[Marinir] Indonesia Digest, No: 40.05 ; 19-11-'05

[Yap Hong Gie]

INDONESIA DIGEST
Indonesia's complex Issues in a Nutshell
By: Ms. Wuryastuti Sunario
Published by: TBSC-Strategic Communication
No.: 40.05 - Dated: 19 November 2005
In this issue:

MAIN FEATURE:

HUNT FOR MALAYSIAN TERRORIST NOORDIN M. TOP INTENSIFIED

NEWS AND BACKGROUND:

1.      Tourism and Transportation:
Indonesia to Open Tourist Office in Australia?
Garuda flies Jakarta-Lombok direct

2.      Health, Culture and the Environment:
Fight against Avian Flu, Government's 2006 Top Priority

3.      The Economy, Trade and Industry:
Requirements of Production Sector vs. Workforce Qualifications, Mismatched

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MAIN FEATURE:

HUNT FOR MALAYSIAN TERRORIST NOORDIN M. TOP INTENSIFIED

In spite of insistence expressed by some members of the public and a number
of media that the Police apply DNA tests to ascertain that the body shot
dead at Batu, Malang, was, indeed that of top terrorist Dr. Azahari, Police
Chief, General Sutanto, in his usual soft spoken manner, averred that all
necessary tests will be done to obtain irrefutable proof, but the Police was
absolutely certain that the body was indeed that of Dr. Azahari, the hunted
terrorist leader. Azahari was personally involved in the bombings of a
number of places in Indonesia during the past years, including in Bali and
Jakarta, that killed more than 200 innocent people, and maimed many others
for life.

Amidst such controversy, news came from Malaysia, that Azahari's brother,
Bani Yamin, had received agreement from the Malaysian government to inspect
and identify the body, said to be that of Azahari, and to eventually bring
the body home to Malaysia for burial there. After two days of frustrating
red tape in Jakarta, Bani Yamin, together with his brother in law, were
finally given permission by the Indonesian Police to visit the morgue and
examine the body of Azahari. They were accompanied by a staff of the
Malaysian Embassy. However, Television and media were not allowed to witness
the proceedings. Emerging from the morgue, Bani Yamin spoke not a word to
the waiting press. Instead, Police spokesman, Sunarko, confirmed that after
due inspection of particular identification marks, such as moles, scars,
teeth, Bani Yamin confirmed that the body in the morgue was, indeed, that of
his brother, Azahari.

Moments later, aired "live" on SCTV, Bani Yamin, who was connected by phone
by the station in Jakarta to Azahari's wife in Kuala Lumpur, informed the
wife,- on air -, that  her husband, Dr. Azahari was dead. He had requested
Indonesian authorities that the body be washed, wrapped and prayed over as
required in Islam, while the Indonesian authorities had agreed that the body
be flown to Malaysia for interment there. He also asked, on TV, for
forgiveness from the Indonesian people for misdeeds done by his brother, and
that his brother be forgiven for these acts.

And thus, on Thursday, 17 November, the remains of chief terrorist Dr.
Azahari was flown by  Malaysian Airlines to Kuala Lumpur, and according to
TV reports, was buried that same night around 10.0 pm local time in Malacca,
next to the grave of his mother.

Nonetheless, with the end of Dr. Azahari, Indonesian Police had in no way
slowed down their hunt for accomplice Malaysian Noordin M.Top. All cars and
motorbikes driving along arterial roads across Java and South Sumatra,
leading into and out of towns from Semarang were subjected to thorough
checks at Police road blocks in search of terrorists, explosives and
ammunition. The photo of Noordin was pasted at all railway stations and
buses for fast recognition. Chief of Police, General Sutanto called on
Noordin to give himself up since security officers were closing in on him.

Meanwhile, the three arrested accomplices of Azahari and Noordin M. Top,
named M. Cholili (aka as Hanif or Yahya), Arif (aka Pendek) and Abdul Azis,
allegedly involved in the latest bombings in Bali were flown from Semarang
to Bali. Here they were instantly officially accused as terrorist bomb
accomplices and now face trial in the Bali courts.

"Suicide Bombing is against the teachings of Islam", say Indonesia's
Religious Leaders

Another development of the raid on the Batu villa, was the find of a
video-tape, where the three Bali suicide bombers were shown saying their
testimonials and last farewell to their families, stating their conviction
that what they were about to do would ensure for them a place in heaven.
(Later, Police inserted their photos at death, to confirm that these were
the men who were found at the bomb sites and suspected to be the suicide
bombers).  A fourth person in ski-mask, believed to be Noordin M. Top, spoke
of his resolve to fight the West, in particular President Bush, PM Tony
Blair, and Australia and Italy for invading Iraq.  The tape further showed
military training sessions of terrorists in forests, and ways to put
together bombs. Police believe, that these tapes were meant to convince new
recruits to join the terrorists.

After the video was shown to a full Cabinet Meeting, it was entrusted to
Vice President Yusuf Kalla to show the video to religious leaders, on how
the wrong manner of teachings of the Faith could mislead some youths to
decide to commit suicide bombing as a form of "jihad". Religious leaders
interviewed after viewing the video, - among them Muhammadiyah leader, Din
Syamsuddin, - agreed, that what the bombers expressed was taken out of
context. Islam, or any other religion, for that matter, does not condone
suicide, nor the killing of other people.

"Suicide bombing is against the teachings of Islam, nor are these bombers
martyrs of the Faith. Rather they are persons who kill themselves out of
desperation", said Din Syamsuddin. It is hoped that having seen the tape,
religious leaders would teach their followers that suicide bombing is,
indeed, contrary to the teaching of Islam.

Among those in attendance were Din Syamsuddin and Ahmad Syafii Maarif from
the Muhammadiyah organization, and Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) leaders Ahmad Bagja
and Rozi Munir. The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) was represented by
secretary-general Ichwan Syam.

Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic State University (UIN) rector Azyumardi Azra and
another Muslim scholar Komaruddin Hidayat also watched the video at around 8
p.m. on Thursday. Kalla also showed it to dozens of other Muslim clerics
late on Wednesday.

"During the meeting, the Islamic organizations made an agreement with the
vice president that they would publicly explain accurate interpretations (of
Koranic verses) on jihad in accordance with comprehensive Islamic
perspectives," Azyumardi said after the meeting.

They also acknowledged that terrorism was carried out by Muslims using
"heretical Islamic teachings", he added.

That acknowledgement was a seeming departure from previous statements in
recent years, in which Muslim leaders have repeatedly rejected a link
between terrorism and Islam. This despite the fact that all of the bombers
and planners have carried out their attacks in the name of Islam, commented
the Jakarta Post.

In the latest development, after watching the video, a group of religious
leaders in Sampang, East Java, resolved to call "jihad" against terrorists,
since they propagate the wrong teachings of Islam, said Mujahidin Aburrazak,
as reported in Media Indonesia. Another leader, Najib Hamid, however,
cautioned that the call to "jihad" must first be correctly and clearly
formulated and applied to avoid another cause for random horizontal conflict
among the Indonesian people themselves.

(Sources: SCTV, Metro TV, ANTV, Media Indonesia, Kompas)
(Tuti Sunario)
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NEWS AND BACKGROUND:

1.      Tourism and Transportation:

Indonesia Steps up Tourist Information in Australia?

News received from Australia dated 4 November mentions that Integra Travel
Marketing has been appointed by Yogyakarta-based Stupa Marketing on behalf
of the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism to promote Indonesia through a series
of projects and events. However, since the Indonesian fiscal year ends at
the end of December, this appointment is valid until the end of the year
only.

Over the next six weeks Integra is expected to build a website, create a
media kit, host a gala dinner, advertise the destination, and run a media
familiarization tour to Indonesia.

 Meanwhile, Garuda Indonesia sales manager Kerry Timms said with bookings
starting to flow in after the latest bombings at Jimbaran and Kuta in Bali,
the airline was expecting to reinstate its full schedule in late December.

Timms said that while that decision had not been confirmed, the airline was
carrying about 60 per cent of those who had originally booked - "which is
much better than 2002 when it was about 10 per cent," he said." So the
source said.

Meanwhile, in efforts to restore visitors trust on safety conditions in
Bali, the Bali Provincial Government together with Culture and Tourism
Minister, Jero Wacik,  recently hosted 23 foreign ambassadors posted in
Jakarta to experience for themselves the wonders of Bali, and witness that
all possible measures have been taken to ensure that visitors enjoy a safe
stay on the island.

In her speech, Turkish Ambassador, Feryal Cotur, speaking on behalf of her
colleagues, said that the whole world is sympathetic with Bali's plight,
since the world condemns terrorism. The visiting ambassadors agreed that
Bali remains the attractive destination it has always been.

Separately, Japanese ambassador, Iimura said that the Japanese government
respects security measures taken by the Police of Bali under Inspector
General Mangku Pastika. For this reason, Japan has not issued a travel
advisory, however, only warns its citizens to be careful when visiting Bali.

Garuda flies Jakarta-Lombok direct

Starting 28 October, Garuda Indonesia has made available direct flights
between Jakarta-Lombok (Ampenan) using Boeing 737-400 aircraft. This is the
airline's first direct flight to Lombok, in addition to flights stopping
over at Surabaya and Yogyakarta. So far, Jakarta-Ampenan via Yogyakarta
carried between 70,000 - 80,000 passengers yearly, with business travelers
now comprising a larger number of its passengers.

2.      Health, Culture and the Environment:

Fight against Avian Flu Government's 2006 Top Priority

Before leaving for the APEC Conference in Busan, South Korea, President
Yudhoyono affirmed that the fight against Avian Flu will be one of
government's top agenda item for 2006. There must be a concerted national
effort by all, from national government down to the village level. This
campaign was also on the agenda of the ensuing meeting of all governors.
Measures must be made to protect poultry and birds, on the one hand, as well
as actions taken to prevent the spread of the virus to infect more people.
At present Indonesia has confirmed seven deaths from Avian Flu.

The government has allocated Rp. 150 billion to fight avian flu in the 2006
Budget, while for 2005, a budget of Rp. 65 billion has been set aside for
the Department of Health and Rp. 200 billion for the Department of
Agriculture, whereas foreign assistance from global funds has been received
to a total or US$150 million, said Coordinating Minister for Public Welfare,
Alwi Shihab.

Minister of Health, Siti Fadillah Supari, further reported that the World
Health Organization, WHO, is in negotiation with Roche pharmaceutical
company in Switzerland, to allow Indonesia, India and Vietnam to produce the
tamiflu medicine under license, so that the license is issued through WHO,
and not given directly by Roche.

In his address at APEC, President Yudhoyono called on all nations to work
closely together to prevent a possible global pandemic of Avian Flu.

In the latest report received, Indonesian and Singapore leaders have agreed
at Busan to form a model organization charged with handling the spread of
avian flu, from surveillance stage to the handling of samples and early
response actions, should the disease transform itself into a global
pandemic.
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, confirmed that the country is
prepared to support the project in the form of technological assistance, and
the use of available laboratories and doctors. The center, which plans to
translate standards specified by WHO, is expected to be built in Indonesia.

3.      The Economy, Trade and Industry:

Requirements of Production Sector vs. Workforce Qualifications, Mismatched

Although Indonesia's economy has been growing positively in the past years
and investments have increased, yet, these have not been able to absorb much
of the pool of unemployed in the country, said Guntur Sugyarto of the Asian
Development Bank in Jakarta recently during a workshop on "improving
Employment Conditions in Indonesia", as reported by Bisnis Indonesia. This
is because Indonesia's economic growth has been driven by consumption rather
than by production, and the kind of investments that have entered the
country are not those that employ a large number of people. Therefore, other
solutions must be found to transform economic and investment growths into
expanded employment opportunities.
ADB Country Director, Edgar A  Cua, further added that Indonesia faces ten
crucial issues vis-à-vis the employment sector. These issues (as translated
from Bisnis Indonesia) are the following:
In general, the Indonesian workforce offers low quality in skill and
knowledge that do not meet the requirements and standards of the production
sectors.
Also, Indonesia has a high rate of unemployment. This is exacerbated by a
high rate of increase in the new generation workforce seeking employment
every year.
Those seeking employment do not offer the right characteristics that match
requirements of the private sector (presumably this means work ethos? Ed.)
There is prevalence that those employed are working below capacity
The informal sector is expanding very rapidly
Urban centers show a very rapid growth in job seekers
In general, conditions offered by the workplace are poor
The formal sector must spend extra pay for employees  that go beyond the
capacity and capability in growth of actual production output
There exist a very wide, and growing gap of disparity between pay in the
formal and informal sectors, in gender and among regions/provinces
There are structural problems in the employment sector

Therefore, considering the complexity in issues related to employment and
the workforce, the government should not merely seek to increase growth and
investments, but both should be supported by improvements in legislation
related to employment, that at the same time can accommodate the interests
of the government, the private sector as well as the employees.

Today, the expected rate of economic growth for 2005 has contracted, caused
by the excessively high increase in international oil prices which have
forced the Indonesian government to adjust upwards of 100% in domestic
retail rates on 1 October, thus causing two digit inflation for the year,
which is expected to be in the range of 15% to 16%. Consequently, Indonesia'
s economy has contracted from an expected 6% down to 5.7%.
For 2006, however, the government hopes to suppress inflation down to
between 7% to 8%.

Meanwhile, the National Statistics Board informed that since 1996 Indonesia'
s rate of unemployment has grown by 5.5% per year, while new generation
workforce has added an average of 1.9 million job seekers per year. The
Board estimates that for every percentage in economic growth, 200,000 job
seekers per year are added. The National Planning Board, on the other hand,
is more pessimistic, stating that average rate of increase in open
unemployment per year is 9.5%, with additional new job seekers per y ear
increasing by 1.9 million people.

Meantime, from the Batam Free Trade zone, located south of Singapore, it is
reported that industries there expect to retrench a large number of
employees should the government insist on raising the Regional Minimum Wage
to Rp. 1.1 million starting 2006. Industrial tenants have agreed to a
minimum salary of at the most Rp. 800,000 for those employed without prior
work experience. The reason given is because industrial fuel costs have
escalated by 200%, which has forced industries to be more efficient.
Abdullah Gose, Secretary of Apindo, Batam, admits that the dilemmatic choice
now is between either retrenchment, or moving the factory out to another
country.

An earlier survey made on minimum living costs on Batam found that this was
Rp. 1.1 million per month for minimum salary. However, Apindo members have
requested that minimum wages be increased to a maximum of 7% to 10% only to
around Rp. 678,450 only, whereas workers are adamant that wages should be
increased by a minimum of 50%.

For your comments or further inquiries, please e-mail to:
tbsc-strategy at indo.net.id