|
|
You can search the blog with our simple search below, or use the extended functions of the Google search engine to search for blog articles you are looking for.
|
|
|
|
|
Jakarta s vice governor Basuki Tjahaya Purnama revealed that he wanted a hard worker to be his deputy when he is inaugurated later as governor to replace Joko Widodo, who has been elected as president.
|
|
|
|
|
The Prabowo-Hatta presidential and vice presidential candidate pair have expressed their readiness to ensure an honest and peaceful election by avoiding acts that can be detrimental to the people of Indonesia.
|
|
|
|
|
The next president who is elected in the upcoming presidential race should continue pro-people programs laid down by the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a participant of a presidential candidate convention said.
|
|
|
|
|
Presidential candidate of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) Joko Widodo said he would deal with all problems in Papua with "heart." "I dont like to promise too much. I am confident the Papua problem could be sorted out with heart and hard work not with promises," Jokowi, as he is known, said.
|
|
|
|
|
It is time for Indonesia to move towards becoming a progressive nation under the guidance of an ethical leader, noted Peoples Conscience (Hanura) party leader Wiranto.
|
|
|
|
|
The general chairperson of the Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), Megawati Soekarnoputri, has revealed her reason for choosing Joko Widodo (Jokowi) as the partys presidential candidate here on Saturday.
|
|
|
|
|
“Professor of Dangdut” Rhoma Irama may have to revert back to the less scholarly “King of Dangdut” in the not-too-distant future after Indonesia’s education minister indicated that the presidential candidate may be liable to criminal penalties if his illustrious certificate of education turned out to have been acquired from a scam college run by a colorful UK-Iranian educator.
|
|
|
|
|
Firman Wijaya, the lawyer of the governor of Banten charged with corruption Ratu Atut Chosiyah, has said that his client would step down when she was charged and brought to court. Until now she only is a suspect and is detained. Wijaya also says that the KPK should not be cocky against a regional head.
|
|
|
|
|
The Upstream Oil and Gas Special Working Unit (SKK Migas) confirmed that head of the agency Rudi Rubiandini had been arrested by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on graft charge.
|
|
|
|
|
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said reform efforts in Indonesia that began in 1999 following a financial crisis in 1998 had not yet finished and are still continuing.
|
|
|
|
|
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked the Army`s Special Forces (Kopassus) to maintain professionalism in performing duties as the national special security forces.
|
|
|
|
|
Indonesia`s national news agency ANTARA marked its 75th anniversary here on Thursday in a ceremony attended among others by its former chiefs. Its current president director, Saiful Hadi, in his speech said that ANTARA would always put forward public interests in its operations.
|
|
|
|
|
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono expressed concern here on Monday over human rights violations that happened in horizontal or communal conflicts in the country caused by excessive euphoria in the implementation of freedom of expression.
|
|
|
|
|
The Indonesian Democratic Party Struggle (PDIP) has become the fifth political party to register with the General Elections Commission (KPU) for participation in the 2014 general elections.
|
|
|
|
|
The newly installed president director of the troubled State airline Merpati Nusantara is complaining openly of “rampant corruption” permeating the state-owned carrier.
|
|
|
|
|
The anti-corruption curriculum has been implemented at all schools in Manado, North Sulawesi, said the local education office spokesman Dante Tombeg here on Thursday.
"We have applied the anti-corruption curriculum in the subjects of civics, social sciences and religion at all schools in Manado," Dante announced.
|
|
|
|
|
It was a normal Wednesday last week and still it seemed that something was completely wrong with Lion Air. After they had received a stern warning from the Department of Transport, the came with so-called 'own' improvements, but the airline does not seem capable of letting their many flights depart on schedule.
|
|
|
|
|
A handicapped traveler has filed a lawsuit against Indonesian low-cost carrier Lion Air for alleged discriminatory treatment he suffered on a recent flight between Jakarta and Bali. Lion Air has yet to publicly comment on the suit.
|
|
|
|
|
The clowns of the radical islamic world in Indonesia have made threats against the state earlier today. The Islam Defenders Front (FPI) warns it will overthrow Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono from government if he dares disband any mass organization, including FPI.
|
|
|
|
|
After a month of 'uncertainty' I headed for the local office of PLN once more late last week. I was still hoping to be able to pay my electricity bill. It was the fifth time I was here, just to pay the bill for the power that I had consumed since the time I moved in here last June. Earlier attempts to pay failed because of several reasons, see the related blog articles for that.
|
|
|
|
|
How to get to Yogyakarta? Of course the plane is a good solution from Jakarta, but we didn't want to. My plan was to catch the bus in the morning, so we would arrive in Yogya in the evening, but as we found out there were no morning buses departing for Yogya from Cikarang, so we just took the bus departing in the evening, because we wanted to go to Yogya anyway.
|
|
|
|
|
Just a few days after I had reported myself to the offices of PLN (the state-owned energy company_ two men reported to the house on a Friday afternoon. They were from PLN, at least that is what they said, because they did not bring a company car nor was there any logo on their clothes to prove they were indeed sent by PLN.
|
|
|
|
|
A member of the Indonesian parliament, Ali Mochtar Ngabalin of the Partai Bulan Bintang (PBB, Moon & Star Party) has said that the police is wrong in thinking that Mohamad Jibril is involved in looking for funds to pay for acts of terrorism in Indonesia. He said this after the family of Mohamad Jibril had a meeting with some of the members of the First Commission of the parliament. They asked the police to be closely watched so that he would not be intimidated.
|
|
|
|
|
'Welcome back in Indonesia' is what I first thought when I arrived from Kuala Lumpur with AirAsia flight AK 392. Before that I was in the air for another 12 hours on a flight from Amsterdam, but flying with KLM does not give me any sensation that I am actually flying towards Asia, that feeling only came when I walked out from the plane.
|
|
|
|
|
However the name might look like you are attending a game of soccer when you enter this piece of 'paradise on earth', it is not anything like it. It could at best be a nice confusion of words if you are smart enough, so you will not be caught for lying when you are telling in all honesty that you went to the stadium, but keep it in English then. The building that calls itself 'Stadium' is not just a club, it is a center of pleasure and entertainment, 24 hours a day, almost all days of the year.
|
|
|
|
|
It is a humid night - like most nights in Jakarta indeed - after some light rain when I sit in a taxi on my way to meet two female friends. First something to eat and then enjoying the nightlife until the early hours of the next day, that was the deal we made by SMS during the course of the day. SMS-ing is much more convenient than calling each other all the time because connections are often not optimal. Another important thing is that SMS-es can be read again in case you forgot something.
|
|
|
|
|
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono admitted Wednesday that the Indonesian nation was not yet prosperous nor was it already enjoying good welfare. “But if there are critics who say we have slid backward in developmental terms, I will say, they are not honest,” the president said during a working visit to Tuban district, East Java.
|
|
|
|
|
The tiny Furby-like pygmy tarsier, presumed to be extinct, was found during a recent expedition to Indonesia. And the cuddly, huge-eyed nocturnal critter is the very definition of cute. "They always look like they have a perpetual smile on their face, which adds to the attraction," says physical anthropologist Sharon Gursky-Doyen, who found the presumed lost species.
|
|
|
|
|
I probably have to stress once again that it was broad daylight when I walked around in the nightlife district of Batam - which is better known as 'Kampung Bule' indeed. However I have to be honest that I don't know what is usually going on at night here, I could imagine certain aspects of nightlife here from stories and Googling for certain keywords of course. Not directly what I am looking for, and maybe because of that reason I just explored the area during broad daylight to see what is going on here. From the Nagoya Hill shopping mall I walked to a local warnet (internet cafe) to check some things out and to make my walk around the district.
|
|
|
|
|
In the soaring heat of the countryside just north of the southern beaches near Yogyakarta I was driving towards the east on a small countryside road. This road is the only way out for the area directly west of the Opak River which causes the area to be fairly quiet until today. There are no main roads here, no buses and trucks but palm trees, open rice fields, parked bicycles and a strait black asphalt road which seems to disintegrate into water in the remote distance because of the scorching hot sun.
|
|
|
|
|
Together we are sitting below a blue plastic cover that is used as roof for a bed and some personal possessions. That is all that Kudasi has left. Together we look back at the earthquake that struck some one and a half year ago first. It caused the death of several thousand people and tens of thousands ended up in the same situation as he is in now. He was lucky then, in Parangtritis, a village at the southern beach directly south of the city of Yogyakarta, damage was limited. Now however he became one of the victims, but not from an earthquake. It were the 'new colonials' as he describes it. It is a commonly used term to represent a government that is pushing it's own ideas forward not listening to the people they ought to represent.
|
|
|
|
|
All of a sudden I got a rush that I would be able to find a bajaj - a terrible orange noise factory on three wheels - driver who was to drive me around through these 'floods', the water was less than 30 centimeters high, so it didn't seem that terrible through my untrained eyes. My girlfriend wanted to join me as well, but not directly because she wanted to see it, but mainly because I had a stupid idea like this once again. Safety was the main reason I guess, however I would be able to save myself here. If water levels would reach high enough which was pretty unlikely given the fact that the sea was less than a kilometer away with a flat landscape - I would be able to swim home as well. That is the worse-case-scenario however, I prefer to stay as dry as possible.
|
|
|
|
|
During the last year I regularly brought a visit to Malang. There I visited a Dutch friend who had stayed in Indonesia some years more than I did, and please read that 'some' as a big understatement. It doesn't really matter in fact, however someone who has lived here for so many years can be a huge source of information about many subjects. He sure is for me at least. Every once in a while I can learn from specific situations which still make me go 'huh?'. Outside that I like to spend some of my time there at a somewhat crowded place. Like in many cities and villages that is the central square or alun-alun. Often a nice place to submerge yourself entirely in the local situation and current events.
|
|
|
|
|
As reported on Balidiscovery.com, a Balinese policeman recently was the object of unwanted international attention when he was caught receiving a bribe from two Canadian tourists in Bali who surreptitiously recorded the encounter on video.
|
|
|
|
|
Open Letter to the Rector and Students Senate of the Diponegoro University in Semarang
|
|
|
|
|
You know them, the ever friendly people who always know where to find that parking space you need. If not on the pavement, in front of an entrance or on a dead-end part of the highway system in Jakarta. There is always place for just one more car, motorbike or bikes, which are folded together near a trash can or tree. No problem at all and we are all happy that we can park at a distance less than ten meters from where we want to go. Nothing wrong with paying a little extra on top of the set prices. Gladly even, because 'better be lazy than tired', is something you have to pay for. Of course we are not talking huge amounts here and for hat few thousand Rupiah's you won't push aside cars yourself, I won't believe that.
|
|
|
|
|
However it wasn't Saturday for sure, but a Tuesday, still I had the feeling that I had to take my motorbike for a nice day of traveling. Where it would bring me? At least as far as Purworejo. To my amazement and some shame I had never been there before, so that became the primary target. I at least had to go there so I could honestly say that I had been there. Furthermore there were no plans, like usual. It was already late in the morning, so it was not really supposed to become a long trip. Maybe after Purworejo it was time to find my way back. That also depended on what I would find along the way of course. Seen the distance and the road conditions it was to take about one and a half hour to get there. My modest estimation.
|
|
|
|
|
Yusril Ihza Mahendra, until last Tuesday State Secretary, has said he was ready to face investigators from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) regarding the cases that are related to him. “I will face everything. I've never avoided legal problems,” he said
after he handed over his post as State Secretary to Hatta Rajasa two days ago. He oped that the KPK would carry out the investigation honestly, fairly and objectively. “It must be free from political interests,” he said.
|
|
|
|
|
It was a Saturday afternoon as any other, but sometimes I just feel the need to get out for a while. This is not always possible, but when there is a possibility and there are no other appointments in the agenda, then it just might happen that after lunch I decide to grab my stuff for a trip on the motorbike. It's not too far away, within the borders of the province of Yogyakarta, but at least I can get away from the daily life for a while. Helmet, keys and a wallet is enough. To store some of the memories I have I also bring a camera with me and within a matter of minutes I leave the area. Where do I go then? Ooh, I felt like having a drink in Wonosari, so that became my first destination, knowing that most likely it would be something in that direction, but that doesn't really matter.
|
|
|
|
|
Just over one week ago it all happened. At walking distance one person was killed, some were arrested and after that the party was over as quick as it started. It wasn't a criminal shootout and n drugs were found as well. It was nothing more than busting some terrorism-suspects by an anti-terror squad from the Indonesian police (Densus 88); they were simply overwhelmed in their hide-out. The one that tried to flea, was directly given some bullets and didn't survive the event. Seven others were arrested. In fact that could be the entire story, but it was just not to happen that way. It proved to be the start of what currently looks like a terror cell uncovered. Within two weeks after the first shooting several more police actions were held. Police is scarce with giving information, but in recent days is became clear that most likely a part of the Southeast Asian terror network Jemaah Islamiyah has been found.
|
|
|
|
|
An Islamic militant began his 20-year jail sentence last Thursday on charges of plotting the beheading of three Christian schoolgirls in Poso in 2005. Tho other militants sentenced for the same crime were sentenced to each 14 years. Judges said they had no doubt that the 34-year-old Hasanuddin was the mastermind behind the murders. "The defendant along with his accomplices has violated the anti-terrorism laws," said chief judge Binsar Siregar told the court on Wednesday.
|
|
|
|
|
It was less than one week before it really happened. I was in Kuala Lumpur to settle some official stuff, and when drinking an iced tea I took some time off in the evening to visit a friend. It was getting late and however we usually only 'speak' to each other on the internet, we had some serious issues as well. Sometimes it's best to make a small joke about accidents and disasters. The people on board of the missing Adam Air plane are having a splendid time diving there, things like that, whether they are fun or not. As long as it doesn't happen in your own direct environment, you can still say things like that. I also told that I always missed such events; earthquakes when I'm away; other disasters beyond my easy reach and other things like that.
|
|
|
|
|
The Indonesian supreme court's acquittal of militant cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, the alleged spiritual leader of terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, on charges of involvement in the 2002 Bali bombings should be respected, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Saturday. "Indonesia can understand all reactions regarding the supreme court's decision on Bashir," a statement said.
|
|
|
|
|
The United States, China and now a resurgent Russia are all competing for regional influence in Southeast Asia, and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is shrewdly playing his diplomatic cards among all three suitors.
|
|
|
|
|
Asked about the progress of police reform in Indonesia, criminologist and police analyst Adrianus Eliasta Sembiring Meliala said that it was obvious, but the direct benefit for citizens would not be realized in one night.
|
|
|
|
|
Indonesia, which has the highest number of human bird flu infections and fatalities, was unlikely to be hit by a pandemic of the disease in the immediate future, an official has said. "We are still far from a pandemic," said Bayu Krisnamurthi, the chief executive of the Indonesian National Committee for Avian Influenza Control and Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (Komnas FBPI.)
|
|
|
|
|
Achmad Ali shifted uncomfortably, constantly adjusting his collar as he was interviewed by the Indonesian Judicial Commission about joining the nation's highest legal body, the Supreme Court. Like most Indonesians, the university law school dean is an avid user of SMS phone messaging. Commission members were complaining about being besieged by pleas to ignore reports that Mr Ali was under investigation for embezzling law school funds.
|
|
|
|
|
Thick smoke from bush and forest fires in Indonesia has forced schools to close and brought misery to residents, officials said on Friday, with no sign of firefighters in one hard-hit area. A vast blanket of smoke, or haze as it is known locally, occurs every year in Indonesia, angering neighbours Singapore and Malaysia who have long demanded Jakarta do more to stop the dry-season fires being lit by farmers and big companies.
|
|
|
|
|
If statistics are anything to go by, Umar bin Aup should be dead. Seven weeks ago in his village, Rancasalak on the south-western coast of Java, dozens of hens including some of his family's 14 birds started dying for reasons no one could explain. Then, in early August, after hundreds of fowl had succumbed and at least three people in the area had died in mysterious circumstances, Umar, 16, came down with a fever.
'A day later, I was finding it hard to breathe and then I started vomiting,' he told The Observer as he convalesced at home surrounded by his nine siblings. 'I hadn't been sick for three years so it was a surprise to me.'
|
|
|
|
|
Indonesia's president pledged on Wednesday to use an anticipated pick-up in Southeast Asia's biggest economy to tackle poverty, and also to stick with a fight against corruption and encourage foreign investment. In an annual address to parliament ahead of Indonesia's Aug. 17 independence day, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono focused on the economy,but also hailed a peace deal in Aceh and repeated a willingness to commit troops to a U.N. force in Lebanon.
|
|
|
|
|
Thousands of villagers are ignoring government warnings of an approaching eruption and staying put in their homes on the slopes of Indonesia‘s rumbling Mount Merapi, officials said on Monday. The volcano, which claimed more than 60 lives 1994 and 1,300 in a 1930 eruption, has been spewing thick smoke for nearly a week. Vulcanologists say it may erupt at the end of the month, but many villagers fear losing property and livestock if they go.
|
|
|
|
|
East Nusa Tenggara governor Piet A. Tallo has requested technical institutions handling health and farming matters to be honest and tell the general public if they find the avian influenza virus in any poultry farming locations. This request was made following controversy between staff reports and findings in the field regarding the spread of the deadly virus in one of the poultry farms in the regency of Lasiana, Kupang.
|
|
|
|
|
The dimness inside the Room of Rarities at the library of Surabaya's Medayu Agung Foundation gives way to brightness when Oei Hiem Hwie enters the room and turns on the main lights. Rows of neatly arranged books can be seen through the glass doors of a wooden cabinet ornamented with Jepara carving. "You will soon find out why this room is called the Hall of Rare Collection," Oei told The Jakarta Post.
|
|
|
|
|
Back home for a week, leaving me with lots of work at the office, at home and in Indonesia. Maybe it's just good that I'm working hard right from the day I'm home, because I'm quite sure I would be missing Indonesia like hell when I was bored to death here. It was just 6 days ago, on an early Sunday morning at six, that the Singapore Airlines plane touched down on Schiphol Airport, ending my longest trip to Indonesia.
|
|
|
|
|
Indonesia on Wednesday dismissed concerns that plans to prosecute a subsidiary of U.S.-based Newmont Mining on pollution charges would hurt foreign investment, saying clean companies had nothing to worry about. "I am sure that foreign investors won't be scared away," said Environment Minister Rachmat Witoelar. "I and the president personally guarantee to protect companies who manage their operations well." "We welcome the honest ones. There is no need for the crooked ones," he told reporters.
|
|
|
|
|
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono swore in his Cabinet ministers at the State Palace here on Thursday. In his inaugural speech, Susilo reminded the ministers, members of the United Indonesia Cabinet, that they had signed a political contract to be loyal, honest, hard-working, give priority to state and national interests over parties' interests and to be free from corruption and misconduct.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Campaigning by the five candidates contesting the politically powerful post of president of the Indonesian Republic officially ended on Wednesday. Voting in the country’s first-ever direct presidential election is due to take place on Monday.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well don’t get scared or shocked after having a look at the pictures above because that’s not pics from Iraq, Somalia, Palestine or even Aceh. But from my most favorite military enthusiast club Code 4 where I myself am a member – a club that is very different from any sports club. A sport where one can almost feel the hardship, experience of a true fighting soldier in a fun simulated war situation.
|
|
|
|
|
President Megawati Sukarnoputri, whose party slumped in parliamentary elections on Monday, may have difficulty regaining the presidency in July, according to a national sample of returns released Tuesday. The findings of the vote sample organized by the National Democratic Institute, a Washington-based organization financed by the United States, showed her Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle in second place, behind Golkar, the party of the former dictator Suharto.
|
|
|
|
|
Former dictator Suharto has topped a list of the world's most corrupt politicians over the past two decades. The list is part of Transparency International's new Global Corruption Report 2004, which charts the flow of stolen assets, recommends ways to recover money looted by despots, and sets out new standards on political finance and favors. Transparency International says Suharto stole about $15 billion to $35 billion during his 32 years of rule in a country where the Gross Domestic Product per capita hovers at around $700.
|
|
|
|
|
A candid home-grown tale featuring gay kissing has become an unlikely box office hit in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, challenging and wowing audiences in equal measure. Playing to packed cinemas in Jakarta, "Arisan!" is a satirical comedy mocking the life of the rich in the nation's capital and tackling the taboo subject of homosexuality.
|
|
|
|
|
The Tangerang District Court on Thursday sentenced to death two Nigerian nationals and fined them Rp 500 million (US$58,823) for violating Article 82 of Law No. 22/1997 on illegal narcotics and Article 55 of the Criminal Code on organized crime. Presiding judge Permadi said that defendants Michael Titus Igweh, 23, and Hillary K. Chimezia, 27, were found guilty of running an organized drug trafficking ring.
|
|
|
|
|
Indonesian Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra has told the Dutch they should perceive history honestly and told them they should practice introspection. Referring to the 1940s massacre in South Sulawesi ordered by Raymond Westerling, Yusril said there had never been an independent investigation into the case, even though the victims numbered about 40,000. "If I was Dutch, I would be ashamed," Yusril told Republika daily on Thursday.
|
|
|
|
|
|
After my few days left in Jogja after my week in Lombok, I'm back in Jakarta again. Yesterday I took the plane from Jogja to Jakarta to relax for the last few days, and to possibly meet some friends and other people here. Earlier on, I didn't know that some friends from Jogja, were about to go to Jakarta as well, but not by plane, by with the train. One of them left on Monday morning, I left Monday afternoon, and two more are currently in the train, waiting and travelling to Stasiun Pasar Senen. I hope to meet them tomorrow, for doing something else than what I'm doing now, writing stories and waiting for tonight, when I will meet an old friend which lives in Jakarta, somewhere...
|
|
|
|
|
|
In fact it was two days of doing nothing. Well, doing nothing is nothing for me, so that’s not exactly what I did. I was driving around on my motorbike with Cabe, and that’s something which is a little bit more than doing nothing. Not too early in the morning we left for a drive around the city again. First we would have a look at Gunung Merapi again, since that can be viewed in the morning, because fog tends to spoil the view somewhere in the afternoon. When we arrived at around eleven o’clock, there was nothing to see anymore. The clouds had already taken over the view over Gunung Merapi. We decided not to continue the trip, and to head back for Jogja for lunch and something else, no plans made yet.
|
|
|
|
|
The House of Representatives has moved to block Indonesia from receiving military training assistance funds, complaining it has conducted a lax investigation of an August 2002 attack in Papua that killed two Americans and an Indonesian. The House approved an amendment by voice vote on Wednesday to block the funds as part of a bill it passed to authorize State Department programs for the next two years.
|
|
|
|
|
In the early hours of 2003, the very early hours, I decided it was about time to expand my world of Indonesia on the world wide web. Since about 4 years I have maintained a Dutch links-website under Startpagina ( indonesie.pagina.nl, Startpagina.nl ). I’m doing fine with that one, collecting more and more visitors over the year. Most are still Dutch, and that’s the big reason why I made the second step in uniting the Indonesian-loving community in the Netherlands. I started a forum, which was offered by Startpagina for quite some time, but I didn’t want to start because I was busy working on my websites.
|
|
|
|
|
More than 50 monitors - most of them from Thailand and the Philippines - have left for the nearby North Sumatran capital of Medan, according to the Geneva-based Henry Dunant Centre (HDC), which brokered a peace deal in the province last year.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Andri Wongso, founder of Harvest Card, the Indonesian version of Hallmark, was not prepared for the questions that came from students at a recent career day held at state SMUN 35 high school, Central Jakarta.
|
|
|
|
|
Christians flocked to churches in Muslim countries across Asia on Wednesday for Christmas services that have passed peacefully despite concerns over possible bomb attacks by Islamic militants. In Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, the mood was festive but sombre in the wake of violence that has bedevilled the country, such as church bombings two years ago that killed 19 people and October bomb blasts in Bali that left almost 200 dead, mostly foreigners.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nothing nurtures confidence after a change in government more than the rapid installation of a cabinet filled with seasoned professionals. That was supposed to happen within a few days of President Megawati Sukarnoputri's inauguration on July 23. It didn't happen. Then she was to finalize the list with freshly chosen vice president Hamzah Haz on July 30. No such luck. Instead, there has been relentless negotiation between officials of the big parties as Megawati was confronted by a reality of Indonesian politics — cabinet-making as a rush for the spoils.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Breaking in a new boss is always a complicated task. That's especially the case at the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency, responsible for almost $50 billion in corporate assets and bad debts surrendered to the government during Asia's economic crisis. You'd think IBRA staffers would have a neat routine in place by now, having greeted six new bosses since the agency was formed in 1998 — two in the past eight months. But it's always a pain. "People are demoralized," said one insider. This time round Edwin Gerungan, a career banker known for his honesty, was replaced by I Putu Ary Suta, a former head of the capital markets regulatory board.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The minutes are ticking away toward the end of the month, the day the House of Representatives will convene its plenary session, while the whole nation is on tenterhooks and politicians continue to make so much fuss about the possibility of a meeting among the top leadership. Will they agree to reconciliation through compromise? A meeting maybe, but a compromise? And what kind of compromise?
|
|
|
|
|
In recent weeks thousands of Wahid's supporters particularly in his home province of East Java have formed paramilitary squads. They have announced plans to come to the capital before the parliament votes on Wahid's fate at the end of this month. A difficult time awaits him. But what worries international observers is the prospects of instability and violence in the country. Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid, currently embroiled in a crisis to remain in the office, has warned that a "nationwide rebellion" would erupt if the parliament attempts to impeach him on corruption charges. He said more than 400,000 people from across the main island of Java and southern end of Sumatra were ready to come into the capital to protest against moves to oust him from presidency.
|
|
|
|
|
|
When I was in Indonesia for the second time, I also knew thet I was sure to go the third time as well. Back them I already got the chance to look for nice tickets. That does not only means cheap, because cheap is not always good. At that time I was looking for good and familiair names in the business.
|
|
|
|
|
President Abdurrahman Wahid played down on Sunday security fears in the wake of rumored mass rallies between people in support of and against him on Monday. "God willing, there will be nothing," Abdurrahman said after a meeting at the Merdeka Palace on Sunday morning to discuss security in the capital.
|
|
|
|
|
|
It is really to be regretted that finding a solution for the Bank Indonesia case seems to take forever. Central banks anywhere in the world, are very respectable institutes, they are honored for their exalted position. Why? For reasons that our economy is no longer a primitive one, when everything was bartered for agriculture products.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The prosperous, tree-lined streets of Bandung hearken back to an era earlier this century when the city was known as the Paris of Java. Dutch colonial administrators at that time enlisted European architects and town planners to transform Bandung into an elegant holiday destination dotted with Art Deco buildings and other designs of the day. This heritage, along with cool mountain air, makes the city of 1.8 million people the envy of other large Indonesian centers. Hotels are packed with crowds fleeing Jakarta during weekends. "A lot of government big-shots like to come here and whoop it up," says Rus Edi, a taxi driver.
|
|
|
|
|
| BLOG ARCHIVE |
· 2015, 28 entries
· 2014, 591 entries
· 2013, 750 entries
· 2012, 1061 entries
· 2011, 792 entries
· 2010, 644 entries
· 2009, 916 entries
· 2008, 504 entries
· 2007, 725 entries
· 2006, 1014 entries
· 2005, 723 entries
· 2004, 558 entries
· 2003, 525 entries
· 2002, 375 entries
· 2001, 162 entries
|
| POPULAR TAGS |
Automatically generated every hour
|
|
'Events' feed
