According to Jakarta Police's Traffic Management Center, the first demonstration began at 9 a.m. at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle. A second rally was held outside the Supreme Court building at Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara at the same time.

The State Palace, which is located on the same street as the Supreme Court, will be the site of three rallies that will take place between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Groups of activists will come to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) at 10 a.m. and will march to the Presidential Advisory Board office. A different group of activists will also hold a rally at Hotel Indonesia traffic circle and march to the front of the National Police Headquarters on Jalan Trunojoyo in South Jakarta.

At 10:30 a.m. demonstrators will rally in front of the Chinese Embassy on Jalan Rasuna Said. Later in the afternoon activists will hold a rally at the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights.

There is also a rally planned at the office of the representative of North Maluku on Jalan Cempaka Putih, Central Jakarta, and a hunger strike planned at the KPK building.

West Papua

Death in Papua: political intrigue clouds miner's murder

Sydney Morning Herald - November 21, 2009

Jonathan Pearlman – As dawn was breaking across the Indonesian province of Papua on a Saturday last July, an Australian mine worker, Drew Grant, set out with friends along the winding road near the Freeport mine for a weekend of golf.

The driver and fellow mine worker, Lukan Biggs, would later recall that he heard a sharp pop and thought the car had skidded off a stone. But then the back-seat passenger started to scream: Mr Grant had been hit by a bullet that pierced the roof.

The 29-year-old – just back in Papua after visiting his wife and baby in Melbourne – probably died instantly.

In the aftermath, six villagers from the nearby town of Timika were rounded up by police and held without trial for four months. The men insist they are innocent – scapegoats caught in the murky politics of one of the world's most lucrative mines – and that they confessed after being beaten with rifle butts and threatened with shootings and electric shocks.

On Tuesday, five of the men were apparently released: their lawyers say all six still face charges and are yet to be given a trial date.

"They were blindfolded and the police said if they did not confess they would be taken to the bush and shot," Dackson Beanal, whose five family members were among the six in jail, said. "There were other threats. They were beaten up... Simon and Apius were handcuffed for almost two months."

Mr Grant's murder was one of several military-style shootings and ambushes in the past four months around the Grasberg mine, which reputedly has the world's largest recoverable copper and gold deposits and is owned by an American company, Freeport-McMoran. Two other people have died: a Freeport employee, Markus Rante Allo, and a policeman, Marson Pattipeilohy. But the shootings continued despite the six men's detention.

Analysts say the attacks, which involved skilled marksmen and military-issue bullets, bear the hallmarks of the Indonesian military. Some say they are linked to a long-running dispute between the army and the police over the job of providing security for the mine. Others say they are linked to disputes over local business opportunities or are a warning to the Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, to resist pressure to reform the military.

According to Indonesia's Tempo magazine, the shooting of Grant – and each subsequent attack – occurred in areas around the mine with mobile phone coverage, which would suggest high levels of planning and co-ordination. The magazine reported sightings of a group of armed men dressed in black who were filmed on security cameras near the mine and stopped by guards the day after Mr Grant was killed. But the group has never been identified or arrested.

About 24 men were arrested after the shootings. Most were released without charge. But, according to a local lawyer, Eliezer Murafer, six men were kept in three police stations across the province and charged with the attacks.

They are: Simon Beanal, 30, who apparently suffers a mentally disability, Eltinus Beanal, 26, Tommy Beanal, 25, Apius Uamang, 39 – all residents of Timika – and two employees of the mine, Dominikus Beanal, 25 and Amon Yawame, 30.

Mr Murafer told the Herald that the four Timika residents were at home at the time of the shootings and the two Freeport employees were in their hotel.

"They are worried they will be made the scapegoats for the incidents. They have been waiting such a long time and there is no certainty they will be brought to trial."

The Beanal detainees are members of a well-known Papuan clan which gained global fame in the late 1990s when an elder, Tom Beanal, launched a lawsuit in the US accusing Freeport of cultural genocide and environmental damage. Mr Beanal lost the case but was subsequently – along with other community leaders – recruited to the board of Freeport's Indonesian subsidiary in an apparent attempt to quell local opposition.

An expert on Papua at the Australian National University, Chris Ballard, said the suggestion the villagers could have carried out the attacks was "farcical". "These people were obviously never involved," he said. "These recent shootings are far in excess of any of the attacks in the past. They would have required a well- resourced and well-trained unit or units of the security forces... It was never credible that the local community was responsible.

"They stand to gain nothing from these attacks. The arrests were followed almost immediately by a string of further shootings... It should be a source of embarrassment to the Indonesian Government."

The Australian Federal Police, which sent two officers to the region after Mr Grant's shooting, refused to comment on the case. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was monitoring the investigation.

"We remain in close contact with Indonesian authorities on the investigation," a spokeswoman said. "As the shooting occurred in Papua, responsibility for investigating the shooting lies with Indonesian authorities... We are unaware that any arrests have taken place in relation to Mr Grant's murder."

Mr Grant's father, Leigh, said he has received occasional updates from the federal police, which have mainly been based on local media reports.

"I have in the back of my mind that we will probably never find out who it was," he said. "They might say they have caught the people who did it, but who knows if they are the actual people who did the shooting? They're saying it's the indigenous people, but I think it is more likely to be the military or police... We just want to move on and not dwell and get our lives together."

Papuan separatists, who were blamed for an attack in 2002 in which two American teachers and an Indonesian were killed, have publicly denied involvement in the attacks.

A lecturer at the Australian Defence Force Academy, Clinton Fernandes, said the military was probably behind the shootings and was trying to justify its presence in Papua by raising the spectre of a separatist insurgency.

"The Indonesian military need to maintain its presence in Papua and want to ensure that the police no longer try to claim security of the mine area," Dr Fernandes said. "Without an insurgency, the army has to go back into the barracks and reduce its size and its budget and its influence. By staying in West Papua, the military gets access to funds and resources and arms and promotions."

Papuans demand dialog with Indonesian government to curb violence

Jakarta Globe - November 20, 2009

Nurfika Osman – Despite the raft of killings, abductions and other violence carried out by unidentified groups in Papua, the nation's eyes remain elsewhere, an activist said on Thursday.

"Thousands of Papuans have become victims over the years, but we continue to seek a dialog with the central government and we will never stop demanding it," said Markus Haluk, secretary general of the Papua Central Highland Student Association.

He was speaking at a discussion at the Association of Indonesian Catholic Students in Mentang, Central Jakarta, aimed at ending the epidemic of violence through collaboration between the local and central governments.

Markus said the violence, including arson, was being ignored. His organization had recorded 39 murders of Papuans, 645 cases of physical abuse and 151 detentions by police.

He urged the central government to push provincial police to continue investigations into the murders, particularly the killing of Opinus Tabuni in August last year.

Opinus was shot and killed as he attended a celebration of the UN's International Day of the World's Indigenous People in Wamena, Papua on Aug. 9, 2008.

The attack took place after a small number of participants raised the Morning Star, the flag of the West Papuan pro-independence movement, triggering chaos in the middle of the festival.

Thaha Alhamid, secretary general of the Papuan Presidium Council, noted at the discussion that the local government would only succeed in dialog with the central government if it unified its citizens.

"Papuans are divided into groups and religions. We should have one voice for the dialog," Thaha said.

Other speakers at the meeting said that since Papua's integration into the republic in the early 1960s, political conflict and violent attacks against Papuans – including the murder of Papuan Presidium Council chief Theys Eluay in 2001 – had not ceased. The violence was also being spurred by security forces who see Papuans as separatists, the speakers said.

Paskalis Kossay, a member of the House of Representatives Commission I overseeing defense and political affairs, noted that an extreme lack of trust between the central and local administrations remained a stumbling block that was costing Papuans dearly. Paskalis noted that human rights violations had been blighting Papua since the 1960s.

"Since that time, the Papuans have been seen as separatists and will always be targeted in violent attacks. Many of them have been abducted by the military," he said.

Police officers attacked a demonstration being held by members of motorcycle taxi drivers and the Bau Bau Legal Aid Institute in Bau Bau, Papua, last month, injuring six protesters.

Though an internal police inquiry was conducted into the case, a criminal investigation has yet to be launched.

Papuans suspicious of Indonesia repatriation

ABC News - November 20, 2009

Liam Fox, Papua New Guinea – More than 100 people who fled the Indonesian province of Papua to neighbouring Papua New Guinea have returned home.

Several thousand Papuans live in PNG. Some have been here for more than 30 years after fleeing Indonesian rule. Indonesia wants to repatriate about 700 of them.

The Indonesian Embassy in Port Moresby has been offering to repatriate those who want to return home and yesterday two planes carried 140 people from Wewak to Papua's capital Jayapura.

An embassy spokesman has said Indonesian authorities will guarantee the safety of repatriates. The spokesman says they will stay in a "transit centre" for about a week before being settled around the province.

But Freddy Waromi, a Port Moresby-based member of the Papuan separatist group OPM, does not believe anyone who fought for independence will be safe.

"They definitely will be persecuted," he said. "For my group we will never go back until we get independence."

Another plane carrying more repatriates is due to leave Port Moresby on Sunday.

Indonesia urged to free imprisoned flag wavers

Associated Press - November 19, 2009

Jakarta – Indonesia should release three men imprisoned for raising a banned separatist flag because the harsh punishment undermines the country's democratic values, a prominent rights groups said Thursday.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono should overturn the prison terms of up to three years handed down last week for using the symbol of a small movement seeking to break from the central government, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said.

"These prosecutions fly in the face of Indonesia's commitments to free expression," said Elaine Pearson of Human Rights Watch. "Yudhoyono should have these men freed without delay."

More than 170 people are currently jailed in Indonesia for peaceful expression, mostly in Papua and Maluku, where there is also a small separatist movement, the group said. Indonesian authorities are highly sensitive to secessionist issues, cracking down on protesters and prohibiting foreign journalists from travel to Papua. Last year, an Indonesian court sentenced a group of separatists to between 10 years and life in prison for waving their flag in front of the president in the Maluku islands.

The three Papuans have been detained since early this year after hoisting a flag resembling the "Morning Star" that is used by the banned Free Papua Movement rebels.

Two other men were charged Wednesday in another flag-raising incident in Papua and could face up to 12 years in prison, said police official Bambang Rudy Pratikno.

A low-level insurgency had waged for decades in Papua, an impoverished province on Indonesia's easternmost tip.

Human Right Watch said more flag-raising ceremonies were expected before Dec. 1, which many Papuans see as an anniversary marking independence from Dutch colonial rule. Pratikno said police were on alert for rallies attended by separatists.

Although Indonesia has made progress in human rights since becoming a democracy more than a decade ago, abuse by the police and military are still a major concern.

Papua New Guinea repatriates Indonesian citizens

Tempo Interactive - November 19, 2009

Cunding Levi, Jakarta – Papua New Guinea repatriated on Thursday 141 Papuans on Thursday as part of the program to return about 700 Indonesian citizens in the Papua New Guinea territory.

The batch of Indonesian Papuans were flown to Jayapura on Thursday in two flights. The first one came from Wiwek which consisted of 68 people arrived at 10:40 am local time (+9GMT). The second flight arrived at 3 pm from Port Moresby carrying 73 people.

One of the repatriates Benyamin Adolf Prawar, 60, said he had been living in Papua New Guinea for 30 years when he was returned, after escaping Irian Jaya, the previous name for Papua province, in 1979 for political reason.

Reportedly tere were about 700 Indonesian Papuans in Papua New Guinea scheduled to be flown back to Indonesia. The remaining batch was scheduled to be flown on November 22.

Director General of the Public Management of the Home Affairs Department Sutrisno, said the returning Indonesian citizens will stay at the Provincial Work Training Center for identification and legal documentation, before being returned to their native areas.

Worst year for West Papua

Post Courier - November 17, 2009

Harlyne Joku – A West Papuan Independence leader in the United Kingdom, Benny Wenda has described 2009 as a vital year for the indigenous people of West Papua.

Mr Wenda, the Chairperson of the Koteka Tribal Assembly based in UK said it is 40 years since the former Indonesian President Suharto announced the result of the so called "Act of Free Choice".

"The claim is outrageous and totally false that 100 per cent of West Papuans wanted to be annexed by Indonesia. 40 years ago all UN members including UK recognised our right to self determination but until now we have never been allowed to exercise our right freely and legally.

"We did not want to become Indonesian in 1969 and after so many years of Indonesian oppression; we certainly do not want to be Indonesia now. We want to be free," he said.

Mr Wenda said that is why West Papua so desperately needs friends from around the world.

He said as an important step forward in international solidarity Andrew Smith MP and Lord Harries of the UK Parliament launched the International Parliamentarians for West Papua (IPWP) in October last year.

"We are immensely grateful for the messages of support we received from parliamentarians from every corner of the world and political parties in UK," Mr Wenda said.

Last week in Port Moresby NCD Governor Powes Parkop convened and launched the PNG Charter of the IPWP saying that West Papua's Melanesian brothers and sisters in PNG cannot remain silent on the issue any more.

Mr Parkop said although the PNG government policy on West Papua is that it is an integral issue for Indonesia, PNG leaders like him feel that it is against their conscience to remain silent any longer.

Another MP who signed the charter at a press conference at Parliament last Thursday, Mr Jamie Maxtone Graham said PNG leaders including Mr Parkop and himself will 'shine the spotlight" in the international forum on the West Papua issue especially in relation to Indonesian's military response with brutal force by killing, torturing and imprisoning peaceful Papuan activists.

Mr Graham showed photos of these atrocities sent last month on e-mail to the media.

The Indonesian Embassy was contacted for comment last Thursday but an officer there said most of the senior officials including the Indonesian Ambassador Bom Surijantoe were out of Port Moresby, organising a repatriation of some hundreds of West Papuans who had agreed to return back to their home provinces.

Protesters hoist separatist flag

Jakarta Post - November 17, 2009

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Former political prisoners raised the separatist bintang kejora (morning star) flag Monday at the Papua People's Council in Jayapura to protest the failure of seven years of special autonomy for the province.

"We say special autonomy has failed," said protest leader Sem Yaru. "If there isn't any improvement, we'd rather demand independence."

The three men and two women hoisted the flag, associated with the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM), on a flagpole at the council building.

The protesters also spoked for around 15 minutes in the council yard. They distributed pamphlets proclaiming "Papua doesn't believe in Jakarta", "Special autonomy has failed" and "Papua demands independence at all cost".

Sem said the flag was a cultural symbol for Papuans, so they had not violated any laws.

The protesters were escorted out of the council compound after their speech, by a 60-strong contingent of Jayapura Police and Papua Police Mobile Brigade officers. They were then taken to the Jayapura Police headquarters.

"The council was not scheduled to meet with these demonstrators," said council spokesperson Angganeta Wally. "They just handed us a notice, but the council leaders are busy working on other things today."

Jayapura Police operations head Adj. Sr. Comr. Dominggus Rumaropen said police had broken up the demonstration because the protesters did not have a permit from the police.

"They didn't give us notice that they'd be holding a demonstration today, so we had to break up the unlawful gathering," he said. "They're currently being questioned by police."

The flag-raising incident, punishable as treason under existing laws, did little to disrupt daily activities in Abepura, Kotaraja and other areas.

Previously, the Manokwari District Court sentenced 11 people to eight months in jail for flying separatist flags in the regency on March 3 and 13, 2008.

The Papua Customary Law Council has drafted a special regulation recommending the bintang kejora be used as the provincial symbol, and has submitted the draft to the Papua People's Representative Council.

Activists want Indonesia to act over Papua rights abuses

Jakarta Globe - November 16, 2009

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Activists on Monday urged the government to push the police in their stalled investigations of a number of human rights violations in Papua, particularly the murder of Opinus Tabuni, who was killed in August 2008.

Haris Azhar, deputy chairman of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said that nothing significant had been turned up in police investigations into the murder of Opinus, which began last December.

"The government should take a stance in terms of legal enforcement in this case, and other human rights violations," Haris said.

Opinus was shot and killed as he attended a celebration of the United Nations International Day of the World's Indigenous People in Wamena on Aug. 9, 2008.

Shots were fired after a small number of participants raised the Morning Star, the flag of the West Papuan pro-independence movement, triggering chaos in the middle of the festival.

An investigation team from the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas-HAM) found that local military and intelligence officers were present at the incident.

Haris also said the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) had received reports of violence perpetrated by police officers against people holding peaceful demonstrations in Papua.

Most recently, he said, police officers attacked a demonstration being held by members of the motorcycle taxi community and the Bau Bau Legal Aid Institute in Bau Bau city, Papua, last month, injuring six protesters.

Though an internal police inquiry is being conducted into the case, Haris said a criminal investigation was necessary.

"Papuans will always be targeted through such violent acts if the attacks are not seriously investigated by security agencies," he said, adding that police needed to complete their investigations into the murder of Opinus as they were obligated to do so.

Ridha Saleh, deputy chairman of Komnas-HAM, agreed, saying on Monday that the police needed to finish their investigations into any human rights violation, particularly the Opinus Tabuni case.

He said Komnas-HAM had already handed over results of its own investigation into the murder, along with the commission's recommendations, to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and the National Police.

Separately, Army spokesman Brig. Gen. Christian Zebua said the military would not influence investigations of criminal cases, including those occurring in Papua.

"If evidence is found that a soldier had a hand in the incident, we will respect all legal procedures," Zebua said.

Meanwhile, it was reported that a Morning Star flag flew for 30 minutes in front of the Papuan People's Consultative Assembly in Jayapura on Monday, before the police removed it and arrested three people.

Morning Star flag erected in Indonesia's restive Papua province

Jakarta Globe - November 16, 2009

A Morning Star flag was raised in front of the office of the Papuan People's Consultative Assembly in Jayapura, Papua, on Monday. The flag, which is the symbol of the West Papuan pro- independence movement, flew for thirty minutes.

A number of policemen arrived and took the flag down. They arrested three people from the assembly's office.

Okezone.com reported that the person who erected the flag was allegedly Samuel Yaru, a former political detainee who was imprisoned for rebel activities in 1998.

Samuel said the flag was the assembly's statement that Papua's special autonomy had failed to improve the quality of people's lives. "Papuans are still poor in their own land," he said.

There was no official statement from the police. Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Agus Riyanto was not available for comment.

Kelly Kwalik confirmed not the terrorist in Freeport

Kompas - November 16, 2009

Jayapura – The Papuan Traditional Council (DAP) chief, Forkorus Yobiosembut, in Jayapura, Monday, stated that it was not Kelly Kwalik or his group that committed the series of terrorist acts in the area of PT Freeport Indonesia, Tembaga Pura, Mimika, Papua.

"I've communicated with Kelly, and he said he wasn't the one who did the terror acts," said Forkorus, Monday.

Forkorus explained that after the assault of the mysterious shooter in the area of Freeport Timika, a few months ago, which caused the death of an Australian, Drew Nicholas Grant, he directly asked Kelly Kwalik if he was involved.

"Through his courrier who met me, Kelly Kwalik stressed that he was not involved," he said.

Furthermore, said Forkorus, the courrier said that Kelly Kwalik had sent an official letter to the Government of Australia stating that he and the group he lead weren't responsible for the terrors in Freeport's area.

Subsequently, Forkorus asked all related parties not to accuse each other, but to cooperate to find the truth and apprehend whoever caused the terror in Freeport's area instead. "This is the duty of the security officers and all of us to arrest the mastermind of the terror," he said.

Forkorus' statement concurs with that from the Papua Police Chief, Irjen Bagus Ekodanto, who stated to the reporters that his force had managed to meet the head of the armed force in Timika, Kelly Kwalik.

In that meeting, Kelly Kwalik admitted that he and his group weren't involved in the terror in PT Freeport's area. However, this conflicts the statement from the Cendrawasih XVII Millitary Commander (Pangdam XVII) who presented his material during a debate held by the the Indonesian National Youth Committee (KNPI), in Papua Province, some time ago.

At that time the commander played a video of a fully armed man (said to be Kelly Kwalik) commanding his men to terrorize the Freeport area. That was why the Pangdam stated that Kelly Kwalik's group was responsible for the terror on Freeport's area. (ABI/C17-09)

Human rights/law

Law minister, NGOs slam trial of grandmother for cacao theft

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2009

Agus Maryono, Purwokerto – While many big-time criminals evades justice across the country for corruption, an elderly woman in Banyumas, Central Java, faces the law for stealing three cacao fruits worth only Rp 1,500 (15 US cents) from a plantation.

The trial of 55-year-old Minah at the Purwokerto District Court was condemned Friday by Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar, legal experts and human rights activists.

"It's extremely embarrassing," the minister told kompas.com. "Law enforcers must embrace humanitarian principles."

The court Thursday handed down a suspended sentence of 45 days in prison. The mother of seven and grandmother of more was ordered to serve her jail term should she commit a similar crime within three months of her conviction.

Minah, a resident of Darmakradenan village in Ajibarang district, who stood trial without an attorney, said she took the cacao fruits in September to grow the plant from seeds.

Patrialis said the case inspired him to promote a reform of the country's judicial system. "We will mend the system," the minister said. "Our prisons are overcrowded,"

Minah was not the first citizen to face discriminatory law enforcement in the country.

In September, Aguswandi Tanjung, a tenant at the ITC Roxy Mas Apartments in West Jakarta, was arrested by police for charging his mobile phone in a corridor inside the apartment block. He said the building management had cut off the electricity in his apartment.

In July, the Tangerang District Court convicted 10 children of gambling in a controversial ruling that sparked outrage among child welfare activists, even after the court ordered the juveniles to be returned to their parents.

Sympathizers and activists from a number of NGOs demanded an end to the case against Minah. "What's wrong with this country? The big-time criminals are protected while we villagers are treated mercilessly in the name of law enforcement," Minah's son Firdaus, 40, said.

Minah was charged with stealing the cacao fruits from plantation firm PT Rumpun Sari Antan (RSA). The company had reported the theft to police in August and court proceedings commenced last week.

"The price of the cacao fruits were worth Rp 500 each at the most, but my mother had to stand trial. This is outrageous," Firdaus said.

Prosecutor Noorhaniyah said Minah had stolen cacao fruits weighing 3 kilograms, causing the plantation company to suffer a loss of Rp 30,000, and sentenced her to six months in jail.

Minah said the incident began when she harvested soybeans at her farm in early August. Coincidentally, the land she was cultivating was part of a disputed area managed by the company.

When she was gathering the soybeans, she saw three ripe cacao fruits. She plucked them with the intention to plant their seeds at her farm.

Two company foreman, Tarno and Rajiwa, arrived at the scene. She was later summoned for questioning several times by police following a report from the company.

"I was also examined several times at the prosecutor's office. The prosecutor who examined me asked me not to deny the accusation because it would make things worse," said Minah.

Minah said she was tired of dealing with the police, prosecutors and the court. "I'm old and tired. Why is my case not settled yet? I also owe money for transport to the police and the court," said Minah.

Economic problems force children into prostitution, begging

Jakarta Post - November 21, 2009

Jakarta – Bunga (not her real name) never imagined the nightmare she would go through on her first night as a prostitute in a Malaysian brothel, when she lost her virginity to the highest- paying customer.

"I tried to resist, but he was stronger than me," she recalled. "My experience that first night taught me to submit myself to that humiliating job. I had no choice but to get used to serving these sex consumers for 14 Malaysian ringgit a month," said the tearful 14-year-old.

Bunga was one of five children speaking at a gathering Friday to mark 20 years since Indonesia's ratification of the 1990 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Bunga said she ended up in Malaysia after dropping out of school this May to take up an offer from a fellow villager to work at a restaurant in Kuching. She wanted to help support her impoverished family in the remote village near the West Kalimantan capital Pontianak, she said.

Her acquaintance introduced Bunga to an agent in Pontianak, who then took her to Entikong on the Indonesian border with Malaysia, promising her a RM500-a-month job as a waiter in a Malaysian restaurant.

"The agent then took my photo and put it in someone else's passport, with the help of Indonesian immigration officials," she said. "I didn't object to having a fake passport, I just wanted to get a job in a more prosperous country."

Upon arriving on the outskirts of Kuching, the Indonesian agent took her to a brothel that had many other Indonesian girls inside, Bunga said.

After two months of working at the brothel, Bunga got pregnant and was forced by her boss to abort the fetus. Once again she had no say in the matter, she said. "I was traumatized by the heavy bleeding that lasted a long time," she said.

Bunga added she continued working at the brothel, simply because she had no money or opportunity to do anything else Then one day, she went on, she got the chance to make a phone call to her father.

Backed by the National Commission for Child Protection's Pontianak branch office, Bunga's father sought help from the police and the immigration office in Entikong to bring her back home. Her return was finally secured in October, albeit light of four months' wages.

Just like Bunga, 17-year-old Putri, from Indramayu in West Java, ended up working as a prostitute, this time in Jakarta, after taking up an offer from a local acquaintance to work at a big restaurant in the capital.

"I regretted trusting them when I found myself in a brothel, because I could do this back in my hometown if I wanted," she said.

Indramayu is notorious for its red-light districts.

Putri recalled the time her boss got angry with her when she asked to leave.

"She said I owed her lots of money for the recruitment and living costs of the past six months," she said. "I was very disappointed and sad, because I never had the chance to report it to the police station next door."

She also condemned many policemen who paid to have sex with her and never tried to help her escape. She said she eventually escaped after contacting another hometown acquaintance in October.

Fajar (not his real name), 16, had his own story as a busker in the city. He said he had grown up on the streets since he was a little child.

"I make money on the street to pay for my sister's education," he said. "I also give the money to my parents to buy food."

He added his father frequently beat him for not earning enough.

Like Fajar, economic problems also forced Danang, 16, to take to the streets to beg for a living. He said he dropped out of primary school at age 9 and joined a group of street children.

His most memorable experience of that time, he said, was when he and his gang were once accused of stealing money while begging and busking in a bus serving the Blok M-Tanah Abang route.

"I took the rap for my friend and apologized," he said, explaining the stolen money had been found in his friend's pocket.

Child protection commission secretary-general Arist Merdeka Sirait said that fact that children had been forced to go through such experiences was a stain on the government that belied Indonesia's ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child two decades ago.

The commission says 6,295 minors have experienced physical, sexual and mental abuse over the past two years, with most forced to work to support their family. (nia)

In a grandmother's trial, it's judiciary that's found guilty

Jakarta Globe - November 20, 2009

Dessy Sagita& Candra Malik – The case of a grandmother of seven who was charged with stealing three pieces of cocoa fruit and subjected to 18 days of house arrest before being dragged to court to receive a suspended sentence is just further proof of the injustices visited on the poor in this country, human rights activists said on Friday.

"The Indonesian judiciary clearly still ignores anybody with no money, no power and no connections," Nurkholis, a member of the National Commission on Human Rights, told the Jakarta Globe on Friday. He was referring to the case of Minah, 55, an illiterate grandmother from a small village near Banyumas in Central Java.

Minah was confused that, after having returned the cocoa fruit to the plantation, owned by PT Rumput Sari Antan, and having apologized profusely, they still reported her to the police

However, she was adamant that she would face the courts and prosecutors' offices even though she had to travel – on several occasions – long distances on foot before catching the bus from Banyumas to get to Purwokerto, initially to face questioning at the Purwokerto Prosecutor's Office and later, as a defendant, at the Purwokerto District Court.

The defendant received a suspended sentence of one month and 15 days and will not serve prison time provided she does not violate the terms of her probation, presiding judge Muslich Bambang Luqmono said during Thursday's court hearing.

As he read the verdict, Muslich reportedly held back tears, and stated that Minah reminded him of his parents, who had been farmers. "This is a small case, but it has hurt so many people," Muslich said of the case, which unleashed an outcry after the general public learned of Minah's treatment.

Nurkholis said it was a sad indictment of the country's legal system. "The court and the prosecutors have behaved preposterously, considering that she made such a small mistake. It is so sad to see that our legal system has lost both its direction and its priorities," he said.

Legal Aid lawyer Kristin Tambunan said injustices like this were an inevitable outcome if the defendant or the suspect was poor.

"Those with money, power and connections, like Anggodo Widjojo, are untouchable. Only the poor suffer," Kristin said, in reference to the brother of fugitive graft suspect Anggoro Widjojo.

Anggodo has said on national television that he "gave" nearly Rp 6 billion ($636,000) to a case broker to "deal with the KPK problem."

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) had launched an investigation into Anggoro and his company, PT Masaro Radiokom, in connection with a 2006 Forestry Ministry project alleged to have caused massive state losses.

Anggodo remains free after having made the admission and his brother has managed to flee to Singapore, which has no extradition treaty with Indonesia.

Kristin said Minah's case was not much different from the recent case of 10 boys in Tangerang who were detained by police after they were caught tossing coins near Soekarno-Hatta airport.

The prosecutors in that case insisted the boys were gambling and must be brought to court. Even though they were eventually released, Kristin said, such cases were proof that the law was no friend of the powerless.

The courts are notorious for issuing verdicts that continue to reek of injustice. Another fugitive, Djoko Sugiarto Tjandra, managed to flee to Singapore after the Supreme Court sentenced him to two years for embezzling Rp 546 billion in the Bank Bali scandal.

A former city council chief from Central Java received probation for his part in a Rp 14.8 billion corruption scandal. Wealthy businessman Adiguna Sutowo received only seven years in prison for the fatal shooting of a waiter on New Year's Day in 2005. The list is long.

Shooting against Bima villagers deplored

Jakarta Post - November 20, 2009

Mataram – Dozens of students and local leaders from Bima regency rallied outside the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Police headquarters in Mataram on Thursday to demand a trial of top officers in connection with a shooting incident that left a resident dead and four others injured.

The students, grouped under the Alliance of Youth and People, unfurled banners condemning the police's heavy-handed approach in handling protesters in Monta village, Belo district, Bima, on Wednesday.

NTB Police chief Brig. Gen. Surya Iskandar said he had set up a team to investigate the incident. Surya said the shooting happened when a police patrol was on the way to Ngali village in an effort to break up a brawl between residents of Ngali and Renda village.

Experts urge govt to consider human rights in policy making

Jakarta Post - November 18, 2009

Jakarta – Experts urged the government to consider human rights when making policies to avoid rights violations, and to establish better social conditions in the country.

The Indonesian Institute of Sciences' (LIPI) deputy for social sciences and the humanities, Dewi Fortuna Anwar, said Tuesday that human rights enforcement should begin at the government level to ensure the policy-making process did not violate the constitution and international conventions.

She said consideration for human rights would get better when government officials and legislators acknowledged its importance.

"Legislators need to be educated on human rights to ensure they don't violate laws during the policy-making process," she said during a two-day workshop focusing on the implementation of human rights in Indonesia from a social and human sciences perspective.

The workshop was jointly held by LIPI and UNESCO. The workshop will be followed by an award ceremony Wednesday recognizing young scientists whose studies could provide solutions to human rights problems in the country.

Umar Anggara Jennie, the head of LIPI, said the MOST (Management of Social Transformation) award would be given to encourage and promote respect for human rights and policies for sustainable development.

Dewi urged the National Education Ministry include human rights in school and university curricula.

"People of all ages should know their rights," she said. Indonesia has ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. These are enforced domestically through the 1999 Human Rights Law and the 2000 Human Rights Court Law.

Taufik Basari, chairman of the Community Legal Aid Foundation, told the conference the implementation of human rights principles faced issues such as regulations derived from some laws that did not support human rights principles. "There are many bylaws violating human rights principles," he said.

Dewi said the Home Ministry should have guidelines providing clear mechanisms and requirements for drafting bylaws. The ministry has 60 days in which it has the power revoke the drafts of such bylaws before regional administrations endorsed them.

Anies Baswedan, rector of Paramadina University, said the ministry rarely canceled drafts before their endorsement, even if the bylaws clearly violated human rights principles. (nia)

Refugees/asylum seekers

Indonesia backs down on Merak boat people

Sydney Morning Herald - November 19, 2009

Tom Allard in Jakarta and Ben Doherty in Tanjung Pinang – The Indonesian Government has reversed its policy to swiftly deport Sri Lankan asylum seekers refusing to get off a boat in Merak and will now allow the UN to process them, a decision that may prove decisive in ending a five-week stand-off at the port.

A meeting of Indonesian ministries and agencies on Tuesday resolved to allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to process all 255 people who came on the boat, said Teuku Faizasyah, the Indonesian foreign ministry spokesman.

The original Indonesian plan was for those who did not already have refugee status to be repatriated; 109 of the Tamils carry refugee cards. Indonesia wants Australia to take many of those who are found to be refugees.

The spokesman for the Sri Lankans at Merak, "Alex", said a guarantee of access to the UNHCR had been a longstanding condition for the passengers to leave the vessel.

But having heard of the deal offered to the 78 people on the Oceanic Viking, they now wanted a similar arrangement.

"We would request the same fair treatment as the 78 people on the Oceanic Viking. If we get the same deal, we will co-operate sooner than them," he said.

It is highly unlikely the Sri Lankans in Merak will be offered the same deal as those on the Oceanic Viking, who will be resettled in four to 12 weeks if their refugee claims are proven to be genuine.

Unlike those on the Oceanic Viking, the asylum seekers in Merak are not on an Australian vessel and were not intercepted by the Australian navy.

Last night all 56 of the Sri Lankans who had stayed on the Oceanic Viking left the vessel. Many smiled and waved as they disembarked to enter immigration detention in Indonesia.

The operation to bring them ashore began yesterday morning with Australian officials, and then Indonesian immigration officers, boarding the ship to conduct health and documentation checks and to confirm they were leaving the ship willingly.

Last night the Minister for Home Affairs, Brendan O'Connor, confirmed all 56 had left the ship, saying among them were 46 men, five women and five children.