Indonesia/East Timor News Updates - March 11, 2010
========================================================

* Bali bomber led new terrorist gang
* Terrorists 'still a strong threat' to Indonesia
* Terrorists are drawn to Aceh for many reasons, analysts 
  say
* Security personnel for Freeport reduced
* Raucous crowd churns court at hearing on blasphemy law
* Repealing blasphemy law 'will have fatal effect'
* Boediono and Sri Mulyani not home free from Bank Century 
  Mess yet
* Analysts urge lawmakers to work as 'professionals'
* KPK 'biased' in lawmaker bribery charges
* Rights body probes radio license refusal
* Miners and activists dig for answers in new law
* Police chiefs replaced after clashes with Sulawesi 
  students
* Muhammadiyah targets cigarette ads after issuing fatwa
* Government to raise subsidies by 23% to Rp 199.34 trillion
* East Timor hotel development reveals multiple graves

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Bali bomber led new terrorist gang

Sydney Morning Herald - March 11, 2010

Tom Allard, Jakarta -- Indonesian authorities are in hot pursuit 
of Umar Patek, the last alumnus of the Bali bombing terrorist 
cell who remains at large after the death this week of his 
accomplice Dulmatin.

It is believed the two men, who had been hiding in the southern 
Philippines for years, returned to Indonesia more than six months 
ago to set up a new terrorist group based in Aceh drawing on 
militants from several radical groups.

The Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in Canberra 
yesterday, announced the death of Dulmatin. "We can confirm that 
one of those killed was Mr Dulmatin, one of the top South-East 
Asian terrorists that we've been looking for," Dr Yudhoyono said.

The other terrorist being sought by Indonesian police is Patek, 
Dulmatin's long-standing friend and an Indonesian of Arabian 
descent, intelligence sources told the Herald.

Dulmatin, an explosives and electronics expert, funnelled 
weapons, ammunition and 500 million rupiah ($60,000) to the 
terrorist training camp in Aceh, the Indonesian police chief, 
Bambang Hendarso Danuri, said.

Patek, meanwhile, is believed to have emerged as an ideological 
and operational leader of the new cell, at least as senior as 
Dulmatin. Patek was the deputy field commander in the first Bali 
bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians, in 
2002.

The new terrorist group brings together jihadist expertise from 
across South-East Asia, and shows how militants have regrouped 
following the death last year of the terrorist leader Noordin 
Mohammed Top.

Sidney Jones, a Jakarta-based analyst for the International 
Crisis Group, said the cell in Aceh was a grouping of disaffected 
militants, frustrated that the leadership of their own 
organisations will not sanction mass attacks on civilians.

She said some of those detained were linked to Jemaah Ansharut 
Tauhid, the new group led by the cleric Abu Bakar Bashir. Bashir 
-- infamous for his praise of the Bali bombers -- was imprisoned, 
and then released after a successful appeal, for the 2002 
attacks.

Others are from the radical fringe of Darul Islam, the anti-
Christian organisation KOMPAK, Jemaah Islamiah and the Islamic 
Defenders' Front.

"What we have seen is a coming together of the most militant 
people from different jihadist groups," Ms Jones said. "They have 
all come up to Aceh."

The governor of Aceh, Irwandi Yusuf, said authorities had been 
monitoring the militants for close to a year.

The group has its roots in a program run by the Islamic 
Defenders' Front (FPI), an Islamist gang famous for beating up 
pro-secular activists. FPI sent cadres to Aceh to train to fight 
Israeli troops in Gaza.

"When the conflict at the Gaza Strip died down, [another] 
organisation took the opportunity to recruit these boys," Mr 
Irwandi said. "This was the beginning of the terrorist training."

Mr Irwandi said the group had no ties to GAM, the armed 
separatist group in Aceh of which he was once a senior member.

Ms Jones said the appeal of Aceh would have been its location, 
strategically placed between south Asia and Singapore, Malaysia 
and southern Thailand. She cautioned that the new group may have 
other cells outside the Sumatran province.

Dulmatin was shot dead at point-blank range on Tuesday by 
counter-terrorism police in a raid on an internet cafe in 
Jakarta's outskirts, with witnesses disputing police accounts 
that they were fired upon.

Dulmatin remotely detonated the huge car bomb that devastated the 
Sari Club while holiday-makers danced in October 2002.

---------------------------------------------------

Terrorists 'still a strong threat' to Indonesia

Jakarta Globe - March 11, 2010

Nurfika Osman & Farouk Arnaz -- Despite the confirmed death of 
terrorist mastermind Dulmatin, a resurgent and expanding militant 
network still posed serious security concerns, experts warned on 
Wednesday.

Andi Widjajanto, a military analyst from the University of 
Indonesia, said regional terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, blamed 
for a string of deadly terrorist attacks including the 2002 Bali 
bombings, appeared to be growing stronger as it was now no longer 
solely based in Java.

"They are recruiting new members outside Java and developing new 
cells," he said. "We estimate that there are 300 active JI 
members spread nationwide with [an additional] 240 released 
terrorist convicts. This does not include many people who are 
being trained secretly."

National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri, addressing a 
news conference earlier on Wednesday, said JI was regrouping 
despite the fact police had killed or captured more than 400 
terrorist suspects since 2002.

"JI always reorganizes itself," Bambang said. "We should remain 
alert to this threat even though we've already killed several of 
their leaders and captured more than 400 terror suspects."

Bambang said the police believed Dulmatin, who allegedly 
established a shadowy paramilitary training camp in Aceh, had 
encouraged raising funds by robbing non-Muslims. JI has in the 
past used armed robberies to fund its terrorist attacks.

Brig. Gen. Surya Dharma, the National Police's former antiterror 
chief, told the Jakarta Globe that the recent police raids on 
militants in Aceh and Java were proof that JI was still a 
presence and was changing its tactics.

He said police had been concerned for some time that JI would 
adopt the same tactics as Abu Sayyaf, a violent Muslim separatist 
group based in the southern Philippines, which favors kidnapping 
for ransom and hit-and-run attacks.

Those fears were heightened when it became apparent that 
Dulmatin, who is closely linked to Muslim separatist groups in 
the Philippines, returned to Indonesia, Surya said. Andi said 
Dulmatin's return was to fill the power vacuum left after JI's 
former leader, Noordin M Top, was killed last year.

But Noor Huda Ismail, head of the Institute for International 
Peacebuilding, said the peace deal struck between the Moro 
Islamic Liberation Front and the Philippine government was more 
likely to have prompted his return.

Meanwhile, Andi said three dangerous terrorist suspects still 
remained at large, namely Upik Lawangga, Umar Patek and 
Zulkarnaen.

Both Umar and Zulkarnean are wanted by the US government for 
their roles in the 2002 Bali bombings, while Zulkarnean is 
believed by some analysts to now head JI.

"Umar Patek is still on the run; we don't know where he is," Andi 
said. "The latest information has placed Zulkarnaen in Sabah, 
Malaysia. The third person is Upik Lawangga and he's believed to 
be in Poso, Central Sulawesi, developing a new group."

He said that JI had selected Aceh and other places off Java for 
its bases as part of a "new pattern of terrorism."

Aside from being a former conflict area, Aceh was also suitable 
as a base as it was near the Malacca Strait, providing a good 
vantage for both escape and spreading terrorism, Andi said.

---------------------------------------------------

Terrorists are drawn to Aceh for many reasons, analysts say

Jakarta Globe - March 10, 2010

Nurdin Hasan & Nurfika Osman -- As police continued to hunt armed 
militants in Aceh, analysts said on Wednesday that they were not 
surprised the group had chosen to make its base in the province, 
which they claimed made an inviting target for those wishing to 
spread terror in the region.

"Aceh not only provides excellent cover [geographically], it was 
once absolutely conflict-ridden," military analyst Andi 
Widjajanto told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday, referring to the 
nearly three-decade-long guerrilla war waged by the separatist 
Free Aceh Movement (GAM) against Indonesian rule.

A peace deal in 2005, reached after the Indian Ocean tsunami that 
devastated much of the resource-rich province, brought an end to 
the conflict.

"The fact that Aceh is near the Malacca Strait also helps," Andi 
said, "by providing a good gateway to escape and by helping them 
[terrorists] move about quickly to spread their ideas."

Police earlier said that geographically, Aceh provided excellent 
cover for the militants. The province's mountainous, forested 
regions made it difficult for authorities to detect paramilitary 
training camps set up by the militants.

Teuku Ardiansyah, a security analyst from the Katahati Institute 
in Aceh, however, said on Wednesday that geographic advantages 
were not the only attraction for militants.

"The Acehnese will accept anybody who arrives in their villages," 
Teuku told the Globe. "They are known for that. They tolerate it 
because, even when GAM was around, there have never been any 
recorded terrorist activities in Acehnese history, like bombings 
and what not."

"In addition, these [militant] groups would have been looking for 
a place where police raids would not be conducted very 
frequently. Aceh was that place, particularly after the conflict 
ended," Teuku added.

"Even when Umar Al Faruq [an Al Qaeda operative] arrived in Aceh 
in 1999 as a representative of Osama bin Laden, he acknowledged 
that Aceh could never be turned into a base for terrorist 
activities because the characteristics of the Acehnese were so 
different."

Members of the armed group being hunted by police, according to 
terrorism analyst Al Chaidar in North Aceh, were linked to the 
Darul Islam hard-line movement that sought to turn Indonesia into 
an Islamic state between 1942 and 1962.

"The implementation of Islamic Shariah law in Aceh was a magnet 
for militant groups," Al Chaidar said. "They thought they could 
bring their families here to see how the law was being correctly 
implemented. But they were disappointed. They found the 
implementation artificial because they believed in the [ultra-
orthodox] Wahabi style."

Established in 1949 by Sekarmadji Maridjan Kartosoewirjo in West 
Java, Darul Islam is a hard-line political movement.

Sekarmadji's execution by the military in the 1960s officially 
ended the movement, but splinters of Darul Islam continue to 
exist. The ideology of the group is found within the teachings of 
Jemaah Islamiyah, a regional terrorist organization. JI, however, 
wants to establish a pan-Islamic state in the Asean region, while 
Darul Islam wants to establish Negara Islam Indonesia, or an 
Indonesian Islamic state.

Police have so far arrested 21 militants in Aceh, West Java and 
Jakarta since the first arrests were made on Feb. 22 in Aceh.

They also have killed six suspected militants, including top 
terrorist suspect Dulmatin, who was gunned down on Tuesday during 
a police raid on the outskirts of Jakarta.

Brig. Gen. Tito Karnavian, head of anti-terrorism unit Densus 88, 
said Dulmatin was the mastermind behind the paramilitary camp in 
Aceh.

Andi said Dulmatin had been far more dangerous than slain 
terrorists Azahari bin Husin and Noordin Moh Top. Azahari was 
killed in a police raid in Batu, East Java, in 2005, while 
Noordin was killed in Solo, Central Java, last year.

"He [Dulmatin] was not just a bomb-maker but provided intensive 
military training in Mindanao [southern Philippines] since 2003," 
Andi said. "He then became the JI leader for the Southeast Asian 
region. His character was far more aggressive than Azahari or 
Noordin."

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Security personnel for Freeport reduced

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Timika -- The number of security personnel stationed at the 
working area of PT Freeport Indonesia has been reduced from 1,576 
to 886, a police officer said Monday night.

The decision was made in a meeting between the police, military 
offices and the management of PT Freeport. The minimized team 
includes 607 members of police corps and being military members.

Mimika Police chief Adj. Snr. Comr. Muhammad Sagi also said the 
road between Timika and the mining site in Tembagapura was still 
closed for night traffic. A curfew was enforced following a 
string of shooting incidents at police officers and civilians.

---------------------------------------------------

Raucous crowd churns court at hearing on blasphemy law

Jakarta Globe - March 11, 2010

Ulma Haryanto -- Heated debate and cries from a rowdy crowd 
marked Wednesday's hearing in the judicial review of the 1965 
Blasphemy Law, as leaders of the hardline Islamic Defenders Front 
and the conservative Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia took to the podium 
at the Constitutional Court to deliver their arguments in support 
of the law.

Packed with people wearing the uniforms of the Islamic Defenders 
Front, also known as the FPI, and Arabic-style outfits, the 
courtroom was filled with shouts of joy each time an Islamic 
leader took to the stand in support of the law, and jeers for 
plaintiffs who supported the review of the law.

Outside the courtroom at least 100 people from a number of 
conservative Islamic groups, calling themselves part of the 
Islamic People's Forum (FUI), declared that they were against the 
judicial review, saying it was an effort by the court to "harass 
Islam."

"I disagree with the view that the state should not interfere 
with religious matters. If it were left only to the people, it 
would be dangerous," FPI leader Habib Rizieq Shihab told the 
court.

Habib said that prior violence toward followers of Ahmadiyah, a 
minority Islamic sect, was simply a result of "tardiness" on the 
part of the state, which had failed to act against the group in 
time.

"Look at Lia Eden. The government detained her immediately. But 
with the Ahmadiyah, the government did not do anything. So do not 
be surprised that the public took matters into their own hands 
with street justice," he said.

He was referring to jailed Kingdom of Eden sect leader Lia 
Aminuddin, who claimed to be the bride of the biblical figure 
Archangel Gabriel, who she said ordered that Islam and other 
religions be disbanded.

Indonesian law recognizes only six religions: Islam, 
Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism. 
All others are officially banned.

In 2008, the government used the Blasphemy Law to formally ban 
Ahmadiyah because the sect held that its founder, Mirza Ghulam 
Ahmad, was the last prophet of Islam, a claim that contradicts 
mainstream Muslim beliefs.

Habib also claimed that the judicial review was being used by 
more liberal Islamic followers to publish their own "critical 
interpretation" of the Koran.

"This is a big project for them. They are going to use Islamic 
hermeneutics to interpret the Koran, when hermeneutics is a 
method that is used to interpret the Bible," he said.

Thahir Azhary, from the Islamic organization Al Irsyad Al 
Islamiyyah, also questioned the purpose of the judicial review.

"Are there foreign political interests at work here? Zionists? We 
cannot just import freedom from the Western world. Those non-
Muslim Westerners only want to mislead us," Thahir said.

At the hearing, the sixth in the review process, the 
Constitutional Court invited their own witnesses for the first 
time. They included Azyumardi Azra, dean of the graduate program 
at Jakarta's Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, and 
sociologist Thamrin Amal Tomagola, from the University of 
Indonesia.

According to Thamrin, sociology holds that religion is based on 
the fascination of everything mighty.

"Then it is institutionalized in three forms -- religious 
teachings, ideologies and social groups. As a revelation, a 
religion is final, but as an ideological understanding, there can 
be multiple interpretations. It can never be final. Those forms 
are within the public realm and not under the state," Thamrin 
said.

Thamrin said he doubted Habib's opinion that eliminating the law 
would trigger rioting.

"This will not happen if the police are assertive in keeping 
public order, security and public convenience. The destruction of 
mosques, churches and other places of worship is about the 
security of people. It doesn't have to be about religion," he 
said.

Thamrin also stressed the importance of freedom in following 
their religion and faith.

"If there is someone who prays using Bahasa Indonesia, then let 
them. Everybody is entitled to perform their beliefs, as stated 
by the law. What is not allowed is if you ask other people, and 
they refuse, and then you use force," he said.

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Repealing blasphemy law 'will have fatal effect'

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Arghea Desafti Hapsari, Jakarta -- Academics took to the stand 
Wednesday in the judicial review of the blasphemy law, as hard-
line Islamic groups warned of a violent backlash should the law 
be revoked.

The two expert witnesses testifying at the Constitutional Court 
on the day both concurred that several contentious articles in 
the law needed to be revised.

Prominent Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra, a professor of history 
and director at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University's 
postgraduate school in Jakarta, said he believed the state should 
never interfere in theological or doctrinal matters.

"These are the domain and responsibility of religious authorities 
appointed by followers of the given religions," he said. "There 
is no guarantee, though, that every follower will agree to 
everything [a religious authority figure says]."

Azra added a law was still needed to regulate blasphemy, but 
recommended the existing one be revised to provide a clearer 
definition of what constituted blasphemy. "We need to define 
[blasphemy] in a more detailed and distinct way, such that we 
don't get vastly different interpretations of blasphemy," he 
said.

The other witness, sociology expert Tamrin Amal Tomagola, said he 
believed regulating blasphemous acts under the Criminal Code was 
a "contempt against one's dignity".

"There's no need for a special law for blasphemy, but if some 
people insist on keeping such a law, then certain items in it 
must be revised," he said. He agreed with Azra that revising the 
definition of what constituted blasphemy was vital.

Taking the stand after Azra and Tamrin, Mahendradatta from the 
hard-line group Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) said the 
petitioners seeking a judicial review of the law were 
inconsistent in distinguishing private matters from public.

"They say casual sex and pornography are private matters that the 
state should never interfere in," he said.

"But they also say unregistered marriages are public matters in 
which the state should interfere." Mahendradatta added the state 
needed to intervene in some private matters deemed dangerous, 
including drug use.

"Blasphemy is far more dangerous than narcotics, so it's only 
proper that the state take action against those who deviate," he 
said. He called on the court to retain the law and increase the 
severity of punishment for violators.

Habib Rizieq, from the hard-line Islam Defenders Front (FPI), 
warned of "fatal consequences" should the law be revoked, during 
his testimony. "In the future, if anyone insults a religion, 
Islam for example, and there is no official legal process in 
place, Muslims will use their own ways, by killing the heretics," 
he said.

The FPI is notorious for several attacks against members of the 
Ahmadiyah sect.

HTI and FPI members hold rallies outside the Constitutional Court 
every Wednesday, when it convenes to hear the judicial review.

Commuters driving past the court faced worse traffic congestion 
than usual Wednesday because of the larger crowds lending support 
to their representatives testifying inside.

The request for a judicial review of the blasphemy law was filed 
by several NGOs and self-proclaimed promoters of pluralism, who 
claim the law discriminates against certain religious groups, 
particularly minorities that have been denied the fundamental 
right to worship.

The contentious articles in the law involve the government's 
authority to dissolve religious groups whose beliefs and 
practices are deemed blasphemous by religious authorities such as 
the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and the Religious Affairs 
Ministry.

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Boediono and Sri Mulyani not home free from Bank Century mess yet

Jakarta Globe - March 10, 2010

Anita Rachman & Muninggar Sri Saraswati -- Despite the House of 
Representatives having issued its final recommendations on the 
Bank Century bailout and law-enforcement agencies commencing 
their own investigations, there still appears to be a chance that 
parties may initiate proceedings to impeach Vice President 
Boediono and oust Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

Golkar Party lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo said on Wednesday that 
action against Boediono and Sri Mulyani might proceed if the 
government fails to back further investigation of the bailout in 
accordance with the House's recommendations.

"If the government is not serious, we could use our rights to 
express opinion," he said. "We have been trying not to use it as 
it will incite shock. But, if the government is not serious, what 
we can do?"

Ruling coalition partners the Golkar Party, Prosperous Justice 
Party (PKS) and United Development Party (PPP), as well as 
opposition factions the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle 
(PDI-P), the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) and the 
People's Conscience Party (Hanura) all voted to declare the 
bailout illegal.

However, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono aggressively defended 
Boediono and Sri Mulyani in his official response to the House's 
recommendations.

The PDI-P said it was currently focusing on monitoring law-
enforcement agencies to see if they implemented the House's 
recommendations but did not discount the possibility of calling 
for the impeachment of Boediono and the firing of Sri Mulyani.

"We are ready to go there," PDI-P lawmaker Eva Kusuma Sundari 
said. "But we have priorities. For the short term, our focus is 
upholding the House's recommendation while for the long term it 
is the impeachment."

Akbar Faisal, a Hanura lawmaker, said that his party would be 
consistent in its attempts to uncover the truth in the Bank 
Century case.

Ikrar Nusa Bakti, a political analyst at the Indonesian Institute 
of Sciences (LIPI), predicted that political tensions would not 
escalate in the near future.

"I think it is a cooling down period at the moment," he said, 
adding that the political parties were currently busy determining 
the future of the ruling coalition, which is led by Yudhoyono's 
Democratic Party

It was a difficult process to the call for an impeachment, Ikrar 
said. The first step would be House factions expressing their 
opinions, followed by a plenary meeting at which a House 
statement would be drawn up and then by a special session of the 
People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), he said.

"It won't be easy," Ikrar said. "The Democratic Party faction and 
its coalition partners could easily skip the plenary session, and 
the quorum would never be met," he said.

If a plenary session did not get a quorum, the House would be 
unable to issue a statement, Ikrar said.

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Analysts urge lawmakers to work as 'professionals'

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Hans David Tampobolon, Jakarta -- Legislators should retain their 
professionalism and put aside their personal differences with 
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati amid growing conflict over 
the Bank Century case, say analysts.

The House of Representatives' budget commission chairman Hari 
Azhar Azis, from the Golkar Party, told The Jakarta Post Tuesday 
that some lawmakers had threatened to boycott future meetings 
with the finance minister.

The lawmakers believe Mulyani was responsible for the Rp 6.76 
trillion (US$716 million) Bank Century bailout, which was 
declared illegal by a House plenary meeting last month.

The minister is scheduled to discuss the revision of the 2010 
state budget with the House budgeting committee next month.

House speaker Marzuki Ali from the Democratic Party, deplored the 
planned boycott. He said the state budget was an important issue 
for the state and the public, while Mulyani has said the 
lawmakers' plan would be self-defeating.

Legal expert Irmanputra, said the House should not use the 
bailout issue to justify a boycott of the executive.

"A boycott will do nothing good for our country. Every single 
state institution must be committed to doing its job for the 
greater good. The willingness to do so is the real definition of 
statesmanship," said Irmanputra on the sidelines of a discussion 
on the bailout controversy.

Aviliani, an economist at the Institute for the Development of 
Economics and Finance (INDEF), told a discussion at the House in 
Jakarta on Wednesday that the legislators had to move on and 
should not be held hostage by the bailout issue.

"The House must start paying more attention to other issues, such 
as deliberating crucial bills," she said.

"Economy related bills, such as the financial safety net (JPSK) 
bill and the financial services authority (OJK) bill, must be 
deliberated as soon as possible.

"Those bills are important, because there is a possibility that 
another economic crisis could hit Indonesia," said Aviliani. "If 
those bills are not endorsed into law, then what kind of basis 
can the government use to face a crisis should one arrive?"

Meanwhile, a political analyst from Charta Politika, Yunarto 
Wijaya, said the country had learned a lot from the Bank Century 
case, which he said was conducted very openly.

"The investigation actually revealed there was a severe abuse of 
power in both the executive and legislative arms in our state 
system," he said.

"President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he took full 
responsibility for the case as the 'head of the state', not as 
the 'head of the government'."

Yunarto argued that by the President declaring responsibility as 
the head of state, he was actually trying to escape any possible 
constitutional implication against him.

"And it seemed the legislators degraded the true value of an 
inquiry committee. If the House only wanted to probe the decision 
makers, why did they establish an inquiry committee in the first 
place?"

Yunarto said that with all the oddities, it was natural for the 
public to question the integrity of both the government and the 
House at the same time.

"So, let's use this case as an important lesson to fix the state 
system for the sake of the future," he said.

---------------------------------------------------

KPK 'biased' in lawmaker bribery charges

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta -- Observers say the Corruption 
Eradication Commission (KPK) has been biased in its handling of a 
bribery scandal at the House of Representatives.

The KPK has named four former lawmakers as suspects for allegedly 
receiving bribes for the 2004 election of Miranda S. Goeltom to 
Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor, while testimonies have 
revealed that the money also went to another 37 legislators, then 
members of House's Commission IX on banking and finance.

The suspects are Endin Akhmad Jalaluddin Soefihara of the United 
Development Party (PPP), Dudhie Makmun Murod of the Indonesian 
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Hamka Yandhu of Golkar and 
Udju Djuhaeri from the military faction.

The four, in documents obtained by The Jakarta Post, have 
admitted the bribes were gratuities for voting for Miranda. The 
KPK, however, has not yet named who they suspect gave the money, 
let alone the mastermind.

The indictment of the defendant Dudhie, for example, revealed at 
least two alleged bribers, Arie Malangjudo and his former 
business colleague Nunun Nurbaeti. Arie has faced four 
questioning sessions at the KPK and Nunun one.

A legal researcher from Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), Febri 
Diansyah, said the KPK was "biased" in the investigation. "It's 
strange that, in a bribery case, the receivers are named suspects 
with nobody being named the alleged bribers," he told the Post.

Febri said the KPK was showing signs of decline. "I suspect that 
some corruptors within the commission are influencing 
investigations," he said, refusing to name names.

A KPK official requesting anonymity told the Post that certain 
"star" investigators had protected Nunun and Arie from being 
named suspects. "A number of the KPK's top officials were 
involved in a fierce debate over the matter," the source said.

Investigators in the KPK are mostly recruited from the police, 
while Nunun is the wife of Comr. Gen. (ret.) Adang Daradjatun, a 
former National Police deputy chief. Febri suspected that 
investigators had been reluctant to probe Nunun due to her 
husband's former position.

In defense of the KPK, the commission's spokesman Johan Budi said 
the KPK would study material evidence and testimonies revealed 
during the trials. "If we get convincing evidence in the trials 
naming new suspects, we will surely [lay charges]," he said.

A legal expert from the University of Indonesia (UI), Rudy 
Satrio, backed Johan's statement, saying that the public should 
be patient.

Endin's lawyer, Soleh Amin, said he had learned the KPK actually 
had more than enough evidence to name both Arie and Nunun as 
suspects. "[There is] no need to wait for more evidence from the 
trials," he said.

A copy of Arie's dossier obtained by the Post revealed that he 
had handed over the money on Nunun's orders. In June 2004, 
several days before the election of central bank's senior deputy 
governor, Nunun called Arie to meet her at her office. Arie found 
that Nunun was with Hamka Yandhu.

"I want you to hand over gratuity money for legislators," Nunun 
told Arie, according to the dossier. "Why me?" Arie replied. "You 
want my office boy to do it? They're members of parliaments!" 
Nunun said, after which Arie followed the order.

A few hours after Miranda won the vote, Arie handed over four 
envelopes containing Rp 50 million (US$5,000) traveler's cheques 
to each of the legislators.

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Rights body probes radio license refusal

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta -- The National Commission on Human Rights 
(Komnas HAM) will seek an explanation from the Indonesian 
Broadcasting Commission (KPI) for its refusal to approve a 
broadcasting license to a radio station in Batam, Riau, and from 
the Communications and Information Technology Ministry for 
ordering the radio to stop operating.

Commissioner Johny Nelson Simanjuntak told a press conference 
here Wednesday that both the KPI and the ministry had failed to 
explain to Radio Erabaru their reasons despite the radio station, 
in terms of technical operation and substances, following all 
existing regulations.

However, the largely Mandarin-language station suspects the 
government is closing them down on behalf of Beijing because of 
its vocal criticism of the Chinese government.

According to Radio Erabaru director Raymond Tan, the orders from 
the two institutions came after the Chinese Embassy met with the 
KPI in 2007 and sent letters to Indonesia's Foreign Ministry, 
requesting an order for the radio station to stop airing.

"(Komnas HAM) will also ask (Indonesia's) Foreign Ministry to 
facilitate a meeting with the Chinese ambassador for an 
explanation of their intentions," he said.

"(If this is true) it is an intervention of press freedoms in 
Indonesia by the Chinese government, which could set a bad 
precedent for the country in the future," he added.

Raymond -- a follower of the Falun Gong movement, which is banned 
in China -- said his station often reported alleged rights abuses 
in China, including those endured by Falun Gong followers and 
Uighur Muslims, and conflicts in Tibet.

He said the same letters were also sent to Indonesia's Home 
Affairs Ministry and even the State Intelligence Agency.

Radio Erabaru has been operating since 2005 after obtaining a 
permit from Riau provincial administration. It requested a 
broadcast license from the KPI, which was rejected in late 2007 
without explanation, according to Raymond.

Raymond said he was appealing to the Supreme Court to challenge 
the KPI's decision, but had received four letters from the Batam 
chapter of the Agency for the Monitoring of Radio Frequency 
Spectrum, a body under the Communications and Information 
Technology Ministry, which ordered Radio Erabaru to stop airing.

Johny said the monitoring agency's act was "outrageous" and 
unethical, considering the case was ongoing.

The Chinese Embassy, meanwhile, has not responded to The Jakarta 
Post's inquiry on the issue.

---------------------------------------------------

Miners and activists dig for answers in new law

Jakarta Globe - March 10, 2010

Fidelis E Satriastanti -- Underground mining officially became 
legal in the country's protected forests on Feb. 1. Now 
environmentalists and miners are working to determine the 
viability of such operations and their effect on the rapidly 
disappearing natural landscape.

The new regulation came against the backdrop of the country's 
noisy pledge to protect its vast forest areas as part of its 
ambitious goal of reducing carbon emissions by 26 percent by 
2020.

"Any kind of mining activities, whether open-pit or underground, 
will eventually change the landscape," said Iskandar Zulkarnain, 
director of geology research at the Indonesian Institute of 
Sciences (LIPI). "That's a fixed price. But the impact on the 
environment caused by mining activities is still unclear."

In underground mining, Iskandar said, the exploration method does 
not immediately alter the above-ground landscape as operators 
usually only build underground tunnels. But the long-term effects 
are still in question.

Controversy over mining in protected forests has raged since the 
1999 Forestry Law, which stipulates that they are off-limits for 
open-pit mining. The law doesn't mention underground mining.

Under the 1999 law, forest functions are divided into 
conservation, protection and forestry-production purposes, with a 
percentage of the latter allowed for other, non-forest 
activities, such as plantations.

The controversy centered on the fact that 13 mining companies 
operating open-pit mines in protected forest areas -- including 
PT Freeport Indonesia, PT Aneka Tambang, PT Karimun Granit and PT 
International Nickel Indonesia -- were given a legal basis for 
their operations in 2004 when President Megawati Sukarnoputri 
issued a regulation in lieu of law (perppu).

The regulation issued in February states that protected forest 
areas can be exploited, but only through underground mining.

"Under the new regulation, it is clear that underground mining 
can only be done under strict conditions," Iskandar said "It must 
not alter the groundwater, change the function of the forests 
above it or cause surface subsidence."

He added that underground mining came with higher risks to 
workers and cost more than open-pit mining. "This method is very 
expensive. That is why 90 percent of mining sites in this country 
practice open-pit mining," Iskandar said.

"Most miners would consider underground mining a last option," he 
said, adding that underground mining was most common for gold and 
coal.

Irwandy Arif, chairman of the Indonesian Mining Professionals 
Association (Perhapi), said underground mining would only affect 
a small amount of the land's surface.

"Underground mining means that [companies] are allowed to extract 
minerals from under the soil, utilizing surface land for building 
infrastructure but not chopping down trees as with open-pit 
mining," he said.

The new regulation, he added, will encourage future investment 
because there is now a clear legal prescription on how to mine in 
protected forest areas, despite the high cost.

Siti Maimunah, national coordinator of the Mining Advocacy 
Network (Jatam), however, said the regulation was inappropriate 
given that Indonesia has one of the fastest deforestation rates 
in the world.

"They're protected forests; even their name says it's wrong [to 
exploit them]. How can you change protected forest into mining 
area?" Siti said.

She called for the new regulation and the 2004 perppu to be 
reversed, and for a review of the licences given to the 13 mining 
companies operating open-pit mines in protected forests.

Despite its promising yields, underground mining is a dangerous 
pursuit, with frequent reports of deadly accidents. Last year at 
least 32 people were killed when a methane explosion collapsed a 
mine in Sawahlunto, West Sumatra.

The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry reported that a total 
of 284 people were killed in mining-related accidents across the 
country in 2009.

---------------------------------------------------

Police chiefs replaced after clashes with Sulawesi students

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Andi Hajramurni, Makassar -- It is alleged that Makassar and East 
Makassar Police chiefs are being transferred from their posts for 
their involvement in uncontrolled clashes between students and 
police in the South Sulawesi capital last week.

When the transfers were confirmed on Wednesday, South Sulawesi 
Police chief Insp. Gen. Adang Rochjana said he had no idea 
whether the move was related to last week's violent clashes.

"I don't know whether the rotation is related [to the incident] 
or not. It not only affect chiefs from Makassar and East Makassar 
Police, but 33 officers across the country," he said.

"Besides, they are being promoted, not demoted. So it seems the 
changes are related to the National Police's streamlining 
policy," he said.

In the province, the transfers will affect Makassar Police chief 
Sr. Comr. Gatta Khaeruddin, who will become chief of the 
partnership supervision bureau at the West Java Police.

Gatta will be replaced by Sr. Comr. Chaerul Anwar, who previously 
worked at the National Police's criminal and detective division.

East Makassar Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Mansjur, will became 
head of the technical and planning subdivision at the National 
Police. He will be replaced by Sr. Comr. Totok Lisdiarto, the 
former head of South Sulawesi Police's mobile brigade.

The changes will also affect the director of security and 
intelligence at South Sulawesi Police, Sr. Comr. Sugi Pamili and 
the head of the Bhayangkara Police hospital.

Following last week's clashes, students from the Association of 
Muslim Students (HMI) have called for the replacement of the 
Makassar, South Sulawesi and National Police chiefs, accusing 
them of failing to control their personnel, which they claim 
caused the conflict.

Four police personnel were detained following the attack against 
the secretariat and assaults against activists who wanted to 
report the attack to the police.

Three policemen proven guilty in the assaults have been sentenced 
to 21 days detention, following disciplinary court proceeding.

Investigations are continuing into whether police officer Adj. 
Insp. Sutriman, a member of the national counterterrorism squad, 
was responsible for the attack.

The police are still questioning witnesses, including student 
Ashari Setyawan, a.k.a. Kama Cappi, who allegedly clashed with 
Sutriman and triggered the attack against the HMI secretariat.

Meanwhile, former vice president Jusuf Kalla, who is also a 
former South Sulawesi HMI member, visited the secretariat on 
Wednesday.

Kalla said he regretted the attacks and the damage suffered by 
the police and public facilities.

"The police were wrong to damage the students' facility, but the 
students are also guilty of damaging public facilities," he said.

He said protesting was permissible, but must not spark violent 
rioting or disrupt public activities.

---------------------------------------------------

Muhammadiyah targets cigarette ads after issuing fatwa

Jakarta Globe - March 10, 2010

Nurfika Osman -- A day after Muhammadiyah issued a fatwa banning 
its followers from lighting up, both the organization and 
antitobacco campaigners have targeted cigarette advertising as 
one of the main culprits behind a generation of new smokers.

"We issued the fatwa because we believed those advertisements 
were targeting children and teenagers. This could ruin the 
country's future generations," Ahmad Zaenuddin, who heads the 
Jakarta office of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second-largest 
Islamic organization, said on Wednesday.

He added that it was common knowledge that tobacco companies used 
prominent celebrities in their advertising to convince young 
people across the nation that smoking was fashionable.

"The children will follow the lifestyle of their favorite public 
figures and TV stars," he said. "This is one of the dangers of 
tobacco advertising, because they use actors who can capture the 
young people's attention."

Aside from issuing the fatwa on smoking, Muhammadiyah is also 
expected to lobby the government to immediately ratify the World 
Heath Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, 
which mandates that signatories implement methods to reduce 
tobacco use.

Adam Aliyyi, 15, a senior high school student in the capital, 
told the Jakarta Globe that he started smoking when he was 11 
years old.

"I was able to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day," he said. "But I 
have cut down somewhat because I am not so healthy anymore. I 
only smoke on Saturday nights now."

Adam said that he had started smoking because cigarettes were 
heavily advertised and promoted at concerts and events, which are 
often sponsored by tobacco companies.

"I love attending youth events. Some are even held at my school 
and they discreetly offer us free cigarettes there," he said.

Dr. Kartono Muhammad, a leading antitobacco campaigner and former 
chairman of the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI), confirmed 
that cigarette advertising had a significant impact on children.

"Children are the best imitators and they want to be like their 
role models," he said. "Children are exposed to these 
advertisements on the streets and at musical performances where 
their idols light up."

Kartono also said smoking could act as a gateway to hard drugs. 
"Once children are addicted to cigarettes, they tend to try 
other, stronger addictive substances. They will want more."

A survey by the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas 
Anak) in 2007 revealed that almost half of teens polled had taken 
up smoking because of advertising. The study also found that 
tobacco companies had sponsored 1,350 youth-oriented events from 
January to October in 2007.

---------------------------------------------------

Government to raise subsidies by 23% to Rp 199.34 trillion

Jakarta Post - March 11, 2010

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta -- Total subsidies will be raised by 
26.3 percent to Rp 199.34 trillion (US$21.73 billion) in the 
revised 2010 state budget to protect households, the main driver 
of Indonesia's economy, the Finance Ministry said.

In the 2010 budget it is estimated total subsidies will reach Rp 
157.82 trillion. But they need to be revised in line with a 
predicted surge in global oil prices, bringing the Indonesia 
Crude Price (ICP) to $77 per barrel in the revised 2010 budget up 
from $65 earlier, the ministry said.

Last year total subsidies were set at Rp 157.73 trillion, based 
on an ICP of $61 per barrel.

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati told the foreign media 
Tuesday night the government would maintain the purchasing power 
of households to achieve the targeted 5.5 percent economic 
growth.

"The economy is sustained by household consumption and investment 
recovery," she said. Last year the economy grew by 4.5 percent, 
mainly driven by household consumption, the Central Statistics 
Agency (BPS) said.

In the revised 2010 budget, the fuel subsidy is to soar by 30 
percent to Rp 89.29 trillion, almost double the fuel subsidy of 
Rp 45.04 trillion in 2009, the Finance Ministry said.

This year's inflation is estimated to reach 5.7 percent, 
according to the revised 2010 budget. Inflation may increase in 
the second half of this year after the government raises the 
electricity tariff, analysts predict.

Mulyani said the government would raise the electricity tariff in 
the second half of the year, instead of in January as planned.

The electricity subsidy in the revised 2010 budget rises 44.2 
percent to Rp 54.5 trillion because of the crude oil price 
increase and delayed electricity tariff increase, as well as a 
carryover of Rp 4 trillion from a delayed 2009 electricity 
subsidy payment and the increased margin allowed to state power 
utility PLN up from 5 to 8 percent.

The tariff increase will apply to households and businesses with 
capacity of above 6,600 VA who use electricity at a rate of more 
than 50 percent of last year's average consumption for their 
category. The fertilizer subsidy is also raised by 30 percent to 
Rp 19.18 trillion. The plan to raise fertilizer prices has been 
delayed until April from January.

---------------------------------------------------

East Timor hotel development reveals multiple graves

Reuters - March 11, 2010

Tito Belo, Dili -- The construction of a luxury hotel near East 
Timor's capital has uncovered machine-dug graves containing 
remains of people who may have been killed during the country's 
occupation by Indonesia, scientists said on Thursday.

An estimated 180,000 East Timorese died during the 25-year 
occupation by Jakarta and the United Nations estimates around 
1,000 died in violence surrounding the 1999 vote that led to the 
nation gaining independence.

When a property developer was given approval to build a five-star 
hotel on waterfront land in Tibar, in Dili's west, the government 
called in a group of Australian forensic scientists to 
investigate the site first.

"This area has long been talked about by various people, a lot of 
the community in Dili, as having been used by the Indonesians as 
a place to dispose of bodies," said Soren Blau, a scientist at 
the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine and a member of the 
investigative team.

"None of those stories have ever been verified," said Blau. The 
team found two machine-dug graves about 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) 
deep, one containing seven skeletons and one containing two.

"They were piled on top of each other," Blau told Reuters by 
telephone, declining to elaborate on the victims' gender or cause 
of death. "I can say there is evidence of things like ligatures 
and blindfolds."

The team is working with the government and local community to 
identify the skeletons and some bones may be taken to Australia 
for tests. "There are many families who perhaps might think this 
is their relative," she said.

Blau said that Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao visited the site on 
Thursday.

A joint Indonesia-East Timor Truth and Friendship Commission set 
up in 2005 revealed cases of torture, rape, kidnappings and 
killings perpetrated during the Indonesian occupation, but the 
commission did not have the power to prosecute.

Amnesty International has called for the creation of an 
international tribunal to investigate crimes committed during the 
occupation but President Jose Ramos-Horta has opposed the idea.

East Timorese activist Gregorio Saldanha, who has been helping 
the scientists at the Tibar site, said he believed there were 
about six other such sites around Dili.

"We want to collect all the bones and put them in a special 
place," he told Reuters in Dili. "We are doing this to dignify 
the victims and bring peace to the families of victims."

Saldanha said he did not expect the families to take legal 
action.

"So we hope the Indonesian authorities can tell us where the 
victims were buried and we want to make clear that our effort has 
no relation with any legal aspect," he said. "Our intention is to 
dignify families of victims."

[Additional reporting by Sunanda Creagh in Jakarta; Editing by 
Alex Richardson.]

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Asia Pacific Solidarity Network (APSN)
Email: jamesbalowski@yahoo.com
WWW  : www.asia-pacific-solidarity.net

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