WEDNESDAY APRIL 5, 2017 | TWENTY-FOUR PAGES VOL. 34 NO.

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EDUCATION PREMIER LEAGUE

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EXPORT PERMIT

Freeport gets red-carpet

treatment, again
Fedina S. Sundaryani ry reform to US President Donald
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA Trump, is a major shareholder in
the company.
Copper and gold miner PT The government has defended
Freeport Indonesia is getting the its decision, even though there
red-carpet treatment once again, is no legal basis that backs the
as the government is allowing the temporary IUPK issuance and
company to resume exports de- no concrete agreement has been
spite the company’s mounting re- made regarding the divestment
sponsibilities. and smelter issues.
The export activities are made The Energy and Mineral Re-
possible with the issuance of a sources Ministry’s secretary-gen-
temporary special mining permit eral, Teguh Pamudji, said in a press
(IUPK) by the Energy and Min- conference on Tuesday that it was
eral Resources Ministry that is working to ensure a smooth tran-
backdated to Feb. 10 and valid for sition from the CoW to the IUPK.
eight months. “In any public policy, including
With the temporary IUPK in in regulations surrounding the en-
place, Freeport will be able to use ergy and mineral resources sector,
the ministry’s recommendation there will always be an opportunity
it obtained in February to export for the government to guide [busi-
1.11 million wet metric tons (wmt) nesses],” he said, insisting that such
of copper concentrate for a year. guidance applied to all firms want-
The company, the operator of ing to convert their CoWs to IUPKs.
Courtesy of Presidential Office/Kris the world’s largest gold mine and The government claims that
Message of peace: President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo (fifth right, back row) meets with Muslim clerics at State Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday. second-largest copper mine, is during the next six months, it will
Also present at the meeting were Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto, Religious Affairs Minister Lukman now waiting for an export permit continue negotiating with the
Hakim Saifuddin and State Secretary Pratikno. to be issued by the Trade Ministry. company over the terms for a full
Despite the short export period, conversion of the miner’s CoW,
Freeport is seen as having dodged including the issues of invest-
the bullet again, because it was ment stability, divestment and

Jokowi gets clerics previously required to convert its

contract of work (CoW) to a per-
manent IUPK, divest 51 percent
of its shares and build a smelter
within five years before being able
smelter construction.
It will also conduct a semiyear-
ly evaluation on Freeport’s smelt-
er commitment. The firm pre-
viously promised to construct a

in line amid tension

to export, as stipulated by Govern- smelter in Gresik, East Java. 
ment Regulation (PP) No. 1/2017. Teguh said if the government
Freeport — backed by its parent and Freeport Indonesia failed
company, United States-based to see eye-to-eye in the next six
mining giant Freeport-McMoran months, the miner would be al-
Inc. — had consistently rejected lowed to return to its CoW, but
the requirements and argued that would be barred from exporting
Haeril Halim Meeting seen as The 20 clerics invited to the across the country. they violated the investment cer- its copper concentrates again.
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA President’s attempt to Palace included Irfan Wahid, who “They told the President that tainty provided by the present The 2009 Mining Law stipu-
defuse sectarian tension heads the Tebuireng Pesantren religious harmony should not CoW, dating back to 1991. lates that the holder of a CoW can-
President Joko “Jokowi” (Islamic boarding school) in only be established through the The disagreement had led to a not export its production without
Widodo has convened Muslim Police say anti-Ahok Jombang, East Java, cleric Sa- implementation of law and hu- standstill and Freeport warned processing it domestically first. 
clerics from regions across the protesters plan major nusi Baco, who is an adviser to man rights principles, but what is that it could take the Indone- Freeport spokesman Riza
country at the State Palace amid rallies in five cities the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in the most important thing is that sian government to international Pratama said the firm would be
allegations that hard-line Islam- South Sulawesi, Syukron Mak- we use empathy to build religious arbitration. willing to fully convert its CoW to
ic groups are planning large ral- mun, the head of Pesantren Daru- harmony,” he said. The miner had been unable to an IUPK as long as the latter grant-
lies in five cities as part of a plot to linked a sectarian rally in Jakar- rohman in Jakarta as well as cler- Jakarta State Islamic Univer- sell its copper concentrate over- ed investment stability, which en-
overthrow him. ta to a plot to oust Jokowi. In De- ic Aris Ni’matullah, the head of sity (UIN) analyst Adi Prayitno seas, creating a large pileup at its tails legal and fiscal cer-tainties
The meeting on Tuesday took cember last year, police arrested a Pesantren Buntet in Cirebon, said Jokowi had made the right compound in Papua. that are equal to the ones outlined
place just days after the Jakarta number of people accused of try- West Java. move in embracing regional cler- However, earlier this month, in the current CoW. 
Police arrested five alleged in- ing to use the rally as a means to Speaking as the spokesman ics, because people across the Freeport resumed production at “We are in the process of ob-
stigators of the latest sectarian depose the President. of the group after the meeting, country had been polarized along 40 percent of its normal rate after taining an export permit,” he told
rally against Jakarta’s Christian Tuesday’s meeting is seen by Syukron said the clerics agreed sectarian lines due to the Jakar- securing an export permit for an- The Jakarta Post on Tuesday. 
governor, Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja analysts as an attempt by Jokowi with Jokowi’s calls for the re- ta election. By inviting clerics to ode slime, a byproduct of copper BMI Research, a unit of Fitch
Purnama, on March 31 on trea- to gain support from Muslim cler- ligious leaders to maintain the the State Palace, Adi said, Jokowi processing. Group, predicts in a recent report
son charges. The authorities have ics to prevent simmering sectari- harmony of Muslims in their re- wanted to tell Muslims that the The temporary IUPK decision that Freeport will likely continue
accused them of trying to oust anism that has gripped the capital spective regions by stepping up government was not “criminal- came just before US Vice Presi- to negotiate with the government
Jokowi by occupying the House of in recent months from spreading campaigns to promote religious izing” clerics and that the ar- dent Mike Pence’s visit to Indo- to maintain its operations in the
Representatives. to other regions. tolerance. rests of several figures believed nesia this month. Freeport-Mc- country, as copper and gold prices
The five suspects, including In his opening remarks at Syukron said the clerics also to have orchestrated the anti- Moran is known to be politically are expected to rise to US$5,800
Muslim People’s Forum (FUI) Tuesday’s meeting, Jokowi called on Jokowi to solve any le- Ahok rallies were not politically connected, as US billionaire Carl per ton and $1,525 per ounce,
leader Muhammad Al-Khath- thanked Muslim clerics for do- gal cases in the country through motivated. Icahn, special adviser on regulato- respectively, by 2021. 
thath, planned to hold big rallies ing their job in maintaining har- legal process without political in- “The meeting with the cler-
in five major cities — Makassar,
Surabaya, Yogyakarta, Bandung
mony in their respective regions
and urged them to keep up the
terference, as that could become
a problem. “As we live in a plural-
ics is part of Jokowi’s attempt to
prevent sectarianism [in Jakarta] Inside
and Jakarta — sometime between good work in order to safeguard istic country, we want real peace, from spreading to the regions,”
April 20 — a day after the Jakar- the unity of Muslims across the not fake peace,” he said. he said. “It is meant to calm down CITY | p9 FEATURES | p24
ta election runoff — and the be- country. Religious Affairs Minister the situation ahead of the second New regulation makes Repair fair beyond
ginning of the fasting month of “We rely on ulemas to main- Lukman Hakim Saifuddin, who round of Jakarta’s election.” online drivers jittery fashion statement
Ramadhan on May 26, Jakar- tain calmness and to cool down joined the meeting, said the cler- He added that the move also
ta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. the situation in cities and regen- ics had not specifically discussed sent a message to the public that
Prabowo Argo Yuwono said on cies of the country so that we al- sectarian issues plaguing the Ja- the anti-Ahok protesters did not BUSINESS | p13
Tuesday. ways maintain a peaceful state of karta election, as they were fo- represent the majority of Mus- High-speed railway contract
It was the second time police affairs,” said Jokowi. cusing on maintaining harmony lims in the country. (dea) signed amid financing issues

RI asks G20 to include inequality, digitalization issues to declaration

I
ndonesia will bring a key Previously, Indonesia prepared G 20 Country Proportion IMF unemployment rates and the lack are the primary elements that will propels the development of
initiative designed to improve a proposition paper, the text of in classification of opportunity for social mobility. accelerate the digitization program. new sectors that were previously
wealth and income distribution which was composed by all the percentage The following table outlines the Indonesia has also outlined in the stagnant because of a lack of
through rapid adoption and stakeholders of Indonesia’s national Germany 30.13 Advanced
Gini ratios of G20 member countries, said paper the concrete steps that exposure.
application of innovative digital digital economy. This paper would with a coefficient of zero percent can be taken to accelerate the The digitalization of SME
economic business models and become an appendix to the G20 Japan 32.11 Advanced indicating total equality among all advancements of the three fields business processes by making them
frameworks among the Group of declaration. United Kingdom 32.57 Advanced members of the society. The lower to help innovative digital business available through online shops
20 countries to this week’s meeting Through the paper, the the Gini ratio the better income models flourish in the country. like Tokopedia and Bukalapak
France 33.1 Advanced
of the G20’s digital ministers in Indonesian delegation plans to equality there is in a country. Through what is often termed has also resulted in a dramatic
Germany, says Communications urge the G20 members to focus on Canada 33.68 Advanced The above data indicates that the shared economy business increase of income for these small
and Information Minister efforts to foster welfare and income Australia 34.94 Advanced inequality, caused by uneven wealth model, the digitalization of entrepreneurs.
Rudiantara. equality through rapid adoption distribution, is a common problem business practices in Indonesia has Financial inclusion in Indonesia
India 35.15 Emerging
“These business models and and implementation of the digital shared by all G20 member countries. produced even more people able has also gained momentum
frameworks will be the enablers economy framework as an enabler Italy 35.16 Advanced Indonesia, which has a better Gini to seize opportunities previously through numerous banking
for a shared economy, workforce of its three components: shared Indonesia 39.47 Emerging ratio than the US, observes that the not available for them because of a products such as online bank
digitalization and financial economy, workforce digitization digitization of all aspects of social lack of access to resources. accounts accessible with GSM cell
Turkey 40.18 Emerging
inclusion,” Rudiantara said during and financial inclusion. activities in a move toward the digital The best example is the Go-Jek phone numbers. The innovation in
a press conference on Monday in In the paper, Indonesia will also United States 41.06 Advanced economy is an action that could online ride-hailing application the financial sector, pioneered by
Jakarta. share its successful experiences Russia 41.59 Emerging potentially open access to many for motorcycle taxis and cars in Bank Tabungan Pensiun Nasional
The minister will lead the conducting incubation programs economic opportunities across Indonesia. It demonstrates the (BTPN), also seeks to promote
Indonesian delegation at the G20 and the development of various China 42.16 Emerging different socioeconomic strata of the patent capacity of the digital digital literacy among Indonesian
Digital Ministers Meeting, which digital economy-based businesses society in an effort to reduce unequal economy business model in terms bank customers to push the digital
will be held from April 6 to 8 in that are practical, scalable and developing countries to developed wealth distribution. The digitalization of rapidly expanding the number economy agenda forward.
Dusseldorf, Germany. effective in reducing inequality in ones, are facing a huge welfare process also makes it easier for of participants in the system. It also Indonesia remains the only
During the meeting, Rudiantara terms of income and welfare. These distribution gap among their more people to seize whatever job provided an opportunity to more country in the G20’s task force on
said, Indonesia will showcase programs mainly focus on the people. This inequality is reflected opportunities are available. than 250,000 ojek drivers to earn a digital economy that pushes an
its latest advancements and empowerment of small to medium in the Gini ratios of G20 member Indonesia also believes that higher income. action-based idea forward in order
achievements in economic enterprises (SMEs). countries. The inequality of wealth shared economy, workforce The availability of online to determine the focus of G20’s
digitalization. Currently many nations, from distribution results in increased digitization and financial inclusion shopping websites, for instance, digitalization process.
2 | HEADLINES WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

Don’t thank them for smoking

S
moking kills — but each puff but the most precious possession have already been mandated by a ing in the US and our neighboring (JKN), a less common practice
of nicotine inhaled into a of all: one’s health. COMMENTARY ministerial regulation and been countries. among countries where the taxes
smoker’s lungs feeds the If the government insists on the implemented — making the con- In Thailand, the taxes are allo- are dedicated to preventive pro-
families of tobacco workers. economic rationale, then people spicuous absence of the provision cated to the Thai Health Founda- grams. The proposal was ruled
This is the dilemma that the who are sick because of smoking- in the bill proof of its disregard for tion, which uses the funds on cam- out as the government argued
government likes to cite. For a related illnesses should not be seen tobacco control. paigns for tobacco prevention and there was no supporting regula-
developing economy like Indo- as a burden on the economy. A re- Second, there would be no clear healthy lifestyle promotion. tion for the suggested policy.
nesia’s that struggles to industri- cent estimate says that the world Adisti Sukma rejection of advertising and pro- In the Philippines, the Depart- Amid the relatively stagnant
alize, tobacco, the cultivation of loses US$1 trillion anually because Sawitri motion in the bill. With the indus- ment of Health manages the ear- sales of cigarettes over the past two
which existed even before inde- of people suffering smoking-relat- JAKARTA try’s strong support for culture and marked funds and allocates them years, the government was wor-
pendence, is part of a way of life ed illnesses — a tremendous trans- sports, advertising and promotion- for medical assistance, facilities ried about a decline in tobacco tax
that few people, let alone smok- fer to the healthcare industry. sumers, only the US and Indone- al activities are still allowed with re- and other health programs. revenues, which account for more
ers, can easily leave behind. Indonesia is not unique in its sia have not ratified the treaty. strictions, such as limited airtime Currently, the total taxes im- or less 10 percent of its total reve-
This is especially true when a tobacco predicament. Other coun- Unlike the US, Russia and Chi- on radio and television. posed on a cigarette pack in In- nues, should it add more taxes.
country that is among the world’s tries dependent on tobacco have na, which had a decrease in the Cigarette ads also still ap- donesia are about half of its retail If the government decides
five major tobacco producers has kept the industry, but have adopt- prevalence of smoking between pear in the shops and supermar- price, lower than the 75 percent to give the tobacco bill a shot, it
loose tobacco controls and is one ed measures to control cigarette 2005 and 2015, Indonesia has ex- kets that sell them, making the suggested by the WHO. should definitely include these
of the largest markets, the fourth consumption. It is only a wonder perienced rising smoking preva- brands and shapes of cigarettes A ministerial decree has man- control measures to end tobacco
after China, Russia and the Unit- that Indonesia, which has experi- lence. A recent study by research- still largely visible in public. The dated that some of the funds be promotion, especially exposure to
ed States. enced a growing number of young ers from Canada’s University Southeast Asia Tobacco Control allocated to regencies and munic- young people. What would be even
Tobacco tax revenues are even smokers, is still reluctant to imple- of Waterloo and the WHO pub- Alliance, a tobacco control advo- ipalities and managed by local ad- better is if it precedes the delibera-
larger than those from the coun- ment strict tobacco controls. lished in The Lancet Public Health cacy group, reported that in the ministrations, but there is no ob- tion with Indonesia’s ratification
try’s oldest foreign investor, cop- About 180 nations have ratified brought up the evidence, prov- region only Indonesia, Myanmar ligation to spend them on health of the tobacco control convention.
per and gold miner PT Freeport the WHO Framework Conven- ing the government hasn’t done and the Philippines still allow ad- programs, negating the impact of Implementation of tobacco
Indonesia, a minister has said. tion on Tobacco Control (FCTC), enough to curb its popularity. vertising at the points of sale. imposed taxes on preventing to- controls will not end the industry.
However, it is surely wicked to which mandates the implementa- The draft tobacco bill that was Third, the bill is missing high bacco consumption. Addiction doesn’t need encour-
monetize people’s misery. It’s fla- tion of high tobacco taxes, smoke- rejected last year misses out on at taxation on cigarettes and a manda- The idea of allocating the tax- agement as vices come naturally
grant commercialism, a way to free public spaces, warning labels, least three tobacco control mea- tory allocation for health programs. es for health programs was also like death and illness.
make a living at the expense of strict advertising bans and sup- sures. Earmarking tobacco tax reve- raised last year in a proposal to All we need to do is to stop giv-
others, and in the case of tobacco port for stop-smoking services. First, it would not require the nues for health purposes is com- direct allocation of the funds to ing the illusion that there’s plea-
it is not only money being robbed, Among the world’s largest con- pictorial health warnings that mon in other countries, includ- the National Health Insurance sure in dying.

MARIJUANA

Oesman’s clout grows after Drug dealers

election as DPD speaker target elementary
Nurul Fitri Ramadhani
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA
school students
In less than six months, busi-
nessman-turned-politician Oes- Nethy Dharma Somba The Aceh Police recorded
man Sapta Odang has remarkably THE JAKARTA POST/JAYAPURA 1,196 cases and charged more
managed to become one of the than 1,445 people with drug of-
most influential politicians in the Amid ample supply of canna- fenses from January to Novem-
country. bis, both home-grown and im- ber last year.
In December, Oesman was ported, authorities are warning Contraband seized in the
elected chairman of the Hanura about rampant consumption of same period included 13 tons of
Party, replacing Wiranto, a veter- the drug, including among ele- dried marijuana, 77 kilograms
an politician who now holds the mentary school students in Jay- of crystal methamphetamine
post of chief security minister. apura, Papua. and 83,000 ecstasy pills. Police
His competitors for the top Random checks by the Jay- also destroyed nearly 426.5 hect-
post in the party included Moel- apura Police have found students ares of marijuana plantations
doko, a former Indonesian Mili- using marijuana bought from across Aceh.
tary (TNI) chief who served under dealers around their schools. Komang said the marijuana
former president Susilo Bambang Insp. Gen. Budi Bambang San- distributed in Jayapura and the
Yudhoyono. toso, the head of the Papua Nar- entire province of Papua was
When he was elected Hanura cotics Agency (BNN Papua), said brought into the country from
leader, he had only been a party JP/Wendra Ajistyatama elementary school students in neighboring Papua New Guinea,
member for a month. In full control: Newly elected Regional Representatives Council (DPD) Speaker Oesman Sapta Odang Jayapura were being targeted for entering Indonesian territory
On Tuesday, the Supreme (center), accompanied by deputy speakers Nono Sampono (left) and Darmayanti Lubis, pose for a pho- marijuana distribution, with the through several points: Skow in
Court inaugurated Oesman as Re- tograph during a plenary meeting in Jakarta on Tuesday. A plenary meeting turned chaotic on Monday drug being sold in small packages Jayapura city, Waris in Jayapura
gional Representatives Council amid lengthy arguments regarding the eligibility of the speakers tasked with leading the meeting. of one ounce priced at Rp 50,000 regency and Oksibil in the Bin-
(DPD) speaker, replacing Moham- (US$3.75) each. tang Mountains.
mad Saleh, who had held the post Oesman known to be strengthen the DPD [if the lead- businesses, all under OSO Group, “This price is affordable for Authorities have also found
for less than six months. He, along close to President Jokowi ers don’t have those attributes]?” operate in various sectors, includ- the school children. By sav- many locals in the border area
with newly elected deputy speak- Benny said, claiming that it was ing mining, property, plantation, ing their pocket money, they planting marijuana.
ers Nono Sampono and Darma- His election as DPD the councilors who had asked him fisheries and hospitality. would be able to buy a pack- “Marijuana planted around
yanti Lubis, were elected through speaker causes to run for speaker, not vice versa. When asked about his election, age of marijuana,” Budi said Skouw is of better quality than
acclamation after a chaotic plena- controversy, with some A number of councilors claim Oesman said he knew that his during a recent destruction of that planted in Aceh. There-
ry session earlier on Tuesday. councilors declaring it Oesman is relatively close with supporters wanted to elect him. confiscated drugs. fore, many people plant it,”
His election was highly contro- President Joko “Jokowi” Wido- “They suddenly called me in the In one case, he said, the agency Komang said.
versial as it has been accused of
illegal do, which they say also boosts the middle of the night to come to the had conducted a counseling ses- Mothers in Jayapura ex-
violating a Supreme Court ruling chances of the DPD being given plenary session,” he said. “I have sion on drugs at an elementary pressed their concern about
on the tenure of DPD speakers. nal move by some DPD members. some real authority. never lobbied anyone.” school, during which students the many students consuming
The court ruled that a 2016 His supporters see him as the Since its establishment, the But his rivals doubt his claims. also underwent a urine test. marijuana.
DPD regulation that halved the only figure that can strengthen DPD has been fighting for an Councilor Djasarmen Purba says The agency found an eight- “I always supervise my child,
tenure of DPD speakers and dep- the DPD and give the institution amendment to the Constitution that several other councilors who year-old fourth grader testing finding out who the friends are
uty speakers from five years to real power, given his position as that would allow it to have a big- have supported Oesman’s elec- positive for drugs. They sum- in school and at home. This
two-and-a-half years was legally Hanura chairman. ger role in lawmaking, budget al- tion had lobbied other councilors moned the student’s parents but problem is very alarming and
void. With this ruling, the cur- Councilor Benny Ramdhani location and monitoring respon- to vote for Oesman since last year, did not detain the student. has been a topic among mothers
rent speaker and deputy speak- said Oesman had what it took to sibilities. However, the House of promising them higher positions The narcotics division head at picking up their children from
ers — Saleh, Farouk Muhammad strengthen the DPD, which has Representatives has consistently and budget increases. the Papua Police, Sr. Comr. IGK school. We are very worried that
and Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Hemas little real power in the country’s refused to share authority with “However, some of us have ig- Komang, said a total of 32 ele- our children could be targeted by
— should have been allowed to re- legislative hierarchy, even though the DPD. nored the offers, because the law mentary and junior high school drug dealers, including us who
tain their positions until 2019. it is officially equal to the House After becoming DPD speaker comes first. We must obey the students in the Nimbokrang live in Kotaraja near the bor-
But a number of councilors, of Representatives and the execu- on top of being Hanura chairman, law,” Djasarmen said. But he add- district of Jayapura regency der,” said Hermina, a resident of
most of whom have joined Oes- tive body. Benny said that Oesman would ed that, “Oesman is a very prom- had recently been caught at a Abepura.
man’s Hanura Party, claim that “The DPD needs a figure with be able to convince the House inent figure. We are sure he will “marijuana party.” According to Komang, some
the ruling is not valid as it con- strong political character, a wide to amend the Constitution and be able to make the DPD better. “We did not detain them, be- of Papua’s 29 cities and regencies
tains too many typos. network and political influence grant it greater legislative powers. We’ll agree to support him, if only cause they were underage. We have become major markets for
Regardless of its legality, Oes- in other institutions, includ- Oesman is also expected to the court does not declare the returned them to their parents,” drugs, including Jayapura city
man’s election is seen as a ratio- ing the State Palace. How can we bring fresh funds to the party. His election illegal,” he said. and regency, as well as Keerom,
Marijuana trafficking is ram- Biak, Sarmi, Nabire, Jayawijaya,
pant across the country. The Timika and Yapen.
drug is illegally cultivated in sev- Narcotics distributed in these
GOLF eral areas, including Aceh, and areas ranged from marijuana to
more is imported from other crystal methamphetamine and
Top golfers blast controversial viewer call-in rule countries.
According to the National
ecstasy, he said.
The BNN Papua said it was
Narcotics Agency (BNN), Aceh, carrying out an information
Frank Pingue happen and I think we need to nament’s done,” said Fowler. wler. “It notorious as an international campaign and counseling stu-
REUTERS/AUGUSTA change that.” just goes back to, there shouldn’t
uldn’t be hub for drug trafficking in Asia, is dents on drugs at schools and at
Thompson had six holes to anyone outside of the officials
als being also a gateway for various other popular hangout places, aside
Viewers calling in rule viola- play when her three-shot lead was able to make this call.” types of drugs, including crystal from conducting raids in plac-
tions and affecting the outcome wiped out by a four-shot penalty The impact of armchair air rules methamphetamine from China es suspected to be targeted
of major tournaments would be for an infringement that was com- officials has come up in the past smuggled in through Malaysia. by dealers.
a thing of the past if players com- mitted the previous day and only but never has it had such h a dra-
peting at this week’s US Masters brought to officials’ attention by matic impact on the outcome ome of a
had their way. an email from a television viewer. major event.
World number eight Rickie Fowl- She incurred a two-stroke pen- Spain’s Jon Rahm, who o is mak- THIS ODD WORLD
er and reigning PGA Championship alty for playing her ball from the ing his Masters debut this is week
winner Jimmy Walker are the latest wrong place and an additional after a stellar start to the season, Grammar vigilante is fixing UK signs
to criticize the controversial rule a two strokes for signing an incor- said some of golf’s rules aree hard
day after American Lexi Thomp- rect scorecard and went on to lose to interpret but if it is the
he LONDON: It is an urban myth come true — the presence of a man dedicated
son lost the year’s first LPGA major in a playoff. right call then one player is to ridding the English city of Bristol of grammatical errors in its shop signs.
after a surprising penalty. Fowler said he was surprised always going to be hurt. He goes out at night with a self-styled device used to cover up mis-
“There’s no other sport where the rule was not changed long “I feel bad for Lexi, be- placed apostrophes from street signs in the city 195 kilometers west of
anybody can call in and say ‘oh ago and that one would be hard cause maybe she would have ave London. He uses stickers, not paint.
that was a foul.’ It just doesn’t pressed finding any golfer who won the tournament if that The man has not been identified but he told BBC in a report broadcast
happen and I don’t know why would say otherwise. hadn’t happened,” said d world Monday that he does not consider his alterations of the signs and store
[golf ] is the exception,” Walker “Once you sign your scorecard, number 12 Rahm. fronts to be a crime.
told a news conference on Mon- that’s kind of it. I feel like, you know, “But a 10-inch putt, I feel like, He says the real crime is putting apostrophes in the wrong places to
day at Augusta National. it’s somewhat like when you look at [she] could have left it alone,
ne, she’s begin with.
“Nobody gets to call ins and if something were to come up Mon- not going to miss it anyway, wheth- USA Today Sports/Gary A. Vasquez It is not a new obsession — he’s been at it for 13 years. — AP
outs in tennis. It just doesn’t day after the tournament, the tour- er it’s a millimeter right or left.” Lexi Thompson
Pillow war overtakes downtown LA
WEATHER FORECAST: APRIL 5, 2017 LOS ANGELES: The feathers were flying in downtown Los Angeles.
Hundreds of people traded soft blows in LA’s Pershing Square in a giant
Sunny Banda Aceh Batam Semarang Denpasar Makassar Ternate pillow fight that dwarfed even the biggest slumber party slugfests.
Rainy 22 - 32 °C 24 - 31 °C 26 - 32 °C 24 - 32 °C 23 - 31 °C 23 - 29 °C Children, teens, adults and seniors swung pillows at one another for
Medan Jakarta Yogyakarta Samarinda Manado Ambon over an hour on Saturday. The annual event is held to celebrate Interna-
Cloudy tional Pillow Fight Day.
22 - 33 °C 25 - 32 °C 23 - 32 °C 24 - 28 °C 23 - 31 °C 24 - 31 °C
Many wore pajamas, some wore masks and goggles.
Pekanbaru Bandung Surabaya Palangkaraya Gorontalo Jayapura By the time it was over the ground was so covered with feathers it
Source:
Meteorology, Climatology
And Geophysics Agency
24 - 31 °C 21 - 29 °C 24 - 33 °C 24 - 33 °C 25 - 32 °C 26 - 32 °C looked like it had snowed on a sunny April afternoon. — AP
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 | 3
4 | OPINION WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

Trump’s trade hit list

ven though the rules of the Geneva-based RI must lead for sake of its
E World Trade Organization (WTO) restrict
what the United States can do to retaliate
against its trading partners with big surplus-
es, Indonesia should be alert and thoroughly interests in S. China Sea
reexamine the composition of its exports to ensure that
none of its export goods violate WTO rules, notably those

O
on anti-dumping. ver the past quarter acterized by a pattern of “talk Chinese expansion and militari-
As Indonesia has been included on the US trade hit list century, Indonesia and take,” as then Philippine de- zation of the South China Sea.
of 16 so-called offending trading partners with big sur- has sought to play the fense secretary Orlando Merca- They might also worry that do-
pluses with the US, its exports will be subject to unusually role of an honest bro- do first put it two decades ago. ing so would lead to the percep-
ker in the South China Sea dis- But since 2013 we have seen tion that Indonesia was taking
tight scrutiny by US trade and customs officials and even putes, facilitating negotiations Aaron L. Connelly much more taking than talking. sides in a dispute between China
the slightest indication of dumping, which is classified as over a proposed Code of Con- SYDNEY China has worked through its and the US. Indonesia could lie
disruptive toward US domestic production, could result in duct for claimants to the sea, and client, Cambodia, to block tough- low and allow those on the front
harsh countervailing duties being levied by the American hosting workshops on technical These developments have se- er language by ASEAN on the sit- lines, like the Philippines and
government. issues and other barriers to co- curity implications for Indone- uation, and it refuses to counte- Vietnam, and great powers like
True, as chief economics minister Darmin Nasution operation. These efforts, though sia. The new Chinese airfield on nance a legally binding Code of the US, to take the lead on these
noted on Monday, Indonesia’s US$13 billion trade surplus admirable, are no longer equal to Fiery Cross Reef, built to accom- Conduct in the South China Sea. issues.
the challenge presented by Chi- modate military jets, is 1,000 ki- Beijing’s increasingly aggressive But while taking a stand now
with the US does not breach international trade rules as nese actions, which now pose a lometers from the Chinese main- behavior, disregard for interna- could lead to tension with Bei-
Indonesia exports only commodities and manufactured much broader risk to Indonesian land in Hainan, but only 750 km tional law, and refusal to negoti- jing in the short term, it will lead
goods that the US, as the world’s largest economy, needs. interests. from Indonesian territory in the ate in good faith portend more to a more stable, peaceful region
But since the US Biodiesel Board has filed a petition Since 2013, Beijing has con- Natunas. serious problems in the future. in the future.
with the Department of Commerce and International structed three large air bases Standoffs between Indonesian As I have argued in a recent Moreover, would it not con-
Trade Commission to impose anti-dumping and counter- and four smaller islands on top and Chinese security forces in Lowy Institute Analysis, “Going travene the spirit of a bebas aktif
vailing duties on biodiesel imports from Indonesia, other of coral reefs in the South China the waters around the Natunas it Alone” (available in English (independent and active) foreign
Sea, and has begun to place mili- have increased as Chinese fish- and Indonesian), it is time for In- policy to leave smaller, devel-
Indonesian export commodities could end up in the spot- tary personnel and weapons sys- ermen sail further and further donesia to define its interests in oping nations to the mercy of
light of the US customs and trade officials, especially as tems on them. The total area re- south in search of a catch, backed the South China Sea more broad- the great powers, or to leave the
Indonesian biodiesel exports to Europe have been subject claimed is 15 times greater than up by a bigger and more aggres- ly than in the past, by seeking not great powers to settle these is-
to countervailing duties in Europe. that of Merdeka Square, and far sive Chinese Coast Guard. only to defend Indonesian terri- sues themselves?
The government also should see to it that the rupiah greater than that reclaimed by Under President Joko torial integrity in the short term, And would it not contravene
exchange rate is not kept artificially low in a bid to achieve Vietnam, the Philippines and “Jokowi” Widodo, Indonesia but also to lead the region in the spirit of a bebas aktif foreign
Malaysia. has responded to these devel- shaping Chinese behavior in the policy to allow Chinese anger to
an unfair trade advantage with the US, because a weak China’s increased presence opments in a robust but narrow long-term. exercise a veto over Indonesian
currency is also an important factor in bilateral trade will help it to enforce its mari- way, reinforcing the Indonesian Indonesia need not abandon action?
balance. In fact, the accusation of currency rate manipula- time claims for example, by pres- base on Natuna Besar, seizing its non-claimant status or hon- Indonesia should maintain
tion by China has long been one of the contentious issues suring other claimants to allow two Chinese vessels found fish- est broker role to do so, but it non-alignment between the
in its trade relations with the US. Chinese fleets to fish in their wa- ing illegally in Indonesia’s exclu- does need to take a much stron- great powers by rowing between
We still believe that despite the rising tide of populism ters, or by restricting the opera- sive economic zone (EEZ) last ger stand in support of interna- two reefs, as founding father Mo-
and nationalism in the developed countries over the past tion of foreign survey vessels in year, and seeking to accelerate tional law. hammad Hatta said, but it must
international waters. economic development in the Jokowi and Foreign Minister also be prepared to adjust its
two years, free trade is still overwhelmingly believed to Were it not for the United waters around Natuna. The pres- Retno LP Marsudi could start course if one of the great pow-
increase productivity and overall economic welfare, both States’ Navy’s continued pres- ident’s two visits to Ranai last by clearly and repeatedly ar- ers constructs an artificial reef
in developed economies and emerging economies. Hence, ence in the area, Beijing would year left no doubt as to Indone- ticulating an expectation that ahead of it.
we are confident that the consensus policy will remain be close to achieving a dominant sia’s claim to the islands. China will adhere to the arbitral Indonesia is the only coun-
opposed to the erection of barriers to trade and interna- position in nearby waters. These are important steps tribunal’s award in Philippines try in the region with the req-
tional capital movements. Nevertheless, there seems to be Such extensive Chinese mar- that will help protect Indonesian v. China, and end its use of the uisite moral authority and ca-
increasingly strong public opinion that these process can itime claims, encompassed by territory and maritime rights in “nine-dash line” to outline Chi- pacity for leadership on these
Beijing’s “nine-dash line,” have the short-term. But it is not clear na’s claims. issues. In the long-term, only
only be defended politically if the losers are compensated no basis under international law. that they will prove a durable de- Doing so would give cover to principled and persistent
by the winners. When China had an opportuni- terrent in the long term, as the other countries in the region to Indonesian diplomacy can
The US, thus far seen as the custodian of global trade, ty to offer arguments in support People’s Liberation Army Navy take a similar stand on behalf of prompt the changes in Chinese
risks derailing the global economy and causing turmoil of its claims before an arbitral and the Chinese Coast Guard international law, and — given behavior that will secure Indo-
if the US Congress allows President Donald Trump to tribunal in The Hague from grow increasingly powerful rela- critical mass over a sustained pe- nesian territorial integrity and
disregard the WTO rules and other international trade 2013 to 2016, its fundamentals tive to Indonesia’s much smaller riod — could lead China to recon- regional stability.
were so flawed that the Chinese maritime forces. sider its position.
regulations as a strong, rule-oriented multilateral frame- leadership chose not to mount Moreover, these steps will do Indonesians might reasonably
work is most vital to generate optimum benefits of global a case. little to address broader con- ask why this duty should fall to The writer is a research fellow at
economic integration. The tribunal’s decision dis- cerns about the nature of Chi- them. After all, Indonesia is not the Lowy Institute in
The International Monetary Fund has also warned that missing the claims is now inter- nese statecraft as China rises. a claimant like Vietnam, Malay- Sydney, where he focuses on the
escalating trade barriers and protectionist rhetoric in the national law, yet Beijing contin- Beijing’s approach to the South sia and the Philippines; and the politics and international relations
US and several other European countries could jeopard- ues to disregard it. China Sea has always been char- US has been active in challenging of Southeast Asia.
ize a pickup in global economic growth. Disregarding the
WTO rules, long championed by the US, would create
turmoil in a world already facing many downside risks.
Unlocking the potential of Chinese cities
OTHER OPINION Andrew Sheng
and Xiao Geng
last year, compared to the na-
tional average of 6.7 percent; 82
egy focused on embedding the
city within the supply chains of
chains and responded according-
ly, such as by improving housing
PROJECT SYNDICATE/HONG KONG recorded GDP growth between the dynamic Pearl River Delta and health care, providing such
At the barricades in Belarus 6.7 percent and 10 percent; and — which includes the global cit- social services even to migrant

R
esidential property pric- just 12 grew by 6.7 percent or less. ies of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and labor, and addressing excessive
es in China’s first-tier cit- Perhaps more significant, per Guangzhou — thereby securing pollution.

A
lexander Lukashenko used to be called the last dictator ies — Beijing, Shanghai, capita GDP in 33 Chinese cities is linkages to the entire world. The local government has also
in Europe. The president of Belarus stands out for his Guangzhou and Shenzhen — are higher than US$12,475, meaning It also included the develop- driven Foshan’s private enter-
survival authoritarianism, easing repression one day, back up. A home there now runs that, by World Bank standards, ment of skills and capacity in prises largely to complete a dif-
applying it the next, cozying up to Russian President Vladimir buyers half as much as a home in they have attained high-income specialized sectors, creating the ficult process of restructuring
Putin one day and the European Union the next. the world’s most expensive cit- status. Four years ago, only 16 world’s largest lighting and fur- since 2008. Foshan’s ceramic in-
This balancing act has seemed again precarious. As in neigh- ies: New York City, London and Chinese cities had crossed that niture markets in the world. dustry, for example, has trans-
boring Russia, people in Belarus appear fed up with decline and Hong Kong. threshold. Foshan now boasts numer- formed itself from a dirty, en-
stagnation, even more marked in a nation that never reformed Letting some of the air out of Urbanization in these high- ous private firms and small- and ergy-intensive, and fragmented
itself out of Soviet socialism. Protests turned larger on March this housing bubble, before too income cities may provide more medium-size enterprises spread industry into a clean, energy-ef-
25 to 26 and the president and his security services responded much pressure builds up, will re- valuable insight into how to con- across the city’s more than 30 ficient, and consolidated sector,
with the most serious crackdown in seven years. quire improved management of tinue China’s remarkable devel- specialized industrial clusters largely owing to high standards
In February, the authorities announced they would enforce China’s rapid urbanization — and opment story than the experi- and integrated into global sup- designed and enforced by the
a 2015 decree that places a fine of US$250 a year on people who not just in the four first-tier cities. ences of the first-tier cities. ply chains. Midea Global, for ex- municipal government.
work fewer than 183days a year. Freelancers, housewives, art- Of course, the housing situa- A new book, China’s Evolving ample, is a global leader in the Meanwhile, local govern-
ists and others who did not register as unemployed were subject tion is most urgent in the first- Growth Model: The Story of Foshan development, manufacture, and ments in Northeast China con-
to penalties as “social parasites.” tier cities. (co-authored by Xiao Geng), offers sale of household appliances. tinue to struggle with the sup-
Last year, the EU lifted sanctions on Belarus, citing improved And their governments have a case study of one of those cities. The city also created linkag- ply-side structural reforms
human rights record. As long as he rules, Belarus will be locked moved quickly to cool the mar- In recent years, Foshan has es with others nearby, with each needed to tackle overcapacity, ex-
in dead zone. The spark of protest may be a sign that society is ket. Beijing, for example, raised transformed itself from a rural complementing the others’ com- cessive leverage, high transaction
tired of this prison and won’t be silenced. the required down payment for county outside Guangzhou, the parative advantages, thereby re- costs, and gaps in technology
— THE WASHINGTON POST, WASHINGTON residents purchasing a second capital of Guangdong province, inforcing collective progress. upgrading.
flat for investment to as much into the most dynamic industrial At the same time, however, There is increasing awareness
as 80 percent of the price, and city in China, with per capita in- Foshan fostered intense com- in China of the potential of cities.
Uncertainty over Trump’s ability barred non-residents from such come reaching $17,202 in 2016, petition internally and with As Foshan has proved, cities have
investments altogether. compared to $16,624 for Beijing other cities in China, which may a unique capacity to support

U
ncertainty over US President Donald Trump’s ability to But this is just a temporary fix. and $16,251 for Shanghai. well be the biggest reason for its growth — including by fostering
implement his policies has grown further. The repeal- A longer-term solution will re- In 2015, Foshan’s GDP grew success. competition, advancing innova-
ing of the US health insurance system, known as Obam- quire the authorities to address by 8.3 percent, compared to 6.7 Foshan’s municipal govern- tion, and phasing out obsolete
acare, has foundered. Trump neglected to coordinate views the fact that demand for a limit- percent in Beijing and 6.8 per- ment, which was among the industries — while addressing
with Congress. ed supply of residential property cent in Shanghai, with industry first to experiment with town- social challenges, tackling pollu-
To reduce the number of uninsured people, estimated about is high and rising, owing to the accounting for 60 percent of the ship and village enterprises and tion, and creating a labor force
50 million, the government and other entities grant subsidies, rapid flow of often-young Chi- city’s GDP. privatization in the early 1980s, that can cope with technological
while making it mandatory for people to be covered by the health nese talent to cities that offer ac- Moreover, in a country where has played an important role in disruption.
care plan. Trump criticized Obamacare as bringing about in- cess to economic opportunities, excessive debt is a growing con- buoying private enterprise. As China attempts to manage
creased fiscal burdens and skyrocketing insurance premiums. not to mention better public in- cern, Foshan’s loan-to-GDP ra- In particular, it has supported urbanization — responding to,
Yet the Republican Party’s conservatives regarded it prob- frastructure. tio in 2011 was only 85 percent skills upgrading and built critical rather than attempting to over-
lematic that some public subsidies are still in place in the re- Policymakers must determine — far less than the national aver- infrastructure, while avoiding power, market forces — the Fos-
placement bill. Moderates were concerned about a possible in- the proper balance between state age of 121 percent. Foshan’s rapid creating unaffordable housing or han model may well prove in-
crease in the uninsured. control and market forces in GDP growth — among the fast- unnecessary office buildings. In a valuable.
The issue of how deep government should get involved in so- guiding urbanization throughout est in China — was driven by the country plagued by excess capac-
cial welfare programs is one that leaves US public opinion divid- the country. private sector, with appropriate ity and housing bubbles, this was
ed. Trump will not be able to retain supporters if he issues one As it stands, urbanization local-government support, and a prescient policy. Andrew Sheng is Distinguished
executive order after another, which would negate the previous pressure is being felt by the top therefore depended largely on The key to success has been Fellow at the Asia Global Institute
administration in areas as a review of global warming measures. 100 (out of 600) Chinese cities, self-financing, not debt. the authorities’ flexible ap- at the University of Hong Kong and
People’s hopes over Trump’s experience as a businessman which housed 714.3 million resi- Likewise, the private sector proach, guided by close monitor- a member of the UNEP Advisory
and his negotiating skills have been betrayed. Top-priority is- dents — 52.8 percent of the total has financed about two-thirds of ing of market signals. Thanks to Council on Sustainable Finance.
sues for Trump would be to make up for the delay in his Cabinet population — and generated 75.7 Foshan’s fixed investment, which such monitoring, Foshan’s mu- Xiao Geng, President of the Hong
appointments and solidify the lineup of policy experts and go- percent of China’s GDP in 2016. runs up to 30 to 40 percent of nicipal- and county-level gov- Kong Institution for International
betweens to connect the Cabinet with Congress. Of those 100 cities, six recorded GDP. ernments recognized a dramat- Finance, is a professor at the Uni-
— THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN, TOKYO GDP growth above 10 percent Foshan’s development strat- ic restructuring in global supply versity of Hong Kong.

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WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 OPINION | 5

Some democracies
can resist populism
Leonid Bershidsky United States counterpart in some
BLOOMBERG VIEW areas, like appointing top judges
without the parliament’s consent.

R
ecent and upcoming politi- But the political tradition is for the
cal upheavals in a number president to take a back seat to the
of countries provide some chancellor, usually the leader of
evidence that the institutional de- the strongest party in parliament.
sign of democracies can be critical- Theoretically, however, a disrup-
ly important. A clear advantage is tor who wins the presidency  can
emerging for countries that don’t turn that arrangement on its head.
directly elect a president: They are That’s why many Austrians feared
more likely to resist the wave of last year that nationalist Norbert
populism sweeping the West. Hoffer might ascend to the presi-
Where there are no direct dency — and it took a higher turn-
presidential elections, populists out than in the previous two elec-
must win many individual elec- tions to defeat him.
tions over many cycles in order to On Sunday, Serbia is electing a
rise to a nation’s chief executive; president. This used to be a large-
Donald Trump seized the White ly ceremonial position, but now,
House in his first run for public Aleksandar Vucic, the current
office. It took less than 17 months. prime minister, is widely expect-
In the Netherlands, where ed to win and try to run the coun-
a populist threat fizzled in this try from the president’s office.
month’s legislative election, the That is a clear path toward more
perennial need for parties to form authoritarianism, and, given Vu-
coalitions made it unlikely that cic’s affinity for Russian President
Geert Wilders would have gov- Vladimir Putin, it may bode ill for
erned, even had he achieved a plu- stability in the Balkans.
rality of votes. He formed his Par- Few theoretical studies have
ty for Freedom 11 years ago. touched upon the built-in insta-
There was also no populist bility of systems with a popular-
revolution in Spain during last ly elected president at the head
year’s elections, and none seems compared with those  where the
likely in Germany — neither has legislative election is the most
a directly elected chief executive. important exercise of democracy.
Even in the United Kingdom, the But Stephen Ganghof of the Uni-
Brexit surprise wouldn’t have versity of Potsdam made some in-
been possible had David Camer- teresting points in a 2015 paper
on refused to support the  refer- that may explain what’s going on:
endum: The 2015 election, which If the majority decides to dele-
Cameron won, brought a pro-Eu- gate great powers to the executive
ropean majority to parliament. then it must at any time have the
The basic UK system, also power to dismiss the executive
without a directly elected leader,
is as stable and reliable as the oth-
er parliamentary democracies.
France’s presidential election
and select a new one.
The problem with a directly
elected president is that it’s hard
for the legislature to remove
The truth first, Mr. President
in April and May gives nationalist someone with a popular mandate.

V
populist Marine Le Pen far more That mandate, Ganghof writes, ictims and human tory lessons. His name, like all also part of the widespread sys-
visibility, and a clearer path to interferes with the chain through rights defenders cele- public figures considered leftists, tematic attack on the members
power, than legislative elections which voters delegate power to brated the Internation- has been wiped out from the of- of the banned Indonesian Com-
provide for her party, the Nation- the parties with their different al Day for the Right to ficial history books. His life story munist Party (PKI), and all those
al Front. Despite being at a disad- programs. The personalization of the Truth concerning Gross Hu- is one of endurance and surviv- deemed to be connected with it.
vantage in the polls, she can still politics, and the need to pick one man Rights Violations and for the Reza Muharam al but also of hope, dignity and Even arranging a meeting to
win under certain turnout-relat- person for the pinnacle of power, Dignity of Victims on March 24. JAKARTA gratitude. He said he was chosen have the public hear victims’ sto-
ed scenarios. makes for less perfect representa- The right to the truth, togeth- with other comrades to work in ries has faced challenges in sev-
Thus her potential for disrup- tion. er with the right to justice, and film, Buru My Motherland. a lodge, owned by a high-ranking eral cities. Initially we planned
tion will be much greater than Ganghof also cites problems of reparation — including rehabili- The meeting was attended by military officer on a small island to hold this event in a cafe near
if her party  won the same pro- a pure parliamentary system: Vot- tation and compensation — are 51 invited guests and about 10 un- above Buru Island. There he had Pattimura University, but a
portion of votes as she’s going to ers are not privy to the bargaining the rights of a victim that should invited guests, intelligence mem- to work from dawn, sometimes to day before the owner canceled
get in the first round of voting. between the parties, and it’s hard- be guarded and implemented as bers from the police, the district late at night, without pay. the initial arrangement for un-
Though, contrary to the perceived er to hold politicians accountable guiding principles in all govern- military command (Kodim) and There was not enough food for clear reasons. Luckily the Syn-
strength of the French presiden- when they act in groups. ment policies to combat impu- according to a journalist, even all of them. He recalls that once od of Protestant Church Maluku
cy, Le Pen  would have plenty of However, these problems ap- nity. Without it, every step taken from the State Intelligence Agen- the military abandoned them and (GPM) downtown provided the
opportunity for mischief. The pear to be a lesser evil than the by the government to solve abus- cy (BIN). forgot to supply food for them for venue, and Rev. Jacky Manuput-
president can call a referendum danger in personalizing the popu- es is a mockery of justice. It is the Like all fellow detainees Kan- weeks. Luckily there was a bota- ty, the moderator, helped prevent
— something Le Pen might well lar choice. victims, not perpetrators of gross di said he was arrested, beaten nist in their company who knew intelligence officers from banning
do on eurozone and European It’s no accident that Germany, violations of human rights that and imprisoned in various mili- which plants in the jungle were the meeting.
Union membership. and the allied powers that guid- need to be respected by the state. tary camps in Ambon, before they edible and nutritious. He thanks The story of Pak Kandi, and
When a constitution provides ed it after World War II, chose a Pak Kandi Pargono is one of the eventually sent him to Buru. His God that he survived the illegal that of other survivors is ours too
for the direct election of a presi- system in which the president, survivors of the 1965-1966 witch only sin was that he was an ac- imprisonment and slavery. He — as we all have the right to know
dent, even with largely ceremo- apart from having few powers, hunt, arbitrary detention and tive and respected citizen in Am- even survived all the command- the truth. The appropriate first
nial powers, a strong leader with is also elected indirectly. It’s a killings of suspected communists bon, a teacher, an artist and at the ers. He said he had forgiven the step toward justice and reconcil-
much political weight can quickly more foolproof system: Germans from Maluku — which therefore time of his arrest the chairman of perpetrators for their sins. How- iation is by establishing a presi-
turn things around and make the should know. can be considered “genocide” of the Maluku branch of the People’s ever, he also believes the truth be- dential committee for truth find-
office more powerful, and more a particular group. He is above 70, Cultural Institute (Lekra). longs to the Almighty, and there- ing — not the planned Council for
dangerous, than laws allow. frail but still spirited. He told me He said he had received lots of fore it needs to be told. National Harmony (DKN). The
On paper, the Austrian presi- The writer is there were many people like him awards and acknowledgement During the public meeting we truth first, Mr. President!
dent has  greater powers than his a Bloomberg View columnist. in Ambon, but they were afraid to for his works, among others from also launched “The Final Re-
speak out. then president Sukarno him- port of The People’s Tribunal on
Or to be precise, their families self. But sadly, he said, the mili- Crimes Against Humanity 1965” The writer is a member of the
EDITOR’S NOTE are afraid. And since the state is tary forced him to burn all those and “From the Tribunal’s Porch,” international steering committee of
not taking care of them, they rely awards himself. a collection of personal stories of the International People’s Tribunal
“Embracing business and human rights” on the support of the families in And after that, he became a volunteers behind the People’s 1965 (IPT’65). The above mentioned
their old age. number without a name. He is the Tribunal 1965, held last year in public meeting was held by IPT 65
The article “Embracing business and human rights in Indonesia” We invited Kandi to tell his creator of the first statue of Kapi- The Hague. and supported among others by the
by Amanda Himawan, published on this page on April 3, used mate- story in a public meeting in Am- tan Patimura, Maluku’s national The final report stated that the Maluku chapter of the National
rial and phrases from an ongoing doctoral research project by Astari bon on March 19, titled “Against hero, now conserved in a muse- state was responsible for crimes Commission of Human Rights, the
Anjani without attribution, as reported by Astari and confirmed by Forgetting: Buru and the sur- um in Ambon. against humanity, including the provincial chapter of the Alliance of
Amanda only following publication. vivor’s path to justice.” We also But no teacher in Ambon has unjustified imprisonment and Independent Journalists (AJI) and
— THE EDITOR screened Rahung Nasution’s ever mentioned his name in his- enslavement. These acts were human rights group Humanum.

Why Thailand is not taken seriously on rights issues

Kavi Chongkittavorn One would have thought that past two and half years, the gov- Now, it falls to Surin Pitsu- the R2P was put to test. All the al Convention against Enforced
THE NATION/ANN/BANGKOK after all these years of engaging ernment has tried with some wan, former foreign minister and UNSC members, for the first Disappearance and ratified the
with cross-border displaced per- success to improve the working ASEAN secretary-general, to help time, agreed to back Resolution Convention against Torture.

L
ong before the concept of sons, asylum-seekers, refugees conditions of millions of migrant with the R2P’s public relations. 1973 authorizing the UN to pro- But human rights organiza-
Responsibility to Protect and most recently regular and ir- workers from neighboring coun- He headed a high-level UN panel vide assistance to resolve the cri- tions cried foul that the coun-
(R2P) existed, which in- regular migrant workers, tries by modernizing labor-relat- in 2014 to mainstream the R2P so sis, including imposing a no-fly try has yet to amend local leg-
serted new meaning to the duties Thailand would have learnt a ed and fishery-related laws and that the international communi- zone. islations. Thailand now has the
and responsibilities of states and few lessons to ameliorate poli- prosecuted police and officials in- ty, especially Southeast Asia, will Since then, no UNSC deci- world’s No. 1 record of enforced
individuals to prevent inhuman cy implementation and overall volved in wrongdoings. understand and encourage each sion was made utilizing the R2P disappearance cases — 82. 
acts of all kinds, Thailand has long attitude. Furthermore, some of the Thai government to adhere to and principles. Since 1992, there has been
shown goodwill and humanitar- Wrong. Thailand still does not trawler owners and the owners of practice the R2P norms. Within the region, the ASEAN no progress on these victims.
ian gestures, without attaching have any intention to sign the canned factories, infamous prac- Strange but true, Thailand members should be in a good Strange but true, other countries
any label to those deeds, through- 1951 Refugee Convention. The titioners of modern slave labor, should have been at the forefront position to implement the R2P with a much larger number of dis-
out its modern history.  policymakers, especially in the were also put behind bars. as an R2P implementing country.  norms. appearances than Thailand, have
In the late 1920s to 1930s, for Ministry of Interior and security Indeed, the country’s treat- After the UN introduced the First, the ASEAN Charter prin- at least been able to conclude
instance, Thailand hosted South- agencies, think there is no need ment of refugees and migrant concept of human security in ciples are on the same page as the whether these victims were dead
east Asian revolutionary leaders for the country to accede to the workers, coupled with the dem- the early 2000s, Thailand imme- R2P norms, especially on promo- or not. In the cases in Thailand,
fighting for independence from convention because it would not ocratic struggle since the 1973 diately created the world’s first tion of good governance, rule of there is no trace, no progress. 
their Western colonial masters. alter the long-standing practices uprising, which culminated in Ministry of Human Security and law, democracy and transparency. This kind of inconsistency and
Fast forward to the end of the in sheltering those who seek them a bloody expression of politi- Social Development. Noel Morada, who heads the recalcitrance has really damaged
Vietnam war: Thailand sheltered anyway. cal convictions, should serve as a Till today the ministry has not Asia-Pacific Center of R2P, aptly Thailand’s international reputa-
millions of Indochinese refugees The international community good rationale to understand the linked the R2P with its overall ob- said that the R2P is a friend of sov- tion and standing.
on its eastern border with camps and human rights organizations country’s domestic behavior re- jectives. Pranee Tiparat, an expert ereignty, not its enemy.  Everything the Thai govern-
stretching along its Thai-Cambo- could go on criticizing Thailand lated to the protection of human on R2P, lamented that Thailand “Any country that practices the ment has done, especially those
dian border and other locations. for its substandard humanitarian rights and other atrocities. still does not have a focal point to R2P will become more respect- related to human rights, is often
It took nearly three decades, from assistance. It also translates as the official encourage dialogue on the R2P able and be praised,” he said. half-baked.
the late 1970s to the 1990s, before Thailand hit the global head- attitude towards the R2P. among Thai stakeholders. Similarly international law ex- That helps explain why Thai-
the 2-million-plus refugees found lines for several weeks when the Since 2005 when these encom- The R2P principles state clear- pert Vittit Muntrabhorn has re- land has not been taken seriously
proper places to stay. Navy reportedly pushed back passing principles came into be- ly that governments have duties peatedly urged Thailand to sign by the world community.
Ideological divisions between nearly 100 boat people from the ing, successive Thai governments and responsibilities to protect cit- all treaties related to human It is about time we add a new
communist and non-commu- Indian Ocean, while the coun- did pay attention to them, some- izens from any rights abuse.  rights protection. It was odd, he context to our behavior. Based on
nist nations was intense. But as a try has continued to facilitate the times superficially. After all, the Obviously, there are plenty of observed, that Thailand, now our deep cultural roots and com-
country that believes in reincar- passage of thousands of North chief of the R2P drafting team was rights abuses committed by the leading the international endeav- passion, we should be more rule-
nation and compassion, the Good Korean asylum-seekers coming former prime minister Anand Pa- states and their auxiliaries, but or to ban nuclear weapons from based, specific and committed to
Samaritan virtues in Thailand through Chiang Saen district in nyarachun. the R2P is specifically aimed at the world, would be reluctant to international norms and practic-
have remained intact. northern Thailand since 2000. It was through personal ties mass atrocities such as genocide, implement the R2P norms. es without hinging on the prevail-
Its cultural preponderance This kind of policy contradic- and respect as well as his social war crimes, crimes against hu- Thailand has a chequered his- ing sentiment. 
also helps dictate government tion and veiled “hypocrisy” is stature that the R2P has been manity and ethnic cleansing.  tory of accession to international Thailand can be a good exam-
policy to welcome those seeking Thailand’s trademark in dealing kept alive in the hearts and minds Doubtless, when the UN Secu- laws and treaties due to our con- ple to emulate regarding the re-
refuge, without pondering about with humanitarian issues.  of officials, especially among law rity Council (UNSC) was faced servative lawmakers. Recently, spect of human rights and the im-
the aftermath.  Another case in point: In the enforcers.  with the crisis in Libya in 2011, Thailand signed the Internation- plementation of R2P norms.

Please send your articles to opinion@thejakartapost.com.

6 | SUPPLEMENT WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

WORLD HEALTH DAY

World Health Day is observed around the world annually
on April 7. In celebrating this day, The Jakarta Post is
running a special edition on health, themed “Tackling
Urban Lifestyle Diseases.” The special edition addresses
the rising number of urbanites prone to lifestyle-related
Battling urban
health problems like diabetes, hypertension, high blood
pressure, high cholesterol and other diseases.
lifestyle diseases
Leah Santos It’s a health problem the world Our busy days often see us skip
CONTRIBUTOR has been grappling with over the a proper breakfast and make do
past two decades: As medical ad- with a sugar-filled cup of coffee,

T
he top three killers in vancements significantly reduce a cigarette to calm our growl-
Indonesia, which ac- the fatality rates for infectious ing stomachs, fast food or nasi
count for more than 40 diseases and increase average padang (Padang rice) for lunch,
percent of all deaths in life spans, changes in how we live and a heavy binge dinner of meat
the country, are all lifestyle-relat- continue to fuel the rise of these and carbohydrates before we
ed, highly preventable diseases. killer lifestyle diseases. crash for the night.
In the 1970s, only about 5 All these lead to health prob-
percent of all deaths in Indone- A problem of lifestyle lems such as high cholesterol,
sia were due to cardiovascular The answer isn’t rocket sci- high blood pressure and obesity.
diseases. At the time, you were ence. Over and over, everyone And all of these health problems
more likely to die from infection- from our family doctor to ac- increase your chances of getting
caused illnesses like tuberculosis quaintances who share random diabetes or suffering from a coro-
and pneumonia. health articles on Facebook have nary heart disease or a stroke, es-
These days, deaths due to car- told us what to do: eat a healthy pecially if we’re already at risk be-
diovascular problems account for diet, exercise and quit smoking. cause of our family history.
about 37 percent of the total in In- But few of us follow them, or
donesia, according to the World follow them consistently. Leading killers
Health Organization (WHO). We spend most of our seden- Among the three, stroke is the
If you add the 6 percent tary days sitting for hours on end, top killer.
caused by diabetes – the third- hunched over laptops or smart- An average of 8.3 out of every
biggest lifestyle-related killer in phones, perhaps just reading one 1,000 people aged 15 and above
the country next to stroke and of those health articles and prom- in Indonesia suffered a stroke
coronary heart disease – then it ising we’d follow them. in 2007. By 2013, this figure had
means at least two out of every We may have memberships to a grown to 12.1 out of every 1,000,
five deaths in Indonesia are due gym or yoga studio, but we prob- according to Indonesia’s Basic
to diseases that can be prevented. ably use them just once a week on Health Research.
So why are we not doing more average to allow ourselves to say In terms of fatalities, WHO
to prevent them? we’re “exercising regularly.” data shows strokes claimed
328,524 lives in Indonesia in
2014, accounting for more than years of age, or 883,447 in total, tors can prescribe maintenance diately following a stroke, accord-
20 percent of all deaths in the have been diagnosed with coro- medication to control our cho- ing to the National Stroke Associ-
country. nary heart disease. But the num- lesterol, blood pressure and sugar ation in the US.
The frustrating part, according ber of those who have exhibited levels. So why not do something today
to doctors in Indonesia, is know- symptoms of coronary heart dis- If the conditions are a little bit to lower your risk of getting these
ing that 80 percent of the stroke ease is more than thrice that fig- serious, medical solutions are diseases?
cases that come through their ure – 2.65 million or 1.5 percent of still available. There are insulin The American Heart Associa-
hospital emergency room doors the population. pumps that deliver the hormone tion recommends at least 150
are preventable. The third top killer, diabe- to your body whenever you need minutes of moderate exercise per
The second biggest killer in tes, caused more than 100,000 it. There are stents doctors can in- week, which translates to 30 min-
the country, coronary heart dis- deaths in 2014. That’s more than sert in your arteries to force them utes a day, five times a week. That
ease, accounts for about 10% of all 11 deaths every hour due to a dis- open and keep blood flowing. can be as easy as watching one sit-
deaths in the country, according to ease that can be prevented almost Doctors can graft a healthy vein com episode while on the tread-
the same data. A survey by Indo- 90 percent of the time. to the coronary artery to bypass a mill every day.
nesia’s Health Development and Worse, doctors say they’re see- blockage and allow blood to flow Eat more fruits and vegetables,
Research Agency (Balitbangkes), ing younger and younger patients to the heart again. like we’ve been told since we were
released in 2015, blames coronary with these conditions, especially Sometimes, though, we find kids, and go easy on meat and pro-
and blood vessel failures for 12.9 in urban areas. out too late, like after we’ve suf- cessed food.
percent of all deaths. fered a stroke or a heart attack. And last, quit smoking.
In terms of prevalence, the A matter of prevention Even if we survive, there are often With three easy lifestyle chang-
Health Ministry’s 2013 Basic In some cases, these diseases serious consequences. As many as es, we can avoid becoming anoth-
Health Survey shows that 0.5 can be managed or even reversed. 9 out of 10 stroke survivors have er worrying statistic, and live lon-
percent of Indonesians above 15 If diagnosed early enough, doc- some degree of paralysis imme- ger, healthier lives.

JEC : A Trusted Leader in Total Eye Care

T
he eyes serve as vital
sensory organs for human
beings; the human brain
receives around 83 percent
of information through the visual
window. Everybody cherishes a
clear, undistorted vision of their
surroundings through highly
functional eyes. Unfortunately,
some vision problems, like
short- and near-sightedness and
cylindrical vision caused by light
refraction disturbances in the eyes
can distort our view of the world.
As part of the medical field, eye
care seeks to help people overcome
visual problems. As a pioneer in
Indonesia’s eye care sector, JEC Eye
Hospital prioritizes maximum safety
and comfort for its patients.
JEC is an international-level
hospital. The hospital now
has three branches located in
accessible sites such as Menteng
in Central Jakarta, Kedoya in West
Jakarta as well as Cibubur, Bekasi
in West Java. The hospital, which
is committed to increasing society
members’ life quality through
visual healthcare services, was
established in 1984, supported by
39 eye specialists who are highly
experienced as well as the cutting
edge technology.
The hospital itself is also known
as the pioneer of the LASIK
treatment in Indonesia.
To guarantee the safe and
comfortable delivery of its
treatments, JEC has been
internationally accredited by the
Joint Commission International
(JCI) in Chicago, United States,
with the National Standard
Accreditation (KARS). Aside
from that, JEC is also founder of sophisticated technology called Step 2: The doctor removes the
the ASEAN Association of Eye ReLEx® SMILE (Refractive Lenticule lentitude through a tiny incision of
Hospitals (AAEH) and member of Extraction – Small Incision Lenticule 2-4 mm.
World Association of Eye Hospitals Extraction), which corrects the Step 3: As the lenticule is
(WAEH), ensuring the hospital’s refraction disorders (near-sightedness removed, the curvature of the
compliance to international and cylindrical vision). ReLEx® cornea is changed into a new one,
standards for eye hospitals. SMILE procedure is done through improving the patient’s refraction
JEC offers complete treatments one session using laser (Flapless), deviation. The small incision will
for eyes, such as Cataract and relatively accelerating the treatment close by itself without any stitches.
Refractive Surgery Service time which can be done by seconds The procedure is suitable for
(LASIK, ReLEx® SMILE & Corneal (Faster), while giving patients a individuals who are physically
Transplantation), Vitreoretina painless surgical procedure. very active and have a high level
Service, Glaucoma Service, Contact The procedure is very safe, of mobility. If you are one of those
Lens Service, Oculoplasty Service making use of the VisuMax people who consider not using
(eye reconstruction & cosmetic), Femtosecond Laser from Carl Zeiss. your glasses or contact lenses
Low Vision Care and Children Eye anymore, ReLEx® SMILE is a great
and Squint Clinic that turns out How does ReLEx SMILE work? alternative.
to be a special center to provide Step 1: VisuMax Femtosecond In order to undergo this
a special and comprehensive laser is used to create a very thin procedure, the requirements are: a
treatment to the children’s eye disc of tissue or Lenticule inside minimum age of 18, not currently
disorders and squint eye problems. the intact cornea. The thickness of being pregnant or breastfeeding
lentitude is made in accordance as well as two eyes in prime
New offer with a patient’s refraction condition. They are also required
Advertorial

As part of its commitment to deviation. Then the laser makes a to remove their soft contact lenses
patient services, especially in Laser tiny incision to take the lentitude for 14 days in a row or 30 days in a
Vision Correction, JEC presenting out. row for hard contact lenses.
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 SUPPLEMENT | 7
WORLD HEALTH DAY

Unhealthy lifestyle
makes people
susceptible to diabetes
A
sweet smile is okay, Diabetes Federation. the past, examining the blood glu-
but sweet beverages or The data show that diabetics cose was a bother, as we had to go
snacks? That’s some- in Indonesia, a country of the low to the hospital to do it. Nowadays,
thing to think about income category, are often below that is not the case.
twice if you really care about your the age of 60. Moreover, it is pre- Even though a lab test is still
health. dicted that there will be a signifi- highly recommended, urbanites
For many Indonesians, having cant jump by 2035, with the num- can now check their own blood
sweet tea with snacks has become ber of diabetics in the country sugar level, and this has become
a ritual to starting the day or while reaching 14.1 million people, two- a habit of more and more people.
taking a break at work. thirds of whom will live in urban Limited access to medical
If you, too, embrace this life- areas. treatment and a lack of awareness
style, you should consider the When a person moves to a city, among the population exacerbate
health risk, as a study has found his lifestyle tends to change. “He the threat of a diabetes pandemic eases that account for most of its If no action is taken to curb to set aside a big budget for medi-
that this kind of lifestyle repre- will move less, experince more in Indonesia, doctors warn. treatment spending in Indonesia the spread of the disease, diabe- cal treatment, building more hos-
sents a real threat in the form of a stress and consumes less healthy Data from health insurance are diabetes, cancer and hyper- tes can affect economic growth, as pitals, training doctors and other
diabetes pandemic. food. [Urbanites] are more sus- firm PT Askes show the three dis- tension. the government will be required expenses, experts warn.(JP) 
Diabetes is a chronic and last- ceptible to diabetes,” said a doc-
ing disease. People diagnosed tor.
with the condition have to bear It is vital that anyone, includ-
the burden of taking medication ing the young, know the early
for the rest of their lives. signs of diabetes. Symptoms in-
In the cities, many people are clude weight loss for no obvious
still unaware of the need to prac- reason, a high frequency of urina-
tice a lifestyle that keeps diabetes tion, frequent thirst, weakening
at bay.  eyesight, getting tired easily and
The causes of diabetes vary and feeling hungry frequently, Kom-
include a genetic predisposition, pas.com reported.
according to doctors. Neverthe- Another strong indication of
less, disregarding the importance diabetes is that a wound might
of maintaining a commendable take longer to heal. When this
lifestyle is dangerous. The habit- happens, it is recommended that
ual consumption of sweet snacks the person undergo further exam-
and soda drinks, insufficient ination. Complications, includ-
physical movement, stress, a lack ing organ failure, may happen if a
of rest and infrequent exercise ac- person leaves the conditions un-
celerate the spread of the disease checked.
among the population. To avoid the symptoms, peo-
Research shows that around ple living in cities should start
11 percent of medical spending in practicing a more commendable
the world goes for diabetes. lifestyle. This includes avoid-
Indonesia has more than 9.1 ing stress, exercising routinely,
million diabetics between 20 and making it a habit to consume
79 years of age, and almost 176,000 healthy food and getting enough
died because of the illness, accord- rest.
ing to Atlas Update 2014 on diabe- Other measures include moni-
tes released by the International toring sugar levels periodically. In

New healthy
recipes launched
in war against CORONARY
diabetes ARTERY
W
omen are being roped
in to join the national
fight against diabetes,
tion Network Council and Wom-
en’s Executive Committees.
Dr Khor, who is also adviser
BYPASS
GRAFT(CABG)
with the launch of a collection of to the Women’s Integration Net-
healthy recipes at Our Tampines work Council, said women play
Hub in Singapore recently. a key role in taking care of their
Titled Healthy Kitchen, families and have significant in-
Healthy Women, it is a postcard- fluence over the diet and lifestyle

VIP PACKAGE
sized pack comprising 50 reci- of other family members.
pes of different cuisines with the “As an individual, it might be
goal to make it easier for women difficult to take the first step, so
and their families to eat and live the community can come in to
healthily. provide the platforms to help in-
The recipes are all contributed dividuals make that change. I am
by members of the People’s Asso-
ciation (PA) Women’s Executive
Committees, as well as grassroot
happy that the Women’s Execu-
tive Committees are taking the
lead to advocate healthy living LIVE LONGER
advisors. A mixed vegetable dish,
for example, was a recipe by Min-
ister for Culture, Community and
and eating,” said Dr Khor.
There are some 400,000 dia-
betic Singaporeans today, and it
FOR HIM
Youth Grace Fu. is estimated that one out of ev-
Senior Minister of State for ery three Singaporeans will likely
VIP Room
Health Dr Amy Khor contributed
a recipe for potato patties while
Marine Parade GRC MP Dr Fati-
develop the disease in their life-
times.
With the potential for as many
Rp155,000,000*
mah Lateef provided a recipe for as a million diabetics by 2050 if
kaseri, an Indian dessert. nothing is done, the Ministry of Includes:
The Women’s Executive Com- Health declared a war against the
mittees worked with the Health disease in 2015, said Dr Khor • Surgical procedure costs
Promotion Board to ensure that She added: “I urge women to be • Doctor fees
each dish contained less than 500 role models and set good exam-
calories. ples in leading a healthy lifestyle, • Drugs during treatment
Cooking classes will be held at which will in turn inspire your • 2 days in ICCU
various community clubs from family members and friends to do
April until December this year. likewise.” • 5 days in VIP Room
About 1,000 residents turned This means eating healthily, *The Package is valid until 31 December 2017
up for the Women’s Health Car- exercising regularly and going for *Terms and Conditions Apply
nival, where the recipes were appropriate and regular health
launched by PA. The carnival is screening for early detection and
said to be the first of its kind or- treatment, she said. (The Straits
ganised by PA’s Women’s Integra- Times/ANN)

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT

1-500-181
Available at Siloam Hospitals Kebon Jeruk, Siloam Hospitals Lippo Village, and Rumah Sakit Jantung Diagram

Online Appointment: www.siloamhospitals.com

The Straits Times/ANN 24 Hour Siloam Ambulance Service: 1 – 500 – 911
WIN Against Diabetes’, organised by the PA Women’s Integration BALI KUTA • BALI NUSA DUA • BALI SUNSET • BALIKPAPAN • BEKASI • BUTON • CIKARANG • DEPOK • JAKARTA KEBON JERUK • JAKARTA MAMPANG • JAKARTA SEMANGGI (MRCCC) • JAKARTA TB SIMATUPANG
JAMBI • KUPANG • LABUAN BAJO • MAKASSAR • MANADO • MEDAN • PALEMBANG • PURWAKARTA • SAMARINDA • SURABAYA • TANGERANG LIPPO VILLAGE • TANGERANG RSUS
Network (WIN) Council and Women’s Executive Committees
(WEC), in support of the War on Diabetes.
8 | NATIONAL WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

ISLAND FOCUS Grilled

Jakarta
Semarang

Ponorogo

BNN calls on TNI to join war on drugs

SEMARANG: The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) has called on the
Indonesian Military (TNI) to take part in the nation’s war on drugs.
BNN chief Comr. Gen. Budi Waweso said that drug trafficking had
become an instrument in a “proxy war” started by foreign countries to
weaken Indonesia.
“Illegal drugs have become a silent killer, a mass killer more serious
than corruption and terrorism,” he said in Semarang on Tuesday.
Believing that “crazy and extraordinary” measures were needed
to fight international drug networks, Budi added: “I want the TNI to
join our fight against drugs. We will provide them with information
on the identities of drug dealers so they can go after them, shoot
them.”
“With regards to legalities, that’s an issue that will remain between
the police and the BNN,” he added.
The BNN under Budi has taken a harsh stance against drug dealers,
drawing criticism from human rights activists.
JP/Wendra
Data from the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of
Violence (Kontras), which was collected through media monitoring Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) member candidates Ratna Dewi Pettalolo (left to right), Abdullah and Abhan are interviewed by lawmak-
only, revealed that since January 2016, 32 suspected drug dealers ers during a confirmation hearing at the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
were reportedly shot dead during raids, both by police personnel
following orders from the BNN and by officers working on regular
operations. — JP

Jokowi urged to retain KPK Law

JAKARTA: Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman
Agus Rahardjo has officially asked President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo
Cheating still plagues
to cancel a plan to amend KPK Law No.30/2002. He submitted his
request during a meeting between KPK commissioners and the Presi-
dential Advisory Board (Wantimpres) at the State Palace in Jakarta on
Monday.
“Any attempts to weaken the KPK should be rejected. The KPK
computer-based exams
needs to be strengthened, and one way to do that is by not revising Moses Ompusunggu Teachers, exam dents to cheat and leave the class- It was previously lauded by
the KPK Law,” Agus said as quoted by Kompas.com supervisors allegedly aid room while taking the exams. Culture and Education Minister
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA
He said President Jokowi should instead focus on the government’s It also found there were teach- Muhadjir Effendy as a scheme
efforts to improve the 2001 Corruption Law because it was still riddled
cheating
Technology does not cure dis- ers who had allegedly distribut- that was “able to detect and ana-
with weaknesses. honesty. This is what the govern- Schools ask students to ed answer keys just minutes be- lyze students’ critical thinking
Potentially problematic issues that have yet to be regulated by the ment may have learned after go- fore the exams commenced and skills” and aimed “to fix weak-
law include asset recovery, sectors of corruption, influence peddling
bring own laptops amid
ing the extra mile to improve the computer shortages supervised exams that covered nesses of the national exam.”
cases and illegal self-enrichment. implementation of exams for fi- the same subject they taught at The Ombudsman suggested
“Amending [the 2001 Corruption Law] would allow us to perform nal year students. school. that the exams had been plagued
better, as well as take more effective corruption prevention and pros- Decentralized and conducted implementation of standardized “If the exams in Jakarta were by problems partly due to mini-
ecution measures,” Agus said. online, students and parents con- tests for high schools on March plagued by corrupt practices, just mal supervision by the Culture
Presidential spokesperson Johan Budi Saptopribowo, a former KPK tinue to report alleged cheating. 20 to 23. This is the country’s first imagine what could’ve happen in and Education Ministry, which
spokesperson himself, said the President had not taken a stance on A senior high school student year implementing standardized other regions,” Rully said. had given full authority to provin-
the matter. in East Jakarta told his parents school exams managed by region- “The majority of the schools cial administrations to manage
“There have been no official talks between the House and the gov- that he and his classmates had al administrations to determine visited” implemented paper- the exams.
ernment, or with the President. The amendment of the KPK Law is still been offered the answer keys for graduation of students at all edu- based exams, Rully said, even Ombudsman commissioner
being discussed at the House,” he added. — JP their standardized school exam cation levels. though they had adequate facili- Ahmad Suaedy said there should
by their teachers for Rp 25,000 The content of the exams are ties to conduct computer-based be tighter supervision of the ex-
Mudslides still threaten Banaran: BNPB (US$1.87) per school subject.
“His parents were in disbelief,”
no longer designed by the Cul-
ture and Education Ministry,
tests. “They implemented pa-
per-based tests in anticipation of
ams, instead of just handing over
the implementation to provinces.
PONOROGO: The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has said Indonesian Ombudsman ed- but instead designed by teachers computers breaking down while The ministry’s inspector gen-
called on all search and rescue components, as well as residents of ucation team coordinator Rully grouped under the Teacher De- students took the exams.” eral, Daryanto, who was present
Banaran, a village affected by landslides in Ponogoro district, East Java, Amirulloh, who received the re- velopment Networks (MGMP) in Some schools with an insuffi- at the briefing, said the ministry
to stay alert amid the possibility of more mudslides. ports. regencies and municipalities. cient number of computers asked would use the findings to evaluate
“Based on our evaluation conducted with the Volcanology and Geo- The parents were shocked to Rully said the Ombudsman had students to use their own laptops the implementation of the exams.
logical Disaster Mitigation Agency [PVMBG] and Gadjah Mada Univer- learn of such alleged practices at found 33 cases related to viola- to take the computer-based ex- Daryanto claimed the ministry
sity’s geology team, we urge everyone to stay alert over the potential the school, especially when they tions by invigilators, 34 percent ams. had created the standard operat-
of subsequent landslides,” BNPB’s deputy head for disaster emergency had paid millions of rupiah for of which involved cases of invigi- The exams contain essay ques- ing procedures for the exams, but
mitigation, Tri Budiarto, said on Tuesday. exam courses for their son. lators using cellphones while su- tions on top of multiple choice acknowledged it could not pre-
He added that the risk of subsequent disasters remained high be- It was one of many corrupt pervising the exams. questions, as opposed to the pre- vent any corrupt practices from
cause of a crack running around the slope of Bukit Gede. In addition, practices found by the Ombuds- The Ombudsman also found vious scheme, which only consist- happening during the implemen-
rain of medium to high intensity has continued to shower the area, man in Greater Jakarta during the cases of teachers allowing stu- ed of multiple choice questions. tation.
hampering search and rescue operations on Sunday and Monday.
The BNPB will work with search and rescue teams, the local Disaster
Mitigation Agency (BPBD), the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the Na-
tional Police to spread the warning. — JP
ROYAL DISPUTE

Ordinary day Palace fence breached as royal feud re-erupts in Surakarta

Ganug Nugroho Adi Hari Wibowo and the command- an Agung Tedjowulan, who chal- changing the function of a heri-
THE JAKARTA POST/ SURAKARTA er of Surakarta Military District lenged his legitimacy as ruler in tage area, changing its ownership,
0735, Lt. Col. Inf. Edwin Apria 2004. The council, chaired by and stealing from a heritage area
There is no light at the end of Candra. Gusti Moeng, stripped Pakubu- as criminal offenses.
the tunnel for a power struggle The task force began its work at wono XIII of his title and installed “We will strictly punish viola-
that has plagued the Surakarta sul- 12 p.m. and two hours later man- GPH Puger as acting sultan. tors of the edict. We have print-
tanate in Central Java for years. aged to create a narrow opening The Panca Narendra task force ed as many as 1,000 sheets of the
In the latest twist, the Panca that now connects the royal resi- was ordered to dismantle the edict and displayed them all over
Narendra task force — a team cre- dence and Ndalem Ageng Praba- fence because the sultan had in- the city, including inside the pal-
ated by Sultan Paku Buwono XIII suyasa, which is the palace’s main tended to stage a ceremony com- ace area,” said Ribut.
Hangabehi — forcibly entered the building and the center of all sul- memorating his coronation, Eddy Wirabhumi, executive
palace on Sunday to disassemble tanate activities. which took place in the area con- chairman of the palace’s legal
a fence that had physically and Ribut said the police would trolled by the Customary Council. unit, said the dismantlement vio-
symbolically separated the con- next attempt mediation for the The council had strongly re- lated a 2013 agreement between
flicting parties within the palace, two conflicting camps. jected the plan. Paku Buwono XIII and Gusti Mo-
namely the sultan and members “We will try to solve the con- The Surakarta Police have is- eng.
of the Customary Council. flict in a peaceful way,” he added. sued a circular concerning crimes According to the agreement,
The barrier worked to separate On Tuesday, representatives against public order in an effort to the fence was erected as a bar-
two areas: Langen Katong, con- of both parties reportedly met ensure security and order within ricade between the sultan’s resi-
trolled by the Customary Coun- to end the dispute at a military the palace area. The circular or- dence and Sasana Narendra. It
cil; and Sasono Hadi, where the building next to the palace. ders all parties to abide by Article also stipulates that conflicts can-
sultan resides. The conflict between Paku 160 of the Criminal Code, which not be settled by parties outside of
JP/Fadli The sultan’s sons and daugh- Buwono XIII and his Custom- sanctions anyone found to have the sultanate.
Residents dry their clothes on a tomb in a Chinese cemetery in Pir- ters, including GKR Wandansari ary Council began in 2013 after provoked the public, either ver- “The palace does not belong to
ing, Tanjung Piang, Riau Islands province, on Tuesday. Chinese (Gusti Moeng) and acting Paku the sultan allegedly ignored the bally or in writing, to commit a a ruler, it belongs to the dynasty.
communities across the country are observing Cheng Beng, which Buwono XIII, watched the dis- council’s recommendations dur- crime. The conflict can only be solved
ends on Tuesday. People in Piring have been building residential mantlement with Surakarta Po- ing a reconciliation process with The 2011 Cultural Heritage through steps mandated by tradi-
houses in cemeteries since the 1960s. lice chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Ribut his brother, KGPH Panembah- Law, meanwhile, declares acts of tion,” he emphasized.

JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

Yogyakarta sees rising violence among youths

Bambang Muryanto March this year, at least six stu- from competition among school during a discussion on klitih. “The children who fail [academi- murder case.
THE JAKARTA POST/YOGYAKARTA dents died and dozens were in- gangs, which have existed for DW, who hopes to become a cally] will try to find their identity He said many students carried
jured due to klitih. many years at almost every school policeman, said he had been a vic- and existence,” Widiyanto said. sharp weapons in response to the
Three 17-year-old students, The latest victim was Ilham in Yogyakarta. Violence among tim of klitih himself. He was rid- A student who is able to do rising competition among school
members of a high school gang Bayu Fajar, a 16-year-old student gangs is often connected to ten- ing a motorcycle one day when “cruel” things to his peers would gangs, which could lead to fighting.
called Grixer, were hanging out who died after being stabbed with sions between groups of different members of a school gang called “gain recognition and respect Agung Supriyanto, head of the
at a traditional street food stall in a sickle, allegedly by fellow stu- ethnic background or religious Morenza kicked him until he fell. that way.” Agency for Nation Unity and Poli-
Bantul, Yogyakarta. dent FF, on March 12. affiliation, but it may also be pro- Yb. Cahya Widiyanto, the head F. Pranawa, the legal coordinator tics (Kesbangpol), said the prob-
None of them look like violent Ilham was riding a motorcycle voked by a defeat in a sports com- of the Psychology Department at at the Yogyakarta Child Protection lem of violence among youths
thugs, but they all claim to have with his brother when he met FF’s petition or simply be the result of Sanata Dharma University, at- Agency, said legal cases involving might be caused by drug con-
committed violence against fel- gang members. FF reportedly got a feud inherited from senior gang tributed the rising level of vio- youths were mostly about sexual sumption, which was widespread
low students. furious about harsh words from members. lence to Yogyakarta’s transition abuse, theft and persecution. Prob- in Yogyakarta.
“I once beat a student from an- Ilham and killed him. Yogyakarta Police chief Brig. to an industrial province. During lems in the family usually instigat- Eko Suwanto, a member of the
other school because he had hurt FF and other suspects are Gen. Ahmad Dofiri said the term the last few years, the economy ed them to commit crime. Yogyakarta Legislative Coun-
my friend,” DW, one of the three, standing trial at the Yogyakarta klitih became popular in 2014, had been growing fast, leading to “Their actions are mostly cil, urged the government to ad-
told The Jakarta Post. District Court since Monday. A when a group of students com- a culture of “consumerism.” spontaneous. They have yet to dress the matter. A neighborhood
Recently, Yogyakarta has seen group of residents supporting Il- mitted violence in four cases in This situation had affected so- understand the consequences. watch scheme set up by the gov-
a rising number of cases of vio- ham’s family held a rally at the Sleman during one night. “They cial relations, with parents put- They do not realize that their ernment, called “Jaga Warga,”
lence among students. The locals court, demanding that FF receive had no motive. They simply did ting pressure on their children to emotional behavior can kill oth- had yet to show positive results,
have a name for violence among a heavy punishment. it out of anger after being scolded excel in education but failing to ers,” said Pranawa, who accom- he said. “Yogyakarta must be
students: klitih. From 2014 to Acts of Klitih result mainly by their parents,” he said recently spare their time to educate them. panied FF, the suspect in Ilham’s freed from klitih,” he urged.
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 CITY | 9
Election simulation GREATER JAKARTA
Jakarta to have enough rice for Idul Fitri
JAKARTA: The Jakarta administration has ensured the availability of
rice in the capital throughout the Idul Fitri holiday from June 25 to 27.
Acting Jakarta governor Sumarsono said Jakarta usually needed
2,500 to 3,000 tons of rice per day. During the Idul Fitri holiday, de-
mand for rice, the country’s main staple food, is predicted to increase
up to 3,300 tons per day.
Despite the predicted increase in demand, the capital has enough
rice stock to last through the holiday, he said.
“Our rice stock is enough for the next four-and-a-half months,”
Sumarsono said while visiting the Cipinang rice market in East Jakarta
on Tuesday as quoted by beritajakarta.com.
He said the Cipinang rice market had 34,000 tons of rice in stock
while the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) had 42,000 tons.
Sumarsono also assured the public that the prices of other staples,
such as sugar, meat, chili and oil, would remain stable.
“I have asked markets to display price boards so that people will
know the prices of the commodities they want to buy,” he said. — JP

Police reveal online trade of rare animals

JAKARTA: The Jakarta Police revealed on Tuesday that they had ar-
rested a 42-year-old man, identified only as AM, who owned three
endangered animals without a permit as he had bought the animals
from an Instagram user.
The animals were a clouded leopard, a sun bear and an orangutan,
all of which were young. The animals are all categorized as vulnerable
and are therefore protected against illegal trade, said Jakarta Police
spokesperson Sr. Comr. Argo Yuwono.
“Our preliminary investigation led us to a house in Pejaten, South
Jakarta, where we caught AM in possession of the three animals in
captivity,” Argo said at a media conference on Tuesday, adding that the
JP/Seto Wardhana discovery was made in January.
Personnel from the police, the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the Polling Station Working Committees (KPPS) participate in a simulation to The clouded leopard was bought for Rp 60 million (US$4,500), while
safeguard the Jakarta gubernatorial election runoff at the Kebon Jeruk district office in Jakarta on Tuesday. The runoff is slated for April 19. the sun bear and orangutan cost Rp 15 million and Rp 25 million,
respectively.
Further investigation showed that AM was an animal collector and
enthusiast, he said.
The police, however, have not found the seller of the endangered

New regulation makes animals, thus making the origins of the animals unknown. — JP

Tangerang to develop LRT

online drivers jittery TANGERANG: Tangerang city plans to develop a light rail transit (LRT) net-
work connecting the city to South Tangerang, a senior official has said.
Tangerang Mayor Arief Rachadiono Wismansyah said the city was
looking to team up with PT Banten Metro Transit Indonesia to build the
network.
Fachrul Sidiq Ride-hailing drivers may vailing government regulations requirements set forth in the re- “We need a mode of mass transportation to reduce our depen-
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA stage protest against new failed to ensure fairness for pro- vision, including submitting the dence on private vehicles,” Arief was quoted as saying by tempo.co on
regulation viders of conventional services, number of vehicles supervised by Tuesday.
What drove 41-year-old Surat- both taxi and ojek (motorcycle each company. If they fail to abide Arief acknowledged that the investment for the development would
man to buy a Toyota Avanza on Number of app-based taxi) drivers. by the regulation, access to the be very costly.
credit eight months ago was the vehicles in Greater In a bid to ease tension and to applications may be blocked, he The city only has one bus rapid transport (BRT) route connecting
lucrative income he could enjoy Jakarta to be limited to provide a more level playing field added. Poris Plawad to Jatiuwung. — JP
from being a driver of Go-Car, a for every stakeholder in the indus- BPTJ head Elly Adriana Sina-
major operator in application-
three to five per 1,000 try, the government has revised ga said the number of ride-hail-
residents
based ride-hailing services.
Since jumping into the busi-
a regulation governing the ride-
hailing transportation sector.
ing vehicles in Greater Jakarta
would be limited to three to five
Playtime
ness, Suratman has pocketed an ly installments on his loan. Apart from fleet quotas for each per 1,000 residents.
enviable Rp 10 million (US$750.6) From the moment they ap- city, the broad revision to Trans- “We have calculated three to five
per month. Nearly half of that has peared, app-based ride-hailing portation Ministerial Decree per 1,000 residents as the appropri-
gone toward paying off his loan. services have opened job oppor- No. 32/2016 includes stipulations ate number,” Elly said last week. “In
A new government policy that tunities for people in Greater covering the minimum engine future, all online taxis will be distin-
limits the number of operating Jakarta. The popularity of ride- capacity to be used by app-based guished from private vehicles by a
application-based ride-hailing sharing applications has inspired vehicles, roadworthiness, tax pay- special sticker,” she added.
vehicles, however, has been met thousands of unemployed people ments and fare restrictions. Another Go-Car driver, Donny
with anxiety by him and his fellow to work as app-based drivers. In the revision, effective since Thamrin Yahya, 30, who earns
drivers, who fear that it could en- Manpower agencies in Jakar- April 1, the Greater Jakarta around Rp 350,000 per day from
danger their jobs. ta’s five municipalities, for exam- Transportation Agency (BPTJ) the job, said he was afraid wide-
“We are starting to get worried. ple, have seen a steady increase in is authorized to set a minimum spread unemployment could oc-
What we can do if we lose our job demand for free driving lessons in and maximum limit for fares to cur should the regulation be fully
is perhaps stage a protest,” said the last two years. However, such replace the current market mech- enacted.
Suratman, who lives in Pondok an innovation has come with a anism as well as cap the size of “If there is no other way [to ad-
Aren, South Tangerang, Banten. consequence — a decline in busi- fleets and the number of drivers dress the problem], there should
He said he had been enjoying ness for conventional transporta- partnering with ride-hailing app at least be a fair and transparent
his time in the industry and would tion providers. providers in its jurisdiction. evaluation to assess the drivers.
need time to find and adapt to a A number of rallies have been Transportation Minister Budi We don’t want to get cut without JP/Dhoni Setiawan
new job if he was forced to part staged nationwide to protest the Karya Sumadi said ride-hailing any explanation,” said Donny, Cartoon characters created by renowned children’s rights activ-
ways with the company, while he online services, with convention- operators would be given a three- who left his job at an airport to be- ist Seto Mulyadi entertain elementary school students during
would still have to pay the month- al drivers complaining that pre- month grace period to meet the come a driver six months ago. the commemoration of Seto’s 47th year of working in the field on
Tuesday in Jakarta. The commemoration was a lead up to Na-
tional Children’s Day, which falls on July 23.
TOMB-SWEEPING DAY
ELECTION
Chinese-Indonesians flock to cemeteries Thousands of inmates
The Jakarta Post
JAKARTA cannot vote
Jakartans of Chinese descent
flocked to cemeteries to pay their Ivany Atina Arbi avoid similar problems from oc-
respects to dead ancestors by THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA curring in the future. “The minis-
cleaning their graves ahead of this try can issue a regulation to fix the
year’s Chinese Tomb-Sweeping Acting Jakarta governor administration system,” Sumar-
Day, widely known in Indonesia as Sumarsono’s goal to see all po- sono told journalists.
Ceng Beng, which fell on Tuesday. tential voters take part in the gu- Endang reported that around
Fery Setiawan, 40, for instance, bernatorial runoff election is not 10,700 inmates out of about
traveled all the way from his likely to be achieved as the data of 16,200 prisoners at six prisons
house in Cengkareng, West Ja- nearly 6,000 inmates at six pris- across the capital were identified
karta, to Tanah Cepe Cemetery in ons across the capital cannot be as Jakarta residents.
Karawaci, Tangerang, on Sunday. verified by the Jakarta Population After the verification from
He took along his family to mark and Civil Registration Agency Dukcapil, only about 4,700 in-
Ceng Beng with his brother’s (Dukcapil) on account of incom- mates — or 44 percent of the total
family, starting from arranging plete data. potential voters at prisons — were
offerings, praying for his ances- Dukcapil head Edison Siantu- deemed eligible to vote.
tors, burning incense, spreading ri said at Salemba Penitentiary in The Jakarta General Elections
prayer papers on the graves of his Central Jakarta on Tuesday that Commission (KPU Jakarta) will
ancestors and burning offerings. his agency faced difficulties in ver- finalize final voter lists (DPT) for
“It is a time besides Chinese ifying the inmates’ data, which had various areas of the city on Tues-
New Year for our family from all been handed over by the Jakarta day evening and will finalize the
over the place to gather together,” Law and Human Rights Agency. provincial DPT on April 6.
Fery told The Jakarta Post. The agency, he said, had re- “It has been decided that the
Once they arrived at the ceme- JP/Kharishar Kahfi ceived little information about 4,700 inmates will be on the DPT.
tery, Fery and his family put fruit Paying respects: Fery Setiawan, 40, and his family burn offerings in the form of fake money and clothes most inmates. No additional inmates will be on
and traditional cakes in front of in front of his father’s grave in Tanah Cepek Cemetery in Tangerang on Sunday. During Ceng Beng “We will be able to verify the the list because today is the day
the graves as offerings. (Chinese Tomb-Sweeping Day), Chinese-Indonesians visit their ancestors’ graves to make offerings and inmates if information on their to finalize the DPT,” KPU Jakarta
While people in the past usu- pray for them. place or date of birth is available,” head Sumarno said. About 4,300
ally presented grilled chick- Edison said. inmates voted in the first round of
en or pork as offerings, Fery’s Fery’s 12-year-old niece. to clean up their ancestors’ tombs ily would pay him to renovate the Other requirements for voter the gubernatorial election.
family chose to give fruit and Ceng Beng is celebrated annu- so that he would know which one graves. According to tradition, verification are name, national Addressing problems related
traditional cakes. ally, either on April 4 or 5. Howev- was that of his parents: the un- people are only allowed to reno- identification number, marital to the DPT has become the priori-
“We believe it is better to pres- er, Chinese-Indonesians usually kept one. vate graves at Ceng Beng. status, sex and address. ty of Sumarsono. The Home Min-
ent fruit to ancestors because start marking the occasion one or An expert on Chinese-Indo- “During Ceng Beng, I can earn Law and Human Rights Agen- istry’s director general of region-
it wouldn’t be proper for them two weeks before Chinese Tomb- nesian issues, Aji “Chen” Bro- around Rp 7 million [US$ 525] cy head Endang Sudirman said al autonomy said previously that
to enjoy such luxury foods [like Sweeping Day itself. mokusumo, said Ceng Beng was by renovating the tomb,” Mur- the information handed over to some 5,500 people were not on
grilled chicken and pork] in the There are many versions ex- one tradition that had not been sin said, adding that he could get Dukcapil was what he had re- the DPT for the Feb. 15 election.
afterlife,” Fery said. plaining the origin of the festi- banned during the regime of for- an additional Rp 100,000 from ceived from the courts. “Problems found in the first
After that, they prayed for their val, but the most common one mer president Soeharto as visit- cleaning other tombs. “We do not have the author- round shall not reoccur in the
ancestors. At the end, the family is that the tradition started with ing ancestor’s graves was not con- Amma, a 70-year-old local ity to investigate the inmates’ ad- second round, and the most of
presented a box filled with paper a Chinese emperor who had sidered a major festivity. food seller, also enjoyed the tradi- dresses, or ages,” Endang said. the problems found in the Feb. 15
slippers, bundles of fake money been separated from his parents The joy of the Ceng Beng festi- tion. During Ceng Beng, she sells Sumarsono, who visited the election were related to final vot-
and paper “gold bars” and burned when he was a child. When he re- val is not only felt by those of Chi- gado-gado [local salad with pea- penitentiary to monitor prepara- er list,” Sumarsono said.
the inedible offerings to send the turned to his hometown, the em- nese ancestry who visit ancestors’ nut sauce] and cold drinks from tions for the runoff election slated Many residents living in apart-
offerings to their ancestors. peror found that his parents had graves, but also by others, such as a makeshift stall in the cemetery. for April 19, said the verification ments were not listed on the DPT
“The burning of offerings is my passed away. grave sweepers and food sellers. “I can earn two to three times problems derived from poor data- in the first round. To tackle the is-
favorite part of the tradition, as it However, the emperor did not Mursin, 45, who keeps Se- more money during Ceng Beng, input at prisons. sue, KPU Jakarta set up booths at
means that I can give something know which tomb contained his tiawan’s family graves clean, told compared to when I sell gado- He hoped the Law and Human a number of apartment complexes
to our ancestors to be used in the parents’ remains and so he or- the Post that Ceng Beng was a gado in my stall outside the cem- Right Ministry could address in the capital. The commission en-
afterlife,” said Jesslyn Setiawan, dered the people of his hometown time of the year when the fam- etery,” Amma said. (kkk) such problems in the future to couraged people to register to vote.
10 | SPORTS WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

COSTA PEPS NHL decision

HOCKEY
PUTTING IT BRIEFLY
Moyes apologizes for ‘slap’ comment
ment Diego
Costa
on Olympics
LONDON: Sunderland manager David Moyes faces a possible sible FA
sanction after telling a female reporter that she “might get a slap
even though you’re a woman” for questions asked in an inter-
UP CHELSEA regrettable,
view last month.
Moyes, whose side is rooted to the bottom of the Premier mier ahead of Man City clash says IOC
League, apologized for the comment at a news conference nce on The hosts are sevens 3-0 at Stamford Bridge last April
points
Monday. clear of Spurs, and 11 ahead of against an off-form home side
Reporter Vicki Sparks, who works for the BBC, had made ade City, which drew 2- 2-2 at Arsenal with very little to play for. Karolos Grohmann
no complaint at the time and the broadcaster said the pair air on Sunday after twictwice taking the Sergio Aguero scored a hat REUTERS/AARHUS, DENMARK
had spoken about the exchange and resolved the issue lead. trick then and was also on the
between themselves. But Saturday’s ssurprise 2-1 scoresheet against Arsenal, with The National Hockey League’s
Footage of the conversation, filmed on a mobile phone, ne, home defeat to lowly Crystal Pal- manager Pep Guardiola staying decision not to take part in the
was published on Monday on the website of the tabloid ace has revived hope
hopes elsewhere hopeful. 2018 Winter Olympics is regret-
Daily Star newspaper. Both parties appeared to be laugh-- that Chelsea could be vulnerable. “We know what we have to do table and will come as a big blow
ing during it. That first home defeat since against Chelsea. We head back to to the world’s best ice hockey
Others took the matter much more seriously, however,r, September was also a wake- Manchester to prepare and then players, the International Olym-
with shadow (opposition) sports minister Rosena Allin- up call for Antonio back down to London,” said the pic Committee (IOC) said on
Khan calling for an FA investigation. Conte’s side, which Spaniard, whose side has lost only Tuesday.
“If you look at the fact that he wouldn’t have said has looked
look title cer- one of its last six Premier League The NHL announced on Mon-
that to a male reporter, and I truly believe that, I think tainties. games in London. day it had decided not to send
the comments and his behavior and attitude was sexist,”” “Now is not the Chelsea hopes to have wing- its players to the Games, say-
she told BBC radio. — Reuters time to t let our- back Victor Moses back in action ing talks to find a solution to the
Reuters/Carl Recine selves down,” Costa, after a calf injury ruled him out at problem of stopping their league
Alan Baldwin who has scored 17 league goals the weekend. in mid-season to accommodate
Chris open to training Purwakarta boxers REUTERS/LONDON this season but only four since Spurs, still without injured the Olympics in the past had not
Christmas, told ESPN Brazil. “We striker Harry Kane, can put more been successful.
JAKARTA: Former featherweight world champion Chris John has ex- Chelsea top scorer Diego Costa should keep our heads up and pressure on Chelsea when they “This must be a huge dis-
pressed his support for aspiring boxers by accepting a request from the believes the Premier League lead- think ahead for the next game travel to relegation-threatened appointment for the players
regent of Purwakarta, West Java to mentor at a local center. ers can effectively end Manches- since it will be very important. Swansea City, which has never who definitely wanted to play
“[Purwakarta Regent] Dedi Mulyadi has promised to add equipment ter City’s title hopes when the two “This game against City will be beaten it in the Premier League at the Olympic Winter Games
at the Jayaperkasa boxing center, which is a good approach to produc- sides meet at Stamford Bridge on a six-point affair since if we win and is now a point above the drop Pyeongchang 2018,” the IOC said
ing professional boxers for the future,” Chris said as quoted by Antara Wednesday. [...] they will [effectively] be out zone. in a statement. “The IOC feels
during his visit to Purwakarta on Monday. The alternative scenario, that of the title race while we keep the Third-placed Liverpool is at very sorry for the athletes.
The boxing center is located in Purwakarta’s Jayaperkasa Sports fourth-placed City could win and advantage.” home to Bournemouth while “The decision is even more re-
Center. help Tottenham Hotspur close Both sides will be looking back sixth-placed Arsenal, with a grettable, as the International
In response to Chris’ availability, Dedi said he also planned to chan- the gap at the top to four points, to last year for comfort, with top four place now looking a Ice Hockey Federation [IIHF]
nel aggressive behavior in Purwakarta’s teens, especially those that does not bear thinking about for Chelsea winning 3-1 at the Eti- long shot, entertains West Ham had offered the same condi-
had gotten into brawls, into boxing activities. the Spain international. had in December while City won United. tions to the NHL as at previous
“The sport will accommodate those teens’ excessive energy. If Olympic Games, where the in-
needed, we could also invite parents to witness their children while in surance and travel costs were
a session with Chris,” added the regent. — JP covered.”
The Pyeongchang Win-
Ministry cools off over Andri debate ter Games will take place in
South Korea from Feb. 9 to 25
JAKARTA: Indonesian soccer player Andri Syahputra has sparked next year.
debate following his decision to turn down an invitation to play for the The IOC said the ice hock-
country and instead take a spot on Qatar’s under-19 team. ey would go ahead with players
The 17-year-old Andri, who lives in Qatar with his family, reportedly from the other leagues as it could
turned down an invitation from the Soccer Association of Indonesia not make an exception for the
(PSSI) to join Indonesia’s under-19 squad. Andri’s move sparked debate NHL, treating it differently than
on the internet, causing PSSI chief Edy Rahmayadi to issue a state- international federations.
ment. “The IOC, which distributes
Youth and Sports Ministry secretary Gatot S. Dewa Broto requested 90 percent of its revenue for
that all parties respect Andri’s decision. the development of sport in the
“Andri and his family still hold Indonesian passports. It is OK for world, obviously cannot treat a
Andri to be on the Qatari team because offering a spot to him was a national commercial league bet-
gesture of appreciation from Qatar,” Gatot said in a statement. ter than not-for-profit interna-
Andri’s father, Agus Sudarmanto, works in Qatar. tional sports federations which
“Qatari authorities have been scouting talent like Andri for quite a are developing sport globally,”
long time as [those talented ones] are considered to make positive Patriot Candrabaga Stadium the IOC said.
contributions to the country,” he added. “The ice hockey tournament
Warta Kota/Fitriyandi Al Fajri at the Olympic Winter Games
Andri goes to the Aspire Academy in Qatar. — JP
LOCAL SOCCER Pyeongchang 2018 will none-
theless be a very exciting one,
Persija to test new home stadium because the players from all the
other professional ice hockey
with friendly against U-22 leagues and their athletes will
participate, and will be very
much welcomed by their Olym-
The Jakarta Post ing at Patriot for the first time, legendary striker] Bambang Pa- pic teams.”
JAKARTA reported tribunnews.com. mungkas, simply because I play Unhappy about having to shut
The Brazilian coach, who ini- for the national team,” he added. down for almost three weeks in
Persija Jakarta has a new tiated the test match at Patriot, In the 2016 Indonesian Soc- the middle of their regular sea-
home stadium for Liga 1 and is said it was essential for the team cer Championship, the previous son, the NHL had been seeking
set to give it a try with a friend- to get familiar with the stadium. name of the top league, Persija was major concessions from the IOC,
ly match against the Indone- Miguel Gandia, the nation- a nomad team, playing its home including recognition compa-
sian soccer under-22 team on al squad’s physical trainer, matches in several different stadi- rable to that of an Olympic top
Wednesday. said he was optimistic that his ums, including at Manahan Stadi- Sponsor, for taking part.
The friendly match will be held men would deliver their best in um in Surakarta, Central Java and The IOC and the IIHF had
at the 30,000-seat Patriot Can- Wednesday’s friendly as they had at Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) main agreed to ensure payment of
SuperBall/Tribunnews.com drabaga Stadium in Bekasi, West spent several days training in stadium in the Senayan sports transportation and insurance for
One way or another: Indonesian Andri Syaputra (right) tries to Java. Karawaci, South Tangerang. complex in Central Jakarta. the players after having initially
hold back a British player in a friendly under-18 soccer match The newly refurbished Patriot Under Milla, the Indonesian GBK is undergoing major ren- refused to do so, in an effort to
between Qatar and England in Doha on March 27. Andri played Stadium is Persija’s home for the team will adopt a short-passing ovations as it will be used for the reach an agreement.
for the Qatari team. Go-Jek Traveloka Liga 1 premier style, which is similar to Span- Asian Games in 2018. The NHL has participated in
league season, which will kick off ish soccer. The mentioned style In the meantime, Bekasi plans every Winter Olympics since
on April 15. requires high stamina from each to form a new team to replace the 1998 but similar disputes preced-
SCOREBOARD Securing Patriot put an end to member of the squad, said Gan- defunct Persipasi Bekasi club. ed past Games with a deal usually
uncertainty over the home stadi- dia on the Soccer Association of Bekasi Mayor Rahmat Effen- reached shortly before the event.
Soccer matches on Monday
Inter Milan 1 Sampdoria 2 um of the Jakarta-based Persija, Indonesia (PSSI) website. di said the new team would most This decision will impact almost
La Liga P W D L F A Pts which is known for its loud and Ryuji Utomo, a national play- likely be named Patriot Candrab- every major hockey-playing na-
Results and standings from the La Liga 1 Juventus 30 24 2 4 60 20 74 die-hard Jakmania fans. er who plays for Persija in Liga 1, aga (PCB) soccer club. tion with the Sweden, Finland,
matches on Monday 2 AS Roma 30 22 2 6 66 26 68
Monday, April 3 3 Napoli 30 19 7 4 69 33 64 Team manager Luis Milla said said he would not take it easy on “I’m targeting the PCB to Russia, United States and Cana-
Celta Vigo 3 Las Palmas 1 4 Lazio 30 18 6 6 52 31 60 in a statement that the friend- his own team in the friendly. reach, at least, the second level dian teams almost entirely made
5 Atalanta Bergamo 30 18 4 8 51 33 58
P W D L F A Pts ly match would show the team’s “Playing for Jakmania will of the national soccer compe- up of NHL players.
1 Real Madrid 28 21 5 2 74 28 68
2 Barcelona 29 20 6 3 85 26 66 Basketball latest development after losing always mean something be- tition in the future,” said Rah- Some players, however, have
3 Atletico Madrid 29 17 7 5 54 23 58 to Myanmar, also in a friendly cause they are special,” said the mat, as quoted by Antara, adding already said they would play in
4 Sevilla 29 17 7 5 52 34 58 NBA match, last month. 21-year-old, who played for Are- that he would introduce the new Pyeongchang no matter what
5 Real Sociedad 29 15 4 10 43 40 49 Result from the NBA match between
Minnesota and Portland on Monday (home Persija manager Stefano Cu- ma Cronus in 2016 to 2017. team on the sidelines of Wednes- and the NHL’s decision also
Serie A team in CAPS) gurra said he was looking for- “Nevertheless, I will go all- day’s friendly between Persija earned a rebuke from the play-
Results and standings from the Serie A MINNESOTA 110 Portland 109 ward to the test match and play- out, including against [the team’s and U-22. ers’ union.

GOLF

Mother Nature ready to throw everything at Masters

Steve Keating forecast for later in the week. ally anything today,” said Ameri- Whether in the opening round that gets really tough, especially learn that Augusta National is
REUTERS/AUGUSTA, GEORGIA Mother Nature is expected to can Rickie Fowler, the world’s or final round, a Green Jacket if the wind swirls. I think if you not your average championship
throw a little bit of everything at eighth-ranked player. “Mondays can be won or lost through holes get through there at even par, layout.
US Masters week got off to a the year’s first major. for me at a normal tournament 11, 12 and 13 as Jordan Spieth you’re doing really well. “We play a lot of courses
stormy start as heavy rains swept Monday’s rain will be fol- are typically rest days. So this has learned last year when he carded “Everybody thinks 13 is such a where it’s kind of simple to wan-
across Augusta National Golf lowed by hot, humid conditions just kind of been rest, recover a seven at the par three 12th. cake walk. It’s really not. der around and go, ‘Well, you
Club on Monday with tornado on Tuesday with more thunder- and get ready for the week.” “It’s a really good stretch of “It’s kind of one of those trick can’t hit it there or over there is a
warnings forcing players and storms on Wednesday, while high The only major held at the golf, especially with the way the holes. You think you should bird- good miss and that will be fine’,”
spectators off the course. winds and cool temperatures, same venue every year, experi- forecast is looking for Thursday ie it every time and then you walk said the Masters rookie.
For the first time in 11 years, which could dip close to freez- ence counts at Augusta National and Friday, the winds look like away with a five.” “Sometimes it only takes one
opening practice at the Masters ing, are forecast for the opening where the learning curve, partic- they’re going to be pretty gnarly,” Briton Tommy Fleetwood practice round but this place is
was suspended and the mer- two rounds of the tournament on ularly through Amen Corner, on said US PGA champion Jimmy was among those able to squeeze very, very different.
chandise shop can expect a run Thursday and Friday. a gusty afternoon can be cruel to Walker. in a few holes before play was “The course can work in your
on umbrellas with more rain “I wasn’t planning on doing re- the extreme. “That’s a section of the course halted but it was enough to favor as much as it can harm you.”

FIVE PLAYERS TO WATCH AT THE US MASTERS

Dustin Johnson Jordan Spieth game’s fastest greens. finishes. The Augusta layout, with tie for fourth at the PGA Champi- player he won the
Top-six finishes Has finished no most fairways moving right-to- onship last August. Ben Hogan Award
the past two years, worse than second Phil Mickelson left, ideally suits a left-hander Was the hottest player in the for the most out-
but in a different in three appearanc- Would become, such as Mickelson, who can play world from October through early standing collegiate
place mentally as es, including victo- at 46, the oldest power fade off the tee. January, with four wins and two golfer in the United
he returns with ry in 2015, but will Masters champion, seconds in six starts. States in 2015 and
the confidence that Reuters/Orlando have to deal with Reuters/ seven months old- Hideki Matsuyama Has gone off the boil a little re- 2016.
Ramirez-USA
comes from finally TODAY Sports the mental bag- Jonathan Ernst er than Jack Nick- Seeking to be- cently. Putting is not the best part The native of Reuters/Erich
Schlegel-USA
winning a major, gage of his melt- laus when he won come the first Japa- of his game. northern Spain has TODAY Sports
the US Open last June, and taking down last year, when he blew a the 1986 Masters. Reuters/Erich
nese man to win a quickly lived up to
over world number one ranking. five-stroke lead over the final nine Invariably raises his Schlegel-USA major, showed his Jon Rahm his billing since turning pro, win-
His wedge play now matches holes. game at Augusta, TODAY Sports affinity for Augusta A realistic chance of becoming ning at Torrey Pines for his maid-
his renowned long game, which Arguably the best mid-range no matter how he with a fifth place the first player to win the Masters en PGA Tour victory two months
should give him the confidence to putter in the world, has the imag- has been playing in the lead-up. in 2015, and en- Reuters/Erich in his debut since Fuzzy Zoeller in ago. Has finished no worse than
lay up if he gets into trouble off ination and ability to execute Apart from his three victories, hanced his major Schlegel-USA 1979. 16th in six starts this year.
TODAY Sports
the tees. with the flatstick on some of the Mickelson has six other top-three credentials with a The sport’s most exciting young Source: Reuters
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 WORLD | 11
HUMAN RIGHTS
AROUND THE WORLD
M’sia panel Remains of new pyramid discovered
fazed by EGYPT: A top antiquities official says an Egyptian excavation team has
discovered the remains of a new pyramid that dates back to the 13th
deaths in dynasty, some 3,700 years ago.
The head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector, Mahmoud Afifi,
said in a statement Monday that the remains were located north of
jails, camps King Sneferu’s bent pyramid in the Dahshur royal necropolis south of
Cairo. Due to the bent slope of its sides, the pyramid is believed to
have been ancient Egypt’s first attempt to build a smooth-sided pyra-
A. Ananthalakshmi mid. The necropolis was the burial site for courtiers and high-ranking
REUTERS/KUALA LUMPUR officials.
Head of Dahshur necropolis Adel Okasha said that the remains belong
Malaysia’s national human to the inner structure of the pyramid, including a corridor. Other remains
rights panel on Tuesday said it included blocks showing the interior design of the pyramid. — AP
was disturbed by more than 600
deaths at immigration detention
centers and prisons over the last Dispute deepens over Dalai Lama’s trip
two years, and called for immedi-
ate reform. INDIA: India says China should not interfere in its internal affairs, as a
In its 2016 annual report, the dispute deepens between the countries over the Dalai Lama’s visit to
panel, known by its Malay acro- India’s northeast.
nym, Suhakam, said there were The Tibetan spiritual leader arrives Tuesday for a weeklong visit
more than 100 deaths in immi- to the state of Arunachal Pradesh. China claims the partly ethnically
gration detention centers and Reuters/Ammar Abdullah Tibetan Himalayan state as its own territory.
521 deaths in prisons in 2015 and Fresh air: A civil defense member breathes through an oxygen mask, after what rescue workers de- Last month, China warned of “severe damage” to relations with
2016. Twelve people died in police scribed as a suspected gas attack in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in rebel-held Idlib, Syria, on Tuesday. India if the Dalai Lama proceeds with his trip.
lock-ups in 2015. Indian Junior Home Minister Kiren Rijiju said Tuesday that New
Last week, citing documents Delhi respects Beijing’s “one China” policy and expects China to accept
from Suhakam, Reuters reported India’s policies.
that 118 foreigners, including un-
documented workers, refugees
and asylum seekers, had died at
detention centers in the last two
Suspected gas attack He said Arunachal Pradesh “is an inseparable part of India and
China should not object to the Dalai Lama’s visit and interfere in India’s
internal affairs.” — AP

kills at least 58 RI, Oz to hold ‘airmen to airmen’ talks

years. More than half the dead
were from Myanmar.
Suhakam said deaths most- INDONESIA: A two-day discussion between the Indonesian Air Force
ly stemmed from diseases in all and its Australian counterpart is set to take place next week. The two
prisons and detention centers, countries want to share experiences and get information on air safety,
where the government should Ellen Francis Rescuers say strikes hit Reuters photographs showed a military officer said in Yogyakarta recently.
look to improve conditions and BEIRUT facility treating victims people breathing through oxy- The event, set for April 10 to 12, will be hosted by the Air Force’s
healthcare. gen masks and wearing protec- commander of Operation II in Makassar, South Sulawesi.
“There is little interest in the A suspected gas attack, be- Syrian military source tion suits, while others carried “In the event, we can share and get information from other coun-
human rights of detainees,” said lieved to be by Syrian government denies use of chemical the bodies of dead children, and tries that use the same or different jet fighters. We can combine all
Chairman Razali Ismail. “This at- jets, killed at least 58 people in- weapons corpses wrapped in blankets were information to find a suitable formula for Indonesia,” Air Force chief
titude is reflected in government cluding 11 children under the age lined up on the ground. operations assistant Air Vice Marshal Bahrim said.
budgetary priorities and the re- of eight in the northwestern prov- Activists in northern Syria cir- The meeting with Australian airmen is a routine event for the Air
sources made available for the ince of Idlib on Tuesday, a war the Observatory said and civil de- culated pictures on social media force, which is also actively involved in similar discussions with a num-
running and upkeep of all places monitor and medical workers in fense workers said. showing a purported victim with ber of middle-eastern countries, some of which operate the hawks-
of detention.” the rebel-held area said. The civil defense, also known as foam around his mouth, and res- type fighter jets.
Particularly in immigration de- The attack caused many people the White Helmets — a rescue ser- cue workers hosing down almost The upcoming talks are also expected to help the Air Force identify
tention centers, people spent long to choke or faint, and some had vice that operates in opposition ar- naked children squirming on the better ways of reducing air incidents across the archipelagic country,
periods unable to move freely or foam coming out of their mouths, eas of Syria — said jets struck one floor. which has continued to record deadly military aircraft accidents over
sleep comfortably in overcrowd- the Syrian Observatory for Hu- of its centers in the area and the The conflict pits President the past few years. — JP
ed cells, he said, where conditions man Rights said, citing medical nearby medical point. Bashar al-Assad’s government,
sometimes deteriorated to be- sources who described it as a sign It would mark the deadliest helped by Russia and Iranian-
come “inhumane.” of a gas attack. chemical attack in Syria since sa- backed militias, against a wide 6 more charged in asylum-seeker beating
The government did not im- The air strikes on the town of rin gas killed hundreds of civil- array of rebel groups, including
mediately respond to requests for Khan Sheikhoun, in the south ians in Ghouta near Damascus in some that have been supported UNITED KINGDOM: Authorities have charged six more people in the
comment on Suhakam’s report, of rebel-held Idlib, also wound- August 2013. Western states said by Turkey, the United States and vicious beating of an asylum-seeker in south London.
published on Tuesday. ed more than 60 people, said the the Syrian government was re- Gulf monarchies. London’s police force has now charged a total of 13 people in the
Former detainees, government Observatory, a British-based war sponsible for that attack. Damas- The Russian Defense Minis- attack on 17-year-old Kurdish Iranian Reker Ahmed.
agencies and rights groups have monitoring group. cus blamed it on rebels. try immediately said that Rus- Ahmed was waiting at a bus stop with two friends — Dilshad Mo-
told Reuters of grim living condi- “This morning, at 6:30 a.m., The Syrian military source on sian planes had not carried out air hammed and Hamo Mustafa — when approached by a group of youths.
tions in detention camps that are warplanes targeted Khan Sheik- Tuesday denied the allegations, strikes on Idlib. Police say that upon learning Ahmed was an asylum-seeker, the
overcrowded and unhygienic. houn with gases, believed to be saying that the army “has not and Syrian and Russian air strikes suspects chased him through the streets and beat him. The attack only
Some said they received insuf- sarin and chlorine,” said Mounzer does not use them, not in the past have battered parts of Idlib de- stopped after police sirens could be heard and bystanders intervened.
ficient food, water or healthcare, Khalil, head of Idlib’s health au- and not in the future, because it spite a ceasefire that Turkey and The six accused on Tuesday are aged between 15 and 22 and have
and many developed skin and lung thority, adding that the attack had does not have them in the first Russia brokered in December, ac- all been charged with violent disorder. Two have also been charged
infections, or contagious diseases. killed more than 50 people and place.” cording to the Observatory. with racially aggravated grievous bodily harm. — AP
All those interviewed also alleged wounded 300. A joint inquiry for the United Turkish President Tayyip Er-
they were beaten by camp guards “Most of the hospitals in Idlib Nations and the global chemical dogan and Russian President Duterte fires Cabinet member
or saw others being beaten. province are now overflowing weapons watchdog has previous- Vladimir Putin discussed the sus-
Suhakam documents reviewed with wounded people,” he told a ly accused government forces of pected attack, Turkish presiden- PHILIPPINES: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte sacked his interior
by Reuters showed detainees died news conference in Idlib. toxic gas attacks. France called for tial sources said. They said the secretary and close political ally amid reports of alleged corruption in
from lung infections, heart-relat- Warplanes later struck near an emergency UN Security Coun- two leaders had also emphasized what his officials said Tuesday was a warning that he would not toler-
ed conditions and the bacterial a medical point where victims cil meeting about Tuesday’s sus- the importance of maintaining ate any wrongdoing even in his Cabinet.
disease leptospirosis. No cause of the attack were being treated, pected attack. the cease-fire. Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said Duterte announced the
was attributed for 50 deaths. dismissal of Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismail Sueno
Last week, deputy home minis- at the end of a Cabinet meeting late Monday after asking him some
ter Nur Jazlan Mohamed told Re- questions, citing loss of trust and confidence.
uters his ministry had hit a budget NATURAL DISASTER
Sueno was in charge of local governments and the national
brick wall in efforts to improve police, making him among the most powerful Cabinet members. He
conditions in immigration deten-
tion centers. New Zealand hit by ex-Cyclone Debbie has denied any wrongdoing in the past but has yet to speak on his
dismissal. — AP
Malaysia’s 13 detention centers
had a total of 86,795 detainees
during various periods in 2016,
the Enforcement Agency Integ-
Jane Wardell
REUTERS/WELLINGTON
rise to dangerous levels.
"We have about 20 hours to save
The highway into the quake epi-
center of Kaikoura was closed on
Reflection
rity Commission says. your precious things, maybe raise Tuesday, just hours after reopen-
Two of the detention centers The tail-end of powerful Cy- things, maybe check on your elder- ing following a week-long closure
Suhakam visited last year were in clone Debbie, which left a trail of ly neighbor," the mayor, Hamish to shore up almost 20 potential
dilapidated condition, the agency destruction in northeast Austra- McDouall, said in a statement. slip sites. A second major arterial
said in its report. lia, lashed New Zealand on Tues- Weather officials issued a road was blocked by a landslip.
Three blocks of a detention cen- day, closing highways and causing swathe of rain and wind warnings New Zealand's Civil Defense
ter in southern Johor state, and a major landslip. covering the entire North Island Force was on standby as other
two blocks on northern Penang The storm hit parts of New Zea- and top of the South. roads were closed and at least one
island were held “unfit and un- land still recovering from a devas- Cyclone Debbie, a category school was evacuated.
safe for occupation,” by the Public tating earthquake last November four storm, one short of the most In Australia, where the disaster
Works Department, it added. and weather officials warned of powerful level five, pounded Aus- zone stretched 1,000 kilometers
The rights agency said the im- several days of heavy rain, with tralia's Queensland state last from Queensland's tropical re-
migration department last week some regions set to receive three week, smashing tourist resorts, sort islands and Gold Coast tour-
informed it of “major reforms,” months' worth of rain in the next bringing down power lines and ist strip to the farmlands of New
such as better healthcare and re- 48 hours. shutting down coal mines. South Wales, about 20,000 homes
pair of dilapidated structures. "This is a significant amount Australian police on Tuesday were still without power on Tues-
Southeast Asia-based migrant of rain and people are advised to retrieved three bodies from a car day, as flood waters continued to
and refugee protection group watch out for rapidly rising rivers beneath floodwaters in the swol- rise in some areas.
Fortify Rights urged a criminal and streams, flooding and slips," len Tweed River of New South Residents of Rockhampton, in
investigation into the deaths. the Meteorological Office said in a Wales state, taking to six the central Queensland, were advised
“Malaysian authorities could severe weather warning. number of people killed since the to seek higher ground as the ris-
begin tackling this by ending arbi- As darkness fell, a state of emer- storm hit. ing Fitzroy River approaches a
trary and indefinite detention of gency was declared in the city of New Zealand's mountainous peak forecast for Thursday. Aus- AP/Daniel Chan
migrants, including refugees and Whanganui on the North Island, terrain makes its roads suscep- tralian insurers have declared the A worker cleans a pond at a park in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
survivors of trafficking,” Execu- with its mayor warning that man- tible to landslides and many re- event a catastrophe, with state of- The KLCC Park is a 50-acre garden set close to the Suria KLCC
tive Director Amy Smith said in a datory evacuations were likely at gions are still recovering from No- ficials saying recovery and repairs shopping center and serves as a green space for the area around
statement. first light as rivers were forecast to vember's 7.8-magnitude quake. will need months. the Petronas Twin Towers.
WORLD WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 | 12
Spring is coming
Eleven killed
in suicide
bombing on
Russian train
Denis Pinchuk Explosion coincides with
REUTERS/ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA Putin visit to
St. Petersburg
A blast in a St. Petersburg train
carriage on Monday that killed 11 Suspect had ties to radical
people and wounded 45 was car- Islamists
ried out by a suspected suicide
bomber with ties to radical Is-
lamists, Russia’s Interfax news was carried out by radical Is-
agency cited a law enforcement lamists, the Kremlin is likely to
source as saying. argue the attack underlines the
Russian President Vladimir importance of its campaign in
Putin, who was in the city when Syria, where it is backing Presi-
the blast struck, visited the scene dent Bashar al-Assad in a fight
of the explosion late on Monday against Islamist militants. AP/Eugene Hoshiko
night and laid a bunch of red flow- However, some sections of Visitors crowd to see blooming cherry blossoms at Ueno Park in Tokyo, Tuesday. Cherry blossom season has officially kicked off in Tokyo, mark-
ers at a makeshift shrine to the Russian society could see the ing the beginning of spring for the Japanese.
victims. metro bombing as proof that Pu-
Witnesses said they saw pas- tin’s decision to intervene in Syria
sengers who were bloodied and has again made Russian civilians
burned spilling out of the train, into targets. US-CHINA SUMMIT
the door of which was buckled Two years ago, IS said it had
by the force of the explosion, and
lying on a platform while smoke
filled the station.
brought down a plane carrying
Russian tourists home from a Red
Sea resort. All 224 people on board
Trump-Xi meeting watched for clues of future
Russia has experienced bomb the flight were killed.
attacks carried out by Islamist United States President Don-
rebels from Russia’s North Cau- ald Trump offered his condolenc- Christopher Bodeen cessful meeting so that a correct Trump deliverables, he will still Meanwhile, China continues
casus region in the past. The re- es to Putin in a phone call late on ASSOCIATED PRESS/BEIJING direction can be set for the growth have to deal with “a restless US to oppose the tough measures de-
bellion there has been largely Monday, the White House said in of bilateral relations.” president valuing unpredictabil- manded of it to address former
crushed, but Russia’s military in- a statement, offering the support Chinese President Xi Jinping Like many nations, China is ity and seeking advantage for his close ally North Korea, fearing a
tervention in Syria has now made of the US government. The two probably will not give United States still grappling with Trump’s mer- agenda going forward,” Sutter said. collapse of the Pyongyang regime
it a potential target for attacks by leaders “agreed that terrorism President Donald Trump a round curial nature after the relative Trump was seen as moving trade would bring a crush of refugees
the Islamic State (IS) group, secu- must be decisively and quickly de- of golf during their first face-to-face transparency and predictability even more to the forefront when and possibly US and South Kore-
rity experts say. feated,” the statement said. meeting this week, but he may find of the bilateral relationship un- he signed a pair of executive orders an troops on its border.
There was no immediate claim China also condemned the at- it worthwhile to ensure his Ameri- der Trump’s predecessor Barack Friday focused on reducing the Trump told the Financial
of responsibility. Officials said tack, with Foreign Minister Wang can counterpart does not feel like Obama. Both during his campaign trade deficit. Coupled together, the Times the US is prepared to act
they were treating the blast as an Yi offering condolences and sup- he is leaving empty-handed. and after his victory, Trump com- orders appeared to be a symbolic alone if China does not take a
act of terrorism, but there was no port in a statement that said “Chi- Some view the informal venue plained repeatedly over China’s shot at China, which accounted for tougher stand against North Ko-
official confirmation of any link to na resolutely opposed all types of of the summit Thursday and Fri- allegedly unfair trade practices, the vast bulk — US$347 billion — of rea’s nuclear program.
Islamist radicals. terrorism.” day — Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate its perceived lack of assistance in last year’s $502 billion trade deficit. Despite such divisions, Beijing
Earlier, Russian media broad- Soon after the blast happened in Florida — as a sign that neither reining in North Korea’s nuclear Having suffered a major blow seems committed to establishing
cast closed circuit television foot- at 2:40 p.m. local time, ambulanc- side anticipates important out- ambitions and its drive to cement with the failure of health care re- a positive relationship between
age of a bearded man they said es and fire engines descended on comes. Trump, however tweeted control over the South China Sea. form, Trump will be seeking to the two leaders.
was being sought by police as a the concrete-and-glass Sennaya last week that he expects “a very Some analysts believe Xi might claim some kind of victory in his “It is fundamental for them to
suspect. However, Interfax re- Ploshchad station. One helicopter difficult” meeting, and on Friday be willing to hand Trump a sym- encounter with Xi, said June Teufel improve understanding between
ported that the man had come hovered overhead and then land- said: “We’re going to get down to bolic victory on trade to put a pos- Dreyer, professor of political sci- each other,” said Xiong Zhiyong,
forward and been eliminated ed on a broad avenue to take away some very serious business,” refer- itive spin on the meeting. ence at the University of Miami. a professor at Peking University’s
from inquiries. a wounded passenger. encing what he believes is China’s “Xi probably can’t accommo- Trump’s comments on trade and School of International Relations.
The news agency, quoting an “I saw a lot of smoke, a crowd negative impact on the US econo- date Trump on sovereignty and other issues “portend some hard “Both sides have shown their will-
unidentified law enforcement making its way to the escala- my, especially manufacturing jobs. security issues, but he has a lot bargaining,” Dreyer said. She add- ingness to cooperate and they are
source, said that human remains tors, people with blood and other China, for its part, has remained of leeway on economics,” said ed, however, that slowing economic expected to make a commitment
examined at the scene suggested people’s insides on their clothes, largely sanguine about the event, Robert Sutter, a China expert at growth in China could limit Xi’s op- for cooperation.”
that the blast had been carried bloody faces,” St. Petersburg resi- with Vice Foreign Minister Zheng George Washington University in tions for negotiating on trade. China, Xiong said, realizes that
out by a suicide bomber. It said dent Leonid Chaika told Reuters Zeguang telling reporters that Washington, DC. “So the stage is set for a battle Trump “is a leader with a strong
the police had identified a sus- by phone. “both sides look forward to a suc- Yet even if Xi is able to offer royal,” Dreyer said. personality.”
pect with links to radical Islamist “Many were crying,” said Chai-
groups banned in Russia. ka, who was at the station where
If it is confirmed that the bomb the blast happened.
DISASTER

Flood-stricken city in Colombia mourns as death toll climbs

Alba Tobella many more were missing and identified and that they would not Garzon’s 14-year-old sister. “She
ASSOCIATED PRESS/MOCOA, bodies are still being found. consider anyone “disappeared” un- had gone to sleep at a friend’s
COLOMBIA Danilo Garzon Garcia, a til they have established the death house. When we got to where the
22-year-old resident of the city, toll to the extent possible. house was we didn’t find anyone,”
Lines of people quietly walked had spent the previous day search- Much of Mocoa was still strewn he said.
the streets of Mocoa, followed by ing with other family members for with rocks, tree limbs, and brown As he walked calmly in the fu-
hearses carrying coffins to a cem- his young sister. They finally found muck. Search and rescue teams neral procession, his mother
etery where open graves waited her body at the local hospital, able continued to probe debris piles sobbed and screamed in grief:
for the next somber burials. to recognize her battered remains when someone heard a possible “Leidy! What did you leave me?
The survivors of the deadly because of her underwear. sound of movement. Many in this Leidy, my girl.” Her son then put
flood that washed through this “It is better this way, better to city of around 40,000 people still his arm around her as they made
city in southern Colombia were know,” Garzon said as he walked seemed in shock from the flood, their way to the cemetery.
getting ready on Monday to bury alongside the car carrying her which poured through the town Santos and other officials
their loved ones after authorities body to the cemetery. “At least we after a punishing rainfall as peo- pledged both emergency relief and
began to release the remains re- know where she is.” ple slept late Friday night and ear- that Mocoa would be rebuilt, in-
covered from a disaster that has The Colombian Red Cross says ly Saturday. cluding a new water system to re-
shaken the country. it has received 374 requests for help “We do not like to create false place the one damaged in the flood
AP/Dmitri Lovetsky Colombian authorities said at from families unable to locate loved expectations but where there is a and new homes for those in the 17
Deep respect: A woman pays her respects at a symbolic memorial at least 273 people were killed when ones, people whose whereabouts possibility of life we will do every- neighborhoods hit hardest by the
Tekhnologichesky Institute subway station in St. Petersburg, Rus- rivers surrounding Mocoa over- were still unknown three days af- thing possible,” said Carlos Ivan surging water. He said he had spo-
sia, Tuesday, April 4. A bomb blast tore through a subway train deep flowed and sent a wall of water ter the disaster. President Manuel Marquez, director of Colombia’s ken by phone with US President
under Russia’s second-largest city St. Petersburg Monday, killing and debris surging through the Santos, making his third visit to the National Unit of Disaster and Donald Trump, who promised as-
several people and wounding many more in a chaotic scene that left city over the weekend. The death remote city in as many days, said 90 Risk Management. sistance as have other nations in-
victims sprawled on a smoky platform. toll was expected to rise since percent of the dead had now been Many victims were young like cluding China and Venezuela.

US-EGYPT TIES

Trump, al-Sisi meet to talk terrorism, foreign aid

Vivian Salama relations with President Barack Since the military overthrew closely with Arab allies in the
ASSOCIATED PRESS/WASHINGTON Obama. Egypt’s first post-revolution pres- fight against the Islamic State
Obama never invited the Egyp- ident, the popularly elected Mo- group. As a neighbor to the
The president who loves gen- tian leader to the White House, hamed Morsi, a Muslim Brother- Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip,
erals met Monday with the gener- which al-Sissi mentioned in his hood member, al-Sissi has cracked Libya and Sudan, maintaining
al-turned-president. brief remarks. And Egypt’s gov- down on political Islamists. Al- stability in Egypt is a high prior-
Donald Trump reunited with ernment was repeatedly admon- Sissi also has taken a heavy hand ity. But it has sometimes been
his Egyptian counterpart, Presi- ished over its human rights record. on Egyptians who’ve deemed his a relationship from which the
dent Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi, for talks Obama even briefly suspending presidency illegitimate, often rel- US receives little in return, and
ranging from collaboration against some United States military aid. egating human rights concerns to Trump has said he will not toler-
the Islamic State (IS) group to bol- In recent months, US and national security. ate imbalances in other partner-
stering Egypt’s flailing economy. Egyptian officials have sought to But al-Sissi’s government be- ships, as with China and many
It’s the second meeting for the stress commonalities. lieves its success in fighting radical- European allies.
pair. Reflecting on their first en- Like Trump, al-Sissi believes ism depends critically on US aid. Egypt’s economy is forecast to
counter in New York shortly be- he can eradicate radical Islamic Egypt is among the top recipi- grow by 4 percent this year, ac-
fore the general election, Trump extremism. ents of US military and econom- cording to the World Bank, but
said al-Sissi is someone “very He hailed Trump on Monday ic assistance, but the aid is being the figure heavily accounts for
close to me.” for his “unique personality” and evaluated as part of the Trump capital gains in oil and gas.
“Together, we will fight terror- said that after their first meet- administration’s push for dramat- Conditions on the Egyptian
ism and other things and we’re ing, “I bet on you,” the latter be- ic budget cuts to diplomacy and streets tell a very different story.
going to be friends for a very, very ing comments he made in Arabic development. It receives US$1.3 Unemployment hovers at 12.7
long time,” the American leader that were not translated. Al-Sis- billion annually in aid, plus hun- percent — a sore spot for millions of
said, citing a “great bond with the si vowed to work with the US “to dreds of millions in economic as- Egyptians who protested in 2011 to
people of Egypt.” counter this evil ideology that is sistance from the US Agency for demand the removal of then-Presi-
For Egypt, the objective is claiming innocent lives, that is International Development and dent Hosni Mubarak. Then, unem- AP/Andrew Harnik

clear: Help us help you. bringing devastation to commu- other programs potentially on the ployment was 9 percent. Youth are Strongmen: President Donald Trump greets Egyptian President
In Trump, al-Sissi sees new op- nities and nations and that is ter- chopping block. hardest hit by job shortages, with Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as he arrives at the White House in Washington,
portunity after years of lukewarm rorizing the innocent people.” Trump has vowed to work about 30 percent out of work. Monday.
BUSINESS WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 | 13
FUEL FISHERIES IMAGES
Pertamina braces for Idul Fitri Anger burns on Vietnam’s poisoned ‘PASOLA’ : Centuries
exodus in June p15 coast a year after spill p16 old of Sumba p22

FISCAL POLICY

Jokowi wants leaner

2017 budget to open
2018 expansion up
Anton Hermansyah Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said.
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA Agriculture Minister Amran Su-
laiman said his ministry had cut Rp
President Joko “Jokowi” Wido- 800 billion by reducing the number
do has ordered a further routine of the ministry’s work visits. But the
spending cut in the revised 2017 final cut is yet to be announced as it
state budget, as part of a strategy is still being measured. The minis-
to build up muscle for more capi- try has slashed Rp 3.7 trillion from
tal expenditure in 2018. its 2017 budget, after a Rp 3.9 tril-
For this year, he allocated lion budget cut in 2016.
Rp 2,080.5 trillion (US$156 bil- “In 2014, only 35 percent of our
lion) in spending, 0.12 percent budget was allocated for the pro-
less than the Rp 2,082.9 trillion of ductive sector, now in 2017 we
spending in the 2016 revised bud- have already reversed it by allo-
get. The 2016 revised budget itself cating 70 percent of it for produc-
was already reduced by 0.61 per- tive projects,” Amran said.
cent from the previous allocation The ministry in 2017 pushed
of Rp 2,095.7 trillion. into financing the construction of
“Please re-examine our rou- irrigation, agriculture machinery
tine spending and re-allocate it purchases, as well as completing
JP/Farida Susanty for capital expenditure for both renovations. “It has resulted in in-
Rail deal: The president director of Indonesian-Chinese joint venture PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), Hanggoro Budi Wiryawan 2017 and 2018,” Jokowi said dur- creasing production and saved us
(second left), and executives of seven construction companies on Tuesday sign a US$4.7 billion contract for the development of a high-speed ing a cabinet meeting to discuss from importing primary commodi-
railway connecting Jakarta and Bandung, West Java, as State-Owned Enterprises Ministry special staff member Sahala Lumban Gaol (back the 2018 budget at the State Pal- ties for the past 3 months,” he added.
row, left to right), Presidential Chief of Staff (KSP) office head Teten Masduki, Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xie Feng, KCIC president ace in Jakarta on Tuesday. As an example, Amran pointed
commissioner Yang Zhong Min and state-owned construction firm Wijaya Karya (Wika) president director Bintang Perbowo look on. Jokowi hinted that the 2018 out rice, whose stocks have been
budget would be bigger than that maintained through local pro-
of 2017 with the majority of it al- duction. The country has yet to

High speed railway contract located for capital expenditure

on infrastructure developments.
“We will spend Rp 2,200 trillion
in 2018 and I want to focus on de-
import rice for public consump-
tion since the beginning of 2016.
It also hasn’t imported corn in the
last three months.

signed amid financing issues

velopment and enlarge capital ex- “When I checked on rice stocks
penditure,” he said. in Bulog last night, it actually has
The ministries, therefore, must 2 million tons in storage. Usually
re-analyze the budget, classify our stocks is at the lowest points
posts that must be cut, and real- during January, February and
Farida Susanty CDB to cover around quired land before the bank inked “We hope that we can finish on locate unproductive budget funds March. But now, it is full,” Jokowi
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA 75 percent of total cost the loan agreement. “We are still time […] We ask the contractors to priority programs. Then, they said in praise of the Agriculture
of high-speed railway negotiating [about the required to work all out for three shifts, as will have to submit their findings Ministry’s performance.
The country’s long delayed project land by CDB],” Hanggoro said, well as adding more manpower to the Finance Ministry and the Other than the ministry’s bud-
construction of a high-speed rail- adding that the firm aimed to fin- and tools,” Hanggoro said. National Development Planning get, Jokowi will also make chang-
way, a flagship project between Cost of project increases ish all of those administrative is- The project itself is one of the Board (Bappenas). es in the regional transfer budget-
Indonesia and China, has eventu- by $40m from initial sues within two weeks. national strategic projects in- “Currently the ministers are ing system. Starting from 2018,
ally seen the US$4.7 billion con- estimate due to adjustment Another requirement from cluded in Presidential Regulation combing through their budget, the nominal value of transfers
tract officially signed despite a to detailed design CDB also included the national No. 3/2016, which stipulates that then they have to submit [the find- will depend on state income.
lack of clarity on financing issues. spatial plan (RTRW) as part of the the government and related agen- ings] to Bappenas and the Finance “I want the amount to follow
The Indonesian-China consor- factors that had hampered land cies must aid permit issuance for Ministry,” Coordinating Econom- our income fluctuations. They
tium Kereta Cepat Indonesia Chi- holds a 30 percent stake in the to- procurement. the listed projects. ic Minister Darmin Nasution said, now enjoy fixed transfers while
na (KCIC) inked the engineering, tal construction value. The work Presidential Chief of Staff The project has also been fac- adding that the exact value of bud- we are having trouble in making
procurement and construction includes soil investigation, road (KSP) office head Teten Masduki ing challenges regarding land get cuts and budget reallocations the money,” he said.
(EPC) contract for the railway but diversion, drainage and building stated that the signing should be procurement, which was previ- was still being calculated. Finance Minister Sri Mulyani
at a higher value due to an adjust- stations, among other things. a starting point for the construc- ously cited by the Transportation The Transportation Ministry Indrawati said the nominal value
ment to the detailed design. The However, he acknowledged tion. “It should assure us that the Ministry as the next challenge af- expects to reduce its budget by Rp of regional transfers would be cal-
initial estimate for the project that the company had yet to se- construction will be on schedule,” ter the construction permit was 1 trillion this year, by increasing ef- culated by considering factors such
was $4.3 billion. cure financing from the China he said. issued. KCIC has until Decem- ficiency in meeting and work visit as tax income, oil price, and cur-
“We hope that it can be a good Development Bank (CDB), which The railway, with an estimated ber 2017 to secure 600 hectares of agendas. It has identified Rp 5 tril- rency. As the consequence, region-
starting point to finish construc- is slated to cover 75 percent of the cost of $5.2 billion, has not seen land needed for the project. lion that is currently allocated for al administrations must be aware
tion on time with good quality,” total cost, which he said was still significant development since the Hanggoro refused to reveal the unproductive projects. “We will if the transferred money suddenly
KCIC president director Hang- calculated. government issued the construc- latest progress in land procure- shift the Rp 5 trillion to more pro- shrinks so they can increase the ef-
goro Budi Wiryawan said on To proceed with the project, tion permit for the 142.3 kilome- ment. In October last year, he re- ductive projects,” Transportation ficiency of priority programs.
Tuesday. KCIC agreed with the contrac- ter track connecting Jakarta and vealed that it had reached around
KCIC established a consortium tors to implement a contractor Bandung, West Java, in July last 82 percent. KCIC stated that it “We will spend Rp 2,200 trillion
of seven companies called the pre-financing (CPF) scheme, un- year. relied on the consortium’s equity
High Speed Railway Contractor der which the contractors pay It will connect four cities be- for financing land procurement. in 2018 and I want to focus on
Consortium, including state con- first for the construction cost as tween Jakarta and Bandung, name- Responding to the signing, Chi- development and enlarge capital
struction firm PT Wijaya Karya it could take months before the ly Halim, Karawang, Walini and Te- nese Ambassador to Indonesia
(Wika) and China Railway Inter- loan agreement with CDB was se- galluar. The government has given Xie Feng stated that it was sym-
expenditure.”
national Co. Ltd. and Sinohydro cured. KCIC a fixed concession period of bolic milestone for the project. “I
Corporation Ltd. According to reports, CDB had 50 years starting on May 31, 2019, hope there will be more coopera- President Joko Widodo
Wika signed the contract with initially sought to compel KCIC which means that the construction tion between China and Indone- JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
KCIC in late December, as it to procure 100 percent of the re- must be completed by then. sia,” he said.

DISPUTE MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS AND HOUSING

DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS
Lower bar looms in Google tax hunt PROJECT UNIT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SANITATION SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT OF JAMBI PROVINCE
Jl. H. Agus Salim No. 02. Kota Baru. Jambi 36127. Phone/Fax: +62-741-42527
Hasyim Widhiarto and paid Rp 1.8 billion in income Google Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. re-
and Grace D. Amianti taxes. Jakarta Special Tax Office imbursed all expenses paid by the ANNOUNCEMENT FOR QUALIFICATION
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA head Muhammad Haniv refused company with additional 8 percent No.: 5/UM.POKJA-JAMBI/IV/2017
to comment on the data. profit. This explains the tiny frac-
Indonesia may need to lower its The income tax Google paid tion received by Google Indonesia The Emission Reduction in Cities, Solid Waste Management Program comprises similar construction projects in size
expectations in its effort to collect in 2015 was a far cry from the es- compared to the revenues received and complexity in the two cities of Jambi, Malang and the two regencies of Jombang and Sidoarjo. These projects will
a massive amount of taxes from timates made by the Indonesian by Google Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. be tendered one by one within the next months. The first tender will be started in Jambi under this announcement for
United States-based technology tax authority that the company Center for Indonesia Taxation qualification.
giant Google, as the firm’s finan- owed about Rp 5 trillion in back Analysis (CITA) executive direc-
cial report suggests that it posted a taxes and penalties. tor Yustinus Prastowo said the The Bidding Committee of Emission Reduction in Cities-Solid Waste Management Program of Jambi Municipality
relatively small profit in the coun- Based on the tax office’s calcu- documents submitted by Google (hereinafter referred to as BC) in the Ministry of Public Works and Housing aims to prequalify Applicants for the following
try despite local clients paying mil- lations, Google should pay its due were more accurate and legal due Construction Works:
lions of dollars for its services. taxes with a 150 percent penalty. to being audited by an indepen- 1. Project : Emission Reduction in Cities Programme (ERiC), Solid Waste
In financial reports prepared Should the company ignore the dent public accountant compared Management in Jambi Municipality, Indonesia
by Singapore-based Google Asia government’s request, the tax au- to various numbers circulated in
Pacific Pte. Ltd. and seen by The thority will carry out a full inves- the public without any clear basis.
Construction Works Contract : One (1) Works Contract comprising of 2 (two) Parts:
Jakarta Post, the company, which tigation with a 400 percent fine, “These figures [in Google’s fi-
manages contracts for advertising, as stipulated in the General Taxa- nancial reports] have been offi-
1) Part 1: Construction of a new sanitary landfill cell with a
service and product purchases, tion System (KUP) Law. cially submitted by the compa-
capacity of approx. 5 (five) years (capacity of 620,000 m3), 1
reported that it gained US$109.2 However, before carrying out ny, including to the Singaporean
(one) leachate treatment plant (LTP) (capacity 250 m³/day)
million in revenues from Indone- the full investigation, the tax au- tax authority. The government
and all related infrastructure (roads, buildings, weighbridge,
sian clients throughout 2015. thority has requested Google to should use those ones [to calcu-
etc.) to be implemented according to FIDIC Pink Book.
The company did not name any submit reports of its transactions late the tax],” he said on Tuesday.
2) Part 2: Design and construction of 1 (one) municipal solid
clients but suggested that its top- in Indonesia, as it operated many By accepting the documents,
waste sorting plant (35 ton/day) and 1 (one) green and park
10 customers contributed 55 per- types of businesses in the country. the government might need to
waste composting plant (15 ton/day), transformer station
cent to the total figure. The government, through the face the reality that Google actu-
and deep well water tank, related equipment and all related
Indonesia’s tax authority has Communications and Informa- ally owned a relatively small busi-
infrastructure not covered in Part 1 to be implemented
pledged to step up investiga- tion Ministry, has also tried to ness in Indonesia, thus was not
according to FIDIC Yellow Book.
tions into the local operations of force Google and other over-the- strong enough to make it into a
Google after the company refused top (OTT) companies such as BUT, which means that the com- Type of Bidding : International Competitive Bidding (ICB)
to pay the tax arrears demanded Yahoo and Facebook to each set pany is subject to income tax Project Cost Estimate : EUR 15.271.344 (This amount excludes 10% VAT).
by the government. up a Permanent Establishment (PPh) and could violate a tax trea- Source of Funds : Loan from KfW BMZ No. 201066471 dated on May 2nd, 2013.
According to Google Indone- (BUT). As a BUT, they would each ty it had with Singapore.
2. Eligible Applicants : Any entity (national or international) experienced in construction
sia’s tax filing document, audited be required to report all domestic “Once it is considered a BUT, it
works as required under the qualification document.(RFPQ)
by Ernst & Young Indonesia, which earnings from work activities in can be a bad precedence. The gov-
was also seen by the Post, the com- the nation and pay taxes. ernment may need to step back a 3. Registration and RFPQ Retrieval
pany was subject to pay only Rp 5.2 Haniv previously insisted that little because we still don’t have Day/date : Starting from Wednesday, April 5, 2017
billion (US$389,800) in income tax Google Indonesia was a BUT as it legal tools [for that],” he said.
Registration Registration shall take place by E-Mail. Registration
in 2015 based on the country’s 25 established in the country a “ded- “We can still gain some tax requirements can be obtained from the following E-Mail
percent rate for institutional tax- icated cached server”, or network money from Google anyway and address: solidwaste_ericjambi@pu.go.id
payers since it only gained Rp 20.88 server that saved web pages or change rules in the future based
Obtaining RFPQ : After registration the RFPQ shall be send to the Applicant by E-Mail
billion in profit that year. other internet content locally. on [global initiative to fight tax
The 2015 profit skyrocketed by Google Indonesia provides assis- avoidance initiated by] the Orga- Submission Date : Friday, May 5, 2017, 2:00 p.m. Jakarta time
174.7 percent from 2012 when it tance on Google services to clients nization for Economic Coopera-
gained only Rp 7.6 billion in profit and potential clients. In return, tion and Development [OECD].” Bidding Committee of Emission Reduction in Cities-Solid Waste Management Program of Jambi Municipality
14 | BUSINESS WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

Banknote rates Concrete opportunities

Banknote rates Selling Rp Buying Rp
US dollar 1 13,393.00 13,259.00
Australian dollar 1 10,192.07 10,084.80
Swiss franc 1 13,368.94 13,233.86
Euro 1 14,290.33 14,146.03
British pound 1 16,731.87 16,560.49
Hong Kong dollar 1 1,723.44 1,706.06
Japanese yen 100 12,101.74 11,979.58
Korean won 1 11.99 11.86
Malaysian ringgit 1 3,024.62 2,991.65
Philippine peso 1 267.09 264.31
Singaporean dollar 1 9,586.97 9,489.69
Thai baht 1 389.44 385.32

Source: BI

World benchmarks
Daily Change
Country Index Points %
Indonesia (JCI) 5,651.82 45.03 0.80
S. Korea (Kospi) 2,161.10 -6.41 -0.30
Thailand (SET Index) 1,583.67 2.81 0.18
Malaysia (FTSE BM) 1,747.19 1.70 0.10
Singapore (FTSE ST) 3,179.06 -8.45 -0.27
Japan (Nikkei 225) 18,810.25 -172.98 -0.91
Hong Kong (Hang Seng) 24,261.48 N/A N/A
China (SSE Comp.) 2,946.96 N/A N/A
Philippines (PSE Index) 7,446.49 104.84 1.43
India (S&P Sensex) 29,910.22 N/A N/A
USA (DJIA) 20,650.21 -13.01 -0.06
UK (FTSE) 7,301.85 19.16 0.26
Australia (All Ordinaries) 5,895.76 -13.96 -0.24
Source: IDX

JP/Djemi Amnifu
ECONOMY IN BRIEF Motor vessel KM ISA Express docks at Tenau port in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, on Monday, to unload clinker to be used as raw material for
cement manufacturing at the production facilities of state-owned cement manufacturer PT Semen Kupang. The Indonesian Cement Associa-
Indosat Ooredoo plans to issue bonds in Q2 tion (ASI) has predicted that the cement market will grow by up to 5 percent this year on the back of the government’s efforts to materialize its 1
million houses program.
JAKARTA: Telecommunications provider PT Indosat, also known as In-
dosat Ooredoo, plans to issue bonds in the second quarter to decrease
the foreign portion of its total debt from 12 percent to 9 percent.
Indosat Ooredoo president director Alexander Rusli said that his com-
pany was still looking for the right underwriter for the bond issuance.
“We’re also still discussing the exact value of the bonds,” he said on
Monday.
The company last year decreased its foreign debt by 58.3 percent to
Retailers agree on price
ceiling for staple foods
US$180 million from
Alexander said his company also planned to submit a proposal to
the Financial Services Authority (OJK) in the coming weeks for the
extension of the company’s permit for continuous bond offerings in the
next three years.
Indosat Ooredoo last year recorded a 9 percent increase in its consoli-
dated revenues to Rp 29.2 trillion ($2.19 billion), of which 43 percent Prima Wirayani Retailers, distributors cerns of higher transportation deciding to extend it.
was booked from data services, 32 percent from call services, 21 percent THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA agree to settle maximum costs, which is the primary rea- The decision to facilitate the
from SMS services and 5 percent from value-added services. — JP price for sugar, oil, frozen son for elevated food prices, es- deal with modern retailers was
The government is taking a meat pecially in eastern Indonesia. made by the ministry on the ba-
shortcut in its efforts to tame the “We have already been selling sis that retailers are price lead-
Price cartels found in C. Java auction market rising cost of staple foods during Lower staple food prices [sugar] at a low price, between ers.
Idul Fitri and Idul Adha by set- at retailers predicted Rp 12,000 and Rp 12,500 per kg,” “At a time when we can push
SEMARANG: Certain traders are dominating the setting of prices in the ting price ceilings, a move that Indonesia Sugar Entrepreneurs down prices at modern retailers,
Bandungan auction market in Semarang, Central Java, research by the to drag down prices at
has been welcomed by the busi- traditional markets Association (APGI) chairman [prices] at traditional markets
Catholic University Soegijapranata reveals. ness community. Pieko Njoto Setiadi said, point- will automatically decrease as
“Central Java has had at least two agribusiness auction markets: From April 10 to the start of ing at retailers who used to sell well,” Enggar said.
one in Soropadan, which doesn’t operate anymore, and another in September, consumers will be day by 20 sugar distributors, two sugar at above Rp 17,000 per kg. Indonesian Vegetable Oil As-
Bandungan, which doesn’t run [well]. Auction markets are formed by able to purchase three food com- cooking oil industry associations, Trade Minister Enggartiasto sociation (GIMNI) executive di-
the government but there’s no intervention by it,” economist Angelina modities — sugar, cooking oil one meat distributor association Lukita assured the price ceilings rector Sahat M. Sinaga added:
Ika Rahutami said recently, explaining that the lack of intervention led and frozen meat — at relatively and the Indonesian Retailers As- would not disrupt businesses or “I’ve told the trade minister that
to cartel practices. affordable prices in modern re- sociation (Aprindo). incur losses. Instead, they would this is the right path.”
“Certain buyers [at Bandungan] will throw scarves into trucks of tailers such as minimarts, super- Aprindo chairman Roy N. encourage distributors to create Going forward, he asked the
crops entering the market. A blue scarf refers to cartel A; other colors markets, and wholesalers. Mandey said the move would a more efficient supply chain. ministry to supervise the coun-
refer to other cartels. Normal buyers cannot bid on commodities The cost of sugar will be set at only pose a limited risk to mod- “I was once a businessman as try’s oil distribution chain as
marked by the scarves,” she explained. Rp 11,900 (90 US cents) per ki- ern retailers selling premium well, and I know that when they producers had already sold its
Semarang, home to nearly 2 million people, is one of the largest logram for 1 kg packages, and Rp products not regulated by the say they [businesses] suffer from products at low prices.
cities in Java. 10,900 for 50 kg packages. agreement. losses, what actually happens is Trade Ministry data shows
To be a cartel there, one should pay up to Rp 70 million (US$5,243) Wholesale and simple-pack- “This is an interesting collab- that they earn lower profits,” he that sugar demand usually dou-
as a one-time “registration fee”, the preliminary research shows. aged cooking oil will stand at oration as the public will ben- said, adding that the price agree- bles from 11,520 tons during re-
Many farmers are willing to sell crops early to a cartel or tengkulak Rp 10,500 per liter for retailers efit from it the most and busi- ment was made after a long dis- ligious holidays. Demand for
(intermediaries) for low prices in exchange for high-interest loans. and Rp 11,000 per liter for con- nesses can still earn a profit,” he cussion with distributors. frozen meat and cooking oil cus-
Most Indonesian farmers live in poverty and some do not have legal sumers. Frozen meat sold from said, adding 85 percent of 35,000 The ministry will closely re- tomarily reach 122.5 tons and
land certificates to use as collateral to borrow from formal institutions. distributors to retailers, mean- stores owned by its members na- cord the price ceilings settled 9.22 million tons, respectively.
Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita said he would investigate the while, will be priced at Rp 75,000 tionwide sold staple foods. supplies from distributors. It The Trade Ministry signed in
case. — JP per kg, before reaching Rp 80,000 As stipulated in the deal, dis- will also work with the Business January a memorandum of un-
on supermarket shelves. tributors have committed to pro- Competition Supervisory Com- derstanding with eight sugar re-
The price ceilings are part of vide adequate supplies of food- mission (KPPU) to supervise im- finers and 11 sugar distributors
an agreement facilitated by the stuffs to their distribution points plementation of the agreement, to maintain the price of refined
ENERGY government and signed on Tues- nationwide, brushing off con- and evaluate the program before sugar at Rp 12,500.

New regulation ignites hope ANALYSIS

for geothermal sector
Fedina S. Sundaryani is invalid and the project becomes
Financing schemes for farmers and fishermen
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA stagnant because the firm needs
to cut its losses,” he told  The Ja- Elisabeth Carolina Distribution of Creditfor Agriculture,
  A new government regulation karta Post on Monday.  JAKARTA Hunting and Forestry and Fisheries Sector
has opened up opportunities to  In addition to the new empha-
Januari 2017
propel Indonesia’s geothermal sis on capability over future pric- Farmers and fishermen do not
Sector Credit NPL
sector by attempting to minimize es, Abadi said the association was have easy access to credit or fi-
(RpTriliun) (%) (RpTriliun) (%)
the high risks investors take on in currently working with the En- nancing from cooperatives, banks es, followed by the fourth phase,
exploring and exploiting the coun- ergy and Mineral Resources Min- or other formal financial institu- namely the dissemination of the Agriculture, Hunting and Forestry 278 6.45 6.04 2.17
try’s vast geothermal resources. istry to establish a sliding feed-in tions. This is mainly because of results of the Documenting Glob-
Fisheries 9.14 0.21 0.384 4.21
Indonesia launched Govern- tariff that would determine rates the uncertainty of their harvest al Best Practices on Sustainable
ment Regulation No. 7/2017 on for the 30-year contract based on or catch, while financing or credit Models of Pro-Poor Rural Finan- Total Credit 4,313 133.31 3.08
geothermal energy for indirect exploration results.  require a commitment for regular cial Services in Developing Coun- Source. Indonesian Banking Statistics
uses last month but only pub-  “We’re trying to avoid [stagnan- payments. tries (RuFBeP) project through
lished it recently for the public. cy] in the future. After evaluating Thus, farmers and fishermen exchange programs. collateral from borrowers. The The scheme is expected to en-
The regulation has been ea- capability and the survey results, usually prefer to borrow money In Indonesia, a pilot project for central bank, as a macro-pruden- able farmers and fishermen to ex-
gerly awaited by business players then the prices will be determined from informal parties, such as agriculture was implemented in tial authority, sees this as a good pand their businesses. In the long
who have recognized the coun- based on the feed-in tariff,” he said.  middlemen, loan sharks and trad- Parigi Moutung regency of Cen- example. term, this scheme is expected to
try’s huge geothermal potential  The new regulation also moves ers. The procedure to get hold of tral Sulawesi and another one for The scheme also served as help them open up new business-
but have remained wary of invest- authority over all geothermal such loans is simple and quick, as fisheries in West Lombok regen- health insurance, with borrowers es. The results can be used for up-
ing due to high risks. fields back to the central govern- borrowers do not need to provide cy of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB). charged Rp 2.000 per day in pre- stream and downstream business
 Under the new regulation, the ment from provincial adminis- any collateral, but the interest Funding or financing is given to miums. If fishermen fail to go to activities, from planting rice and
fiscal and technical capabilities trations in an effort to expedite rate is typically high. fishermen and salt producers. Rp sea due to bad weather or farmers praparing to sail out to sea to har-
of firms wanting to take on In- geothermal development as gov- Bank Indonesia (BI) is collab- 100 million (US$ 7,500) in IFAD fail to harvest, they can claim the vesting rice and bringing in catch-
donesia’s geothermal fields will ernment agencies in the regions orating with the International funding was disbursed equally insurance. es. Husbands, wives and children
serve as the main basis in the ten- lack the skilled manpower neces- Fund for Agriculture (IFAD) in a to 27 farmers and fishermen as The pilot project had a positive can all participate in developing
der process. This differs from the sary to evaluate projects.  project to develop innovative fi- working capital. Once the scheme impact on efforts to increase access family businesses.
earlier practice where companies   Geothermal energy, creat- nancing schemes for farmers and is ready to be applied, the funds to financing, savings and insurance Based on the Indonesian Bank-
were granted projects if they of- ed from the heat of the Earth, is fishermen to find a financing so- could come from any source, such for rural or coastal communities. It ing Statistics data as of January
fered the cheapest electricity rate. able to generate consistent power lution for them. The project is be- as the government-sanctioned also served as an example for im- this year, outstanding loans in
 Indonesian Geothermal Asso- while producing almost no green- ing implemented in four phases Dana Desa (village funds) or mi- plementing innovative financing the agriculture, hunting and for-
ciation chairman Abadi Poerno- house gases, making it a perfect from 2014 to 2018. cro loan program (KUR). schemes with no collateral and low estry amounted to Rp 278 trillion,
mo said the new rule would help alternative to the widely abused The first phase, which began After 15 months of operation, interest rates as well as for improv- or 6.45 percent of the total out-
investors avoid losses caused by fossil fuels.  in 2014, was the identification of the non-performing loan (NPL) ing business performance of farm- standing loans of Rp 4,313 trillion.
initial miscalculations that could  The country’s geothermal sec- best practices of rural financial ratio in the program stood at 0 ers and fishermen. Outstanding loans to the fisher-
lead to stagnancy in the develop- tor has remained sluggish for services conducted in five coun- percent. Cooperatives located at In addition, the participating ies sector, meanwhile, stood at
ment of certain fields. decades despite massive poten- tries, namely Thailand, Indone- the site of the pilot project were cooperatives began implement- Rp 9.14 trillion.
 “Previously, those who offered tial reserves in almost 330 fields sia, China, Philippines and India. assigned to distribute the work- ing productive financing scheme The NPL ratio in the two sec-
the cheapest tariffs won the ten- across the nation. The second phase, running from ing capital fund. The scheme was by applying the simple value tors was 2.17 percent and 4.21 per-
ders. Under that mechanism, let’s   Although the government es- 2015 to 2016, was materialized as designed not to charge interest chain approach, for example by cent, respectively. With the im-
say that a firm offers to develop a timates the country possesses pilot projects based on the best but instead apply a profit-sharing working with suppliers. plementation of this new scheme,
geothermal field for 11 US cents around 29 gigawatts (GW) in practices in Indonesia, China and scheme, with 80 percent of profit Support is needed from vari- loans to these two sectors can be
per kilowatt hour [kWh] based on geothermal potential, Indonesia the Philippines. going to the borrower and the re- ous stakeholders to sustain the increased, while the NPL ratio
estimates of 100 megawatts [MW]. has only procured around 1,500 The third phase is the dissem- mainder to the lender. positive impact of the project and can be minimized.
However, after conducting sur- MW from the renewable energy ination of the results of the pi- Under such a scheme, cooper- cooperatives’ management capa-
veys and exploration, it finds out source since the first geothermal lot project and the formulation atives are responsible for main- bilities, including through entre-
that there is only 30 MW. This power plant was established in of direction to encourage the taining the continuity of install- preneurship and financial litera- The writer is an analyst at
means that its initial 11-cent price Garut, West Java, in 1982.  implementation of best practic- ment payments in the absence of cy training. Mandiri Institute
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 BUSINESS | 15
Luxury of time
‘Ojek’ may
obtain state
recognition
Farida Susanty Popularity of ‘ojek’
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA services increases in big,
congested cities
Motorcycle taxis, locally
known as ojek, stand a chance of Safety concerns have
obtaining state recognition as an so far kept ‘ojek’ out of
official transportation mode as revision discussion
the government mulls including
ojek in the revision of the Traffic Govt to cooperate with
and Land Transportation Law. regional administrations
The inclusion will be a break-
through for ojek, whose services
have increasingly gained popular- No. 26/2017 on the ride-hailing
ity over the last few years among apps, whose existence is still met
the public, especially in big cities with opposition from the provid-
with worsening traffic. ers of traditional transportation
Transportation Minister Budi modes as they claim the apps have
Karya Sumadi said the government made their lives more difficult.
saw the “urgency” of such an inclu- The Depok administration in
sion due to the wide use of ojek and West Java has issued a mayoral
their high labor absorption. regulation on ride-hailing app
“I think if they [ojek drivers] can ojek, including limiting the places
be regulated under the law. It will where they can pick up passen-
be good, but we will see how far it gers to those not on public trans-
JP/Dhoni Setiawan can be realized,” he told the press portation routes.
Actress and former beauty queen Melanie Putria shows a multisport GPS watch Garmin Fenix 5 during the launch of the product in Jakarta on on Tuesday after attending a meet- Transportation Ministry land
Tuesday. Garmin Indonesia introduced the American brand’s latest series in three sizes to accommodate customers with various wrist sizes. ing with members of Commission transportation director gener-
V at the House of Representatives. al Pudji Hartanto Iskandar said
Commission V is responsible that the government might sug-
for overseeing infrastructure and gest several matters to the re-
MANUFACTURING transportation, and its members gional administrations, such as
generated the ojek inclusion idea the operational area for online
Clariant to strengthen grip in RI with new factory following a recent meeting with
ride-hailing application drivers
ojek drivers, before the revision
was concluded.
under the Online Drivers Associ- Grab managing director
Stefani Ribka therefore, it holds a very strategic that JIIPE was chosen due to the ing industry, especially in special- ation (ADO). Ridzki Kramadibrata and Uber
THE JAKARTA POST/GRESIK, EAST position for us,” said Gustavo Ro- proximity of the site to the sea- ty chemicals, which we are still Since the birth of ride-hail- Indonesia communications head
JAVA driguez, the head of Clariant for port, which would help cut logis- weak at. Specialty chemicals have ing app Go-Jek, many ojek driv- Dian Safitri were not immediately
Southeast Asia and Pacific region, tics costs, in addition to Clariant’s a very high added value that con- ers have changed course and left available to comment when con-
Switzerland-based specialty in a media briefing after the official long-term partnership with pe- tributes to economic growth,” the their traditions behind to join Go- tacted by The Jakarta Post.
chemical firm Clariant aims to launch of the plant on Tuesday. troleum and chemical distributor Industry Ministry’s director gen- Jek and other apps, namely Grab- Meanwhile, ojek safety con-
strengthen its grip in the Indo- The new facility also pushes AKR Corporindo, which devel- eral for chemicals, textiles and Bike and uberMOTOR. cerns were acknowledged by
nesian market by opening a new up Clariant’s production capacity oped the industrial park. miscellaneous industry, Achmad The Go-Jek app has been Commission V.
plant in Gresik, East Java. of various chemicals to 450,000 “We benefit from JIIPE sea- Sigit Dwiwahjono, said during the downloaded 10 million times by “We have learned that motor-
Located on a roughly 2-hect- tons each year. port that makes us more cost effi- event on behalf of Industry Min- users on the Android platform. cycle drivers are involved in 70
are plot of land at the Java Inte- In addition to bleaching earth, cient and improves delivery time ister Airlangga Hartarto. Ojek services have so far been percent of the total number of in-
grated Industrial and Port Estate PT Clariant Indonesia, the local to clients in Kalimantan and Su- Swiss Ambassador to Indone- kept out of the law revision dis- cidents, based on our study in sev-
(JIIPE), the new facility will in- subsidiary of the world’s leading lawesi,” he said in his opening sia Yvonne Baumann, who was cussion as they are considered eral countries. We have to speak
crease its production capacity of specialty chemical producer, also speech. present during the event, said unsafe. in more detail with the Transpor-
bleaching earth by 35 percent in operates five production facilities Apart from selling its products the investment was a testament In December 2015, former tation Ministry on how to handle
the country. in North Sumatra and West Java in the domestic market, the Swiss to the good relationship between transportation minister Ignasius ojek,” the commission’s speaker
Bleaching earth is a substance that make products such as plas- firm also exports them in the the two countries. Jonan forbade the operation of Fary Djemi Francis said.
used in the conversion of crude tic pigment, dye and hair condi- Southeast Asia region. “Swiss’ $4.5 billion invest- online ojek services and refused The plan has also met strong
palm oil (CPO) to vegetable oil tioner. Clariant declined to disclose the ment in the country during 2012 to acknowledge them as an official objection from the Transpor-
and Clariant is now the largest Sales of chemicals and prod- investment value of the facility, but to 2015 has made Indonesia the transportation mode, although he tation Study Institute (Instra),
producer of the chemical in the ucts from the Indonesian unit according to JIIPE, one square- second most favorite investment reversed his decision shortly after. which insists that the govern-
country. contributed 30 percent to the meter of land costs around Rp 2.2 destination in Asia after China,” Budi gave his assurance that if ment should not revise the law.
Clariant’s expansion has been parent company’s sales in South- million (US$164.8) this year. she said, quoting data from Swiss the plan was realized, the govern- “How can the government con-
driven by the rising demand for east Asia and the Pacific region The Indonesian government National Bank. ment would cooperate with re- trol ojek? What if anything hap-
bleaching earth from the palm oil last year. Meanwhile, sales from welcomed the realization of the Of the figure, 90 percent of gional administrations to manage pens [that threatens safety]?
industry, which the firm estimates the region made up 7 percent investment made by the company Swiss investment was channeled ojek drivers operating in their re- The figure is clear, 80 percent of ac-
as reaching around 300,000 tons of its global sales of 5.84 billion as it helped improve the country’s into the manufacturing sector. spective areas. cidents involve motorcycles,” In-
a year, all of which has be supplied Swiss francs (US$5.82 billion) in manufacturing sector that had At present, there are 150 Swiss “We won’t let the regional ad- stra chairman Darmaningtyas said.
domestically. the past year. slowed down in the past years. firms operating in Indonesia, em- ministrations [work alone]. There According to the institute, the
“Indonesia is the biggest palm Clariant executive commit- “This is a very good thing that ploying tens of thousands of In- will be certain standards [on the emergence of ojek services is the
oil producer in the world, and tee Christian Kohlpaintner said can boost the local manufactur- donesians. operation], so our brothers [ojek result of poor public transporta-
drivers] can survive,” he said. tion and it urges the government
The Transportation Minis- to better manage public transpor-
try recently issued regulation tation instead.
BUSINESS COOPERATION

Indosat, Nexmedia join hands in home internet business Exchange of ideas

Dylan Amirio 4G networks. market demand but also to pro- cently launched, such as XL Axi-
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA Indosat Ooredoo’s director and vide best services to our custom- ata’s 4.5G XL-Home Service.
chief of wholesale and enterprise ers,” Nexmedia marketing, sales Last year, Indosat recorded a
Telecommunications opera- Herfini Haryono said that Indosat and product director Andy Jobs 9 percent increase in revenue to
tor PT Indosat, also known as bundling will be especially use- said. reach Rp 29.2 trillion, 43 percent
Indosat Ooredoo, is teaming up ful for corporations that usually Indosat Ooredoo has part- of which was booked from data
with pay TV provider Nexmedia need a larger service through the nered with several multimedia services, 32 percent from call ser-
to launch a bundle package with Nexmedia package. services in the past to further its vices, 21 percent from SMS ser-
high-speed internet connection “The synergy between the two status as a premier digital services vices and another 5 percent from
to accommodate the increasing companies is also part of Indosat’s provider, with partners including its value-added services.
digitalization of entertainment grand vision to become a leading music streaming platform Spotify It also recorded a net income
content and higher demand for digital provider, by providing on- and Google’s Chromecast service. increase by 184.4 percent in 2016
such services. demand entertainment options Meanwhile, Herfini also elabo- to Rp 1.1 trillion, which was con-
The NexSat combo is being in- to a customer base that is used to rated slightly on the status of In- tributed mostly by a more sta-
troduced by both companies to the conveniences of high-speed dosat’s data center constructions ble currency and the company
provide home internet custom- internet and the myriad of en- in Surabaya, East Java, and Ba- itself shifting its foreign nomi-
ers with easy bundling of Indosat tertainment choices at the tip of tam, Riau Islands. The Surabaya nated debt to a rupiah nominat-
Ooredoo’s 4G Plus internet net- their fingers,” Herfini said at the center will likely be commercially ed debt that led to lower interest
work. unveiling event on Tuesday. operational by the end of the year, expenses. JP/Dhoni Setiawan
The Nexmedia bundle will be Nexmedia is operated by pub- while the Batam center will do so The company successfully add- (Left to right) state-owned credit insurer Perum Jamkrindo finance,
offered at a rate of Rp 190,000 licly listed media company PT at the end of next year because of ed 16 million new cellular cus- investment and risk management director Rusdono Banu, president
(US$14.2) per month, connecting Elang Mahkota Teknologi, which the longer investment processes. tomers in 2016, bringing its cur- director Diding S. Anwar, Credit Guarantee Corporation Malaysia
Indosat home users with Nexme- runs free-to-air television sta- The NexSat home service joins rent customer numbers to 85.7 Berhad (CGCMB) director Teoh Kok Lin and non-executive director
dia’s premium TV channels. With tions SCTV and Indosiar. It is cur- the operator’s other similar ser- million. However, the average Mohammed Rashdi bin Muhammed Ghazali converse during a visit
the bundle, customers will also rently available in the Greater Ja- vices such as its GiG home inter- revenue per user (ARPU) slight- to Jamkrindo headquarters in Central Jakarta on Tuesday. The two
receive an Indosat Ooredoo Busi- karta area. net service. It also emerges as a ly decreased by 3.4 percent to institutions are exploring opportunities to make a joint initiative to
ness package of 20GB in the 4G “Our partnership with Indosat rival to similar home internet ser- Rp 25,200 compared to Rp 26,000 support credit guarantee for micro, small and medium enterprises to
plus network and 6GB on 3G and is not only meant to respond to vices that rival operators have re- in 2015. support them in widening market outreach.

FUEL CONSUMPTION

Pertamina braces for Idul Fitri exodus in June

Fedina S. Sundaryani Pertamina’s vice president in Around 26 million people par- from the daily average of 38,000 kl. Affandi says that Premium lish several kiosks that will sell
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA charge of fuel marketing, Affandi, ticipated in last year’s exodus, Meanwhile, demand for the non- consumption now only makes up Pertamax in packages,” Affandi
said the estimates were based on with some 5 million using private subsidized gasoline Pertalite will around 44 percent of the gaso- said.
Although the Idul Fitri fes- last year’s consumption during modes of transportation, such jump by 15.4 percent to 45,000 kl line share, down from around 85 Earlier this year, the Public
tivities are still more than two the Idul Fitri exodus period and as motorcycles and cars, while per day from 39,000 kl. percent when Pertalite was intro- Works and Public Housing Min-
months away, state-owned oil and on the average consumption dur- the rest used public transporta- Demand for Pertamina’s RON- duced two years ago. istry announced that it would
gas firm Pertamina realizes that ing the first quarter of this year. tion, such as buses, trains and air- 92 gasoline, Pertamax, is seen to Meanwhile, consumption of launch 66 kilometers of new toll
it’s never too early to prepare for “The numbers may actually planes. increase by 11.8 percent to 19,000 subsidized diesel, locally known road ahead of the holiday, along
skyrocketing fuel demand that change if [the government] de- While subsidized gasoline kl per day from 17,000 kl. as Solar, is expected to decrease with 267 km of toll road that ve-
occurs toward the end of Rama- cides to open up new toll roads. of the Premium brand has long During the Idul Fitri exodus during this period, as trucks are hicles could use, although they
dhan. Last year’s congestion was con- been the most sought-after type period last year, consumption of usually banned from major roads will not yet become part of the na-
Pertamina predicts that gaso- centrated at the Brebes toll road of gasoline in the country, that is Premium exceeded that year’s during the Idul Fitri exodus. tion’s official road network.
line consumption will jump by 9.7 exit; while it is still possible that changing. Pertamina is predicting daily average by 7 percent, while In addition to preparing for Most of the toll roads targeted
percent on the days surrounding more routes will be opened this high demand for its Pertalite fuel, Pertalite and Pertamax consump- surging gasoline consumption, to be fully open in June are part
the festivities from average dai- year,” he said at a press confer- which has a research octane num- tion spiked 40 percent and 30 Pertamina anticipates the po- of the trans-Java toll road proj-
ly consumption throughout the ence on Tuesday. ber (RON) of 90, during this year’s percent respectively. tential opening of new toll roads ect, including the 17.6 km Bawen-
year, with demand to reach a peak Home to the world’s largest exodus period. High Pertalite demand has ahead of the holiday. Salatiga section, the 13.8 km Ka-
of 31 percent above the daily av- Muslim population, Indonesia The oil and gas giant predicts been attributed to increased “In order to tackle any traffic ranganyar-Sragen section, the
erage on June 24, one day before has a tradition of millions of peo- that Premium demand in the exo- awareness of fuel quality, coupled jams or to anticipate the opening 20.8 km Kertosono-Mojokerto
Idul Fitri, which is estimated to ple returning to their hometowns dus period will rise by 5.3 percent with the reduced price disparity of new toll roads that do not yet section and the 13.9 km Gempol-
land on June 25 this year. for the Idul Fitri holiday. to around 40,000 kiloliters per day between Premium and Pertalite. have gas stations, we will estab- Rembang segment.
16 | WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

Petronas may
use Shell site
for LNG
Elffie Chew and Petronas’ investment set
Natalie Obiko Pearson to be biggest-ever private
BLOOMBERG/KUALA LUMPUR/ investment in British
VANCOUVER Columbia
Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional The oil giant also wants to
Bhd. may be looking at building buy some shares in Saudi
a US$27 billion liquefied natu- Aramco’s initial public
ral gas export (LNG) terminal in offering
northwestern Canada on the site
of an abandoned Royal Dutch
Shell Plc. energy project, accord- planned in the province, one
ing to the company’s chief execu- smaller one is getting built. Her
tive officer. main opponent has pledged to
While Petronas, as the state- find “a better place” for Petronas’
owned company is known, has project if elected.
yet to make a financial decision Petronas, which bought Prog-
to move forward with its Pacific ress Energy Resources Corp. for
Northwest LNG project in British 5.2 billion Canadian dollar in
Reuters/Kham Columbia, Shell’s Ridley Island 2012 to take control of gas fields
Spoiled fish: A woman carries fish on the beach of Dong Yen fishing village, which is next to the Formosa factory, in Vietnam’s central Ha site “could be one of the options” that would supply the LNG ex-
Tinh province last Friday. The coast has been contaminated by chemicals including cyanide, phenols and iron hydroxide from a nearby for a location for the complex, port terminal, appears to be in no
steel plant, which commenced operation last April. chief executive officer Wan Zulki- rush to make a final decision.
flee Wan Ariffin said in an inter- “You know why? Because to-
view in Kuala Lumpur last Friday. day, we are producing around half
FISHERIES The Pacific Northwest LNG a billion standard cubic feet a day
project won Canadian govern- that we are selling into the do-
Anger burns on Vietnam’s poisoned coast a year after spill ment approval in September fol-
lowing more than three years of
mestic market,” said Wan Zulki-
flee. “We are earning cash.”
regulatory reviews and strident No Objections
Reuters es greater scrutiny of investments. merchants say fish prices are now to start operations. opposition from environmen- None of Petronas’ partners —
HANOI “First, people were angry with a quarter of what they were be- Neither Ha Tinh province nor talists, scientists and indigenous China Petrochemical Corp., Ja-
Formosa for polluting Vietnam’s cause of fears of continued con- Formosa gave Reuters permis- communities. At the same time, pan Petroleum Exploration Co.,
“The big fish are all dead,” com- environment,” said priest and ac- tamination. sion to visit the $11 billion plant. the project’s facing economic Indian Oil Corp. and Brunei Na-
plained 50 year-old Mai Xuan tivist Dang Huu Nam. Many fishermen have simply Eleven officials have been headwinds with 18 gas export pro- tional Petroleum Co. — have con-
Hoa, picking small fish from a net “Now, they are angry with the abandoned their boats. named and shamed over the spill. posals in the province stalled by a tested this slow approach, Wan
as he tried to rebuild his liveli- unclear responses and solutions Some 3,000 boats were affect- The government says the steel global glut and plunging prices. Zulkiflee said.
hood a year after Vietnam’s worst of some provincial authorities ed in Quang Tri province alone, plant has now addressed 51 out of Shell said March 10 that it had “This is really what I would call
environmental disaster. over fixing the disaster.” said Nguyen Truong Khoa, dep- 53 violations identified in an inves- dropped an LNG project on Rid- a generational decision,” he said.
Sea life began washing up on More than 40,000 jobs were di- uty director of the local environ- tigation into the accident, but it will ley Island, acquired as part of its “It will really shape how Petro-
April 6, 2016 near a steel plant be- rectly affected in four provinces ment department in the province, only restart when it can do so safely. merger with BG Group. The island naswill be as an LNG exporter in
ing developed by Taiwan’s Formosa dependent on fishing and tourism. south of Ha Tinh. Formosa hopes to get approval is next to the islet where Petronas years to come.”
Plastics Corp. Within weeks, more Across the country, a quarter of a “It will take a long time to re- for trial runs soon, with the aim proposed its own terminal. Petro- Petronas is also undertaking a
than 200 kilometers of coast had million workers felt the impact, cover completely,” he said. of starting commercial steel pro- nas had already been looking at review of all its assets, Wan Zulki-
been sullied by the accidental re- according to the labor ministry. Tourists are also still wary of duction by the end of the year, moving the project’s docking fa- flee said, adding that “if they don’t
lease of chemicals including cya- After months of rallies and an this stretch of coast. nearly a year behind schedule. cilities to Ridley in a modification fit, then we will have to look at op-
nide, phenols and iron hydroxide. outpouring of anger not seen in Once bustling, the Ky Hoa sea- “We remember the lessons that would help to both quell local tions on how to improve them or
Along the coast, the recovery is four decades of Communist Par- food restaurant on the central we’ve learned, and we’re moving opposition and potentially save as divest them.”
slow and anger endures. ty rule, Formosa agreed to pay beach of Cua Viet is empty. Dust forward,” said Chang Fu-ning, an much as $1 billion by eliminating The company is the midst of
“Where we caught 10 fish in the US$500 million in compensation. settles on chairs and tables. executive vice president of the the need for a bridge over a sensi- completing an asset sale in Alge-
past, now we will only catch one The Hanoi government and “It’s like the place is dying,” company. tive marine area. ria, he said, without giving details.
or two,” Hoa said. the provinces have now declared said owner Mai Ngoc Ky. Formosa has promised to in- Petronas is carrying out a “total Non-oil and gas assets account
Locals says thousands of fish- the sea clean and the seafood The central government says vest another $350 million at the review” before deciding whether less than 5 percent of the group’s
ermen have simply given up and safe. But while no official figures half the compensation money has mill, including in a more modern to move forward with the LNG total of 603.3 billion ringgit ($136
gone to look for work elsewhere. are available, fishermen say fish been paid out, but many complain ‘dry’ coking system which does plant so that, “when we build the billion), he said.
Tourists are wary of beaches that stocks have yet to recover. about the wait. not use water as a coolant but is project, it will be a competitive Petronas may consider buying
have lost their pristine reputation On a beach in Ha Tinh prov- “If things continue like this we more expensive. LNG producer compared to the some shares in Saudi Aramco’s
and businesses are struggling. ince, Hoa and two other fisher- will soon be bankrupt,” said sea- Formosa’s use of the “wet” cok- other North American produc- initial public offering if it’s invit-
But the wider impact could be men’s catch for the day was barely food trader Nguyen Viet Long. ing system, which generates more ers,” Wan Zulkiflee said in an in- ed, he said. “As of to date, we have
even greater after protests over the enough to fill a bucket. Compen- Vietnam’s environment min- waste, was highlighted as one of terview in Kuala Lumpur. not been invited. Anybody who
spill encouraged a wave of activism sation payments of 17.4 million istry did not respond to a writ- the failures in the government re- If built, Petronas’s terminal invites us, we will look at it.”
that has pushed environmental is- dong ($765) would not last them ten request for comment on the port. The company said it was still would be the largest private in- Saudi Aramco’s first-time share
sues up the agenda for a commu- long, they said. aftermath of the disaster and on using the dirtier process, but that vestment in British Columbia’s sale, which could be the world’s
nist government that now promis- Despite the reduced supply, when Formosa would be allowed it had until 2019 to switch. history. The sheer size of the proj- biggest-ever IPO, will probably
ect has turned it into a campaign take place in the second half of
issue ahead of a provincial poll in 2018, according to chief executive
May. BC Premier Christy Clark officer Amin Nasser. The Middle
ECONOMIC EXPANSION has faced criticism for promises Eastern government plans to list
of LNG prosperity that have failed shares in Saudi Arabia and at least

PH to enjoy 7 percent GDP growth in Q1 to materialize.

Of the more than 20 projects
the government once said were
one foreign stock exchange that
could include London, New York,
Tokyo, Singapore or Hong Kong.

Ben O. de Vera and household consumption as nine months of the Duterte ad- sury data also showed that na-
PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER/ANN/ well as “upbeat” business and ministration. tional government expenditures
MANILA consumer sentiment.
Optimistic consumers out-
However, confidence among
businessmen declined in the first
last January grew 7 percent to
198.1 billion peso (US$10.5 bil-
Iconic site
The country’s chief economist numbered pessimists for the quarter to its lowest level during lion) from 185.7 billion peso a
expects the gross domestic prod- third straight quarter during the the last 10 quarters as they braced year ago, recording the same pace
uct (GDP) to have expanded by first three months of the year on for a weaker peso as well as un- of growth as last year.
about 7 percent in the first quarter the back of sustained economic certainty in the policies of United The Duterte administration
on the back of sustained robust do- growth and improved peace and States President Trump. had programmed the budget def-
mestic demand and investment. order in the country, results of the The peso has been trading icit cap at 3 percent of the GDP
Socioeconomic Planning Sec- Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ lat- since mid-February at the 50:$1 until 2022 as the government
retary Ernesto Pernia told the In- est consumer expectations sur- level, the lowest in more than 10 wanted to ramp up spending, es-
quirer on Monday that he hoped vey released last month showed. years. pecially on infrastructure.
the GDP growth figure during the While the overall confidence The BSP’s business expecta- For 2017, the deficit is targeted
first three-month period was “close index (CI) in the first quarter tions survey released in Febru- to reach 478.1 billion peso.
to the mid-range target for 2017.” slightly declined to 8.7 percent ary showed that the overall CI In January, however, the gov-
The government targets GDP from the record high 9.7 percent remained “broadly steady” dur- ernment recorded a surplus of 2.2
growth for the entire year to be during the fourth quarter of last ing the first three months at 39.4, billion peso as revenues of 200.3
within the range of 6.5 to 7.5 per- year, it remained the second high- although slightly down from 39.8 billion peso exceeded disburse-
cent, following last year’s 6.8-per- est CI since the nationwide sur- in the fourth quarter of last year. ments amid double-digit jumps in
cent expansion, which was among vey started a decade ago. The pos- The positive CI meant that op- the collections of the two biggest
the fastest in Asia. itive CI meant there were more timists outnumbered the pessi- tax agencies.
Pernia, who heads the state optimists than pessimistic con- mists among the firms surveyed. In a report Monday, IHS Markit
planning agency National Eco- sumers. A check with BSP data showed said manufacturing growth was
nomic and Development Author- The CIs were negative prior to that the CI for the first quarter of sustained in March as the Nikkei AP/Wong Maye-E
ity (NEDA), said first-quarter the third quarter of 2016 or the 2017 was the lowest since the 34.4 Philippines Manufacturing pur- Chinese tourists coordinate their poses as they have their photo taken
growth was driven by government first three months of the Duterte posted during the third quarter of chasing managers’ index (PMI) in front of the Marina Bay area, a popular sightseeing point for visitors
spending on public goods and ser- administration. This meant the 2014. inched up to 53.8 from 53.6 in in Singapore, on Monday. Singapore Tourism Board expects annual
vices, sustained investment flows CI remained positive for the first The latest Bureau of the Trea- February. visitor arrival growth slows down this year.

DIGITAL ECONOMY

Card payment compulsory soon for e-commerce businesses: MoIT

Viet Nam News ciation’s statistics showed that of population had smart phones payment project from 2016 to Statistics of the Vietnam Bank- tion of tokenisation in improving
ANN/HANOI e-commerce payments had seen which were used at an average 2020 set a goal that only 10 per- ing Card Association showed that security.
breakthrough developments in 24.7 hours online per week. On cent of transactions in the econo- transactions at ATMs were main- There were 92.08 million do-
E-commerce businesses may 2012 to 2016 period. average, each Vietnamese used my were made in cash. ly cash withdrawals (86.8 percent mestic payment cards and 12 mil-
have to accept card payments as Payment values by domestic- $160 for shopping online per year. A recent survey by Visa Viet- of revenues conducted by domes- lion international payment cards
a way to offering more options of payment cards jumped 597 percent However, according to the nam showed that Vietnamese tic payment cards), reflecting the in 2016, the association’s statis-
payment when shopping online, and by international cards by 319 Payment Department under the were now on a trend of using less popularity of cash. tics showed.
an official from the Ministry of per cent in the five-year period. State Bank of Vietnam, the pay- cash in payment with the ratio of The booming of e-commerce An expert said that e-com-
Industry and Trade said. As of the end of 2016, payments ment infrastructure in the coun- cash payment dropping from 46 would drive cashless payments in merce businesses should also be
Vo Van Quyen, director of the by the former were worth totally try remained under-developed per cent in 2015 to 38 percent last Vietnam. joined by payment service firms
ministry’s Domestic Market De- 3.44 quadrillion dong (US$150.9 and the ratio of online payment year together with improved trust E-commerce was forecast to to issue cards and offer promo-
partment, was quoted by Thoi bao billion) so far and the latter by in e-commerce remained modest. in electronic payment. grow at 20 percent per year to tions.
Ngan hang (Banking Times) as 13.4 quadrillion dong. The banking sector would im- The survey found that there reach a revenue of $10 billion by Vietnam is also seeing a wave
saying that the department was The values are expected to in- prove the legal framework for e- were 67.4 million banking ac- 2020. The Department of e-Com- of fintech start-ups to promote
studying amendments to e-com- crease rapidly if accepting card payment while developing the in- counts in Vietnam as of 2016, merce and Information Technol- cashless payment.
merce business which might in- payment is made compulsory for frastructure for card payment. In significant increase compared ogy said that the e-commerce rev- Felix Tan, executive director of
clude regulations about compul- e-commerce transactions. addition, security for online pay- to 16.8 million in 2014 but card enue could be higher as currently Singapore-based fintech invest-
sory payment methods. The ministry’s Department of ments must be improved. payment accounted for just 3 per the growth rate had reached 25 ment fund The FinLab, was quot-
Accordingly, accepting card E-Commerce and Information Developing cashless payment cent of personal consumption percent. ed by the e-newspaper vnexpress
payment might be compulsory Technology in March said that methods in Vietnam had signifi- spending in six major cities. Only The association said that digi- as saying at a recent event that
for e-commerce firms. e-commerce was growing rapid- cant room. The Vietnam govern- 50 percent of e-commerce pay- tal banking was also gaining pop- FinTech in Vietnam is embarking
Vietnam Banking Card Asso- ly in Vietnam where 90 percent ment of Vietnam in a cashless ment were conducted by card. ularity together with the applica- on a rapid development period.
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 INTERNATIONAL | 17
Quick fix BUSINESS BRIEF
WhatsApp mulls foray into India market
MUMBAI: Instant messaging app WhatsApp, owned by Facebook Inc.,
is mulling a foray into digital payment services in India, its first such
offering globally, and has advertised to hire a digital transactions lead
in the country.
A WhatsApp move into digital payments in India, its biggest market
that is home to 200 million of its billion plus global users, would
replicate similar moves by messaging apps like Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s
WeChat in China.
WhatsApp is working to launch person-to-person payments in India
in the next six months, news website The Ken reported earlier on
Tuesday, citing unnamed sources.
A job advertisement on WhatsApp’s website said it was looking for
a candidate with a technical and financial background — who under-
stands India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the BHIM pay-
ments app that enable money transfers and merchant payments using
mobile numbers — to be its digital transactions lead for the country.
“India is an important country for WhatsApp, and we’re understand-
ing how we can contribute more to the vision of Digital India,” a What-
sApp spokesman said, referring to a flagship government program that
aims to boost the use of Internet-based services in the country.
“We’re exploring how we might work with companies that share
this vision and continuing to listen closely to feedback from our users,”
the spokesman said, declining to elaborate further. — Reuters

Oil prices fall on Libya’s output rebound

SEOUL: Oil prices fell on Tuesday as a rebound in Libyan oil produc-
tion combined with an increase in United States drilling to signal the
potential for increased crude supply.
International Brent crude futures were trading down 22 cents, or
0.41 percent at US$52.9 a barrel as of 06:43 GMT from the previous
AP/Andy Wong session.
A worker fixes a bicycle’s tire at the repair station for the bike-sharing company Ofo in Beijing, China. As many as 2.2 million of these two-wheel- US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices were down
ers have been deployed, which are available for rent for as little as 7 US cents for half an hour, in the latest symbol of heavy spending in China’s 23 cents, or 0.46 percent, to $50.01 a barrel.
internet sector where startups are in a race to attract more users to their services. US oil may drop to $49.62 per barrel as it failed to break a resis-
tance at $50.95, said Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commod-
ities and energy technicals. Brent oil may also retrace its steps back to
$52.79 per barrel.
“Crude oil prices fell as increased drilling in the United States and a

Credit Suisse probe puts rebound in Libyan output weighed on investor sentiment,” said ANZ
bank in a note.
Libya’s crude output increased after state-owned National Oil Corp.
(NOC) lifted a force majeure on loadings of Sharara oil from the Zawiya
terminal in the west of the country, sources familiar with the matter

Swiss officials on back foot told Reuters. — Reuters

S. Africa cut to junk first time since 2000

JOHANNESBURG: South Africa lost its investment-grade credit rating
Hugo Miller, Jan-Henrik Dutch, UK, French, country’s tax office. Credit Suisse isse. The Dutch request pertained from S&P Global Ratings for the first time in 17 years in response to a
Foerster and Albertina Germans probing Swiss says it has not been contacted by to clients who held non-compli- cabinet purge by President Jacob Zuma that’s sparked increasing calls
Torsoli bank clients Australian authorities. ant accounts at Credit Suisse be- for him to resign. The rand weakened.
BLOOMBERG/GENEVA/ZURICH The Zurich-based bank this tween Feb. 1, 2013 and Dec. 31, S&P knocked the foreign-currency rating to BB+, the highest junk
Swiss Attorney-General week took out double-page adver- 2014, according to a report in Le score, on Monday and warned that a deterioration of the nation’s fiscal
The latest probe into Cred- “astonished” to not be tisements in newspapers, stating Matin Dimanche. The bank com- and macroeconomic performance could lead to further reductions.
it Suisse Group AG is a blow, not that “Credit Suisse applies a strict plied with the request, the news- The local-currency rating was reduced to BBB-, still investment
just for the firm but also for the
informed of raid zero-tolerance policy on tax eva- paper said. grade, from BBB. The outlook on the both ratings was kept at negative,
Swiss attorney general, who did sion.” In the ads, Credit Suisse said The Swiss attorney-general’s of- signaling that the next move could be downward.
not know some of the bank’s offic- way in France, Germany, the Unit- that in 2011 it had asked all clients fice said in a statement on March Zuma sacked Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, who pushed for bud-
es were going to be raided. ed Kingdom and Australia. That to prove their tax-compliance. 31 it was “astonished” it had not get restraint, in a stunning cabinet reshuffle last week that has ignited
This week, Swiss authori- raises the question whether the Iqbal Khan, head of interna- been informed in advance of the South Africa’s worst political crisis in a almost decade. Investors regard
ties are back in damage-control raids are a legacy of the untaxed tional wealth management at raids. The office, which is also the firing as a blow to an economy growing at the slowest pace since
mode, after almost a decade of fi- assets accumulated before Swiss Credit Suisse, has said that as far working with Singaporean and US the 2009 recession and grappling with 27 percent unemployment.
nancial scandals spanning Brad- banks settled tax-evasion disputes as he knew, the probes target indi- prosecutors on probing how more The downgrade may further galvanize Zuma’s opponents within the
ley Birkenfeld’s whistle-blowing with the United States Depart- viduals outside the bank and that than US$3.5 billion was diverted ruling party to push for him to step down after unprecedented criticism
to the Panama Papers. ment of Justice, or a sign of more no assets held at the bank were from Malaysia’s 1MDB, said “rules from other African National Congress leaders.
Mark Branson, Swiss financial intractable problems. confiscated. Khan said last week of international cooperation were “The downgrade reflects our view that the divisions in the ANC-led
watchdog Finma chief executive “It’s mainly bad for the reputa- he was surprised by the timing of not followed” in the case. government that have led to changes in the executive leadership,
officer, will face questions about tion of the bank and reviving old cli- the raids, coming the day before The Dutch investigation is including the finance minister, have put policy continuity at risk,” S&P
what he knew about March 30 ches,” said Daniel Regli, an analyst the introduction of new automat- probably “the last chapter” of a said. — Bloomberg
raids in in London, Paris and Am- at Mainfirst in Zurich. “It’s about ic exchange of information rules. “hangover period” that’s the leg-
sterdam when the regulator holds past business practices, which Those regulations are intended to acy of banking secrecy, said Bill
its annual press conference at
9:30 a.m. on Tuesday.
Credit Suisse already should have
abandoned a while ago.”
improve data sharing as authori-
ties fight tax evasion.
Sharp, a US tax lawyer who spe-
cializes in Swiss-American cases.
Imagining future
Dutch authorities, who arrested Australia has expanded an in- Still, perhaps the Swiss should Credit Suisse was fined $2.6
two people last week, are investi- vestigation into Credit Suisse, ob- not have been too surprised. Tax billion in 2014 after admitting it
gating dozens more on suspicion taining the details of more than authorities in the Netherlands helped Americans cheat on their
of concealing millions of euros in 1,000 accounts linked to local asked their Swiss counterparts in tax obligations, and also paid $277
Swiss bank accounts, while crimi- clients, the Australian Financial July 2015 for details of Dutch cli- million to settle tax probes in Ita-
nal investigations are also under Review reported today, citing the ents at banks including Credit Su- ly and Germany.

TRADE

Japan’s current-account surplus also means US jobs

Connor Cislo the watch list, Japan’s current- well, there are numerous points albeit incomplete, information
BLOOMBERG/TOKYO account surplus mostly compris- of friction in the economic rela- about whether a country is ma-
es the returns from investments, tionship, from Japan’s protected nipulating its currency.
Thanks to its bilateral trade in the US and elsewhere, not the agricultural sector to Trump’s “I think the current account is
balance with the United States, profits from trade. Put another criticism of Japanese companies, a good measure, but I wouldn’t
and its current-account surplus way, Japan finds itself in hot wa- such as Toyota. want to say in every case it’s 100
with the rest of the world, Japan ter partly because it’s making And currency will likely be on percent foolproof,” he said in an
finds itself on America’s watch money from such things as auto the agenda when Trump meets interview last week. A country
list for currency manipulators at factories it has built in the US, Chinese President Xi Jinping lat- such as Japan that has an aging
a time when the Trump adminis- creating American jobs. er this week. Before taking office, population and high savings rate
tration is turning up the heat on President Donald Trump sin- Trump promised to label China a is more likely to maintain a sur-
economic friends and foes alike. gled out Japan for criticism on its currency manipulator, although plus, he said.
While there is no argument currency and trade policies, and this has not happened. Income from Japanese invest-
that Japan exports twice as much with Vice President Mike Pence Nathan Sheets, former under ments overseas was almost four
to the US as it takes in imports, it headed to Tokyo soon for econom- secretary for international affairs times larger than profits from
has reason to grumble about tak- ic talks, that surplus is one of the at the Treasury and now a visiting trade in 2016. Japan was the sec- Reuters
ing flak over its current-account issues that Japanese Prime Minis- fellow at the Peterson Institute ond-largest investor into the US A man uses his mobile device next to a model of the Expo 2020
surplus, which also includes in- ter Shinzo Abe must consider. for International Economics in in 2015, with holdings worth more project in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, taken on Monday. Locat-
come from overseas investments. While the first meetings of Abe Washington, said that a country’s than US$400 billion. And all that ed in an area between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the expo showcases a
Unlike the other nations on and Trump seem to have gone current account offers important, investment creates jobs in the US. mega project comprising various property developments.

BILATERAL TIES

As Brexit takes off in Britain, a harsh reality lands in Poland

Wojciech Moskwa, saw where those two things meet. in Brussels after trying to oust EU land’s $477 billion economy will he said. Britain and likewise for British
Dorota Bartyzel and Refurbished using 121 million President Donald Tusk, a former be left behind should the rest of The aid enriched Poland, dou- citizens elsewhere in Europe.
Marek Strzelecki zloty (US$31 million) of EU cash, Polish premier. At the same time, Europe choose to integrate fast- bling economic output per per- But when it comes to early
BLOOMBERG/WARSAW the airport revolves around ser- the country relies on EU invest- er following Brexit, according to son in a decade. Growth surged promises, Germany wants the
vicing some of the almost 1 mil- ments to prevent the economy Miroslaw Gronicki, who served as to 3.9 percent in 2015 before UK to commit to pay its bills to
Business is booming at Olsz- lion Poles living and working in from slowing. finance minister during the year slowing to 2.8 percent last year the EU, according to two people
tyn-Mazury airport in northeast Britain, a third of all EU nation- More than €250 billion ($267 after Poland joined the EU. because of a slump in EU co- familiar with the Berlin govern-
Poland: Its two weekly flights, als residing in the country. Now, billion) were or will be spent “Poland’s biggest success funded investments following ment’s strategy. The European
both to the United Kingdom, are not only is their status in doubt, since Poland joined the bloc with isn’t how much EU funds it ab- the change of government and a Commission says British obliga-
booked up all summer and almost there’s also going to be less money other former communist states sorbed, but how much its econ- new EU budget cycle. tions are as high as €60 billion, a
full for winter. Then it is a trip as the EU loses its biggest net con- in 2004. In today’s dollars, that’s omy opened up and gained from The money has been used to figure the government in London
into the unknown. tributor after Germany. equivalent to more than the US- the single market,” Gronicki said. build everything from roads to disputes.
With the clock now ticking on “It’s obvious that Brexit is cru- funded Marshall Plan provided “If some EU members start deep- water treatment facilities to mu- The Olsztyn-Mazury airport,
two years of Brexit negotiations, cially important to us,” Deputy to western Europe after World ening their relations without Po- nicipal swimming pools and air- whose flights connect the area
Poland looks more vulnerable to Foreign Minister Konrad Szyman- War II. land, we will surely lose out.” port facilities, all part of the EU’s with Luton and Stansted near
a painful divorce between the UK ski said in an interview in Warsaw. The Law & Justice leadership The latest EU budget is sup- policy to improve living stan- London, has its own strategy.
and European Union than any- “If we don’t carry it out well, it will has said it seeks to weaken, not posed to run until 2020. Brexit dards in its poorest regions. Pol- From May it plans to offer weekly
where else. harm the internal market. And it strengthen, EU institutions af- talks are due to finish — with or ish salaries, though, remain on flights to Norway, though the air-
Poland is the biggest net re- will probably be difficult to coor- ter Brexit. Prime Minister Beata without a deal — in March 2019 average a third of those in Brit- port’s bullish head of operations
cipient of EU aid and also the dinate on residency issues because Szydlo accused the EU of posing and Poland will be watching ain and there’s still little sign of says that’s unrelated to Brexit.
continent’s largest provider of the stakes are uneven.” a threat to Polish sovereignty last closely. Central bank Governor the great return home once pre- “Last year we flew 50,000 pas-
cross-border labor. And it is in The onset of Brexit could hard- year when officials questioned Adam Glapinski said “calm think- dicted. sengers and this year we’ll top
the arrivals halls at provincial ly have come at a worse time for why she hadn’t implemented the ing” about the economy will end Indeed, the UK has said it 100,000,” says Tomasz Kadziolka.
airports like this former military the country. Its nationalist gov- rulings of the nation’s top court. with the EU’s current agreed bud- wants a quick agreement on the “And the plan is to keep growing
base 160 kilometers north of War- ernment is increasingly isolated That poses a real risk that Po- get. “Or earlier because of Brexit,” status of EU nationals living in quickly.”
18 | WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

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6 reasons your child should learn martial arts
M
support@prestigecars.co.id artial arts is an excel- It is known that executive func- mind and body. This is achieved via
lent way for your child tions such as self-control, work- a finely-tuned awareness, which
Q-TA : Mercedes Benz E-Class E 260, 2004, to build up fitness, self- ing memory, cognitive flexibility, happens after countless hours of
Automatic, 2.600 cc, Black, Rp 240 million, discipline and socialization skills. focused attention and creative physical and mental training.
Nego. Call : 0812 2024 7223 A good age to start is by seven as problem-solving are better among
your child should have more than those who are physically active. 6. Learn to roll with it
Q-TA : BMW X5 3.0 A/T, 2003, Automatic, enough muscle and motor skill Learning martial arts involves
3.000 cc, Black, Rp 200 million, good condi- control to handle all the necessary 3. Setting and achieving goals more than just learning how to hit
tion, Nego. Call : 0812 2024 7223
techniques that will be learnt. Most martial arts measure the things (or other people).
Still not convinced that martial competence and capabilities of the The other half of the equation
Q-TA : Suzuki Vitara JLX M/T, 2011, Manual, arts bears great benefits? practitioner based on a ranking involves taking blows, which can
1.600 cc, Black, Rp 180 million, Nego. Call :
Here are six reasons to learn system of colored belts that signi- come in the form of actual hits
Courtesy of Blu Mediterraneo 0812 2024 7223
martial arts: fies the wearer’s mastery level. during training (you can’t learn
This allows your child to learn how to hit without learning how
1. Builds him up how to set and reach his goals as he to block or defend).
One of the core values inher- works toward achieving each new This helps teach resilience,
LOCAL BEAT ent in all forms of martial arts is a
focus on self-discipline. It is also
ranking with a different color belt.
Upon achieving this, the child will
which is necessary for your child
to learn how to get back on his feet.
a great way to boost your child’s have confidence and feel joy. Learning to roll with it early
self-confidence and self-esteem. will also help him to respond bet-
Hotel Borobudur Jakarta celebrates 43rd anniversary He will also learn the virtues of 4. Learning to take instructions ter in martial arts and in life.
humility and be taught not to mis- Part of the challenge of master-
Hotel Borobudur Jakarta has a use or abuse his training. ing any martial art lies in being When to start
history spanning 43 years. To cel- Those “tough guy” characters able to correctly grasp the techni- While there is no “best time
ebrate its long journey, the iconic belong in the movies, not in the cal skills that are being taught to to start martial arts”, it is better
hotel has held an event marked by a real world, and every martial art- him. This means that he will have to start your child at no younger
charity program involving residents ist ultimately learns true humility to learn how to pay attention by than seven years old.
living in the hotel’s vicinity. and to respect his fellow humans, listening to the instructor/coach. Some martial arts schools will
Conducted on March 23, the an- which stems from confidence in accept younger children, but it
niversary celebration was joined his own abilities. 5. It’s all about focus will be entirely at their discretion.
by children from the Rahmatan Lil Martial arts will help your child The main point here is to get
Alamin and Muslimin orphanages 2. Great physical and social ac- to sharpen up not just physically, your child moving and focused.
as well as a non-profit organization tivity but also, mentally. During training You can do your part by “inter-
called the Griya Asih foundation and With the alarming problem of sessions, he will learn to master his viewing” the instructor/coach
locals from the Utan Panjang area. childhood obesity, martial arts offers body by performing certain move- when you approach him or her to
The hotel donated school statio- an alternative to be active in sport- ments or routines, and this will ask for more information. A good
nery to the orphans attending the ing activities and is an excellent way teach him to maintain his focus as instructor/coach will have a sense
event. Courtesy of Hotel Borobudur Jakarta to get an extra dose of physical activ- his body is being challenged. of purpose and be able to impart
The hotel also inaugurated a new ‘butterfly house’ in its garden area, where guests can relax and rejuve- ity. It also provides him with plenty As he progresses in this journey both the drive and discipline to
nate. After the formal event finished, guests proceeded to enjoy a special dinner prepared by the hotel’s culi- of opportunities to socialize with through his training, he will grad- his or her students. (Mahender-
nary team, featuring Indonesian dishes, particularly those from the Betawi tradition. other children of various ages. ually attain a greater melding of an Appukutty/The Star/ANN)
 WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 | 19

WHERE TO GO
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
FOREIGN CULTURAL • Saturday Night Live:
CENTERS Chris Mann
May 20
• Korean Cultural Center Cascade Lounge, Hotel Mulia
Korean Language Courses Senayan - Jakarta
Korean Cultural Center, address: Cp: 021 5747777 ext.4388/4488
Equity Tower 17th Fl. Jl. Jend.
Sudirman, SCBD, Lot 9, Jakarta.
Contact: 021-2903-5650/ • Griya Feat Olivia Pardede TALK
id.korean-culture.org/ April 10-12 at 6 p.m.
kelasbahasa@kccindonesia.org Motion Blue Jakarta
motionbluejakarta.com
• The Japan Foundation
Japan Language Courses,
Library
Address: Summitmas I Lt. 2,
Jl. Jenderal Sudirman,
Kav. 61-62 Jakarta
Contact: 021-5201266/
jpf.go.jp/e/policy/
official_accounts/pkj@jpf.or.id • So Ji Sub Fan Meeting
-Twenty: The Moment
• Russian Center of Science • Mister Moonlight Show in Jakarta
and Culture April 13 at 6 p.m. April 7 at 7.30 p.m.
Russian Language Courses Motion Blue Jakarta The Kasablanka Hall
Address: Jl. Diponegoro No. 12, motionbluejakarta.com mecimapro.com
Menteng, RT.1/RW.4, Menteng
Contact: 021-31935290/idn.
rs.gov.ru/indonezia@rs.gov.ru
‘Sang Singa betina’ THEATER PERFORMANCE
• Gandrik Yogyakarta
TOUR GUIDE April 8 at 3 p.m., Galeri Indonesia Kaya “Hakim Sarmin”
www.indonesiakaya.com April 5–6
• Indonesian Heritage Society Graha Bhakti Budaya,
provides free tour at National HajjahRangkayoRasuna Said was one of Indone- nickname SingaBetina (Female Lion). Her story has Taman Ismail Marzuki
Museum in sia’s most renowned national heroes. Just like Karti- inspired WawanSofyan to write a monologue about • Harry Toledo & Turbulence jakarta.go.id
English. ni, Rasuna was known for her championing of wom- it, titled Sang SingaBetina (The Female Lion). of Soul
Every Tuesday at en’s rights and for raising their awareness in the fight Renowned model, singer, actor and dancer Pras- April 14-15 at 6 p.m.
10:30 a.m. against Dutch colonialists. antiAndrini will be bringing this monologue to life at Motion Blue Jakarta PERFORMANCE
Every Thursday Her strong and brave speeches earned her the Galeri Indonesia Kaya on April 8 at 3 p.m. motionbluejakarta.com
at 10:30 a.m. and • Hakim Sarmin
1:30 p.m. April 5-6
Every second and Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman
fourth Saturday of the month at Ismail Marzuki - Jakarta
10:30 a.m. Instagram :
CP: Indonesian Heritage @tamanismailmarzuki
Society Library 021-5725870/
heritagejkt.org • The Wonderful World of
Disney On Ice
April 20 at 2:30 a.m – 4:30 p.m.
ARTS FESTIVAL • Love Box April 21 at 2:30 a.m – 4:30 p.m.
April 17-19 at 6 p.m. ICE — Indonesia Convention
Motion Blue Jakarta Exhibition
motionbluejakarta.com disneyoniceindonesia.com
• Urban Monster by Evan Adi-
CLASS tya and Mutiara Suryadini • The Crab
March 13 – April 9 April 20-21 at 6 p.m. FILM SCREENING
Ruang Seduh Kemang Motion Blue Jakarta
goersapp.com motionbluejakarta.com • ‘The After-Hours Movie:
2001 A Space Odyssey’
April 7 at 8 p.m.
Kenobi Space - Jakarta
Cp : 087770720294
Tree of Life” by Elisabetta Zavoli
Dec. 9-April 10, 2017. • ‘I cento passi’
Auditorium IIC, Menteng. April 7 at 6:30 p.m.
• Art Exhibition: Enjoy Live CP: 021 3927531-2 or email: IIC Auditorium Jakarta
Art Instalation by Jason eventi@itacultjkt.or.id
• Kelas Fotografi Jalanan • Leonardo & His
Hackenwerth Impeccable Six • ‘Masseria delle allodole’
March 29 - April 6 March 8 – May 6 at 2 p.m • 4th Easter Sunday Bazaar at April 21 at 6:30 p.m.
Serambi Salihara April 9 April 22 at 6 p.m.
Neo Soho Mall Motion Blue Jakarta IIC Auditorium Jakarta
centralparkjakarta.com salihara.org • Exhibition Ira Nata Pradja : Tugu Kunstkring - Jakarta
goersapp.com motionbluejakarta.com
“Give a Smile to Children”
• Mixed Feelings 02 March 19 - April 9 • Authenticity - ‘Rollin Up’
Illustration Exhibition Duta Fine Arts Foundation, with Iwa K
April 2 – May 6 Kemang MUSIC PERFORMANCES
April 7 at 7 p.m.
That’s Life Coffee www.dutafinearts.com Vin+ Kemang
thatslifecoffee.com • Simfoni Tarling
April 7-8 at 8 p.m. Cp: 08111961996
Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman • ‘Alla luce del sole’
Ismail Marzuki - Jakarta • The Resonanz Children’s
Choir: A Decade of Harmony April 28 at 6:30 p.m.
arminonly.com IIC Auditorium Jakarta
April 9 at 4 p.m.
• Souljah 19th Anniversary Ciputra Artpreneur
April 8 at 5 p.m. theresonanz.com SEMINAR
• America Latin Dance Club: Rolling Stone Café,
Salsa Kemang, Jakarta • Piano Recital by Tobias • “Productive Digial Media
April 11, 18, 25 eventjakarta.com Borsboom Enterpreneur” with Reza
Salihara - Jakarta April 15 at 7:30 p.m. Pahlevi & Marco Ivanos
salihara.org • Ride Shuffle Erasmus Huis, Jakarta April 7 at 1 p.m.
April 6-8 at 6 p.m. CP: 021-5241069 Politeknik Negeri Jakarta, Depok
Motion Blue Jakarta erasmushuis@minbuza.nl Email todaypnj@gmail.com
EXHIBITIONS motionbluejakarta.com
• Saturday Night Live: • Elefaith “Sharing and
• Blibli Fun Festival 2017 • Mega Career Expo Jay James Caring Alongside Children
April 8-9 April 7 – 8 at 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. April 29 wtih Cancer”
Ecopark - Ancol Smesco, Jakarta Cascade Lounge, Hotel Mulia April 6 at 4 p.m.
Cp: 08111961996 eventjakarta.com Senayan - Jakarta Grand Chapel, UPH, Tangerang
Cp: 021 5747777 ext.4388/4488 eventjakarta.com
• Color Me Purple - HFGM • An Exhibition of Art in • Photo Exhibition:
Liga Medika 2017 Collections at Ruci’s “The Tree of Life” PROMOTE YOUR EVENTS
April 29 March 17 – April 9 The Embassy of Italy and the For queries on placement of your events in The Jakarta Post’s WHERE TO GO section,
Komunitas Salihara Ruci’s Joint – Jakarta Italian Cultural Institute Jakarta please send an email to wheretogo@thejakartapost.com / wtgjakarta@gmail.com or
Ligamedika.com goersapp.com present a photo exhibition “The call Nisa at (021) 5300478 ext. 2038.

WHERE TO EAT IN JAKARTA

INTERNATIONAL Telp. 5296 3888
CAFES CONTINENTAL
Cacaote Jl. Senopati Raya 80, Kebayoran Alto Restaurant & Bar
Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta
Loewy Bar & Restaurant Oakwood Premier
Baru, South Jakarta. Telp. 293 0612. Cozmo, Kuningan, South Jakarta. Telp.
Aphrodite Club Rasuna, Jl. Rasuna Said, Place to see and be seen, melt-in-your-mouth Jl. Jend. Gatot Subroto Kav. 18 25542378
Kuningan, South Jakarta. cakes and pastries Kuningan Barat, Jakarta 12710 The Lounge Le Grandeur Mangga Dua,
Anomali Coffee Jl. Senopati No. 35, South Opening time: Jl. Mangga Dua Raya, North Jakarta.
Jakarta. Telp. 529-20102 CHINESE Alto Bar (Daily) 5 p.m. – 12 a.m.
Alto Restaurant (Daily) 6 p.m. – 10.30 p.m. Telp. 612 8811
Antipodean Hero Kemang Complex, Jl. Ah Yat Abalone Mid Plaza 2, LG, Jl. SAKE+ Jl. Senopati 54, Kebayoran Baru,
Sudirman Central Jakarta. Telp. 570 7333 Tel: 021 2277 1888
Kemang Selatan No. 1, South Jakarta. No South Jakarta. Telp. 7250002. Japanese bar
fuss super-fresh brekkies at this laid-back Chiao Tung Hotel Rekso Hayam Wuruk, Jl. & lounge.
Aussie-Kiwi Café. Hayam Wuruk 2F West Jakarta. Telp. 624 8680
BUNK Pullman Jakarta Central Park Podo- VIN+ Arcadia Plaza Senayan Arcadia
moro City, Jl. Let. Jend. S. Parman Kav. 28 ITALIAN
AWkitchen Plaza Senayan Lantai 1 Unit 106-108, South Jakarta. Telp.
Telp. 021 29 20 00 88 57901477
Bloeming FX Sudirman, South Jakarta. Level P4 Unit No. CP 409
Jl. Asia Afrika No. 8 VIN+ PIM Street Gallery Pondok Indah
Telp. 2555 4182 Mall 1st Fl Unit 106 South Jakarta. Telp.
Jakarta Pusat 10270
Bakoel Koffie Jl. Cikini Raya No. 25, Central +6221 5790 6071 2952 9753
Jakarta. Telp. 3193 6608 AWkitchen Plaza Indonesia VIN+ PIM soft opening specials: - Get a
CJ’s Bar Hotel Mulia Senayan. Jl.Asia Afrika Level 2, No. E0206 glass of sangria if you follow us on twitter
Senayan, South Jakarta.Telp. 575 3275, 574 Jl. M.H. Thamrin Kav. 28-30 and facebook. @vinplusid and VIN+ wine
7777 ext. 4008, 4018 Bar and cocktail. Jakarta Pusat 10350 and beyond
+6221 2992 4325 Lunch promotion.
Buy 2 main courses and get 20 percent off
INDONESIAN Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta
RESTAURANTS Beautika Jl. Hang Lekir No. 1, South Jakarta. (food only)
Telp. 722 6683 High Tea Promotion: 1 Tapas + 1 Glass of wine
ASIAN FUSION A spicy culinary journey to North Sulawesi
(Manado). No frills but you will definitely feel
WINE & DINE only Rp 100,000 (tax included).
VIN+ Central Park Central Park Mall at
Chatterbox Plaza Senayan and branches hot under the collar from the chilli dosage.
city- wide. Singaporean and western dishes in Bacco Lotte Shopping Avenue, Main Lobby, Tribeca Park Ground Floor TG. 03 Jl. Let. S.
Bengawan Solo Hotel Sahid Jaya, Jl. Sudirman
cozy setting. No MSG. No. 86, Central Jakarta. Telp. 570 4444 LG 38, Kuningan, South Jakarta. Parman Kav. 28, West Jakarta. Telp. 5698 5768
Mamacita The Wine Kitchen Senayan City, Bumbu Hotel Sheraton Bandara, West Decanter Wine Lounge Plaza Kuningan, VIN+ Kemang Jl. Kemang Raya No. 45B,
LG Unit 52, South Jakarta. Telp. 7278 1477 Jakarta. Telp. 559 7777 North Tower, Ground Floor, South Jakarta. South Jakarta Telp. 7179 2577
AWkitchen
20 | ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

PEANUTS

CROSSWORD PUZZLER SUDOKU

Instructions:
Fill the cells in such a way so that all rows, columns and every
3-by-3 subsquare contains every digit from 1 to 9, with no rep-
etition of each digit.

ROSE IS ROSE

THE BORN LOSER

CHESSQUIZ
GARFIELD

By Shelby Lyman
FERDNAND
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 TECHNOLOGY | 21
MY GADGET Tiny device:
Self-described
“body hacker”
NESIA ARDI Jowan Os-
terlund from

A MINIMALIST USER
Biohax Sweden,
holds a small
microchip im-

OF GADGETS plant, similar to

those implanted
workers at
into worke
Epicenter
the Epicen
innovation
digital inn

S
inger Nesia Ardi practically business ccentre
hes jazz music.
lives and breathes during a pparty at the
ery busy making
“I am now very co-working space in
co-workin
songs with my band called Nona Ria Stockholm on
central Sto
and another jazz group oup called Knit March 14.
Quartet. I am also coaching
oaching several
singers, such as Marcel
arcel Siahaan,
who wants to make a jazz-inspired

CYBORGS
album,” Nesia recently tly told The Ja- ks
karta Post.  oo
Br
Jazz is often described
cribed as mu- es
am
/J

AT WORK
sic for the “old soul,”” and Ne- AP
sia admits to being just
ust that
when it comes to gadgets.
dgets.
“I am not a very tech-
savvy person and, there-
ere-
fore, I do not use a lot
ot of
gadgets,” she conceded.ed.
“All of my friends are
very tech savvy. They ey
Employees getting thing than having a small chip that can actually communicate

implanted with
like to create music on n with devices.”
their tabs and laptops.s. Epicenter, which is home to more than 100 companies and
I personally preferr some 2,000 workers, began implanting workers in January

microchips
the analog way off 2015. Now, about 150 workers have them. A company based
writing [music] down n in Belgium also offers its employees such implants, and there
on paper. I don’t even n are isolated cases around the world where tech enthusiasts
put my daily schedule le have tried this out in recent years.
in my gadgets; I usee a The small implants use Near Field Communication (NFC)
notebook like in the old technology, the same as in contactless credit cards or mo-
days,” she added. bile payments. When activated by a reader a few centimeters
However, Nesia added
dded Technology brings convenience away, a small amount of data flows between the two devices via
that she still used gad- electromagnetic waves. The implants are “passive,” meaning
gets from time to time ime
to another level. they contain information that other devices can read, but can-
and for her, prices and not read information themselves.
practicality played a Ben Libberton, a microbiologist at Stockholm’s Karolinska
large role in choosingng James Brooks Institute, says hackers could conceivably gain huge swathes of
them.  ASSOCIATED PRESS/STOCKHOLM information from embedded microchips. The ethical dilem-

T
mas will become bigger the more sophisticated the micro-
JP/Hans David Tampubolon he syringe slides in between the thumb and index chips become.
finger. Then, with a click, a microchip is injected in “The data that you could possibly get from a chip that is em-
the employee’s hand. Another “cyborg” is created. bedded in your body is a lot different from the data that you can
What could pass for a dystopian vision of the get from a smartphone,” he says. “Conceptually you could get
Apps workplace is almost routine at the Swedish startup hub Epi- data about your health, you could get data about your where-
As a reluctant user of center. The company offers to implant its workers and startup abouts, how often you’re working, how long you’re working, if
gadgets, I don’t have a lot of members with microchips the size of grains of rice that func- you’re taking toilet breaks and things like that.”
apps. I’ve only installed the tion as swipe cards: to open doors, operate printers, or buy Libberton said that if such data is collected, the big question re-
usual programs on my iPad, smoothies with a wave of the hand. mains of what happens to it, who uses it, and for what purpose.
such as Word for typing, Sa- The injections have become so popular that workers at Epi- So far, Epicenter’s group of cyborgs doesn’t seem too con-
fari to browse the internet center hold parties for those willing to get implanted. cerned.
and Apple’s sound recording “The biggest benefit I think is convenience,” said Patrick “People ask me; ‘Are you chipped?’ and I say; ‘Yes, why not,’”
application. Mesterton, co-founder and CEO of Epicenter. As a demon- said Fredric Kaijser, 47, the chief experience officer at Epicen-
On my LG K8, I mainly stration, he unlocks a door by merely waving near it. “It basi- ter. “And they all get excited about privacy issues and what
use the WhatsApp applica- cally replaces a lot of things you have, other communication that means and so forth. And for me it’s just a matter of I like
tion because I use my smart- devices, whether it be credit cards or keys.” to try new things and just see it as more of an enabler and what
phone for communication The technology in itself is not new. Such chips are used as that would bring into the future.”
purposes only. virtual collar plates for pets. Companies use them to track de- The implants have become so popular that Epicenter work-
liveries. It’s just never been used to tag employees on a broad ers stage monthly events where attendees have the option of
scale before. Epicenter and a handful of other companies are being “chipped” for free.
the first to make chip implants broadly available. That means visits from self-described “body hacker” Jo-
And as with most new technologies, it raises security and wan Osterlund from Biohax Sweden who performs the “op-
privacy issues. While biologically safe, the data generated by eration.”
Gadgets the chips can show how often an employee comes to work or He injects the implants — using pre-loaded syringes — into
what they buy. Unlike company swipe cards or smartphones, the fleshy area of the hand, just next to the thumb. The pro-
I use an LG K8 smartphone.
hone. I purchased it which can generate the same data, a person cannot easily sep- cess lasts a few seconds, and more often than not there are no
because my old smartphone ne had gone miss- arate themselves from the chip. screams and barely a drop of blood. “The next step for elec-
ing. At that time, I needed to look for an af- “Of course, putting things into your body is quite a big step tronics is to move into the body,” he says.
fordable replacement as soonoon as possible. to do and it was even for me at first,” said Mesterton, remem- Sandra Haglof, 25, who works for Eventomatic, an events
A lot of my friends actuallyy recommend- bering how he initially had had doubts. company that works with Epicenter, has had three piercings
ed either an Oppo or a Xiaomi
omi [phone], “But then on the other hand, I mean, people have been im- before, and her left hand barely shakes as Osterlund injects
but after some research, I discovered planting things into their body, like pacemakers and stuff to the small chip.
that the LG K8 was actually ually very control your heart,” he said. “That’s a way, way more serious “I want to be part of the future,” she laughs.
good and it was even cheaper
aper than
Xiaomi. However, the lower er price
came with one setback: the he LG
K8 does not feature a high- Open the door:
quality camera, but I don’t An illustration of
consider this a major issue.
e. Epicenter’s pri-
vate office space
in Stockholm,
Another gadget that I use
Ano Sweden.
is the iPad
i Mini, so you could
say that
tha I live a balanced life
because I use both Android-
becaus
based and iOS-based gadgets
the same time. I mainly
at th
use the iPad Mini to save
song lyrics to use during
son
performances, and for ev-
per
erything else that is work
ery
related.
rela

— JP/HANS DAVID
TAMPUBOLON

Photo courtesy of epicenterstockholm.com

Brain & arm implants help paralyzed US man feed himself

Maria Cheng But after years of being paralyzed, Ko- engineering upgrades. He estimates
ASSOCIATED PRESS/LONDON chevar’s shoulder wasn’t strong enough the technology would cost tens of thou-

A
to lift his arm, so doctors also provided sands of dollars.
paralyzed man was able to feed Kochevar with a robotic arm support for Chad Bouton of the Feinstein Insti-
himself for the first time in eight extra assistance. Kochevar’s case is de- tute for Medical Research in Manhas-
years, after doctors implanted tailed by his doctors in a paper published set, New York, who has worked on simi-
sensors in his brain that sent signals to Tuesday in the journal Lancet. lar projects but didn’t participate in the
his arm. “We know that [in paralyzed people] new project, said the technology may be
Bill Kochevar was paralyzed from the the spinal cord is damaged and the sig- useful beyond paralysis.
shoulders down after a cycling accident nals from the brain do not make it down “If we can reroute signals around a spi-
in Cleveland in 2006. to the muscles. And so in our system, we nal cord injury, that means we’ve opened
To help him move again, in 2014, doc- have effectively bridged that,” said re- the door to rerouting signals around in-
tors surgically placed two tiny implants searcher Bob Kirsch of Case Western jured areas of the brain,” Boutons said.
into his brain to pick up signals from Reserve University in Cleveland, the “So if someone has a stroke and there’s a
neurons from the area that controls study’s senior author. damaged part of the brain, this technol-
hand movement. The signals are re- Similar technology has previously ogy could allow us to work around it.”
layed through external cables to a com- been used to help a few paralyzed peo- Other experts said more research
puter, which sends commands to elec- ple in experimental studies do things is needed on how to improve and pos-
trodes in his arm and hand muscles. like grasp a bottle, hold a toothbrush sibly expand the range of movements
After first practicing with virtual re- and move their legs, but the brain and that might be possible from such brain
ality, Kochevar was then able to drink muscle implants haven’t been used be- implant technology. Scientists have
coffee through a straw and eat forkfuls yond the laboratory and are not a cure mostly focused on decoding brain sig-
of mashed potatoes and macaroni and for paralysis. nals to move robotic limbs; translating
cheese on his own. Kirsch said he hopes patients like Ko- brain messages to move the body’s own
“It was amazing,” the 56-year-old Ko- chevar might be able to use such tech- limbs is much more challenging and
chevar said. “I couldn’t believe I could nology outside of the lab within a few often results in movement that is a bit AP/Case Western Reserve University/ Russell Lee
do it just by thinking about it.” years, but that would require several jerky and awkward. Independent action: Bill Kochevar feeds himself, in Cleveland, Ohio.
22 | IMAGES WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017

Morning walk: A horse and its rider

walk together alongside Wanokaka
Beach ahead of the ritual.

PASOLA
CENTURIES
OLD RITUAL
OF SUMBA

Text and photos

by Tarko Sudiarno Sumba warriors competing
amid downpours. Even the

T
he Pasola war game Nyale worms normally show-
ritual observed by ing up on the Pasola Day could
followers of Marapu not be spotted on the shore.
ancestral belief in Local people believed the
West Sumba, East Nusa Teng- anomaly of this sacred ritual
gara, was performed in several resulted from its delay to avoid
places on Sumba Island.  coinciding with Christians’
The thanksgiving ritual, Sunday prayers. At the sugges-
usually held seven days after tion of the regional administra-
full moon, was held, among tion, the centuries-old Pasola
others, in Wanokaka. observance had to be put off. 
With participants on horse- “Sumba people embrac-
back throwing wooden spears, ing Marapu faith believe the
the ritual began with a long absence of nyale on the shore
procession in Marapu tradi- and the heavy rains during the
tional village.  Pasola war game were due to
A number of ethnic chiefs the violation of the exact time.
called Rato went to Wanoka- The event then became just
ka Beach in the evening of the an ordinary cultural event for
event to see nyale, sea worms tourism purpose rather than a
that appear once in a year on sacred ritual of Marapu adher-
the occasion of the Pasola ents,” said Frans, an East Nusa
ceremony. Tenggara cultural activist.
The presence of these sea Yet even without nyale, the
worms is believed to be capa- Pasola performance on the
ble of forecasting agricultural million-horse island was very
and village conditions for the cheerful, with horse-loving
Acquired skills: year, besides indicating the Sumbanese displaying their
Horse-riding arrival of ancestral spirits to fighting skills and valor in the
skill is a must give consent to the Pasola rit- spear clash arena.  None of
during the ual activities. them felt they had won or lost
Pasola ritual. The March Pasola saw in this “battle.” 

Dangerous: The rit-

ual is conducted by
throwing wooden
spears at an oppo-
nent while riding a
horse, and at times,
accidents happen.

Lone time: A horse is seen at the

Waruwora customary village in
Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara.

Where is it?: An old woman comes prepared when search-

ing for nyale worms at Wanokaka Beach in Sumba.

Into the green: Horses are seen on

a savannah in Sumba’s northern
coastal area, East Nusa Tenggara.
WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017
117
7 FEATURES | 23
BILL OF HEALTH
US ENROLLS VOLUNTEERS IN LARGE
TEST OF POSSIBLE ZIKA VACCINE

WASHINGTON: United States

health officials have begun
enrolling volunteers for criti-
cal next-stage testing of
Home crowd: The an experimental vaccine
community of blind to protect against Zika,
people in Malang the mosquito-borne virus
show their support that can cause devas-

SEEING
for the city’s Arema tating birth defects in
soccer club. pregnant women.

a
The first volunteer was

Dan
vaccinated Wednesday at

pe
eli
Baylor College of Medicine

/F
AP
in Houston, as the National
Institutes of Health gears up for
a two-part study that aims to en-

THE
BIGGER NEED
roll at least 2,400 people in Texas,
Florida, Puerto Rico and five at-risk ated shots to progress to the next
countries: Brazil, Mexico, Panama, stage of testing that will help tell if
Costa Rica and Peru. they really work.
Zika has caused an epidemic of It’s a two-part study. First, re-
birth defects — including babies searchers will evaluate 90 healthy
A strong sense of community and compassion becomes a light in with abnormally small heads and adults given different doses to
brains — in parts of Latin America determine the best one. Those vol-
the dark for people with visual impairment. and the Caribbean, and continues unteers will be tested at Baylor, the
to spread to a creeping list of other University of Miami and University
countries. For the US the risk has of Puerto Rico.
Duncan Graham “Some people have canes, but the city’s side- watch with raised digits so she can tell time. largely been to travelers, although Once the correct dose is picked,
CONTRIBUTOR/MALANG walks aren’t suitable.” Malang’s Social Welfare Department and mosquitoes spread the virus in the larger part of the study could

F
Smart canes that use sonar to warn of haz- Tax Office served as principal hosts of Pami- parts of southern Florida and Texas begin as early as June at those sites
ew came alone to the birthday bash. ards would be ineffective and they’d never stop tra’s anniversary celebration, backed by sev- last year, where health officials and additional ones in the at-risk
Pairs seemed mismatched, little pinging on the country’s cluttered and danger- eral small businesses. Malang Mayor Mu- remain on guard. countries — giving 2,400 volunteers
kids and older men, mothers and ous streets. Meanwhile, pedestrian crossing hammad Anton had been invited, but failed But while Zika largely disap- either the experimental vaccine or
adult daughters, relatives and signals that beep to alert the blind are often to attend. peared from the headlines over dummy shots. Pregnant women
friends holding hands though ignored by motorists. This means the Social Welfare head Pipih Trastuti said the winter, mosquito season is fast can’t receive the experimental
not side-by-side. More often blind can only rely on other people. her agency was helping about 80 visually approaching — and the risk persists shots but women of child-bearing
one person was being led Rahayu only became aware impaired people gain various skills through internationally. age can enroll. All the volunteers
in front or steered from of the needs of the visually training courses and gatherings like the “It is imperative that public health will be tracked for nearly two years
behind with a shoulder impaired when one of her birthday party. research continue to work to contain to see if the vaccine really protects
grip. neighbors turned blind. To “People should never underestimate the the spread of the virus,” Anthony against Zika infection.
They shuffled un- offer a helping hand, she disabled,” she said. “The blind often have Fauci, director of NIH’s National Don’t expect a vaccine to be wide-
certainly into the hall started leading him around more acute senses; they’re able to smell or Institute of Allergy and Infectious ly available any time soon. If Zika
even though the wel- the neighborhood to shops. hear better than you and I. Diseases, said Friday in announcing causes lots of illness this year, Fauci
comes were genuine, “I’m OK and have a good “When you can’t see someone’s face, you the US$100 million study. said researchers may have clues by
the seats prepared and life and business,” she said. have to rely on their voice to assess whether First-stage safety testing of a early 2018 about how well the shots
the chocolate cream “When I under- the person is friendly or otherwise. The blind so-called DNA vaccine against Zika work — but if natural infections slow,
cake looked splendidly stood the grav- can identify my staff and I through our foot- signaled no side effect concerns, they’ll need many more volunteers
Hendro Fauci said — allowing the NIH-cre- to get an answer. — AP
yummy — all to celebrate Setiawan ity of his situa- steps.”
the 10th birthday of Pami- tion I thought it Some 1.5 percent of Indonesia’s popula-
tra, the association representing was my respon- tion suffers from serious sight problems –
blind people in Malang, East Java. sibility to help.” that’s more than 3 million people. According
Though lunchboxes were bakery-warm,
the invitees carefully sniffed every banana-
That neighbor is Hendro Setiawan, who
is now the head of Pamitra. Hendro’s wife
to the World Health Organization, about half
of these people were born blind as a result of
ANOREXIA MORE COMMON
leaf package. Not for freshness, but identifi- is also blind and their two sighted children a genetic disorder, or lost their sight through IN WOMEN WITH CELIAC DISEASE
cation. are still in school, so for help during special accidents and diseases like glaucoma.
There was an energetic band with boister- events, he calls on Rahayu. The rest are caused by cataracts. The dis-
ous back-up singers; the amplifier man en- “As a community, we take care of each oth- ease can now be treated through a relatively LONDON: Women
sured everyone within the radius of 1 kilome- er in many ways, though we could do much simple surgery, but Pamitra head Hendro with celiac disease
ter would know a special show was under way more with greater government aid and our said the surgical cost of around Rp 7 million may be more
for some special people. own meeting place,” Hendro said, adding that an eye was beyond the financial reach of most likely to also be
“Please don’t treat us as though we are stu- the association even organized indoor, five-a- guests attending the foundation’s party. diagnosed with
pid,” former educator Erni Suliati said. side soccer games for the blind using a modi- This could be remedied by better work the eating disorder
“We may not be able to see like you but fied ball that makes a jingling sound. opportunities for the visually impaired and anorexia nervosa,
that doesn’t mean we’re not capable. We can Pamitra’s network includes becak (pedi- if only society gave them a chance to prove researchers sug-
do more than just manual work.” cab) drivers who treat its members with ex- themselves, he added. gest.
However, there’s a tradition that slots the tra care and patience, such as Anis Hidayati, “What we want is for society to change its In a nationwide kompas.com/Shutterstock
blind into performing music or becoming a 29, who was born blind and later turned deaf. mind-set toward the blind,” he said. “We can study, a diagnosis
of anorexia nervosa was more amined data collected from 1987
pijat tunanetra (traditional masseur). Only Anis’s father died when she was 3 years old, be extraordinary if we receive the right sup- through 2009 on almost 18,000
some of them would seek a broader choice. so she relies on her resilient mother, Musy- port.” likely both before a celiac disease
diagnosis, and afterward. Swedish women diagnosed with
Suliati, 38, was an elementary school arofah. Now aged 60, their positions have celiac disease and roughly 89,000
teacher before a brain tumor surgery two reversed and Musyarofah depends on the — PHOTOS BY ERLINAWATI GRAHAM “Before this study, there have
been published a few small `case women around the same age
years ago went wrong and robbed her of sight. income her daughter earns as a masseuse, a who didn’t have the autoimmune
“I can still care for my two children though I skill she gained through training provided by reports’ of patients with celiac
disease developing eating distur- disorder.
depend on my mother, Mestika, to help me get the local government. Anis can make up to Rp After a celiac disease diagnosis,
around,” Suliati said. “I don’t blame anyone for 30,000 (US$2.25) a day. bances after their celiac disease
diagnosis,” said lead study author women were 46 percent more
what’s happened. This is a test for me.” To be more indepen- likely to be diagnosed with anorexia
It was the same with other disabled cel- dent and communi- Karl Marild, a researcher at the
University of Colorado in Aurora. nervosa, researchers report in Pedi-
ebrants; whatever misfortune had brought cate with clients, Anis atrics. After an anorexia diagnosis,
them to this point in life, they faced the fu- carries a card bearing “This, however, is the first large
study to show an association be- women had twice the odds of a
ture with resignation, frequently saying their words written in capi- later diagnosis of celiac disease.
blindness came from God, so they could do tal letters that have tween celiac disease and anorexia
nervosa,” Marild said by email. More specifically, each year dur-
nothing but accept their fate. It was a re- been pricked out — a ing the study period, a new diagno-
sponse that people who commonly seek homemade version Anorexia nervosa is an emo-
tional disorder that involves an sis of anorexia nervosa was made
someone or something to blame might find of Braille. Custom- in about 0.03 percent in women
difficult to fathom. ers asks questions obsessive desire to lose weight
by refusing to eat. Celiac disease with a diagnosis of celiac disease,
With disability-friendly public facilities by guiding Anis’ compared to about 0.02 percent in
and access to special training and guide dogs finger across let- is an autoimmune disorder in
which consumption of the gluten women without celiac disease.
becoming the stuff of fantasy, the blind in ters to spell out Also, the researchers report,
Malang receive support from their surround- words and sen- protein in wheat, barley or rye
leads to damage of the small nearly 0.2 percent of women with
ings. tences. celiac disease had been previously
“There are no guide dogs because Mus- Her mother intestine and problems with
absorption of nutrients from diagnosed with anorexia nervosa,
lims are not allowed to have dogs,” said Puji has also bought compared to only about 0.1 percent
Rahayu, a volunteer for her blind neighbors. her a wrist food.
The two disorders some- of women in the study who didn’t
times share similar symp- have celiac disease.
toms, like fatigue, abdominal The study wasn’t a controlled
Reading the room: Musyarofah (left) and daugh-
problems, discomfort after eating, experiment designed to prove that
ter Anis Hidayati attend the 10th anniversary of
excessive weight loss and an in- celiac disease causes anorexia, or
Pamitra, the association representing blind people
ability to absorb certain nutrients. that the reverse is true, the authors
in Malang, East Java.
For the study, researchers ex- note. — Reuters

GUESS WHAT?
Ford won’t fface penalties Polanski loses latest bid Bella Lu
Luna accused of
over runway incident to end US rape case from abroad domestic violence
domest
LOS ANGELES: Filmmaker Roman Polanski on Monday lost another ther bid JAKARTA: A Actress Bella Luna Ferlin is facing
LOS ANGELES: HHarrison Ford will not face any serving more jail time when
to end his 1970s rape case without servin en a Los potential ccriminal charges after her husband,
penalties over mistakenly landing on a director could not seek relief from
Angeles judge ruled the French-Polish dire lawyer Razman
R Arif Nasution, reported
taxiway
taxiwa at a Southern California airport the courts while stistill a fugitive. her to the police for alleged domestic
earlier
earli this year, the actor’s attorney Polanski, who lives in France, failed d to viol
violence.
said Monday. advance any substantially
sub new arguments
ments Razman claimed Bella scratched
Attorney Stephen Hofer wrote in in the four-decade-old
four-deca case involving
ng a hhim on his face following an alterca-
a statement
s that the Federal Avia- 13-year-old gir
girl during a volley of recent
ecent ttion. He also suspects that Bella has
tion
tio Administration will not fine legal filings and a hearing in March, Supe- cheated on him despite everything he
che
Ford
Fo and the actor will retain his rior Court Judge Scott Gordon said. has done for her.
pilot’s
pi license without restriction. Gordon, in a 13-page written ruling,ng, “Luna
“ recently asked me for
“The FAA conducted a full inves- said Polanski, 83,
8 “cannot avail himself elf of Rp 50 million [US$3,750] so she could
tigation
tig into the matter, including the court while standing in contemptt of it.” enlarge her breasts and I gave it to her.
enl
an interview with Mr. Ford, and France, wher
where Polanski was born to After that, I became suspicious that she
Afte
determined
de that no administrative Polish parents, h has refused to extradite ite the was cheating on me because she never
or enforcement action was war- filmmaker, who d did not travel to Los Angeles wanted
want to meet me again,” Razman said
ranted,”
ran Hofer wrote. in 2003 to accept the Academy my Award as quot
quoted by tribunnews.com.
Ford mistakenly landed on a he wwon for directing the World Meanwhile,
Mean Luna says she never
taxiway
tax at John Wayne Airport in War
Wa II film The Pianist. cheated
cheate on Razman. Indeed, she accuses
Orange
Ora County on Feb. 13 after Polanski’s case has been her husband
hu of cheating.
flyiying over an American Airlines jet a cause
c celebre for 40 years “W
“Where is the proof that I am cheat-
that
tha was waiting to take off. when,
wh following 1977 guilty ing?” Luna said while claiming that
Ford
F cooperated with investigators, plea
ple and time in jail, he e fled Razman had engaged in salacious siz-
Razm
and has been a licensed pilot for more the United States. — AP P zling shenanigans with seven mistresses
than 20 years with more 5,000 hours behind
behi her back. — JP
of flight
i experience, Hofer said. — AP

AP AP Kapanlagi.com
FEATURES WEDNESDAY April 5, 2017 | 24

Repair Fair
Beyond
Fashion
Statement
How fashion becomes a statement, going
so far as to identify perception with
civilization, and make use of it remains
interesting to many.
Courtesy of Goethe-Institut Jakarta
Clara Anas
ta sia

Clara Anastasia "The Fast Fashion: The Dark Side of Fash- “Despite how many clothes people actu-
THE JAKARTA POST/JAKARTA ion and Slow Fashion Lab" exhibition is an ally need, the message I would like to convey

N
international project about the past, pres- initially through this event is actually how
owadays, it’s quite hard ent and future of textiles that has been held ‘repairing’ should be beyond fixing. You can
to find an event that has a in three different countries — Singapore, the actually add something to it rather than just
scope of unpopular knowl- Philippines and Indonesia. It will travel to fix it,” said Ika.
edge but is rich in applica- Australia next. For the fair, she invited five Indonesian
ble skills. The event presents documentaries, pho- artists and one German to support the event.
Living in the modern age, the tography, fashion brands and history, as well Both the exhibition and the Repair Fair
number of people who know how as statistics. succeeded in grabbing the attention of peo-
to sew or how to turn fabric into Along with that is a list of six fringe events, ple of all genders, proving that fashion is
clothing or other apparel is dwin- with Ika Vantiani as the curator. something that both men and women care
dling as such skills are no longer Ika said she was drawn to heading up the about and plays a significant role in people's
seen as important. project and had different concepts about but lives.
People also rarely ask the whys similar objectives in managing each event. “I was quite amazed at how guys also came
of fashion trends and instead ask In Keepsake, Keep Me, the first of the here and seemed very interested in learning
mostly where something can be events, she conceptualized the idea of run- to embroider," said fashion lecturer Monica
bought, how much it costs and ning a public submission of cut fabric that Hapsari, who was in charge of the handmade
what brand it is. had its own story for its owners. and machine embroidery embellishments.
It is because of this that IKAT/ For the Repair Fair, she invited friend- She noted how people also learned fast,
eCUT Project in collaboration with ly artists who were willing to teach partici- which proved how serious they were about
the Goethe Institute constructed an ex- pants to sew and make use of textile prod- learning a technique. "Since it’s also a free
hibition that focuses on finding the roots ucts. event, I think it’s a very good event for peo-
of fashion, not only about fashion itself, The fair, held at Gudang Sarinah Eko- ple to also gain some skills."

Clara Anastasia
along with six supporting events held from sistem in South Jakarta, aimed to invite peo- She said that many youth nowadays rare-
March 15 to April 8 that correlate highly ple to “repair clothes,” turning them into ly did any research, which led them to be-
with the goals of IKAT/eCUT. something wearable. lieve that fashion was all about style.
Ika Vantiani "Meanwhile, when talking about trend, it
has a very strong correlation with politics,
Cool again: Astrid Rosiana economics and social culture,” Monica said.
The fair is not the last of the fringe events. Hands on: Visitors practice their newly
(right) teaches the Sashiko acquired skills, which include embroidering.
Stitching, a Japanese embroi- To top it off, Ika will be organizing Swap
dery technique that is com- With Me Baby, a clothing swap event, in-
monly used to repair ripped viting six featured artists to participate, in- cluding Footurama, White Shoes and the
jeans, during the Repair Fair Couples Company, Ugly and more, to swap
in Jakarta. clothes with members of the public at Dia.
Lo.Gue on April 8.
“For me, to have a conversation over
a piece of clothing is very interesting.
We never talk about fashion out-
side of brand, price and model, al-
though there’s so much more to it
than that, right?” Ika said.

The writer is an intern at

The Jakarta Post.

Clara Anastasia
Handmade: Illustrated pins,
stickers and patches made by
Martcellia Liunic are displayed to
be sold to visitors.
Clara Anastasia

WHEN FASHION MEETS SOCIAL MEDIA

A. Kurniawan Ulung became more accessible
cessible to the
CONTRIBUTOR/JAKARTA  masses and people le began to feel

I
that they could talk about
n Indonesia’s fashion indus- the subject.”
try, social media is a double- As the years pro-
edged sword.   gressed, fashionon
Ajeng Svastiari has worked as a blogging trans-
fashion stylist for nine years and formed into a
faced career highs and lows styl- potentially lu-
ing singer Agnez Monica from crative business, s,
2011 to 2016. she added.
On social media, netizens did Unlike fashion
shion
not hold back in throwing barbs stylists who worked
rked
at Ajeng whenever they disagreed behind the scene, ene,
with her choice of dress or hair- fashion bloggers
gers
style for Agnez, who currently placed themselves elves
boasts 11.8 million and 16.3 mil- A.Kurniawan Ulung between labels and
lion followers on Instagram and Fashion talk: Designer Zico Halim (left to right), fashion stylist Ajeng Svastiari, blogger Claradevi consumers.
Twitter, respectively. Handriatmadja and moderator Perkasa Putra talk about fashion at Goethe-Institut Jakarta. “They become me a
The superstar  was accused in bridge between brands and so-
January last year of insulting the acter because the word translated Ajeng, who graduated from La Like Ajeng, Zico also experi- ciety. They know w fashion, but
Quran by wearing a transparant as “unity” — something protest- Salle College in Jakarta in 2005, enced a period when his work was historically, they do not under-
black dress adorned with an Arabic ers did not understand. recalled that when she started criticized by netizens who actu- stand what fashion on means and
character during a television show. “Agnez has been an [entertain- her career nine years ago, she re- ally knew nothing about fashion. what it does with ith clothing,”
Courtesy of batamnews.co.id

Netizens, who deemed the ment] icon since she was young. lied on word-of-mouth as a me- According to fashion blogger she explained.     
dress too sexy,  instantly took to Whatever she does will cause dium to promote her work. The Claradevi, today’s era of social Claradevi continued
tinued to de-
Twitter to attack Ajeng. Even the pros and cons among her die-hard first artist to hire her was Titi DJ media has emboldened novices to scribe her observation rvation of a
Indonesian Broadcasting Com- fans,” Ajeng said. and she remains grateful for the claim they play a crucial part in the growing misunderstanding nderstanding
mission (KPI)  stepped in, sum- Besides Agnez, other big names iconic singer for introducing her fashion world and laud themselves among young people eople about
moning her to demand an ex- the stylist has worked with include to other artists. as self-proclaimed fashion critics. social media. Because
ecause they
planation for the provocative singers Afgan, Andien and She- Nowadays, budding stylists and When she started blogging in are so eager to step tep into the
costume, because as Agnez’s fash- rina. The only celebrity she cur- designers can simply upload pho- 2007, people used social media to digital spotlight,, they un-
ion stylist, she was responsible for rently styles, however, is pop diva tos of their creations onto social make and connect with friends. derestimate the importance
choosing the costumes  the sing- Titi DJ, because she wants to focus media platforms such as Insta- However, in 2009, she noticed of education by wanting to
er wore on stage. on serving as a lecturer at ESMOD gram to gain public attention, she that fashion blogging was begin- be a fashion blogger ger or a so-
“[Their comments] were a kick fashion school in South Jakarta. pointed out. ning to take off in Indonesia, and cial media influencer, encer, she
in the guts,” she recently revealed “Styling artists is something I Designer Zico Halim agreed with the trend quickly gave rise to fash- explained.
during a discussion at the Goethe- try to avoid as much as possible; Ajeng, saying that Instagram and ion bloggers who had no experi- She added thatt bloggers
Institut Jakarta, where she, along I want to take a break,” she said, Facebook helped him promote his ence or knowledge about fashion.   had to understand nd that ev-
with designer Zico Halim and conceding that it has not been ready-to-wear label Tangan (Hand), “To be a fashion designer or erything they posted osted on
blogger Claradevi Handriatm- easy dealing with abusive com- a Jakarta-based premium brand he fashion stylist is difficult [work] social media could uld have
adja, talked about the challenges ments about her work on social and designer Margaretha Novianty because it requires an academ- an impact, especial- special-
and opportunities faced in Indo- media.   founded in 2015.  ic background, experience and a ly when they boasted oasted a
nesia’s fashion industry in this era Despite these challenges, she “Because of social media, our network. But, to be fashion blog- large number off follow-
of social media. added, fashion stylists should not products have become accessi- ger, it is said that the most impor- ers.
Ajeng explained that Agnez be afraid of social media because ble,” said Zico, who entered Indo- tant thing you must have is a good “Ideally, [bloggers]
ggers] need
had gotten the dress in London they can utilize the digital plat- nesia’s fashion industry in 2010 camera,” Claradevi said.    to collaborate more with
and she allowed the star to wear form to develop their career in as an assistant to noted designer “[High] fashion, which used to people who really ly understand
it despite bearing an Arabic char- the fashion industry. Sapto Djojokartiko. be worn by high-profile figures, fashion,” she said. d. Agnez Mo