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DJOKO SUSILO

THE END OF

THE LINES?

Cover: Kendra Paramita

THROUGHOUT 2011, the company owned by Budi Susanto benefi tted from projects given out by the Traffi c Division of the National Police, valued at close to Rp1 trillion. Involving the Police Primary Cooperative, the tender process was manipulated from the start to ensure that Budi’s company would win. Police Inspector-General Djoko Susilo is suspected of taking part in facilitating the businessman he refers to as ndoro or ‘master.’

THE END OF THE LINES?

Outreach

Blessings from the Dead

THREE years ago, Tempo visited the village of Bululangkan in North Toraja to witness a ma’nene, the cleansing of the dead ritual which takes place once every three years. At that time, the villagers had vowed to use some of the proceeds from the ma’nene, to improve their village. Last August, Tempo returned to the scene, to check just how far the villagers’ commitment had gone. Tempo reports from South Sulawesi province.

Economy

Crude Theft

CUSTOMS and Excise offi cers recently caught a tanker carrying thousands of liters of undocumented crude oil intending to sail for Malaysia. Strangely, Pertamina knew nothing of the illicit cargo, while the gas and oil regulatory body BP Migas claims such leaks did not cause losses of revenues.

60

Prelude

Capital Events 10

Cartoon 10

Indicator 7

Letters 6Picture Window 8

Opinion

Column 33

Opinion 11

Sidelines 70

National

National 24

News Capsule 32

Economy

Economy 54

Law

Law 42

Science &

Technology

Envirobriefs 53

Interlude

Interlude 34

Profi le

Interview 66

On the Record 62

Arts

Film 69 TEM

PO/M

ARIF

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1307/OCTOBER 8-14, 2012

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ILUSTRASI DIGITAL: UGI

JAKARTA — Aksi penembakan terhadap poli-si di Solo, Jawa Tengah, ditengarai menjadi awal aksi teror yang lebih besar. Menurut pengamat pertahanan dan keamanan dari Universitas Indonesia, Andi Widjajanto, aksi tersebut hanya wake-up call (panggilan) terhadap sel-sel jaringan teroris lainnya. ”Ditengarai akan ada peningkatan aksi teror pada September hingga akhir tahun, menuju sasaran utama,” kata Andi saat dihubungi kemarin.

Serentetan aksi teroris terjadi dalam dua pekan di Solo, Jawa Tengah. Tim Detasemen Khusus 88 Antiteror pada Jumat malam lalu terlibat baku tembak di Jalan Veteran, Solo, dengan tiga terduga teroris. Aksi itu diduga berkaitan dengan penembakan pos polisi di Singosaren yang terjadi seha-ri sebelumnya serta kejadian pada 17 dan 18 Agustus lalu. ”Aksi tersebut mengisyarat-kan bahwa mereka (teroris) masih eksis, sekaligus isyarat bagi kelompok lain agar mulai bergerak dan berkonsolidasi,” kata Andi.

Pengamat terorisme Al Chaidar juga meyakini akan ada serangan lanjutan setelah penembakan polisi di Solo. “Jika saat ini mereka dikejar polisi, mereka tetap mela-kukan penyerangan sambil lari,” katanya. Dia menilai aksi penemba-kan tersebut merupakan ijtima’ dari teroris bahwa mereka tetap aktif.

Kepala Biro Penerangan Masyarakat Mabes Polri, Brigadir Jenderal Boy Rafli Amar, membenarkan soal adanya tren peningkatan aksi teror setelah Lebaran. “Biasanya memang meningkat setelah Idul Fitri,” kata Boy kemarin. Dia memastikan bahwa Mabes Polri beserta kepolisian dae-rah setempat bakal terus menyelidiki aksi teror yang terjadi di Solo.

● SUBKHAN | AHMAD RAFIQ | SUKMA

AKSI TERORBISA MENGHEBATHINGGA DESEMBER

Solo

Poso

Mindanao

MORO-POSO-SOLOSalah seorang tersangka yang tewas, Farhan, diduga sebagai anak Abu Umar, tokoh Negara Islam Indonesia, dan anak didik Ali Fauzi, mantan aktivis Afganistan, Moro, dan Ambon. Farhan pernah bergabung dengan kelompok Abu Sayyaf di Moro, dan menjadi pelatih menembak di Poso.

Hobi bersepeda menjelajahi daerah-daerah di Nusantara sudah terlalu biasa bagi sebagian orang. Kini, para pesepeda itu sudah merambah jalan-jalan kota dan obyek-obyek wisata di negeri orang.

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● Diduga pernah dipakai untuk menyerang Pos Lebaran Gemblekan pada 17 Agustus lalu, karena di pos itu ditemukan selongsong peluru berkaliber sama.

MADE IN MORODensus 88 Antiteror menewaskan dua tersangka penyerangan ke pos polisi di Solo dan menangkap satu orang lainnya pada Jumat malam lalu. Mereka terkait dengan jaringan teroris di Filipina.

PELAKU● Tewas: Farhan, Muchsin● Ditangkap: Bayu● Umur rata-rata 19 tahun, terafiliasi dengan jaringan Abu Fatih (Kelompok Jamaah Islamiyah lama yang berdiri pada 2000)

NASKAH DAN BAHAN: AHMAD RAFIQ | ANANDA BADUDU | ROFIUDDIN | SUJATMIKO | SUBKHAN. SUMBER: WAWANCARA DAN KETERANGAN PERS

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LETTERS

Chief Editor Wahyu MuryadiDeputy Chief Editor Yuli IsmartonoExecutive Editor Hermien Y. KledenSenior Editor Richard Bennett Editor Lucas EdwardReporter Sadika HamidEditorial Staff SyarifaniAdvertising Section Melly Rasyid (Head)Translators Aris Prawira, Brady Buddviar, Farlan William, Jafar Karim, Jennifer Lindsay (Sidelines), Josh Mitchell, Kendisan Kusumaatmadja, Judistira Moeis Pontoh, Laura Rotinsulu, Marianus Kleden, Marjorie Suanda, Mohamad Hamid, Nataya Ermanti, Oik Yusuf Araya, Sakia Kyu, Tamalia Alisjahbana, Tatu Maulani

TEMPO WEEKLY NEWS MAGAZINE (INDONESIAN EDITION)

Chief Editor Wahyu MuryadiDeputy Chief Editor Gendur SudarsonoExecutive Editor Arif Zulkifl i

Senior Editors Bambang Harymurti, Diah Purnomowati, Edi Rustiadi M, Fikri Jufri, Goenawan Mohamad, Leila S. Chudori, Putu Setia, S. Malela Mahargasarie, Toriq Hadad

Managing Editors Bina Bektiati, Budi Setyarso, Hermien Y. Kleden, Idrus F. Shahab, L.R. Baskoro, Mardiyah Chamim, M. Taufi qurohman, Nugroho Dewanto, Purwanto Setiadi, Seno Joko Suyono

Editors Ahmad Taufi k, Bagja Hidayat, Irfan Budiman, Kurniawan, Padjar Iswara, Purwani Diyah Prabandari, Wahyu Dhyatmika, Yandhrie Arvian, Y. Tomi Aryanto.

Staff Writers Adek Media, Anton Aprianto, Budi Riza, Muchamad Nafi , Nunuy Nurhayati, Retno Sulistyowati, Rini Kustiani, Rr Ariyani, Sunudyantoro, Yandi M. Rofi yandi, Cheta Nilawaty, Fery Firmansyah, Harun Mahbub, Nieke Indrieta, Ninin P. Damayanti, Stefanus Teguh Edi Pramono.

Reporters Sorta Tobing, Yuliawati

Language Editor Uu Suhardi Assistant Language Editors Sapto Nugroho

Graphics Design Gilang Rahadian (Creative Director), Eko Punto Pambudi, Djunaedi,Kendra H. Paramita, Aji Yuliarto, Robby Eebor Layout Agus Darmawan Setiadi, Tri W. WidodoPhotography Ijar Karim (Coordinator)

Research & Documentation Priatna, Ade Subrata

Address Kebayoran Center Blok B-8, Jalan Kebayoran Baru, Mayestik, Jakarta 12240. Tel: +6221-3916160, Fax: +6221-7250527 (editor) Email red@tempo.co.id

TEMPO NEWS ROOM, TEMPO INTERACTIVE,

PDAT-CENTER FOR DATA & ANALYSIS. Chief Editor Daru Priyambodo Acting Executive Editor Burhan Solihin Managing Editor Tulus Wijanarko Editors Fajar W. Hermawan, Jajang Jamaluddin, Jobpie Sugiharto, Setri Yasa Editorial Board Ali Anwar, Arif Firmansyah, Eni Saeni, Istiqomatul Hayati, Lis Yuliawati, Poernomo Gontha Ridho, Purwanto, Sudrajat, Suseno Jakarta Bureau Agung Sedayu, Aguslia Hidayah, Agoeng Wijaya, Akbar Tri Kurniawan, Amandra Mustika Megarani, Angelus Tito, Anton Septian, Aqida Swamurti, Desy Pakpahan, Dian Yuliastuti, Dianing Sari, Dwi Riyanto Agustiar, Eko Nopiansyah, Eko Ari Wibowo, Erwin Prima, Fanny Febiana, Gabriel Wahyu Titiyoga, Ismi Wahid, Kartika Candra, Kurniasih Budi, M. Iqbal Muhtarom, M. Nurrochmi, Munawarroh, Mustafa Silalahi, Reh Atemalem Susanti, Reza Maulana, Rieka Rahardiana, Sandy Indra Pratama, Sorta Tobing, Titis Setyaningtyas, Wahyudin Fahmi Surabaya Jalil Hakim, Zed Abidin. Yogyakarta Philipus Parera (Bureau Chief), L.N Idayanie, R. Fadjri Bandung Widiarsi Agustina Research Ngarto Februana (Acting Division Head), Indra Mutiara, Viva B. Kusnandar

Corporate Chief Editor Toriq Hadad Corporate Creative Director S. Malela MahargasarieChief of Education & Evaluation Bureau M. Taufi qurrahman

Address Kebayoran Centre Blok A11- A15 Jalan Kebayoran Baru, Mayestik, Jakarta 12240. Tel: +6221 7255625, Fax: +6221 725-5645/50 Email koran@tempo.co.id

Publisher PT TEMPO INTI MEDIA Tbk, BNI Cabang Kramat, Jakarta, A.C. 017.000.280.765.001 President Director Bambang Harymurti Directors Herry Hernawan, Toriq HadadCorporate Secretary Rustam F. Mandayun Address Jalan Palmerah Barat No. 8, Jakarta 12210, Tel: +6221 5360409 Fax: +6221 5439569

Marketing Herry Hernawan Advertising Gabriel Sugrahetty (Vice Director), Adeliska Virwani, Adelisnasari, Haderis Alkaf, Imam Hadi, Nurulita Pasaribu, Sulis Prasetyo, Tito Prabowo Commercial Production Prasidono Listiaji (Division Head), Arif Arianto, Dewi Retno Lestari, Hotma Siregar, Mira Larasati, Nugroho Adhi, Ridwan Hendri, Susandijani Photography &

Photo Research Lourentius E.P. Design & Layout Andi Supriyanto, Jemi Ismoko, Juned Aryo, Kemas M. Ridwan Advertising Secretariat Dani Melawati Circulation Division Windalaksana (Division Head) Secretariat Erina Circulation Adhi Basuki, Alex Anindito, Alfi s Primatra, Difron Dahiri, Eko Sigit Hermawan, Hariyadi, Harri Cahyadi, Hengki Operanokasari, Joko Prasetiyo, Shalfi Andri, Sutiyono Distribution Ismet Tamara (Unit Head) Customer Service Berkah Demiat Business Development & Marketing Communication Division Meiky Sofyansyah (Division Head) Promotion Rachadian Nashidik Marketing Research Ai Mulyani K.

Circulation Division & Marketing Communication Division Address Gedung TEMPrint Lt. 4, Jalan Palmerah Barat No. 8, Jakarta 12210. Tel: +6221 5360409 Fax: +6221 5349569. Advertising Sales Division Kebayoran Center Blok A11-A15, Mayestik, Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta 12240. Tel: +6221 7255625 Fax: +6221 7206995 ISSN 0126-4273 SIUPP No. 354/SK/MENPEN/SIUPP/1998. Printed by PT TEMPRINT, Jakarta.

E N G L I S HReconciliation from the Heart RECONCILIATION between former members and sympathizers of the

Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and NU (Nahdlatul Ulama—the big-gest Islamic organization in Indonesia) clerics and members in a natural-cultural manner has generally taken place and was becoming increas-ingly intense when Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) took concrete action in that direction. However, this process was in danger of failure when there was excessive pressure from outside.

The things damaging the reconciliation process include, among oth-ers, sketchy historical evidence apart from the sociopolitical context as background for the event. For instance, the PKI is portrayed as a power-less, persecuted victim of uncivilized actions. The clerics are described as uncivilized for the heinous murders committed by Ansor (NU youth organization). The stigma arising therefrom is that this religious commu-nity constitutes an aggressive and brutal gang of people.

To avoid being trapped in a historical debate, it would be better to ob-serve the sociological and cultural aspects with a view to promoting the reconciliation process. Sociologically speaking, the pesantren (Islamic boarding school), which constitutes the social base of Muslim clerics and the NU community, is tolerant, fl exible and is against violence. Should an act of violence happen, meaning breaking the habit of pesantren, there must be a compelling and extraordinary event taking place.

Prior to the 1965 rebellion, the great event compelling the NU to break its habit was the jihad resolution to preserve the Unitary State of the Re-public of Indonesia. The 1965 event itself constitutes the limit of the pa-tience of the pesantren people in facing the provocative actions of the PKI. The PKI’s treatment toward the clerics and Islamic communities from the early 1948s until the 1960s was extremely off ending. For exam-ple, they called the cleric one of the seven village devils who had to be crushed, and they seized the cleric’s land.

As a matter of fact, the reconciliation between the clerics cum the NU members and the PKI families had taken place since the early 1970s, or long before the idea of reconciliation came up. A concrete example is the one that happened in Trisulo village, Plosoklaten subdistrict, Kediri Re-gency. All the residents of this village were members and sympathizers of the PKI. After the 1965 incident, nobody had ever dared come there. Because of the cultural affi nity with the NU, whenever somebody dies, those who administered the Islamic requiem (tahlil) and performed the prayers were NU members from the neighboring villages. And such was the case whenever there was wedding, child birth and so forth. The his-toric trauma of the residents were gradually cured. In 1997, the fi rst orga-nization ever established there was the NU and Ansor.

When still the Chairman of NU and Blitar’s of Indonesian Ulema Coun-cil (MUI), KH Abd. Rochim Sidik and several other NU clerics launched the drive to look after the orphans as victims of the 1965 event. Hundreds of PKI orphans were sent to school, enrolled in pesantren and educat-ed by the clerics and the people. Many have become successful civil ser-vants, entrepreneurs and politicians.

Therefore, reconciliation has taken place and is working out well in a natural and cultural manner with no demand, no pressure, let alone acts of discrediting each other. This pattern of cultural reconciliation is far more eff ective and is more easily done rather than in a legal-formal and especially political manner. It would be a better idea if this kind of pat-tern is given more prominence and is further explored, rather than ex-posing its historic-political aspects. The reason being, reconciliation is not a mere question of procedure or recognition. Reconciliation is a mat- T

EM

PO

/AD

ITIA

NO

VIA

NS

YA

H

Also follow the polling at www.yahoo.co.id

Next Week’s PollDo you think that President Yudhoyono is seriously

preventing efforts to weaken the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK)? We look forward to your comments and answers at www.tempo.co

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 7

ter of heart which does not deserve to be politicized.

AL-ZASTROUWActivist of Indonesian Traditional Arts and Culture

Response from JNE

WE would like to deliver our response to a letter entitled Incom-plete JNE Responsibility by Mrs. Hayunani published in the Septem-ber 24-30, 2012 issue of Tempo magazine. On behalf of JNE’s man-agement, we apologize for the inconvenience experienced by the customer.

We would also like to explain that the issue has reached a pos-itive conclusion. As part of our responsibility in this matter, we have also contacted the item shipper and paid damages for the loss involved.

VISI FIRMANHead of Corporate Communications JNE

ww.jne.co.id

Fertilizer Article Clarifi cation The Center for Regional Information and Research (PATTIRO)

would like to express its appreciation for the publication of the re-sults of research and social audit of our subsidized fertilizers in Tempo’s September 24-30, 2012 edition. However, we wish to clar-ify the information in the article on page 64 which reads: USAID has found embezzlement… This is wrong. It is not USAID that fi nds the abuse of the subsidized fertilizers, but PATTIRO. USAID is sim-ply the one that provides the funds for our research and other ac-tivities.

SAD DIAN UTOMO

Executive Director of PATTIRO

Subdistrict Bureaucracy is Annoying A FEW days ago, I came to the Tambora subdistrict offi ce, West

Jakarta, to request a signature. But I was received with a sour smile shown by the administrative employee. The red tape was made dif-fi cult. I also had to pay ZIS (alms for the poor). I gave it, but the fe-male employee there said that the ZIS I had given was insuffi cient. I gave an additional amount of money. But, angrily, perhaps be-cause the money I had given was still not enough, that woman taunted me with an annoying facial expression.

Subdistrict offi ce should provide good services to the low-in-come people like myself, instead of being a terrifying place for the poor. I hope that the new Jakarta governor will signifi cantly orga-nize not only the bureaucracy but also the offi ce that provides ser-vices. Employees should be educated to become honest and re-spectable.

ZULIA L

Jembatan Besi, TamboraWest Jakarta

Predicting Jokowi via Social MediaTHE algorithm by PoliticaWave was able to accurately predict DKI Jakarta’s gubernatorial election on both rounds. A week before the fi rst round’s quick count was announced, PoliticaWave predicted that Jokowi-Ahok would lead and Foke-Nara would be second. This outcome was different from all the other survey agencies’ predictions.

As a social media, PoliticaWave used a completely different method and sampling techniques. Their analysis result of the fi rst round drew questions from others; was it just a coincidence? However the same prediction on the second round, which was similar to the numbers obtained by quick counts from other surveys, defi nitely proves that analysis based on social media monitoring is a science that can be accountable.

PoliticaWave showed that what happens in social media does indeed represent the public’s real condition. To predict the second round of the Jakarta gubernatorial election, PoliticaWave’s algorithm monitored around 2,000,000 conversations from 900,000 sources or unique users. This is a huge amount compared to samples used by conventional survey methods.

INDICATOR

PoliticaWave Polling Results

■ Jokowi-Ahok ■ Foke-Nara

54.9%45.1% 53.8%46.2%

Indonesian Survey Institute Polling

Results

General Election Commission

Polling ResultsTotal: 4,592,945

46.2% or2,120,815

53.8% or 2,472,130

NASIONALPICTURE WINDOW

SPECIAL LANE FOR BIKES . Despite the sign, a lone cyclist gives in to the horde of motorcyclists and

carries his bike along the banks of the East Flood Canal, at the Duren Sawith area in East Jakarta. A road divider fails to deter the motorcyclists, which

number in the millions at the nations’ capital city.

FOTO: TEMPO/TONY HARTAWAN

10 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

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BAZAAR Pasar Indonesia 2012 on October 3-7,

10am-10pm, at Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), Jl. Jendral Gatot Subroto Gelora, Cen-tral Jakarta. ●

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MUSIC PERFORMANCE❭❭ Cannibal Corpse Live in Concert on Octo-

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❭❭ BigBang Alive Tour on October 13, 6pm-10pm, at Mata Elang International Stadi-um MEIS ANCOL, Jl. Pantai Indah, Pan-tai Carnaval Ancol, North Jakarta. Tick-

ets: Rp2,000,000 (VIP); Rp1,800,000 (Standing A); Rp 1,450,000 (Standing B); Rp950,000 (Tribune 1); Rp,550,000 (Tribune 2). For more information log on to bigbang-indonesia.webs.com

FESTIVAL Jakarta Culinary Festival 2012 on Octo-

ber 4-31, 10am-10pm, at Grand Indonesia, Jl. MH Thamrin No. 1, Central Jakarta. For more information, please contact: 62-812 800 80 100 or log on to jakartaculinaryfesti-val.com, Facebook jakarta culinaryfestival, Twitter @JCF_2012

PERFORMANCE The Amazing Cirque Aerialists from USA

on October 3-14, 1pm-7pm, at Lippo Mall Ke-mang, Jl. Pangeran Antasari No. 36, South Jakarta. For more information log on to

RIGHT from the start, it can-not be made any clearer: only the Corruption Eradication Commission or KPK is autho-rized to investigate the case

of suspected manipulation of funds allocat-ed for the purchase of the driving simulator machine. The legal as well as the ethical bas-es reinforce this fact. But even if there are still doubts, or attempts to obfuscate it, oth-er cases involving Police Inspector-General Djoko Susilo and a number of other senior police offi cers, should serve as clear and sol-id reasons why the police are in a position of a confl ict of interest.

One other related case is the procurement of raw material to produce automobile li-cense plates by the Traffi c Division of the Na-tional Police headquarters in 2011. The value of the project was combined together with the acquisition of the driving simulator, which came to Rp783 bil-lion. Multiple markups are suspected in acquiring these materiel, and billions of rupiah reportedly went to the pockets of a few se-nior police offi cials. Besides favoring businessman Budi Susanto in the tender, the project is suspected to have profi ted certain peo-ple in the Traffi c Division. Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo was the offi cer in charge of the project.

That case, like that of the driving simulator, demonstrates how senior police offi cers are now in the hot seat. They face the prospect of having to undergo the legal process and they could possibly end up in jail. In all likelihood, they will band together in defense or try to undermine the anti-graft commission that is also handling the li-cense plates case.

As with the driving simulator case, the serious issue they must face is one of ethics. One does not need to be a rocket scientist to understand this dilemma. To borrow the tagline of a drink adver-tisement, it’s nothing more than a case of an ‘orange eating anoth-er orange.’ It would be amusing if not tragic to have the police inves-tigate a suspected crime committed by another police, especially when it’s their senior. So, the conclusion is that it would be impos-sible for the police to be totally eff ective when they investigate one of their own.

If the police persist in maintaining that they have the right to in-vestigate the simulator case, it does not mean the police are igno-

rant of the true basic facts of the case. They are clearly and intentionally feigning igno-rance. Of course, this pretense, which they defend with the excuse that it was something agreed jointly between the police, the prose-cutor and the KPK in March 2012, will only convince a very stupid public.

But people have proven, again and again that they are not what the police think they are. The people are good at using their com-mon sense and to observe critically (perhaps by openly expressing their disappointment towards) the deceit behind the police moves. Included in those missteps are the clear vio-lation of Law No. 30/2002 on the KPK, par-ticularly regarding the part that states the KPK takes precedence when the case they are handling happens to be investigated by the police or the prosecutor.

The awareness of this reality is more im-portant than hoping for the proactive step of President Susilo Bam-bang Yudhoyono as the overseer of the police chief. As in the past, instead of instructing the police chief to submit the driving simu-lator case to the KPK, Yudhoyono, the head of state who is also the head of government, prefers to hide behind the excuse that he does not want to intervene in the due process of law. But the president seems to forget that he is authorized to instruct the police chief to comply with the law. That should not be seen as intervening in le-gal matters.

Indeed, the president is expected to clarify and prove to what ex-tent he is determined to fi ght corruption. But until he actually dem-onstrates his conviction, everything remains in the hands of the police.

There is only one of two choices that the police can make. The fi rst option is to stand down, with the knowledge that their tac-tics are unlikely to save everyone, or the second option, which is to avoid a confl ict of interest by waving the white fl ag and cede the driving simulator and the license plate cases, to the KPK.

The fi rst choice will keep on hitting the image of the police force, which in truth, is already in shreds. The second choice will not only save the police, it will also save this nation. In considering wheth-er to value individual interest over that of the police corps, there should be no diffi culty in making the right choice.

● FULL STORY PAGE 14

OpinionTEMPO, OCTOBER 8-14, 2012

THE END OF THE LINES?

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 11

Opinion

THE police force need not waste time to consider wheth-er sanctions should be imposed on their members who opt to became permanent staff of the Corruption Eradi-cation Commission, the KPK. It is truly unwise to regard

the decision of those police members as an act of desertion. The freedom to choose your work is part of a right that is guaranteed by the constitution.

Five investigators originally from the police force have decided to migrate to the KPK. As of the end of the year, they will number 28 people. They are not traitors to their institution. In fact, their presence in the KPK should be seen as a success of the police re-cruitment system, both professionally and morally. They are liv-ing proof that there are policemen who want to enforce the law and erase corruption.

The police force should actually see this development as a mere criticism and not a betrayal of their institution. But the harsh re-action of the deputy police chief by threatening to send the pro-vost police to arrest investigators who refuse to return to the police corps clearly shows that institution refuses to see the ‘exodus’ as a refl ection of their faults.

Penalizing the police investigators at the KPK will infl ame the confl ict between the KPK and the police, which will continue to de-grade the image of the police in the public’s eye. The bad blood be-tween the two institutions used to be known as the ‘Lizard versus the Crocodile’ case. If the second chapter of the saga in which the police punish their members who opt to stay in the KPK is allowed to go on, the negative publicity will just rebound on the police. Peo-ple will be off ered yet another ‘performance’ that will resemble the movie Good Cop, Bad Cop.

The police should refrain from pitting the integrity of its insti-tution in the fi ght against corruption. With regards to the KPK-Po-

lice confl ict, the public’s sympathy is bound to fl ow to the KPK side, particularly when the police is shrouded in all forms of corruption cases. To castrate the authority of the KPK can be seen as a popu-lar act by the legislators and among the corrupt elite, but not in the eyes of the public.

Strong reaction from some of the people, particularly anticor-ruption activists over the withdrawal of police investigators at the KPK, is one proof of that. The police action will be seen as nothing more than a pile of measures to weaken the KPK. Previously, the House of Representatives or DPR had rejected the KPK’s request to build its own building and instead, instructed the Supreme Audit Agency or BPK to audit its performance. Lately, it tried to reduce the KPK’s authority by proposing an amendment to the KPK law.

The KPK is bound to suff er without its police investigators. A number of corruption cases can fall into neglect. The remaining 50 investigators will be under pressure with the added burden of cas-es left behind by their colleagues. Although the police has prom-ised to send replacements, the KPK’s productivity is bound to be upset for a while because the new investigators will need at least four months to function normally.

To overcome the crisis, it would be appropriate if the KPK would off er good police investigators a permanent position in their offi ce. Government Regulation No. 63/2005 on the Human Resources Management System of the KPK makes this possible.

It would be truly ironic if the police continue with their threat to penalize their own men. To dig up past mistakes of the investi-gators who opt to stay with the KPK will be like sparring with emp-ty air. Besides looking for excuses, it would just show up the police force as going in the opposite direction from the fi ght against cor-ruption.

● FULL STORY PAGE 24

AS of the end of last year, there were 173 local and region-al chief executives or their deputies, indicted for graft or corruption. Of that number, 17 are serving gover-nors, with their legal status hanging indefi nitely. How-

ever, following the Constitutional Court’s recent ruling that inves-tigations of local and regional chief executives no longer requires the president’s approval, all that may change. No matter how many there may be, the pending cases must be immediately processed

and brought to court.It is this huge task of the police and the prosecutors that must be

strictly monitored. Before the Constitutional Court issued its rul-ing, the investigation of those local leaders always met with ob-struction. Article 36, chapter 1 and 2 of Law No. 32/2004 on Region-al Administrations stated that regional chief executives can only be investigated after the president gives his approval. After the Court ruled this article to be invalid, the list of chief executives suspected

GOOD COP, BAD COPPenalizing members of the police force who opt to remain in the KPK must be stopped. It only ruins the image of the police as a law enforcement agency.

RIDERS TO THE RULINGThe investigation of provincial and local leaders without presidential approval is open to abuse. Closer monitoring of the investigators will be needed.

12 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

of graft and corruption must be immediately processed.Clearly, it is not as easy as it looks. The legal status of many of

those offi cials hung in the air without any progress. This is the case, for example, aff ecting East Kalimantan Governor Awang Farouk. Although he was indicted for corruption in 2010, pending the pres-ident’s approval to investigate him, Awang remains untried. The time hiatus could lead to all the evidence of the crime being lost. The prosecutors will also face more diffi culties in amassing the ev-idence they need.

The Constitutional Court’s ruling will also limit the prosecutor’s array of excuses in delaying investigations. What often happens is that the delay tends to open yet another opportunity for abuse. The suspects manage to remain free. In fact, many of them manage to run for reelection, and a few actually get voted in again, despite their lame-duck status.

All this chaos and confusion is expected to diminish somewhat after the Court’s ruling. But the new regulation is not without risk. Without the prerequisite presidential approval, the authority of the police and the prosecutor will grow even more importantly in the regions. In other words, the chances for abuse by them is ever greater.

Such abuse of authority has been exposed, the most common being negotiations carried out between the suspect and investiga-tors. Normally, the person investigated will woo the investigator into making the indictment less punishing. The investigator will threaten the suspect with more serious charges if he or she is not given some monetary reward. Another word for this is extortion. Ultimately, this is nothing more than making the suspect a ‘walk-ing and talking ATM machine’ of the investigator.

The potential for other forms of abuse would be to take advan-tage of the investigations for political interest: for example, ob-structing an offi cial running for elections to benefi t his opposition. This method is easier because the offi cial being investigated has not completely been proven to be guilty of corruption. Just by repeat-edly summoning him or her for questioning is enough to ruin the reputation of the offi cial who is about to run in the polls.

To prevent such abuses, there must be stricter monitoring of the investigators. Furthermore, any violation should be viewed as more punishable than a breach of professional ethics. If there is proof that authority has been abused, serious legal action must be taken against the investigators concerned.

● FULL STORY PAGE 42

THE word outsourcing is a refl ection of today’s world of human resources. Thousands of laborers nationwide went on strike last week to reject any form of outsourc-ing. The protesters’ blockade of accesses to toll roads

may have been tolerable, given their noble objectives to improve the welfare of workers. Surely, we all support measures towards that end.

But the issue becomes more complicated when labor fl atly reject-ed the use of outsourcing. Law No. 13/2003 on Manpower provides a place for outsourcing, of course with restrictions. Companies are prohibited from outsourcing work that forms its backbone. But the work of providing security, catering, transportation and mining can be carried out by third parties.

It is these third parties that can be problematic. Some compa-nies providing the outsourcing tend to pay their employees below the minimum wage standard. Social welfare, health compensation and overtime pay are often omitted. “Outsourcing turns us into slaves,” shouted one protester.

At this point, we need to hone our search for the reality. Is it the system that is at fault? Or is it the application that is negligent? Con-fusing the two can result in mistaken consequences. Outsourcing should be a satisfactory solution to many problems, yet it can also lead too even more complicated issues.

Outsourcing is actually nothing new. We have known about it for sometime, particularly with regards to group workers or individu-als. They are paid according to the work they provide at the agreed

period. The modern world provides us with ample opportunities to outsource work. The main reasons for doing it has been cost ef-fi ciency and the demand for expertise. Additionally, there are spe-cifi c skills, for example computer security, that cannot be handled by just anyone, prompting companies to outsource this job to com-petent people.

Computer companies at Silicon Valley in California, USA, for ex-ample, hire people in Bangalore, India to produce their software. Apple too chose to outsource their pride of product, the iPhone, to China. Even many from the creative industry—like writers, jour-nalists, photographers or artists—work independently. It’s not that they failed to meet the criteria for permanent employment, but these creative human resources prefer to work on their own time. They are reluctant to be caged in one particular institution.

Of course, there must be some regulatory procedures, without eliminating outsourcing. Today, outsource workers in Indone-sia number about 16 million people, almost 40 percent of the to-tal manpower number nationwide, and that is 41 million people. Imagine the closed opportunities if the outsourcing system were to be eliminated.

Oversight on the application of regulations should not be neglect-ed. Companies providing the outsource workers which violate pre-vailing regulations must be penalized. The Manpower and Trans-migration minister must be responsible for the review and moni-toring of procedures.

● FULL STORY PAGE 32

OUTSOURCE CODESLabor’s demand to eliminate outsourcing seems excessive.Oversight on the implementation of labor regulations must be tightened.

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 13

POLITIK

14 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

PENYIDIK KPK

THE PROJECT MASTER

COVER STORY

PHOTO: ANTARA/ROSA PANGGABEAN

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 15

Businessman Budi Susanto worked on projects at the Police Traffi c Division, worth nearly Rp1 trillion in

2011. How he won the tender, in collaboration with the Police Primary Cooperative, was prearranged.

Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo is suspected of actively facilitating this man’s business interests.

Djoko Susilo after questioning at the KPK, Jakarta, Friday last week.

16 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

IT was past normal working hours one day at the end of De-cember 2010. However, Police Inspector-General Djoko Susi-lo was still in his offi ce, as Head of the Traffi c Division at the Na-tional Police headquarters. Ac-cording to one of his former staff members, that night the

general was still with a guest: businessman Budi Susanto, CEO of Citra Mandiri Met-alindo Abadi.

At around 9pm, Djoko Susilo summoned some senior offi cers under his command, who were tasked with managing the pro-curement of goods for the division. They had been asked to come to Djoko’s offi ce on the second fl oor of the division building, located at Jalan M.T Haryono, Lot 37-38, South Jakarta.

After starting the meeting that night,

Djoko asked his subordinates to immedi-ately prepare the tender for the procure-ment of two-wheeled and four-wheeled ve-hicle driving simulators to test prospective drivers before issuing them their license. This project used funds from the Police’s 2011 Non-Tax State Revenues.

Djoko ordered the offi cers to go to Singa-pore to study the operations at the Singa-pore Safety Driving Center, to look for sam-ple specifi cations on simulators. Before the meeting ended, according to one source, he instructed them: “Later, Ndoro Budi will run this project.”

His subordinates understood that Ndoro referred to Budi Susanto. It is not clear what relationship the two had, given that the general referred to the businessman with a Javanese word reserved for a master by his servant. That moniker was repeatedly used by Djoko.

Shortly thereafter, the Traffi c Division held a tender for the procurement of driv-ing simulators. During the fi rst stage, 700 units of two-wheel vehicle driving simula-tors worth Rp54.45 billion were to be pro-duced. This was to be followed by the pro-curement of 556 units of four-wheel vehicle driving simulators worth Rp142.4 billion.

Djoko Susilo’s ‘order’ given at the meet-ing that night was executed. Citra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi was named the winner af-ter ‘beating out’ four other companies. Lat-er on, it turned out that Citra Mandiri divert-ed the work to Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia, a company belonging to Sukotjo S Bambang. After this alliance fell apart, Sukotjo exposed the manipulation of the project tender, which from the outset had been arranged so it would be awarded to Citra Mandiri.

The Corruption Eradication Commis-sion (KPK) investigated a suspected case T

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OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 17

of price markups of nearly Rp100 billion. Djoko, who had been reassigned as gover-nor of the Police Academy, was named a suspect, as were Budi Susanto, Brigadier-General Didik Purnomo, assistant chief of the Traffi c Division Brig. Gen. Didik Purn-omo, Soekotjo Bambang, and Senior Com-missioner Teddy Rusmawan, head of the procurement committee. On Friday last week, Djoko was questioned for the fi rst time by the KPK.

Budi denied he was awarded the proj-ect due to Djoko Susilo’s help. He said Citra Mandiri sought information on the tender from the Traffi c Division website. “We fol-lowed proper procedures the entire time,”

he said in a written reply to Tempo, last week. Tommy Sihotang, Djoko’s legal rep-resentative, declined to comment on the substance of the case. “Everything will be laid out by Djoko at the KPK,” he said.

Based on Tempo’s investigation, Budi Su-santo’s projects at the Traffi c Division ex-tended beyond simulators.

● ● ●

ACCORDING to Sukotjo, in addition to the simulator project, Budi Susanto was af-ter two other jobs in 2011: procurement of material for license plates and temporary plates, which was worth nearly Rp800 bil-lion. Soekotjo, who is currently serving a

sentence at the Kebon Waru prison in Ban-dung—after being convicted in a case of funds embezzlement at a company owned by Budi—clearly remembers the chronolo-gy of work done on that project. He wrote it out by hand on four pieces of paper, which he gave to Tempo, some time ago. “I was in-volved in all of the preparations,” he wrote.

Preparing the tender for the license plate project began in early January 2011. Ac-cording to Soekotjo, Citra Mandiri did not take part in the bidding, but used the Po-lice Primary Cooperative (Primkoppol) of the Traffi c Division as a ‘police escort.’ “To make the process appear fair, four compa-nies were added to go along with the ten-der,” Soekotjo wrote.

Teddy Rusmawan, who led the procure-ment committee, was also chairman of the Primary Cooperative. However, in the ten-der process, an employee of Citra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi named Mulyadi, appeared to be acting as representative of the cooper-ative. The tender committee set the speci-fi cations for the material to be used, name-ly Aluminum Alloy 531, something which was indeed sold by Citra Mandiri. Seeming-ly by magic, the auction committee named Primkoppol as the winner.

Soekotjo also said that Budi had asked him to prepare material for Djoko Susilo to present to National Police Chief General Timur Pradopo. He said he had to stay over-night at the offi ce of the Traffi c Division to prepare those materials. According to gov-ernment regulations, projects over Rp100 billion must be submitted and validated by the police chief as the budget user.

He recalled that early in the morning he had to go to Bendungan Hilir in Central Ja-karta, to print and bind the presentation materials. “At seven in the morning I took the materials to the offi ce of the police chief,” Soekotjo wrote. At noon, after the presentation was over, the three projects were given the green light by TB-1, a code for the police chief.

In a copy of documents from the State Treasury obtained by Tempo, the vehicle license plates and driving simulator proj-ects were paid in full. A payment for 700 two-wheeled vehicle driving simulators and 556 four-wheeled vehicle driving sim-ulators were paid in full for Rp54.45 billion on March 1, 2011, and Rp142.4 billion on De-cember 5, 2011, respectively. For the mate-rial to produce the license plates and tem-porary plates, full payment was made in fi ve installments, totaling Rp782.2 billion.

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An offi cer at the Makassar Police Integrated Service Offi ce pressing car license plates (opposite).

Budi Susanto.

18 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

had already entered into a binding cooper-ative agreement with Primkoppol to supply aluminum. This agreement was signed by Budi and—once again—Teddy Rusmawan as chairman of Primkoppol. It was made in the presence of notary Imam Cahyono, with the contract specifying cooperation for 15 years.

A Tempo source said that this coopera-tive project to supply aluminum cannot be separated from a role played by Djoko Susi-lo. He said a year before this project, Budi set up an aluminum smelting factory at Ki-lometer 57, Kerawang, West Java named Mi-tra Alumnindo Selaras. Some of that com-pany’s stock is said to be owned by Police Brig. Gen. Utjin Sudiana, a retired director of the police traffi c unit, who is also an in-law of Djoko.

Eric S. Paat, Soekotjo’s legal representa-tive, confi rmed his client’s handwriting. Notary Imam conceded the matter of the binding cooperation. “The offi ciating of the cooperation took place on May 26, 2010,” he told Tempo. Imam said that a budget of hundreds of billions (of rupiah) was spec-ifi ed in the agreement. “However, I don’t know whether or not this was after he was awarded the project [at the tender].”

Budi confi rmed he was involved with the Primkoppol of the Traffi c Division to supply material for license plates. He emphasized that this collaboration was made through valid procedures. “I have been doing busi-ness in this fi eld since 2006,” he said.

Teddy, who is being held at the Police’s Mobile Brigade Headquarters in Kelapa Dua, Depok, did not reply to the written questions sent by Tempo. “Teddy cannot give any replies as of yet,” said Dwi Ria Lat-ifa, his lawyer. Police Chief General Timur Pradopo confi rmed the license plate ma-terial and license plate projects. “It is done every year,” he said.

● ● ●

DJOKO rolled out the red carpet for Budi when Citra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi ap-plied for a loan to PT BNI, in the fi rst week of December 2010. Sukotjo said that Budi once asked him to make a presentation at the BNI offi ce at Central Jakarta. He clear-ly remembers Budi’s question when they were in Djajoesman Hall at the Traffi c Di-vision. “Bams, today we make a presenta-tion at BNI Sudirman. You explain about the production and the capacity. I will talk about the other things,” per Bambang’s note on Budi, who often calls him “Bams”.

Budi also warned Sukotjo to not say any-

thing inappropriate. “Two days ago Pak Djoko made a presentation with me,” Su-kotjo wrote down Budi’s words. “This pre-sentation is important for us to be able to get money for our work.”

A Tempo source said that Djoko Susilo’s presence was needed because Citra Man-diri Metalindo Abadi’s application for loans had always been rejected. The reason was that loans more than Rp100 billion cannot be given with the work order (SPK) as col-lateral, for the two-wheeled vehicle driving simulator project, which was only worth Rp54.45 billion. Earlier, Budi had brought the SPK for the four-wheeled vehicle driv-ing simulator project, even though its ten-der process had not yet begun. “So that the BNI side believed it, Djoko was brought in,” said the source.

One source said that Djoko did more than just accompany Budi. It was also known that on several occasions he communicat-ed by phone with a BNI offi cial. Reported-ly, a memo call of this communication has been confi scated by the KPK. However, when asked about this, KPK Deputy Chair-man Bambang Widjajanto declined to com-ment. “I have not yet received a report from the investigators,” he said.

BNI Business Director Krisnha Supar-to confi rmed that a loan was given to Ci-tra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi. According to him, Budi Susanto is an old BNI customer and had a good history with the bank. “The

loan process went normally,” he said. The guarantee given for the loan was also made according to normal procedure.

Krisnha said he did not know anything about Djoko’s presence. Budi also denied Djoko attended. According to him, the loan-granting process followed the stan-dard procedures. “It is a big lie to say we went through the unoffi cial route,” he said.

In any case, Citra Mandiri was able to get a loan. On January 12, BNI transferred the Rp35 billion to Inovasi Teknologi. This money was soon widely distributed, in-cluding Rp15 billion which was deposited at the Primkoppol bank account. Another Rp2 billion, according to Sukotjo, was tak-en to the offi ce of Djoko Susilo and accepted by his personal secretary. Funds were also used as bribes to expedite the project pre-audit process.

Some of the loan money was used to fund the simulator project. As soon as the proj-ect funds were issued by the state treasur-er, they were carried over to work on the li-cense plate project. In the end, with mini-mum capital, Budi’s company obtained projects worth nearly Rp1 trillion in 2011.

According to one source, there are quite a few anomalies in the license plates project. They said that in 2010 the price of the ma-

Driving simulator for motorcycle licenseat Bandung Police Headquarters.

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SHANGRI-LA HOTEL, JAKARTAKota BNI, Jl. Jend. Sudirman

Kav. 1, Jakarta. Ph. 021-5707440, Fax. 021-5703530

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Central KalimantanPh. 0532 - 27 888, Fax. 0532 - 28 777

SWISS-BELINN Pangkalan Bun, a three star hotel with an international standard, has recently announced an interesting package which is a combination of an in house pack-age with an orangutan tour “The Orang-utan Getaway” at Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan. This is a cooperation of Swiss-Belinn Pangkalan Bun with one of the travel agents, the Orangutan Odysseys. This tour-ism package aims to attract the interest of both domestic and international tourists to visit Tanjung Puting National Park.

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Jakarta 10730Ph. 021 - 612 8811, Fax. 021 - 612 8822

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August 2012 was an exciting time for Hotel Ciputra

Jakarta with the opening of the completely rede-signed and refurbished fi rst fl oor restaurant, Th e Gallery. Th e underlying concept was that Th e Gallery would allow din-ners to experience totally immersed in Hendra Gunawan’s canvases to explore their aesthetic el-ements. To do this, a ma-jor focal point of the restaurant is its strik-ing new carpet, which was inspired by and created from a selection of Hendra’s works of art. Th e fl uid and curvy featured and lines of Hendra’s sculpture work are clearly adapted to blend into the ceiling details, as well as for the interior of the restaurant’s entrance from the Mall. Th e complement-ing sculptures in the restaurant feature sub-dued colour tones as well as special artistic techniques.

For private and intimate dining, the restaurant has three VIP rooms, each inspired by people who have had a big infl uence on Hendra’s artistic style and philosophies. Th ese are the Wahdi Room, named aft er Hendra’s fi rst real painting

mentor; the Aff andi Room, a tribute to the well-known painter with whom Hen-dra has had a very close relationship all his life; and lastly the Ciputra Room (1 and 2), in recognition of one of the most promi-nent collectors of Hendra’s work to date and a personal friend of the artist.

Another impressive focal point of the restaurant is the long vertical mural on the wall of the staircase coming up from the Hotel Lobby. Th e artwork of the mu-ral is made up of some Hendra Gunawan’s paintings, put together in the same man-ner as in a collage.

Th e physical form of the mural is di-vided into three sections, symbolising the three dimensional aspect of Hendra-inspired sculptures by Dr Ir. Ciputra. l

Hotel Ciputra Jakarta

The New Concept of The Gallery

Restaurant

20 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

THE procurement of automobile and motorcycle driving simulators and the material used for license plates at the Traffi c Division at police headquarters were carried

out one after another in 2011. Businessman Budi Susanto is suspected of working both projects, with the

help of senior offi cers in the Traffi c Division.● BUDI SETYARSO

TWO

PROJECTS

A. Motor Vehicle License Plate and Motor Vehicle Temporary License Plate Project winner: The Primary Police Cooperative of the Traffi c Directorate at National Police Headquarters Subcontractor: Citra Mandiri Metalindo AbadiValue: Rp782 billionPrice: Rp30,000 per pairMaterial: Aluminum Alloy 531Size: 275 x 110 mm (for two-wheeled vehicles),430 x 135 mm (for vehicles with four or more wheels)Clarifi cation: According to one source, the 2010 price from the vendorwas only Rp5,000 per pair. The material was obtained from Mitra Alumindo Selaras,suspected of being owned by a relative of an in-law of Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo.

MARCH 17, 2011:Rp54.453 billion for the payment of 700 motorcycle driving simulators

APRIL 27, 2011:Rp175.737 billion for the payment of 4,550,000 motorcycle license plates and 1,161,500 automobile license plates

JUNE 7, 2011:Rp173.41 billion for the payment of 4,550,000 motorcycle license plates and 1,109,500 automobile license plates

JULY 11, 2011:Rp173.41 billion for the payment of 4,550,000 motorcycle license

plates and 1,109,500 automobile license plates

SEPTEMBER 30, 2011:Rp173.41 billion for the payment of 4,550,000 motorcycle license plates and 1,109,500 automobile license plates

NOVEMBER 16, 2011:Rp86.217 billion for the payment of 2,034,545 motorcycle license plates and 690,000 automobile license plates

DECEMBER 5, 2011:Rp142.414 billion for the payment of 556 automobile driving simulator units

Paid in FullThose two projects were paid in full by the State Treasury.

B. Driving SimulatorsProject winner: Citra Mandiri Metalindo AbadiSubcontractor: Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia

Price:Rp77.79 million per unit Ordered: 700 unitsTotal: Rp54.453 billionClarifi cation: On the invoice of PT Citra Mandiri sent to Inovasi, the price was Rp42.8 million per unit for a total of Rp29.96 billion.

Price:Rp256.142 million per unitOrdered: 556 unitsTotal: Rp142.415 billionClarifi cation: On the invoice of Citra Mandiri sent to Inovasi, the price is Rp80 million per unit for a total of Rp44.48 billion.

terial for the plates was only Rp5,000 per pair. However, in 2011, after the project was awarded to Primkoppol and Budi Santoso, the price went up to Rp30,000 per pair, de-spite the fact that the exact same material was used and the plates were only 4 centi-meters longer.

It is suspected that the money from this

markup has been widely shared around. This is why, said one source, police head-quarters insists that this case should not be handled by the KPK.

Moreover, the role of General Timur Pra-dopo as the budget user is also being high-lighted. This is because after hearing a pre-sentation by Djoko Susilo as the Proxy Bud-

get User, Timur was then named the win-ner. This was spelled out in letter number Kep/193/IV/2011 dated April 8, 2011, nam-ing the recipient of the four-wheeled vehi-cle driving simulator procurement project worth Rp142.4 billion, namely Citra Man-diri Metalindo Abadi.

A Tempo source said that before sign-

CORRUPT POLICEPOLICE CORRUPTION

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 21

MAY❭❭ Budi Susanto represents

Citra Mandiri Metalindo and Senior Commissioner Teddy Rusmawan in the name of the Primary Police Cooperative of the Traffi c Directorate at National Police Headquarters, signing a cooperation agreement to procure material for manufacturing license plates (TNKB). Signed in the presence of notary Imam Cahyono, the contract is binding for 15 years.

❭❭ The CEO of Citra Mandiri asks for

SOURCES: PROJECT DOCUMENTS, INTERVIEWS, GOVERNMENT REGULATION

NO.50/2010

the help of Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia to produce 54 pistons for license plates pressing machines.

AUGUSTBudi Susanto asks Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia to produce 1,000 motorcycle driving simulators and 1,000 automobile driving simulators.

OCTOBER Budi Susanto confi rms the

procurement of 700 motorcycle simulators and 556 automobile simulators for 2011. Bambang is asked to prepare the needed funds.

NOVEMBER Budi Susanto applies for a loan to BNI 46. The evaluation team inspects the location and work facilities belonging to Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia in Bandung, which has been camoufl aged as Citra Mandiri.

JANUARYThe police’s Traffi c Directorate begins processing bidding on the TNKB procurement project. Teddy Rusmawan is in charge of the auction committee. The Police Primary Cooperative submits an offer, represented by Wahyudi, an employee of Citra Metalindo. It is arranged so that the Primary Cooperative Primer is awarded the project, with four companies enlisted for support.

JANUARY 12BNI transfers a Rp35 billion loan for Citra Mandiri to the bank account of Inovasi Teknologi.

JANUARY 13The money is transferred:Rp8 billion goes to the bank account of the Police Primary Cooperative.Rp2 billion is given directly to Budi Susanto at the Pondok Gede Toll Gate.Rp2 billion is sent to the offi ce of Djoko Susilo, who at that time was Traffi c Director, received by his personal secretary.

JANUARY 14A second transfer of Rp7 billion is made to the Police Primary Cooperative.

JANUARY 17A transfer of Rp1 billion is made to Mulyadi, an employee at Citra Mandiri.

JANUARY 26 A transfer of Rp1 billion is made to Suripto Nitihardjo.A transfer of Rp3 billion is made to Mulyadi.

FEBRUARY 18BNI transfers Rp9 billion of loan funds for Citra Mandiri to the bank account of Inovasi Teknologi. A transfer of Rp2 billion is immediately made to Mulyadi.

FEBRUARY 21Some money is taken to Budi Susanto’s house.

FEBRUARY 25A transfer of Rp1 billion is made to Mulyadi.

END OF FEBRUARYTwo projects are presented to Inspector-General Djoko Susilo at the offi ce of the National Police Chief, namely the automobile driving simulator project worth Rp142 billion and license plate material for about Rp782 billion.

MARCHA purchase agreement for motorcycle simulators is signed, backdated to 28 February 2011. An automobile simulator purchase agreement is signed, dated 18 April 2011.

JULY Budi Susanto and a team from Citra Mandiri, the Police Primary Cooperative, and the Traffi c Corps checks on the factory of Inovasi Teknologi and fi nds that the order is not yet completed. Bambang is deemed to be in breach of contract. He is reported to the Bandung Police Department. Inovasi’s assets are taken over by Citra Mandiri.

Project Zigzag

2010

2011

ing the letter naming the company award-ed the project, Timur had conducted a re-search procedure. Part of this was sending a pre-audit team from the police’s Inspec-torate of General Supervision to check on the tender process and the credibility of the winning company.

General Timur, whom Tempo met last

week, said that he did not recall if he ap-proved the naming of the bidding winner for the procurement of material for license plates. “For sure, the entire process was done according to procedure,” he said.

The police’s Inspector for General Super-vision, Commissioner-General Fajar Pri-hantoro, declined to comment about the

project’s pre-audit. “For the driving sim-ulator, we did not encounter any discrep-ancies.” Djoko Susilo, who was questioned for eight hours at the KPK, succinctly com-mented, “I will follow the legal process.”

● BUDI SETYARSO, SETRI YASRA, WIDIARSI AGUSTINA,

ARYANI KRISTANTI, RUSMAN PARAQBUEQ, FRANSISCO

ROSARIANS, MARTHA THERTINA, ILHAM TIRTA

22 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

THE sun had still not risen that morning as Sukotjo S. Bambang arrived at Terminal 2 of Soek-arno-Hatta Airport in Tange-rang. In mid-January last year,

this CEO of Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia was about to fl y to Singapore on the fi rst Garuda Indonesia fl ight that day.

Seated in business class, Sukotjo was trav-eling with two police offi cers from the Traf-fi c Division and Budi Susanto, CEO of Citra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi, a colleague of his. They were not on vacation. They were out to do a ‘comparative study’ of the Singapore Safety Driving Center, a 25,000-square-me-ter test-driving area in Woodlands.

In handwritten notes given to Tempo in Au-gust, Sukotjo listed the chronology of events of the trip to Singapore. “I remember that on arriving at Changi, I had to go to the ATM to get money to pay for a taxi,” he wrote. Erick S Paat, Sukotjo’s lawyer, confi rmed that the notes were written by his client.

Sukotjo said that a survey was being done at the request of Budi Susanto. However, a Tempo source at the police headquarters said that this comparative study was the out-come of a discussion between Budi Susan-to and Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo, then chief of the Traffi c Division. “At least, the desired prototype and specs were similar,” said the source.

Two months later, Citra Mandiri Metalin-do ‘won’ the bidding on the driving simula-tor project at the Traffi c Division. Sukotjo’s company, Inovasi Teknologi, according to an agreement with Budi, was the subcon-tractor for this Rp192 billion project. Howev-er, this business alliance fell apart not long after. Budi accused Sukotjo of embezzling the project funds. Sukotjo is currently serv-ing out a three-and-a-half-year prison term at the Kebon Waru prison in Bandung. This shattered alliance exposed a major case at the Traffi c Division.

THE ALUMINUMIN-LAW

Born in Pontianak 45 years ago, Budi Sus-anto had been getting projects from the po-lice department. When he visited the Tem-po offi ce, at the end of last March, this busi-nessman who started his business by pro-ducing bottle-caps, said that he began work-ing on projects with the police department in 2005. At that time, the Traffi c Division was still called the Traffi c Directorate, with Brig-adier-General Utjin Sudiana Djamhari as its director.

At fi rst, Budi’s company supplied the raw material for the manufacture of automobile and motorcycle license plates ordered by the Police Primary Cooperative (Primkoppol). It was done through a purchase agreement. Later, Budi expanded his business, supply-ing license plate pressing machines. “He eventually found a provider,” said Rufi nus Hutahuruk, Budi Susanto’s lawyer.

In 2009, when the Traffi c Division was led by Inspector Djoko Susilo, Budi took part in the tender for the maintenance and procure-ment or driving simulators. Budi said that he was contacted by a police offi cer. “Pak Budi was asked to fi nd someone who could make truck simulators,” said Rufi nus, his lawyer.

Budi joined the project bidding under the fl ag of Citra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi. The tender committee awarded the driving sim-ulator project to this company. It was at that time that Budi began to set up a factory. “The factory was only made in 2009, after we won the tender,” said Budi Susanto, last March.

Two years earlier, Budi had transformed Citra Mandiri Metalindo into a limited liabili-ty company. He made his wife, Lim Sie Khim, and his younger sister, Fatmawati, the chief commissioner and commissioner, respec-tively. As written in the founding act of Citra Mandiri, Budi is the chief executive offi cer or president director.

Budi worked with Megacipta Nusantara owned by Andrie Tedjapranata to work on the simulator project. This business relation-

ship ended in failure. Budi later discovered that Andrie had ordered simulators from Inovasi Teknologi belonging to Sukotjo S Bambang. Since then, Budi made direct con-tact with Sukotjo and brought him on board to work on projects at the Traffi c Division.

One of these was to work on the automo-bile and motorcycle driving simulator proj-ect worth Rp196 billion. According to Su-kotjo, they were able to win the tender on the simulator thanks to Budi’s close rela-tions with Djoko Susilo. The tender process had been arranged so that PT Citra Mandiri would win. Sukotjo said that he was involved in preparing the documents for the four competing companies, and preparing the material Djoko used to make a presentation to the police chief, General Timur Pradopo. “Including the survey in Singapore to see the specs,” wrote Sukotjo.

It turned out that Djoko was also directly involved. Several times, Djoko, through Budi Susanto, asked Sukotjo to calculate the costs of producing the simulators. In June 2010, Djoko came to Bandung along with Budi to Sukotjo’s offi ce. There, despite the fact that the simulator project had not yet been ap-proved by headquarters, Djoko asked Su-kotjo to speed up work on the drivers license test devices a week ahead of schedule. This was because they wanted to present and test the prototype.

In 2010, according to a Tempo source at po-lice headquarters, in addition to going after the driving simulator project, Budi was also

Frequently awarded projects from police department tenders since 2005, Budi Susanto is suspected of collaborating closely with a relative of Djoko Susilo.

CORRUPT POLICEPOLICE CORRUPTION

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 23

Susanto as its CEO. Two other founders and stockholders are Aji Cahya Soedarsono and its commissioner, Atiet Krisdina. This latter person, according to a Tempo source at po-lice headquarters, is a relative of Utjin Sudi-ana, the police’s Traffi c Director in 2004. It is suspected that Utjin is an in-law of Djoko Susilo.

Notary Iman Cahyono confi rmed the es-tablishing act of Mitra Alumindo which was enacted on July 10, 2008. However, he re-fused to give any other detail. Atiet Krisdina, through her staff member named Tika, de-clined to be interviewed. “Ibu is out of town right now,” she said, on Friday last week. Utjin Sudiana, at his home in Cempaka Pu-tih, Central Jakarta, could not be contacted either. “Bapak is ill,” said his personal driver. The two cellular phones of this retired police inspector-general were also inactive.

Budi’s lawyer, Rufi nus Hutahuruk, con-frmed that Mitra Alumindo is one of Budi Su-santo’s companies. However, he disagreed that there was a relative of that former Traf-fi c Division offi cial in the company. “They only have an ordinary relationship,” said Ru-fi nus. “Pak Utjin is not in there.”

Rufi nus said that his client knows Djoko and Utjin well. This is because Budi was in contact with those two senior police offi cers when he led the Traffi c Division. “If he knows Pak Utjin, that’s understandable. He is a for-mer traffi c director. A relationship between them is impossible,” said Rufi nus. “With Pak Djoko, that is purely a business relationship. There is no special connection.”

Djoko’s lawyer, Juniver Girsang, con-fi rmed that his client knew Budi Susanto be-fore the driving simulator procurement proj-ect began. But he denied they were closely connected. “What do you mean by familiar? If it means greeting one another when we meet, can that be called familiar?” said Ju-niver to Tempo reporter, Anggrita Desyani, two weeks ago.

According to Juniver, as a police offi cer, his client met many people. “Anyone who met him can claim they were close,” he said. However, he gets upset when such a relation-ship is connected to the suspected corrup-tion case of the simulator procurement proj-ect.

● WIDIARSI AGUSTINA, SETRI YASRA, ANANDA

BADUDU, IRA GUSLINA, ILHAM TIRTA, AFRIALIANIS

at work on the license plate material pro-curement project being organized by Prim-koppol. One way of locking this deal had to do with the specifi cation for using alumi-num alloy 531 or AA 531. “The specs on this material could be directed towards the com-pany owned by Budi,” said the source.

It is suspected that Budi and Djoko had very close relations. In addition to Citra Man-diri Metalindo Abadi, Budi owns an alumi-num company, Mitra Alumindo Selaras. Located in Gintung Kerta village, Karawa-ng, West Java, the company was founded in 2008. Residents refer to this factory com-plex which sits on an area the size of a foot-ball fi eld as “an aluminum factory which makes license plates and accessories for po-lice uniforms”.

When Tempo visited him on Wednesday last week, the factory complex was securely guarded by—according to Klapanunggal vil-lage chief, Slamet Supriyanto—offi cers of the Klari Police Department and the Military Po-lice. “They are asked not to wear uniforms,” said Slamet.

In the founding act signed by Notary Imam Cahyono in Depok, this company lists Budi T

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Vehicle license plate factory, PT Mitra Alumindo Selaras, owned by Budi Susanto, in Karawang, West Java.

The Certifi cate of PT Mitra Alumindo Selaras belonging to Budi Susanto.

NATIONAL KPK INVESTIGATORS

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BLANKS FROM BENGKULU Threatened and terrorized, anti-graft offi cials investigating the driving simulator graft case face possible legal action.

A LOCAL resident’s cam-era caught police commis-sioner Rudi Asriman pacing in front of the home of Nov-el Baswedan, a senior inves-

tigator at the Corruption Eradication Com-mission (KPK), in Kelapa Gading, North Ja-karta, about two weeks ago. Rudi also met with the neighborhood chief to ascertain that the house then being renovated be-longed to the investigator.

In the photo seen by Tempo, Rudi’s eyes seemed to be observing the situation around him. He stood behind a man whose face was half captured at the edge of the photo. When he was contacted last Mon-day, Rudi denied having spied on Novel’s house. “It wasn’t me. There must be a mis-take,” he said.

A number of sources confi rmed that the man was Rudi. He is an offi cer with the In-ternal Security at the national police head-quarters. He was tasked to keep an eye on Novel. After the driving simulator case blew up, the police was rumored to have or-dered its personnel to spy on several KPK offi cials. The operation, according to a se-nior police offi cer, is being led by a police brigidier general.

Aside from spying, the police are also trying to look for any errors committed by those investigators. Rudi, for example, came to the shop that supplied construc-tion materials to Novel’s house. The shop owner was asked many questions, such as, “who paid for the materials purchased by the owner?” “He was probably hoping some patrons paid for them,” said the source.

Failing to fi nd Novel’s weaknesses in Ja-karta, the police opened his old fi le. Around two weeks ago, the Jakarta police paid a vis-it to the Bengkulu police precinct, where Novel was once posted in 2003. There, the police asked the Profession and Security

division to probe whether Novel had ever committed any wrongdoing.

Head of Bengkulu precinct, Adjutant Se-nior Commissioner, Joko Suprayitno, con-fi rmed the visit of two Internal Security of-fi cers from police headquarters, but said, “They went straight to the regional head-quarters.” Chief of Profession and Securi-ty of Bengkulu Regional Police, Adjutant Senior Commissioner, Hendrik Marpaung also confi rmed the visit, adding that he did not meet the offi cers. “I don’t know what their business was.”

Novel told Tempo that he was not worried about his past, saying he never committed

any major mistakes during his entire po-lice career. What he worries about is the po-lice fabricating his past. “Suddenly there would be a case,” he said. In fact, a shooting incident in Bengkulu in 2004 when he was chief of detectives at the Bengkulu police precinct surfaced out of the blue.

Last Friday night, after hours of investi-gating Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo as a suspect in the driving simulator graft case, Novel was to have been picked up by the police. The arrest warrant contained a strange charge: fatally shooting a birdnest thief . “That is a concoted story,” said Novel, who at that time held the rank of Asst Suprint-

Police Internal Security offi cers at the KPK offi ce to arrest Novel Baswedan, KPK senior investigator, last Friday night.

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 25

going. Another police source said that Nov-el felt the pressure while several police of-fi cers involved in the shooting case were forced to participate in the police scenario. “This is all a big lie,” said the police source. Meanwhile, Novel declared, “I’m ready to face [the charges].”

Dedy and his associates fi nally dispersed around midnight, apparently pressured by more than 100 anti-corruption activ-ists who formed a human chain outside the KPK building. Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Security, Djoko Suyanto orderd police chief General Timur Prado-po to withdraw his men from the KPK. “Ac-cording to the police chief, no instructions were given to send the police to the KPK.”

At the police headquarters, Dedy Rianto did not deny his plan to arrest Novel. “Yes, we were going to arrest the suspect,” he said. In a bizarre twist, the police decided to investigate the 2004 case, today. Dedy gave an absurd reason, “The victim’s fami-ly only just reported it to the police.”

Another important fact is that Novel was already investigated by the Profession and Security Division of Bengkulu regional po-lice and declared not guilty. “The shooting was perpetrated by Novel’s subordinate,” explained KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto. Novel told Tempo that he was not even at the scene when the shooting oc-curred.

Novel is not the only KPK offi cial being terrorized. A KPK investigator handling the graft case involving Buol regent Am-ran Batalipu is also facing possibly legal ac-tion. During the raid to arrest Amran, the investigator, armed with the KPK’s offi cial warrant, borrowed equipment from the lo-cal police mobile brigade. This procedure is being questioned by the police, which is calling it illegal.

There is also another investigator whose house has been repeatedly visited by an unknown individual. To terrorize the offi -cer, the house fences were taken away. The padlock securing the fence was smashed. The offi cer is confi dent that it was not a ran-dom act of some prankster, especially since it occurred after the KPK began to probe the driving simulator case. At the same time, his minor delinquencies during his police academy years, were also raised to tarnish his name.

Bambang Widjojanto said that the terror izing became intense after the KPK issued a notice of the appointment of 28 investi-

endent I.Since Friday last week, the situation at

the KPK building has been tense. As the in-vestigation proceeded, more and more po-lice arrived. Based on Tempo’s observation, there were around 200 policemen ‘sur-rounding’ the area. Some were wearing bright military police uniform while some wore Batik shirts. Others were seen hang-ing out in foodstalls near the building. Bran-dishing an arrest and raid warrant without a court order—the letter was not even num-bered according to KPK deputy chair Bam-bang Widjojanto—several policemen clad in Batik entered the KPK lobby.

The team was led by chief of General Crime Division of Bengkulu regional po-lice, Senior Commissioner Dedy Irianto. Several top offi cials from Jakarta regional police holding the rank of adjutant senior commissioner, among others, Deputy Di-rector of General Crime Division, Nico Afi n-ta, Head of Crime and Violence Sub-direc-torate, Adjutant Helmy Santika and Head of Mobile Detectives Unit, Herry Heryawan, were also present.

Novel was planning to come down from his offi ce on the 8th fl oor. However, the KPK leaders, who refused to acknowledge the warrant for his arrest, stopped him from

NATIONAL

gators last Wednesday. That same night, a stranger paid a visit to the home of one of the investigators. Another investigator was tailed from the KPK offi ce all the way to his house. Then Novel, said Bambang, was vis-ited last Thursday night by two men known by the initials AA and AD, who claimed to be the messengers of the police chief.

The two men, Bambang said, asked Nov-el to meet Senior Commissioner Yazid Fa-nani, the police chief’s private secretary, to clarify the terror faced by Novel. Bambang said, at that time Novel said he was ready to meet Yazid with the permission of Busyro Muqoddas, one of the KPK heads who hap-pened to be in the offi ce. But Busyro did not give his permission.

The police denied the terror operation against KPK investigators, including look-

ing for their faults. “What for?” We don’t do such things,” said the police Public Informa-tion offi cer, Senior Commissioner Agus Ri-anto, adding, “We already have all the data we need at the headquarters.”

Since the driving simulator case, rela-tions between KPK and the police have be-come more and more strained, particular-ly after the police refused to extend the ap-pointment of 16 police offi cers at the KPK, which expired last month. This caused a critical reduction of manpower at the KPK. Previously, there were 88 police personnel working as investigators.

The next massive recall is expected again in the coming three months. In November, the contracts of 12 investigators will end and another nine in December, followed by 21 and one in February and March, re-spectively. If there are no replacements, by March, the KPK can be incapacitated.

Worired that the manpower shrinkage will disrupt its investigations, the KPK at-tempted to keep the remaining investiga-tors. Monday two weeks ago, secretary-general Bambang Prapto Sunu sent a letter

to the police requesting that 16 investiga-tors remain at the KPK. On the same day, 11 out of the 16 investigators suddenly decid-ed to return to police headquarters.

The police claimed that the withdrawal of the investigators was nothing more than personnel rotation and that the police in-tended to fi nd replacements. At a glance, the problem seems to have been solved. Howev-er, to recruit replacements, KPK needs 2-3 months for the process, starting from regis-tration to selection. With the familiarization period, the replacements can only work ef-fectively four months after the recruitment. If there candidates fail, the screening must restart from the beginning.

To get around the shortage of investiga-tors, KPK has advertised its search. Apart from employees at the Attorney General Of-fi ce and Financial and Development Mon-itoring Agency, police personnel within the KPK were also off ered the opportunity. The KPK also exchanged ideas with the Su-preme Court and State Empowerment and Bureaucratic Reforms Ministry regarding the recruitment.

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Press conference by KPK heads, Abraham Samad and Bambang Widjojanto, attended by a number of public fi gures at the KPK building, Jakarta, last Saturday.

26 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

THE STRAIGHT SHOOTER

TAUFIK Baswedan described his younger brother, Novel Baswedan, 36, as an investigator who loves his mother. When a number

of police offi cers approached the offi ce of the Corruption Eradication Com-mission (KPK) to arrest him, last Fri-day, Novel notifi ed his older broth-er over the phone. “He said, ‘Please take care of Mother,” said Taufi k. His mother was the fi rst person Novel communicated with re-garding his intentions of resign-ing from the police force and be-coming a permanent employee of the KPK. It was a diffi cult decision for the family. He contemplated var-ious ways to tell her until fi nally, the 1998 Police Academy graduate decided on using the “massage lobby” to tell her of his decision. One night, he approached his moth-er while carrying some massage oil. “I wanted to massage her feet fi rst, and then tell her about my resignation,” he said.

As if she could read her son’s mind, the mother asked, “Vel, aren’t you interested in becoming a full time employee for the KPK?” At hearing these words, Novel became more certain about his deci-sion to work full time with the KPK. Last Wednes-day, his name was included in the list of the 28 in-vestigators who were chosen to become a KPK em-ployee.

Novel joined the KPK in January 2007, when the in-stitution was headed by Taufi equrachman Ruki. He is not one of the fi ve investigators who was forced to re-port to the police headquarters Tuesday this week. In

the appointment letter drafted by the National Police headquar-ters, his offi cial term of duty will end in December. If his term is not extended, he should return by the end of this year.

This offi cer, who holds the rank of a commissioner, has served at the KPK offi ce for almost six years and has handled various cases. He was a member of the team that apprehended Nazaru-din, who ran off to Columbia, and was the investigator of a num-

ber of cases involving the former treasurer of the Democrat-ic Party. Novel was also involved in bringing back home,

Nunun Nurbaetie, suspected of bribery in the travelers check case, from Thailand.

Lately, he has been a member of the unit as-signed to handle the budget mafi a case that in-

volved Wa Ode Nurhayati, a legislator at the DPR. He even investigated a few cases involv-

ing some Senayan legislators. Novel has also arrested several corruption suspects such as Buol Regent Amran Batalipu and three

bribery suspects in the National Games (PON) case in Riau.

Moreover, Novel was also the en-gine behind the investigation on the driving simulators that dragged down a number of senior police offi -cers. He investigated those who were

witnesses of the case. Last Friday, he interrogated the main suspect: the ex chief of the Traffi c Division, Insp.Gen. Djoko Susilo.

A senior KPK offi cial named Novel as one of the best in-vestigators there. His independence as the anticorrup-tion commission’s investigator has made him disliked

by the police. In an internal police mailing list, he was berated after leading an investigation at the Traffi c Di-vision last July. Novel was labeled a “traitor” who was “intent on destroying the police corps.”

Despite the terrorand the intimidation, Novel never relayed his concerns to his colleagues or his family. His cousin, the Rector of Paramadina University, Anies Bas-

wedan, has never heard Novel complain. A colleague in the KPK said, “Novel will never discuss his problems.”

● ANTON SEPTIAN, RUSMAN PARAQBUEQ

Having received no objection from the two institutions, KPK last week sent a letter to the police informing them it had appoint-ed 28 investigators as permanent employ-ees. Five among them were the police offi -cers who were called back to police head-quarters last September. “Everyone has re-ceived the appointment letter,” said Busy-ro Muqoddas, KPK’s Vice Chairman.

According to Busyro, the appointment of the police personnel as KPK permanent in-vestigators is in line with the KPK law and Government By-aw No. 63/2005 regard-

ing KPK’s Human Resources Management. Once they become civil servants of the KPK, Busyro explained, the investigators should be discharged honorably from the police as stipulated in the institution’s standing regu-lations.

The police thinks otherwise. Police spokesman, Brig.Gen. Boy Rafl i Amar, said that the 28 investigators would be violating regulations, since they moved jobs with-out prior notifi cation. Before joining the KPK, they should have submitted their res-ignation fi rst, which should have been ap-

proved by the police chief. “Since they did not comply with procedures, they can be dishonorably discharged,” Boy said.

Deputy police chief, Com. Gen. Nanan Soekarna hinted that the investigators who did not return to police headquarters after their contract at KPK expired, would be ar-rested by the military police.

“They will be immediately arrested,” he added.

● ANTON SEPTIAN, FRANCISCO ROSARIANS, RUSMAN

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NATIONAL KPK INVESTIGATORS

WHEN news passed around that the police were arriv-ing to arrest investigator Novel Baswedan last Friday,

his supporters gathered at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building. Former chairmen of this anti-graft institu-tion, such as Amin Sunaryadi and Erry Ri-yana Hardjapamekas, were the fi rst ones to arrive at the scene. They headed towards the third fl oor, the working area of the KPK leaders.

KPK chairman and his deputy, Bam-bang Widjojanto were already at their of-fi ces. At 11:30 pm, Law and Human Rights deputy minister Denny Indrayana, joined them. The KPK staff , who had come back to the offi ce after going home, were busy serving drinks. Other KPK leaders, like Busyro Muqoddas was at his hometown of Yogyakarta, while Zulkarnain and Adnan Pandu Praja could not be seen. That night, the group of activists providing support were welcomed by Abraham and Handoyo Sudradjat, deputy chairman for Internal Oversight and Public Complaints.

The supporters gathered in numbers to-wards midnight. Hundreds of red ants—a term Busyro used to describe KPK sup-porters—hung outside as well as inside the building. In one of the fl oors was Novel Bas-wedan, 36, still smiling despite his precari-ous situation and his fatigue.

Tempo reporter Budi Setyarso met the 1998 graduate of the Police Academy on Sat-urday early morning last week. “This is all organized, very contemptible,” said Novel Baswedan. He was accused by the police of involvement in the murder of a suspected thief when he was chief of the Bengkulu Po-lice precinct, eight years ago.

What really happened in 2004?

At that time, I had just been appointed chief of the Bengkulu precinct, after head-ing the Operations Department. A man had been arrested for theft and shot. Then he was tried, judged and sentenced by the

NOVEL BASWEDAN:I WILL EXPOSE EVERYTHING

mob. When I arrived, the thief had died. I fi gured it was unlikely to charge anyone over his death. So, in the end, I made the decision to take the responsibility myself. So, when the incident happened, I was not even at the location.

How was the situation at Bengkulu at that

time?

I went there when problems of gam-bling, narcotics and theft were quite se-rious. The amount of money ‘deposited’ with the security people was incredible. When I was appointed chief over there, I changed the entire staff . I chose young people who were determined and solid. I started with myself: I told them we would do away with the culture of regular depos-its from residents. Since that time, I was seen as an enemy.

Is it true you were investigated by the Di-

vision of Professionals and Regional Police

Security?

Yes, I was reminded not to take respon-sibility (over the death). I was threatened, that if I went on to do it, I would be penal-ized. I replied: I was ready to face it, be-cause it was unlikely to charge anyone for that death. I didn’t want an innocent man

to be punished.When did you fi nd out

this case was being re-

vived?

Two or three weeks ago, I was informed that the Police headquarters had sent their personnel to Bengkulu. They spoke to witnesses, who were asked to give evidence in order to charge me. A former staff of mine was summoned to confi rm some things, but they all said I was not involved.

Is it true the police even

came to your house?

The neighborhood chief where I live was vis-ited by a few people, to dig about my personal life and possible wrongdoing on my part. I called the neighborhood chief, and told him, “Pak, if you sup-port the corruption erad-ication, answer accord-ing to facts. Do not fol-low their made-up stories.

If necessary, let them come to me.” What they need, I will give them: a checking ac-count statement, my savings book, what-ever secrets I have. I am not afraid because I have nothing to hide.

You have been hard towards the corrup-

tion case involving the Traffi c Division.

Could that be why they are threatening you?

We are investigating this case not to de-stroy the police as an organization. In fact, we want to improve it. We have solutions, we’re not trying to mess things up. I will not stop, now that they are trying to pe-nalize me. I will expose everything. If nec-essary, I will speak to the press, if I am al-lowed by the KPK leaders.

What are your plans in facing this case?

I will get a lawyer to prepare for my de-fense. I will face the case head-on. ● P

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28 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

NATIONAL

30 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

KPK LAW REVIEW

AFTER the fl ood of criticism aimed at the House of Repre-sentatives (DPR) for the past two weeks, political factions have agreed to withdraw

their plan to amend the Law on the Corrup-tion Eradication Commission (KPK). The growing support for the KPK has caused the legislators to write letters to the KPK chairman and request that the amend-ment, which has already been submitted to the legislature, be withdrawn.

The Democratic Party faction initiated this act last week. Faction leader, Nurhaya-ti Ali Assegaf, wrote a letter requesting that their previous plan to amend the law be an-nulled. “It’s because this revision has de-viated from our aim of strengthening the KPK,” she said. The government party was very active in suggesting that the fi ve KPK authorities—coordination, supervision, wiretapping, investigation, and prosecu-tion—be reviewed.

This move was followed by other political factions such as the Prosperous Justice Par-ty (PKS), United Development Party (PPP), and National Awakening Party (PAN). Be-fore the outburst of protests, PPP and PAN were factions that supported the amend-ment. PKS was undecided and requested the National Law Commission to explore further the amendment fi rst, as refl ected at the plenary meeting early last July.

The Law Commission meeting, which was attended by 26 out of 61 members, de-cided that the amendment draft of Law No. 30/2012 should be brought to the DPR to be sorted and reviewed in order to ensure it does not confl ict with other laws. All fac-tions agreed that the KPK’s authority need-ed to be stripped down, except for the Dem-ocratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) who felt that the amendment was not yet necessary.

The factions who agreed to amend the

THE KPK’S ROUND THREE A number of legislators are attempting to undermine the KPK’s authority. Many of them fear being bugged.

articles generally argued that the KPK’s authority in acting against corruptors was too broad. “One thing that needs to be re-viewed is whether wiretapping should be allowed during an investigation. The KPK is currently able to do this,” stated Syarifud-din Suding, spokesman of the People’s Con-science Party (Hanura).

The meeting, lead by the commission deputy chairman, Aziz Syamsuddin from the Golkar faction, was a continuation of a previous meeting attended by a number of “Tim Mawar” (Rose Team) politicians on January 2012 with the Head of the Law and Legislative Bureau at the DPR, Rudi Ro-chmansyah. The Rose Team is a nickname coined for the leading politicians in the Law Commission: Aziz Syamsuddin and Bambang Soesatyo (Golkar), Ahmad Yani (PPP), Syarifuddin Suding (Hanura), Trim-edya Panjaitan (PDIP), Abu Bakar al-Habsy (PKS), and Desmon Mahesa (Gerindra).

Some other politicians were present to hear Rudy describe the initial draft of the amendment. “Its contents included how wiretapping would need a court order, the right to prosecute was eliminated, and the

KPK was given the authority to stop an inves-tigation,” stated a politician who was pres-ent. “There was also a suggestion that the right to investigate should be eliminated.” The meeting altered from its initial agenda of listening to the suggestions of the factions to an explosion of insults toward the KPK.

This politician added that the gener-al opinion of the meeting was how the ac-tions of the KPK in wiretapping and captur-ing politicians and offi cials who have accept-ed bribes had already obstructed the Indo-nesian legal order. KPK’s actions in arresting hundreds of regional offi cials have obstruct-ed development in the nation. Others con-sider the wiretapping to be recklessly done by the KPK. “There was a politician who was bugged and found fornicating,” he said.

The amendment also increased the min-imum corruption limit the KPK would be allowed to investigate from Rp 1 billion to Rp 10 billion. They stated that the KPK of-ten makes arrests based on bribes worth a few hundred million rupiahs. Based on the large budget allocated for the KPK, the politicians do not consider that amount to be worth their investigation. But that was T

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Activists from numerous organizations express their support for the KPK, Jakarta, Jumat last week.

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 31

their offi cial reason. “Well, the real reason was to ensure the corrupt players cannot be caught,” stated a politician.

The draft brought to the table by Rudy was actually an elaboration from an inter-nal Law Commission meeting led by Benny Kabur Harman from the Democratic Par-ty. Benny, who was requested by DPR depu-ty speaker, Priyo Budi Santoso, to immedi-ately create a draft, came up with ten KPK authority points that should be altered. In essence, the KPK will be asked to focus on corruption prevention. Investigation and prosecution rights will be handed over to the police and prosecutor.

At that moment, the KPK was vigorously investigating and arresting politicians who received traveler’s checks during the elec-tion of senior deputy governor of Bank In-donesia. A number of senior Golkar cadres, such as Paskah Suzetta and Hafi z Zawawi, were examined, then arrested. Paskah’s ar-rest caused a stir at the Golkar Party.

Long before that, in 2007, the idea to amend the KPK Law came from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono himself. At that time, he considered a revision neces-

sary because there was an idea to form a re-gional KPK. This idea then evaporated be-cause it was considered as an attempt to weaken the anticorruption movement and politics were heating up for the upcoming 2009 General Elections.

However, the intention never faded. Each year, the DPR always includes this amendment initiative in the National Legis-lation Program. Law Commission meetings always makes sure this amendment should be immediately put into action. The draft amendment was even bundled last on Feb-ruary. That was a month before a number of Commission members hoped to travel to Hong Kong, France, Germany, and South Korea under the claim of conducting a com-parative study in order to create regula-tions for an anticorruption institution.

That is why Aziz Syamsuddin was en-raged when factions who initially support-ed the amendment turned their backs on it when criticisms started to fl y. According to the legislator, who was also a corruption suspect in the development of the Attorney General’s Offi ce, the plenary meeting and comparative study revealed that the fac-

tions agreed to the amendment from the very beginning. “It’s the upcoming 2014 Elections, everyone’s beating around the bush,” he said during a meeting to discuss Public Prosecution Laws, last week.

This was because the PDI-P, who fi rm-ly rejected the amendment, was only de-laying. In a faction statement read by Nur-din, the KPK Law amendment was not ur-gent. His reason was simple. The PDIP felt they never received a draft prepared by the DPR Law Bureau and the agreement made in the January meeting was that they would further discuss the amendment of the Civ-il Code (KUHAP) and the Criminal Code (KUHP) fi rst.

These two policies were also the priori-ty of the 2011 National Legislation Program. When these two laws have been revised, the PDIP will then agree to amend oth-er laws below them, such as the Supreme Court Law and KPK. “The KPK is just a part of the criminal code. The main law is the KUHAP and KUHP,” said Nurdin.

A number of faction leaders also felt they were being held back by members in the Law Commission. PAN Faction Secre-tary, Teguh Juwarno, felt he never signed a draft that was sent to the Legislation coun-cil. Teguh stated that according to the reg-ulations, after the working committee at the Commission agrees on a draft, it is sent back to the faction to be approved. “This KPK amendment did not go through the faction,” said Saan Mustopa, Democrat Fac-tion Secretary.

The discussion in the Legislation council was also unusual. According to the Head of the Revision Harmonization, Dimyati Na-takusumah, as the lead proposer, Aziz nev-er attended a meeting discussing the draft. “Instead, he asked us to explain the amend-ment to the Law Commission,” he said. As a result, the draft was to be immediately dis-cussed by a special committee before it was ratifi ed during the DPR plenary session.

The problem was, there is no regulation canceling the draft that has already been submitted to the Legislative council. The DPR regulation states drafts must be dis-cussed by having factions debate on the ma-terial that has been rejected or accepted in a special committee. “This is the fi rst case where a draft amendment was discontin-ued at the Legislation Council,” said Cha-tibul Umam Wiranu, a member of the Law Commission from the Democratic Party.

● BAGJA HIDAYAT, FEBRIYAN

32 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

LABOR’S DEMAND ACCOMMODATED

THE Manpower Ministry promised to accommodate the labor’s demand of outsourcing system rearrangement. Minister Muhaimin Iskandar promised to evaluate the companies which employed them.

Muhaimin asked regional chief executives to watch over the operating outsourcing companies during the evaluation period. “Outsourcing workers must be only for cleaning service, security, transportation, catering and mining support,” he said.

The response was made as a reaction to the rallies of thousands of workers last Wednesday in Jakarta, Tangerang, Bogor and Bekasi. The rallies were centered at, among others, the State Palace, Central Jakar-ta. Apart from the elimination of outsourcing, the workers also deman-ded higher wages.●

NEWS CAPSULE

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Aziz SyamsuddinGolkarAdhyaksa Center at Attorney General’s Offi ce

“No game.”(March 14, 2012)

Olly DondokambeyIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)Adhyaksa Center at Attorney General’s

Offi ce“No such thing.”

Zulkarnaen DjabarGolkarProcurement of Quran and computer lab at the Religious Affairs Ministry“I’m not involved.”(July 9, 2012)

Angelina SondakhDemocrat PartyBribery for athlete’s village at the Youth and

Sports Affairs Ministry, University project at Education and Culture Ministry“It was decided at a joint meeting between the government and the DPR.”

I Wayan KosterPDI-PBribery for athlete’s

village at the Youth and Sports Affairs Ministry,

University project at Education and Culture Ministry“I leave everything to the legal process.”

Abdul Kadir KardingNational Awakening Party (PKB)

Procurement of Quran and computer lab at Religious Affairs MinistryNot yet confi rmed

POLITICIANS GUARD NAZARUDDIN’S PROJECT

YULIANIS, former deputy fi nance director of Per-mai Group, said that her company had some con-nections with several House of Representatives (DPR) members. They were to ‘guard’ the compa-

ny owned by M. Nazaruddin to win projects of which the bud-

get was still being deliberated by the House. “For the project at the Attorney General’s Offi ce, there’s Aziz Syamsuddin, a Legal Commission member,” Yulianis gave as an example.

Yulianis named several Golkar politicians at the DPR in her testimony in the trial of Angelina Sondakh, Democrat Party legislator at the Corruption Court last Thursday. Angelina is a defendant in a bribery case at the ministries of education and sports.

In addition to Azis, according to Yulianis, Permai Group had connections with other commission members in the DPR. They were, among others, Golkar politician Zulkarnaen Dja-bar (Religious Aff airs Commission), Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician Olly Dondokambey (for-mer Deputy Head of Budget Committee) and National Awak-ening Party (PKB) politician Abdul Kadir Karding (SOE Com-mission, formerly in Religious Aff airs Commission). The legis-lators named above denied Yulianis’ statement.

With regards I Wayan Koster, member of Sports Aff airs Commission from the PDI-P, he was asked to help guard the SEA Games athlete’s village budget and the procurement of a university laboratory. In order to win the 12 projects, Yulianis said, Permai Group bribed Angelina and Wayan Koster with US$2.35 million and Rp12.58 billion respectively. The two leg-islators also denied the charges. ●

SOURCE: STATEMENTS AT THE TRIALS, PERMAI GROUP’S FINANCIAL RECORDS

THOSE WHO ARE NAMEDPERMAI Group’s accounting recorded hundreds of names, from tender organizers, several parties lawmakers, to ministers. According to the records, they received cash amounting to millions and billions of rupiah, and thousands to hundred thousands of dollars.

Yulianis

Column

FREEDOM, BLASPHEMY AND VIOLENCE

VIOLENT attacks on US diplomatic outposts across North Africa and the Middle East have

once again raised the question of how to respond when Americans and other Westerners engage in pro-vocative expression that others con-sider blasphemous. Though the at-tack on the US diplomatic mission in Benghazi, in which Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three members of his staff were mur-dered, may well have been planned, as the State Department has main-tained, the killers clearly exploited the opportunity created by outrage at an anti-Muslim fi lm produced in the US.

There have been several episodes in recent years in which per-ceptions of blasphemy have led to threats of violence or actual killings, starting with the publication of Salman Rushdie’s nov-el The Satanic Verses more than two decades ago, and including the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten’s cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. In the Netherlands, Theo Van Gogh was murdered on an Amsterdam sidewalk in retaliation for his fi lm Submission, which criticized Islam’s treatment of women.

Even some who defended freedom of expression in those cases may be disinclined to do so now. This time, the fi lm that triggered riots in Cairo, Benghazi, Sana, and elsewhere is so crude and in-fl ammatory as to seem clearly intended to elicit the outrage that it produced.

Yet judgments about literary or artistic merit should not be the basis for decisions about freedom of expression. The proclivity of some elsewhere to react violently to what they consider blas-phemous cannot be the criterion for imposing limits on free ex-pression in the US, the United Kingdom, Denmark, or the Nether-lands (or anywhere else).

It is important to diff erentiate blasphemy from hate speech. What is objectionable about hate speech, and makes it punish-able by law in countries around the world, is that it is intended to incite discrimination or violence against members of a particular national, racial, ethnic or religious group.

Even in the US, where freedom of expression is zealously pro-tected, such incitement may be prosecuted and punished in cir-cumstances in which violence or other unlawful behavior is im-minent. By contrast, in cases of blasphemy, it is not the speak-

er (or the fi lmmaker) who is directly inciting discrimination or violence. Rather, it is those who are enraged by the expressed views who may threaten or actually engage in vio-lence, either against the speaker, or against those, like US government offi cials, whom they believe have fa-cilitated (or failed to suppress) the blasphemer’s activities.

It is, of course, impossible to be certain what will arouse such anger. At times, as seems to be the case with the video that triggered the current protests in cities across North Afri-ca and the Middle East, a long peri-od may elapse between the off en-sive material’s dissemination and an outpouring of popular rage. The

rage, it seems, is not spontaneous; rather, it is an artifact of local or regional politics. This does not diminish the irresponsibility of those who gratuitously engage in such off ensive behavior, but it does make clear that outrage against their actions should not be a basis for abandoning our commitment to freedom of expression.

What, then, is to be done? The only appropriate response is the one chosen by the US Embassy in Cairo, which denounced the fi lm and said that the American government condemns those who off end others’ religious beliefs. And Secretary of State Hill-ary Clinton reinforced the condemnation when she called the fi lm “disgusting and reprehensible.”

Plainly, that was not enough to deter those who sought an oc-casion to attack the US Consulate in Benghazi. If they had not grasped this opportunity, they would have sought another. Sim-ply condemning a fi lm will not mean much to those who believe that, as may be true in their own countries, a powerful govern-ment like that of the US can simply decide whether a fi lm should be made or broadcast.

The statement from the US Embassy in Cairo has become the target of political criticism, but it warrants praise for exemplify-ing American values. Contrary to the criticism, condemnation of the fi lm is not censorship. While rejecting censorship, the US gov-ernment should not renounce its authority to speak sensibly and condemn an appalling and apparently intentional provocation that produced such tragic consequences.

*THE PRESIDENT OF THE OPEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE AND A FOUNDER OF HUMAN

RIGHTS WATCH, IS THE AUTHOR, MOST RECENTLY, OF TAKING LIBERTIES: FOUR

DECADES IN THE STRUGGLE FOR RIGHTS.

ARYEH NEIER

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34 | | OCTOBER 14, 201234 | | 30 SEPTEMBER 2012

Interlude

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 35

Traces of Shaolin on Song Mountain

The Shaolin Temple has been around since the fi fth century. Its long history has enriched the world of martial arts. Tempo went to visit the temple, considered to be the Mecca of kung fu, in Henan Province, China. Tempo also went to investigate

the life of martial arts master Louw Djing Tie, who migrated to Parakan in Central Java and lived there until his death in 1921.

THE Chinese sun glared down from the summer sky. It was only 10 a.m. on Song Moun-tain, on the periphery of the Dengfeng County in central

China, but the temperature had already reached 32 degrees Celcius. The heat, al-though fi erce, was unable to penetrate the thick walls and the lines of pine and Gink-go biloba trees surrounding the Shaolin Temple. There, cool winds blow unceasing-ly, rather like in the Puncak region of West Java.

In one of the inner courtyards of the Sha-olin Temple in Henan, Shiu Yanxin stood with his legs planted on the ground in a fi rm stance. His right hand was thrust for-ward in a fi st, his eyes in a fi xed glare. Wear-ing the grey kasaya—the robe worn by all monks staying at the Shaolin Monastery—the bald man performed the xin i pa with great agility. The xin i pa is a kung fu tech-nique intended to strengthen the lower body. Shiu also displayed the one-fi nger technique.

“This movement can be used to kill a per-son,” said the 25-year-old Yanxin, one of the monks whom Tempo talked to at the Temple last May. He started training at the Shaolin Temple at the age of fi ve. “I want-ed to learn Buddhism at this temple,” he ex-plained.

Yanxin, originally from the town of Tangshan in the Hebei province near Bei-jing, along with the other 500 monks living in this Buddhist monastery, make up the latest generation of Shaolin masters at the Shaolin Temple. Wang Yumin, the temple’s spokesperson, said that the Shaolin Tem-ple was established in 495 B.C. by Batuo, a monk from India who wished to spread the teachings of Buddhism in China. Its offi cial name is Shaolinsi. The word shao was tak-en from shaosi or ‘Shi Mountain’, while lin means “forest” and si means “temple”. “So the name means ‘the temple in the forests of the Shi mountains’,” Wang said.

It takes nearly three hours by bus, fol-lowed by a ride in an unregistered pub-lic transportation, to get there from Zhan-zhou, the capital of Henan province. In the Shaolin Temple complex there are seven main halls at the center of the temple that are used for praying. These are surround-ed by supporting buildings used as sleep-ing areas and dining halls. With a length of 360 meters and a width of 160 meters, the total area comes to 57,000 square me-ters. The complex has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2010. Shaolin is the home of more than 500 monks—50 of whom are women—whose ages range from 17 to 80 years. There are also dozens of chil-dren living there solely to learn religion and

kung fu. They are led by the 47-year-old Shi Yongxin, the Temple’s abbot.

Life in the Temple is very orderly. The residents of the Temple rise at 4am every morning for assembly and meditation. At 5 a.m. they head for training on Song Moun-tain behind the monastery. After train-ing for about two hours they return to the Temple to perform housekeeping tasks such as refi lling oil jars used for lights and lighting new incense sticks, before opening the gates of the Temple to outside visitors at 8am. They then take turns standing by at the entrance gates and guiding the visi-tors and pilgrims to the Temple. Those who are not needed for this may carry out their favorite activities: meditation, reading the Buddhist holy book, or practicing martial arts. One of the teachers—who are called ei-ther Laotse or Shifu—will teach two or three pupils known as tudi. “They are like one small family,” commented Wang.

Visitors are not allowed to witness the kung fu exercises. Nevertheless, a young monk was willing to divulge a bit of infor-mation. The location of the training on Song Mountain is at Damo Dong, the cave where the Bodhidharma—the Indian monk—medi-tated for nine years in 527 B.C. The distance from Shaolin Temple, declared Shi Yongxi-na, was a 10-minute run for a trained monk. “But the average person would require T

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36 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

about two hours to get there,” he remarked. The monk may have been exaggerating or he may indeed be that dexterous. Perhaps he is, bearing in mind that he has already acquired the sobriquet Shi, which is given to all monks in China and could be likened to the title ustad or religious teacher in In-donesia.

Yanxin described how the training area had been moved out of the Temple com-plex because of the ever-increasing num-ber of visitors to Shaolin. Previously, exer-cises were performed within the Temple complex. There are halls within the com-plex whose fl oors are damaged due to the martial arts masters’ methods of practic-ing the strength of their legs, which is to re-peatedly stomp their feet onto the ground. Another “victim” of kung fu practice are the trees surrounding the complex. There are holes in nearly every tree in the vicini-ty, each bearing deep scars from the fi ngers of numerous monks throughout the ages, who practiced the one-fi nger kung fu tech-nique on these trees.

This kung fu move, also known as Yi Zhi Chan, is one of the most popular kung fu techniques. Yoko, who was played by Andy Lau in the television series The Legend of the Condor Heroes often performed this tech-nique. The ability to block the fl ow of blood with the index and middle fi ngers has two uses: to paralyze the enemy and to heal deep wounds. “The move can kill a per-son,” said Yanxin, who required ten years to master this technique.

Another favored kung fu technique is the Zui Quan or the “Drunken Fist” movement. Jackie Chan made this technique famous in a humorous fashion through his fi lm Drunken Master in 1978. The moves imitate the gestures of a drunken person, utiliz-ing the weight of the body in swinging mo-tions. Yanxin, who needed a year and a half to master this technique, said it was created during the Tang Dynasty (618-906), during the reign of the Emperor Li Yuan, when he permitted the monks to drink alcohol. Af-ter his reign, however, monks were no lon-ger allowed to drink alcohol. “So they were not really drunk as featured in the fi lm,” he said.

The Quan book of guidelines, which was passed on through the 86 generations of ab-

bots, contains thousands of kung fu tech-niques with as many as 72 of them coming purely from the Shaolin Temple, including Chi Kung. Simply put, Chi Kung is the sci-ence of using energy—also known as chi—residing in the body. Through years of prac-tice, a person is able to master the move-ment and breathing required to channel chi, which is located in the stomach region, to other sections of the body and make those other sections steel-hard. The hands, the feet, and even the head of a person can become as hard as a sledgehammer, strong enough to split wood and stone.

Chi, which can be detected using a body heat detector, is combined with physical strength. This is done in various ways, such as hitting one’s own head or striking one’s head against a sandbag for two hours ev-eryday, in order to strengthen the skull. A

person’s neck can also be strengthened by doing one-hour headstands all year long. A well-trained neck can then be used to mas-ter the art of the Iron Neck. With such mas-tery a person can continue to breathe even when he is hung by the neck.

During the learning stage there is al-ways risk of injuries. “So a monk must have his own medicines ready,” said Luo Wei, a very young monk at the apothecary lo-cated to the west of the temple. The room has many cupboards with dozens of small drawers fi lled with herbs. Most of the herb-al remedies are for healing bruises and bro-ken bones. He explained that Shaolin med-icine has been popular since the Yuan dy-nasty and has remained so for eight centu-ries until today. Besides selling medicine, the chamber with a board that reads “Sha-olin Pharmacy Bureau” also sells souvenirs P

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OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 37

from T-shirts to sling bags and leg bolsters with the word “Shaolin” printed on them. A television camera is placed in every cor-ner of the room.

The magnifi cence of the temple com-plex has not, however, managed to endure its lifetime without incident. The Shaolin Temple has been destroyed and rebuilt on numerous occasions. According to Wang, since the monastery was established, it has always had support from the govern-ment. This often made them the target of rebels. The fi rst destruction of the temple occurred in the 14th century. The red tur-baned troops forced the monks out of the temple and looted it. The temple remained neglected from 1356 until 1359, when Yuan dynasty troops were fi nally able to regain control of the Henan Province. Confl ict again broke out in 1641 when rebels tried to

overthrow the Ming Dynasty. The Shaolin Temple was destroyed and was only rebuilt at the beginning of the 18th century when the Qing dynasty came into power.

Nevertheless, it was also the Qing dynas-ty that brought about the most signifi cant destruction of the temple. The government suspected the Shaolin monks of supporting anti-dynasty forces and burned the tem-ple to the ground in 1647. The monks dis-persed, and the legend of the “Five Oldest Monks,” about Shaolin monks who wan-dered around China spreading kung fu teachings, was born.

Shaolin was introduced in Indonesia in the early 1900s by the master Louw Djin Tie.

In 1928, the Kuomintang general Shi You-san burned down the temple and destroyed 90 percent of the Shaolin documents. Fi-

nally, Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution in 1966 and banned all symbols of religion. He also jailed fi ve monks who were guarding the temple at the time.

Shaolin’s relationship with the govern-ment improved after President Deng Xiaop-ing began to carry out his Open Door Policy. The temple’s ownership was returned to its monks in 1987. In the same year, the head monk Shi Xing Zheng passed away. His tem-porary replacement Shi Yongxin became a frequent guest at government functions. In 1993, he was appointed as member of the Henan Province Political Consultative Committee and represented the province at the National People’s Congress in 1998. A year later, Shi Yongxin was appointed the abbot of the Shaolin Temple. “We obey the government in the same fashion as other ordinary people of the land who practice religious activities,” said Wang.

The monastery’s destruction did not prevent the proliferation of Shaolin teach-ings. While the “Five Elders” were fi ctitious characters, many real Shaolin masters con-tributed to the enrichment of world mar-tial arts. Karate, which fi rst appeared on the island of Ryukyu in Okinawa, Japan, is thought to be a mixture of Shaolin kung fu and local self-defense arts. Wing Chun, a popular style of Kung Fu also has its or-igins in the Shaolin. As told by the grand-master Yip Kai Man (the teacher of the leg-endary action movie actor Bruce Lee) be-fore he died in 1972, this form of martial arts began with the story of a young maid-en who rejected the advances of a landlord. The maiden then went to train with Ng Mui, a Shaolin Temple monk who had taken to wandering after his temple was destroyed during the Qing dynasty. The master taught her the snake and crane techniques un-til she was fi nally able to defeat the wicked landlord. The new style of kung fu was giv-en her name: Yim Wing Chun.

Inspiration has come from the Shaolin Temple to famous fi gures like Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Lei Wulong, the cre-ator of the Drunken Master technique ex-hibited at Tekken’s competitive arena. The world of action fi lms has become far more alive because of them.

● REZA MAULANA, MAHARDIKA SATRIA HADI

(DENGFENG)

The Song Mountain Central Tourism Area monument at the Songshan Shaolin Temple complex in Henan Province.

Shaolin students use tree trunks as an object for practicing Yi Zhi Chan (above).

Shaolin students pack medicines at the Shaolin Pharmacy Bureau.

TRACES OF SHAOLIN ON SONG MOUNTAIN

38 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

I THOUGHT for a moment I had land-ed in the wrong place when alighting from the car that took me to Deng-feng county in China’s Henan prov-ince last May. I had come to see the

Shaolin Temple, but the sign posted along the way said “Central Monument of the Song Mountain Tourist Area.” My fears, however, soon dissipated when I saw an-other sign that read: Song Mountain Shao-lin Temple.

Disregard your childhood fantasies de-picted in kung fu fi lms where hundreds of monks in one fl owing motion performed out the dragon technique. There is no hot wok where David Carradine, or Kwai Chang Caine, burned the dragon and the tiger tat-toos onto his arm as depicted in the last de-cade’s hit kung fu serial. In every corner all that is to be seen are tourists, tourists and more tourists.

“A hundred yuan,” cried the woman at the ticket counter at the entrance to the Shaolin Temple. (A hundred yuan is worth about Rp150,000.) I had not managed to place my wallet back into my bag when just a few dozen meters from the ticket counter, payment was again demanded from visi-tors. This time we had to pay Rp15,000 to ride an electric car for three kilometers to the main temple in the complex. At the cor-ner, a sign was displayed, with a hammer and sickle and the words: “I am a Member of the Communist Party. Tell Me What You Need.”

The car moved away from a cluster of souvenir shops selling various things re-lating to the Shaolin Temple, such as rings and necklaces with jade pendants spelling out the name of the 15-century-old temple. There were also postcards with pictures of Mao Zedong, the chairman of the Commu-nist Party of China who launched the Cul-tural Revolution in 1966 and captured the Shaolin Monastery.

Has Shaolin become commercialized? The Temple spokesperson Wang Yumin de-nied the allegation. “All our monks only live from two sources of income here, namely, the sale of tickets and donations from tour-ists,” he explained. Most visitors who also pray at the six temples located on the site often have donation boxes thrust at them. There are more than 500 monks living on

The One Hundred Yuan MonasteryThe Shaolin Temple has become a tourist destination.The temple’s abbot receives all sorts of VIPs at the temple.

the site. Providing food three times a day for so many people is clearly no easy mat-ter.

Wang remarked that during the reign of the Chinese emperors, Shaolin survived on the alms provided by pilgrims and from farming. Records say, during the Tang dy-nasty (from 618 to 906) they owed 4,500 plots of land. This number rose and fell with time, and after the land reform car-ried out by Mao Zedong, Shaolin no longer had any land to farm.

Improvements in the Temple’s relation-ship with the government as of Deng Xiap-ing’s era in the 1980s brought many chang-es. The government began to build more in-frastructure, such as road signs and electric cars. The purpose of this was clear, namely, to draw more visitors to the Temple. Every summer at least ten thousand visits to the Shaolin Temple are recorded. This means that within a period of three months ticket sales alone are able to bring in Rp1,5 billion. The income from the ticket sales is then dis-tributed. “Thirty percent of the income is for the monastery; seventy percent is for the government,” explained Wang.

The monastery’s treasury benefi ts from ticket sales. Their mainstay for this is the Zan Shaolin Music Ritual, which has been per-formed more than a thousand times since it was fi rst performed in May 2007. This mu-

sical drama is a collaboration of monks and artists. For one and a half hours hundreds of performers recount the story of the lives of monks, covering four seasons and vari-ous challenges of nature. The strength of the performances, which are without dialogue, lies in production, lighting, scoring and vari-ous performance techniques.

Despite the fl ood of tourists who visit the temple, the people living in the surround-ing areas do not benefi t from the tourism. Jiao, who has a grocery stall about 500 me-ters from the temple entrance said he once tried to approach prospective buyers with-in the temple complex, but he was immedi-ately ordered to leave. “They thought that I would dirty the place,” said the 64-year-old man. The Temple’s monthly rental fee of Rp7.5 million makes it impossible for Jiao to realize his dream of opening a shop there.

Shaolin’s popularity continues to rise. Since Russian President Vladimir Putin vis-ited the Temple in 2006—a visit followed by an invitation for the high offi cials of Shao-lin to visit Russia—many other important visitors from various countries have come to Song Mountain. While the young monks busy themselves as guides for various vis-itors, Shi Yongxin, the Temple’s abbot, at-tends various international forums.

● MAHARDIKA SATRIA HADI (DENGFENG),

REZA MAULANA TE

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A MONK walks staggeringly into the Shaolin Temple. The kasa-ya—a Chinese monk’s robe—he is wearing is crumpled and

shabby, and its yellow is fading, as if it has not been washed for days. He is carrying a knapsack, a bag slung over his shoulder and holding in his hand a medium-sized travel bag. His name is Shi Chuanchun, 42.

“I’m looking for the monk in charge here,” he told Tempo in the yard of the Sha-olin Temple’s library at Dengfeng late last May. He was carrying an envelope contain-ing a letter requesting that he be allowed to stay temporarily to learn martial arts at Shaolin. While waiting for the temple jan-itor, Chuanchun reported the purpose of his visit.

This man has been a monk since 1991. His only goal is to make a profound study of Buddhism. His fi rst monas-tery is at Fuan, in the Province of Fuji-an, South China. His thirst for knowl-edge propelled him to travel from one temple to another. The last place he stayed at was a monas-tery in the Town of Putian, Fu-jian. Having fi nished all the books at the temple, he decid-ed to continue his wandering. The winds took him to Deng-feng and the courtyard of Shaolin. “I’m stopping by here because I happened to by passing through,” says Chuanchun.

He is not the only visit-ing monk. Shaolin’s spokes-man, Wang Yumin, says that the monastery remains open to traveling monks, regard-less of their background or the length of their stay. “All visi-

Andy Lau and the Crumpled RobeShaolin Temple continues its open-door tradition, training actors like Andy Lau and Donnie Yen in martial arts.

tors will certainly get help,” he says. Non-permanent students supported by a third party, local or overseas, are also welcome. Last November, Shaolin received a group of students from Gabon, Rwanda, and Cam-eroon for a fi ve-year study on a scholarship program from their countries.

Non-permanent members may have var-ied intentions, one of which is to learn kung fu for an acting role. Wang still remembers Andy Lau who once spent two weeks at the Temple on Shaoshi Mountains in 2010. The 51-year-old Hong Kong-born actor studied there for the role of Hou Ji, a war-lord who changes his mind and becomes a monk in the fi lm The New Shaolin Temple. “He was provided with a special teacher,” says Wang without mentioning the nomi-

nal value of the donation made by the temporary pupil.

Another actor is Donnie Yen, 49. This Guangzhou-born man is fas-

cinated by self-defense arts. He masters kickboxing, wres-tling, karate and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. In 2008, he added to his long list of skills an-other skill by learning mar-tial arts at Shaolin. His ob-jective was to make a re-fi ned improvement of Wing Chun, a specialized close-combat kung fu that originates from Sha-olin. His eff orts have not been in vain. His acting as Ip Man in the fi lm with the same title makes him one of the highest in-come-earning Asian ac-

tors. Ip Man, a.k.a. Yip Kai an, is a Wing Chun expert and the coach of the leg-

endary action actor Bruce Lee. Yen is con-sidered to have successfully popularized Wing Chun.

How about the regular students? Wang says that the requirements are easy: they have to abide by the rules of the Chinese government, have no criminal records and unmarried. “If divorced, he or she should produce a divorce certifi cate,” he says. An unmarried status is the most important re-quirement since a monk must live a celibate life.

Most of the estimated 500 Shaolin monks at the Temple have lived there since child-hood. The Temple is open to any children who are at least 10 years of age, and charg-es no fees whatsoever. Shi Yanchun, 28, for example, left his hometown at Dongbei, Northeast China, when he was 15 years old. As a rule, at 17 years of age, the pupil is given the option of continuing his life as a monk or returning home. Yanchun is determined to devote his life to Shaolin until he dies. “It’s the call of my life,” he says.

Out of hundreds of Shaolin members, Ch-uanchun may be the only one who is not in-terested in kung fu at all. “I’d like to know more about Buddha and his wisdom, and to learn mantras,” he says. It sounds like an unusual dream at the temple which is re-garded as the Mecca of self-defense martial arts. However, recalling the time when Bat-uo laid out the corner stone [for the temple construction] on Mount Shaoshi 1517 years ago, it is Shaolin’s true mission.

● REZA MAULANA, MAHARDIKA SATRIA HADI

(DENGFENG)TE

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THE grand harvest has come. As in other tobacco-produc-ing areas, Parakan—a town at the foot of Mount Sindoro, Central Java, 120 kilometers

northwest of Yogyakarta—becomes a busy port town. Farmers harvesting crops, work-ers shredding, drying, and carrying tobac-co leaves, and merchant bosses counting profi ts.

Without exception is the house on Ja-lan Demangan No. 16. Dozens of Nicotiana tabacum baskets—containing at least 50 ki-lograms of tobacco at a price of about Rp150 thousand per kilogram—makes the 2,000-square meter house resemble a warehouse. Only Louw Djing Tie could make Hoo Tien Yong, the house owner, turn away from the business, worth hundreds of millions of ru-piah.

Armed with kung fu skills from Shaolin, Djing Tie helped many downtrodden poor people in some towns in Central Java. “He used to live here,” said Tien Yong to Tempo in the middle of last month.

The tale of Djing Tie was fi rst written by Tjiu Khing Soei with the title Garuda Mas dari Cabang Siauw Lim (golden eagle from Siauw Lim branch) published in Semarang late in the 1920s. According to Tien Yong, the author was Djing Tie’s neighbor. The story was rewritten as Dua Jago Silat di Java (Two Martial Artists in Java) in 1935 and re-published by Gramedia in a book titled Ke-sastraan Melayu Tionghoa Jilid 5, (Chinese Malay Literature Vol. 5) in April 2002.

Djing Tie was born in the village of Khee Thao Kee near the Town of Hayting, Hokki-an, China, circa 1855. Because this orphan was fond of fi ghting, his elder brother sent him to the Shaolin Temple. Like other fi rst-year pupils, he was given the duty of taking

A Bit of Shaolin in JavaA Shaolin master fl ees into the hinterlands of Central Java. His Robin Hood-like tale seems to have faded with time.

water from the mountain with two buckets to strengthen his muscles. Djing Tie spent six years of his teenage youth at Shaolin. He returned to his village, skilled in martial arts, chi, and healing.

His interest in kung fu never waned. This martial artist continued to learn the skills from Biauw Tjien, an old monk who was also a Shaolin alumnus. From the coach, Djing Tie acquired the cunning trick of turning things around him into weapons: from tossing coins and a compass, blow-ing a needle and green pea so that they become implanted on the wall, to doing tricks with a shawl used to wrap around the waist. “When thrust forward, it resembles a snake,” said Tien Yong, 62. With the next teacher, Kang Too Soe, he supplemented his skills with Pun Khi (art of blowing), Liap Khi (absorbing power) and Tiam Hiat (fi n-ger technique).

After 15 years of learning martial arts at various schools, the young Djing Tie began to seek livelihood at Hok Ciu, the capital of Hokkian. The government happened to be looking for a martial arts coach to train the government troops. The requirement set was to defeat their champions. Seven were thrown out of the arena before Djing Tie’s friend, Liem Wan, stepped forward. Liem Wan was also overwhelmed; he intended to use the forbidden stance, which could make its owner lose his life if the stance failed to work. Seeing the champion adept-ly evade every off ensive, Djing Tie made a decision that changed his life: he got into the arena and kicked his opponent’s geni-talia. The champion was killed. Ever since then, he turned into a fugitive.

The two fugitives went south. After stop-ping over in Singapore—Liem Wan settled down there—Djing Tie continued to Bata-

via and worked there as a traveling vendor at Toko Tiga, today part of Glodok, West Ja-karta. His fi nances forced him to keep seek-ing a better life. He went to Semarang, Ken-dal, and Ambarawa where he stayed in one after another friend’s house. In Ambara-wa, Djing Tie secretly gave martial arts les-sons, since the Netherlands East Indies gov-ernment prohibited the teaching of self-de-fense arts.

Djing Tie taught a lesson to two drunk soldiers who ransacked an eating house. He pulled their arms as easily and light-ly as a kid would a barbie doll. “Now, you go home. It’s night already,” said Djing Tie with a broad Chinese accent in the book Dua Jago Silat (Two Martial Arts Mas-ters). The next day the troublemakers came with their buddies for retaliation. Nonethe-less, the 15 soldiers, armed with machetes, were no match for Djing Tie who relied sim-ply on his fi sts and his ponytailed hair that functioned as a whip.

When visiting his friend in Semarang, Djing Tie was once again in action. Wan Tjok Djwan, a wealthy man living at Ped-amaran, had a crush on the daughter of a noodle man. Being jilted, he slandered the noodle man by calling him a banknote counterfeiter, thus causing him to be put in jail. Djing Tie sneaked into the rich man’s bedroom, and using his puppet-perform-ing skill, he made a potehi (Chinese pup-pet) move and this frightened the wealthy man. Djing Tie wrote Tjok Djwan a letter telling him to stop bothering the noodle T

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man’s family and took Rp400 to bail out the aggrieved noodle man from prison. The greedy boss learned his lesson.

He left Ambarawa to move to Wonosobo, then proceeded to Parakan, a town noted as a place where the Chinese got together. In this place he resided on Jalan Demangan 16 and opened the Garuda Mas (Golden Eagle) martial arts school. In 1905, Hoay Hien, his student, clashed with 30 soldiers who want-ed to gang up on a Dutchman. Hoay Hien kept his ground for 20 minutes uninjured before the rioting soldiers were dispersed by their chief. This incident was reported in the daily Warna-Warni that appeared in Semarang. Another person noted as Djing Tie’s pupil was Hoo Liep Poen, a restaura-teur, who provided him with lodging. Tien Yong was the grandson of Liep Poen.

Tien Yong’s languid eyes looked blankly at the 300 square-meter courtyard, which was enclosed by two-meter-high walls. “Here Djing Tie trained dozens of his pu-pils,” he said. The iron bar from which a sandbag hung still stands upright. Behind the main door—which Liep Poen decorated with a Mandarin calligraphy meaning: pea-cock—was a variety of weapons, like ma-chetes, spears, tridents and fi ghting sticks, all the legacy left by the Shaolin master. In the drawing room was the painting of the master teacher’s face measuring 40 by 30 centimeters.

Tien Yong mastered a little of Djing Tie’s martial arts skills. That afternoon he dis-played two basic moves, Thai Tjo (fi st) and

Tat Tjoen (open hands). Ac-cording to him, the Shaolin kung fu move was simple and unadorned. “Unlike the ac-tion fi lm,” he said. The feet are always planted on the ground with their strength resting on their hind part, thus enabling easy kicks and avoiding the opponent’s side-sweep. When standing still at the end of the stance, he failed to move his already wrinkled hand.

The mistake in the battle arena at Hok Ciu haunted Djing Tie until his twilight years at Parakan, 4,000 km from his native home-land. His fi rst wife, a widow of Wonosobo, died, and his next two marriages went on the rocks. Djing Tie’s second wife cheated on him and his third wife suff ered from a mental disorder. His business—he dealt in Chinese herbal medicine—became slack. He considered this situation a divine pun-ishment for his past mistakes. “Although I’ve escaped the law of the State, I’ve yet to escape God’s punishment,” he said in Dua Jago Silat

Djing had no children. According to Tien Yong, the teacher—who slept standing, resting against a plank to keep his muscle strong and to stay alert—had the power to withdraw his genitalia when fi ghting. This feat made him barren.

Djing Tie died at Parakan in 1921 at the age of 66. He was buried with his walking stick and his favorite waist shawl at Gu-nung Manden Cemetery at the outskirts of

Parakan. Engraved on his gravestone was a Mandarin script which means “To be Pre-sented to Master Teacher Louw Djing Tie. Built by All His Pupils. Died on the Ninth Year of China’s Independence.”

After the teacher was gone, Garuda Mas was disbanded. Liep Poen, who died in 1951, taught kung fu only to his children. Tien Yong learned from his uncle, Hoo Ki-ong Nio, Liep Poen’s fi rst child. “Just a way

to get me sweating. I’ve nev-er been engaged in a physi-cal fi ght all my life,” said Tien Yong.

Besides teaching the art of self-defense, Djing Tie also passed on the knowledge of healing. Tien Yong continued the business of his uncle, sell-ing Garuda herbal medicines in the form of ointment, powder, and peppermints that have the

property of easing aches and bruises from physical impact. The photo of Djing Tie is displayed on the wrapper of their prod-ucts. Unfortunately, this business venture failed to fl ourish. They only produce less than one hundred items each month, al-though Tempo reporters admitted that the Garuda medicine was eff ective in getting rid of muscle stiff ness.

All the herbal preparations as well as the kung fu—the tale of Louw Djing Tie—seem to be forgotten with time. Almost every person Tempo met in Parakan had never heard of his name. “Only six out of ten peo-ple among the Chinese circles know [about Louw Djing Tie]. And they know very lit-tle,” said The Han Thong, 58, the admin-istrator of Hok Tek Tong Joss House, Para-kan, who took Tempo to Djing Tie’s grave. In the 1980s, the tomb was moved from the foot to the summit of the hill at an altitude of 775 meters, facing the Mount of Sumb-ing. Djing Tie’s skeletal remains and his walking stick remained intact. Among the knee-high grass, we recited prayers at the old grave. At the peak of Mount Manden, the legend was lonesome.

● REZA MAULANA (PARAKAN)

Louw Djing Tie taught kung fu at the house owned by Hoo Liep Boen, who was also his student, on Jl. Demangan 16, Parakan.

TRACES OF SHAOLIN ON SONG MOUNTAIN

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REGIONAL ADMINISTRATION LAW

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 43

RAHUDMAN Harahap was still performing his duty as mayor of Medan last week, when he at-tended the hand-over of a Child-Worthy City award organized by the

Women and Childrens Empowerment Min-istry at Hotel Sahid Jaya in Jakarta. On Fri-day, he again appeared at the commemora-tion of the 67th Indonesian Military (TNI) anniversary at the Bukit Barisan Regional Military Command I headquarters in Me-dan.

Rahudman was well aware of the rul-ing by the Constitutional Court two weeks ago, which annulled the provision requir-ing presidential approval to investigate re-gional chief executives, such as himself, suspected of graft and corruption. As ma-yor, he had three more years to go before completing his term in offi ce. “That’s why we’re preparing to deal with the case,” Ra-

The Constitutional Court has abolished the article requiring presidential approval to investigate regional chief executives, which has delayed processing of those suspected of corruption.

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hudman told Tempo at the end of the TNI ceremony.

The North Sumatra Prosecutor’s Offi ce in 2010 named the mayor a suspect in a cor-ruption case involving the Village Adminis-tration Income Allowance (TPAPD) of South Tapanuli, worth Rp13.8 billion in 2004. Of that amount, Rahudman, who was then Re-gional Secretary, allegedly took Rp 1.5 bil-lion. Although over a dozen witnesses were already investigated in this case, offi cials still had not questioned Rahudman. “He was still waiting for the response to his re-quest for the presidential approval,” said Noor Rachmad, the North Sumatra Prose-cutor’s Offi ce, in August.

The issue of the presidential approval has been hotly debated by anticorruption activ-ists and several regional chief executives. Two weeks ago, the Constitutional Court led by chief justice, Mahfud M.D. agreed to abolish the fi rst and second points of Arti-cle 36 of Law No.32/2004 on Regional Ad-ministration, stipulating that the investi-gation of regional chief executives or their deputies required the president’s written approval.

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Rahudman Harahap at the Medan Mayor offi ce, North Sumatra, last August.

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“This is against the principle that all citi-zens shall be equal before law as stipulated in the 1945 Constitution,” Mahfud told Tem-po. Such approval, according to Mahfud, is unnecessary, even obstructs investigation. In his view, the decision to examine and in-vestigate a suspect should be an internal one. “That approval can take a long time. The suspect can, in the meantime, remove all the evidence.”

The judges retained a provision specify-ing that detention requires the written ap-proval of the president. Mahfud indicated the President should be aware of the immi-nent detention of a regional chief executive so the resulting vacuum can be fi lled. Here, the Court laid down a time limit. After 30 days without any response to the request, the regional chief executive in question can be detained. “It’s assumed that within 30 days the President is already aware of the regional chief executive impending deten-tion,” he said.

A number of regional chief executives will defi nitely be “victims” of this ruling. As pointed out by Mahfud, the Court’s rul-ing is to take eff ect immediately. One of the people aff ected will be Rahudman. Asked about the likelihood of his immediate in-vetigation and possible trial, Rahudman took it valiantly. “I’m ready to be investigat-ed any time as long as it is according to the law,” he said.

As a witness, Rahudman’s testimony was important to explain the fl ow of the bud-get. But a year after being named a suspect, pending the required presidential approv-al, the Prosecutor’s Offi ce never investigat-ed him. Spokesman for the North Sumatra Prosecutor’s Offi ce, Marcos Simare-mare, said Rahudman’s case had been present-ed to the Attorney General’s Offi ce (AGO). He thought his offi ce could handle Rahud-man’s request to the president. But it was not the case. “We still had to wait for the AGO,” he added.

Another slow-going corruption case was that of East Kalimantan Governor Awang Farouk. Awang was declared a suspect in the sale and transfer of Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC) shares worth Rp576 billion in 2010. At the time, Awang was still the regent of East Kutai.

However, in Awang’s case, Attorney Gen-eral Basrief Arief had an excuse for the pro-longed status. Investigators, he said, had not processed the request to obtain presi-dential approval because they were wait-

ing for the Supreme Court’s decision on the cassation. There were two diff erent de-cisions for two defendants in the case. The CEO of Kutai Timur Energi, Anung Nugro-ho, was sentenced to six years in jail, while Director Apidian Triwahyudi, was acquit-ted. “The investigation can only be done after the cassation is resolved,” he added. The slow process of obtaining the pres-idential approval to investigate regional chief executives has indeed been blamed for the delay in processing corruption cas-es in the regions. In April last year, accord-ing to AGO spokesman, Noor Rachmad, 61 requests for such presidential approv-al were piled on the desk of President Susi-lo Bambang Yudhoyono, since 2005. “One of them was Awang Farouk’s,” said Noor at the time. The statement was immediately denied by Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam. He

said it was impossible for the requests to be left that long on the president’s table.

Mahfud said such statements were proof that something was wrong in the investiga-tive procedures of regional chief executives suspected of corruption. It could be that people from both sides may have taken ad-vantage of this specifi c legal requirement. “Corruption suspects are widely known as law enforcers’ ATM,” he noted.

Article 36 of the Regional Administra-tion Law has determined a time limit for the President to give his approval. If the request gets no response in more than 60 days, the suspected regional head in ques-tion can be investigated right away. But in practice, this has not been the case. “It’s dif-fi cult to ascertain when the requests reach the desk of the president,” he said.

The lack of transparency was what prompted anti-corruption activists to ap-ply for a judicial review of Article 36 in No-vember last year. The activists included Feri Amsari (lecturer of the Law School, Andalas University), Zainal Arifi n Mochtar Husein (lecturer, Gajah Mada Unversity), Teten Masduki, and the Indonesia Corrup-tion Watch (ICW).

To Tempo, ICW researcher Febri Dian-syah said another reason for the judicial re-view of Article 36 of the Regional Admin-istration Law was that they had frequent-ly received complaints from investigators at the prosecutor’s offi ce and the police. These investigators, he said, found it diffi -cult to process corruption cases aff ecting regional chief executives. “This presiden-tial approval has always been a major im-pediment in the fi ght against corruption,” said Febri.

Attorney General Basrief Arief expressed his delight at the Court’s ruling in eliminat-ing this cumbersome legal condition. Nev-ertheless he said, the prosecutors must still proceed with the case only when they have solid data on losses incurred by the state.

The AGO last week began following up on the Constitutional Court’s ruling. Junior At-torney General for Special Crimes, Andhi Nirwanto, said his offi ce had circulated the Court’s ruling to all prosecutors’ and district attorneys’ offi ces. “Every case involving a regional chief executive must be processed without delay,” he pointed out. This time there is indeed no excuse for the prosecu-tors to say, “no presidential approval yet.”

● MUSTAFA SILALAHI,

SOETANA MONANG HASIBUAN (MEDAN), INDRA WIJAYA TE

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Attorney General Basrief Arief expressed his delight at the Court’s ruling in eliminating this cumbersome legal condition. Nevertheless he said, the prosecutors must still proceed with the case only with concrete data on losses incurred by the state.

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 45

Retained:

(1) Investigation and examination of regional chief executives or their deputies can be carried out after a written approval of the president at the request of the investigator.

(2) In the written approval as stipulated in chapter 1, if it is not given by the president within 60 days, counted from the day the request is received, the investigation and examination process can proceed.

(3) The investigation process followed by arrest and detention requires the written approval of the president, as in article 1 and article 2.

Note:In this clause, arrest and detention can proceed if the letter requesting the president’s approval has passed a 30-day period without a response.Article 36, Law No. 32/2004 on

Regional Administration.

Annuled:

1. MUHTADIN SER AI

Regent of Ogan Komering Ulu, South Sumatra (processed by South Sumatra High Prosecution Offi ce)Case: Suspected corruption in the construction of the Saka Selabung market, valued at Rp7 billion in 2004Status: suspectNote: Has been questioned as a witness, not as a suspect 2. BUDIMAN ARIFIN

Regent of Bulungan, East Kalimantan(processed by Nunukan District Court)Case: Suspected corruption in the demolition of open green space valued at Rp7.06 billion in 2004. He was

JUDICIAL REVIEW ON REGIONAL ADMINISTRATION LAW

LEGAL EXCUSESThe prosecutor’s offi ce will be the one institution that will come under public focus , given that many corruption cases implicating regional chief

executives have ended up against a blank wall. When asked about them, the stock answer is usually the special article requiring presidential approval before a regional chief executive can undergo due process of law. Last year, the Attorney General’s Offi ce reported that 61 regional and local leaders were awaiting the presidential approval. The following are seven regional chief executives whose cases received the most press attention:

6. JAMRO H. JALIL

Regent of South Bangka, Bangka-Belitung IslandsCase: Corruption of KUT funds worth Rp338 million.Status: suspect since 2007Note: Until August 2010, the prosecutor’s offi ce said they had sent three letters requesting presidential approval to investigate him. 7. MALIKUL AMDJAD

Deputy mayor of Pangkalpinang, Bangka-Belitung IslandsCase: He and all Pangkalpinang DPRD (local parliament) members of the 1999-2004 period received a gratuity from Umar H.S., Head of Pangkalpinang Municipality’s Finance Board. Each received Rp40 million.Status: suspectNote: He has not yet been questioned, since there has been no approval even though a request has been made.

July 2011Note: The prosecutor’s offi ce await the result of audit by the Development and Finance Control Board (BPKP), before requesting for presidential approval.

5. AWANG FAROUK ISHAK

Governor of East KalimantanCase: Suspected corruption of divestment of Kaltim Prima Coal’s shares, causing losses of US$63 million to the stateStatus: suspect since 2010Note: The prosecutor’s offi ce states they are re-studying the case as one of the defendants has been acquitted.

corruption case in 2005 worth Rp1.5 billionStatus: suspect since 2010Note: The prosecutor’s offi ce issued the decision to stop prosecution. But the case is now reopened.

4. BUHARI MATTA

Regent of Kolaka, Southeast SulawesiCase: Receiving a Rp5 billion bribe in connection with nickel mining licenseStatus: suspect since

Regional Secretary of Nunukan Regency.Status: suspectNote: Three persons have been proven guilty, among them Nunukan Regent, Abdul Hafi d Achmad, sentenced to two years in prison. 3. R AHUDMAN HAR AHAP

Mayor of Medan(processed by North Sumatra Prosecution Offi ce)Case: Suspect in South Tapanuli Regency

MUSTAFA SILALAHI, PDAT

CONSTITUTIONAL BREAKTHROUGH

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THE Constitutional Court was showered with praises. It had, af-ter all, issued an important ruling on the procedure of trying cor-

ruption cases. The panel of judges led by Mohammad Mahfud Md., eliminated the requirement of obtaining a president’s ap-proval to investigate regional chief execu-tives or their deputies in cases of suspect-ed corrruption. “There was no dissenting opinion among the judges,” Mahfud proud-ly told Tempo reporters, Mustafa Silalahi and Jajang Jamaludin in an interview at his offi ce, last Thursday:

Aside from the legal arguments, what

was the main reason for the ruling?

Many criminal cases today, in particular those dealing with graft and corruption of a provincial or local leader or their deputies, were being unneccesarily delayed. Many of these offi cials ‘took advantage’ of this pres-idential approval requirement. It was hap-pening everywhere.

In what way was it misused?

If the case was allowed to hang for some time, the accused can lose his tracks as well as the evidence. Conversely, they can also become victims of extortion, they can become the ATM of offi cials handling their cases. A number of reasons can be used, for example the lack of presidential ap-proval or whatever to delay the case. When I was a member of the House of Represen-tatives’ (DPR) Legal Commission, many people came to us to complain about this.

Is it a fact that many cases of the Attor-

ney Generals Offi ce are stuck over this pre-

sidential approval clause?

The President once called me on the phone. He said he had a clean desk and had no requests to review investigations of local executives. Whenever such a letter would appear on his desk, it never took much time for him to sign it. I believed him.

So where is problem? That’s what I mean by artifi cial reasons.

It means, if on the president’s side there is no problem, is the problem then under him? Could it be the AGO that is delaying the request for the president’s approval? That is what we don’t know.

Can you recommend how to expedite the

process?

It’s actually quite easy. The president’s offi ce can ask the AGO whether they had sent the letter of request. Similarly, the AGO can check whether their request had been approved or denied. Why should they be playing a waiting game?

To what extent can the Court’s ruling pre-

vent abuse?

Abuse will, unfortunately, continue. Un-scrupulous offi cials will continue to ex-tort using various other excuses. They may have been able to get away with the ex-cuse of waiting for the presidential approv-al. Today, when such approvals are no lon-ger needed, the investigating offi cial can threaten the suspected local leader with immediate detention. This is a moral not a legal issue.

So, what immediate benefi t can we ex-

pect from this ruling? This ruling will be good because from

now on, the investigation won’t need to drag on. The police and the prosecutors no longer need this excuse. And there will be no more local leaders hiding behind the president or the party in power.

But presidential approval is still needed

to arrest and detain regional chief executi-

ves suspected of corruption.

If it’s only to indict a person, no approv-al is needed, except if the indictment is ac-companied by detention. That needs the president’s approval. He is after all, head of state. He must know there are allegedly re-sponsible people governing the provinces about to go to jail. He must immediately fi ll in the vacuum, by appointing a caretaker or someone like that. If that is not done, the implication can be chaotic.

What if the presidential approval for their

detention gets no response?

There’s a 30-day limit. If after that peri-od there is still no presidential approval, the suspect can be immediatelly detained. That means the president is presumed to know about the case. In our view, that is the most proper step to be taken, especiall-ly to eradicate graft and corruption.

What if the prosecutor or the police refu-

ses to execute the ruling?

This ruling is eff ective immediately. Test it on a suspected corruption case current-ly being processed. The prosecutor and the police can no longer make excuses to delay the investigation. If this ruling is breached, it means they are violating the constitution. ●

M.MAHFUD MD CHIEF JUSTICE, CONSTITUTIONAL COURT

THIS RULING TAKES EFFECT IMMEDIATELY

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FOCUSOutreachDevelopment of Indonesia’s Outlying Areas

TEMPO/IQBAL LUBIS

THREE years ago, Tempo visited the village of Bululangkan in North Toraja to witness a ma’nene, the cleansing of the dead ritual that takes place once every three years. At that time, the Bulukangkan villagers had vowed to use some of the proceeds from their ma’nene, to improve their village. In August, Tempo returned to the scene, to check just how far the villagers’ commitment had gone. Tempo journalist Irmawati reports from South Sulawesi province.

BLESSINGS FROM THE DEAD

OUTREACH

THE padlocks on the doors of a number of patane (tombs) with concrete walls in Lembang (village of) Bululangkan, Rindingallo district, North Toraja regen-cy, South Sulawesi, were unsealed. One

by one, wooden co� ns were taken out. Some of the corpses were neatly wrapped and without co� ns; the caskets were cloaked in plain and motif cloths. But red cloths were dominant; the color indicates the highest social status. In order to use red fabric, a family must � rst slaughter at least seven buffalos in the ritual of rambu solo, the death ceremony of the Toraja people.

In that particular morning at the end ofAugust, the Lembang Bululangkan people performed a triennial procession, ma’nene. Families cleaned and changed the clothes of their parents’ corps-es. “Ma’nene is a show of respect for our ancestors, somewhat similar to a grave visit,” said Head of Lembang Bululangkan, Elyas Ungke Toding Allo, 43. This procession is held after rambu solo, and be-fore rambu tu’ka or ascending the tongkonan, the traditional house of Toraja with a roof shaped like the hull of a ship.

After the corpses were cleaned with brush-es and slightly exposed to the sun, they were then groomed. Worn-out clothes were replaced and those that were still in good condition were kept, and fresh sheets of fabric may be added. Once this process was ful� lled, some of the corpses were tied up with plastic strings or torn strips of used sa-rongs. Those not strapped were directly put back into their caskets.

The following morning, when the bodies were already wrapped up, and the smell of incense and camphor was gone, the patane doors could then be closed. Everybody then prepared for the closing, ne pare lapuk , in the Loko Lemo hamlet, Lembang Bululangkan. The ritual was held in Rante, a spe-cial � eld surrounded by menhirs (upright stones). These stones are a symbol of the village’s dead.

Mats were unrolled; women laid out dishes to be savored by the villagers. The day before, all fami-lies prepared various kinds of food. One of the man-datory dishes is pa’piong, or pork � avored with onion leaves, garlic, chili, pepper, salt and other leaves, stuffed into bamboo tubes and then roast-ed. They never fail to serve tuak—palm liquor—in this ceremony.

Though not all residents were yet gathered to-gether, several men had started slaughtering buf-falos. Five buffalos were distributed. The buffalo

OUTREACH TEAM

EditorYuli IsmartonoDeputy EditorHermien Y. KledenProject Offi cerSadika HamidWriterIrmawatiSadika HamidSyari FaniGraphic DesignEko Punto PambudiRobbyeeborPhoto ResearchIjar Karim

meat was cut into half-kilo to one-kilo pieces and tossed to those present.

After the meat was distributed, the only parts left were the buffalo heads and legs. These were placed at the center of the � eld, along with the heads of pigs, to be contributed to residents who made the pa’piong. There were 37 heads in total.

At the end of the ritual, the pieces of meat were auctioned. Prices varied from Rp20,000 to Rp200,000. A total of Rp2.03 million from the meat sales was collected. Pengantar (church executive in Bululangkan) of Batu Mendaun Catholic Church, Marten Toding Bua, 42, said the funds would go to-ward the ongoing construction of the church. Be-fore leaving Rante, residents held a meeting and agreed to hold the next ma’nene in August 2015.

■ ■ ■ TO reach Bululangkan, Tempo had to go by ojek

(motorcycle taxi) from Rantepao, the North Toraja capital. The steep and meandering road required the passenger of the ojek to be very alert and to � rmly grasp the driver of the motorcycle to avoid falling off.

Apart from the complicated topography, the 50-kilometer road was badly damaged, with holes here and there. We also had to cross a wooden bridge less than a meter wide because of a prior landslide.

But as we entered the area of Bululangkan, the rocking of the vehicle lessened because most of the major roads were made with concrete, leaving only around 200 meters still under construction. How-ever, the development was temporarily halted as locals were busy with the ma’nene procession. They believe that continuing the construction dur-ing the ceremony is pamali (prohibited). The fund-ing for the connecting road comes from the Nation-al Program for Rural Community Empowerment and the North Toraja Budget of Income and Expen-diture.

Yet the Toraja aren’t willing to rely only on exter-nal funds. Not far from the interregional connect-ing road, there’s Jalan Tanite, the ‘principal road’ of the village. The 500-meter road forms leads to the o� ce of the village head. When Tempo visited three years ago, the road hadn’t existed. The local community funded its development. Where did the money come from? Apparently, it comes from Arisan (traditional savings) in memory of the de-ceased.

Three years ago, as required by the tradition, the

II | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

FOCUS

Bululangkan people organized ma’nene, complete with ne pare lapuk and an auction. But they came up with something new: They spread the propos-al, Tamuan Mali to Bululangkan (Gathering of Bulu-langkan), to Toraja people away from home, in or-der to raise more funds for village development. “We spread it not only all over Indonesia, but also as far as Malaysia and London,” said Ungke.

There were several sources of funding. First, they conducted an auction. This year, 37 pig heads and buffalo heads were collected. But higher pric-es were � xed, ranging from Rp50,000 to Rp200,000. The auction fund amounted to Rp4.35 million.

After the auction, ceremony chief Yunus Lum-baa, 56, a local custom leader, reminded residents of their promises to donate. Local people and trav-elers had already been transferred to the account of the Tamuan Mali to the Bululangkan committee.

Rp80.35 million was accumulated through the fund raising efforts, and Rp76 million went to the

construction of Jalan Tanete. The remaining sum was donated to six local churches.

The satisfactory condition of the road has made the lives of local much easier. “Now I can work even in the rainy season,” said Yakop Padatuan, 48, an ojek driver. Farm animals for rituals often have to be carried by ojek. Apart from two-wheeled vehi-cles, cars have also bene� ted from increased mo-bility. These cars carry agricultural produce, cat-tle, and staples from and to the village markets.

■ ■ ■ THE concept of donating during ma’nene in Bu-

lulangkan has in fact been applied since 1984. The initiator was the late Tumbang Lisuallo, an older brother of Yunus Lumbaa. According to Yunus—commonly called Nek Sayang—his brother was concerned over the underdeveloped condition of the village.

When Lisuallo slaughtered seven buffalos for the

WRAPPED

CORPSES IN

THE MA’NENE

CEREMONY IN

BULULANGKAN

VILLAGE, NORTH

TORAJA, SOUTH

SULAWESI.

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ma’nene ritual, he decided to contribute a portion to be auctioned. The fund was then spent on village infrastructure. “He thought that the ma’nene cere-mony, when all the families were gathered togeth-er, was the right moment to coordinate support for the village,” said Nek Sayang. Since then, fami-lies in this village of two thousand people have fol-lowed in the footsteps of the in� uential � gure and held auctions at the close of ma’nene.

In 1999, structural o� cials of Bululangkan, tra-ditional organization members, communal � g-ures, and church executives made another modi-� cation of the ma’nene tradition. Previously, each family group held ma’nene at the time of their choosing. But this was inconvenient for Toraja peo-ple who lived outside the village. Attending the cer-emony each year was too di� cult for them. They couldn’t stay in the village for two months to follow two families’ ma’nene rituals. Furthermore, not all travelers were successful, so they had to save a lot of money to be able to return with all their fam-ily members.

Because this was a reasonable concern, the el-ders agreed to carry out ma’nene simultaneously every three years. “The request was proposed in 1999 and the � rst simultaneous ma’nene took place a year later,” noted Nek Sayang. And it has been that way ever since.

By gathering residents and travelers at one time, seeking donations from them became an easier task. What’s more, successful travelers risk losing face if they do not contribute.

But the elders weren’t satis� ed yet. Ungke and a few communal leaders including Nek Sayang, along with a few church executives, discussed the matter. “We thought, why wasn’t this donation done more seriously?” said Ungke. They � nally came up with the idea of spreading a Bululangkan gathering proposal for ma’nene in August 2009.

In January 2009, the proposal was prepared. As soon as it was composed, the proposal was offered to residents who were seen as established and pros-perous. The request was partly transmitted via email and text messages. Family members were asked to convince their relatives that this was a val-id program. “The proposal served to ensure emi-grants that donations were not misappropriated and that they were purely in the interest of the vil-lage,” added Ungke. They requested the donations to be transferred to a special bank account.

To avoid misappropriation, all development

projects were handled by the community. This way, community members can supervise each oth-er and minimize the opportunity for the manipu-lation of funding.

Sadly, though the arisan of the deceased in 2009 succeeded, this year such a savings gathering wasn’t held. Despite the funds collected, their total wasn’t as great as three years ago. “This year we’ve had no money to make the proposal,” said Ungke. In addition, they still want to evaluate the result of the arisan of 2009.

But, considering the various needs of the vil-lage and the thriving arisan of 2009, the commu-nity eventually agreed to again spread the propos-al by the time of ma’nene 2015. “Aside from roads, we also want to build schools,” said Ungke. They wish to clear the land for a primary school in Bu-lulangkan. Nek Sayang intends to install the neces-sary apparatus in providing clean water for every household.

Ungke and the other village � gures also have other dreams. After the road infrastructure in Bu-lulangkan is improved, they are interested in pro-moting village tourism. “We have great tourism potential; not only cultural tourism like ma’nene, but also natural tourism like our three-tier water-fall,” said Ungke in anticipation.

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A CHURCH

CONSTRUCTED

USING FUNDS

COLLECTED

DURING THE

MA’NENE RITUAL.

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THE corpses taken out of the rows of patane (tombs) of the Bululangkan village at the end of August were in vary-

ing condition. Some were soiled, dusty and even covered with mold due to dampness. One of them was the mum-my of Nek Esra Lumbaa, who died in 1998. Three years ago, when Tempo at-tended the same procession, his fami-ly members cheered because the body was intact, though its mass was slight-ly decreased. But because of the tomb’s humidity, mold grew on Esra’s corpse and it grew black.

There were other corpses, howev-

er, that were still intact and neatly wrapped. Among them was the body of Nek Banaa, which occupied the pa-tane next to Nek Esra Lumbaa. Deb-ora Tumba, 58, smiled happily to see her mother’s undamaged corpse. Her dry skin was stuck to the bones; her long white hair was in disarray; her necklace remained around the neck and her earrings on the lobes. Debora took out a brush and cleaned the dust off the corpse. Afterwards, she kissed and hugged the dry remains.

The event was photographed by relatives. Pocket cameras, handyca-ms and cell phone cameras were thus

clicking. They asked to have their pic-tures taken with the mummies. Even the children showed no fear at all. They shouted gleefully when they saw their predecessors.

Ungke said they were cheering be-cause they found the corpses com-plete and recognizable. ”It’s the pride of the families left behind,” he point-ed out. But usually a moving and sad-dening atmosphere followed, because the families would start to remember their moments with their loved ones.

What made the condition of the corpses vary? A traditional � gure in Bululangkan, Yunus Lumbaa, 56, said according to local belief, the bodies are considerably affected by their actions while still alive. Besides, in his view, there’s another no less important fac-tor: the way corpses are preserved.

Before the 1980s, Yunus said, peo-ple used a traditional concoction to preserve corpses. The preparation was a blend of pine leaves and tille—a small bamboo plant used as a preser-vative—combined with kerosene and soap to prevent a bad smell. They occa-sionally added tea into the equation. The tea was sometimes fed to the dead.

However, after the 1980s, residents began to use formalin for practical purposes. According to Nek Sayang, the bodies preserved with traditional methods last longer.

A resident, Yakop Padatuan, 48, shares the view. Until today, his fam-ily still uses the traditional method to preserve the corpses of their relatives. “We used tea to preserve the bodies,” he said. The tea is fed the moment one dies; its dregs are smeared over the dead body. The tea treatment is done only once. The result? The corpses of his three relatives, Sara Sombo Allo and Welem Supan—who died 27 years ago—and Bunga—who died in 2002—have remained intact.

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LASTING CORPSES, DELIGHTED FAMILIES

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THE sun was already at its pinnacle, but the cool air was still rushing over our skin when Pieter Rayub, a resident of Lembang Poton, Toraja, led the proces-sion of ma’nene—the change of clothes of

the dead bodies of villagers who passed away years before.

The ritual began with the opening of the patene door—door of the family cemetery that holds mem-bers of seven clans of one lineage. After the door was opened, around twenty young men rushed into the patene, following Pieter, and took out three black moss-covered co� ns. Like railway coach-es, one by one the co� n was carried away from the tomb.

The � rst co� n contained the corpse of Pieter’s father, Piter Sampe Sambara’, who died at the age of over 100 in 2003. It was followed by a second cof-� n containing the corpse of the mother, Ne’Bose, who died � ve years ago at the age of 80. The last cof-� n belonged to Ne’ Martha Bu’Tu, the older sister of Piter Sampe Sambara’, whose age was estimated to be 100 years old when she passed away 40 year ago.

After the co� ns arrived at Pieter’s residence, which was � lled with the fragrance of burning in-cense and camphor, the mummi� ed corpses were slowly taken out of their co� ns and placed in a standing position. Each family member took off the moldy clothes and cleaned the dust and dirt from the corpses.

Within less than half an hour the corpse of Piter Sampe Sambara’ was dressed up in a long sleeve batik shirt, jacket, pants and belt. Sunglasses were put on his face and a cigarette was inserted be-tween bones of the � nger. Ne’Bose and Ne’Martha Bu’Tu also got new clothes, bracelets and necklaces from Piter’s daughters.

The presentation of these accessories, according to local customs, is intended to please the deceased with articles they cherished in their lifetime. Af-ter the make up was done, the three corpses were wrapped again with a piece of plain red and black cloth, tied with ropes, and put back into new cof-� ns. The next ritual was bringing them back into the patene.

The ma’nene ritual is celebrated by the people

NEW CLOTHES FOR ANCESTORS

of Lembang Poton once a year. They believe if this ritual is not performed, disasters will befall their whole village: harvest failure or a long lasting dis-ease in the family, to name a few examples. This ceremony is often accompanied by tears of happi-ness from the deceased’s family who feel as if they have been reunited with their loved ones after a long period of absence.

■

TEXT

SYARI FANI,

IQBAL LUBIS

PHOTOS

IQBAL LUBIS

VI | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

THE CORPSE OF PITER SAMPE SAM-BARA’ WAS DRESSED UP IN A LONG SLEEVE BATIK SHIRT, JACKET, PANTS, BELT, AND SUN-GLASSES. A CIGARETTE WAS INSERT-ED BETWEEN HIS FINGERS.

PHOTO ESSAY

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | VII

OUTREACH

THE Toraja ethnic group is renowned for their emotional relationship with the dead. One of the traditions is the Ma’nene. “This procession is an expression of respect for

the ancestors,” said Petrus Kembuno, 80, one of the traditional elders in Bululangkan.

Nobody knows when the Toraja began to prac-tice the ma’nene tradition. But in the traditional belief of aluk todolo, Bululangkan resident Yunus Lumbaa explained their ancestors’ tradition of worshipping the dead. Then, there were rituals in-volving the offering of buffalo bones, the betel and areca nuts, as well as cigarettes; these items were placed close to the grave or the sarcophagus at the time of the ma’nene.

Ma’nene is performed after the rambu solo, the fu-neral ceremony, and before the rambu tu’ka or the festival of riding the Tongkonan house—the indige-nous Torajan house with the roof resembling a boat.

The purpose of the ma’nene procession is to com-memorate the ancestors, Yunus explained. The pilgrimage to the cemetery and the changing of the shroud are expressions of respect for the an-cestors. In this procession there is also a chance to slaughter the buffalo for those who, on the funeral day, were unable to participate.

The Toraja culture has changed over the course of time particularly when the Torajans began to embrace Christianity. Since Christianity came to Toraja, the ma’nene procession was adjusted to Christian teachings. Among other things, the res-idents no longer worshipped the dead, but wor-shipped God instead. The ceremonial procedures and the prerequisites are also adapted to current times. According to Yunus, this must be done so that the tradition is preserved in the community.

For example, the patane. The family cemetery that holds members of seven clans from a com-

PAYING HOMAGE TO ANCESTORSThe ritual of readorning corpses in the Toraja tradition is a form of paying homage to ancestors and relatives who have passed away.

mon ancestor used to be located on the cliffs. Due to the cemetery’s trying location, the corpses were propped up to ‘walk’ to the grave in a special ritual. But nowadays the patane is performed in an easily accessed place, such as an open space by the street. Because of its accessibility, the dead can be brought directly into the patane.

One of the family cemeteries visited by Tempo belonged to the family of the late Moli Sesa’ and Nek Banaa. The construction of the 3 x 4 meter patane cost around Rp100 million. The budget for the con-struction of a cemetery depends on each family’s � -nances. In Bululangkan, there are around 30 pa-tanes that have been modi� ed, including those em-bellished with images of the cross and the Madon-na. The shroud used to wrap the corpses has also changed with time. In former times, the dead body was wrapped in burlap sack or dry bark before be-ing wrapped in a plain red and black cloth. Later, when cloths were more available, the residents started using clothes, sarongs, or bed sheets.

One other adjustment is that before the closing ceremony, or ne pare lapuk—a thanksgiving par-ty—the residents hold a service for half an hour. Afterward, the ne pare lapuk is performed at Ran-te, an open space surrounded by megaliths where those present can dine together.

“If in former times the ma’nene was performed within each clan, now it is conducted together by the whole village,” Yunus said.

The calendar for the ritual is not � xed; some-times it is celebrated every four, � ve or six years. “The ancestors performed the ma’nene on the basis of consensus, sometimes once in 12 years,” said Tu Mina Lumba, an elder in Lempo Poton village.

Today, the ma’nene is not merely meant to com-memorate the ancestors. It has also become a home-coming event for Torajan migrant workers. ■

NE PARE

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LAW

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THE statement by Constitution-al Court chief justice, Mahfud Md, seemed to have annoyed the State Palace. One day in April, after returning from an

out-of-town offi cial trip, he received a call from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyo-no himself.

The President brought up the subject of reports that he was responsible for delaying the process of corruption cases involving re-gional chief executives. He made it clear that no requests had piled up on his table, that he usually signed all letters on his desk. “My ta-ble is always clean,” Mahfud said last week, quoting the President.

Two days before, the President called Mahfud, the spokesman for the Attorney General’s Offi ce (AGO), Noor Rachmad said 61 corruption cases involving chief execu-tives remained hanging pending presiden-tial approval. According to Mahfud, it was a setback, particularly compared to Yudhoyo-no’s fi rst presidential term.

The President’s call that day aff ected Mahfud’s conviction somewhat. He agreed that the president’s table may be empty of letters of requests today, but not in the past. “I call it artifi cial obstruction,” added Mah-fud.

■ ■ ■

THE privileges given to public offi cials entangled in legal cases were earlier con-tained in the 1949 Constitution of the Unit-ed Republic of Indonesia and the 1950 Pro-visional Constitution. Both constitutions regulated forum privilegiatum or the spe-cial rights of high ranking offi cials to trial at fi rst instance and last instance by the Su-preme Court.

The offi cials enjoying such privileges were the president, vice president, minis-ters, speakers and members of the House of Representatives (DPR), chief justices, the at-torney general, heads and members of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), and the gov-

HIDDEN LEGALITIES

ernor of the central bank. The special status applied, their resignation notwithstanding, on the condition that their alleged crime was committed during their terms of offi ce.

Since Indonesia’s return to the 1945 Con-stitution, forum privilegiatum has become invalid. But articles on the special treat-ment of offi cials have remained in many laws. This time, what is special is not their place of trial, but the required presidential approval before they can be investigated or examined.

Those granted such privileges are, among others, speakers and members of the legislature. Members of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR), the Regional Representative Council (DPD), and the DPR can only be questioned by investigators af-ter getting the president’s approval. Mem-bers of the governing council of Bank Indo-nesia also enjoy the same privileges.

The special treatment is also granted to Su-preme Court justices, Constitutional Court judges, and members of the BPK. Their ar-rest and detention must be at the instruc-tion of the Attorney General, after obtaining written approval from the president.

It was not only central government offi -cials that enjoyed such status. The Regional Administration Law also regulates the spe-cial treatment given to regional chief execu-tive and legislative offi cials. Regional heads and their deputies can only be questioned by investigators following a presidential approval. Members of provincial legisla-tive councils (DPRD) are only to be ques-tioned by investigators after it is approved by the Home Aff airs minister on behalf of the president, while the examination of re-gency or city DPRD members must obtain the approval of governors, on behalf of the Home Aff airs minister.

In 2008, the AGO Research and Develop-ment Center conducted a special study of this system, concluding that the required presidential approval contradicted some judicial principles. They are, for instance,

the principles of equality before law; of speedy, simple and low-cost trial; and of the judiciary’s independence.

According to prosecutors, the presiden-tial approval has frequently hampered in-vestigation. Apart from being time con-suming, the offi cial requests often got no response. In fact, with no approval issued, the suspected offi cials could easily fl ee; re-move or destroy evidence; or infl uence wit-nesses to testify in their favor.

The system sides with offi cials who are named as suspects. On the side of law en-forcers, being the police and prosecutors, the problem is no less complicated. House Legal Commission member Eva Kusuma Sundari said the state apparatus can manip-ulate the various loopholes in the process of requesting presidential approval for investi-gations. As proof, noted Eva, in 2011 the DPR Legal Aff airs Commission received com-plaints from 76 regional chief executives claiming to have been exploited by the pros- T

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The annulment of the system requiring presidential approval to process suspect regional chief executives will open the door to abuses.

REGIONAL ADMINISTRATION LAW

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 49

ecutors or the police processing their cases. The mode applied, among others, was

none other than the pending presiden-tial green light. While cases were being probed, for example, some would promise they could delay the approval. The condi-tion was that the offi cials had to deliver cer-tain sums of money. Besides bribes, there was also persuasion to make regional of-fi cials change their parties to hinder the presidential approval. “So the chances of capitalizing on and politicizing the approv-al system was wide open,” said Eva.

While he was a member of the DPR Le-gal Aff airs Commission, Mahfud also got the same reports. One day, a DPRD mem-ber from a regency in East Java lodged a complaint. To Mahfud, the local politician claimed he had been treated like an ATM. Every time there was a change of leadership within the police or the prosecutor’s offi ce in the region, some would come to ask for money from the suspect politician. They

had the same tone: “Do you want your case processed or not?” In fact, despite all the payoff s he made, the local legislator ended up going to prison.

Law and Human Rights deputy minis-ter, Denny Indrayana, did not deny the likelihood of abuse in seeking presiden-tial approval. “Each of the law enforcers’ way of dealing with the system was open to abuse,” said Denny. But he made sure such maneuvers did not occur in the offi ce of the President.

Denny related his experience with re-gards to Bengkulu Governor Agusrin M. Na-jamuddin being made inactive and who is now serving time at Cipinang prison in Ja-karta. When Agusrin was a defendant in the Central Jakarta District Court, the pressure to dismiss the Golkar Party politician was mounting in Jakarta as well as in Bengku-lu. But President Yudhoyono could not di-rectly dismiss Agusrin. The President said he would fi rst wait for letters from the court

and the Home Aff airs ministry.Denny off ered to trace the progress of the

requests, which had not reached the desk of the President. The dossiers turned out to have been held in many places in the court as well as at the ministry. Minute record-ers, letter drafters and document couriers also “contributed” to the delayed arrival of the requests. “I don’t know if there was any maneuver or not.” According to Denny, as soon as it reached the President, the letter requesting that Agusrin be dismissed was signed right away.

Because the presidential approval pro-cedure was prone to manipulation, many people welcomedthe ruling of the Consti-tutional Court. “It is a signifi cant step for-ward,” said a member of the Indonesia Cor-ruption Watch working group, Emerson Yuntho. In his view, the judicial review rul-ing is the success of civil society in abolish-ing rules that protect corruptors and em-bezzlers.

But the fi ght of anticorruption activists is not over yet. Outside the Regional Adminis-tration Law, provisions giving privileges to corrupt offi cials remain untouched. Such a questionable article can be found among others in Law No. 23/1999 on Bank Indone-sia, which has been amended by Law No. 3/2004. Article 49 of this law stipulates that in order to summon, examine and investi-gate members of the governing council of Bank Indonesia, prior approval in writing from the president was required. There is also Law No. 15/2006 on the BPK. Article 24 of this law specifi es that any police action involving members of the BPK in the exam-ination of a case must be conducted at the orders of the Attorney General after obtain-ing presidential approval in writing.

According to Mahfud, the Constitution-al Court’s ruling only annulled the article concerning presidential approval of the law under review. For the abolition of the same articles in the other laws, said Mah-fud, the public can continue to request judi-cial reviews from the Constitutional Court. However, Mahfud suggested that the DPR and the government should correct the problematic laws themselves. “It’s better that you do it yourselves rather than we an-nul the articles,” added Mahfud.

JAJANG JAMALUDIN

Session in the Constitution Court building, Jakarta, November 2011.

LAW

50 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

TRAVELERS CHECKS

THREE piles of documents were stacked high, in a cor-ner of the main corridor in the investigators’ offi ces on the eighth fl oor of the Corruption

Eradication Commission (KPK) building. The bundles of documents were fi les of sus-pects in the travelers checks bribery case, involving the selection of Bank Indone-sia senior deputy governor, Miranda Swa-ray Goeltom in 2004. “If there are new fi nd-ings, the case can expand,” said a KPK of-fi cial who accompanied Tempo to view the documents last week.

The documents were bundled up not long after the suspects’ cases went to court. At the investigation level, the administra-tion of the suspects’ cases was completed. Of 31 suspects, all have been convicted in court. A majority of the rulings were fi nal and binding or in kracht. A number of those convicted have even been released as they had already completed their prison sen-tences. As many as 29 of those who accept-ed the checks were members of the House of Representatives (DPR) Banking Commis-sion during the 1999-2004 period.

Apart from indicting former legislators, the KPK also indicted Nunun Nurbaeti. The wife of the former deputy police chief was accused of giving out the bribes. After al-most two years on the run overseas, the so-cialite was arrested by the Royal Thai Po-lice last December and handed over to the KPK.

As a result of Nunun’s confession, Miran-da’s role became increasingly clear. Previ-ously, her name had only been mentioned in passing by a number of the former legis-lators indicted in the case.

A month after Nunun’s arrest, the KPK indicted Miranda. The commission ac-cused this University of Indonesia profes-sor of economics of assisting Nunun in dis-tributing 480 traveler’s checks worth Rp24 billion. The majority of the checks went to 41 members of the DPR Banking Commis-sion, who voted for her as the central bank

STOPPING AT MIRANDA The KPK is having diffi culties uncovering the person behind the travelers checks paid to legislators to ensure Miranda Goeltom was elected Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor in 2004.

senior deputy governor. The checks were purchased by First Mujur Plantation & In-dustry from Bank Artha Graha.

Nunun was sentenced to two years and six months in prison by the Jakarta anti-corruption court. Although Nunun did not appeal, the case has now gone to a higher court because the KPK prosecutor was dis-satisfi ed with the appeal ruling that upheld the district court’s sentence on Nunun. Two weeks ago, it was Miranda’s turn to be convicted by the courts. Banker and lov-er of orchestral music, Miranda was sen-tenced to three years in prison by a panel of judges headed by Gusrizal at the Jakar-ta anti-corruption court. According to the panel, Miranda was proven to have joined in bribing a number of legislators to ensure that she would be chosen as the number two person at the central bank.

Miranda was shocked and unbelieving at the sentence. She immediately reacted by appealing the verdict. From the outset, she had been quite certain that the judg-es would side with her. So certain was she, that the night before the ruling, she asked her driver, Saleh, to collect her belongings from the detention center in East Jakarta, a “branch” of the KPK, where she is being held.

Saleh said that he was told by Miranda to remove her belongings from the deten-tion center because his boss was certain she would be released after the ruling was read the next day. The belongings taken home were, among others, three pillows, a shoe rack, pots, carpet, bathing and beauty accessories, as well as a large suitcase con-taining clothes. However, the decision of the judges turned Miranda’s hopes upside down. “I will appeal,” she said.

Despite the fact that the Miranda’s ver-dict diff ered by only one year from the prosecutor’s demand, the KPK gave notice that it too will appeal the decision. Besides hoping that the verdict of the appellate court will match the prosecutor’s demand, the KPK also hopes that the appellate judge

will make a ruling on the issue of who ac-tually fi nanced the traveler’s checks, even though the court reportedly leans more to-ward an examination of previous evidence ( judex juris).

In the beginning, the KPK hoped that, at Miranda’s trial level court hearing ( jedex factie), there would be an indication as to who fi nanced the traveler’s check. A Tem-po source said that investigators had pre-viously gathered information regarding a key witness who could uncover the bank-roller of the bribes. The witness is called Indah. According to the statement of Ar-tha Graha’s cash offi cer, Tutur, Indah is the woman who signed the confi rmation order for the traveler’s checks from Bank Artha Graha to Bank Internasional Indonesia. Tu-tur testifi ed that Indah was also the person who picked up the 480 travelers checks. “She’s an employee of First Mujur,” he said.

First Mujur Plantation and Industry is a client of Bank Artha Graha that has a re- T

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volving loan fund at the bank, owned by tycoon Tomy Winata. First Mujur also has offi ces on the second fl oor of Bank Artha Graha Building in Sudirman. High-rank-ing offi cials at First Mujur and Artha Graha have several times denied involvement in the bribery case. Tomy Winata also claims he knew very little because he does not get involved in the day-to-day operations of the bank he owns.

According to Tutur, it was also Indah who transferred Rp24 billion from Bank Artha Graha to Bank Internasional Indonesia, us-ing a real time gross settlement facility. Ac-cording to a source at the KPK, investiga-tors have summoned Indah several times but she has not appeared. The Commis-sion is having diffi culty fi nding her where-abouts. At the trial, two former First Mujur commissioners, Yan Eli Siahaan and Ron-aldo Harijanto, testifi ed that Indah was not an employee of First Mujur. “She’s the pros-ecution’s witness, we are sure she exists,”

said the source.The source said that while the admis-

sion of First Mujur Finance Director, Budi Santoso, that the travelers checks were re-quested by Suhardi Suparman, also known as Ferry Yen, this was considered by the KPK to be mere gossip. According to Budi’s explanation to the KPK, on June 8, 2004, he was asked by Hidayat Lukman—wide-ly known as Teddy Uban—to pay the fi rst part of the cost of a Rp 24 billion plantation expansion to Ferry Yen. In the beginning, said Budi, the cost was to be paid with bank checks. Later, however, Ferry asked for it in the form of travelers checks. “This sto-ry of Budi’s is supposed to be his alibi, the key witness is Indah,” said a senior offi cial at the KPK.

According to the offi cial, uncovering the fi nancier of the travelers checks is like searching for a needle in a haystack. Mi-randa and Nunun’s hearings, which were expected to provide more information, he

said, turned out to be a disappointment. Nunun did not touch on who the fi nan-cier was. “She was only forthcoming when asked about Miranda’s role,” he said.

The KPK offi cial claims they also have in-formation about a Bank Indonesia audit of Artha Graha Medan. In the audit, a Rp24 billion stream of funds was found to have been sent to Mujur and then used to pur-chase the travelers checks. Strangely, the KPK chief stated that within a month, the debt would be paid, not by First Mujur but by a number of private banks. “We’ve re-quested an audit, but the central bank has not responded,” the offi cial said.

A Bank Indonesia spokesperson, Difi A. Johansyah, confessed that he did not know about the KPK request. As for the audit, Difi said, he will not comment because it in-volved an individual bank audit. The head of General Aff airs at Bank Artha Graha Med-an admits not knowing about these devel-opments. She also denied that Bank Indo-nesia had ever audited her offi ce in relation to the travelers checks. The Artha Graha Medan branch chief, Arifi n Djaja, was not available when Tempo visited his offi ce on Wednesday last week.

Another Tempo source said that the KPK was also preparing to investigate the fi nan-cier of the travelers checks by collecting data on a number of banks which have prof-ited from Miranda’s policies when she was the central bank’s senior deputy governor. However, steps to fi nd out who the fi nan-cier was, had to be postponed because of the commotion over the withdrawal of KPK investigators by the police. “Due to a short-age of investigators, the bankroller ques-tion has been temporarily postponed,” the source said.

KPK chairman Abraham Samad, prom-ised that he would continue to investigate the fi nancier of the checks. “This case will not end with Miranda, we will continue to look for the mastermind behind the travel-ers checks,” he said. KPK spokesman Johan Budi, said they were certain they will un-cover the bankroller. “No matter how small the piece of information, we will investi-gate it,” said Johan.

● ANTON APRIANTO, TRI SUHARMAN, SOETANA

MONANG HASIBUAN (MEDAN)

Miranda Swaray Goeltom preparing her defense at the Corruption Court, Jakarta.

LAW

52 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

DISSERTATIONS AND DYED HAIR

EXERCISING and dyeing her hair. Those are the ac-tivities never to be missed by Miranda Swaray Goel-tom, whose days are now spent in the detention center located on the ground fl oor of the Corrup-

tion Eradication Commission (KPK) building. There are four cells. Miranda’s cell is at the far east end. Next to hers are Kar-tini Marpaung’s cell, the judge who was arrested for receiving bribes, and, Siti Hartati Tjakra Murdaya’s cell. In front is Ne-neng Sri Wahyuni’s cell, wife of Muhammad Nazaruddin, con-victed in the Wisma Atlet case. They usually gather around to watch television close to the security guard’s desk.

Dyeing her hair is a habit of 63 year-old Miranda, long before the former Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor became a prison inmate. Showing off colorful hair styles is what Miran-da likes to do. She usually dyes her hair close to the security guard’s desk located near her cell. Miranda uses a lamp on the desk as a mirror. The Commission does not allow inmates to keep items made of glass or iron.

At least once a week, Miranda exercises together with her cellmates. The location is the ninth fl oor—the highest and open fl oor—of the KPK building. From the exercise yard, surround-

ed by a fi ve meter high wire fence, the inmates can enjoy the surrounding views while exercising. Miranda always appears well-dressed when exercising: wearing white sneakers, a grey shirt and a grey tracksuit with a white stripe down the side.

She performs the exercise well: small runs of around 60 laps while holding light barbells and doing a number of stretching moves. “Among the four, she usually exercises the longest,” said a Tempo source at the KPK. After exercising, she showers, eats dinner and usually reads a book. “Sometimes until two in the morning,” the source added.

Miranda has also begun a consultation schedule as advisor of students preparing for their doctorates. According to Miran-da’s lawyer, Dodi Abdul Kadir, there are at least four doctoral candidates who routinely visit Miranda in her cell. Regularly waking up at 5am, after showering and eating, Miranda usual-ly relaxes in a chair and reads her students’ work.

Saturday and Sunday are Miranda’s busiest days. She is usu-ally visited by friends, her children and grandchildren. On days like these she gets up earlier. Usually, after praying, Mi-randa will apply cosmetic powder and dye her hair. After that, she showers and emerges fresh faced.

Until two weeks ago, Miranda told her visitors that she was certain she would be released. This was the reason she in-structed her driver to retrieve her personal eff ects in her cell -- a shoe rack, pillows, fl ower pots as well as several items of clothing, and take them home. But it was not to be.

USMAN PARAQBUEQ

TRAVELERS CHECKS

Miranda Swaray Goeltom, clad in a KPK detention suit, after her trial at the Corruption Court, Jakarta, July 24.

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OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 53

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● RACHEL RIVERA

TOUGHER LAWS TO HALT ILLEGAL LOGGING

ILLEGAL logging by organized crime threatens to un-dermine global eff orts to combat climate change, curb deforestation and protect endangered wildlife, accord-ing to a new report from the UN Environment Programme

(UNEP) and the international police organization INTERPOL.The global illegal logging trade is worth between US$30-

$100 billion annually and is responsible for up to 90 percent of tropical deforestation, according to the “Green Carbon, Black Trade” report released last month at the World Forest Confer-ence in Rome. It warns organized environmental crime pres-ents serious obstacles to the Reducing Emissions from Defor-estation and Forest Degradation (REDD) programs worldwide and urges a coordinated international response from national governments and law enforcement authorities.

REDD+ initiatives launched in several countries are creat-ing national and international legal mechanisms to reduce il-legal logging. But if REDD+ programs are to be sustainable over the long term, the report stresses, payments to communities for their conservation eff orts must be higher than the returns from forest-clearing activities.

“Illegal logging can undermine the REDD+ eff ort, robbing countries and communities of a sustainable future, if the un-lawful activities are more profi table than the lawful ones under REDD+,” said UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.

Environmental crime and the illegal grabbing of natural re-sources are becoming ever more sophisticated, the report notes, urging national authorities and law enforcement agen-

cies to strengthen responses to halt illegal logging and the glob-al trade in illegal wood products.

The report describes 30 ways of procuring and laundering il-legal timber, including falsifi cation of logging permits, bribes to obtain permits (up to US$50,000 for a single permit in some countries), logging beyond concessions and hacking govern-ment websites to obtain or change electronic permits. In Ka-limantan, the report noted, a bribe for a logging permit for around 20 km2 of forest can cost up to US$30,000.

In Indonesia, the amount of logs allegedly produced through plantations increased from 3.7 million cubic meters in 2000 to over 22 million in 2008, according to the report. It noted the UN Offi ce on Drugs and Crime estimates suggest that less than half of the plantations actually existed, refl ecting a massive orga-nized laundering operation.

The report concludes that without an internationally coor-dinated law enforcement eff ort, illegal loggers and cartels will continue to shift operations from one haven to another to pur-sue their profi table trade.

HUNDREDS OF PLANT SPECIES ENDANGERED BY DEFORESTATION

AN alarming number of plant species in Indonesia are on the ver-

ge of extinction as a result of deforestation, the Indonesian Insti-

tute of Sciences (LIPI) warned last week.

The country is home to 393 fl ora listed as critically endangered,

said researcher Bambang Prasetya, deputy chairman of the Indo-

nesian Institute of Sciences biodiversity department, Antara re-

ported. The number represents a 1.7 percent increase from 2010,

putting Indonesia in fourth place, alongside Brazil, on a list of

countries with the greatest number of threatened plant species,

according to data from the International Union for Conservation of

Nature. “There must be an instrument which can comprehensively

accommodate integrated conservation efforts of plants, starting

from the ecosystem level to genetics,” Bambang was quoted as

saying. “The role of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation,

which has been recognized and adopted in botanical gardens

around the world, is greatly needed.”

FOREST MORATORIUM REVIEWED IN NEW BOOK

THE Special Staff to the President for Climate Change, Agus Purno-

mo has released a book reviewing the two-year moratorium on new fo-

rest permits, and perspectives from government agencies, conserva-

tionists and businesses.

Protecting Our Forests: Pro-Cons of Moratorium on Forests and

Peatlands’ Policy, published with the support of the Presidential Se-

cretariat, Cabinet Secretariat and the Forestry Ministry, records the

process of development and issuance of Presidential Instruction No.

10/2011 in May 2011, which ordered a suspension on the issuance of

new permits in primary forests and peatlands.

The Presidential Instruction is a fi rst step in the government’s policy

to develop mechanisms to manage Indonesia’s forests in a transparent

and sustainable manner. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is the

fi rst Indonesian president to issue a policy ordering a moratorium on

new concession licenses on primary forests and peatlands.

ECONOMY

54 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

TUBAN PETRO GROUP’S DEBTS

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 55

IT was late Wednesday night two weeks ago. Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo was visited by guests from the Asset Man-agement Company (PPA) at his offi cial residence at the Widya Chandra Complex in South Jakarta. They reported that Tu-ban Petrochemical Industries would pay only Rp61 billion of

a loan that amounted to Rp734 billion. In one hour, a new day would arrive. It would be exactly one month since the due date for Tuban Petro to settle their outstandings.

Due to their inability to pay in cash, as stipulated by the agree-ment, the parent company of Trans Pacifi c Petrochemical Indotama (TPPI) aromatic plant is to be declared in default. The following day, armed with Minister Agus’ blessings, PPA issued a notice of default on the debt personally guaranteed by Honggo Wendratno, founder and CEO of TPPI. “There was nothing else we could do. If we hadn’t done it, we would be questioned about our negligence,” said CEO of PPA, Boyke Eko Wibowo Mukijat, to Tempo last week.

The Rp734 billion would be the seventh payment in a 10-series of multiyear bond Tuban Petro Group. When it was published eight years ago, this multi-year debt reached Rp3.26 trillion. What remains is the debt originating from a restructuring by the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) on non-performing loans worth Rp4.2 trillion incurred by Bank Pelita and Bank Istimarat. Both belonged to the Tirtamas Majutama Group, jointly owned by Honggo, Hashim Djojohadikusumo and Njoo Kok Kiong aka Al Njoo.

In the restructuring process, Hashim and Njoo Kok Kiong with-drew, leaving Honggo by himself. The Tuban Petro Group was estab-lished as the new parent of assets formerly owned by Tirtamas. The government, through IBRA—which became PPA after it was disband-ed—controlled 70 percent of the shares, with Honggo controlling the rest through the Silakencana Tirtalestari company.

Through Tuban Petro, PPA indirectly controlled the subsidiaries formerly belonging to Tirtamas, namely, TPPI (59.5 percent), Poly-tama Propindo (80 percent), and Petro Oxo Nusantara (50 percent). TPPI aromatic plant is located in Tuban, East Java; the Polytama polypropylene plant in Balongan, West Java; and Petro Oxo alcohol producing plant in Gresik, East Java. All shares are collaterals of the debt.

Originally, the Tuban Petro Group was expected to gain profi t to pay off their debts by 2014. Once settled, PPA would return the shares

TWILIGHT FOR

HONGGOThe restructuring of the Tuban Petro Group’s loan was messy and has ended in a payment default. This might spell the end for Honggo Wendratno.

TPPI plant at Tuban, East Java.

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used as collateral to Honggo. Unfortunate-ly, the group’s debt, especially TPPI’s, be-came bigger. Until the end of last August, the total reached US$1.74 billion, or about Rp16.5 billion (at Rp9,500 to the dollar). Most of it, US$649 million, is owed to Per-tamina.

In December last year, Honggo, Tuban Petro Group, and the government creditors signed a master restructuring agreement (MRA) as a new scheme for debt settlement. Honggo, who claimed to have secured a US$1 billion fi nancing from Deutsche Bank, promised to pay US$1.07 billion to PPA. He made the same promise to Pertamina and BP Migas. His condition was that Pertami-na must buy mogas and LPG produced by TPPI.

In reality, the MRA collapsed at the expi-ration of the renewal period of implementa-tion, on August 18. Non-government credi-tors rejected the restructuring scheme and demanded to be treated equally as the gov-ernment creditors. Eff orts by Honggo in let-ters he wrote to government creditors and forwarded to Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa, requesting the MRA be extended, were rejected.

Consequently, PPA had to refer back to the multiyear bond payment schedule in accordance with the initial agreement. This was what the Tuban Petro Group could not pay at the end of last month. With the de-fault status, Honggo now only has 180 days to pay off the entire debt. If he fails to do so, PPA will permanently control all collater-als, including Silakencana’s shares in Tu-ban Petro.

According to a Tempo source, three weeks ago or a week prior to offi cially be-ing in default, Honggo and Tuban Petro of-fered to settle his debts through asset settle-ments, in other words by selling off the debt guarantees in PPA. They brought along two potential investors who were ready to buy Tuban Petro’s shares in Polytama Propin-do and Petro Oxo Nusantara.

The CEO of Tuban Petrochemical Indus-tries Amir Sambodo confi rmed that his company only had Rp66 billion in its cof-fers to settle the principal of the debt to PPA and Rp14 billion for the interest. That was the reason why the company off ered pay-ment through shares and assets. “But PPA rejected it because the agreement stipulat-ed cash settlement,” he said on Thursday.

The decision by PPA was like a breath of fresh air to Pertamina, who had since June 2009 declared four times that TPPI was in default. The default is applicable to the sub-sidiaries as well. This means that Pertam- S

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TPPI MOUNTAIN OF DEBTSCREDITORS COLLATERAL AMOUNT (US$)

UOB (trade fi nance facility) Ranked fi rst on cash and banks 94 millionPertamina** Product delivery instrumentOpen accounts receivable

Ranked fi rst on physical assetsNone

406.2 million232.9 million

JGC CorporationMezzanine loanDeferred EPC payment

Ranked second on physical assetsRanked second on physical assets

17.5 million 186.4 million

ArgoMezzanine loanTranche B working capital loanUnsecured liquidity support loan

Ranked Second on physical assetsNoneNone

20.9million30 million

110.2 million

BP Migas None 183 millionVitolTranche B working capital loanUnsecured liquidity support loanMezzanine loan

NoneNoneNone

47.9 million26.9 million22.3 million

Others Secured debtsUnsecured debts

83.8 million265.7 million

TOTAL 1.73 billion

* Not including the remaining multiyear bond debt of Rp2.82 trillion by Tuban Petro to PPAPertamina’s Version ** per September 30, 2011

SOURCE: FINANCIAL STATEMENT OF TPPI PER APRIL 30, 201

Honggo Wendratno

TUBAN PETRO GROUP’S DEBTS

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 57

ina is increasingly determined to execute TPPI’s assets.

Two weeks ago, they registered their ex-ecution plan to the State Service Offi ce of Finances and Auctions in Surabaya, East Java. “According to the agreement, Per-tamina can directly execute collateral ob-jects without a trial if TPPI is declared in default,” said Pertamina vice president of communications, Ali Mundakir.

● ● ●

FOR a few months, the roar of engines and the loud screech of the horns were no longer heard from the TPPI refi nery com-plex in Tasikharjo village, Tuban, East Java. Last Wednesday, the row of chimneys no longer billowed smoke. Cars and buses parked in the front of the plant looked emp-ty, unkempt and covered by bushes.

In the back, the area along the port stretching more or less 100 meters was also empty. “Since late last year the factory was no longer operating,” a spokesman for TPPI Tuban, Hilal, told Tempo. He said many of his colleagues had resigned.

Amir Sambodo does not deny that the TPPI refi nery could be said to be suspend-ed in time. The protracted implementation of the MRA resulted in the company not re-ceiving the necessary supplies of conden-sate from BP Migas and other raw materi-al suppliers. “This was because TPPI can’t open a letter of credit,” he said.

Pertamina, as a senior creditor, may be free to execute the assets in Tuban. If TPPI is sold, they will receive fi rst priority be-cause payment of their loans receives fi rst priority because the status of their guar-antee ranks fi rst over physical assets. The problem is, PPA’s loan ranks third after a mezzanine lender, such as JGC Corporation and Argo. TPPI’s debts to BP Migas do not even have collaterals. Such conditions are now burdening the government creditors. “Asset execution won’t be easy,” said the Tempo source.

Last year, in preparation for the MRA, PPA assessed the companies under the Tuban Petro Group’s umbrella. Polyta-ma and Petro Oxo were estimated to be worth US$70 million and US$130 million respectively. At a minimum, TPPI must cov-er Rp1.07 trillion as part of the multiyear bond. “Because it is not operating, TPPI’s value will not cover its debts to the govern-ment.”

That is why Finance Minister Agus has asked the three government creditors to prepare a proposal to ensure all loans are paid to them. The government wants TPPI

to resume operations. Understandably, be-cause to build a new aromatics plant would cost at least US$2 billion, not to mention the four years it would take to complete con-struction.

PPA and Pertamina are reluctant to dis-close their strategy after Tuban Petro’s default. “Obviously, we want TPPI to re-sume operations sooner,” said Pertami-na’s Director of Investment Planning and Risk Management, M. Afdal Bahaudin, last Thursday.

It seems that the government creditors must move quickly. Last week, the news re-ported two foreign creditors, Argo Capital and Argo Global Holdings would be suing TPPI. If they can have TPPI declared bank-rupt, all government’s plans will go awry.

A Tempo source at Pertamina said that they were discussing with PPA and BP Mi-gas various options. Starting from tak-

ing over all shares in Tuban Petro, leav-ing TPPI management to Pertamina, con-verting debt into shares, to inviting strate-gic investors as operators. Clearly, whatev-er the option chosen, the government cred-itors must immediately assess Tuban Pet-ro Group’s assets and ensure Honggo will throw in the towel. “This default is like the beating of the drums of war,” the source said.

As an immediate measure, Pertamina, which has a 15 percent stake, will attempt to embrace the other shareholders at the general meeting of TPPI shareholders on Thursday this week. While awaiting the valuation of assets, Pertamina plans to of-fer a management takeover of TPPI from Honggo’s hand. “At the end of the day, Hon-ggo must leave.”

● AGOENG WIJAYA, RETNO SULISTYOWATI,

SUJATMIKO (TUBAN

WHITE IN ARGO’S SHINING ARMOR

LAST year’s story repeats itself. The Tuban Petro Group’s default sta-tus caused Argo Global Holdings and Argo Capital BV to fi le for bankrupt-cy against Trans Pacifi c Petrochemical Indotama (TPPI) in Central Jakarta Commercial Court on Friday last week. “Our clients want to be treated

equally in the payment of this debt,” said Argo’s attorney, Stefanus Haryanto last Thursday.

This year’s situation is similar. The two foreign creditors appear when Honggo is under pressure. The impact is exactly the same: government creditors, particularly Pertamina, become anxious.

How can they not be? If TPPI is declared bankrupt, the gov-ernment’s debt settlement plan may go awry. Pertamina’s intention to seize the collateral debt will be jeopardized. The Court will gather all creditors and debtors to nego-tiate for peace, agree to delay the debt repayment obli-gations, or appoint a receiver to sell assets and divide them according to the list of debt rating.

If this happens, it is possible that not all of TPPI’s debts to the government will be repaid. In addition, the status of TPPI’s debt to Pertamina in the form of open accounts receivable valued at more than US$232.2 million and to BP Migas at US$183 million, is unsecured. In other words, there is no priority of payment.

A Tempo source in the government said that the lawsuit fi led by the Argo camp last year weakened the government’s position in their discussions with Honggo on restructuring. The source suspects that Honggo is behind this law-suit. “With this lawsuit, for the time being, the government can’t just go ahead and take over TPPI,” he said.

Stefanus chose not to comment on the allegations. What is important, he said, is that they can prove their claims as TPPI creditors. “We would like any action associ-ated with the debt to be done together,” he said.

Presumably, everyone one would have to wait until the fi rst hearing on Argo’s law-suit is held on Wednesday this week. Interestingly, last year Argo revoked its law-suit one hour before the judge opened the trial, after the government and Pertamina agreed once again, to give TPPI some room to maneouver. ● AGOENG WIJAYA

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DEBT-STRAPPED Honggo Wendratno, CEO of Silakencana Tirtalestari, came to the offi ce of the Asset Management Com-

pany (PPA) in Jakarta two weeks ago. Ac-companied by Amir Sambodo, CEO of Tu-ban Petrochemical Industries, Honggo ex-plained his company’s inability to pay his loan installment.

On August 27, Tubaan Petro should have paid back Rp734 billion to the government, through the PPA. Silakencana is 30 percent owner of Tuban Petro. The rest (70 percent) comes under the PPA. The petrochemi-cal giant company owes the government in the form of a multi-year bond, Rp3.1 tril-lion. Hinggo claims his assets are still valu-able, enough to pay back the loans. But the PPA rejected the proposal, and proceeded to issue a notice of default. Last Thursday, Amir Sambodo explained to Tempo report-ers Bambang Harymurti, Jobpie Retno Su-listyowati and Pingit Aria, the beginnings and the consequence of the failue to repay the loan.

Why has Tuban Petro failed to pay their

loans?

We don’t have that much money. At that time, we only had Rp66 billion in cash to repay the principal and Rp14 billion to pay the interest. We still owed about Rp600 billion. We off ered to pay using our stocks and assets. The minimum we could get was US$75 million, enough to pay the in-stallment. But the PPA rejected it, because based on the agreement, it must be in the form of cash.

What will be the consequence of that?

All companies under the group will fail to repay their loans, including TPPI. The consequence is that we must pay all of the remaining loan, not just the installment. And the obligation goes to Honggo as the

guarantor, no longer Tuban Petro, be-cause it failed to repay the loan. The PPA gave Honggo a deadline of 180 days as the personal guarantor, to pay the remaining Rp2.8 trillion.

What happens if Honggo is unable to meet

the deadline?

If in that period of time Honggo is un-able to repay the loan, he is totally fi nished.

Will Honggo’s 30 percent shares be tak-

en over?

The 30 percent shares of Silakencana is controlled by the PPA, which can be exe-cuted any time. So, all Tuban Petro shares are now owned by PPA.

Can the PPA confi scate Honggo’s person-

al assets?

Well, it was a personal guarantee. If the sales of assets is not enough to repay the loan, he must accoount for it personally.

How is Honggo taking this?

He asked that the three companies (TPPI, PON and PP) be sold.

If the assets are sold, will the proceeds be

enough to cover the PPA loan?

In the next 180 days, all subsidiaries will be evaluated. Based on previous evalua-tions, Petro Oxo Nusantara was estimat-ed at US$136 million, Polytama Propin-

do US$75 million and TPPI Rp1.07 trillion. I explained to the PPA that all that can be re-paid. When that hap-pens, Silakencana will own 78 percent shares, while PPA’s share will go down to 22 percent.

Before the default no-

tice was issued, did Tu-

ban Petro and TTPI meet

with PPA? Reportedly,

you brought an investor

with you.

That’s true, all com-pleted. Nobel Chemi-cals plans to buy Poly-tama Propindo, while Wellington is interested in expanding his own-ership in Petro Oxo Nu-santara. Honam and Samsung were once also interested but they backed out when they saw the chaos at TPPI. So Tuban is actually quite strategic.

Why not come to an

agreement?

The PPA asked that by September 27, everything must be paid in cash. That’s impossible.

In October 11 , TPPI will hold an extraordi-

nary meeting of its shareholders. What will

be the agenda?

The management and commissionerss of TPPI will convey alternative solutions to the TPPI problem, bankruptcy or call in. In the call in, Pertamina would be supplying, operating and selling the products. The TPPI would just get a management fee.

What was the solution you offered?

There are fi ve choices for Tuban Petro. First, the guarantee can be executed. Sec-ondly, the asset settlement is for the gov-ernment if it wants to own shares, third-ly, the sale of Tuban Petro asets should be auctioned. Fourthly, there is a possibility of another restructurization. Esssential-ly, all assignments are with the PPA. For TPPI, there are two alternatives: bankrupt-cy or restructurization, which can be quite heavy. Or a debt to equity conversion.

Is Honggo ready to come out of the TPPI?

He said yes. What other choice is there? He has no direct access to the PPA. He of-fered assets and was rejected. It may be ar-gumentative, but legally, there is nothing against paying debts with assets.●

AMIR SAMBODO:

IT COULD BE THE END FOR HONGGO

TUBAN PETRO GROUP’S DEBTS

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HORSE RACING

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THE crowd bounces up and down energetically, causing dust to rise and cloud the air. Spontaneous shrieks sliced through the barren

sky. Beneath the scorching sun, hundreds form a square gate around a horse rac-ing arena that has lately been packed with spectators.

Two weeks ago on Sunday, this tradition-al race was held in Keleyan village, Socah subdistrict. The exact spot of the arena was a 350-meter long, recently harvested rice fi eld. The command was given, followed by roars of excitement, and in an instant two horses sprang from the start line and sprinted towards the fi nish line.

One or two people occasionally breached the gate separating the spectators from the track, in order to approach the horses. “It’s fun. We can go in the arena and throw stones at the horses so they’ll run faster,” said Maria, 25 years, a student from Bang-kalan.

Similar to traditional horse races in Sum-bawa, the jockey does not use a saddle, shoes, or even a helmet. The diff erence is, in Sumbawa the jockeys are children

WHEN AYU TINGTING GALLOPS Horse racing is guaranteed to entertain tourists in Bangkalan.

whereas the jockeys in Madura are adult males. In order to grab the attention of the crowd, they name their horses with names of musicians such as Ayu Tingting, Anak Manja, and even Scorpion, the heavy met-al band from Germany.

On that particular Sunday, over 100 hors-es competed. They entered one of three classes based on their heights. Class C is es-pecially for horses below 133 centimeters, Class B 133-138 centimeters, and Class A 138-148 centimeters. The winners of each race will compete with one another until there is fi nally one champion. The losing horses also compete against each other; the win-ner of this race is called “the lower cham-pion.”

Traditional Bangkalan horse races fi rst appeared in Parseh village, Socah subdis-trict, in 1985. This tradition started from a group of carriage drivers who were simply having fun while hanging out at the mar-ket. Carriage drivers from other cities then started to hold similar competitions. Oc-casionally, a competition between villag-es is held, consisting of tens of participants. There was a hiatus and the competition was

fi nally held again in Parseh in 2008. During its development, a number of

entrepreneurs and kiai (Islamic clerics) became interested in participating. This caused the size of the horses to vary. Due to the growing number of enthusiasts, the Indonesian Horse Society, (Pordasi) Bang-kalan branch, was then formed. The orga-nization agreed on various regulations, in-cluding issuing certifi cates for jockeys.

The horse race is now a prestigious event. Fans of the race search for horses to com-pete from all over the country: Surabaya, Sumbawa, East Nusa Tenggara. The ani-mals they seek are worth anywhere from Rp30 million to Rp50 million—no longer around ten to twenty million, which is the value of a horse used to pull a carriage.

The cost of maintaining a horse is quite expensive. Ali Fahri spends up to Rp1.5 million per month for the maintenance of Anak Manja, his prized horse.

Tending to the horse is not an easy mat-ter. At around 6am, the horse goes on a walk up to 5 kilometers. Afterwards, it is bathed with a washcloth soaked in warm water and then scrubbed with a mixture of grated ginger and alcohol. The horse is then dried in the sun for one hour until its coat is dry and fed a mixture of wheat pow-der and vitamins. Grass is only given occa-sionally.

In order to add to the horse’s vitality, the horse is given a special jamu (herbal medi-cine) each week: 25 free range chicken eggs, young coconut, ground coff ee, and honey. “Although I’m only a farmer, I always have enough to take care of my horse. It is not a burden at all,” said the 41-year-old man.

Despite its expensive care, the prize of-fered for the winner of a race is not entic-ing at all: a mere 14-inch television and Rp150,000. It is a matter of prestige for horse owners when their horses win the race. “The value of our horse can also in-crease if we win,” stated Muji Masri, a con-testant.

Jockeys are paid Rp200,000 for a string of races. It’s not unusual for one jockey to be hired by two to four horse owners at one time. “My thighs really hurt from riding a horse without a saddle,” said Suki. These horse races are also hoped to be able to at-tract tourists, like the karapan sapi (cow race) that has sprinted ahead in the world of racing.

● YUDONO Y. AKHMADI,

MUSTHOFA BISRI (BANGKALAN)

Horse racing in Bangkalan, Madura.

60 | | OCTOBER 14, 2012

CRUDE THEFT

IT was high noon on Wednesday, Sep-tember 19, when customs offi cers on-board the vessel BV 8005 patrolling uninhabited islands in the waters of Riau, off the eastern coast Sumatra,

spotted a ship slowing to a stop at the cape of Tanjung Berakit.

An offi cer, with the aid of binoculars, identifi ed the ship as MT Martha Global, an

Indonesia-fl agged tanker, heading for Ma-laysian waters.

Caught by BV 8005, the tanker was found to be carrying 32,000 kiloliters of crude oil. When questioned, the tanker’s skipper, identifi ed only by his initials as ‘EWI’, could not produce proper documents.

“Clearly they were trying to smuggle the cargo out of the country,” Andhi Pramono,

head of the Riau Customs Investigation Of-fi ce at Tanjung Balai Karimun told Tempo last week.

According to Pramono, the cargo carried by the 45,000-DWT tanker is worth Rp216 million, a potential loss to the state of the same value had the tanker managed to slip away, and a blow to government eff orts to meet domestic fuel requirements. “There-fore, the case should not be viewed from its material aspect alone,” said Pramono.

MT Martha Global was the biggest catch in Riau waters during September of this year. Three other tankers seized during the month were smaller in terms of cargo.

THE MYSTERY OF TANJUNG BERAKIT Customs offi cers have seized tankers bound for Malaysia with millions of liters of undocumented crude oil

ECONOMY

MT Admiralty and SB Siga-Siga seized in Seraya Island waters.

Gde Pradnyana, BP Migas Public Relations Division Head.

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On September 8, MT Admiralty, a St Kitts & Nevis-fl agged tanker was caught in waters off Seraya Island with a cargo of 951 kiloli-ters of high speed diesel oils.

Admiralty was seized as it was unload-ing about 9 tons of the cargo to SB Siga-Siga. The tanker’s skipper A.H. was detained at the local customs offi ce.

On September 13, MT Hor-net, an Ulan Bator (Mongolia)-fl agged tanker, was seized at Tanjung Berakit with 102 tons of marine fuel as cargo, worth an es-timated Rp700 million

On September 14, MT Sakthi, another tanker registered in St Kitts & Nevis, skip-pered by ‘SF’, was seized with an undocu-mented cargo of 650 tons of crude oil be-lieved destined for Malaysia.

The skipper of MT Sakthi insisted the car-go was bound for islands in Riau. “Where in Riau do islands require so much oil?” asked Pramono. And where does the crude oil in such large quantities come from?

Gde Pradnyana, the deputy for opera-tions at the oil and gas regulatory offi ce, BP Migas, told Tempo on Wednesday last week that crude oil theft was rife among oil op-erations in Sumatra “It’s a well-organized mafi a, involving thousands of people, in-cluding police and military personnel.”

Whether the tankers seized in Riau wa-ters had any connection with rampant crude oil thefts in mainland Sumatra, is as yet unknown. Pradnyana said BP Migas is carrying out a forensic test on samples of crude seized by the customs offi cers to de-termine their origin. “We are also wonder-ing where the crude came from.” Pradnya-na claims, however, that “BP Migas can de-termine where the stolen crude came from because every kind of crude has a chemical characteristic, a sort of fi ngerprint that we can identify from our database.”

From a recent test of samples from MT Martha Global, said Pradnyana, BP Migas established that the crude came from oil wells in the Duri area operated by Chevron Pacifi c Indonesia. “It’s crude that the gov-ernment receives as a production share from the area, ” said Pradnyana

According to Pradnyana, several days before the tanker was seized, BP Migas held a shipping coordination meeting with Per-tamina. Since the crude from Duri is the government’s share of production, Per-tamina was appointed the party to trans-port and sell the crude. “If the crude is a share for the production-sharing contrac-tor, then the contractor is free to dispose of

it as it likes,” said Pradnyana, adding that at the coordination meeting, Pertamina gave a presentation on liftings, destination and transportation.

In a word, the cargo carried by MT Martha Global consisted of the gov-

ernment’s share of crude pro-duced. It was loaded aboard the tanker at Dumai termi-nal on freight-on-board basis. It means that the government had received payments for the

cargo on the date of loading. Further responsibility for the car-

go rests with the off -taker Pertamina.“Under the agreement, the cargo was

destined for the Pertamina refi nery at Ba-longan in West Java,” said Pradnyana. “I wonder why the tanker was seized and found without proper documents.” More-over, he added, the tanker tried to fl ee when the customs boat approached, sur-rendering in international waters close to Malaysian waters. “All this needs some ex-

planation from Pertamina.” Pertamina spokesman Ali Mundakir ac-

knowledged his company charters the MT Martha Global to transport the cargo to the Pertamina refi nery. He said Pertamina sup-ported the investigation of the case by the customs offi ce. “Some of our employees have been asked to provide information on this case.”

Mundakir said he did not know what real-ly happened in Riau’s waters that Wednes-day afternoon. “If the tanker was late in ar-riving at the refi nery, we would slap a pen-alty on it. We cannot play a guessing game, so we’d just better wait for the results of the investigation.”

As to the seizure of the three other tank-ers, Mundakir said it might be related to the theft of crude from Pertamina’s oil pipeline in Riau, Jambi, and South Sumatra. “The wa-ters in these areas are open. A daily average of 1,000 barrels of our crude is stolen.”

● Y. TOMI ARYANTO, RUMBADI DALLE

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THE VICTIMS

ALFIAN Sauri was buried on Thursday last week. The 45-year-old man was killed along with Agus Bastiar, his brother-in-law, in the explosion of a Pertamina pipeline at Bayung Lencir in the South Sumatra district of Musi Banyuasin, the previous day. The explosion was believed to have

been sparked by fi re accidentally, lit by men siphoning crude oil from a breached pipeline.

As of Thursday night, seven people had died from severe burns. Dozens of others injured in the accident were treated at a local hospital. “Alfi an and Agus were rubber tappers. They were not thieves stealing crude oil from the pipeline as reported in the media,” said Safarudin, Alfi an’s other brother-in-law.

Shaufi , speaking on behalf of the bereaved family, said both Alfi an and Agus had no means to engage in the theft of crude from the pipeline. “They were in the area scooping oil spills; that doesn’t mean they were stealing.”

“They were victims of rich and high-ranking people,” said Shaufi . “They could not possibly be thieves. Look at their houses.” Nothing of value could be found in Alfi an’s 5 x 4-meter house with a corrugated tin roof, except for a rickety plastic chair and a tattered plaited mat.

The reality contrasts with the fact that thousands of barrels of Pertamina crude oil is stolen daily. The state oil company claims to have lost Rp200 billion in crude oil sto-len from the Tempino-Plaju pipeline alone. “In the past fi ve months, 242,504 barrels were stolen,” Pertamina Public Relations Manager Agus Amperianto, said last week.

Amperianto said Bayung Lencir recorded the highest number of cases of crude theft. In 2011, there were 158 cases recorded, increasing to 373 cases during January to September this year

Sr. Com. Toto Wibowo, head of the Musi Banyuasin Police, said scores of people were siphoning crude oil from the pipeline when it exploded. Wibowo said he found in the area hundreds of pools, each measuring about a meter in diameter and 2 me-ters deep. “Apparently these pools were used as temporary storage for the stolen crude. The question is why he allowed the illegal activity to happen under his very own watch. ● Y. TOMI ARYANTO, BERNADETTE CHRISTINA, PARLIZA HENDRAWAN

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ANGELA FLASSY

WHEN the Indonesian Press Council held a panel discussion on the status of women journalists recently, two unique cas-es emerged. Both come from confl ict areas: Aceh and Pa-pua, yet, while they may share the same sense of mission, the sociocultural and political challenges they face in the

course of their jobs, could not be any more diff erent. Saniah from Aceh and Angela from Papua speak out on their roles as members of the media.

ANGELA FLASSY SUARA PEREMPUAN PAPUA CHIEF EDITOR AND ACTIVIST

FROM AN ORAL TRADITION TO A READING CULTURE

THE challenge Angela Flassy, 38, faces in her job as a journalist in Papua is not her gender, as in oth-er provinces of Indonesia, but the

minimum infrastructure and a highly-sen-sitive security situation. She walks miles and must take rickety canoes to cover sto-ries, and her offi ce is watched constantly by members of the intelligence. Nevertheless, Angela is committed to producing a critical media that will keep the public properly in-formed.

You are the chief editor of Suara

Perempuan Papua (Voice of Papua Women)

weekly tabloid. How did this publication

begin and when did you fi rst get involved

with it?

Suara Perempuan Papua was established in 2004, by a group of women concerned that the news in Papua lacked gender and development perspective. They wanted a forum to promote the rights of women and related issues. So, on August 6 that year, the paper published its fi rst edition and I was one of its fi rst reporters.

Its contents, however, are not all about

women’s issues.

Well, women’s issues touch all aspects of society, so we monitor development proj-ects and we follow public opinion. Our cov-

erage is more on what is happening out-side the towns, in the jungles and up in the mountains, because other media tend to cover just the urban areas.

That must be quite a challenge, given the

lack of roads.

Our coverage depends on our capacity. For example, when one of our staff goes on home leave, we will ask him or her to cov-er their home areas, or anything that may happen along the way. It costs too much money to send a staff to go anywhere.

What makes journalists like yourself

endure such a diffi cult environment?

I think it’s because we are professionals and we are very concerned about the cha-otic situation here. That’s why we chose to take on this job, even though we could have easily become civil servants, a more secure and better paying job.

Young Papuans are not interested in

journalism?

I don’t think so. We once had a recruit-ment drive, but many just use this job as a stepping stone to working with the govern-ment.

What about going into community

service?

I don’t see an environment that moti-vates young people to think about working for the community. In campuses in Java,

there used to be campus newpapers, that’s how I and others got interested in pursuing this career.

What are the most serious social issues

you cover in Papua?

Today, schools outside of big cities have no teachers. A lot of money has been poured into Papua, but there is no one to run the schools and the health clinics and local administration offi ces are often emp-ty. Sometimes, the principal of a school must double as a teacher. His class would have 90 or 100 students. If there is a doctor at the health clinic, he is alone, without any nurses. And there is no laboratory, even though malaria is a big problem. We have the structure but no human resources to operate them.

Why don’t they want to work out of town?

Too remote, not enough pay?

Some of those places are not that re-mote, public transportation gets there. And they get enough pay, but they do have to go into town to get it, which can take days. I think some people have no calling to serve the people. But there is one former journalist who is staying, as a principal of a high school. So I suppose it’s all about char-acter

Where is your newspaper distributed?

At the beginning, we were able to go to

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OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 63

all districts. But the problem is how to re-trieve our payments. We succeed only when we have trusted people to manage our accounts out there. So today, our pa-per is distributed only in the towns of Me-rauke, the provincial capital of Jayapura and its environs, in Wamena and Timika.

How does a media in Papua get its

funding?

There’s advertising from the govern-ment. We used to get a bit from them, 30 percent comes from non-government or-ganizations, and some from the owner. But it’s getting harder to get ads.

What about big multinational companies

and big national plantations?

They seem to prefer other media.Maybe your paper is perceived as too

radical.

We are journalists. We report on human issues and people’s needs, and everything we report is based on facts, what happens on the ground. We don’t write about pol-itics. So, we cannot be described as radi-cals. Yet the authorities accuse us of being negative, of saying that regional autonomy failed. We never say that. We are asking: how can the public get access to education, health facilities and other public services?

Have you ever felt discriminated against

as a female journalist in Papua?

I don’t think so. I have never been abused. I think journalists don’t make dis-tinctions when we report the news. I have never been excused because I am a wom-an, even when I was pregnant I was expect-

ed to do my job no matter where. Have you ever had the chance of

covering the separatist movement?

I have never encountered an armed OPM member. But I do meet with politicians who speak about indepednence. They are not the armed guerrillas. My only contact with a so called OPM was actually a gun-runner on the border with PNG. I believe much of the news and reports about the OPM lack substance.

As a Papuan journalist, do you feel a

confl ict in reporting on Papua?

I am a professional and I do my job the best I can. At times, however, I am a Pap-uan, like when I atttend a conference of tribal elders. I want to know how my fate is being decided, so then I am a Papuan.

How do you report on charges of

injustices in Papua?

I don’t think there are offi cial data about it. But the fact is that if I wanted to open a chicken shop selling for Rp32,000 each, I lose out against chicken coming in from Surabaya, which are sold for Rp24,000 each. The Jayapura Chicken Vendors As-sociation went to the government to stop the supplies from Surabaya and give us ki-osks at the market. But it seems the Suraba-ya chicken vendors had paid them off , be-cause nothing got changed. In my view, the people’s economy is not working because all commodities like chicken, fi sh, garlic, soybeans and corn, come from outside Pa-pua.

But can farmers in Papua guarantee

supplies?

We should be able to. The transmigrants produce good rice and chillis. Yet these products are brought in from Surabaya, at lower prices. In the end, this kills the Pa-pua farmers. The money is there, credit is available but we still cannot set up a busi-ness. It’s like we are intentionally neglectd so we remain undeveloped.

What would you like to do next? I would like to do something about in-

stilling a culture of reading and writing in Papua. Papuans have had an oral tradition for a long time, so the gap is very wide be-tween the two. I would like to set up public reading rooms, start a campus newspaper and a private radio station with creative programs.

How about becoming a legislator,

represent your constituents and change

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EVER since high school, Saniah had always wanted to be a jour-nalist. “I want to see changes,” said the 39-year-old activist, who

was born and raised in the once strife-torn, resource-rich province of Aceh. She is one of nine siblings whose mother continues to push her cart daily, peddling fresh cuts of beef around her village, just outside of Lhokseumawe town. Lacking funds to go to university, Sania went to neighboring Ma-laysia as a migrant worker at 18, returning six years later to enroll for journalism class-es, earning a degree in 2005. She plunged enthusiastically into a career mired in po-litical challenges and full of social taboos, in Sharia-based Aceh.

How did you become a journalist?

I began as a student at the Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Komunikasi Pembangunan after I re-turned from Malaysia where I was a mi-grant worker.

You were a migrant worker?

At 18, after graduating from a madrasah (Islamic school), I went to Sungai Petani at Kedah Daral Aman state, working at a Na-tional Panasonic factory. I started out as an operator and ended as a supervisor.

But you decided to come home.

Well, my objective in working in Malay-sia was to save enough money to go to uni-versity. I achieved that, so I came home be-cause I always wanted to study journalism and become a reporter.

Why?

I want to make changes. I want to write and provide the public with the right infor-mation, and with that information, they can initiate changes for the country.

Are you saying that the public doesn’t

SANIAH HARIAN ACEH REPORTER, JOURNALISM LECTURER AND ACTIVIST

SKIRTING AROUND SHARIA

SANIAH

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 65

fi ed personnel, we only cover the big cases, like corruption and traffi cking. Yet, there are many more that need to be exposed.

What kind of traffi cking is there in Aceh?

Youths and children are lured into pros-titution. Many of the traffi ckers pretend to run beauty salons, but they are actual-ly prostitution dens. This is a big problem in Aceh.

Are they sent overseas?

Yesterday, the Aceh police handled a case in which the children were taken to Batam Island, and sold to people in Sin-gapore. And there seems to be a mafi a in-volved in this.

As such, have you or other reporters

covering this story ever faced danger?

Yes. I once did my own investigation. I interviewed a woman who worked at night, asking her why she ended up in such a situation. Not long after that, I got a nas-ty phone call.

You’re not afraid of working at night?

I stay in a boarding house and the peo-ple around me know about my work. I make myself known to the proper author-ities on what my job is so they are aware of my comings and goings. Sometimes I come home at four in the morning, or I leave at that time for early duty. So far, God Willing, no problems.

You have a mother. Does she approve of

your job?

She is actually proud because I am a jour-nalist, particularly when she sees my by-line in print. What makes her sad is that she thinks I have no future.

What do you mean no future? Many

journalists end up being, politicians,

offi cials, legislators…

She doesn’t think journalists get paid well and it’s a job that is not conducive to having a steady family.

As a woman, what is the most important

thing to fi ght for?

I would like women journalists to get the same attention, given the same access as the men, particularly in their career devel-opment. And most importantly, to dedi-cate myself to enabling people to improve their lives.

And beyond that?

Write a book to honor my mother, may-be set up an NGO, teach and share my ex-periences. ●

I want to make changes. I want to write and provide the public with the right information, and with that information, they can initiate changes for the country.

get the right information?

Well, not all information given out is in-correct but not everything is balanced. The media writes more about the government, instead of people’s needs.

Do you think that’s how it is in Aceh?

That people are more focused on money

and material rather than on people’s

welfare?

My observation is that the media tend to write from the government’s perspective, even though they will criticize their policies at the same time. Unfortunately, critical me-dia are not backed by the advertising world, and are excluded by the government.

What do you usually cover?

Almost everything. But I like best to cov-er and write about the arts and culture, tourism and most importantly, human in-terest stories, like human rights?

What do you mean by human rights?

In Aceh, there are many problems that do not get enough exposure, like the vic-tims of the tsunami who still don’t have proper homes. Those who have lost jobs end up begging. I want to write about them so their cries can be heard and hope the government will be able to do something about them.

When we talk about human rights,

discrimination comes to mind. Is there a

difference in the treatment between men

and women in Aceh?

Actually there is, and I think it’s not just in Aceh. Many people still think women are weak, for example, that women cannot be given the same position as male journal-ists. But as a woman, I feel quite challenged to be covering confl ict situations, natural disasters or events that are neither cere-monial and government-related. Yet, it is male reporters that are given priority in ca-pacity-building training.

There was a very tragic incident in

Aceh recently, of a girl who killed herself

because she was reported by the media

as a prostitute, even though there was

no evidence of it. As a woman and as a

member of the media yourself, how do you

feel about this?

As a journalist, I would review again why she, Putri, was arbitrarily branded a pros-titute. Any information involving Sharia is issued by the Islamic Sharia Offi ce. If the reporter had been more sensitive and car-

ing, he would have checked with the Of-fi ce, or asked the victim or the accused. Or the word ‘alleged’ could have been added to the story. But from what I read in the pa-pers, the journalist never bothered to con-fi rm with Putri or her friend, to balance the story. I think however, that this only came out because Putri committed suicide. If she had not, no one would have cared.

In your view, was Putri treated unfairly?

If the reporter had written a balanced story, this would never have happened.

How many active women journalists are

there in Aceh?

From data we obtained in 2010, there are 25 women for every 115 men. Of the 25, only six are print reporters. Others work in tele-vision stations, as presenters.

Is that because few women are

interested in reporting?

Actually, when I ask women, they are in-terested in doing reporting work. But the pay is low, the risks are high. Some feel pressured because they get no support from their parents. If they come home late, they also fear the possible consequences of being branded ‘bad women.’

What are the problems that most grab

the interest of the media in Aceh?

Much in the news are issues of educa-tion, health and how to improve the peo-ple’s economy.

What about corruption?

Of course. Recently, there was the case of the North Aceh regent and his deputy who were involved in a Rp220 billion cor-ruption case.

Is crime part of your coverage?

Yes, but because of a shortage of quali-

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sense of solidarity is linked to violence.What triggers violence? Where does it

come from?

It can come from anywhere, for exam-ple from fi lms which emphasize violence as the solution to problems. It can even come from the students’ homes. For ex-ample, some parents claim to hit their kids because they care for them. And the kids think, “so that’s the way to care.”

The lack of space in the city is seen as one

factor in triggering student brawls, because

there is no way for youths to use up their

high energy.

That’s true. Where can the kids go now-adays when they want to have fun? There’s no space for them to play football, so they end up hanging out at malls or on the street. They need to be taught how to chan-nel their energy: scream out loud, turn on the music loudly would be a few examples. They must be asked to do things that are social in nature, that would contribute to the public good.

Many youths suppress their energy and

seek ‘relaxation’ through drugs.

Sometimes, they don’t know where to go when they have problems. They fi nd

SCHOOLS NEED TO IMPROVE THEIR IMAGE

TWO weeks ago, a tragic incident cast a pall over our school system. Alawi Yusianto Putra, a student at State High School (SMA) 6, died following an attack by students from a neighboring school, SMA 70, in South Jakarta. Two days later, in the same general

area, Deni Yanuar, a student of SMA Yayasan Karya 66, died after he was attacked by a group of students as he alighted from a bus.

Unfortunately, these two deaths are stark examples of the ris-ing number of victims of violent student brawls in Indonesia. Ac-cording to the Indonesian Commission on the Protection of Chil-dren, this year alone, 17 youths have died in areas of Jakarta, Bo-gor, Tangerang and Bekasi. In the past, after such incidents, the police usually make an appearance at the schools and convey their condolences to the parents. Then they set up banners at the school’s front gates, in big letters, condemning student brawls. But the brawls continue unabated, as if they had become stan-dard procedure.

The schools, like SMA 70 and SMA 6, continue to brawl from year to year. Some psychologists say this chronic disease can be prevented. That is the conviction of Linda Saptatdji Yahya, a se-nior psychologist with years of experience. “With proper train-ing, we can change their mindsets,” Linda told Tempo, referring to secondary school students.

Linda is well-known for her training in recognizing one’s po-tential to help end the ‘tradition’ of brawling among students of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). In Linda’s opinion, students involved in brawls are young, energetic kids who don’t know they want out of life. What is needed, she says, are a bit of patience and the help of parents to help students fi nd their way and their life’s objective.

Two weeks ago, Tempo reporters Adek Media Roza, Purwani Diyah Prabandari and photographer Jacky Rahmansyah met Lin-da at her home in Bekasi, for a special interview. Excerpts:

peace through drugs. We can teach them to fi nd peace within themselves. And that is by pushing them to think positively, to have an objective in life, a target they want to achieve

Can you explain that in detail?

We must help kids to know what they want to achieve in their lives. They should be asked to explain what they would do to achieve their targets. When they are used to that, it will be an inseparable part of his character. They may deviate when they en-counter problems, but only for a while be-cause they will automatically get back on track. Vision and mission must be made a part of the youth’s grand design.

Is the course, ‘Know Yourself and Extend

Your Potential’ what you teach to students

involved in brawling?

Yes. Helping those who are involved in brawls or are seen as problem kids, means changing how they look at things. Each person has a diff erent viewpoint. What happens when people’s way of looking at things diff er? Usually, they fi ght. We teach them to think positively towards diff erent things, by seeing them from the oppposing view. We tell them to say, “hey... that’s cool T

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LINDA SAPTADJI YAHYA:

Student brawls seem to have become a

‘normal’ part of schooling, even when they

have led to a number of deaths. What is your

view on this?

Fighting is actually something that is quite normal, because students still have a narrow way of thinking about a particular problem. What is abnormal is the group at-tack which results in fatalities. Unfortunate-ly, brawls or violence among students—par-ticularly during their initiation period—has been accepted as part of a school’s tradition by both the teachers and the parents. Many people actually tolerate brawling.

How did such an attitude become accept-

able?

There are some teachers who are reluc-tant to punish ‘problem’ students—those who are psychotic or those who resort to violence because they are high-achiev-ers. Students often don’t know how to ob-tain recognition from others. Yet there is a strong enough pressure to demonstrate ex-istence, to obtain recognition from their peers. Ultimately, they choose the negative path, like bullying—in order to get the rec-ognition and the fear of their younger col-leagues. Being part of a group and having a

INTERVIEW

14 OKTOBER 2012 | | 67OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 67

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INTERVIEW LINDA SAPTADJI YAHYA

cult to be made aware, especially their lead-

ers?

Correct. They are very defensive when they are criticized. Whatever we say, they will regard it as a threat. They must be giv-en something to enable them to resolve life’s problems, including to control one’s emotions. In other words, how to teach people to control one’s emotions. This is essential as a basis of their training.

Do you agree with the view that Indone-

sians tend to be reactive when facing prob-

lems?

Reactive people act without consider-ing the consequences. So, teaching to take a responsive attitude is to make those kids think on the impact of their actions. After the training, the youths will still be able to get angry, to be disappointed. The diff er-ence is how they resolve problems. I be-lieve many in Indonesia need this kind of training, not just students.

How big are the changes after they re-

ceive the training?

Although they may have attended the training, it will not be easy for the stu-dents to change immediately because of too many challenges. For example, when they leave school, a friend is bound to tease them: “Here’s a new item, why stop? Even Mick Jagger is still using it.” To think they had just been made aware of their errors.

What should be the teachers’ role?

Teachers must have strong leadership qualities. Teachers are not friends, he must have integrity, fi rmness and demonstrate his authority, yet remain warm towards his stu-dents. To prevent brawls, teachers must re-

main ever alert and regularly check for sharp weapons in class. But we should sympathize with them, we demand a lot of them, but their economic condition is still weak.

For such a training that you mentioned,

what kind of contribution is expected of par-

ents?

Many of them communicate well with their children and act like parents, not friends. They must impose clear rules of the game, enforced at home and else-where. Some parents wash their hands of their kids, thinking all issues concerning them are the responsibility of the teachers. Many students blame their parents when they have problems. I just want to instill an awareness in them that whatever the par-ent does, it is because it is the best way of showing to convey their love.

Young people need inspiration, not just

from parents and teachers, but also from

leaders. Do we have leaders that can be role

models who are inspiring?

We have lost leaders who had integrity, loyal leaders who were committed, hon-est and courageous. Young as they are, the students understand there is corrup-tion everywhere in the country, that many offi cials are reluctant to make a commit-ment. Well, the kids are emulating that. No one has integrity enough, according to stu-dents. One can say society is being affl icte-with a crisis of confi dence. We used to have great leaders, like Gus Dur, Nurcholis Mad-jid and Hatta. It’s not saying there are none today, but perhaps we must look for them. In such a siituation, television programs and the news must feature inspiring mod-els for the students.

There was once some talk about merging

SMA 70 and SMA 6 schools. What do you

think?

In my view, perhaps what is needed is image building. The impact will be im-mense. It would be like us going to ITB and there would be a banner, written on it: “Welcome to students and the nation’s hope.” Imagine the students’ pride, know-ing they are described as the nation’s hope. That is image building, even though we lat-er laugh about it. This gives a positive psy-chological eff ect. That’s what is known as reframing. Today, the SMKL students rare-ly brawl anymore after the SMK school was located elsewhere. Perhaps SMA 70 and SMA 6 can change brands, and change their brand to be “SMA Peace-Loving.” ●

LINDA SAPTADJI YAHYA

Place & Date of Birth:● Cirebon, West Java, September 7,

1961

Education:● BSc in Psychology, University of

Indonesia (1980)

Career:● Tribina Associates Psychologist &

Trainer● Psiko Utama Associate Psikolog

untuk seleksi rekrutmen & training manager

● Training Consultant to 25 companies (since 2000)

● Trainer at 15 department and government agencies, provincial administrations, DPR, DPRD, State Intelligence Agency, Department of Corrections, NGOs and SOEs

Student brawl in Matraman, Jakarta, November 2011.

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too!” Yes, they will laugh when they are taught to do this at class, but it will have an impact and widen their way of thinking so as to avoid tensions.

How?

I once trained students from the ITB, who were involved in brawls. They were Geode-si students [who often fought against fellow students from the geology department]. I made the leaders of the opposing groups get to know each other, until they were friend-ly and agreeable with each other. How was I able to do it? Because the fi rst thing I did was to change their paradigms.

Are those students involved in brawls diffi -

OCTOBER 14, 2012 | | 69

ter (Daud Sumolang) is shown more at ease with his lover and the problem that they have, fi nding a suitable person for a three-some, seems more light-hearted than oth-ers.

This is where Parts of the Heart shows clarity in its objective. That fi nding love in life, regardless of who it is , is a long-wind-ed search that is not always good and nei-ther is it always bad. The fi lm does not let the audience dwell in melodramatic scenes that tries to garner empathy. Yet it also does not let the audience think that such an issue can only be treated as a light-hearted joke. In this way, Agusta blends optimism with reality into his characters, which translates well on screen to the audience, who sure-ly will have felt all the things Peter felt. It is a feeling that love can be diffi cult and easy and painful and wonderful and mundane, as it is for everyone else. That love is the sur-est thing in life, if only we can fi nd it.

● RAIN CHUDORI

IT is not merely through the black-rimmed spectacles, or the cigarettes that never seem to leave his fi ngers, or his hesitant yet intriguing behav-ior. It’s through all those things that

director Paul Agusta introduces viewers to his protagonist Peter, and the eight seg-ments of Peter’s metamorphosis. These segments tell the tale of Peter, and the parts in his life that have shaped him into who he is.

The awakening of Peter (Ardy Rinaldy) begins in The Stolen Kiss, a scene in which he wears Boy Scout shorts, sitting next to his childhood crush, peacefully slumber-ing next to him. In The Game Kiss, Peter has traded his shorts for high school slacks and his Boy Scouts for video games, and the kiss is now longer, passionate and care-less. Again and again, we see Peter change and evolve from the young boy that he was, searching for a kiss that only he would know about, into a man searching for more

than a kiss.While the storyline is classically linear,

Agusta employs the use of diff erent ac-tors to portray Peter, using only several trademarks of Peter as a hint to the audi-ence. This technique is well-crafted, giv-ing the impression of the changes people go through as they grow older. It is not just that Peter has grown taller or heavier, it is that Peter’s priorities, too, have changed. Peter’s big worry was once about losing his fi rst love. But his troubles have changed, such as the disappearance of his lover in The Last Time segment or Peter (Ade Firza Paloh) questioning his own fi delity in Why isn’t Peter Happy?

Then there are the segments such as The Couch and The Cat, which show a Peter who is unconcerned, and a Peter (Joko Anwar) sitting on the couch with his lover, who oth-er than having developed an allergy to the cat, seems loving and has something that Peter has long been looking for. In 3, Pe-P

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Parts of Peter’s HeartPaul Agusta’s third movie is a charming andoptimistic view of growing up as a gay man in Indonesia.

Director/Writer Paul AgustaProduction Kinekuma Pictures

FILM

Sidelines

‘Today I think of you as a star in the sky—something that twin-kles and fades, yet always appears at the point of forgetting.’

BHISMA, the doctor exiled to the island of Buru in Laksmi Pamuntjak’s novel, Amba, writes this short sentence on 28 December 1973. He writes it for the woman he has left behind in Java, and then hides

it beneath a tree. He never knows whether Amba fi nds it and reads it; he never returns, following his disappearance in 1965.

The novel, published this week by Gramedia Pustaka Utama, comes to us indirectly ‘at the point of forgetting’. A disappeared person; to stress his absence, the novel presents only the few letters unearthed from beneath the tree in a corner of Buru Island. We get the voice of a person, Bhisma, who ‘twinkles and fades’.

Amba is one of a few novels that stress the sense of anxiety plaguing us in Indonesia these days: the anxiety that the terrifying ‘events of 1965’ will be lost, stripped from collective memory. We do not want to return to brutality.

It is not surprising that the events of 1965 have appeared recently in literature (before Amba there was Candhik Ala by Tinuk R. Yampolsky, Blues Merbabu by Gitanyali, and soon to come is Leila S. Chudori’s novel, Pulang). Amba is diff erent in that its story is about the life of the political prisoners on Buru Island, told through Bhisma’s hidden let-ters: there is anger at cruelty, but also humor, wonder, even op-timism. Every letter is compelling.

Was it really like this? We usually ask of a novel about 1965 that it ‘set history straight’. The current generation is aware that it was not given the ‘true’ picture about what went on with the political violence of 1965. The ‘New Order’ pushed its own explanation, through fi lms we were obliged to watch, history books, and the strictly controlled media, but also through ter-ror and censorship. As a reaction, what we see now is an attempt at liberation from this 33-year long regimentation of memory.

Earlier I said that we are at the ‘point of forgetting’: forget-ting that leads to the absence of enthusiasm for what is true and just, the absence of things that are more than mere practical life. Maybe this is why these days fi ction based on history feels more ‘true’ than the writing of history or historiography.

But actually these two types of narrative about the past are closer than you might think.

No matter what, the past is the present with an adaptor. We live today with memories that are not necessarily precise about the past. We need mechanisms to adjust the remembered X to the narrated X1.

So historiography is not a replica of experience. Of course one can say that a writer of history works with institutional ref-

erence—upheld by the academe or the acknowledged commu-nity of historians—to obtain presentations that are as ‘objective’ as possible. But there are at least two things that frequently pre-vent history books from representing living experience.

The fi rst is their narrative thrust. Historical stories need di-rection, and probably even tension and climax. If these are not there, readers will make them themselves. But life, particular-ly the life of the majority of people, is infi nitely diverse, unclear in its suspense and climaxes—something that would be obvious were we to make fi lm recordings of our lives every minute for a period of, say, 45 years. Faced with this, writers of history need

‘shape’ in narration. Their works are not so diff er-ent from those of novelists.

The second is the desire for ‘reason’. An event is pushed to ‘make sense’, in particular it has to be placed within the relationship of cause-and-eff ect. In the desire for ‘reason’, there is nothing without explanation; there is no smoke without fi re.

But explanations that ‘make sense’, as in the re-lationship of cause-and-eff ect, are actually made by human thought—particularly by historians who analyze and link one event with another. Even though many things are contingent in their out-comes and origins. Every attempt of narrative to place these events within a frame—with a neat fl ow and relationships of cause-and-eff ect that ‘make sense’—make historiography move a few meters

further from ‘the truth’. Particularly when that frame is deter-mined by power that wants to use history books for self legiti-mation.

Fiction, or literature, can be freer of that ensnaring frame. Literature does not ‘remember’ in the sense of repeating what has gone before. Literature ‘creates’. Mark Twain said, ‘When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.’ Literature rescues mystery from the arro-gance of the analysts. Literature is prepared to confront what does not ‘make sense’.

Maybe this is why Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children fus-es contemporary Indian history with mythology and fantastic tales, enriched by play with allegory and words that can be hu-morous. Amba also leaves points of mystery. It has poetry. But it chooses a form that is more ‘realistic’ by leaving the clash be-tween myth (the story of Bhisma and Amba in the Mahabhara-ta) with history, between history and someone’s life. This nov-el, with its impressive research, is serious business.

Without perpetuating the tragedy and horror of 1965, Amba seems to be aware of one thing, and presents it in an elegant way: the wounds of history can be healed, but they should not become amusing.

● Goenawan Mohamad

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