Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi has painted a bleak picture of the country’s regional heads, saying too many have been implicated in graft scandals.
“Among the 155 regional heads who have been named graft suspects, as of today, 17 of them are [current and former] governors,” Gamawan said during his meeting with Committee I of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD).
In the latest scandal, Bengkulu Governor Agusrin Najamuddin is facing up to 20 years in prison for allegedly embezzling Rp 20.16 billion ($2.2 million) from the province’s coffers.
Ministry spokesman Rey Donny Zar Moene later explained that the figures cited by the minister spanned cases from 2004 to 2011, and that some of the suspects had already been tried, were being tried or were being questioned as witnesses.
Among them is North Sumatra Governor Syamsul Arifin, who was arrested in October in connection with alleged corruption committed while he was head of Lankat district.
In August, the former governor of Riau Islands, Ismeth Abdullah, was sentenced to two years in prison for his role in a procurement scam that cost the government Rp 98.6 billion.
Also included in the list of graft suspects are Rudy Arifin, governor of South Kalimantan, and Awang Farouk, governor of East Kalimantan.
Rey said the president had already ordered investigations into the listed governors.
Gamawan, meanwhile, urged the issue be taken seriously, calling for closer monitoring of regional heads not only after they are elected but also during election campaigning.
He said candidates in regional elections were known to spend vast amounts of money on their campaigns.
He said some campaign expenditures he had reviewed reached as high as Rp 100 billion, “when, in fact, a governor can only earn about Rp 6 billion during their five-year term in office.”
Gamawan said salaries for governors were Rp 8.6 million a month on average. With additional incentives, such as for helping meet tax collection targets, governors could take home anywhere between Rp 34 million to Rp 90 million per month.
The minister cited Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo to illustrate a hypothetical case.
“Let’s say, Pak Fauzi Bowo gets Rp 100 million per month, plus benefits. He could earn Rp 1.2 billion per year. In five years, he could earn Rp 6 billion,” he said.
Siti Zuhro, an analyst from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said so-called investors supported candidates running for regional elections, who would later ask for the favor to be returned after their candidates were elected.
“Once they are regional leaders, they would work for the investors’ interests,” she said. “This fact just shows how our regional elections have been tainted by money politics and opportunism.”
The minister said that he was increasingly concerned about how pervasive corruption had become. “Every week, there is a regional leader who is named as a [graft] suspect,” he said.
Gamawan said his ministry was ready to hold a special meeting with the DPD to discuss the regional elections, with the government currently re-evaluating the entire monitoring system for all polls.
He said multiple monitoring systems were being looked at, including by the public and Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).
Rabu, 19 Januari 2011
Home Affairs Minister Fed Up With Graft-Tainted Governors
Sabtu, 15 Januari 2011
Shake-up ‘unlikely’ given pressure on SBY
An unfavorable performance review of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s Cabinet led many to believe the President would carry out a comprehensive reshuffle of his ministers, but fear of losing political support may rule out any such a restructure, experts say.
“I am sure the President won’t carry out a major reshuffle. He still needs support from political parties,” Indonesia Survey Institute senior researcher Burhanuddin Mukhtadi told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
Burhanuddin pointed out that Yudhoyono would likely take into account recent developments before restructuring his Cabinet, including a fresh ruling issued by the Constitutional Court on a clause in the 2009 Law on the People’s Consultative Assembly, Regional Representatives Councils and the Regional Legislative Councils that makes it easier for legislators to impeach a president.
Burhanuddin said Yudhoyono would avoid any move that might irk his supporters, such as replacing ministers from parties within the pro-government coalition.
“A Cabinet shakedown will certainly make the political parties unhappy,” he said.
He also suggested that Yudhoyono might do well to consider a recent statement from Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri.
“Megawati has said that the party [PDI-P] will not join the coalition with the government,” Burhanuddin said.
On Thursday, top presidential aide Kuntoro Mangkusubroto said he had submitted the Cabinet evaluation results to the President. Two of four ministers in the Cabinet were given “red marks”, Kuntoro said.
Yudhoyono’s Cabinet consists of 35 ministers, more than half of them come from the coalition parties. Rumors of a major shakedown surfaced following rising tension in the ruling coalition amid boiling rivalry between the Golkar Party and Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party over some contentious issues, including the special status of Yogyakarta.
Siti Zuhro, an expert on regional autonomy with the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, said that right now Yudhoyono was in an unfavorable position.
“The fact that most ministers who belong to political parties have set their own agendas makes it difficult for Yudhoyono to control his Cabinet. It is difficult for Yudhoyono to ensure commitment from the ministers in carrying out the development programs,” she said.
Yudhoyono, she added, would likely prefer to maintain good relations with political parties rather than spoil them.
“A peaceful relationship sometimes spells status quo,” she said.
Concurring with Siti Zuhro, Burhanuddin said he was disappointed by the lack of progress made by the Cabinet.
“You can see there has been no progress in micro-economic sectors, for instance. Since most ministers are from political parties, they have no capability to handle their respective fields,” he said.
Jumat, 14 Januari 2011
Experts pessimistic over Cabinet shakedown plan
Following the submission of the Cabinet evaluation results to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, some political pundits expressed their pessimism that the evaluation would prompt the President to carry out a significant overhaul of his Cabinet, despite apparent dissatisfaction on ministers' performances.
“I am sure that the President won't undergo a major reshuffle. He still needs support from political parties,” Indonesia Survey Institute (LSI) senior researcher Burhanuddin Mukhtadi told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
Burhanuddin pointed out Yudhoyono would likely take into account recent developments before making any shakedown, including the fresh ruling issued by the Constitutional Court on a clause in the 2009 Law on the People's Consultatives Assembly, Regional Representatives Councils and the Regional Legislative Councils that paves the way for lawmakers to impeach a president.
Burhanuddin said that Yudhoyono would avoid any moves that may irk the political parties including the replacement of the ministers who are mostly cadres from the parties.
“A Cabinet shakedown will certainly make the political parties unhappy,” he said.
He also suggested that Yudhoyono might consider a fresh statement from Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri before making any reshuffle.
“Megawati has said that the party would not join the coalition with the government,” Burhanuddin said.
On Thursday, top presidential aide Kuntoro Mangkusubroto said he had submitted the Cabinet evaluation result to the President. Two of four ministers in the Cabinet were given “red marks”, Kuntoro said.
Yudhoyono's Cabinet consists of 35 ministers, more than half of them come from the coalition parties. Rumors of a major shakedown surfaced following rising tension in the ruling coalion amid boiling rivalry between the Golkar Party and Yudhoyono's Democratic Party over some contentious issues, including the special status of Yogyakarta.
Siti Zuhro, an expert on regional autonomy with the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said that right now Yudhoyono was in an unfavorable position.
“The fact that most ministers who belong to political parties have set their own agendas makes it difficult for Yudhoyono to control his Cabinet. It is difficult for Yudhoyono to ensure commitment from the ministers in carrying out the development programs,” she said.
Yudhoyono, she added, would likely prefer to maintain good relations with political parties rather than spoil them.
“The peaceful relationship sometimes spells status quo,” she said.
Concurring with Siti Zuhro, Burhanuddin lamented minimal progress has been undertaken by the Cabinet.
“You can see there has been no progress on micro economic sectors, for instance. Since most ministers are from political parties, and they have no capabilities to handle their respective fields,” he said.
SBY has nothing to lose by ordering Cabinet reshuffle: Expert
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono should not hesitate to reshuffle his Cabinet to improve the administration, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) political expert Siti Zuhro says.
“This is his last term as President. He should provide the public with better service by removing ministers who failed in their duties. He has nothing to lose,” Siti Zuhro told The Jakarta Post.
One year was ample time to evaluate ministers' performance, Siti said.
“Ministers are the President's assistants, but the success of this country depends on the President,” she said.
Siti added, however, that politics in Indonesia was like a mutual hostage of the President and political parties, which made compromises to maintain their interests without considering the people’s needs.
“While we know Indonesia has a presidential mechanism, the multi-party mechanism is still stronger,” she said.
On Thursday, Presidential Work Unit for Development Monitoring and Controls (UKP4) chief Kuntoro Mangkusubroto said he had submitted Cabinet members' performance evaluations to the President.
However, Kuntoro declined to comment on the results, saying any decisions would be the prerogative of the President.
Kamis, 30 Desember 2010
2010 Review: Wave of Religious Intolerance Intensifies
If one trend that emerged in the past year was considered more disturbing than others, it would be the apparent increase in fundamentalism and religious intolerance in a country that prides itself on being a bastion of pluralism.
It is hard to ignore. The increasing trend is evidenced by a constant stream of news reports of attacks against minority religious groups, as well as reports and surveys from various organizations.
The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy recorded 28 attacks and violations of Christians’ right to worship in the first seven months of the year alone, up from 18 in all of 2009 and 17 in 2008.
In a separate report, the Wahid Institute said it had recorded 196 cases of violence based on intolerance and religious discrimination in 2010, an increase of almost 50 percent from a year earlier. The Moderate Muslim Society, on the other hand, says Indonesia saw at least 81 cases of interreligious conflict in 2010 — an increase of more than 30 percent from 2009.
“What we see today is an excess stemming from the repressive approach to religion during the Suharto era,” said Siti Musdah Mulia, a progressive Islamic scholar from the Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace.
“Back then, when there was no freedom of speech, religious councils were established to coordinate all religious affairs.”
“Now that we have democracy, everyone wants to express his or her opinion. Unfortunately, many violated Pancasila and our constitution, and the government just turned a blind eye on it,” she added. “The government should forcefully implement the law against those groups. What we see lately is a process of human rights violations by omission.”
Blatant Attacks
It is not just the number of attacks and conflicts that are worrisome. It is also how emboldened the attackers seem to have become.
Members of the Ahmadiyah sect, for example, have been persecuted in the country for many years. Beginning in June, though, attacks against the group began occurring one after the other, the next one seemingly worse than the last.
In the capital, an Ahmadiyah mosque was firebombed. Then, in Bogor, a mob destroyed a mosque and several homes belonging to sect members.
An Ahmadiyah community in West Nusa Tenggara was also attacked in November and forced to leave its village.
The same trend was seen in conflicts involving Christians in the Greater Jakarta area. The shutdown of churches due to lack of necessary permits preceded violent attacks.
In September, Asia Sihombing and Rev. Luspida Simandjuntak, leaders of the Batak Christian Congregation (HKBP) in Bekasi, were stabbed and assaulted. Asia was stabbed and Luspida was be aten with a stick.
Thirteen defendants — including Murhali Barda, the suspended leader of the Islamic Defenders Front’s (FPI) Bekasi chapter — were indicted in court on Wednesday for a variety of charges, but the root of the problem remains.
Setara researcher Ismail Hasani had said earlier that the suburban regions of Jakarta — primarily Bekasi and Bogor, and even Depok and Tangerang — were seeing a radicalization phenomenon.
In June, a new group calling itself the Bekasi Islamic Presidium even announced plans for a road show aimed at persuading every mosque in the city to prepare for the possibility of “war” against “Christianization.”
Government Role
Equally — if not more — frustratingly for pluramism and rights advocates is the government’s response to the problem.
While President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has made a number of calls for pluralism to be upheld, those demands have failed to translate into action on the part of the government.
Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali, for instance, has re peatedly called for Ahmadiyah to disband, and he has shown support for the 1965 Law on Blasphemy that observers say has legitimized acts of violence against minority sects and groups.
The lack of change is also seen among law enforcement officers.
“A police officer once asked why I defended Ahmadiyah because he thinks Ahmadiyah is deviant. I told him that the police should protect them despite what they believe,” Siti said, pointing out that law enforcers should be neutral.
“It shows the lack of civic education in the recruitment process,” she added.
Suryadharma also supports the 2006 Joint Ministerial Decree on Houses of Worship, which requires the consent of the surrounding community for building churches, temples and mosques.
This has often been cited as the cause of the ongoing problem. In a majority Muslim country, a number of Christian congregations have encountered difficulty in getting consent from locals to build churches, forcing them to use houses or even vacant lots as venues for worship, which local governments say is illegal.
“Indonesians have witnessed an enormous process of mismanagement carried out by the government,” said Siti Zuhro, a political analyst from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).
During the iron-fisted rule of former President Suharto, he said, there was no tolerance shown for religious frictions, and any statements that had the potential to stir up social, religious and racial tensions were limited.
“Our democracy failed to create leaders that manage to protect all citizens. We only have rulers,” he said.
Rising Extremism
“I remember when President Yudhoyono held a state dinner during Obama’s visit. He repeatedly mentioned the country’s unity in diversity and pluralism,” said Siti Musdah, the chairwoman of the Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace.
“Yudhoyono should be ashamed of himself with all these problems in the country.”
Adding insult to injury, the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) said earlier this month that the proliferation of Santas, reindeer and twinkly lights in malls and public places had gone too far for the nation’s Muslim majority, claiming the decor had sparked complaints about Christmas overload.
“We have a serious problem with the powerless leadership that has no vision on how to keep this country united,” said Father Benny Susetyo of the Indonesian Bishops Conference.
“The state is absent in all of this chaos.”
Benny is worried that if the ongoing religious intolerance continues, Indonesia will become like Pakistan, where violence becomes part of daily life. “We may be shattered like the Soviet Union,” he said.
Another problem Benny highlighted was the moderate voices who have become a silent majority in the whole process.
“Moderate Indonesians should raise their voice and demand serious law enforcement by the state apparatus to crack down on these small, hard-line groups,” he said.
A survey released in September by the Center for the Study of Islam and Society found that among 1,200 adult Muslim men and women surveyed nationwide, 57.8 percent said they were against the construction of churches and other non-Muslim places of worship — the highest rate the study center has recorded since 2001. More than a quarter, 27.6 percent, said they minded if non-Muslims taught their children, up from 21.4 percent in 2008.
“Our education system has failed to instill the mentality to respect others whose views are different from ours. Even some elementary schools teach that people who think or live differently are enemies,” Siti said, demanding the government begin serious intervention on the issue. “Education is our only chance for the future.”