Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – Journalists in Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam have protested against a draft qanun (bylaw) on Islamic media and broadcasting proposed by the Aceh legislature and the provincial broadcasting regulator.
The press code of ethics and Press Law No. 40/1999 had been accommodating, but the proposed qanun was "an exaggeration", the journalists said.
Congress of the United States
Committee on Foreign Affairs
U.S. House of Representatives
Washlngton, DC 20515
Telephone: (202) 225·5021
http://www.foreignaffairs.house.gov/
February 14, 2008
Jakarta – The South Jakarta District Court opened Wednesday the trial of an Islamic sect leader facing charges of religious blasphemy for claiming to be a prophet.
Al-Qiyadah Al-Islamiyah leader Ahmad Mushaddeq could face a maximum jail term of five years if found guilty of insulting Islam, prosecutor Muchammad Muhadjir said.
Syofiardi Bachyul Jb, Padang – The Bukittinggi municipal administration has banned residents from celebrating Valentine's Day, on Thursday, on the grounds the occasion is not in line with Minangkabau traditions or Islam.
Vivi W. – Five hundred protesters from the Indonesian Student Union (SMI) held an action today on Thursday February 14 in Central Jakarta. The protest took up a number of key demands including freedom of expression, opinion and association on campus, the revocation of Directorate General for Higher Education Decree No.
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The government does not have the political will or the guts to take proper action against the bad debtors connected to the swindled Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance (BLBI) funds, lawmakers and graft activists said Wednesday.
Jakarta – Mothers in pink used the day before Valentine's Day to stage a demonstration Wednesday to demand better health services for the poor.
The mothers also wanted people to care more about poor mothers and their babies, said Rika Damayanti, executive director of Mother and Baby Care Organization (LPIB), the protest organizer.
Lindsay Murdoch, Dili – Investigators believe that gangs of armed men led by East Timor's rebel leader Alfredo Reinado intended to kidnap, not assassinate, the country's two top political leaders during Monday's attacks in Dili.
They have been told that two separate groups of armed men attempted to kidnap the Prime Minister, Xanana Gusmao, who managed to flee unharmed.
Donald Greenlees, Dili – The body of the slain army mutineer who led attacks on the president and prime minister of East Timor was buried in the garden of his home here Thursday in a peaceful ceremony witnessed by hundreds of mourners.
Setyo Budi, Dili – Hundreds of people gathered Thursday for the funeral of Alfredo Reinado, the rebel soldier who was slain in an alleged coup bid against the government of President Jose Ramos-Horta.
Justin Randell – Genocidal mass murderer and former Indonesian dictator Suharto died in hospital in Jakarta on January 27, aged 86, never having faced justice for the millions of people he killed or the billions of dollars he stole during his three decades in power. While Suharto may be gone, the hypocrisy of his rich-country supporters – especially Australia – lives on.
Michael Leach – When I wrote on Monday that disarming the increasingly threatening and erratic Major Alfredo Reinado had become a critical priority for national unity in East Timor, there was little indication that these concerns could be so dramatically realised within hours.
Sam King, Puncack – Transport workers from six different sectoral unions met from January 23-25 in West Java to form the National Transport Workers Union (FBTN).
The UN must play a part in ending the lawlessness that culminated in this week's attempted assassinations of Timor-Leste's President José Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao and the death of rebel leader Alfredo Reinado by acting on its mandate to further the cause of justice for serious crimes, say campaigners
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Marked by a walkout of dozens of lawmakers, no President and a flurry of interruptions, including a call for a hunger strike, the House heard the government's response to questions about its commitment to settle Bank Indonesia liquidity loans.
Donald Greenlees, Dili – Before President Jose Ramos-Horta was shot outside his home on Monday, the Nobel Peace laureate was not overly concerned about his personal security in a country with a history of sudden and unpredictable eruptions of violence.
Jakarta – The Central Jakarta District Court acquitted former Garuda chief pilot secretary Rohainil Aini from all charges of a role in the premeditated murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib.
Melly Febrida/M. Rizal Maslan, Jakarta – Hundreds of victims of the New Order regime will witness a hearing into the crimes committed by former President Suharto between 1965 and 1998. The "Tribunal Court" hearing will be held on February 13 at the Proclamation Monument in Central Jakarta in front of the statue of Indonesia's founding President Sukarno.
Anthony Deutsch, Dili – The rebels jumped from two cars, firing machine guns as they stormed the compound of President Jose Ramos-Horta. "Traitor! Traitor!" they shouted, hunting for the Nobel Peace Prize winner.
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – The Asian Development Bank's (ADB) move to revise its 1995 safeguard policy drew strong criticism from Indonesian civil society organizations Tuesday. The policy contains rules for debtors carrying out development projects funded by the ADB.
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – The Army has increased its arms budget by 6.4 percent to Rp 1.86 trillion (US$202 million) for 2008, in response to an urgent need to replace much of its aging weaponry.
The United Nations Security Council meeting on UNMIT has been delayed one week, until 21 February. Yesterday, La'o Hamutuk sent the following letter to the Security Council members.
12 February 2008
United Nations Security Council
New York, New York, USA
Dear Members of the United Nations Security Council:
Jakarta – Former Garuda Indonesia president director Indra Setiawan was jailed Monday for one year for assisting the premeditated murder of human rights campaigner Munir Said Thalib.
Jakarta – A $1.5 billion civil suit against former Indonesian President Suharto for graft must now be defended by one of his six children following his death last month, a Jakarta district court said on Tuesday.
Simon Montlake and Nick Squires, Bangkok/Sydney – A foiled dawn attack Monday by rebel soldiers on East Timor's President Jose Ramos-Horta, who was shot and seriously wounded, has roiled this fledgling Southeast Asian country. But it may also signal the end of a rebel movement that had plagued efforts to restore stability.
East Timor's maverick seemed desperate for martyrdom
Fabio Scarpello in Banda Aceh – When Alfredo Reinado died in a hail of gunfire outside the home of President Jose Ramos Horta yesterday, he was fulfilling a dream to either seize control of East Timor, or to go down in a blaze of glory trying.
Jakarta – Hundreds of activists from Jakarta and 13 other provinces across Indonesia camped overnight at the Proclamation Monument in Central Jakarta on Monday February 11. The action will continue until Wednesday and is being held to pressure the government to resolve cases of human rights violation that are believed to involve the late former President Suharto.
At least 100 people demonstrated Monday in Jayapura, Papua's capital city, to demand the dissolution of the Papuan People's Assembly (MRP), which they said failed to protect the rights of Papuans.
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Indonesia and China have embarked on a joint production of various war machines in a bid to help the Southeast Asian country replace its aging warfare equipment and ease dependency on imports.
Indonesian Ambassador to China Maj. Gen. (ret) Sudrajat said Monday the long-term cooperation would cover production of military vehicles, tanks and missiles.
Seth Mydans and Tim Johnston – President Jose Ramos-Horta of East Timor was shot and critically wounded at his home on Monday by renegade soldiers in an attack that threatened to intensify the continuing unrest that has destabilized the struggling young nation, according to reports from the capital, Dili.
John Aglionby, Jakarta – East Timor's president, Jose Ramos Horta, was shot in the stomach in a pre-dawn attack on his home by fugitive members of the country's armed forces, a presidential spokesman said Monday.
Jill Jolliffe – East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta is undergoing surgery at an Australian military base in the capital, Dili, after being shot twice in an attack on his home by rebels, a presidential adviser said today.
Rebel leader Alfredo Reinado was shot and killed in the attack, according to Deputy Prime Minister Jose Luis Guterres and an army spokesman.
Keiji Hirano, Tokyo – Human rights campaigners in Japan and East Timor have jointly made a set of panels for exhibition showing testimonies of former "comfort women" in the newly independent nation so the local people can learn about their history during the occupation by the Japanese military.
Jakarta – An Indonesian court on Monday sentenced the former boss of flagship carrier Garuda to one year in jail for assisting in the murder of a prominent rights activist, a judge said.
Meg Munn MP
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
11 February 2008
Dear Ms Munn,
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – The increasing involvement of businesspeople in Indonesian politics is seen as a positive trend for the country to help address the problem of poverty.
A discussion here Saturday heard that the political role of entrepreneurs would have a positive influence to the way politicians develop the nation, the world's third biggest democracy.
Jakarta – Observers on Sunday criticized the government's proposal to limit the number of independent candidates in regional elections, saying it would only further the interests of political parties.
We
1. declared West Papua as 'Land of Peace' on the 5th February 2002.
Bandung – Ten years since process of reformasi started, Indonesia has not undergone any significant political or economic reform. This has been demonstrated by lack of government policies that side with the ordinary people.
Jakarta – The Indonesian Bishops Conference (KWI) and the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) say they have accepted Tempo magazine's apology for its cover depicting a satirical version of Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper and consider the controversy over.
The two influential Christian organizations said a lawsuit against the magazine was unnecessary.
Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – It has been a year since Aceh held a direct gubernatorial election made possible by the peace agreement between Jakarta and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), yet analysts say little progress has been made in improving the lives of residents.
Dili – Eight unidentified men attacked a bus and killed three passengers near Los Palos, the Indonesian police said on Tuesday. The spokesman for the police in Dili, Colonel Muarfi, said that the attack took place last Sunday and that the three passengers were beaten to death.
Joe Collins from the Australia West Papua Association said that AWPA is still concerned about the ties with the Indonesian military that the Lombok Treaty commits us to. The treaty came into force on Thursday at a ceremony in Perth which was attended by the foreign ministers of Australia and Indonesia.
Indra Harsaputra, Sidoarjo – Several people were injured in a clash between thousands of protesters and security personnel following a ceremony for the soft launch of a housing development for Lapindo mudflow victims in the East Java town of Sidoarjo on Saturday.
Suherdjoko, Semarang – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is asking the country's media to exercise self-censorship because the era of government control over the press is at an end.
In a speech commemorating National Press Day here Saturday, Yudhoyono said self-censorship should be improved by only reporting "appropriate" news.
Heather Stewart – While there has been relative calm during the wet season in East Timor, more than 100,000 East Timorese are living in appalling conditions in tent cities across Dili and in the fledgling nation's remote districts.
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao has promised a "year of reform" but the refugees have almost given up hope.
Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Papua needs a mediating force to oversee an effective implementation of special autonomy, similar to that in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, a religious leader in Jayapura said Friday.
Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – Civil court is the fairest way to settle disputes over media coverage without putting press freedom in danger, an alliance of human rights activists says.
Jakarta – The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has warned the Indonesian government that its move to abolish wheat flour fortification could put the country's women and children at risk of micronutrient deficiencies.
Novia D. Rulistia, Jakarta – Of the 44 state firms the government plans to privatize this year, those operating in the commodity and infrastructure sectors are most likely to attract investor interest, analysts say.