Salam Jakarta

Tesco & Walmart to Enter Indonesia

2009-11-19T13:13:00.003+07:00

For full story please visit the original source: VIVA News

VIVAnews – The modern national retail market will be penetrated by two retail giants, UK-based Tesco and US-based Walmart. The foreign penetration in the retail sector is seen improving according to the Indonesian Association of Retailers (Aprindo) chairperson Benjamin J. Mailool.

“We cannot limit the foreign players to enter our retail sector and this trend is inevitable,” he said in Jakarta on Tuesday nught, Nov. 17.

Walmart and Tesco have listed Indonesia as one of the important destination countries for their future investments. “It is a matter of time [since] Indonesia is now seen as [an expansion destination] for them,” he said.

Mailool predicted that Walmart and Tesco will enter the Indonesian market through merger system. “If they directly set up new [outlets], it will be difficult,” he said.

A-to-Z of all that's good in Bali

2009-11-19T11:56:00.003+07:00

For full story please visit the original source: The West Australian

While never being a fully committed card-carrying "I don't do Bali" traveller, Ray Wilson determined that his previous trip to Bali in 1992 might well have been his last.

Recently, however, he gave it one more shot - and this is what he discovered in his A-to-Z re-awakening.

Accents: Isn't it funny, the only time I get irritated with the Aussie drawl is when a foreigner tries it on. Remember Meryl Streep playing Lindy Chamberlain in Evil Angels? Terrible. Unfortunately in the back lanes of Kuta and Legian in particular, some of the local store holders bark entreaties in an accent broader than any you'd find in Meekatharra. But I'm told that to be teased in Bali is to be accepted, so maybe I've read it wrong.

…………………..

Zebra crossings: They exist in Bali and on the major roads around the Kuta strip to Seminyak, but don't bet your life on the road rules bearing any semblance to ours. The worst drivers in Bali are young Australians on scooters or motorbikes. Mad Max and Casey Stoner all rolled into one. And, it's not as if the police are there as any great deterrent. One driver told us that it was compulsory to wear seatbelts in cars - there are none in backseats of cabs - and while the fine was around $120 in a court, the "pocket" fine was only $12. Enough said.

Garuda Invited to Resume Flights to the U.S.A.

2009-11-17T12:03:00.001+07:00

For full story & graphics please visit the original source: Bali Discovery

-F.A.A. Offers Technical Assistance to Indonesian Government and Garuda to Help Restart Flight Service to the U.S. West Coast.

Bisnis Indonesia reports that the U.S. Government has invited Garuda Indonesia to re-open its long-abandoned direct flights between the U.S.A. and Indonesia with assistance from the U.S. Federal Aviation Agency (FAA).

Garuda terminated its flights to Los Angeles in mid-1998 that operated on a route that traveled in both directions between Jakarta - Bali - Biak - Honolulu - Los Angeles.

The Minister of Transportation for Indonesia, Freddy Numberi, told the press that the U.S. invitation was delivered by U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia Cameron R. Hume after Indonesian aviation was moved from a cautionary category II rating to the more exemplary category I rating. Said Numberi, "this offer looks to be a good opportunity for Garuda and all of Indonesia."

Indonesia: the price of volatility

2009-11-13T14:06:00.005+07:00

For full story & graphics please visit the original source: Trustnet

Indonesia has proved an unlikely investment opportunity in the last ten years, or is the real winner volatility?

In the past 12 months the Indonesian index returned 107.24 per cent. Compare that with MSCI Thailand returning 53.33 per cent, MSCI Singapore 49.95 per cent, and MSCI Malaysia 46.66 per cent.

But, before betting the farm on this market rather than its neighbours or the typical portfolio core of UK equities and fixed income, it is worthwhile taking a look at what level of volatility investors were required to put up with in order to achieve such returns. Over the past three years this has clearly been the case.

Financial Express data suggests annual volatility for the MSCI Indonesia index was 42.68 per cent, set against an annual return of 22.95 per cent.

Compare that with the far lower volatility of 20.46 per cent for MSCI Malaysia against annual return of 19.85 – ie, not far off its neighbour. However, over the past decade Indonesia has still done better on this basis. Annual return averaged 14.22 per cent with volatility of 38.53 per cent, against return of 2.3 per cent and volatility of 28.27 per cent for Malaysia.

Thus, one could argue that the long term investor in the country has not necessarily had to take on much more risk in order to get superior returns against other markets nearby.

Unfortunately, it is not all that easy to buy into the country via country specific funds – beyond exposure gained through broader regionally focused ones.

Filtering out those with less than a 50 per cent weighting to the country leaves just seven to consider. One of these is Aberdeen’s US listed closed ended Indonesia fund, which came to it by way of the purchase of Credit Suisse assets earlier this year.

What is noteable is investors will have to look to the offshore funds universe. Ignoring the country on that basis would, though, be missing a number of points. Indonesia is one of the world’s most populous countries; it is next door to one of the strongest growing OECD members – Australia, which raised interest rates for the second time in two months last week – and serves as a resources provider for big importers such as China. The country’s GDP is projected by the IMF to grow 4 per cent in real terms through 2009, and 4.8 per cent in 2010.

Dhananjay Phadnis, manager of the Fidelity Indonesia fund, outlined two key changes in a recent note. The currency has appreciated, helped in part by rating agency Moody's upgrade to the country's sovereign debt by one notch to Ba2. The other was the re-elected government taking office in October, with promises of employment generation and infrastructure development leading Phadnis to increase real estate exposure.

"The Indonesian stock market does not look cheap in the Asian context, however, the lowering of input prices due to a strong rupiah and a recovery in demand will likely provide scope for earnings to surprise on the upside when companies report their third quarter performance," Phadnis wrote.

When It's Easy to Get Credit Cards in Indonesia

2009-11-12T11:21:00.001+07:00

Original source: Kompas.com

The value of stagnant credit or non-performing loan (NPL) for credit cards is still high. Based on the Indonesian Banking Statistics (SPI), the value of credit card NPL per September 2009 is Rp. 2.95 trillion, or 8.7 percent of the total outstanding credit that reaches Rp 33.63 trillion.

Since July 2009, the credit card NPL value has seemed reluctant to go below 8 percent. Per August, the NPL ratio was still 8.8 percent with the value of Rp. 2.89 trillion and total credit of Rp. 32.82 trillion.

Business Director of PT Bank UOB, Buana Safrullah Hadi Saleh said, the high NPL for credit cards is due to banks being more aggressive in persuading customers to use credit cards. "This is evident from the ease of the process to issue a new credit card. Sometimes without selecting the customer," he said.

According to Safrullah, the NPL ratio for credit cards that exceeds 8 percent is a warning for banks to be more careful in issuing new credit cards, "The normal NPL for credit cards should be around 7 to 8 percent," said Safrullah.

Mansyur S. Nasution, Executive Vice President for Consumer Credit of Mandiri Bank, affirmed Safrullah's opinion. "If the credit card NPL was lower, banks would be safer. The credit card business then could run better," he said.

Though the NPL value as stated by SPI is still high, our interviewed banker stated that the NPL in their establishment is low. In Mandiri Bank for instance, Mansyur said that the NPL ratio per September 2009 is only 2.74 percent.

Meanwhile, UOB Buana, having issued 170,000 Platinum credit cards, confessed that their NPL ranges from 3 to 4 percent. "Most of our customers can still fulfill their obligations," said Safrullah.

The same goes for Citibank that has issued 1.6 million credit cards in Indonesia. Citibank Country Marketing Head, Rico Frans, stated the bank had not seen any increase on NPL.

"Our NPL is still in the low single digit and still stable since last April," he stated. Strict requirements for credit cards and annual debtors' review are the keys to suppress credit card NPL

Can Indonesia's "Hamburger King" topple McDonald's?

2009-11-12T10:28:00.002+07:00

For full story please visit the original source: GlobalPost/ Sara Schonhardt

Would you buy a burger from a one-eyed pirate named Toni Jack? That's the hope of one Indonesian entrepreneur, whose roguish answer to Ronald McDonald also claims his burgers are “better than that one.”

The slogan is Bambang Rachmadi’s attempt to differentiate his new brand from the world’s largest hamburger chain – a company he held majority rights to until McDonald’s sold his stake in March.

Bambang, the self-described hamburger king of Indonesia, claims he was not notified of the sale of his $135 million in assets, which a company spokeswoman described as “personal." He is pursuing legal action against the corporate behemoth.

In the meantime, Bambang has transformed his 13 owner-operated McDonald’s into Toni Jack’s, a step he said was necessary to save the jobs of about 800 employees.

So last month, a McDonald's in central Jakarta disappeared under a black tarp with the Tony Jack’s logo: a pirate whose hat bears a burger crossed by a fork and spoon.

The 97 McDonald’s restaurants that remain in Indonesia now belong to sole franchisee PT Sinar Sosro, producers of the country’s leading bottled tea brand. Sinar Sosro says it aims to open as many as 75 new restaurants over the next five years, which helps sweeten the new partnership

Toni Jack’s has continued that approach with a menu that — despite the lack of halal labeling — is nearly identical to McDonald’s. But according to company spokeswoman Tetty Hutapea, the taste is "different."

“The meat is not good, and there are fewer choices for burgers,” said Aouini Nabil, a security guard from Paris, while poking at the remains of the chicken burger on his tray. His fiance Rento Utami said Toni Jack’s seemed to draw fewer customers, particularly teenagers and tourists.

A Spanish Embassy worker who entered the restaurant thinking it was still McDonald’s said he was surprised by the change but decided to give Toni Jack’s a try because he was short on time. Although he finished his burger, he said the taste was "not great."

Others were more positive about the switch. Fransesko Laban, an employee with an international NGO, stayed to do some work after finishing his Chicken Jack meal. He said he prefers Toni Jack’s to McDonald’s because it is clean and smoke free.

Bambang also plans to open several new branches in the year ahead, with a goal to franchise the restaurant to other countries in 2014.

For now, spokeswoman Tetty Hutapea said it’s too early to gauge Toni Jack’s sales performance but said that business is “stable.”

The loss of 13 restaurants may not make much of a dent in the global presence of McDonald’s, which operates 31,000 around the world. But it doesn’t do much for the company’s image in a region where it has faced more than one legal tussle recently..

Suzuki to relocate motorcycle plant from Thailand to Indonesia

2009-11-12T08:48:00.009+07:00

For full story please visit the original source: Antara News

Japanese automotive company Suzuki plans to relocate its motorcycle plant from Thailand to Indonesia in 2010, citing the huge market as one of its reasons.

"Suzuki originally wanted to develop (motorcycle industry) in Thailand but it later decided to switch to Indonesia," PT Suzuki Indomobil Motor (SIM) President Director Yoshiji Terada said.

The other reasons behind the company`s plan to relocate the plant were that Indonesia had large oil/gas, non-oil/non-gas potentials and high demand for transportation means, he said.

Previously, Terada said the company would raise its investment in Indonesia by US$50 million to increase its production capacity by 40 percent next year.

PT SIM would also launch at least seven new types of motorcycles, including those of skutic type. But most of the new products would be underbone and backbone motorcycles, he said.

After 5 year absence, Garuda Indonesia returns to Europe

2009-11-12T08:29:00.002+07:00

Original source (click to view full story): eTN News

Garuda Indonesia will return to Europe beginning June 1, 2010 after an absence of five years. The introduction of daily services from Jakarta to Amsterdam via Dubai marks a significant step forward in the airline's global network expansion strategy. Amsterdam will be the first of a number of key European cities such as Frankfurt, Paris, and London. Garuda Indonesia has planned for its European expansion over the next few years.

The Amsterdam route will initially be serviced by the airline's fleet of technically advanced A330-200 aircraft, featuring Garuda's new exterior and interior design inspired by the energy of nature's wings. In executive class, the aircraft offers fully-reclining, flat-bed seats with 74-inch seat pitch. The A330-200s will operate in a two-class configuration carrying 222 passengers, with 36 in executive class and 186 in economy class.

Garuda Indonesia currently has 10 Boeing 777-300ERs aircraft on order for delivery commencing 2011, which will then allow the airline to operate non-stop from Jakarta into Europe.

The new A330-200 aircraft features individual touch-screen LCD screens in all classes; the state of art inflight entertainment system with Audio & Video On Demand (AVOD) delivers a choice of 25 feature films, 250 audio tracks, and 25 video games.

Effective from June 1, 2010, the planned schedule is: Garuda (GA88) departing Jakarta (CGK) at 2100 WIB (GA88) arriving Dubai (DXB) at 0209 LT, departing at 0315 LT and arriving in Amsterdam (SPL) at 0800 LT. From Amsterdam (GA 89) departs at 1000 LT, arriving in Dubai at 1830 LT, departing again at 1945 LT and arriving in Jakarta at 0710 WIB. Fares to and from Dubai and Amsterdam will be announced shortly.

Indonesia teen who amputated his leg recalls earthquake ordeal

2009-11-10T08:38:00.002+07:00

For full story please visit the original Source: Los Angeles Times/John M. Glionna

Ramlan, who was working in Padang, Sumatra, when the 7.6 quake struck, knew he didn't want to die there. Now a celebrity, he says he merely 'did what I had to do to stay alive.'

Reporting from Galudra, Indonesia - The teenager lay dazed amid the settling dust and debris, his leg trapped by a fallen concrete wall. He sensed that he was going to die. So he made a decision: He would cut off his own limb to save his life. Ignoring the major blood loss, taking deep breaths as he concentrated on the terrible task at hand, the 18-year-old construction worker cut halfway through his right leg just below the kneecap.

Finally, too weak to continue, he begged for help, and a fellow worker finished the job for him in the aftermath of the magnitude 7.6 earthquake that struck Sumatra in September.

"I didn't want to die in that place," said the teenager, who goes by one name, Ramlan. "I did what I had to do to stay alive."

Every disaster delivers its own tales of bravery and superhuman strength. Amid the news reports of his exploits, Ramlan has become a hero across Indonesia, a survivor whose sheer will to live drove him to do the unthinkable.

Indonesia edging closer to securing an investment-grade ratings status

2009-10-26T11:26:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): London Stock Exchange/Reuters

Indonesia, which has seen a flood of foreign investment this year, is edging closer to securing an investment-grade ratings status for the first time since the Asian financial crisis in 1997-1998.

Standard & Poor's on Friday revised its outlook on Indonesia's sovereign debt rating to positive from stable, citing expected improvements in the country's debt profile following economic reforms.

A fund manager at PIMCO said in a report that Indonesia could regain its high-grade status in 3-4 years as long as government policies focus on long-term growth.

An high-grade rating would mean increased investment by funds that, according to their mandate, can only buy high-grade rated debt.

For S&P and Fitch, the lowest investment-grade credit rating before junk is BBB-minus. For Moody's it is Baa3.

History of Indonesia's sovereign debt ratings…(see the source)

SEE ALSO:
S&P ups Indonesia rating outlook to positive – Alibaba News/Reuters
Pimco Says Indonesia May Win Investment Grade Rating - Bloomberg

Indonesia: from basket-case to solid Bric

2009-10-23T11:16:00.000+07:00

Source (click to view full story): MoneyWeek

Just over a decade ago, Indonesia was considered "a basket-case", says The Economist. It faced economic collapse after the Asian crisis hammered companies overexposed to foreign-currency debt and caused the banking system to implode. Meanwhile, political chaos also appeared on the cards.

But now Indonesia has become a "stable, largely peaceful" democracy. It is also widely seen as an extra 'I' in the Bric (Brazil, Russia, India and China) group of fast-growing emerging markets. Along with rising global risk appetite, this helps explain why the Jakarta Composite index is Asia's best-performing market this year, up 123% in dollar terms.

Indonesia is helped by the fact that, unlike in most Asian countries, growth is propelled largely by domestic demand – exports comprise just 25% of GDP. This appears to be picking up again, with bank loans up 14.6% year-on-year in July. Sound management over the past few years has also put the economy on a more solid footing.

Keeping a tight lid on spending has helped lower debt quickly: public debt has fallen from 80% in 1999 to just over 30% by the end of last year. Companies have trimmed borrowings too: corporate debt is down from almost 50% of GDP to 15%. Lower debt has also reduced interest rates across the economy, cutting the cost of borrowing to invest.

That bodes well for the long term, and there are further reasons for optimism. Indonesia is resource-rich, with exports including palm oil, cocoa, coffee, coal and oil….

THE ECONOMIST: Indonesia's new cabinet: Like the last lot

2009-10-22T11:02:00.004+07:00

Source: (click to view full assessment): The Economist

Optimism abounded when Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (pictured) was re-elected Indonesian president in July in a landslide. Analysts at home and abroad hoped he would use his strong mandate to appoint a more reform-minded cabinet for his second five-year term. No longer would the former general be beholden to venal political parties. Competent technocrats would take over to drive the nation on, lifting its annual growth rates from an average of 5-6% in his first term to his target of 7%. Boosting optimism, his Democratic Party had soared on his coat-tails to become the biggest party in parliament.

Mr Yudhoyono, however, has been reading a different script. Twenty out of the 37 cabinet-level appointments the president announced on October 21st are from parties that have promised support in parliament. Hardly any of these are seen as experienced managers, let alone competent ones. A conspicuous number have no background relevant to their portfolios.

As in his first five years, the president looks as if he will rely on sound, strong, technocrat-led monetary and fiscal policy and hope it will translate into higher rates of growth. But that did not really happen in the more benign global environment of his first term, so it is hard to see why it should now. Simply muddling along in areas such as infrastructure, education, health, agriculture and mines and energy might keep Indonesia’s economic growth at present, respectable levels. But it is unlikely to help South-East Asia’s largest economy catch up with faster-growing China and India. With luck, the legacy of the Yudhoyono decade may be a strengthened democracy; it seems unlikely to be a transformed economy…

SEE ALSO:

New Indonesian Cabinet Disappoints Reform-Minded Analysts - The New York Times

PENPIX-Key economic posts in Indonesia's new cabinet - Reuters

SNAP ANALYSIS-Indonesia cabinet broadly meets expectations - Reuters

Will SBY Strive for Greatness? Prospects for the Indonesian President's Second Term

2009-10-21T10:56:00.001+07:00

Source (click to view full report): PacNet #69 - CSIS Center for Strategic and International Studies

By Alphonse F. La Porta

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, familiarly known as SBY, will be inaugurated for a second term on Oct. 20, 2009. As the first democratically elected president and the first to be elected to a second term, SBY has opportunities that no other Indonesian leader has had. Yudhoyono can achieve greatness in domestic and international terms and lead his country into a new era of committed democracy.

SBY inaugurated

2009-10-20T10:48:00.002+07:00

Source (click to view full story): Xinhua News

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was sworn in for his second term of 2009-2014 in a respect inauguration ceremony attended by several friendly heads of states and foreign country special envoys.

Vice President Boediono was also sworn in the ceremony, which was chaired by the Upper House's chairman Taufik Kiemas and attended by 647 members of the institution.

Following the opening speech, an official from the General Elections Commission read the agency's ruling related to the result of the elections.

"We decided that the pair of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono achieved 73,874,562 votes or 60.80 percent of total 121,504,581 votes," said the official.

As part of the inauguration ceremony, Yudhoyono and Boediono took oaths as president and vice president.

"For God's sake, I swear that I will do my jobs as best and fair as possible. I will strongly conduct mandate from the 1945 Constitution and other rules and I will be loyal to the nation and the country," said Yudhoyono.

The oath was followed by Vice President Boediono with the same sentences.

After signing the official report of the inauguration, Yudhoyono gave his speech as the president for his second term of 2009-2014…

Indonesian president confirms coalition of rival party

2009-10-15T11:29:00.001+07:00

Source (click to view): Xinhua News

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono confirmed that his rival party in the presidential election, the Golkar Party, has joined coalition of political parties that support him in his second term ending in 2014, local media reported here Thursday.

Speaking in a press conference held in his private residence in Cikeas, West Java, on Wednesday night, the president said he has received the pledge of Golkar Party's newly-elected Chairman Aburizal Bakrie to stay in the cabinet and coalesce with Susilo's Democratic Party in the parliament.

"As of tonight our coalition has consisted of six parties," he was quoted by the Jakarta Post as saying.

The parties he mentioned include the Democratic Party, the Golkar Party, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Awakening Party (PKB).

The president said he was yet to receive coalition commitment from the other rivaling political parties in the July 8 presidential election.

"I respect the PDIP (Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle), Gerindra (Great Indonesia Movement Party) and Hanura (People's Conscience Party), who have chosen not to coalesce with us, though I heard not all of them will become an opposition," he said.

With the support of six political parties, the president camp in the parliament would occupy 422 of the 560 seats in the parliament.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to be sworn in as Indonesia president for the period of 2009 - 2014 on Oct. 20. He will announce his cabinet members on Oct. 21.

SEE ALSO:
Indonesia's Democratic Party secures 3 chairmanships of 11 commissions in parliament – People’s Daily

Indonesia's IT competitiveness rating down

2009-10-15T10:44:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): Xinhua News

Of 66 countries across the world, Indonesia's Information Technology (IT) competitiveness rating downed to 59 this year from 58 last year, according to the result of a survey released here on Wednesday (Oct 14).

The result of the survey, that was carried out by Economist Intelligent Unit (EIU) and Business Software Alliance (BSA), also disclosed that Indonesia only obtained an index score of 22.8 in the survey, made it ranked at number 15 in the Asia Pacific region.

"The index score of most Asia Pacific countries were apparently down if compared to the scores they obtained last year," Claro Parlede, BSA Software Policy Director for Asia Pacific region was quoted by the Detik.com as saying.

Australia, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea were regarded the most IT competitive in the Asia Pacific region, the survey result said.

With index score of 68.7, the United States still tops the rank in the survey that has been conducted in the last three years.

Top hotels gain accolades at Wotif Group's first Indonesia Hotel Awards in Bali

2009-10-15T09:38:00.002+07:00

Source: (click to view): eTravel Balckboard, and www.Wotif.com

Wotif Group, operator of leading online travel brands in the Asia Pacific region, last Friday (9 October 2009) held their inaugural Indonesia Hotel Awards in popular island destination, Bali.

Set to be held annually, the Wotif Group Indonesia Hotel Awards aim to recognise top hotel partners who have attracted the most travellers through the Group's accommodation sites - Wotif.com, AsiaWebDirect.com and LateStays.com - in the past twelve months. The Awards ceremony was a resounding success, with over 60 hoteliers and hotel executives gathered at a champagne breakfast event at the Oceans 27 boutique lounge on Kuta's beachfront to celebrate the successes of their peers.

Sii Eawsakul, Wotif Group's Executive General Manager for Asia, said, "Despite turbulent events in recent months, Indonesia, with Bali in particular, is a highly resilient market with great growth potential. We are thrilled at this opportunity to demonstrate our confidence in the country's travel industry, and our appreciation for our hotel partners."

"Indonesia remains a key growth market for Wotif Group, and we are set to ramp up our presence in the country with the opening of a new office in Bali very soon. We continue to support our hoteliers' marketing efforts by promoting Indonesia as a tourism and travel destination, and by working closely with them to offer ever more attractive deals to the more than 7.5 million consumers who visit our sites every month," she added.

Award categories included Top Achievers - hotels who produced the most room nights for the three Wotif Group brands - and Top Producers - hotels who generated the most revenue from the Wotif Group brands*. The winners were:

Top Achievers FY 08/09 (room nights)
1. The Bali Dream Villa
2. Aston Bali Resort & Spa
3. Febri's Hotel & Spa

Top Producers FY 08/09 (revenue)
1. The Bali Dream Villa
2. Aston Bali Resort & Spa
3. The Sanyas Suite

Awards were also presented to Best Newcomers for each brand - signifying hotels that had signed up on a Wotif Group brand during the year and generated the most room night sales per month since listing. Indonesia's Best Newcomers were:

Wotif.com Best Newcomer FY 08/09
Padma Resort Bali at Legian

LateStays.com Best Newcomer FY 08/09
The Bali Dream Suite Villa

Asia Web Direct Best Newcomer FY 08/09
Melia Benoa

The Opposite Effect: Sales of pirated Miyabi DVDs surges

2009-10-15T08:33:00.000+07:00

Compiled from various sources (click to view): Japan Today, and Times Online. Photo: detik.com

A Japanese porn star has canceled a trip to predominantly Muslim Indonesia to act in a no-nudity comedy after sparking outrage from religious groups, producers said Wednesday.

Maxima Pictures pulled plans to film “Kidnapping Miyabi” in Indonesia and is scouting for an alternative location, said executive producer Yoen K.

Maria Ozawa, popularly known as Miyabi, was scheduled to arrive Wednesday (Oct 14) to begin production. The 23-year-old was “sad and disappointed to hear so many people opposed her visit,” he said.

Over the years various foreigners have been banned from entering Indonesia, but Maria Ozawa does not look like an obvious candidate for the blacklist.

A shapely 23-year old of mixed Japanese and Canadian parentage, she is not a terrorist, journalist, or a convicted criminal. But Ozawa has been forced to cancel her arrival in Jakarta today in a row that has drawn in Islamic fundamentalists, feminists and plenty of people in between.

Better known by her acting name Miyabi, Ozawa is one of Asia’s most successful pornographic film actresses. Although little known in the West, she has surpassed even acting legends such as Pamela Anderson as the most searched for celebrity on Indonesia’s internet version of Google. But news of her plans to work in Indonesia have stirred up angry protests from conservative Islamic organisations in the latest round in an ongoing debate about sexual morality.

Ironically the film project which was to have brought Ozawa to Indonesia was one that required her to keep on all her clothes. She had been invited by the producers of Kidnapping Miyabi, a comedy about a group of teenagers obsessed with Ozawa’s work who “accidentally kidnap” her as she is attempting to escape from a mob of fans. The screenplay ends happily with the adult star settling down in Jakarta, where she opens a lingerie shop.

Yoen said discussions were ongoing with religious organizations, but added it was wrong to prevent someone from acting in film, rather than judging the final product.

One of the most vocal opponents has been the influential Indonesian Ullema Council, a board of Muslim clerics, which has consistently opposed Ozawa’s visit over fears it will damage the country’s image.

“Come or not, we continue to reject her,” said Ma’ruf Amin, a prominent member of the council, known by its Indonesian acronym MUI. “We will continue to reject her even if she will not be nude.”

The cancellation comes weeks after Indonesia’s parliament passed a law ordering filmmakers to uphold “religious, ethical, moral, and national cultural values.” Movie makers are concerned a new censorship body outlined in the law will bring back the days of extreme censorship under the Suharto dictatorship, which was toppled more than a decade ago.

Indonesia’s population of 235 million is largely socially conservative, but not everyone agreed with the clerics that keeping out porn stars is a good thing.

Around a dozen Muslim students staged a rally in the capital of South Sulawesi, Makassar, on Wednesday, saying Ozawa’s human rights were being violated.

“As long as she will not appear in any porn action, there is no reason to ban her visit to Indonesia,” said Ubaidi, a protester at the Indonesian Muslim University campus.

“Everyone has the right to come and earn a living in Indonesia,” he said. “Just take care of your own morals, don’t intervene in Miyabi’s business.”

The resulting brouhaha may have the opposite effect to that intended, however. According to the Japanese Kyodo news agency, sales of pirated Miyabi DVDs have surged in Jakarta’s Glodok market .

A turnaround flight on Garuda Indonesia

2009-10-14T09:37:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): CNN Business Blogs/ Pauline Chiou

Five years ago, Garuda Indonesia was an airline that seemed to be on a path of constant turbulence. It was losing money year after year, battling allegations of corruption within the state-owned enterprise and stained with a questionable safety record. Today, Garuda is a symbol of what’s possible in the difficult airline industry. You need a leader with focus.

Emirsyah Satar, 50, is the CEO of Garuda. Now in his fifth year as the head of the national airline, he has turned Garuda from problematic to profitable through staged planning. “In the first two years, just surviving was good enough. And then the next two years was the turnaround stage,” he said. Now the airline is embarking on the growth stage.

The son of an Indonesian diplomat who grew up in Mexico City and Prague, Satar went on to become a banker and then the CEO of Bank Danamon, Indonesia’s fifth largest bank. In 2005, he was brought to Garuda as President and CEO and he made drastic changes from the start.

“What happened in 2005, the business model was just not working,” Satar said. It increased accountability at all levels in the organization. And in the short term, Satar decided less was more: “We got out of routes where we were losing money … it was ok if we reduced our market so we could become profitable again.”

He positioned Garuda as a “premium airline” and told his staff not to worry about local competition. With a domestic population of 240 million people, he bet focus on the cream of the crop would keep Garuda afloat while it restructured. His bet paid off, in part because Indonesia sidestepped the brunt of the global downturn thanks to the strength of its domestic market: Indonesia’s economy is still growing at around 4 percent.

While Garuda is still juggling $700 million in debt, the state-owned enterprise has been able to turn a profit the past two years. Satar has plans to make what he calls a “quantum leap.” By 2014, he wants to bring the fleet from the current 66 to 116 aircraft.

The big challenge now is getting a stalled IPO back on track. Satar had wanted to bring Garuda public this year, but the global downturn put a halt to that. Now he’s shooting for an IPO for June 2010. The airline is also in the process of restructuring its debt, which Satar hopes to have completed by the end of this month.

Then there was the issue of safety. In the past decade, a string of crashes involving various Indonesian airlines eroded the public trust in Indonesian air safety. In March 2007, a Garuda plane overshot a runway in Yogyakarta and crashed, killing 21 people. In June 2007, the European Union banned all Indonesian airlines in European airspace. Satar hired an American consultant and and cracked down on safety issues. In July of this year, the EU lifted the ban on certain airlines included Garuda.

The airline now plans to get into the long-haul market, starting with an Indonesia-Amsterdam route by June 2010. That will be followed by routes to Frankfurt, London, Paris, Rome and eventually in 2012, Los Angeles.

“We (Garuda) travel to Australia, Japan, Korea, China and these people still travel. And Bali is still a good attraction,” Satar said.

Survey shows many collapsed buildings in Padang were poorly constructed

2009-10-14T08:30:00.000+07:00

Source (click to view): Channel NewsAsia/Tan Yew Guan

A recent survey by the University of Indonesia has shown that most of the buildings that collapsed in Padang in the recent earthquake were poorly constructed.

Experts said that if the buildings were built according to construction codes, many lives would have been saved.

Driving through central Padang, it is not hard to spot buildings, still standing, right next to those brought down by the quake.

For example, the Ambacang Hotel, a Dutch colonial-era building, has become a symbol of the disaster in more ways than one. Its two-storey facade has been left standing, but the extension has collapsed.

Four floors were added to the two-storey structure when it was converted to an hotel. But while the facade stood the test, it is believed the additional load from the extension brought down the rest of the building during the tremblor.

Some 200 people lost their lives at this site alone. That accounts for nearly a quarter of the official death toll, which some said could have been avoided.

Professor Kerry Sieh, earthquake expert, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, said: "There are very specific things that communities can do on a local level, on the national level - to make it so we survive these events, so we do not see a whole classroom of students crushed under a building in Padang.

"None of that has to happen if people have enough foresight and vision, and if people have enough scientific information and engineering information. And if they have the economic wherewithal to do something about it."

Something was done seven years ago to prevent this when rules dictating quake-proof buildings were passed. Under those regulations, buildings in Padang are supposed to withstand three times the shock felt on September 30.

The Governor of West Sumatra Gumawan Fauzi admitted that enforcement has been lacking.

He said: "In the future, the government hopes to be more vigilant in handling the reconstruction of these damaged houses. The government would make sure that these houses meet the "Construction Code" guidelines and are strong enough to meet the impact of future earthquakes."

Experts have warned that a tremor far bigger than the last one is in the pipeline. They said that for West Sumatra, it is not a question of "if", but "when".

Aceh outrage over Miss Indonesia

2009-10-13T09:56:00.003+07:00

Compiled from the original sources (click to view): BBC/Karishma Vaswani, and Salim OsmanStraits Times/ANN

She represented Aceh in Indonesia's high-profile beauty pageant, and beat 37 others to win the coveted Miss Indonesia Universe crown last Friday (October 9).

But instead of praise, Miss Qori Sandioriva, 18, who is part Acehnese, has been denounced by clerics and community leaders in Indonesia's strict Islamic province for bringing shame to Aceh.

The furore centres on her taking part in the contest without wearing a jilbab, the Islamic headdress.

Clerics in Indonesia's conservative Muslim province of Aceh say they are outraged that an Acehnese woman has won the title of Miss Indonesia.

The clerics say that by failing to wear a veil during the competition she has betrayed her Acehnese roots and brought shame to the province.

Aceh has special autonomy in Indonesia and has implemented partial Sharia law.

It is the only province in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, that follows these laws.

Miss Qori claimed that she had the blessings of the Aceh provincial government to represent the province in the pageant.

But Deputy Governor Muhammad Nazar disputed her claim yesterday, saying: "I will meet her personally to query why she took part in the contest."

Teung-ku Faisal Ali, the secretary general of Aceh's Ulama Association, said that anyone who represents Aceh must uphold the province's values.

He said Qori Sandioriva did not wear a veil during the competition and therefore did not represent the Acehnese people, who have strong Islamic faith and values.

When asked about not wearing a veil during the competition, Ms Sandiorova said she believed hair is beauty, and that she is proud of beauty.

The controversy is likely to return next year when she goes on to compete in the Miss Universe contest where she will have to don a swimsuit as part of the pageant.

Beauty pageants have always been a sensitive issue in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, because of the presence of a small but vocal minority comprising hardline Muslim groups that object to such contests.

Internet won`t be able to replace print media in Indonesia?

2009-10-13T09:34:00.002+07:00

Original source (click to view full story): Antara News

Amidst rising fear of possible bankruptcy of the print media as the result of their declining competitiveness against cyber journalists, some senior journalists and lecturers opined that Indonesian print media companies should not worry about it.

Print media companies in Indonesia would not be replaced by the Internet, as long as they could make the necessary adjustments with the development of Internet as a means of disseminating news stories, Paul-Josef Raue, editor-in-chief of Braunscheweiger Zeitung said in an interview after addressing the 10th Asian-European Editors Forum in Seoul.

The senior journalists and lecturers opined that the Internet will not be able to take over the position of newspapers, if the media concerned was able to capitalize on the Internet as a form of communication to disseminate the news stories to the public.
According to him, many print media like Kompas, Media Indonesia and others media remained unaffected by the mushrooming Internet.

As to the case of Indonesia, according to him, many print media fell into bankcruptcy during the economic and monetary crisis hitting the world`s largest archipelagic country in 1998. Some newspapers could no longer finance their operations, thus forcing their owners to close down their media.

"Now, I hear that there is no certain print media which has to stop operation just because of a loss in competition with the Internet," Dr Stephen Quinn, Associate Professor of Journalism, School of Communications and Creative Art, Deakin University, said.

Many print media in Indonesia like the Jakarta Post, Kompas, Media Indonesia, the Jakarta Globe and others had their own web sites offering news stories to their readers not only in Indonesia, but also to those in other countries.

"It means that they really understand the trend of the world and try to adapt themselves with the form of communication," he said.

"In Indonesia, people who have an Internet link are not the majority. This condition is advantageous to print media like newspapers as they still have a chance to get the sympathy of their readers. Practically cyber Internet has yet to be regarded as a staunch competitor, " he said.

Internet journalism is being perceived as superior since it transformed viewers, listeners and news consumers of the past into participants of today`s media theater.

It is for that reason, media companies should concentrate on the values of journalism.

Good journalism is always linked to research, investigation, analysis , comparison of facts and evidence, he said. "What is so different when cyber journalists repeat their `search and link terminology. They do what they and link to the rest. No, we aren`t that far apart."

According to Stephen, a well-written story enriched with deep links for further research by the users could show the way for modern print media. Service is the remedy again and again . "Why don`t we show our clients how a story develops - Why don`t we interact with them. Why not offer our clients news in progress.

In the meantime, Dr Heinz-Rudolf Othmerding, international news director of the Deutsche Presse- Agentur GmbH, said that print media of tomorrow had to generate the hectic experience, allowing for the sensory experience of touch, combined with the intellectual and emotional experience of genuine participation.

"I am optimistic that media companies could remain to exist and leading amidst the rising use of the Internet nowadays as long as the stories offered to the readers are in depth, while the news put on the website are often short. This is what I find from web sites of some media in Indonesia," he said.

"However, it is a good strategy to let their clients or people buy their newspapers, if they want to know more about the news," he said, adding that some people only wanted to read the lead of the news.

"The questions that need to be addressed are what we do best, what we need to be good at, what we can ensure the best in a particular field and where our news can create values for our clients or readers."

"I learn that some media companies have been user friendly and have their strategies to develop their services in providing the people with information both through their newspapers and the Internet," he said.

Better relief efforts in Indonesia this time round

2009-10-12T09:23:00.003+07:00

Original source (click to view): Channel NewsAsia

After several natural disasters in recent years in Indonesia, the local authorities and the military were this time given the strongest message yet by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to do better in leading recovery efforts – and it has begun to show.

Since the West Sumatran earthquake struck on Sept 30, the Governor's office in Padang has built emergency schools and sent food to needy families, including over 6,000 tonnes of rice as of Friday.

Their efforts have received praise from the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC).

Team leader Winston Chang said that "all systems (were) working well with no obstacles on the field ... good cooperation on the field with various agencies and institutions".

The situation was slightly different earlier last week, when Mr Yudhoyono said he was "not pleased if governors report on damaged infrastructures that they need some hundred billions of rupiah ... what I want to know is the ongoing emergency steps", as reported by Indonesian daily Kompas on Tuesday.

Given the "geological risks" Indonesia faces, the President added that "the military should keep building effective capacity with high alertness", so they can respond quicker.

One foreign aide worker noted how the Indonesian army had arrived in the quake-hit region just as the Singapore Civil Defence Force was due to fly in on Oct 1. In the end, the 42-man SCDF rescue team flew in the next day, as the local government had not been ready to receive them earlier, Singapore's Foreign Affairs Ministry had said.

'We'll never refuse help'

In an interview with this reporter, Padang governor Gamawan Fauzi said: "We will never refuse help from the outside – be it in health supplies, rescue or food – but we must show that we have the ability to do it by ourselves also," he said.

This is not some "misplaced sense of patriotism" at work, either, said University of Indonesia international relations lecturer Sayed Fazan.

"It's not bad to have locals in charge because we need the element of local knowledge, especially when access to the most remote of areas is concerned."

While UNDAC is directing relief efforts on the ground, officials from non-government organisations – some 184 NGOs have set up base at the Governor's residence – said the government has been "more than helpful" in their aid efforts.

"We've had quite a lot of help from the government here in terms of organising flights and making sure we reach as many people as possible," said Mr Andy Holland of England's ShelterBox, which has been distributing tents and food to the people in Pariaman.

But the drive to have Indonesians lead recovery efforts seems to have gone unnoticed among the locals. At Kota Bangkor, located on the outskirts of Pariaman, one villager said she has seen more foreigners come to their help.

This is simply not true, countered Padang governor, Mr Gamawan: "We have a lot of locals – 1,600 local groups, in fact – that have been mobilised to the outskirts to give help. We value foreign help, but we cannot let it be said our locals don't want to help our own people."

How French Sees The Relations with Indonesia

2009-10-12T08:55:00.001+07:00

Source (click to view): Kompas.com

French ambassador to Indonesia Philippe Zeller said the relations between France and Indonesia have been increasing of late, while Indonesia has become increasingly strategic to the government and people of his country.

"Not only because of economic development, because there are 110 French multinational companies in Indonesia. Indonesia has been playing an increasingly significant international role," he said here Friday afternoon.

The career diplomat was in Denpasar for a reunion of Alliance Francaises, a French world cultural and language institution already in existence for the past 125 years. In Indonesia, the institution has been operating for 70 years already, and have branch offices in Medan, Bandung, Denpasar, Semarang, Balikpapan, and Surabaya.

Zeller said the development of the relations and similar perception in many respects had been going on since the last few years, the latest when President Susilo B Yudhoyono and French President Nicolas Sarcozy had 20-minute talks in the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, the United States.

"The two heads of state agreed on many things. France fully agreed with the green diplomacy concept," he said. The 20-minute talks between Yudhoyono and Sarcozy in Pittsburgh, he said, adequately presented the interest of the two countries because at a lower level understanding had already been reached.

With regard to the 7.6-magnitude earthquake which had struck Padang, Jambi, and many places in Jawa Barat, France has dispatched 75 military personnel with medical and building reconstruction skills. They had joined their counterparts from some other countries in cluding Indonesia.

University of Indonesia ranks world's 201st best

2009-10-09T16:21:00.001+07:00

Source: Xinhua News

The Times Higher Education-QS World University Ranking (THESS), a university rating company, said that University of Indonesia (UI) ranked the 201st among 500 world's best universities, Kompas daily reported on Friday.

"This is an extra ordinary achievement. Last year, UI ranked the 287th and in 2007 ranked the 395th," the university's rectorDr. Gumilar Rusliwa Somantri was quoted as saying.

Based on the THESS survey on 5,000 universities worldwide, UI is now included in elite university lines in Asia (the 34th) and in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nation) countries (the 5th).

The institution evaluation was based on performance indicators of research and publication, teaching, graduates' work performance and others.

Gumilar said that in line with UI's increasing rank, the amount of national and international research publications by the university's researchers had increased to 10,050 in 2009 compared to 9,050 in 2008. In the same period, the number of the university's researchers increased to 1,005 from 937.

KLM celebrates 85 years in Indonesia

2009-10-08T08:50:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): eTravel Blackboard

In the midst of a year-long celebration of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines' 90th Anniversary, yet another historic milestone is being celebrated in Indonesia. Exactly 85 years ago, KLM launched its first intercontinental flight linking Amsterdam and Batavia (since re-named Jakarta).

On 01 October 1924, a Fokker F-VII took off from Schiphol Airport on a 14-day multi-stop flight that culminated in a highly-anticipated arrival at Batavia. In those early days, a return ticket cost the equivalent of €25,000 (at today's prices) and the route catered mainly to the needs of top civil servants. Passengers were given the royal treatment at every stop along the route.

The success of the trial flights encouraged KLM to commence regular scheduled services every fortnight in September 1929 and by then, the journey was shortened to just 12 days.

While gaining popularity on this route, the first operating frequency was once per 14 days. Then it became weekly, and very soon it became twice per week.

Today, KLM's daily flight to Jakarta is undertaken by the Boeing 777-300ER and B777-200 in slightly more than 12 hours (with a stop in Kuala Lumpur). KLM's growth on the route mirrors the vast strides that aviation has achieved during the intervening 85 years and travel between Amsterdam and Jakarta is routinely undertaken by people from all walks of life. Onboard the fuel-efficient B777-300ER/B777-200 fleet, all passengers are pampered with state-of-the-art amenities including audio and video on demand, language courses, audio books and games, SMS and e-mail services. In the Business Class cabin, hard-shell sleeper seats transform into a near-horizontal bed with a 175-degree incline.

KLM's on-going fleet modernisation programme, warm and genuine Dutch hospitality and reliability enhance the flying experience of our passengers as we turn 90. Indonesia and the Netherlands share a deep-rooted historical bond and Jakarta has proven to be a key destination in KLM's global network. Strong demand in 2008 has precipitated the injection of an additional 7 percent capacity on this route.

KLM's Country Manager, Indonesia Mr Axel Colen said, "Our historical and cultural bonds are deep and multi-faceted and these have resulted in strong ties between the governments, corporations and most of all the people of the Netherlands and Indonesia. Indonesia has a resilient economy with tremendous potential and we have full confidence that it will continue to be a very important market for AIR FRANCE KLM. We are ready to serve Indonesia for another 85 years!"

KLM's celebration of its 85 years of presence in Indonesia kicked off with an Aircraft Design Competition, a journey of inspiration towards the next level of Aircraft Design, with a main prize of tickets to Amsterdam including a hangar visit.

Then on 01 October 2009 KLM will host a cocktail / dinner reception at Arsip Nasional Building on 01 October 2009 to thank its customers and supporters, trade partners, media and staff - more than 300 of these have been invited. During this event, guests will be entertained by Betawi dancers and musicians, jazz band and be treated to a video flashback of KLM's Amsterdam-Jakarta service.

Special promotional fares of US$85 (including taxes) to Kuala Lumpur and US$777 (including taxes) to Europe in economy class will be offered between 19 - 26 October 2009 for travel between 19 October and 15 December 2009. In Business Class, an unbeatable promotional fare of US$1924 to Europe (fare of US$2009 for second person travelling together) is also extended for the same period.??

Visitors to the KLM website from 1 - 31 October can also take part in an online game where participants who answer the questions correctly can stand a chance to win the main prize of two tickets to Amsterdam.

In November 21, 2009, KLM will have CSR activity, where we will invite 85 orphanages to Ancol bay area, to do cleaning campaign in the morning near the beach & continue with fun filled activity at Dunia Fantasi playground.

More information on these are available on KLM's website at http://www.klm.co.id/ and details of KLM's 90 Years of Inspiration may be found at www.klm.com/thejourney.

Living in luxury in Jakarta

2009-10-07T11:13:00.004+07:00

Source (click to view full story): The Southland Times/ Rhiannon Horrell

On a sunny afternoon, 23 floors up in a modern apartment building in South Jakarta, the Quertier family are a world away from their beginnings in Gore.

"Next time I say I want an assignment overseas I must be more specific about the country," Carol Quertier says, laughing.

They are sheltered from the harsh realities of Jakartan-life within their high-walled apartment complex, which boasts an expansive swimming pool, a garden and even a convenience store.

"One of the great things with living here, with our lifestyle, is having people who come in and help," Carol says.

They have two Indonesian women as servants. Darsi shares care of 6-year-old son Orson with Warren while Tartik does all of the cooking and cleaning.

The original plan was to stay three years, maybe five at the most, but they've been there nine. Orson was born in New Zealand but was an "expat" by the age of one month.

"They kept saying to me `Would you stay for another year Carol? Another two years'?"

Now they've been away from New Zealand more than half their lives, but plan to end up back here, where the pace of life is slower.

Each day, Carol has a seven minute walk to Axa Insurance while Warren works from home in online financial trading.

Despite security concerns and terrorist threats to Indonesia, the couple says they feel safer walking the streets of Jakarta than other major cities.

"I think we have said to each other that if ever we get to a point where we are worried, and you are always watching your back, then it really is time to move on.

"I was at Axa when they had the Mariott Hotel bomb. It was like 200m across an open field from my office. I was sitting there watching the smoke."

Warren says it is surreal to see how quickly life resumes when a bomb does go off.

"At Senayan complex, where they play baseball, they stopped for about a minute because they heard the bomb. Within a couple of minutes they carried on playing. You would think everything around it would stop but they just kept going."

The family has grown to love Indonesia after taking six to nine months to adapt. With a population of 12 million, Jakarta is a bustling city with traffic problems that make Auckland's seem minor.

"There is always something going on. It is the city that never sleeps," Carol says.

"You go back home to the farm and it is so quiet you can actually here the ringing in your ears," Warren adds. "It takes a bit to get used to it again."

Now in their early 40s, they find New Zealand too cold after acclimatising to the tropical heat of Java.

"I can't stand the cold now," Warren says. "This is all I ever live in a T-shirt. You go home to New Zealand and it takes you half an hour to get ready by the time you put all the layers on before you go outside."

With general costs lower than at home, living in Jakarta can be relatively cheap despite the fluctuating Indonesian rupiah.

"You could probably live better here for the same amount of money," Warren says.

"When we go back to New Zealand, we will holiday using our US dollars, which at the moment gives you a better purchasing power there."

"When people come to Jakarta we say everyone is a millionaire," Carol says. One million rupiahs is about NZ$166.

While they live in luxury, they are aware of the mass poverty that plagues Jakarta. Slum housing sits alongside skyscrapers, with whole families living on the streets.

"It is pretty much just squatters, not even a kampong (neighbourhood) as such," says Warren. "You can see real hardship there.

"People in New Zealand complain about silly little things. They need to stop it and realise just how lucky they are."

His mother, who visited at Christmas, was shocked to see the locals washing their clothes in a dirty puddle on the street.

"It wakes you up a bit," he says.

Indonesia to stop 'invasion'

2009-10-07T10:01:00.001+07:00

Source (click to view): AsiaOne and The New Straits Times

Indonesia will not allow an extremist group of nationalists, bent on avenging a series of wrongdoing allegedly committed by Malaysia, to "invade" the country tomorrow.

"It will never, never take place. We are taking precautions," said Teuku Faizasyah, spokesman for the Foreign Ministry without elaborating.

"We have high regards for the bilateral relationship with Malaysia."

Faizasyah said the government could not act against the group as long as they were only making statements.

"But if they go beyond that, we will take legal action."

Benteng Demokrasi Rakyat (Bendera), a group of vigilantes with 1,500 members, vowed to "wage war" on Malaysia tomorrow.

Bendera said its plan to invade Malaysia would proceed on schedule and 1,500 men would depart for Malaysian shores by ships and other modes of transportation.

"It (invasion) will proceed as planned," said Mustar Bona Ventura, a BDR coordinator.

On whether they would be armed, he replied: "I can't tell you that."

Mustar said the men would depart from Surabaya, south Kalimantan and other cities.

The group is angry over the abusive treatment of Indonesian workers in Malaysia, the sovereignty claims over Ambalat and Malaysia's alleged efforts to claim "tarian pendet" as its own.

Indonesia Muslim's Moderate Attitude Praised

2009-10-07T09:54:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): Kompas.com

The moslem community in Australia who came from the different nations in the world still have their own identity, and in the process, the moderate attitude of Indonesian moslems can be made a reference, Australian young moslem leader Mohammed El-Leissy said.

"Apart from the problem of corruption in Indonesia, Indonesian moslems are closer to Islam. We in Australia are still maintaining our identity, and I wish to assume a moderate attitude of Indonesian moslems (reference)," he said at a discussion with ANTARA, Republika daily and TV-One in Melbourne Tuesday.

When visited the studio of the Community Radio "Syn FM" at the Royal Technology Institute in Melbourne, El-Leissy who visited Jakarta, Surabaya, Yogyakarta, and Bandung last May as participant in an exchange program of Australia-Indonesia young moslem leaders, he said he liked Indonesia very much.

His liking of Indonesia was gained in his experience of interaction and seeing from close quarters the life of moslems in Indonesia, including the freedom of women, and their relationship with men.

The broadcaster of Syn FM RMIT who is active in the Victoria Islamic Council even called Indonesia as the biggest moslem population in the world with the highest maturity, which not many countries in the Middle East have.

Bulgari Announces Residential Project in Bali

2009-10-07T08:06:00.000+07:00

Source (click to view): Luxury Insider/Ashok Soman

In what may be a first for the luxury goods world, Italian luxury goods group Bulgari recently announced their first branded residential villas project. While the group already has a city hotel property in Milan and a resort in Bali, this residential project constitutes a real leap.

This is what the brand is doing, briefly: Five single family villas (starting at USD6 million) designed by Antonio Citterio and Partners will be built adjacent to the Bulgari Resort in Bali, Indonesia. Like the Bulgari Resort, all the villas are expected to have excellent views of the Indian Ocean.

Obviously, the challenge for Bulgari and the developers will be in transposing the values of the brand from conventional luxury goods (i.e. jewelry, watches and accessories) to real estate, without the benefit of an established path.

According to Bulgari, the inspiration for this development came from the Bulgari Villa, effectively the presidential or penthouse property of the Bulgari Resort. In many ways, this real estate development is even more exciting than a Bulgari jet or yacht would be. We expect the entire luxury industry to watch this development closely for years to come.

In fact, discussions on the possibility of developing branded real estate have been ongoing for more than a decade now but that was largely about real estate brands, such as Trump.

In this case though, the project is not directly under the Bulgari Group. Operating under license from Bulgari S.p.A. the group’s Indonesian partners are executing and managing the project. These parties include entrepreneur Soetikno Soedarjo, CV Buana Restuabadi and Star Lucky International Pte Ltd. Jones Lang LaSalle is handling sales inquiries.

Golkar: Who will replace Jusuf Kalla?

2009-10-05T12:29:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): Jakarta Globe

Hundreds of delegates from the provincial branches of the Golkar Party converged on Pekanbaru, Riau for a four-day national leadership meeting beginning Monday.

At issue is who will replace the outgoing chairman, Vice President Jusuf Kalla, criticized by many for the battering the party took in April’s legislative elections.
The congress comes at a critical juncture in Golkar’s long history. A number of analysts and critics have predicted the party chairmanship would go to the richest candidate rather than the most concerned about returning the party to its former glory.

Which contender will win the race for the party’s top job?

Aburizal Bakrie
A controversial businessman and outgoing member of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s cabinet. It is highly unlikely that the Sidoarjo mudflow disaster, which has been linked to Bakrie’s PT Lapindo Brantas, or his low approval ratings will hold much sway with Golkar branch chairmen. The clear frontrunner for the chairmanship, Bakrie has secured the support of former chairman Akbar Tanjung and Golkar deputy chairman Agung Laksono. He is also expected to align Golkar with Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party-led ruling coalition.

Yuddy Chrisnandi
The up-and-comer within Golkar promoted himself as a reformer within the struggling party but then sought the blessings of former dictator Suharto’s family for his candidacy. Yuddy has pledged to shake up the party. Although not expected to be in any position to make a serious stake for the Golkar crown, Yuddy maintains that he will be able to secure the support of at least 30 percent of the party’s regional branches. His vision is to place Golkar as an independent party, but says that he will take cabinet seats if they were offered.

Surya Paloh
The flamboyant media mogul and veteran Golkar leader claims he has the support of 362 provincial and district branch chairmen. The bearded Paloh has vowed to move Golkar out of the government for the first time in its long history. He views the former ruling party as an equal partner to Yudhoyono’s government and one that must be critical and proportionate. He has pledged to reject any cabinet seats and instead focus on consolidating and rebuilding the party ahead of the 2014 elections.

Tommy Suharto
The former high-flying playboy prince of Cendana. The favored son of the late Suharto claims he has the support of 300 branch leaders, but will not identify them. He has promised to reject positions within the government and to form an independent party.

Some Indonesians are blaming a supposedly "unlucky" president for Sumatra's earthquake

2009-10-05T09:24:00.004+07:00

Source: (click to view): AFP/Aubrey Belford

Some superstitious Indonesians are blaming a supposedly "unlucky" president -- and not shifting tectonic plates -- for the latest earthquake in this disaster-prone country.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, popularly known by his initials SBY, has long been burdened by murmurs that he carries with him the shadow of cosmic misfortune.

A string of disasters both natural and man-made since his election in 2004, including the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed 220,000 across Asia, has seen quips that SBY stands for "Selalu Bencana Ya", roughly meaning "Always A Disaster".

"SBY, because of his birth date, will always attract disasters to this country, according to the Primbon (a Javanese almanac of mysticism)" Permadi, a veteran politician from the opposition Gerindra party and practising shaman, told AFP.

"Just look at the numbers of his birth date -- the ninth of the ninth, '49 -- that's unlucky. The more he holds on to power, the more great disasters will happen," he said.

If Yudhoyono stays president, "a much bigger disaster will strike Jakarta for sure," Permadi said, referring to the Indonesian capital.

"If SBY had a big heart, he would step down."

Not everyone believes this theory -- and many see SBY's birthday as enviably lucky -- but such talk of supernatural misfortune has deep resonance in Indonesia, where Islam and Christianity are for many merged with older traditions of Hinduism, Buddhism and animism….click here for full story by AFP.

SEE ALSO: Indonesia declares two-month emergency in Sumatra

FT: Warning of bigger tremor to come

2009-10-03T18:58:00.009+07:00

Source (click to view): FT.com/By Kevin Brown and Earth Observatory of Singapore, NTU

The earthquake that struck Sumatra three days ago is likely to be followed by an even larger tremor that could cause a tsunami as devastating as the one that hit Indonesia in 2004, according to a leading seismologist.

Professor Kerry Sieh, director of the Earth Observatory at Singapore’s Nanyang University, says earthquakes measured at 8.4 and 7.8 which hit southern Sumatra in September 2007 marked the beginning of a cycle of tremors that starts roughly every 200 years.

“This is 100 times smaller than the big one,” Prof Sieh said by telephone from Padang, where he was monitoring the aftershocks from Wednesday’s earthquake, estimated by the US Geological Survey at 7.6 on the scale used by modern seismologists.

“My timing has not changed as a result of this quake. This is not the big one, but we don’t know when that will happen – it could be in 30 seconds or 30 years,” he said.

Prof Sieh said there had been 30 or more earthquakes of magnitude six or greater in Sumatra or the adjacent seas in the last 10 years, including the devastating quake measured at 9.1 on Boxing Day 2004.

These tremors had released more pent up energy from below the earth’s surface than anywhere else in the world over the decade, marking the start of a “failure sequence,” comparable to watching an aircraft falling apart in mid-air, that would inevitably culminate eventually in a much bigger tremor, he said.

Records going back to 1300 suggested that there had been three such failure sequences in the seas around Sumatra, the last of which began 210 years ago. However, it was impossible to forecast how long the series of quakes would last before calm returned.

Prof Sieh said there was no tsunami on Wednesday because tidal waves accompanied earthquakes only when a subsea fault was so close to the sea floor that it was suddenly deformed and the displaced water rushed on to land.

The Padang earthquake did not trigger a tsunami because it originated about 80 kilometres below the sea floor. By comparison, the ruptures that caused the Sumatran earthquakes in 2004, 2005 and 2007 were within 30 kilometres of the sea floor.

Prof Sieh said in a technical explanation of Wednesday’s quake posted on the Earth Observatory’s website that most earthquakes off Sumatra occurred as a result of collisions between undersea tectonic plates – large slabs of the earth’s crust that move slowly under earth’s surface...

For full story click theoriginal source:

FT.com

SEE ALSO:

Could one quake cause others across the world? - Discovery Blog

Indonesia and Samoa disasters 'unlikely' to be connected - The Mirror

International rescue teams arrive in Indonesia

2009-10-03T18:12:00.003+07:00

Source (click to view): BBC Newsroom

Rescue teams from all over the world are arriving in the Indonesian island of Sumatra to help search for survivors of Wednesday's earthquake.

Workers arriving in remote areas three days after the quake are finding villages completely destroyed.

So far more than a thousand people are known to have died, but now that number is expected to rise.

British, Australian and South Korean rescuers have arrived and the EU and Russia are also sending help.

The city of Padang, which is very close to the coast, is among the areas hardest hit by the tremors. Up to 3,000 people are believed trapped beneath collapsed buildings.

Help

Charities like the Red Cross say more help is needed.

"We need drinking water and clothes because many people's clothes were burnt in fires," said one Red Cross worker.

"We also need medicines to stop infection."

It's quite difficult for search and rescue teams to work their way through to the worst affected areas, so it's going to take a long time to help people.

The earthquake, which measured 7.6 on the richter scale, and a really strong aftershock brought down hospitals, schools and shopping centres as well as causing landslides across the island.

Muzu music video site launched to rival YouTube

2009-10-02T16:34:00.002+07:00

Source (click to view): The Telegraph UK ; Website http://www.muzu.tv/id

Muzu aims to take on YouTube by offering thousands of hours of high-quality music videos and archive episodes of shows such as The Tube and Top of the Pops

Users can flick through thousands of hours of footage ranging from the latest music videos to exclusive clips and artists interviews. Archive episodes of shows such as The Tube and Top of the Pops, can be viewed online.

Muzu, which is based in Ireland, has signed deals with the so-called "big four" record labels – Universal, Sony BMG, Warner and EMI – as well as more than 7,000 independent labels. Users can create playlists of their favourite videos and clips, and share them with friends over the internet, or embed them on social-networking sites such as Facebook, Bebo, MySpace and Twitter.

"Whether you're an RnB diva or a hair metal rocker, Muzu's got the lot," said the company in a statement. I"Every imaginable genre is catered for.

And in a veiled dig at YouTube, which remains the most popular online video channel for finding and sharing clips of gigs, shows and music videos, Muzu said: "What’s more, because each video is officially licensed and approved by the artist, you won’t have to trawl through reams of grainy, homemade knock-offs or live footage of your favourite band via a crappy three-megapixel camera phone to find the video you want."

Google-owned YouTube has run in to hot water with record labels and artist groups over its revenue model. Earlier this year, Warner removed videos by its artists, such as Madonna and Green Day, from the YouTube site following a disagreement over payments. This week, Google and Warner reached a deal that will see the videos reinstated on YouTube in exchange for Warner taking the lion's share of advertising revenue from the videos.

In September, Google also settled a long-running dispute with the Performing Rights Society, which saw tens of thousands of videos return to YouTube after they had been removed in March. Google agreed to pay the PRS – which is responsible for paying out royalties to composers, publishers and songwriters – a lump sum of money, instead of the usual pay-per-view model.

Race to save Sumatra quake buried

2009-10-02T14:30:00.006+07:00

Source (click to view): BBC News. Picture: Channel NewsAsia

Rescue teams have resumed the desperate search for survivors following a devastating earthquake on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

Many people are thought to be trapped under rubble after the 7.6-magnitude quake struck on Wednesday.

The death toll already stands at more than 1,000, according to the UN, and officials say they expect it to rise.

On Friday, Indonesian Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari appealed for foreign aid to help the rescue effort.

"We need help from foreign countries for evacuation efforts," AFP news agency quoted her as saying.

"We need them to provide skilled rescuers with equipment. Our main problem is that there are a lot of victims still trapped in the rubble. We are struggling to pull them out."

The quake struck close to the city of Padang, the capital of West Sumatra province, bringing scores of buildings crashing to the ground.

Part of Padang's main hospital also collapsed and a makeshift open air morgue has been set up to take the growing number of yellow body bags.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono flew to the region after arriving back from the G20 summit on Thursday and stayed overnight to help oversee the rescue.

Access 'difficult'

The BBC's Alastair Leithead in Sumatra says the main airport has re-opened and aid supplies and rescue teams have been arriving.

Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said that up to 100 Australians were unaccounted for after the quake, although there was no evidence so far that any had been killed or injured.

Padang is a popular destination for surfers.

"I'm always concerned when we've got potentially 100 Australians whose whereabouts we can't vouchsafe for," he told Australian broadcaster ABC.

Mr Smith said Australia was sending aid supplies and also a search and rescue team, plus 10 engineering specialists.

Other countries around the world are also sending aid, including the UK, South Korea and Japan.

US President Barack Obama, who spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, also pledged to support the recovery effort.

MAJOR INDONESIAN QUAKES

-26 Dec 2004: Asian tsunami kills 170,000 in Indonesia alone

-28 March 2005: About 1,300 killed after a magnitude 8.7 quake hits the coast of Sumatra

-27 May 2006: Quake hits ancient city of Yogyakarta, killing 5,000

-17 July 2006: A tsunami after a 7.7 magnitude quake in West Java province kills 550 people

-30 Sept 2009: 7.6 magnitude quake near Sumatran city of Padang, thousands feared dead

-1 Oct 2009: Second of two quakes near Padang, magnitude 6.8 - no damage or casualties reported

The main earthquake struck at 1716 local time (1016 GMT) on Wednesday, some 85km (55 miles) under the sea, north-west of Padang, the US Geological Survey said.

A second quake of 6.8 struck close to Padang at 0852 local time (0152 GMT) on Thursday causing panic but no reports of casualties or damage.

Sumatra lies close to the geological fault line that triggered the 2004 Asian tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries.

Geologists have long warned that Padang - a city of 900,000 people - could one day be completely destroyed by an earthquake because of its location.

SEE ALSO:
Thousands feared dead in quake – The Jakarta Post

In Indonesia, 'let's be prepared for worst' - Philly
Indonesia quake zone a disaster waiting to happen: scientists - AsiaOne
Living on the Edge, Geologically Speaking – The New York Times

Malaysia congratulates Indonesia over Batik

2009-10-02T13:09:00.001+07:00

Source (click to view): The Jakarta Post. Picture: Jakarta Globe

Official delegations from the Malaysian government congratulated Indonesia over the handmade batik that had just been listed as world heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik said on Friday.

UNESCO has officially declared that Indonesia's batik as one of the world heritage during a ceremony in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

"Delegations from Malaysia came to Abu Dhabi (to attend the UNESCO ceremony). They congratulated Indonesia's delegations after the ceremony," Jero told Antara news agency during the inauguration of People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) members.

He said that all 114 UNESCO member countries had agreed that batik was Indonesia's contribution to world heritage.

Jero said that he was very happy and proud after noticing that Malaysia had congratulated Indonesia over the batik.

"After batik, our next job is angklung and gamelan (Indonesia's traditional music instruments)," he said.

Prior to batik, UNESCO has also named keris (a traditional Javanese dagger) and wayang (puppets) as Indonesia's world heritage.

Indonesia had competed against other batik producing countries, like Malaysia, to be included on UNESCO's world heritage list.

SEE ALSO:
Indonesia and Malaysia Battle Over Batik - Jakarta Globe

Indonesia: iPhone v.s. Blackberry, and the winner is…

2009-10-01T15:39:00.000+07:00

Source (click to view): Dan Meyer/RCR Wireless News. Picture by: applefinder-wordpress

RIM's BlackBerry devices have shown a dramatic growth in mobile Internet traffic in Indonesia.

Apple Inc.’s iPhone may be seen by most around the world as the uber-mobile device, but a report out of Indonesia suggests that the device has run into stiff competition from rival Research In Motion Ltd.

The report, from mobile advertising solutions provider InMobi, found that mobile ad requests on RIM’s BlackBerry devices increased 842% during the first half of the year compared to a 205% increase for requests from Apple’s iPhone.

While RIM’s devices did have a three month lead in getting to market when they launched in January, results from the report show that beginning after the iPhone launch in April, BlackBerry-based ad requests took increased dramatically compared to the Apple device.

The InMobi data also showed that Indonesia’s mobile Internet user base has more than doubled within the last 12 months. InMobi estimates 9 million mobile Internet users currently in Indonesia, with 591 page views per user, which is more than double the global average of 250 page views per user based on data from mobile Web browser developer Opera.

Not surprisingly InMobi found that 53% of mobile Web users are between the ages of 18 and 27 and that 82% of total mobile Web users are male. The total number of mobile Web users in Indonesia is expected to reach 146 million by 2010.

The market is currently dominated by Inosat, which claims 75% market share among mobile Internet operators. Telekomsel is a distant second with 18% market share, followed by Excelcomindo with 3% share of the market.

In Mobi also claims that 80% of handsets sold in Indonesia are Web-enabled, and that “costly ISP plans, unreliable fixed line infrastructure, and inexpensive mobile data plans with unlimited mobile Web usage are also encouraging the adoption of mobile Internet browsing.”

SEE ALSO:
Blackberry Beating iPhone in Indonesia by Mobile Ad Requests, says InMobi – Webnewswire
BlackBerry Leads Apple in World's Third-Largest Mobile Market – Readwriteweb

Indonesia: Some McDonalds Become Tonijack's

2009-10-01T14:54:00.005+07:00

Source (click to view): VIVA News. Picture story: detik Finance

Indonesian mogul Bambang Rachmadi launched Tonijack's Indonesia as a replacement for McDonald's Indonesia whose franchise right has been terminated.

The overall modified outlets reach 13.

"I'm really disappointed about this," he said on Thursday, October 1, "but I'm sure every employee can understand. I have to take a strategic maneuver as a form of my responsibility."

Bambang teamed up with Suryo B Sulisto to manage the business.

Suryo is a businessman and founder of PT Satmarindo Group, which focuses on oil, mining, tourism, retail, sea and air transportation sectors. "He is also chief commissioner of PT Bumi Resources Tbk and Giordano Indonesia," he said.

Bambang claimed Tonijack's is introduced as a part of saving around 800 employees from being laid off.

"After the franchise right came to an end, 800 employees were facing layoff," said Bambang.

Miyabi can come, Indonesia minister says

2009-10-01T10:05:00.002+07:00

Source (click to view): AsiaOne

As debate rages over the planned visit to Indonesia by Japanese porn star Maria "Miyabi" Ozawa, Communications and Information Minister Mohammad Nuh has said no one can stop her from coming to the country.

"As long as she doesn't do any porn activity in Indonesia, then legally, [her visit] can't be prohibited," Nuh said recently in Kudus, Central Java, as reported by newsportal detik.com.

Several religious groups have protested against Miyabi's plan to visit Jakarta in October to shoot a film titled Menculik Miyabi (Kidnapping Miyabi).

The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has warned that Miyabi must never enter Indonesia, with MUI chairman Ma'aruf Amin saying Miyabi's reputation as a porn star could have an adverse effect on Indonesians.

Nuh noted that the group's opposition Miyabi is not about hatred, but is merely a call for morality.

"So we should also respect the opinions of those who oppose [the visit]," Nuh said, adding that it would have been better if the controversial plan hadn't been made in the first place.

"Creativity must not ignore social sensibility," he said.

Church in Indonesia Wins Legal Battle to Worship in Building

2009-10-01T09:45:00.000+07:00

Source (click to view): Compass Direct News

Christians have won a court battle restoring the right to worship in their building in Depok City, West Java.

Depok Mayor Nur Mahmudi Ismail on March 27 had revoked the building permit for a multipurpose building and house of worship for Gereja Huria Kristen Batak Protestan (HKBP) church following protests by Muslims. A court in Bandung on Sept. 17 rescinded the order that revoked the church building permit, paving the way for congregants to resume worship there.

Head Judge A. Syaifullah read the decision of the three-judge panel, which found the mayor’s reasoning for canceling the building permit inadequate. The mayor had said that most people living near the church objected to its building in Jalan Pesanggrahan IV, Cinere Area of Depok City.

“These objections by the local residents should have been raised when the building permit was going through the approval process, not protesting afterwards,” said Syaifullah.

Syaifullah added that the mayor also should have taken the views of church members into consideration.

“In this case, the revocation of the building permit was based upon the objections of one group in the community without considering those from the church,” he said.

Construction of the church building had begun in 1998, shortly after the permit was issued, but halted soon afterward due to a lack of funds.

When the project began anew in 2007, members of a Muslim group from the Cinere Area of Depok City and neighboring villages damaged the boundary hedge and posted protest banners on the walls of the building. Most of the protestors were not local residents.
In early June the church had filed suit against the mayor’s action in a provincial court in Bandung, with church lawyer Junimart Girsang arguing that the mayor’s revocation of the permit was wrong.

Girsang said that the court had finally sided with justice for all Indonesians.

“The judges made the right decision and had no choice, because all of the papers for the permit were done properly,” he said.

Applications for church permits are often fraught with difficulty in Indonesia, leaving many congregations no choice but to worship in private homes, hotels or rented conference facilities. Such gatherings leave churches open to threats and intimidation from activist groups such as the Front Pembela Islam (Islamic Defenders Front), in recent years responsible for the closure of many unregistered churches.

UPDATE: Another quake hits Sumatra

2009-10-01T09:29:00.005+07:00

Source: The United Nations, Associated Press and Reuters

The U.S. Geological Survey says another powerful earthquake has shaken western Indonesia.

The 6.9 magnitude struck at 08:52 a.m. local time (0152GMT) Thursday on Sumatra island, about 180 miles (280 kilometers) from the epicenter of a more powerful quake on Wednesday.

Rescue efforts are under way around the area worst hit by Wednesday's quake, the regional capital of Padang on West Sumatra. At least 200 people died there and thousands are said to be trapped under collapsed buildings throughout the province.

There were no immediate reports of damage from Thursday's quake.

Devastating back-to-back earthquakes have rocked the Indonesian island of Sumatra today, killing at least 75 people and leaving thousands trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings, the United Nations humanitarian wing has reported.

A powerful 7.9-magnitude tremor, originating from the same fault-line that produced the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, struck near the city of Padang at 5:16 pm local time, and was followed by a quake measuring 6.2 about 22 minutes later.

Initial reports indicate significant damage to infrastructure and there have also been media reports of several fires in the affected areas along with temporary airport closures in Padang, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

At the beginning of the month a 7.3-magnitude quake hit the Tasikmalaya district of West Java, Indonesia, killing at least 64 people and uprooting another 25,000.

Health Minister Siti Fadillah Supari told reporters at the airport that the number of victims "could be more (than hundreds or thousands). I think it's more than thousands, if we look at how widespread the damage is ... but we don't really know yet."

The national disaster agency earlier put the toll at between 100 and 200 in the city of 900,000. About 500 houses had collapsed, officials in the area said.

Australian businesswoman Jane Liddon told Australian radio from Padang said the city center was devastated.

"The big buildings are down. The concrete buildings are all down, the hospitals, the main markets, down and burned. A lot of people died in there. A lot of places are burning.

"Most of the damage is in the town center in the big buildings. The little houses, the people's houses, there are a few damaged, but nothing dramatic."

SEE ALSO:

Indonesia and Samoa disasters 'unlikely' to be connected – The Mirror
Indonesia: West Sumatra Earthquake Situation Report No. 1 - Reliefweb
Gallery: Earthquake hits Sumatra – Courier Mail
Video: People trapped in rubble – News.com.au
More News on Indonesian earthquake - Google

Earthquake rocks western Indonesia, tsunami strikes Pacific Islands.

2009-09-30T21:54:00.005+07:00

Compiled from The Associated Press, VOA News, RTTNews, & others

Indonesia's meteorological agency says a powerful earthquake has shaken western Indonesia. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami alert for Indonesia, Malaysia, India and Thailand.

The Indonesian agency said the tremor had a magnitude of 7.6. Its epicenter was just off the coast of Sumatra. The U.S. Geological Survey put the strength at 7.9.

The shaking could be felt in high buildings in the capital, Jakarta, several hundred miles, kilometers away and in neighboring Singapore and Malaysia.

The quake was centered 30 miles (50 kilometers) off the coastal city of Padang, in West Sumatra province, along the same fault line the spawned the massive 2004 Asian tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries.

Indonesian television reported that hundreds of buildings had collapsed and many people were feared trapped under the rubble.

A disaster management official says at least 13 people have been killed and thousands trapped under flattened buildings in a powerful earthquake in western Indonesia.

Rustam Pakaya, head of the Health Ministry's crisis center, said a field hospital was being prepared to assist the injured and medical teams were on the way from neighboring provinces.

Officials said the quake triggered a landslide that cut off land transport to the area closest to the epicenter. Power and telecommunications were also cut.

Tsunami in South Pacific islands

Eanwhile in south Pacific, a massive tsunami unleashed by a powerful earthquake flattened Samoan villages and swept cars and people out to sea, killing more than 100 and leaving dozens missing Wednesday. The death toll was expected to rise.

Survivors fled the fast-churning water for higher ground on the South Pacific islands and remained huddled there hours after the quake, with a magnitude between 8.0 and 8.3, struck around dawn Tuesday.

The quake was centered about 120 miles south of the islands of Samoa, which has about 180,000 people, and American Samoa, a U.S. territory of 65,000.

Four tsunami waves 15 to 20 feet (4 to 6 meters) high roared ashore on American Samoa, reaching up to a mile (1.5 kilometers) inland, Mike Reynolds, superintendent of the National Park of American Samoa, was quoted as saying by a parks service spokeswoman.

Less than 24 hours later, another strong underwater earthquake rocked western Indonesia on Wednesday, briefly triggering a tsunami alert for countries along the Indian Ocean and sending panicked residents out of their houses. The quake toppled buildings, cut power and triggered a landslide on Sumatra island, and at least 13 people were reported killed.

SEE ALSO:

Earthquake in Padang Long Time Predicted – Kompas.com
Eyewitness: On air when tsunami hit – BBC
VIDEO: 7.6 Richter Quake Rocks Sumatra – Viva News
More News on Indonesian earthquake - Google
More News on Tsunami in south Pacific – Google

Indonesia elects 'President' for Oscars

2009-09-30T16:20:00.006+07:00

Source (click to view) Patrick Frater/Hollywood Reporter

"Jamila dan sang Presiden" ("Jamila and the President") a prison-set drama about injustice and child trafficking, will represent Indonesia as candidate for the foreign-language Oscar.

The film's selection was announced Wednesday by the Indonesian Film & TV Producers Association.

"Jamila" is the first time film by Ratna Sarumpaet, who is better known as a political activist, playwright and stage director. The film is an adaptation of her play "The Prostitute and the President," which provoked a wave of controversy in Indonesia and was banned in many regions. The film, which stars Atiqah Hasiholan and Indonesia's best known actress Christine Hakim, however, was passed for theatrical release without censorship.

The story follows a prostitute who admits to killing a high ranking minister, but refuses legal representation or to plead for clemency. Sentenced to death, Jamila become a cause célèbre and one that the government is forced to react to.

The film, which screened this week at the Bangkok festival, was produced by Raam Punjabi's MVP Pictures.

SEE ALSO: A very irresistible `Jamila' – The Jakarta Post

Indonesia says militants planned attacks each month

2009-09-30T12:52:00.005+07:00

Compiled from (click to view): Reuters/Retno Palupi/ Sunanda Creagh and Japan Today/Kyodo

Police killed Noordin Mohammad Top, Indonesia's most-wanted militant, and three of his supporters earlier this month when they raided a house near Solo, Central Java.

They found laptops and explosives at the house, which they said contained details of the group's plans to attack targets including "symbols of the state" such as the president.

Malaysian-born Top, who headed a violent wing of the militant group Jemaah Islamiah, was considered the mastermind of bomb attacks on Jakarta's Ritz Carlton and JW Marriott hotels in July, and of previous bomb attacks in Bali and Jakarta which killed scores of foreigners and Indonesians.

His death has raised hopes that a serious security threat has been lifted in Southeast Asia's biggest economy One of the laptops found in the raid contained video of the two suicide bombers pretending to exercise in a field in front of the JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton hotels, police told a news conference.

The video was shot on June 21, and the hotels, which were bombed on July 17, were clearly visible in the video.

Another film showed one of the suicide bombers, identified as Dani, discussing suicide bombing as a form of jihad. "It's not suicide. It's God's instruction. To not do it is a sin," Dani said in the video clip.

Meanwhile, Petrus Reinhard Golose, chief of the cyber crime unit of the National Police, told a press conference Tuesday that another voice, heard on the footage, said, ‘‘The United States must be destroyed! Australia must be destroyed! Indonesia must be destroyed!’’

The voice was believed to be that of Syaifuddin Zuhri, who allegedly recruited the suicide bombers and shot the video. Zuhri, who is believed to have taken the place of Noordin Mohammad Top as recruiter of suicide bombers, remains at large.

The militants had clearly changed their strategy, Tito Karnavian, a member of the police anti-terror unit, told reporters, citing evidence that the police had found after a raid on a house in Jati Asih, West Java.

"In the past, they acted every year," he said, with the first big bomb attack in Bali in 2002, followed by the bombing of the JW Marriott in Jakarta in 2003, a bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta in 2004 and another bomb attack in Bali in 2005.

"All of them were a year apart. After the last JW Marriott attack, they planned new attacks, according to the evidence we found in Jati Asih," he said.

"There would be 'serial attacks'. Every month, maybe, they would launch a new attack. The JW Marriott was in July," and the group had planned an attack near Jati Asih in August, he said.

Police previously said that the bombers at Jati Asih had planned to attack President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's residence nearby at Cikeas.

VIDEO: Suicide bombers preparing for Jakarta attacks in July (In Bahasa) – VIVA News/TV One

SEE ALSO: Police predict terrorist network will form new cells - Antara News

Murder suspected in Bali tourist's death

2009-09-30T08:25:00.000+07:00

Source (Click to view): Japan Today/Kyodo

A 33-year-old Tokyo woman was found dead on the Indonesian resort island of Bali and injuries to the body indicate she may have been murdered, according to local reports Tuesday.

Wilmar Marpaung, detective unit chief at the Bali Police Headquarters, said Rika Sano's corpse was found at 4 p.m. Monday in a thicket of bushes on Mertahadi Street in the Kuta beach resort area.

Private television networks Trans7 and Surya Citra Televisi reported the tourist's body was discovered when local residents noticed a foul smell.

Sano's body was found half-naked, and her underwear, cell phone, cosmetics and other belongings were scattered around, raising suspicions she was robbed and raped before she was killed, according to the reports.

Police also found a wood log that may been used to beat and kill her, Marpaung said.

Marpaung, however, refused to speculate on the cause of death.

"We are still investigating the cause of her death. So far, I can only say that she was the victim of violence," he said, adding her body is being kept at the Sanglah General Hospital for an autopsy.

According to Marpaung, Sano checked into the Prani Hotel in Kuta with a friend, Mayumi Someya, 30, on Thursday night, and at around 2:30 a.m. Friday a man claiming to be a police officer led her away from her hotel.

According to the online news portal Tempo Interaktif, the man showed police identification and a badge to the hotel's security officer and said Sano was a drug trafficker.

The man drove away from the hotel on a motorcycle with Sano riding on the back, but an hour later he came back alone and took her two suitcases.

Marpaung said the man could have been posing as a police officer but added "we are still checking the information."

Meanwhile, Gde Alit Widana, chief of the Denpasar Police Headquarters in the Bali provincial capital of Denpasar, said more than one perpetrator may have been involved.

"So far, we have been questioning four people," Widana said, without elaborating whether the four are witnesses or suspects.

Photographs have been shown to Someya in an attempt identify the perpetrator, he said.

Officials of the Japanese Consulate General in Denpasar said they are trying to confirm the facts regarding the case.

For many Japanese, especially women, Bali is a popular resort destination. Bali tours for female customers often include such services as massages at ritzy resort hotels.

Video link (in Bahasa)

Power substation fire causes blackout, traffic jams in Jakarta

2009-09-29T23:13:00.012+07:00

Compiled from detik.com, Xinhua & Tempo Interactive

An electricity substation of the stated-owned firm PLN (Perushaan Listrik negara) has been razed by fire, causing blackout and traffic jams at parts of the capital of the country.

Fire from explosions at the Cawang Baru office of the State Electricity Company in East Jakarta has cut half of the capital from electricity, with Central, East, and South Jakarta become the most extensively affected areas. The fire occurred at around 13 : 30 p.m. Jakarta time and it could be extinguished in fifty minutes, General manager of PLN Purnomo Willy said.

The electricity outage has caused traffic lights turn off, triggering serious traffic jams in many parts of the city.

The manager said that the fire caused power outage at parts of east and south of Jakarta.

“Power cut occurred in Gambir (Central Jakarta), Kuningan (South Jakarta), Manggarai (South Jakarta), Pulomas (East Jakarta), Cawang (East Jakarta), Jatinegara (East Jakarta), Kramat Jati (East Jakarta), Cikini (Central Jakarta), and Mampang (South Jakarta)," Ikhsan L, Distribution Manager for Greater Jakarta and Tangerang Area said.

The fire have destroyed two out of six 500 kilovolts transformators in the main power terminal, but Ikhsan said he could not predict on how long the repair works could be completed.

General Manager for Distribution in Greater Jakarta and Tangerang Area Purnomo Willy told Tempo that the company is distributing power loads to other power terminals in the capital to reduce the extent of power cuts, but added that only 30 – 40 percent of the actual capacity could be distributed through the alternative lines, while the remaining capacity will have to remain cut from the customers.

Indonesia's state bank among 50 Forbes' impressive Asian firms

2009-09-29T15:07:00.007+07:00

Compiled from: Forbes.com, Xinhua and detik.com, and other sources

Indonesia's Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) is listed again among 50 most impressive Asian firms by the influential business magazine Forbes.

Retaining its presence in the list since last year, BRI was ranked 7th of firms listed in the Forbes' "Asian Fabulous 50" list this year. The Indonesian' state-run bank that provides loans for small-sized firms and farmers in the country is regarded to have impressive working performance in the last 5 years.

The selection on firms fitted in the list was based on the firms' share price in the market and the firms' future business projection. Forbes has learned that BRI's market capitalization now stands at 9.3 billion U.S. dollars with sales reached 2.8 billion dollars.

Indian, Chinese and Japanese companies dominated Forbes’ second annual list of the 50 best listed companies in the Asia-Pacific region with twelve, nine and nine spots respectively. There were six Taiwanese companies on the list as well.

Most of the companies featured on the list were in the field of utilities, telecoms, mining, milling and smelting the metals and minerals to feed Asia’s emerging need for better overall infrastructure.

After India, China and Japan, the next biggest companies were from South Korea and Taiwan followed by Australia.

The Fab 50:

1. Acer -- Taiwan
2. Adani Enterprises -- India
3. Agile Property Holdings -- China
4. Angang Steel -- China
5. Anhui Conch Cement -- China
6. Axis Bank -- India
7. Bank Rakyat Indonesia -- Indonesia
8. Bharat Heavy Electricals -- India
9. Bharti Airtel -- India
10. BHP Billiton – Australia

Click here for complete list…

SEE ALSO:
Who Runs Asia's Fab 50: The bosses of the best, big, public companies in Asia – Forbes.com

Miyabi..yes or no?

2009-09-29T10:18:00.004+07:00

Source: AFP. Picture: Straitstimes.com

Filmmakers in Indonesia say they would stick to their plans to fly in a top Japanese porn star to act in a local comedy.

Muslim leaders have blasted plans to bring out erotic film megastar Maria Ozawa, 23, popularly known as Miyabi, to play herself in the upcoming film, Menculik Miyabi (Kidnapping Miyabi).

But Maxima Productions general manager Adi Sudiadi said the firm would stick to plans to include Ozawa in the film, which tells the story of a group of university students who accidentally kidnap the starlet.

'We guarantee that Miyabi won't be playing in a porn film here. We will bring her here not as a porn star, but purely for a comedy,' Mr Sudiadi said. 'Miyabi is well-known to Indonesians...We are expecting her to attract a lot of spectators here.

'We are also trying to fix Miyabi's image by showing she can be more than just a porn star,' he said, adding that no final agreement had been reached with Ozawa to act in the film.

Indonesian Council of Ulema chairman Amidhan slammed the choice of Ozawa - who has gained notoriety in Japan's porn industry, thanks to her Canadian-Japanese looks - as a threat to the moral health of the country's youth. 'Even if the film isn't pornographic, it is very dangerous for our young people, particularly if they become fans of this porn actress and become curious enough to watch her films,' he said. 'We have to be firm and not let rubbish into our country. This is about Indonesia's reputation as the world's most populous Muslim country.'

Nearly 90 per cent of Indonesia's 234 million people are Muslim.

Indonesia's Parliament earlier this month passed a controversial film law that imposes tighter controls on content, including violence and sex.

Indonesians asked to wear batik on Oct 2

2009-09-29T08:54:00.005+07:00

Source: The Malaysian Insider. Picture: Kabarindo.com

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called on Indonesians around the world to don their best batik on Friday to celebrate the United Nations’ announcement that the traditional dyeing technique is an Indonesian cultural treasure.

Yudhoyono’s invitation was aired during a dialogue with members of the Indonesian community in Massachusetts, the United States, last Saturday.

“I invite the Indonesian people, wherever they may be, to wear batik on Oct 2,” the President said to loud applause.

Ownership of batik and other cultural items such as the Balinese pendet dance have cropped up recently as thorny issues in relations between Malaysia and Indonesia.

President Yudhoyono last week vowed to ask the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) to recognise the angklung, a musical instrument made of bamboo, as Indonesia’s.

Jakarta says the instrument originated in West Java.

“We will keep fighting for our heritage, one tradition at a time,” declared Jero Wacik, Indonesia’s Culture and Tourism Minister.

Unesco has already recognised the keris (traditional dagger) and wayang kulit (shadow puppet theatre) as belonging to Indonesia.

SEE ALSO:
Jakarta residents asked to wear batik on Oct 2 – Antara

Jakarta Journal: Nannies Get Holiday. Rich Families Get a Suite

2009-09-29T08:34:00.002+07:00

Source: The New York Times/Norimitsu Onishi
(Permalink: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/28/world/asia/28jakarta.html)

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Every year at the end of Ramadan, millions of maids, nannies and chauffeurs make their annual pilgrimages to their hometowns across Indonesia, leaving their pampered employers to fend for themselves.

Some of those left behind hire temporary maids at exorbitant rates. Others go abroad. Still others check into hotels not far from their homes.

In the basement of a luxury hotel, which had been transformed into a playground, Djoni Kamaruddin and his wife, Lianny, who opt for a Jakarta hotel every year, sat down for lunch with their son and daughter. “We just think of this as a holiday,” Mr. Kamaruddin, 37, said jovially.

But a minute later, Mr. Kamaruddin’s face tightened as his 8-year-old son threw a temper tantrum, the boy’s round, bespectacled face scrunched up in anger. Because it was a holiday, the boy said, he wanted to eat his lasagna and chicken fried rice with a spoon, which most Indonesians use, not a fork.

The father reasoned, cajoled, pleaded and, after the fork went flying across the hotel floor, shook his son. The parents quickly mentioned that their two maids, who had left Jakarta a week earlier, were returning the next day.

“They called yesterday to say they’re coming back tomorrow,” Ms. Kamaruddin, 35, said. “I’m relieved.”

In one of the world’s largest annual exoduses, tens of millions of Indonesians leave Jakarta and other cities to celebrate Id al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday at the end of Ramadan, with relatives in villages and towns across rural Indonesia. More than 27 million are believed to have made the trip home this year, according to the authorities.

The exodus transforms Jakarta overnight. It thins the smog that envelops the skyscrapers in the city center. It stills its construction cranes. It empties its perennially clogged streets of ojeks, the kamikaze-like motorcycle taxis that weave in and out of traffic, and find shortcuts on sidewalks. Business comes to a halt.

It also wreaks havoc in wealthy and middle-class households that — given the seemingly endless supply of cheap labor in this country of 237 million, mostly poor people — depend on domestic servants. This year, hotel occupancy in the city rose 70 percent during the holidays, according to the Jakarta tourism agency. While 35 percent of the guests were visitors from outside the capital, the rest were Jakarta residents checking into hotels.

At the Hotel Mulia Senayan in south Jakarta, most weekday guests are foreign businessmen, according to Adeza Hamzah, a hotel spokesman.

But last Tuesday morning, instead of businessmen in suits or batik, the hotel lobby was swarming with young families. A man in shorts and Crocs kept an eye on his daughter, whose sneakers squeaked furiously on the lobby’s marble floor. Mothers pushed strollers, unaccompanied by nannies dressed in telltale monotone uniforms.

For many, compounding the holiday stress was the common fear that their maids — after getting their Id al-Fitr bonuses — would stay in their villages or look for better jobs elsewhere.

“It’s getting more difficult to find people who want to work as domestic helpers in Jakarta,” said Sugito, 54, who runs a domestic help agency and, like many Indonesians, uses one name. “They prefer to work as migrant workers because the money is better.”

Mr. Sugito also arranges temporary help for Jakarta residents, charging $55 for the service. The temporary maids, he said, earn $5 to $8 a day, the equivalent of what many earn in a week during normal times.

“Last year, I earned two months’ wages just by working 10 days,” said Zubaedah, 34, who came here from west Java with her 17-year-old daughter to look for temporary work.

“It’s hard not to celebrate with my kids and family, but we need the money for my children to go to school,” she said. Her husband, she added, makes about $1 a day selling ice cream.

A few in this Westernizing society see the maid shortage not as a problem but as an opportunity. Julie Tan, for one, said she tried to use the temporary absence of her two maids to instill some much-needed discipline in her three children.

“They’ll call the maid to get a glass of water,” said Ms. Tan, 42, who lived in Los Angeles for 10 years and was worried that her children might one day also have to face life in a place without someone at their beck and call. She ordered takeout at home. Her children helped with the laundry and dishes.

“It’s once a year,” she said. “So it’s O.K.”

At the Hotel Mulia, Abraham Tjahja, 69, and Diana Farolan, 60, sat at a table near the pool, surrounded by their children and grandchildren. A daughter, visiting from Bali with her husband, had chosen to stay at the hotel, partly because the holidays had decimated her parents’ domestic staff.

Six of the couple’s eight maids, as well as the family’s two drivers, had gone home to their villages. So for a week or more, the couple and the children still living at home had been getting by with the help of only two maids and one temporary worker they had hired.

“We clean up our own bedroom,” Mr. Tjahja said, adding that stress over managing the domestic staff had contributed to a stroke his wife had a few years ago.

Mrs. Farolan, a plate of chicken satay before her getting cold, said, “This is the most tiring time of the year.”

Indonesia unlikely to pass new mining rules this year

2009-09-28T21:21:00.001+07:00

Source: Reuters/ Fitri Wulandari; Ed Davies

Indonesia is unlikely to complete final regulations attached to a new mining and coal law this year, an official said, creating more uncertainty for a sector that is already struggling to attract new investment.

The government has been drafting regulations on the new mining and coal law passed in December 2008 for presidential approval, and had said they should be issued by October when a new administration under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is due to start a second term.

Bambang Gatot Ariyono, director of mining and coal production at the energy and mines ministry, said ministries including the forestry and finance Ministry with vested interests in the regulations had yet to respond to the drafts proposed by his office.

"Looking at the progress, we doubt the regulations can be completed this year," said Ariyono, who did not say when he thought the regulations were likely to be completed.

Issuing the regulations is seen as crucial to providing more certainty for mining investors in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

But analysts have said it may take more time to issue the regulations. In the case of an oil and gas law passed in 2001, it took three years to issue the implementing regulations.

With the delay, the sector is unlikely to see fresh investment in the near future as the government has frozen new mining permits until the regulations are finalised and there may be further delays under a new government...click here to view full news by Reuters

Indonesia to produce A/H1N1 flu vaccine

2009-09-28T21:02:00.010+07:00

Source: Xinhua News. Picture story: The Jakarta Globe

Indonesia is to produce vaccine to stop the further spread of the A/H1N1 viruses that have killed 10 people and infected more than 1,000 others in the country, a senior official of the Health Ministry said.

The plan comes after the United Nations recently asked major vaccine producer firms in the world, including Indonesia's drug maker Biofarma, to produce the vaccine, Director General of Disease Control and Environmental Health of the ministry Tjandra Yoga Aditama said.

"As the World Health Organization (WHO) has said that the world could only produce 3 billion doses of the flu vaccine out of 5 billion doses expectation. So, we will produce the vaccine," Yoga told Xinhua at his office when asked whether Indonesia will produce the A/H1N1 flu vaccine.

But, it had not been determined yet the amount of the vaccines to be produced by Biofarma and whether Indonesia would join other countries move to donate the vaccine to under developed countries, he said, adding "Let's wait until two months after the preparation process is completed, then all will be clear, such as the amount of the vaccine to be produced, whether they are only for us or to be given to other countries."

The director said that the development of the A/H1N1 influenza virus has often unpredictable, but his ministry would keep closely to watch it.

"Eat, Pray, Love": After India shooting, Julia Roberts will head to Indonesia

2009-09-28T10:39:00.004+07:00

Compiled from: Tourism Indonesia and Punjab Newsline Network

Oscar winner Julia Roberts (Pretty Woman) will head to Bali (Indonesia) for shooting the third and final leg of “Eat, Pray, Love”, once she completes the India part of the shooting, according to reports.

She is currently shooting at Ashram Harimandir hermitage in Pataudi, about 60 kilometers from India’s capital Delhi, and the India shooting will reportedly end around October six-10. She has already completed some shooting in New York and Italy.

The Balinese provincial government confirmed earlier this month it had issued the permits needed to shoot the film, with Roberts being scheduled to appear on set from Oct. 16 to Nov. 6.

“We have issued the permit to shoot in Gianyar. Their preparation is complete,” said Ida Bagus Puruvita, the Gianyar cultural office’s chief of permits and films.

The shoot is planned to take place at the traditional markets and Monkey Forest in Ubud, along with the nearby villages of Demayu and Tegalalang, and in Badung, Uluwatu and Nusa Dua.

“Eat, Pray, Love” is the best-selling memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert. It tells her story of overcoming a deep depression after a painful divorce during a journey of soul-searching and self-discovery. In her search for peace, she spends a year traveling in Italy, India and Indonesia.

While in Bali, the author learns how to balance earthly delights with spirituality and discovers the meaning of love.

The book has been the subject of much controversy in Bali because of passages about a Balinese medicine man the author met in Ubud. The man reportedly helped Balinese housewives with infertile husbands get pregnant by arranging sexual trysts with drivers and gigolos.

Aimed at a release in 2011 and directed by Emmy nominated Ryan Murphy (Nip/Tuck), “Eat, Love, Pray” also stars Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men), Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Viola Davis (Doubt), Billy Crudup (Almost Famous), James Franco (Pineapple Express), Luca Argentero (Lezioni di cioccolato), etc.

Briton named `best public figure` in Indonesia's Gorontalo

2009-09-28T10:07:00.000+07:00

Source: Antara News

Lynn Marion Clayton, a British female reseacher, who has been working in Nantu forest, Boalemo district, was selected as Gorontalo`s Best Public Figure in 2009, a spokesman for the selection committee said.

The title was awarded to Clayton by Moawota, a Gorontalo community organization in Makassar, South Sulawesi, under the the "Gong 2030" or "Superior Gorontalo" program, Muhammad Rum Dali, chairman of the Best Gorontalo Public Figures 2009 organizing committee, said here Saturday.

Dali said in the selection, the committee evaluated 10 people in the region as potential public figures based on the opinions of 1,000 respondents in the region who sent in their choices by short text message (SMS) and Facebook.

The ten potential public figures generally work in the fields of education, agriculture, environment, health and religion affairs, he said.

"It`s a fact Lynn Clayton is a foreign citizen who lives in Gorontalo. However, the selection committee had decided that anyone from any country, if he or she is domiciled in Gorontalo and dedicates his or her life to the welfare of the local people, he or she deserves to receive a citation," Dali said.

Marion Lynn Clayton is a doctoral conservation expert and has been living for 20 years in the region to do research in the Nantu Forest in Boalemo District, Gorontalo province.

Lynn has been conducting various studies, especially on boars and deer in forests that cover a total area of 31,215 hectares, Muhammad said.

Meanwhile, Clayton expressed her gratitute after receiving the award because it showed the local public appreciated her and her work in the region.

RIM Introduces the New BlackBerry Curve 8520 in Indonesia

2009-09-28T10:05:00.000+07:00

Source: The FINANCIAL

Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM) on September 23 introduced the BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone in Indonesia. The slim and stylish handset, a new addition to the BlackBerry Curve series of smartphones, is scheduled to be available from Axis, Indosat, Telkomsel and XL in October.

The new BlackBerry Curve 8520 introduces an innovative touch-sensitive trackpad which makes scrolling and selection smooth and easy for an exceptional navigation experience. It is also the first BlackBerry smartphone to feature dedicated media keys, which are smoothly integrated along the top of the handset giving customers an easy, convenient way to control their music and videos.

According to RIM, the user-friendly BlackBerry Curve 8520 provides easy access to email, messaging (IM, SMS, MMS) and social networking sites (including Facebook and MySpace), and features a highly tactile full-QWERTY keyboard for comfortable, accurate typing. It is also Wi-Fi-enabled and includes rich multimedia capabilities with easy access to music, games and other mobile apps for entertainment on the go.

“The BlackBerry Curve 8520 is an incredibly approachable and feature-rich smartphone and it delivers all the great messaging, social networking and multimedia features that customers have come to love about BlackBerry smartphones,” said Gregory Wade, Regional Vice President, RIM Asia Pacific. “More and more people are switching from basic cell phones and the BlackBerry Curve 8520 is an exceptional choice for first-time smartphone users.”

KEY FEATURES:

Full-QWERTY keyboard and touch-sensitive trackpad for reliable, responsive typing and navigation

256MB Flash memory and a 512Mhz next generation processor for enhanced performance

Premium phone features including voice activated dialing and Bluetooth (2.0) support for hands-free use with headsets, car kits, stereo headsets and other Bluetooth peripherals

2 MP digital camera with zoom and video recording

Advanced media player for music, pictures and videos, with dedicated media keys and a 3.5 mm stereo headset jack, plus BlackBerry Media Sync, which makes it easy to quickly sync music from iTunes® or Windows Media® Player with the smartphone

BlackBerry Internet Service support for access to up to 10 supported email accounts, including most popular ISP email accounts such as Yahoo !, Windows Live Hotmail, AOL and Gmail; and BlackBerry Enterprise Server support, which provides advanced security and IT administration features for corporate deployments

Expandable memory via hot swappable microSD/SDHC memory card slot, supporting up to 16 GB cards today and expected to support next generation 32GB cards when available; a 2GB card is included

Built-in Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)

Quad-band world phone: EGDE/GPRS/GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)

Govt to make ‘temulawak’ an icon of Indonesia

2009-09-28T09:16:00.004+07:00

Compiled from: The Jakarta Post & other source

The government is working to establish temulawak, or Java turmeric, as an icon of Indonesia, on the grounds that the country has the most varieties of the herb.

State Minister for Research and Technology Kusmayanto Kadiman told a press conference in Jakarta that research is currently underway to prove that the medicinal plant, whose Latin name is Curcuma xanthorrhiza Roxb, merits to be recognized as a classic Indonesian icon.

The next step, he said, would be to research how to use the herb, which naturally tastes bitter, in cooking.

“We have to make ‘temulawak’ part of our daily lives, in food, cosmetics, medicine or supplements; we don’t want other countries claiming it as their own,” he added.

Temulawak is used as an ingredient in most traditional herbal medicine, known locally as jamu. It is said to have anti-inflammation, anti-microbe, cholesterol reducing, and anti-cancer properties, and is widely used to treat stiff muscles and liver disease.

Charles Saerang, chairman of the Indonesian Herbal and Traditional Medicines Entrepreneurs Association (GP Jamu), said Indonesia was the largest temulawak producer in the world, with the best varieties of the herb found in Central Java, particularly in the Semerang area.

Indonesia, however, lags behind other countries that have long patented some properties of the herb and developed temulawak products.

TEMU LAWAK (CURCUMA XANTHORRHIZA)

Synonym:
Curcuma zedoaria, curcuma javanica, Javanese turmeric.

Common name:
Tumulawak, Java turmeric, temu lawak, gedè, Indian saffron, Jiang huang, Haridra.

Family:
Zingiberaceae (ginger family).

Overview:
Temulawak, originally from Indonesia, can grow up to 8 feet tall. The flower is yellow.
The large leaves stem from the root and the large rhizome of the plant contains herbal qualities.
Cultivation has spread to other countries including Surinam.
Java - turmeric is a mild spice used in several drinks to give these flavor and color (yellow); it is also used for seasoning.
It has an aromatic, pungent odor and a bitter taste.

500 Indonesians die during exodus

2009-09-28T08:39:00.002+07:00

Source: Global Times/AFP

Almost 500 people died on Indonesia's roads as they headed home in a mass exodus to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holidays marking the end of Ramadan, an official said Sunday.

"We recorded 1,153 accidents in the period of six days before Eid and three days after it, mostly involving motorcycles," Transport Ministry spokesman Bambang Ervan told AFP.

"472 people died and 551 others were seriously injured," he added.

"The travelers were on the road for 16 hours on average, and many were tired and in a rush," he said.

Indonesians celebrated the Eid holiday September 20 in one of the world's largest yearly mass migrations.

Masses of people crammed in planes, trains, ferries, buses and overloaded motorcycles and cars as major cities and towns emptied.

Around 90 percent of Indonesia's 234 million people are Muslim, making it the world's largest Muslim-majority country.

At least 548 people were killed on Indonesian roads during last year's exodus, according to figures provided by the Indonesian government.

Challenges Faced by Indonesia in Battling against Corruption

2009-09-27T10:19:00.004+07:00

Compiled from Kompas.com and AFP

The future of Indonesia's powerful anti-corruption commission has been put under threat by what activists say is a concerted campaign to shut down progress made against entrenched graft.

Lawmakers are expected to pass a law next week that would strip the independent Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) of the authority to prosecute -- a power that has seen it put away high profile politicians and officials.

The law, part of a rash of legislation before the end of the current parliament's term, would leave the KPK solely as an investigator while the corruption-tainted attorney general's office (AGO) would be left to prosecute.

The Corruption Eradication Commission, the KPK, also faces a power vacuum after police named three officials as suspects in criminal investigations. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says the bill should not be rushed through parliament in a form that hinders the fight against graft.

"The grand scenario is the government is trying to weaken the KPK," Indonesia Corruption Watch secretary general Teten Masduki told AFP.

The law is likely a reaction to successes that have seen the KPK-linked Corruption Court achieve a 100 percent conviction rate in a country known as one of the world's most corrupt, Masduki said.

"I think everyone knows the DPR (parliament) is always reluctant to go with the process of anti-corruption. They don't really support the KPK."

Here are some questions and answers on the issues.

Why does this matter?

Indonesia needs billions of dollars from domestic and foreign investors, but endemic corruption, red tape, and an unpredictable legal system all serve as deterrents.

Yudhoyono promised to tackle graft when elected in 2004 and has made some progress, thanks mainly to KPK and the corruption court, far more effective than other courts. The perception that Yudhoyono is serious about graft, has helped boost the rupiah currency, stocks and bonds.

But by weakening the two institutions most effective in jailing corrupt officials, bankers and businessmen, Indonesia will put off investors, post GDP growth rates below potential, and create insufficient jobs for a growing population.

How could the bill weaken the corruption court?

Mainly through changes to the panel of judges. The panels consist of two career judges and three ad hoc judges. But the government and members of parliament want to relax this rule so that the head of a district court can decide the make up of the court.

The judiciary is rated among Indonesia’s most corrupt institutions. The corruption court’s 100 percent success rate is due in part to the ad hoc judges and their majority on the panel: change that and it will become like other courts.

In addition, MPs want to stop the KPK from using wiretaps without permission and take away its power to prosecute suspects. The president has said that the KPK must retain those powers.

These clauses need to be agreed by parliament and the government before Sept. 30, when parliament’s term ends and a new parliament is sworn in.

The deadline for the bill is Dec. 19, but it seems unlikely a new parliament could handle it in time. As a final resort, the president could issue a regulation-in-lieu-of-law, or Perppu, to extend the life of the court.

Will the anti-corruption agency still be able to function?

The KPK plays an important role in the fight against graft, investigating and prosecuting in the corruption court.

But some parliamentarians appear keen to limit its role to investigating cases and give the authority to prosecute back to the Attorney General’s office, another body in need of reform.
Several lawmakers have already been sent to jail by the court. Others are awaiting trial, prompting corruption watchdogs to warn that this is why members of parliament want to curb the powers of the court and KPK.

What about the KPK power vacuum?

The fight against graft appears to be coming under increasing attack from other law enforcement agencies. The police on Sept. 16 named two senior KPK officials suspected of abuse of power.

Antasari Azhar, the head of the KPK, was detained in May as a suspect in a murder investigation. Yudhoyono has set up a panel, made up of a prominent lawyer, the security and justice ministers, a presidential adviser, and a former KPK head — to temporarily fill the vacant spots.

His intervention to resolve the uncertainty shrouding the KPK and court bill has been welcomed by some but questioned by others who say he is interfering with the independence of KPK. The panel is due to name the officials on Oct. 1.

Indonesia to launch first WiMAX wireless service in Q1 2010

2009-09-27T10:03:00.000+07:00

Compiled from Xinhua and TeleGeography

Indonesia will first time deploy WiMax wireless service in the fist quarter of next year through PTTelekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom).

Telkom consumer director Ermady Dahlan was quoted by the newspaper as saying that the firm was in the middle of completing the administrative requirements needed in order to obtain the operational licenses.

Spokesman for the Indonesian Ministry of Communications and Information Gatot Dewa Broto said the ministry would issue WiMAX operational licenses by the end of October after a series of operational feasibility tests based on the completion of the administrative requirements.

In August this year Telkom was one of eight companies to receive WiMAX broadband licences from the government. Minister of Information and Communication, Mohammad Nuh, said the eight successful winners had met the minimum criteria for the awards, including the stipulation that each rolls out ‘sufficient infrastructure’ and ensures a minimum 30%-40% of local products are used in the deployment.

The full list of winners is PT Telkom, PT Indosat Mega Media, PT Internux, PT First Media, PT Jasnita Telekomindo, PT Berca Hardayaperkasa, PT Rahajasa Media Internet (also known as the Indonesian WiMAX Consortium), and a consortium comprising PT Comtronics Systems and PT Adiwarta Perdania.

WiMAX is an advanced telecommunications technology providing wireless transmission of data using portable and fully mobile Internet access.

It provides high-throughput broadband connections over long distances without having to build costly infrastructure and large numbers of transmission towers.

The technology, which provides an alternative to cable and digital subscriber lines (DSL), has coverage of some 50 km in radius from each base station, and has relatively low-investment costs compared to existing 3G technologies.

Indonesia To Raise Toll-Road Tariffs By 23.2% On Average From Monday

2009-09-27T09:52:00.003+07:00

Compiled from Reuters and Nasdaq.com

The Indonesian government will raise tariffs on 10 toll roads in Java and Sumatra by an average of 23.2% starting Monday, an official said.

The tariff adjustment, done every two years, is based on inflation rates in the past two years, Nurdin Manurung, the head of the toll-road regulator, told reporters.

Regulations allow toll-road tariffs to be increased to attract investments in new turnpike projects.

Listed state-owned PT Jasa Marga (JSMR.JK) is the country's main toll operator.

Indonesia's state toll road agency (BPJT) Chairman Nurdin Manurung said the higher tariffs, which are in line with an earlier announcement, would be applied to 14 toll roads.

Analysts have warned the toll hikes combined with expected increases of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices, electricity tariffs, and higher commodity prices next year, would increase inflationary pressure in coming months.

Faced with growing inflationary pressures, analysts expect Bank Indonesia, to hold its key rate, the BI rate BIPG, steady for the remainder of this year.

"Starting October, the increase in tariffs would start to have an impact," said Aldian Taloputra, an economist at Mandiri Sekuritas.

"Next year commodity prices will be higher, and the government also plans to increase administered prices...We expect Bank Indonesia to stand pat (on rates) this year, and to increase the BI rate by 25 basis points next year," he added.

Protect Your Privacy on Facebook and Twitt - PCWorld

2009-09-25T09:13:00.002+07:00

By Tony Bradley, PC World

Here's how to safeguard your identity and your personal data in the age of the social Web.

Web surfing is no longer a solo affair. Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks have quickly become an integral part of the online culture, and with them comes a whole new array of potential security threats. In this article, I'll identify some of the key dangers of social networking and offer a few easy steps that you can take to stay safe online.

Social networking is built on the idea of sharing information openly and fostering a sense of community. Unfortunately, an online network of individuals actively sharing their experiences and seeking connections with other like-minded people can be easy prey for hackers bent on social-engineering and phishing attacks. It's important to be aware of the threats, and to maintain a healthy skepticism in your online interactions.

-Be Careful What You Share
-Remember Who Your Friends Are
-Friends of Friends May See Your Post
-Define 'Privacy'
-What Do Quizzes Reveal About You?
-Control What You Can
-Hijacking and Phishing
-Beware Friends Seeking Money
-What's Behind That Tiny URL?

See complete story: PCWorld, Sep 25, 2009 8:00 am

Indonesian Heaviest Newborn Baby

2009-09-25T07:39:00.004+07:00

Source: KOMPAS.com

Dwarfing the infant next to him, his mouth open in an angry roar, this is the heaviest newborn ever recorded in Indonesia.

An Indonesian woman named only as Ani gave birth to the 19.2lb baby boy in Medan, North Sumatra yesterday.

She named him Muhammad Akbar Risuddin after the local district chief. 'Akbar' means 'big' in Indonesian. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he was delivered by Caesarean section. Britain's heaviest newborn was delivered in Cumbria in 1992 weighing 15lb 8oz.

The heaviest baby ever born was produced by Anna Bates of Canada in 1879, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. It weighed 23.12lb and died 11 hours after birth.

The record for a baby which survived, according to the Guinness record keepers, is held by a boy born weighing 22lb 8oz at Aversa, Italy in 1955. More recently Francisca do Santos gave birth to a son weighing 16lb 11oz by Caesarean section in Brazil.

The 19 Pound Baby & 9 More Of The Craziest Birth Stories Of All Time (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

Is economic terrorism a threat to S.E. Asia?

2009-09-24T16:39:00.005+07:00

By Reuters/Andrew Marshall

If the suicide bombers who targeted two luxury hotels in Jakarta this year hoped their attacks would strike a significant long-term blow against Indonesia's economy, the reaction of financial markets suggests they were wrong.

Economic warfare is at the heart of the tactics of terrorism. A few militants with primitive and low-cost weaponry can cause economic destruction that reverberates far beyond the physical damage they inflict, impacting whole industries and countries.

But the overwhelming evidence from militant attacks over recent decades is that the impact is almost always temporary. In the long run, economies and markets are remarkably resilient.

From the hijacked airliner attacks in the United States on Sept.11, 2001, to the suicide blasts at nightclubs in Bali in 2002 and the Madrid and London train bombings of 2004 and 2005, markets have reacted in a highly consistent pattern.

Domestic equities, bonds and the local currency suffer a knee-jerk sell-off. Risk appetite drops sharply and there is a swift flight to quality, with investors seeking the sanctuary of U.S. Treasuries, and sometimes selected commodities and gold.

But within weeks -- and usually days -- asset prices recover. In the first trading session after the 2002 Bali bombings, the Jakarta stock market plunged more than 10 percent and the rupiah dived 3.7 percent. But within 24 days stocks were back at pre-attack levels, and the rupiah recovered within 5 weeks.

Subsequent bombings in Indonesia had far less impact even in terms of short-run reaction. After the hotel blasts in July, stocks sank 2.7 percent but ended trade just 0.6 percent down.

LESSONS LEARNED

So what are the lessons for investors and risk managers?

Firstly, the initial market impact from terror attacks is likely to be overdone and to unwind over subsequent days.

The reasons can be found in human nature -- behavioral economists have shown that people tend to be naturally risk averse and prone to panic and a herd mentality in the face of uncertainty and danger. For bold investors, asset price weakness in the wake of militant attacks is a clear buying opportunity.

Second, once the initial panic eases, investors take a more rational look at the medium-term economic impact. The direct economic impact in terms of physical damage and loss of human capital is much less of an issue than the question of whether the attacks have spill-over consequences that magnify their cost.

To give one extreme scenario, a militant attack that led to conflict between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan could have a devastating global effect far beyond the initial damage.

Thirdly, the micro impact of attacks can be more serious than the macro. While economies are resilient, sectors such as airlines, tourism and insurance are much more vulnerable. Portfolio diversification can reduce this risk.

Finally, the extent to which attacks have a long-term market impact on industries and countries depends on whether they cause investors to re-evaluate their long-term risk assessments.

The 2002 Bali bombings fundamentally changed perceptions of Indonesian risk for investors and tourists. Later attacks had less impact because the higher risk level was already priced in.

Click here to view full story by Reuters/andrew Marshall

Forests fight back as Indonesia tackles illegal palm oil

2009-09-24T12:13:00.002+07:00

Original source: Reuters/ Gillian Murdoch

For decades, the roar of the chainsaw has meant one thing in Indonesia's national parks: illegal loggers ripping down the rainforest.

Now, the whirring blades are part of a fight back to cut out illegal palm oil from the international supply chain and slow the deforestation that has pushed Indonesia's carbon emissions sky high, threatening the destruction of some of the world's most ecologically important tropical forests and their animals.

In the country's first, symbolic action to stop the lucrative crop's march into protected lands a chainsaw-wielding alliance led by the Aceh Conservation Agency (BPKEL), Acehnese NGOs, and police teams are sweeping tens of thousands of hectares of illegal palm from the 2.5 million hectare Leuser Ecosystem.

"Plantation speculators, developers, whatever you want to call them, have moved in further and further," said Mike Griffiths of BPKEL, the agency created by Aceh Governor Yusuf Irwandi to manage Leuser in 2006, a year after the province at Sumatra's northern tip won greater autonomy from Jakarta.

"They do it by fait accompli... Go in, knock the trees down and plant, and all of a sudden the local perception is that you own it. It's Wild West stuff."

Planting a cash crop used in some of the world's best-known brands of chocolate, crisps and soaps inside legally-protected forests and national parks may seem a high-risk strategy.

But with much legal land already allocated, lax law enforcement, large untapped workforces of villagers living inside remote rainforests, and high Crude Palm Oil (CPO) prices, such illegal conversions makes sense to many.

"The forest is seen as a green tangle with little real use and filled with dangerous animals and diseases," explained Jutta Poetz, Biodiversity Coordinator at industry environmental standards body the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

"If this green tangle can be converted into something profitable, with the dangers largely removed, isn't that good? Plantations will develop the country, create jobs and improve people's lives. This appears to be the prevailing sentiment in Southeast Asia."...CLICK HERE TO VIEW COMPLETE STORY BY REUTERS

World's biggest indoor theme park opens in Indonesia

2009-09-24T09:27:00.001+07:00

By Channel NewsAsia

An indoor theme park billed as the world's biggest opened recently in Indonesia. The 2.2 hectare park is located not in mainland Java but in Makassar, South Sulawesi.

The iconic sign, Hollywood and almost all that's synonymous with American popular culture can be found at the new Indonesian theme park.

Called the Trans Studio Makassar, it is billed as the biggest indoor theme park in the world.

The fully air-conditioned park sits on reclaimed land in Makassar, South Sulawesi.

Outgoing Vice President Jusuf Kalla, who hails from Makassar, partnered an Indonesian business group to invest in the US$100 million project.

Chairul Tanjung, owner, Para Group, said: "We hope Makassar will be the beginning of the development of Trans Studio in other cities which will be bigger than Makassar."

Plans are in the pipeline to build similar theme parks in Bandung, Balikpapan and Jakarta.

Trans Studio Makassar is wholly built and operated by Indonesians with expertise from the US.

Visitors pay US$10 to enjoy the park's 21 attractions.

The theme park is part of an integrated project which includes a shopping mall and hotels, all on 24 hectares of reclaimed land.

The US has its Universal Studios, and Australia has its Movie World, and now Indonesia is proud to have its own Trans Studio.

It's the country's latest icon as it presses on with its economic development.

And the choice of Makassar in South Sulawesi - not mainland Java and capital Jakarta - marks the country's attempt to spread its growth across thus huge archipelago.

ADB revises up Indonesia's GDP forecast

2009-09-24T09:01:00.002+07:00

Source: Xinhua News

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has raised its economic growth forecasts for Indonesia in 2009 to 4.3 percent from an earlier estimation of 3.6 percent in March, according to media reports.

The revision was made as the bank said the region is leading a global recovery but warned against ending stimulus efforts too quickly, the Jakarta globe said.

The Indonesian government expects the economy to register growth at 4.3 percent this year. The World Bank on Sept. 14 raised its forecast on Indonesia's GDP to 4.3 percent from earlier prediction of 3.5 percent.

The ADB said that "robust growth in private consumption, underpinned by easing inflation and a surge in election-related government spending, drove better-than-expected economic growth in the first half of 2009."

The bank said that the country's "fiscal stimulus measures supported growth. Net exports contributed to the expansion as imports contracted faster than exports, though investment weakened."

"Relative to forecasts made in March this year, the full-year growth projections are revised up for 2009 and 2010, and inflation will likely be lower. Risks to the outlook include higher-than-expected oil prices, which would propel inflation and hurt consumption, and dry weather that could damage harvests," it said.

The ADB's region-wide forecast was also raised from 3.4 percent to 3.9 percent.

Download the report

Indonesia's 'deradicalization' program. Does it work?

2009-09-22T21:11:00.006+07:00

Original source: Antara News

Despite the recent death of top terrorist Noordin M Top, President Yudhoyono has warned that it does not mean that the terrorist network in Southeast Asia, especially in Indonesia, has been paralyzed.

The head of state`s statement was supported by various officials and elements including Ansyaad Mbai, head of the political, legal and security coordinating ministry`s anti-terror desk.

"We should not be too overjoyed about the death of Noordin M top and his associates, because the threat of terrorism still exists in Indonesia. What we should do is to continue addressing the root of the problem," Ansyaad Mbai said.

The government viewed radicalism as the root of terrorism, therefore it has long been implementing a de-radicalization program, especially in the wake of the series of terrorist bombings since 2002, he said.

However, the government`s deradicalization program to fight terrorism is not easy to implement and has so far not yielded optimum results.

"It concerns one`s ideology which is not so easy to change. So, this program has so far not yielded optimum results," Ansyaad Mbai said.

The program involved prominent religious figures, Islamic scholars (ulema), and Islamic boarding school (`pesantren`) teachers and was designed to rectify the misconceived or distorted Islamic teachings adhered to by terrorists, according to the national security official.

The government has also been cooperating with several other countries such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Afghanistan in implementing the program, among other things by inviting their ulemas to Indonesia and distributing books on Islam to correct the radicals` misunderstandings about Islamic teachings.

Although the US was not openly mentioned by Indonesia`s officials as a country which had helped `moderation` of the country`s Muslims, an article entitled "Hearts, Minds and Dollars" written by David E Kaplan, in US News.com, on April 17, 2005, revealed the US` role in countries like Indonesia, Egypt and Pakistan.

"After repeated missteps since the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. government has embarked on a campaign of political warfare unmatched since the height of the Cold War.

From military psychological-operations teams and CIA covert operatives to openly funded media and think tanks, Washington is plowing tens of millions of dollars into a campaign to influence not only Muslim societies but Islam itself," Kaplan wrote.

In at least two dozen countries, Washington has quietly funded Islamic radio and TV shows, coursework in Muslim schools, Muslim think tanks, political workshops, or other programs that promote moderate Islam, through a strategy called Muslim World Outreach, he wrote.

The US` partners included allied Muslim states, private foundations, and nonprofit groups who share values like democracy, women`s rights, and tolerance, he added.

"In no country is the effort more pronounced than Indonesia, the world`s largest Muslim nation, with 240 million people. A bastion of moderate Islam, the nation has nevertheless given birth to several radical Islamic groups that include al Qaeda offshoot Jemaah Islamiyah, responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202," Kaplan wrote.

Working behind the scenes, USAID now helps fund over 30 Muslim organizations in Indonesia. Among the programs: media production, workshops for Islamic preachers, and curriculum reform for schools from rural academies to Islamic universities, according to the US News article.

`Deradicalization' works, claims book - The Jakarta Post

Changing the militant mindset: few signs of success - Reuters

Indonesia's Islamic Schools: More Female Friendly

World’s first environmental radio station airs in smoggy Jakarta

2009-09-22T09:45:00.003+07:00

Original source: Christian Science Monitor

The smog-choked capital of Indonesia seems an unlikely place for the world’s first environmental radio station. But it’s here that Green Radio 68H, powered only by solar panels, broadcasts up to 10 hours of environment-focused news and information each day.

Located on one of Jakarta’s rare tree-shaded lots, Green Radio aims to build a more ecofriendly mind-set in a city faced with threats from widespread flooding, dismal sanitation, and water contaminated by sewage and garbage.

“This is what Jakarta needs,” says station manager Nita Roshita, noting the lack of environmental awareness among the city’s 9 million inhabitants.

The commercial station’s ethos covers everything from its clean-energy operations to its advertisers: mining and cigarette companies are prohibited. It also works with the national park system to plant trees in one of Java’s fastest shrinking forests.

After more than a year and a half in operation, the station appears to be gaining a foothold.

Environmental activists say the world’s third-largest emitter of carbon dioxide still has a long way to go, but Ms. Roshita says she believes Green Radio can help build support for environmental preservation by capitalizing on Indonesia’s new love for all things Earth-friendly.

“We start with a trend and go from there,” the radio manager says. “We’re not going to change the whole world, but we can change Jakartans’ way of living.”

Avoiding exorbitant phone bills on foreign trips

2009-09-22T08:20:00.000+07:00

Original source: e-Turbo News

When it comes to "gotcha" fees, the cell-phone industry makes travel companies look like rank amateurs.

Take what happened to P. Morgan Brown when his wife decided to take a spur-of-the-moment vacation to Indonesia. Her Verizon bill came to a staggering $8,000. Text-messages home cost an astounding $2.50 each, and the meter was running at an eye-popping $1.75 a minute for phone calls.

"We almost missed a mortgage payment when the auto-withdrawal for the first bill came through and wiped out our checking account," says Brown, who works for an Internet company in Aliso Viejo, Calif. "What a waste of money."

Stories like his are becoming more common, according to cellular industry experts - despite some governments' best efforts to contain these exorbitant fees. "The main reason is that people are using their phones more for data than voice calls," says Azita Arvani, a wireless industry consultant based in Los Angeles. With a conventional call, users can gauge the cost per minute and adjust their talk time. But gauging data use isn't as straightforward. An e-mail, Web site or video can gobble up a lot more bandwidth than you'd think.

But what can you do?

Don't let this happen to you. Here are a few strategies to avoid these ridiculous fees:

1. Buy another phone. If you're going to be away for a while, maybe you need a native cell phone. Bruce Molsky, a musician based in Washington, buys a network-unlocked phone when he travels overseas. "The total charges are usually less than a quarter of what AT&T would have charged," he says. "Plus I have the luxury of making and receiving calls in the country I'm in for normal rates."

2. Get a plan. If you're attached to your cell phone, or if it's just a short trip, consider keeping your phone but switching to an overseas calling plan. "You should be able to switch to that plan on a temporary basis, which would give you favorable rates abroad," says Mark Asnes, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the cellular company Wireless Zone. Typically, the rates are between 99 cents and $1.99 per minute. (Still not cheap, but about half what you'd pay if you were plan-less.)

3. Go VOIP. Voice over Internet Protocol - using a PC or other Internet-connected device to make phone calls - is a popular alternative to making cell-phone calls overseas. Michael Brein, a psychologist based in Honolulu, uses the VOIP service called Skype to make inexpensive calls when he's in Europe.

"So long as you have wireless access, then calling from your laptop to phone numbers using Skype-out can be as little as 2 cents a minute," he says. He's also downloaded a Skype app for his iPhone, which allows him to make VOIP calls when he's near a high-speed wireless network.

4. Swap cards. You might be able to have it both ways - keep your phone and get a lower rate than the one offered by your wireless carrier. Andy Abramson, who edits a telephony blog (http://andyabramson.blogs.com), swaps out the SIM cards on his phone when he travels. A SIM card, shorthand for a Subscriber Identity Module, effectively lets you change your phone number to a local one when you're traveling. "I buy local SIMs in country or a travel SIM from SIM4Travel or MaxRoam," he says. "Both offer competitive rates."

5. Leave your phone home. It's the only way to be absolutely sure. The moment you power up your phone, you're in danger of passively checking e-mails or voice mails and incurring unconscionable roaming charges. So the best way of avoiding overseas roaming charges is to not bring your handset at all.

Source: philly.com

Top Indonesian militant believed dead in raid, but problem of terrorism is not over - Expert

2009-09-18T10:25:00.004+07:00

Original source: PBS NewsHours, -- Compiled from wire reports and other media sources

Indonesia's most-wanted Islamic militant, believed to be the mastermind of two deadly July hotel bombings in Jakarta, has reportedly been killed in a police raid in Central Java.

The death of Malaysia-born Noordin Mohammed Top, who was suspected of involvement in terror attacks in Indonesia dating back to 2002 that have killed nearly 300 people, would be a key setback for terror networks in Southeast Asia.

"It's a huge blow for the extremist organizations in Indonesia and the region," Sidney Jones, an expert on Islamic militants with the International Crisis Group, told Reuters.

"It's a major success for the police but it doesn't mean, unfortunately, that the problem of terrorism is over. It's still unclear how many people were in Noordin's group and there are a number of fugitives still at large who have at least the potential to replace him as the leader of an al-Qaida-like organization."

Top was a key figure in Jemaah Islamiyah, a militant terror network based in Southeast Asia linked to al-Qaida and other terror groups. In addition to the deadly hotel attacks in July, Jemaah Islamiyah is believed to be responsible for several attacks on U.S. and Western targets in Indonesia, including the 2004 bombing of the Australian embassy, a 2003 car bombing at the Marriott hotel in Jakarta, and the 2002 Bali bombing, which killed more than 200 people.

Indonesia's national police chief Bambang Hendarso Danuri announced Top's death at a news conference Thursday. He displayed photos purporting to show a match between Top's fingerprints and those on police file as evidence that the militant had been killed in a police raid that also killed at least four other people.

Top was reportedly a key recruiter, strategist and financier for Jemaah Islamiyah and has eluded capture on several occasions. Indonesia authorities were determined to capture or kill him ahead of a planned visit by U.S. President Barack Obama in November.

"With the death of Noordin Mohammad Top and of Doctor Azahari [a bomb maker and close ally of Top who was killed by police in 2005], I believe we could reduce the seriousness of the terror threat to Indonesia," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told reporters.

SEE ALSO:
Indonesian police claim links between Top and Al Qaeda – ABC
Terror mastermind Noordin dead in Indonesia raid: police – AFP
Indonesia Police Chief Confirms Terror Leader Noordin Dead – DJN
US says Indonesia raid potentially represents 'step forward' – CAN
Indonesia Vows to Hunt Down Terrorists After Killing Noordin – Bloomberg

Overview of Indonesia's struggle with terrorism - AP
Video: Indonesia celebrates death of 'Jakarta bomber' - 17 Sep 09 Al Jazeera

Indonesia President wants non-politicians in key cabinet posts

2009-09-18T09:18:00.001+07:00

Original source: Reuters/Olivia Rondonuwu

Indonesia's President, who was re-elected in July, said he would pick non-politicians for the key cabinet posts of state-owned enterprises, attorney-general, head of intelligence, and defence.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had already said he intends to pick more technocrats for his next cabinet, due to be sworn in next month, and would appoint fewer politicians from his coalition partners.

International investors want more technocrats in the new cabinet, including current Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, as the government would be more likely to push ahead with key reforms and policies to attract investment and spur economic growth.

"For Defence Minister, I will pick a more neutral candidate, not from the parties. For the State Enterprises Minister, Attorney General, and the State Intelligence Agency as well," Yudhoyono told reporters, without elaborating.

Corruption, red tape and legal uncertainty are frequently cited as deterrents to investment in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

The president and his main reform allies -- Indrawati and vice president elect Boediono -- have stressed the need to continue the fight against corruption and bureaucracy, and overhaul the civil service, police and judiciary.

Yudhoyono has also hinted as plans for a sweeping overhaul of state-owned firms.

During his first term, Yudhoyono was unable to make wide-ranging reforms, partly because his cabinet included old-school politicians who opposed change.

Yudhoyono said that he would address some of the problems that arose in his first term, for example ambiguity over ministers' roles.

"It should be clear who does what, and there will be clear references as to what the ministers must do," he said.

Yudhoyono's Democrat Party won the most seats in the parliamentary elections in April, and allied with several small Islamic and Islamist parties to back Yudhoyono in the presidential election in July.

Political parties both within and outside the coalition are now jockeying for cabinet posts.

Indonesia bid to end Bali obsession

2009-09-18T08:15:00.000+07:00

View original source: Travel Weekly

Indonesian tourism authorities will attempt to end their reliance on Bali by switching the focus of future marketing to destinations beyond the holiday island.

Officials used an industry roadshow in Sydney last night to stress the need for a greater spread of visitors and to reassure the Australian industry it was doing all it could to protect holidaymakers from the threat of terrorism.

Figures revealed that of 418,000 Australians who visited to Indonesia in 2008, more than 320,000 headed to Bali.

“Australians only visit three destinations in Indonesia,” director for international promotion I Gde Pitana told agents and wholesalers. “Bali, Bali and Bali.

“Most Australians do not know Indonesia very well and our aim is to develop destinations beyond Bali,” Pitana said. “There are lots of destinations of no less beauty than Bali.”

Indonesia’s Sydney-based consulate general, H E Sudaryomo Hartosudarmo, even told the gathering that Australia is so Bali-centric that many think it is a country in its own right and are unaware it is part of Indonesia.

Details of any future campaign remain sketchy, as is the budget which Australian representatives will need to grow the market.

But Lombok, Bintan, Komodo Island and Wakatobi are among the destinations that will be more heavily promoted, along with Java which already has some brand value.

Meanwhile, Pitana said Australians have continued to travel to Indonesia despite the Jakarta bombings. Only between 5% and 10% of bookings were cancelled and even then only in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, he said.

Tourists have also become immune to the “persistent” warnings from the Australia Government to reconsider the need to travel to Indonesia.

Indonesia's Economic Optimism

2009-09-17T09:00:00.003+07:00

Sara Schonhardt – The Huffington Post, Sept 16, 2009 12:33 PM

Indonesia has every reason to be optimistic. In its quarterly report released Monday the World Bank raised its growth forecast for the country's economy from 3.5 percent to 4.3 percent, higher than even the IMF expected. Although the global economy is showing signs of recovery, Indonesia has weathered the economic crisis much better than other countries in Southeast Asia thanks to strong domestic consumption and increased government spending on stimulus measures, the Bank's report noted.

The big topic now that recovery is being hinted at is reform of the financial sector, said Indonesia's Finance Minister Sri Mulyani, speaking before a group of journalists in Jakarta on Tuesday. The dilemma is how to strike the right balance between regulation that strangles the market and regulation that does not go far enough toward preventing the circumstances led to the current collapse.

Despite the sanguine picture the World Bank has painted, Mulyani said the government will not revise its fiscal projections, which predict GDP growth of around 4 percent by year's end.

Mulyani, an outspoken reformer who has gone far toward cleaning up graft in her own ministry, is unapologetic about the decisions she has made during her term as finance minister.

Most recently she's drawn heat for the government's decision to bail out Bank Century -- Indonesia's own mini version of the Lehman Brothers fiasco. The cost to the public, initially projected at Rp1.3 trillion (US$133 million), eventually swelled to Rp6.7 trillion (US$677 million), drawing the ire of some members from the House of Representatives (DPR) who have called for an audit to determine the legal basis for the rescue.

Yet Indonesia's experience with financial crises -- it was the hardest hit during the 1997 Asian economic crisis that saw GDP plummet by 13 percent from the year earlier -- may well have prevented its exposure this time around. "Our policy was to save and secure the financial system," Mulyani said Tuesday, defending the decision for the Bank Century rescue and assuring those present that "there was no political motive behind the bailout."…..Full story available at: The Huffington Post

Moody's ups Indonesia's rating, still junk status

2009-09-17T08:31:00.006+07:00

Original source: Reuters, Wed Sep 16, 2009 6:10am EDT

Moody's Investors Service raised Indonesia's sovereign rating by one notch to Ba2 on improving economic prospects for Southeast Asia's biggest economy, sparking a jump in the rupiah IDR= and bond prices.

Moody's analyst Aninda Mitra said Indonesia's economy could weather global uncertainties better than other sovereigns in the Ba-rating category and compared with its regional peers.

He said management of the economy was improving and the appropriate policy stance was expected to persist in the foreseeable future.

"These developments highlight the growing credibility and predictability of government policies, and are expected to ensure macro-economic stability," he said.

Despite the move, Indonesia's rating is still two notches below investment grade and only one above the Philippines. It is also still several notches below neighbours Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, all of which are investment grade.

"It will likely need at least two years for the country to achieve an investment grade rating," said economist Anton Gunawan of Bank Danamon. "This will require significant progress."

The rupiah, Asia's best performing currency this year, jumped 1.8 percent to 9,710/dollar on the news, bringing its gains this year to 13 percent.

The yield on the most actively traded 5-year debt slipped seven basis points to 9.23 percent, while the 10-year yield dropped 8 basis points to 9.92 percent, traders said. The country's credit default swap also narrowed by 15 bps to 170/180, traders said.

Indonesia, long regarded as a laggard in the region, is back on many investor radar screens thanks to its economic resilience and political stability under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Its economy is one of the few in Asia expected to grow this year because it is less dependent on exports than its neighbours. The World Bank this week revised up its growth forecast to 4.3 percent in 2009 from 3-4 percent, citing resilient consumption….for complete news please visit Reuters News

The untold story of Obama's mother

2009-09-16T10:44:00.005+07:00

Taken from the original source: The Independent UK (free copy version)

The President's formative years are well documented, but only now are his mother's exploits in Indonesia coming to light, reports Judith Kampfner

"What is best in me, I owe to her," the 44th US President acknowledged in the second edition of his memoir Dreams From My Father. But Dunham has been little more than a footnote in his extraordinary story. In the preface, Mr Obama wrote: "She travelled the world, working in the distant villages, helping women buy a sewing machine or a milk cow or an education that might give them a foothold in the world's economy."

But he chose to highlight a dreaminess in his mother.

What Mr Obama's narrative omits is any detail of how Ann Dunham was an economic anthropologist and that for 30 years she devoted herself to studying rural enterprise in Indonesia. She took on projects as a development officer with the Ford Foundation, the US Agency for International Development and the Asian Development Bank, pioneering micro-credit projects that extended small loans to the rural poor.

Dunham's legacy both as a scholar and a mother whose influences would shape her son will finally receive wider prominence later this year when her PhD treatise, which took 14 years to complete, is published by Duke University Press. A feature-length movie about her life, Stanley Ann Dunham: A Most Generous Spirit, goes into production next year.

But Dunham was more than an academic. In Indonesia, she supported radical groups opposed to the military dictatorship. She was an activist, an adventurer, a supporter of traditional arts and culture, a teacher,and a development worker. The country today is a world leader in micro-credit. "She was a pioneer," says Adi Sasono, chairman of the Co-operative Council of Indonesia, who watched her micro-finance achievements. "She was an orang besar [great person]. In Obama's books and speeches, I see the same sensitivity, the same concern for common people and for justice."

Like Dunham, Kay Ikranagara, was an American anthropologist married to an Indonesian. "She had high ideals for [Barack]," she recalls. "She said anyone who didn't work hard didn't deserve to get ahead. She had traditional values like honesty, (which in Indonesia was not especially prized – getting on with people was considered more important) and she hated hypocrisy."

Dunham's cultural heroes were Gandhi and Martin Luther King. She was a peacenik and believed implicitly in racial equality. But she did not anticipate the problems her son would have a black child at school in Hawaii, says Ms Ikranagara, adding: "Maybe she was not aware enough about that. We had this belief that there should be no racial difference, so maybe that made us a little blind to the difficulties one might have in a position like that."

In the atrium of Dunham's Jakarta home, Julia Suryakusuma points to carvings and earth colours and muses that it is "a very Ann house". Ms Suryakusuma was one of Dunham's closest friends and recalls her as "new age" – in that she was interested in spirituality but also "very, very disciplined". "[Ann] was a pragmatic idealist," she adds.

The village Dunham studied is Kajar, in the foothills of mountains a 90-minute drive along dirt roads from Indonesia's second city, Yogyakarta. She lodged with Maggie Norobangun, who is still alive and leads the way through a courtyard where turtles crawl. Ann was easy to live with and "always cheerful, never complaining", she recalls. She would leave early, getting on a motorbike and hiking up her batik wrap skirts, and return late. She didn't talk about her children, Ms Norobangun says, "but I knew she missed them. She would ask me often about my children".

According to Bronwen Solyom, an anthropologist whose work in Indonesia overlapped with Dunham's: "She was a fluent speaker. She asked intelligent questions because she cared."

Some have suggested that the young Barack Obama resented being separated from his mother while she worked abroad. He told one interviewer last year that she had "a certain recklessness". Whatever the truth, the President is due to visit Indonesia in November. Locally, there is already much excitement. He likes nasi goreng, the national dish of fried rice it's rumoured. But one of Dunham's former friends, anthropologist Yang Suwan, refuses to read the President's autobiography. She says she can't ever forget when Mr Obama, then a law student, was made editor of The Harvard Law Review. His mother read out an article in Time magazine. "You know Suwan, they just say 'the mother is an anthropologist'. Just that, just one sentence," she said. Suwan repeats the sentence in disgust.

If he gets around to visiting Kajar, the President will hear how its families have just clubbed together for their first low-interest loan. It will allow them to nurture what Ann Dunham called the "ingenuity" of rural Java. It was one of her cherished goals.

BHP Billiton Scraps Plan To Quit Indonesia?

2009-09-16T09:05:00.006+07:00

Compiled from the original source: Tempo Interactive, Bloomberg News, and Business Spectator

Anglo-Australian miner BHP Billiton has scrapped its plan to leave Indonesia, the energy department said.

Bambang Setiawan, Director General of Mineral, Coal and Geothermal of the Energy And Mineral Resources Department, said BHP Billiton is going to form joint ventures, and seeking to control a majority of stake in the cooperations.

Setiawan said the firm had informally notified the government on the possible joint-venture option. About 10 companies are interested in the joint venture scheme, Bambang said without disclosing them.

Meanwhile BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, said “a number” of groups are interested in buying its Maruwai coal project in Indonesia.

“We continue to review our commercial options in relation to the Maruwai coal project which includes the potential full or part sale of our interests,” Peter Ogden, a spokesman for the Melbourne-based company said by telephone today. “An expression of interest process involving a number of parties” is continuing, he said.

In June, BHP Billiton said it would not go ahead with the Haju trial coal mine in Central Kalimantan because it did not fit with its long-term investment strategy. The company operates seven mining concessions projects and employs around 450 workers.

Haju was stage one of the Maruwai coal project, the 100 per cent BHP Billiton owned metallurgical coal deposit, in Central Kalimantan which was expected to produce 1 million tonnes of metallurgical coal - used for steel-making - per year.

PT Medco Energi Internasional, PT Adaro Energy, PT Aneka Tambang and PT Indika Energy are among companies interested in the project, Bambang Setiawan, a director general of the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry told reporters .

In November last year, BHP decided also to scrap a study into developing an integrated nickel project in eastern Indonesia which was under a conditional agreement with Indonesian state miner PT Aneka Tambang Tbk.

El Nino`s impact to include prolonged drier-than-average conditions

2009-09-16T08:03:00.001+07:00

Original source: Antara News

The impact of El Nino in the September-November period in 2009 is expected to include the continuation of drier-than-average conditions in Indonesia and enhanced precipitation in the west-central tropical Pacific Ocean, according to NOAA.

Current conditions, trends, and model forecasts favored the continued development of a weak-to-moderate strength El Nino into the Northern Hemisphere fall 2009, with the likelihood of at least a moderate strength El Nino during the winter 2009-10, according to an e-mailed press statement of US-based NOAA`s National Weather Service received by ANTARA News recently.

According to NOAA, El Nino is expected to strengthen and last through the Northern Hemisphere winter 2009-2010.

A weak El Nino continued during August 2009, as sea surface temperature (SST) remained above-average across the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Subsurface oceanic heat content (average temperatures in the upper 300m of the ocean) anomalies continued to reflect a deep layer of anomalous warmth between the ocean surface and the thermocline, particularly in the central Pacific.

"Enhanced convection over the western and central Pacific abated during the month, but the pattern of suppressed convection strengthened over Indonesia," according to the statement.

These oceanic and atmospheric anomalies reflect an ongoing weak El Nino.

Indonesia is currently experiencing the El Nino-induced drought, which among other things, has caused failures of some crop harvests, forest and peat fires, and water shortage in some regions.

World Bank upgrades Indonesia's economic growth prediction to 4.3%

2009-09-15T09:39:00.003+07:00

Compiled from The World Bank, Xinhua, detik.com

The World bank (WB) has increased Indonesia's economic growth estimation to 4.3 percent this year from the initial 3.4 percent following the world's improving economy.

"We predict that the gradual economic improvement that persisted amid this year would continue in the next one and a half year. The increasing domestic demands would spur the economic growth at the same time with the disbursement of the government's fiscal stimulus in 2010. The investors' trust would be recovered," WB senior economist Subham Chauduri said a press release.

After the 4.3 percent economic growth this year, the WB predicted that Indonesia's economic growth would slowly increase to 5.4 in 2010 with inflation predicted to rise up to 4.7 percent in the remaining months of this year and goes up to 5.6 percent next year.

Subham Chauduri also said that the poverty rate would be reducing by the end of the government's schedule to end its cash assistance for the poor in the country.

Thanks to the massive domestic consumption due to the conduction of legislative elections and presidential election, the WB's learned that economy recovery signals in Indonesia persisted early this year, or earlier than the other countries in the world lingered by economic crisis, he added.

Meanwhile WB Indonesia representative, Joachim von Amsberg, said that the large Indonesian market, strong economy condition at the early days of economic crisis and the government's correct policy in issuing the stimulus program have saved the country from the bad impacts of global crisis.

"All of those factors enable Indonesia to survive, able to overcome the problems caused by the crisis better than other countries in the region," Joachim said.

KEY MESSAGES FROM THE REPORT

-- Indonesia's economic recovery has gained steam following the turbulence of the start of the year

-- Domestic consumption has remained robust

-- ..although investors have become very cautious

-- The banking sector has proved far sturdier than many commentators expected, although new loan approvals have remained constrained

-- Financial markets have continued strengthening through mid-2009

-- ...and portfolio investors have returned to Indonesian markets. Rollover rates on debt have been high, leaving the balance of payments in a small surplus in Q2

-- Inflation, after being more subdued than expected earlier in the year, has started to rise since August

-- Employment has grown at a faster rate than the working age population, although few of the new jobs are formal

-- Public finances in the first half of 2009 have been more stimulatory than in recent years

-- ... and there is scope for more ambitious spending in 2010 than the government's proposed budget envisages

-- The trend of a gradually recovering economy should continue into 2011, with accelerating output, and prices, and the end of the government's cash transfers slowing the gains in poverty

View the report: Indonesia Economic Update (Sept 2009: Clearing Skies

PRESS RELEASE: Skies Clear Up for Indonesia, as Global Crisis Winds Down

The War Over Batik: Score One for Indonesia

2009-09-15T08:27:00.005+07:00

Taken from the original source: The New York Times

For Indonesians, it is a point scored in a long-running rivalry with their neighbor Malaysia: The United Nations has decided to recognize Indonesian batik as one of the world’s important cultural traditions.

A worker used a copper stamp to apply wax in finely detailed designs to batik fabric before it was dyed.

After a run of what Indonesian nationalists view as Malaysia’s poaching of its culture, the announcement last week that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization would add batik to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list at a ceremony at the end of this month was especially welcome. To celebrate, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked all Indonesians to wear batik on Oct. 2.

“It is so important that the world finally recognize and acknowledge batik as an Indonesian heritage,” said Obin, one of the country’s leading fashion designers. “It is a part of our soul.”

But bragging rights to batik, the process of creating intricate patterns on textiles with wax-resistant dyes, is only one of a slew of issues — cultural, social and political — that have bedeviled relations between Malaysia and Indonesia of late. In June, things had reached the point where Malaysia’s defense minister felt it necessary to declare that, contrary to appearances, the two countries were not on the brink of war.

Indonesia and Malaysia’s numerous commonalities have often sparked disputes. Their historically fluid borders gave rise to populations that share both the Islamic religion and very similar languages. The two countries fought a real war over territory on the island of Borneo in the 1960s, and several conflicts over small, but resource-rich, islands and coastal territories continue today.

The most recent cultural squabble, however, is mostly one-sided. Malaysians, responding to a torrent of letters in Indonesian newspapers, say they are mostly perplexed by Indonesians’ strong reactions to suspicions that they are being encroached upon by Malaysia. Some young Indonesians, who refer to their neighbor as “Maling-sia” — “maling” means “thief” in Indonesian — have pledged their readiness to fight should war become necessary.

It was in this context that Unesco was considering Indonesia’s claim that batik is part of its distinct cultural heritage and worth preserving.

Protecting batik, whether from cheaper printed imitations from China or efforts in Malaysia to copyright designs, became a national obsession.

Historians and non-Indonesian analysts question Indonesia’s claims.

“For Indonesians to claim that batik is solely Indonesian is to stretch the point,” Farish Noor, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyank Technological University in Singapore, wrote in a recent editorial in The Straits Times.

“The post-colonial histories of almost all Southeast Asian states tend to over-emphasize the nation-state and its borders,” Noor continued. “This ignores the fact that the people of the region have long moved across the archipelago with ease, bringing — and leaving — their languages, beliefs and cultures.”

See full story: The New York Times

Idul Fitri mass exodus season kicks off in Indonesia

2009-09-15T08:06:00.003+07:00

Original source: Xinhua News. Picture: Jakarta Globe/Antara

Despite the absence of government's affirmation on the exact day of Idul Fitri festivity this year, the mass public traveling period out of the capital city has commenced on Monday.

Hundreds of people were seen swarming to Indonesia's airports, train stations and bus stations, seeking chances to go out of Jakarta earlier in a more comfortable traveling on the first day of what the government recognized as D+7.

Like in the previous Idul Fitri holiday seasons, the transportation ministry set seven days before and after Idul Fitriin providing particular transportation management for the public who travel to their hometowns in celebrating of the festival.

Involving tens of millions of people, the Idul Fitri's massive exodus in Indonesia is recognized as the largest in Southeast Asia. The government has estimated that more than 27 million travelers would take part in the massive exodus this year.

Most of the executive train and plane tickets were already sold out since the beginning of Ramadan. The remaining tickets were sold at high prices during the period of D+7 up until the Idul Fitri day.

For those who were unable to buy tickets for executive transports, the government provides the economy-class trains that charge extra low ticket fares for its passengers.

Indonesia’s economy looking good

2009-09-14T11:11:00.006+07:00

Original source: The National UAE

Yulia Astuti runs a chain of beauty salons in Jakarta that cater especially for Muslims, and in most of her branches, women are flocking in for a makeover.

“I haven’t made any special research on how the economy is specifically affecting our business, but based on the facts, business has grown and the turnover in most of our outlets is getting bigger,” Ms Astuti said.

Indonesia’s strong domestic market has put it in a good position to deal with the global downturn, as shown by the growing clientele at Ms Astuti’s salons.

Indonesia is the fourth most-populous nation in the world, with 226 million people, and about 85 per cent of the population follows Islam, making it the world’s most-populous Muslim country.

Fauzi Ichsan, a senior economist at Standard Chartered Bank in Jakarta, said the strength of Indonesia’s domestic market had done much to help it weather the recessionary storm.

The importance of the domestic market was recognised by Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the president of Indonesia, in a speech last month. “In future, we must strengthen our domestic economy, our domestic market and not just depend on strong exports as the source of our economic development,” he said.

“Because of this, an export-oriented economic strategy is clearly not our choice.”

Mr Yudhoyono, 59, won a landslide victory in July and starts a new term in office in October. He is a popular leader and his reformist credentials have done much to boost Indonesia’s standing internationally. However, corruption, widespread poverty and a reputation for red tape means it has not benefited from inward investment in the way that countries such as China and India have done.

Indonesia is a big exporter of commodities such as rubber, nickel, coal and gas, but only about 30 per cent of its GDP is based on exports, much less than neighbours such as Thailand and Malaysia, which have suffered more from the global crisis.

The government predicts growth of about 4 per cent this year, making it one of the best-performing economies in the region. The rupiah is Asia’s best-performing currency this year, and the stock market is also rallying strongly despite the global downturn.

“Improving the infrastructure is a major challenge for Indonesia, and accelerated infrastructure development will also boost economic growth,” Mr Ichsan said.

However, it is not just a question of turning cash into roads in central Java. Upgrading the country’s poor infrastructure network is a problem because of the huge size of the Indonesia archipelago. Many of the regions are strongly autonomous, with knotty layers of bureaucracy, which means planners have to get through a huge number of central and local government agencies.

New anti-corruption rules means that many bureaucrats are worried about getting involved in public projects in case they are accused of dipping into the funds.

On top of this, Indonesia has some of the toughest labour laws in the region, and buying up land for infrastructure projects is a fraught process.

The economy has managed to stay on course despite incidents that could have badly dented sentiment, particularly the near-simultaneous suicide bombings on Jakarta’s JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels, which killed nine people and wounded 53 in July. The bombings came after four years of relative calm in Indonesia.

“There is no reason why Jakarta’s reputation internationally should suffer. After all, people still go to New York, London and Madrid after al Qa’eda struck there,” Mr Ichsan said.

A Muslim model: What Indonesia can teach the world - The Boston Globe

2009-09-14T10:06:00.022+07:00

Click here to access original source: The Boston Globe .

Posted using ShareThis

At times this summer, much of the Muslim world seemed at war with itself. In Iran, protesters furious over what they viewed as a stolen election spilled into the streets and were met with a brutal security crackdown. In Pakistan, powerful Taliban-type militant groups battled the army. In neighboring Afghanistan, opposition leader Abdullah Abdullah and local tribal leaders accused President Hamid Karzai of stealing the national election.

Farther south, the world’s largest Muslim nation, Indonesia, received far less attention. Yet what happened there in July ultimately could prove far more important than the meltdowns in Afghanistan or Pakistan or Iran. Some 100 million Indonesians, spread across a vast archipelago, went to the polls, and in a free and fair vote, they reelected president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, leader of the secular Democrat Party. Hard-line Islamic parties fielded candidates as well, but they barely registered at the polls, gaining less of the vote than they had in the previous national election five years ago.

“If you want to know whether Islam, democracy, modernity and women’s rights can coexist, go to Indonesia,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on a trip to Southeast Asia earlier this year.

Though Indonesian leaders themselves are hesitant to lecture other countries, their model could offer lessons for nations from Pakistan to Morocco.

Just a decade ago, few would have seen Indonesia as a model of any kind.

For full story, please click the link to the Boston Globe above..

FYI – Latest assessment on Indonesia

2009-09-11T13:03:00.005+07:00

From The Economist Special Report on Indonesia

Countries generally hit the headlines only when the news is bad. In Indonesia it has often been spectacularly bad. A decade ago there were fears that the country might disintegrate in a welter of violence, piracy and mass migration. Its former dictator, Suharto, set new standards for kleptocracy. As he fell in 1998, the economy collapsed. The Bali bombing of 2002 that killed more than 200 people was one of a series of such attacks, and the lingering danger of Islamic terrorism was recalled by another murderous blast in Jakarta in July this year. The country is prone to natural disasters too, from the tsunami that devastated parts of Sumatra in 2004 to this month’s deadly earthquake in Java.

So Indonesia has an image problem. Foreigners may not realise, its boosters defensively suggest, that the world’s third-largest democracy and fourth most populous country, with more Muslims than any other, is actually doing rather well. It enjoys political stability under a popular incumbent president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The bombing in Jakarta was the first such atrocity for nearly four years. Economic growth has slowed, but the country has withstood the global slump well. Of big countries, only China and India are growing faster.

It still has enormous problems. Separatist tensions have eased, but it remains prone to sectarian and ethnic violence. Mr Yudhoyono has not met his promise in 2004 of halving the number of people living below the government’s poverty line. More than 15% of Indonesia’s 240m people are poor. Unemployment is high, at about 8%, and the workforce is growing faster than in any other country apart from India and China. Inequality has actually widened a little. Those who looted the country under Suharto, and the soldiers who connived at terrible abuses, have enjoyed almost total impunity. Indonesia is still one of the world’s most corrupt countries. Its infrastructure is in woeful shape. And as another El Niño weather pattern takes hold, choking smog caused by forest fires is already smothering parts of Sumatra, drawing attention to Indonesia’s role as the world’s third-largest emitter of carbon.

There are, however, four big reasons for optimism…(for full story please access link to The Economist Special Report on Indonesia above).

North Devon explorers in hunt for Sumatran 'yeti'

2009-09-11T11:24:00.003+07:00

Original source: North Devon Gazette, and Picture from BBC

A group of British explorers and scientists from the North-Devon based Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ), the world's largest mystery animal research organisation, is about to embark on an expedition in search of a yeti-like creature in Indonesia.

The four-man team will search the jungles of Sumatra for what locals call the "orang-pendek.". The powerfully built, upright-walking beast may be related to both the orang-utan and the much larger yeti of mainland Asia.

In the same island chain remains of the tiny hominid known as Homo floresiensis were unearthed in 2003.

The Kubu people - an ancient race who were the first inhabitants of Sumatra - will aid the team. The tribe and their chief have seen the creature in their poorly explored jungle homelands.

Westerners have sighted the orang-pendek too, including Englishwoman Debbie Martyr, now head of the Indonesian tiger conservation group, and wildlife photographer Jeremy Holden.

Also reported in the same jungles are huge horned snakes said to be ten metres long, and a savage, golden cat with a stubby tail and large canine fangs.

The expedition's zoologist, Richard Freeman, Zoological Director of the CFZ, said: "The orang-pendek is especially interesting as it is an ape that walks upright rather than on all fours. It may show us how our own ancestors first began bipedal locomotion.

"The cigau may be a surviving form of Homotherium or scimitar cat, which is a beast related to the better known sabre-toothed cats. Fossils of this animal have been found in Indonesia that are only 10,000 years old. In evolutionary or geological terms that is yesterday.

"The giant snakes, known as 'nagas' by the Kubu, may be a new species. There are horned snakes such as the rhinoceros viper and the horned viper, but these are small. The nagas of the Kubu are said to be ten metres long! The 'horns' are probably modified scales.

"New species are turning up in Indonesia all the time; it is the real life lost world." Team leader Adam Davis, together with Dr Chris Clark and Dave Archer, will join Mr Freeman.

You can follow the group's adventures on line at the CFZ website on www.cfz.org.uk

Indonesia unhappy with new Balibo probe

2009-09-10T11:08:00.001+07:00

Compiled from the original Sources: The Age and ABC News

Indonesian authorities are surprised and bemused by Australia's announcement that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) is opening up a war crimes investigation into the killings of five Australia-based newsmen in East Timor in 1975.

Indonesia has warned that its relations with Australia will be harmed by an Australian Federal Police war crimes investigation into the 1975 slaying of five journalists in East Timor. It also has the potential to upset the good relationship between the AFP and Indonesian police.

In a sharp official response to yesterday's announcement of the AFP probe, the Indonesian Government said it would not co-operate with investigators.

''We don't understand why past issues like this are being raised,'' said Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah.

''It is not conducive to the bilateral relationship, especially when we are aiming at building something better between the two countries.''

The AFP has confirmed that it began a formal probe into the deaths of the five Australian-based newsmen on August 20.

Channel Nine cameraman Brian Peters, with his colleague Malcolm Rennie and Channel Seven's Greg Shackleton, Gary Cunningham and Tony Stewart, were killed in October 1975 by Indonesian special forces.

While Indonesia has claimed that the newsmen were caught in the crossfire, others have maintained that they were killed to prevent their reporting on Indonesia's invasion of East Timor.

The AFP probe is likely to focus on Mohammad Yunus Yosfiah, an army captain at the time of the killings, and another soldier, Christoforus da Silva.

The sister of Brian Peters, Maureen Tolfree, said from her home in Britain she was over the moon about the probe. ''Wow, at last! That's brilliant news,'' she said.

University of NSW academic and ex-army intelligence operative Clinton Fernandes also applauded the probe. ''Australian aid to Indonesia is half a billion dollars a year. There are 16,000 Indonesian students studying in Australia and $15 billion a year in bilateral investment and trade each year,'' he said.

''Considering that, the Indonesian Government should not be making a fuss about extraditing someone like Yosfiah. ''He is a figure from the past.''

Former Jakarta governor Sutiyoso, whose Sydney hotel room was broken into by police seeking to summons him to the inquest, said he was puzzled by the new investigation. ''What I know is that both governments, Indonesian and Australian, have decided not to reopen the case,'' he said. ''So … why do we have this now?'' Mr Sutiyoso served in the military in East Timor, but was not near Balibo when the newsmen died.

Analyst Hugh White of the Australian National University questioned the continuing focus on Balibo, and said the new investigation would not help relations with Indonesia.

He said the killings were deeply disturbing at the time and he could understand why they continued to torment the men's families. ''But for the country as a whole, our obsession with what happened at Balibo in 1975 has started to become a distraction from a whole lot of much more urgent and important questions, which include the nature of Australia's relationship with the new Indonesia,'' he said.

Not everybody likes "another BRIC in the wall"

2009-09-10T10:49:00.002+07:00

Taken from: Nine MSN Money ; Primary source: FT.com

Asia's Emerging Powerhouse, Chindonesia: Enter the Komodo! and Adding Another 'I' to the BRIC Story? These are the titles of three recent reports by Standard Chartered Bank, the securities house CLSA, and Morgan Stanley investment bank respectively, reflecting their upbeat views of the world's fourth most populous nation.

Prosperous times: Markets bustle as Jakarta prepares for festivities. Economic growth is healthy but problems remain Preceding these was a policy brief by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development arguing that the Bric group of rapidly growing developing nations – Brazil, Russia, India and China – should be expanded to the Briics, with the addition of Indonesia and South Africa.

Indonesia, home to the Komodo dragon, certainly warrants close attention. Economic growth in the first half of 2009 was 4.2 per cent, down from 6.1 per cent last year but still way ahead of most of its rivals. Its stock market has risen 84 per cent this year in US dollar terms – the world's second-best performer.

However, some analysts caution against getting carried away by Komodo power. Indonesia has made little progress against reducing poverty in recent years, its infrastructure is crumbling and its legal system is still very weak.

While gross domestic product per capita at $2,250 is more than double that of India, it lags well behind Russia, Brazil and China, and is a pittance against the $39,000 (€27,000, £24,000) for neighbouring Singapore.

Yet even if economic expansion in the first half of 2009 was below the rate needed to generate sufficient jobs to keep up with population increase, such a growth rate is the envy of neighbours such as Singapore, which have been contracting this year.

South-east Asia's largest economy has also survived the global financial crisis so well that many researchers think the world should be paying much closer attention to the sprawling archipelago.

Morgan Stanley is predicting 6 to 7 per cent annual growth from 2011 onwards and Standard Chartered is almost as bullish.

Government debt is down to about 30 per cent of gross domestic product from more than 100 per cent a decade ago. The World Bank named Indonesia as east Asia's leading reformer of business regulations this year. And the rupiah has almost recovered after a 30 per cent slump last year.

Most crucially, many of Indonesia's 228m people are still spending. Domestic demand accounts for almost two-thirds of the country's $520bn economy, and demand for its main commodities – thermal coal and palm oil – remains robust.

Bill Wallace, the World Bank's chief economist, says that in the past, "perceptions lagged reality", and so there is a "pretty reasonable argument for taking Indonesia much more seriously".

Nick Cashmore, head of CLSA in Jakarta, who coined the term "Chindonesia" to cover China, India and Indonesia, says: "Indonesia is growing as fast as it is in spite of the government not because of it."

The implementation of policies is often hindered by poor co-ordination among branches of government, slow budget execution (by mid-August only 49 per cent of the 2009 budget had been spent), the growing power of the regions and the weak legal system.

The failure to upgrade Indonesia's crumbling infrastructure is considered the main manifestation of this. Mr Yudhoyono promised myriad projects to boost power generation, extend toll roads and build ports, but only a fraction of these have been realised.

Some analysts think the problems run deeper. "I still don't think Indonesia is a country on the go," says one western diplomat. "In a sense of having a direction on how you pull people out of poverty, I don't see it in the same category as the rest of the Brics."

Facebook blocked for Indonesia city employees: official

2009-09-10T08:46:00.002+07:00

Original source: AFP

The second biggest city in Indonesia has blocked local government employees from using three social networking services, including Facebook, due to a decline in productivity, officials said Wednesday.

The Surabaya administration has blocked access to Facebook, Friendster and instant messaging tool Yahoo! Messenger during office hours since Monday.

"In order to increase the concentration of the civil servants, the mayor had to block those three social networking sites during office hours, starting from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm," administration spokesman Chalid Buchari said.

He said the ban was introduced because many civil servants wasted too much time on the services during office hours.

"We're still evaluating the idea that we should block Facebook permanently in all levels of government," Buchari said.

The administration, however, still approved the use of Internet search engines, such as Yahoo! and Google, to access news and information.

Yoshinoya beef bowl restaurants to make fresh start in Indonesia

2009-09-10T08:21:00.000+07:00

Original source: Japan Today

Yoshinoya ‘‘gyudon’’ beef-on-rice bowl restaurants will make a fresh start in Jakarta in January after withdrawing from the market in 1998 amid the Asian financial crisis, Yoshinoya Holdings Co said Wednesday. Subsidiary Yoshinoya International Co will open a restaurant in Jakarta in January with the aim of setting up 10 outlets in Indonesia within five years, the holding company said.

The restaurant chain operator, known for its beef and rice dishes, is reentering the Southeast Asian country’s market after pulling out in 1998 amid the Asian financial crisis. Yoshinoya first entered the Indonesian market in 1994. The restaurants will be operated by local firm PT. Multirasa Nusantara, a joint venture for the purpose formed by Wings, an Indonesian maker and wholesaler of consumer goods, and major Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group, Yoshinoya said. Yoshinoya International had a total of 395 restaurants in China, other East Asian nations, Australia and North America as of Aug 31.

Indonesia Is the Most Active Business Regulatory Reformer in East Asia and the Pacific

2009-09-09T12:06:00.003+07:00

Original source: World Bank - Doing Business ( http://www.doingbusiness.org/)

In a record year for regulatory reform worldwide, most economies in East Asia and the Pacific strengthened business regulations, making them more efficient to help increase opportunities for local firms. Three economies from the region—in order, Singapore, New Zealand, and Hong Kong (China)—led the world in ease of doing business.

Between June 2008 and May 2009 a record 131 of 183 economies around the globe reformed business regulation, according to Doing Business 2010: Reforming through Difficult Times, the seventh in a series of annual reports published by IFC and the World Bank. In East Asia and the Pacific 17 of 24 economies made reforms against the backdrop of the global economic crisis.

As a result of its reforms, Indonesia—the region’s most active reformer—moved up to 122 from 129 on the global ease of doing business rankings. Indonesia cut the time required to start a business by 16 days and the time to transfer a property by 17 days. The country also strengthened disclosure requirements for related-party transactions to protect investors.

Doing Business analyzes regulations that apply to an economy’s businesses during their life cycles, including start-up and operations, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing a business. Doing Business does not measure all aspects of the business environment that matter to firms and investors. For example, it does not measure security, macroeconomic stability, corruption, skill level, or the strength of financial systems.

Indonesia approves tougher law against polluters

2009-09-09T11:29:00.005+07:00

Taken from: AlertNet/Reuters

Indonesia's parliament passed a new environment bill giving the Environment Ministry the power to revoke polluters' business licences, which environmentalists said could lead to more effective enforcement.

Indonesia's rapid economic growth has been accompanied by widespread pollution of its waterways, soil and air, as well as the destruction of its forests and wildlife, prompting criticism from green groups and the World Bank.

The new law will require companies whose operations impact the environment to obtain an environmental licence and undergo an environmental assessment process before starting operations.

If the terms of the environmental assessment process are breached, the Environment Ministry can revoke their permit to operate and issue fines.

Anyone who deliberately pollutes the environment could face up to 10 years in jail and a fine of up to 10 billion rupiah ($1 million).

"This will affect basically all industries or companies whose activities create an impact on the environment, including manufacturing, construction, mining, pulp factories and others," said Nur Hidayati, Greenpeace's country representative for Indonesia.

"Before, for example, if a company pollutes, the Environment Ministry could only give a recommendation and there was no enforcement in terms of the minister stopping the operation because their operation licence was held by another department," she said.

"Now it's integrated, so if a company violates the environment, then their operation can be stopped."

The new law also stipulates sanctions for local and central government officials who issue permits without following the proper procedures.

Indonesia's parliament approves new electricity law

2009-09-09T10:06:00.003+07:00

Original source: Reuters

Indonesia's parliament approved a new electricity law on Tuesday, revoking the state electricity firm's monopoly and allowing central and regional governments to issue power permits.

The removal of state firm PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara's (PLN) monopoly opens up the market to competition and could encourage some of Indonesia's more prosperous, resources-rich provinces to embark on new power projects for local use.

"The key to the new law is that regions can actively work to provide electricity for their respective areas," Energy Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro told reporters.

Indonesia's parliament had previously tried to end PLN's selling monopoly.

In 2002, it approved a new electricity law ending the selling monopoly of PLN, but two years later, the constitutional court struck down the law, saying that generation and distribution should be controlled by the government because of its importance.

SEE ALSO:

Indonesia Cracks Open Power Sector for Investors - AWSJ
FACTBOX-Indonesia's electricity sector - Reuters

Halal Bill sparks debate in Indonesia

2009-09-09T09:45:00.001+07:00

Taken from the original source: The Malaysian Insider / The Straits Times

Muslim legislators in Indonesia are pushing for the quick approval of a controversial Bill that will require halal labelling of a wide range of products possibly as early as next week, despite concerns raised that it smacks of “Islamising” the state.

Items for which such labelling would be required by law range from food and beverages to cosmetics, medicine, and genetically-altered products.

Muslim members of Parliament who support the legislation argue that it is necessary to protect the faithful. But their Christian and secular-minded colleagues have opposed the move.

“They are rushing for the Bill to be endorsed as a sort of Lebaran gift for the community,” Tiurlan Basaria Hutagaol of the Christian-based Peace and Prosperity Party (PDS).

“We are not comfortable with the draft law because it is very divisive as it is based on an Islamic ruling. Our laws should not be based on the doctrine of any particular religion.

She said: “The decision — halal or permissible in Islam — is a religious issue. The government should be neutral.”

Said Abdullah, a Muslim MP from the secular and nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), also described the halal Bill as unconstitutional as it is “based on the religion of one community”.

The Bill, however, has the support of Muslim legislators from the other two major secular parties, Golkar and the Democratic Party of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as well as Islamic-based parties.

Legislator Badriyah Fayumi of the Islamic-based National Awakening Party (PKB) said non-Muslims should not feel threatened by the Bill, saying that the state was obliged to help its citizens practise syariah.

“The halal matter is very much one of principle for Muslims,” she said. It would provide a stronger legal basis for sanctions against companies that lie about the contents of their products, she said. “The Bill will stipulate sanctions if there is forgery or mixing of halal and non-halal foods.”

Under the proposed legislation, offenders face stiff penalties ranging from a two-year jail term with one billion rupiah fine to an eight-year jail term and six billion rupiah fine.

At present, local producers of food items apply voluntarily for halal certificates from the Indonesian Ulama Council (MUI), the highest Islamic authority in Indonesia, to widen their customer base.

The council’s affiliate, Institute for the Assessment of Food, Drugs and Cosmetics, also issues halal labels for medicines, including herbs, and cosmetic products.

If the Bill is passed, an independent body would issue halal licences to companies and restaurants for a fee of between 500,000 rupiah and 2 million rupiah.

MUI has also expressed reservations over the Bill because it would lose its right to issue halal licences, while businesses have warned that costs could rise.

SPE expands into Indonesia

2009-09-09T09:23:00.003+07:00

Original source: Hollywood Reporter - Patrick Frater

Sony Pictures Entertainment Networks has become the latest multi-national TV group to expand its presence in Indonesia.

The group has struck a deal to launch four of its pay-TV channels on Aora, its second pay-TV platform in the fast-growing territory.

Last month SPENA announced that its two newest channels -- AXN Beyond and Sony Entertainment Television -- would launch on Indovision alongside pre-existing channels AXN and Animax.

The Aora deal saw AXN and AXN Beyond launch immediately on Aora, while Animax and SET will launch later this year.

"The effort to expand our reach in Indonesia is picking up speed," said Ricky Ow, SPENA's senior vice president and general manager.

Last month too, Lionsgate saw its two new Asian channels -- Thrill and KIX -- take to the air for the first time anywhere with carriage on Indovision.

Packaged by Tiger Gate Entertainment, Thrill is a 24-hour linear channel focused on Asian and Hollywood thriller-horror-suspense, while KIX is an Asian action channel featuring action reality shows, extreme sports, fight events and action movies.

The channels will be launched on the remaining Indonesian platforms this month and follow with launches in Singapore and Hong Kong before the end of the year.

Indonesia passes controversial film law

2009-09-09T08:13:00.000+07:00

Original source: AFP

Indonesia's parliament passed a controversial film law that requires more than half of movies shown in cinemas to be locally-produced and imposes restrictions on their content.

"The state has the responsibility to regulate the film industry to protect ideology and local values," lawmaker Djabaruddin Ahmad from the Islamic-based United Development Party said, backing the bill.

Another lawmaker, Arisman Zagoto, said: "The old law didn't favour the Indonesian film industry. We shall not bow our heads to pressures from any party, including foreigners."

He added that the country's cinemas had been dominated by Hollywood productions.

The new law, which takes immediate effect, states that at least 60 percent of the overall screen time in cinemas nationwide should be for Indonesian-made films.

Film makers are also required to submit scripts to the authorities for approval before films are produced, a ruling that has been criticised as stifling creativity and freedom of expression.

The law also bans excessive violence and sexually explicit scenes.

"It seems that lawmakers consider film to be a communication media which could spread negative impacts and needs to be filtered and barricaded," prominent film maker Riri Riza told reporters.

"How does one measure the contents of a film that can encourage people to exercise violence? Are action films included in this category of violence?" he asked.

Jakarta May Be Largely Protected From Deadly Quakes

2009-09-08T14:21:00.003+07:00

Taken from the original source: VOA News

(Katie Hamann, VOA) - Jakarta has been rattled by earthquakes on numerous occasions. They may cause pulses to quicken but usually they are greeted with nervous laughter and calm evacuations.

But for some the quake on September 2 was very different. The intensity of the quake, which rocked the city for more than a minute, caught many off guard.

At least 18 people were admitted to hospitals in Jakarta, some of them with injuries sustained as they evacuated buildings. Legs were broken and one person was severely injured during stampede as panicked shoppers and office workers surged out of buildings.

But the crowded city is more fortunate than much of the country, which sits atop tectonic plates that frequently slam together to cause massive earthquakes. Indonesia's 18,000 islands are part of the Pacific Rim of Fire, which stretches from the North and South American western coasts across the Pacific. It is particularly vulnerable to earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis.

Residents of the capital, Jakarta, are wondering if their city could be at risk for bigger, more dangerous quakes.

Despite the sharp, frightening shaking that the city experienced last week, experts say massive damage is unlikely.

Jakarta itself does not sit on a geological fault line. Geologists say that means it is likely the city will only ever feel the effects of earthquakes with epicenters more than 100 miles away.

Fauzi, head of the earthquake and tsunami unit of Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, says it is unlikely that quakes in the capital would be catastrophic.

"The center of the earthquake is not available in Jakarta," said Fauzi. "What we have is only receiving impact from the source of the earthquake somewhere south in parts of Java."

Fauzi says many people panicked unnecessarily last week and public education campaigns are needed to teach people how to respond to earthquakes.

Jakarta requires buildings over four stories to be able to withstand magnitude 7 quakes.

Adang Surahman, an earthquake engineering expert at Indonesia's Bandung Institute of Technology, says most of Jakarta's high-rises have been built to withstand what scientists refer to as the once in 500-year quake.

"Buildings in Jakarta are built to withstand horizontal acceleration of about 10 percent of gravity and this earthquake which just happened yesterday maybe about five percent of gravity," said Surahman.

Visions of soaring high-rises crumbling may grip the imagination but Surahman says it is the smaller one and two storey dwellings that are most vulnerable in places like Indonesia.

"Majority of buildings in Indonesia are non-engineered buildings, including maybe in Jakarta," added Surahman. "Let's say one-, maybe two-story buildings are not necessarily designed properly. That is my concern."

It is in these dwellings that most Indonesians live and, when large earthquakes strike, often die.

Oct. 2: Wear your batik please…

2009-09-08T12:45:00.005+07:00

Original Source: The Jakarta Post. Picture from Jakarta Globe

Indonesians have been asked to wear batik on Oct. 2, following UNESCO’s decision to add the traditional dyeing technique to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

The listing, which will give the age-old batik tradition some degree of protection under the UNESCO charter, will be made official at an event in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, between Sep. 28 and
Oct. 2.

To acknowledge the listing, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked all Indonesians to wear batik.

“We’ve been told that batik has been recognized as an element of global cultural heritage produced by Indonesians. The President has called on all Indonesians to wear batik on Oct. 2, to celebrate batik.”

Batik is a wax-resistant dyeing technique used on textiles. Due to modern advances in the textile industry, the term is also used for fabrics incorporating traditional batik patterns that are not necessarily produced using traditional batik techniques.

In the past, Indonesians, mostly adults, wear batik only at formal events. Nowadays it has become increasingly popular even among the younger generation with batik factories starting to manufacture more wearer-friendly and fashionable batik outfits.

Many office workers now wear batik on a daily basis, while local designers compete to produce more attractive designs.

While batik originated in Javanese courts, several other regions in Indonesia also have their own styles of batik. The fabric is also widely worn in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik said batik was therefore Indonesia’s third tradition to secure UNESCO’s recognition as an element of non-material global cultural heritage.

In 2003, the UN body named wayang (Indonesia’s traditional shadow puppets) and keris (traditional wavy blades) as elements of non-material cultural heritage.

“And now we are submitting angklung (traditional musical instrument made of bamboo) as an element of global cultural heritage from Indonesia,” Jero said.

“We will keep fighting for our heritage one tradition at a time.”

Blackberry Finally Certified in Indonesia

2009-09-08T08:55:00.005+07:00

Original source: VIVANews

As of Monday, September 7, 2009, the Department of Information and Communication as well as the Indonesian Telecommunication Regulator fully certified Research In Motion as the principal BlackBerry producer.

The right was returned to RIM after its authorized repair center in North Jakarta went through an inspection set out by special team on August 19.

RIM was viewed as having met the requirements stipulated in Article 8 Section 1 about its capacity of providing guaranty and after-sales service except if the related device is not sold in Indonesia.

"RIM had violated the regulation because it had to ship the broken device to Singapore if some major damage was found in the related device," said Gatot S Dewa Broto, Chief of Information and Public Relations Center at Information and Public Relations Department on Monday, September 7.

"However, given the establishment of RIM authorized repair center in North Jakarta, such an issue should not occur in the future," said Gatot.

The agreement was signed by James Yersh, RIM Limited VP Controller, and Rita Effendi, Teleplan Indonesia's Program Manager.

Indonesia's anti-terror plan under fire

2009-09-08T08:21:00.002+07:00

View complete story by the original source: Sydney Morning Herald Online

A push by Indonesia to dramatically toughen its approach to fighting Islamist militants has come under fire as a threat to human rights that could ultimately reverse gains in tackling extremists.

The security ministry has asked MPs for sweeping amendments to strengthen the hand of the state under the country's 2002 anti-terror law, rushed into effect after bombings in Bali that year that killed 202 people.

The proposed amendments would allow detention of anyone believed to be involved in terrorism for at least 30 days - up from a current seven - without declaring them a suspect, anti-terror chief Ansyaad Mbai told AFP.

The changes would also boost from 120 days to two years the time a suspect can be held before they see the inside of a courtroom and encompass bans on glorifying or inciting terrorism, as well as outlawing terrorist recruitment.

"Terrorism (relies on) networks. It is an extraordinary crime, it needs extraordinary measures," Mbai said.

"Why are all countries practising very tough laws while our laws are very soft?"

Anti-terror chief Mbai said the move to give authorities more clout would bring Indonesia into line with many Western nations that have tough anti-terror laws that allow for preventative detention.

But some terror experts say it will backfire.

Since 2002, Indonesia has won plaudits for a two-track strategy that has seen hundreds of militants accused of violent attacks put on trial while extremists from JI and other groups have been left to preach and recruit undisturbed - no matter how violent the message - as long as they do not take up arms.

But a more draconian turn could radicalise more would-be militants while driving extremists underground, out of the reach of intelligence agencies, International Crisis Group (ICG) South-East Asia director Jim Della Giacoma said.

"By creating a larger group of sympathisers you could be creating larger pools from which to draw radicals and creating larger pools in which radicals could hide," he said.

"These are very hard networks to crack. They are very small in some ways, they all went to school together and all know each other."

Rights groups are alarmed by the move to tighten the law and also say they are concerned by proposals to expand the anti-terror role of the military, blamed for widespread abuse dating back to the New Order regime of former dictator Suharto.

"When Indonesia had anti-subversive laws in the New Order era, the detention period was only 100 days. This is two years," said National Commission on Human Rights head Ifdhal Kasim.

Kasim also said the law, while officially restricted to terrorism, could blur into crackdowns on separatists in regions such as Aceh and Papua.

SBY’s possible minister candidates

2009-09-07T12:20:00.002+07:00

Original source: The Jakarta Post

President-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) has moved a step closer to announcing his new Cabinet ministers, a source close to the president told Antara news agency Saturday.

“Cabinet [selection] is close to finalized. Talks with [political] parties are done. ...minister candidates' achievements, however, have been taken into consideration by SBY,” said the anonymous source.

According to the source, SBY has talked with a number of political parties, including the Golkar Party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra).

Some 45 names have been included in the list of possible candidates to be ministers. Yudhoyono has said he will interview the candidates after Oct. 1.

Presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said last week that the next Cabinet would possibly include figures from parties outside the current coalition with SBY's Democratic Party, which includes the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the National Mandate Party (PAN), the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Awakening Party (PKB). These parties are the four Islamic parties which secured seats in the House.

The reported list of possible minister candidates therefore includes :

From the Golkar Party:

1. Agung Laksono
2. Muladi
3. Andi Mattalata
4. Erlangga Hartarto

From the PDI-P:

5. Pramono Anung
6. Puan Maharani

From Gerindra:

7. Prabowo Subianto

Current Cabinet members:

8. Purnomo Yusgiantoro
9. Bachtiar Chamsyah (PPP)
10. Taufik Effendi (Democratic Party)
11. Hatta Rajasa (PAN)
12. Mardiyanto
13. Hasan Wirajuda
14. Sri Mulyani Indrawati
15. Mari Elka Pangestu
16. Anton Apriyantono (PKS)
17. MS Kaban (Reform Star Party)
18. Jusman Syafei Djamal
19. Adhyaksa Dault (PKS)
20. Fredy Numbery (Democratic Party)
21. Siti Fadillah Supari
22. Djoko Kirmanto
23. Bambang Sudibyo (PAN)
24. Jero Wacik (Democratic Party)
25. Meutia Hatta (Indonesian Unity Nationhood Party)
26. Lukman Edy (PKB)
27. Mohammad Nuh
28. Sofyan Djalil

Other names include:

29. Djoko Suyanto (former Indonesian military chief)
30. Joyo Winoto (National Land Agency (BPN) chairman)
31. MS Hidayat (Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) chairman)
32. Darwin Z Saleh (chief of Democratic Party's economics division)
33. Soetanto (former National Police chief)
34. Hermanto Dardak (Public Works Ministry's director general of highways)
35. Hidayat Nur Wahid (PKS)
36. Muhaimin Iskandar (PKB chairman)
37. Kurdi Mustofa (presidential special staff member)
38. Tifatul Sembiring (President of PKS)
39. Andi Arif (secretary-general of Jaringan Nusantara)
40. Siti Nurbaya (secretary-general of the Regional Representatives Council)
41. Arif Afandi (deputy mayor Surabaya)
42. Felix Wanggai (Papua figure)
43. Andi Mallarangeng (Democratic Party)
44. Roestanto Wahidi Dirdjojuwono (Democratic Party)
45. Cahyana Ahmaddjayadi (director general of Telecommunication and Information Technology Applications at the Communications and Information Ministry)