unions' concerns are being accommodated," said Yudhoyono.
Ten major trade unions renewed their opposition April 18 to the government's plan to
revise the 2003 Labor Law. Among the 10 unions are the Confederation of Indonesian
Prosperity Labor Union (KSBSI), the National Workers Union (SPN), the Indonesian
Trade Union Congress (ITUC), the Indonesian Seafarers Association (KPI) and the
Consortium of Labor Unions in Jakarta and Outskirts. The unions were involved in
organizing the recent wave of massive labor rallies, which pressed the government to
drop the controversial amendment plan.
KSBSI chairman Rekson Silaban, who spoke on behalf of the unions, said they would
continue opposing the revision of the law because the government was doing little else
to improve investment in the country. "The government only wants to revise the labor
law but is doing nothing to eliminate the problems that scare foreign investors away,"
Silaban said. The unions wouldn't be fooled by the alternate academic draft to the law
prepared by the government with the help of state universities and Cabinet ministers,
he said. Silaban said the government should enlist academics from the five state
universities in Medan, Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Makassar to assess
investment in Indonesia and identify all the problems hampering it. "If the government
goes ahead with the process of preparing a new draft law, workers will go on a
national strike in observance of May Day," he said.
Call for a nation wide general strike on May Day:
http://www.infid.be/call_for_strike.htm.
Source: JP 19/04
Power projects
Controversy continues to dog the government's plan to fast-track the construction of
several coal-fired power plants, which was ignited by an initial suggestion that
contractors should be directly appointed instead of picked through a lengthy bidding
process. Although the government later said the Rp 72 trillion (US$8 billion) projects
needed to prevent Indonesia from a future energy crisis would be offered through open
bidding, its insistence on an "accelerated" bidding process is keeping alive concerns
of possible corruption and collusion.
The coordinator of the Working Group for Power Sector Restructuring, Fabby Tumiwa,
insisted on April 16 the government must offer the projects through a bidding system
conforming to international practices of transparency and fairness.
Legislator Didik J. Rachbini of the National Mandate Party said a hasty bidding
process was not an option for any project of high concern to the public.
The government plans to embark on a "crash program" for the development of the
country's power sector, which includes the setting up of a local consortium to support
the construction of several coal-fired power plants, totaling 10,000 megawatts (MW) in
output over the next three years. The consortium would handle construction of plants
with capacity under under 135 MW, while higher output plants would be offered to
multinational power firms. Questions were sparked by the disclosure that the
consortium -- consisting of PT Bukaka Teknik Utama, PT Bakrie & Brothers and PT
Medco Energy -- would be directly appointed to construct the plants. Bukaka
president Achmad Kalla is the brother of the country's Vice President Jusuf Kalla,
while Bakrie & Brothers is linked to Coordinating Minister for Public Welfare Aburizal
Bakrie.
Presidential Regulation No. 8/2006 requires open bidding for all government
procurement projects valued at more than Rp 50 million, exempting those concerning
national security and emergency situations. Kalla eventually responded to the
criticism by saying the process would still involve bidding, although it would be
expedited to three months from the usual year. He argued the shortened process was
important to reduce the country's dependence on more expensive oil-based plants,
which were a burden on the state budget.
Related article:
The Politics of Power: http://www.infid.be/power_politics.htm.
Indonesia's Kalla under fire over business link:
http://www.infid.be/power_under_fire.htm.
Source: JP 17/04
Aceh
Aceh Jaya residents demand revocation of logging permits
Residents in Aceh Jaya regency have urged the government to suspend the
reissuance of three forest concession permits intended to facilitate the Aceh
reconstruction program in the area for not accommodating people's aspirations living
around the forests.
Head of the Aceh Jaya Community Union, Syarifuddin expressed regret over the
government's decision to reissue the permits without consulting local residents
because Aceh Jaya residents have been suffering from the impact of rampant logging
activities there.
"Many rivers have dried up, and when it rains for just a short time, it floods almost
immediately, particularly in Teunom and Krueng Sabee districts in Aceh Jaya," said
Syarifuddin. He suggested that forest concessions be replaced with community
forests, in which area residents decide which forests can be logged and at the same
time protect them.
Residents from six districts in Aceh Jaya will meet from April 24 to 29 to discuss the
permit issuance and formulate a community logging scheme applying mechanisms
and systems closely supervised by the community. The government had previously
issued logging permits to five companies in Aceh to exploit 367,550 hectares of
production forests to expedite the Aceh reconstruction program. Aceh has only
600,000 hectares of production forests remaining. The Aceh office of the Indonesian
Forum for the Environment (Walhi) deplored the decision of the provincial forestry
office for not acquiring the latest data on the remaining area of production forests.
Source: JP 19/04
Aceh leaders return to homeland
Leaders of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) arrived on April 19 in the capital of
Indonesia's Aceh Province after three decades in exile. After being greeted by dozens
of supporters and family members at Banda Aceh airport, they were welcomed by a
traditional dance. A local government official was also seen greeting the leaders in the
airport, with the governor due to return to Aceh later in the day. The leaders, who have
lived in exile in Europe and elsewhere since the 1970s, are to see firsthand how a
peace deal signed last August with the Indonesian government is being implemented.
Among the key GAM leaders is Malik Mahmud, the self-proclaimed prime minister of
the Acehnese government-in-waiting and also one of the signatories of the peace deal.
Another key leader is Zaini Abdullah, who serves as health minister in the self-styled
government. However, GAM’s supreme leader Hasan di Tiro was not among the
returning leaders. According to Mahmud, Tiro will only return to Aceh if !
the implementation of the peace deal continues to run smoothly, saying the only
remaining obstacle to be cleared is legislation for an Aceh government, which is
currently pending in the Indonesian parliament.
Related article:
Exiled GAM leaders to return home: http://www.infid.be/aceh_leaders_return.htm.
Source: KN 19/04
Angry tsunami survivors demand split from Oxfam
Furious tsunami survivors in Indonesia's Aceh have told an international aid agency
that they no longer want their help after waiting a year for them to build promised
houses. British-based Oxfam has since closed their office overseeing Pasi — and the
rest of Aceh Besar and Banda Aceh districts — as they investigate whhat went wrong,
but no matter the outcome, fed-up residents do not want Oxfam back. The
unprecedented rejection of promised aid by a community in devastated Aceh, where
some 168,000 people were killed by the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami,
highlights mounting frustration among homeless tsunami survivors.
Some 127,000 houses are yet to be built, the Reconstruction and Rehabilitation
Agency for Aceh and Nias (BRR) said last month, as he warned too that the cost of
building a home had jumped from 28 to 50 million rupiah ($4200 to $7500).
About 150 of those homes are in Pasi, says village chief Muhammad Hatta, and
Oxfam workers first promised in April last year to build half of them. The laying of
foundations for 11 houses is the only evidence of progress so far.
Lilianne Fan, Oxfam's advocacy coordinator in Aceh, says that Oxfam only officially
committed to building the houses in June 2005 "but on condition that the problem of
land first be settled". Still, Fan says it remains a mystery why so little has been done.
Oxfam spokesman in Banda Aceh, Yon Thayrun, said that it then became impossible
for Oxfam to use funds earmarked for 2005 to begin construction, due to its budgetary
procedures, so they had to wait until this year.
Despite the outrage, Oxfam has pledged to continue helping rebuild Aceh. "We'll sit
together with the people and listen to their aspirations. We will find solutions
together," said Thayrun. "That is because we're committed to rebuilding Aceh. No
matter what people say about us, we will stick to our plan to work there until our term
is over in 2007."
Aceh-Nias Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR) spokesperson Sudirman
Said said that his office would help repair the "communication gap" by looking for
ways to help both Oxfam and Pasi residents. If Pasi residents still refuse Oxfam's
help, BRR would take over the housing construction project with its own budget. "But
only on the condition that Oxfam asks us to take over the job," Sudirman said.
Related article:
Angry Aceh tsunami survivors demand split from aid agency:
http://www.infid.be/aceh_angry_oxfam.htm.
Sources: AFP 14/04, JP 18/04
Papua
NGOs Call for Logging Moratorium
To curb the destruction of the remaining natural forests in Papua, a coalition of
environmental groups has reiterated its call for the government to halt all logging
activities in the resource-rich province.
"Unless such an initiative is taken, Papua and the rest of Indonesia are facing serious
threats of ecological losses, which will lead to forest fires, massive floods, loss of
biodiversity and accelerated climate change," said Greenpeace Southeast Asia
executive director Emmy Hafild. The call was made after Forest Watch Indonesia and
Greenpeace completed their latest forest mapping of New Guinea island, the world's
second largest island after Greenland. The mapping found much of the island's large
intact forests had vanished due to logging activities. The mapping also showed the
region's remaining pristine forests were facing threats of further destruction, as more
than 25 percent of the more than 60 million hectares of forest on the island had been
given away as concessions to scores of logging companies.
In the two Indonesian provinces on the island, the two groups found that 17.9 million
hectares of a total 39.7 million hectares of forest were categorized as intact forests,
housing abundant trees hundreds of years old and largely untouched by humans.
However, these remaining forests could certainly be lost in the coming decades, as
much of the area is crisscrossed by the 11.6 million hectares of logging concessions
handed over by the Indonesian government to 62 timber companies.
Read more: http://www.infid.be/logging_moratorium.htm.
Source: JP 17/04
Poso
Poso 3 case
The Supreme Court has finally agreed to a second case review for three men on death
row in Poso, Central Sulawesi, although officials say its outcome would not change
their sentence for masterminding sectarian violence in 2001. Supreme Court
spokesman Djoko Sarwoko announced on April 17 that a five-member panel of judges
would deliberate the second case review of Fabianus Tibo, Marinus Riwu and
Dominggus da Silva, three Christians accused of orchestrating the murders of local
Muslims. The Attorney General's Office has issued a stay of execution, citing
unfinished preparations, but it has denied the order was connected to widespread
protests demanding the authorities investigate other suspected leaders of the strife.
The justices will be headed by Mariana Sutadi, with members including Djoko, Timur
B. Manurung, Harifin A. Tumpa and Paulus Effendi Lotulung.
"Because this is a second case review, the committee members are different from the
first one," Djoko said. He said that although the Criminal Code stated there could only
be one case review, judges could not deny a request for a second because there was
no relevant law or regulation.
Fabianus Tibo has accused the Synod Council of the Central Sulawesi Christian
Church (GKST) of involvement in the violence. "Most people in Poso know about the
GKST's involvement in the violence. It is very strange the police did not investigate
them," Tibo said on April 15. He claimed that whenever members of the council went
to "war", they gathered in front of the church in Tentena district near Poso to ask for a
blessing. "Several priests who were also synod council members prayed for them," he
said. Tibo demanded police arrest the members of the GKST he accused of being
involved in the violence, and release him and Dominggus da Silva and Don Marinus
Riwu.
The head of the synod council, the Reverend Renaldy Damanik, denied his
organization's involvement in the sectarian violence. However, he acknowledged that
some rogue elements within the council might have played a role in masterminding
the violence.
Read more: http://www.infid.be/poso_tibo_synod.htm.
Sources: JP 16/04 18/04
Abbreviations
AA Asia Pulse/Antara
AFP Agence France-Presse
AP Associated Press
JP The Jakarta Post
KN Kyodo News
|
