Monopoly rears its ugly head

The state electricity monopoly (PLN) raised again its ugly head with more extensive damages as rotating power blackouts, previously limited mostly to areas outside Java, have now hit even the capital city, the center of political and commercial power.

PLN chief executive officer Fahmi Mochtar said Monday the rolling power outages in Jakarta and its surrounding towns, initially caused by the explosion of a transformer at the high-voltage transmission grid in Cawang in September, would continue until Christmas due to the technical problems at the Muara Karang power generation plant in north Jakarta.

Businesses are now counting their losses. But it is yet a small consolation that, contrary to the current legal uncertainty caused by the legal limbo of two suspended leaders of the Corruption Eradication Commission, PLN injected at least a sense of certainty – its power blackouts run on a fixed schedule.

In the past most power outages were sudden and unannounced, thereby inflicting losses not only due to the stoppage of operations or production but also the severe damages to production processes, production equipment/machinery.

Whatever blackout it is — whether sudden or scheduled — the power outage is causing big losses and gross inconvenience to the people. Still more devastating is the strengthening perception among the international and national business communities of the unreliability and acute shortage of electricity in Indonesia.

Unreliability and acute shortage of power supply has now become one of the biggest barriers to investment in the country.

Even though the government’s power policy and regulatory framework should share the responsibility for our current electricity crisis, the latest wave of blackouts should be blamed squarely on PLN’s poor management and unreliable maintenance service. How could the problem of a transformer cause blackouts to such a vast area for so a long time?

However, the problem is that consumers don’t have another alternative power supplier due to the PLN monopoly.

The latest bout of rolling blackouts therefore should signal a stronger warning that as long as PLN holds the monopoly over electricity generation and transmission we will remain gripped by an acute power shortage and unreliable power supply at the expense of our economy.

Accountability has never been the hallmark of a monopoly.

Put another way, the current rotating blackouts should force the government to accelerate the enforcement of the new electricity law, which was approved by the parliament in September.

This new legislation will break up PLN’s monopoly of the power sector and allow private investors and regional administration-owned companies to generate, transmit, distribute and sell electricity to consumers but still under a government-controlled tariff system.

The power crisis should serve as an alarm to the judges at the Constitutional Court not to be so narrow-minded as to annul the new electricity law as too liberal as the court’s panel of judges did in 2004 when it annulled a similar law designed to break up the PLN monopoly.

The current electricity debacle also should make it most urgent and imperative for the government and PLN to speed up the construction of the new generation plants launched four years ago under the 10,000 megawatt-crash program.



http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/11/12/monopoly-rears-its-ugly-head.html

Courting Sharia in Indonesia

An extremist figure whose role in terrorist activities is questioned comes to the forefront ahead of Indonesian presidential polls, and corruption, economic woes and disillusionment could pave his way.

Reports say that Abu Bakar Ba'asyir - the reputed spiritual leader of the militant Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and head of the Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia party (MMI) - is considering running for president of Indonesia in elections scheduled for 2009.

While an estimated 86.4 percent of Indonesia's 234 million citizens are Muslims, most are moderates, and some of Ba'asyir's policies, especially his call for the implementation of Sharia law, could well strike resonant chords among many.

Ba'asyir's MMI is an umbrella organization for groups fighting for Sharia law in Indonesia.

While Ba'asyir denies involvement with the militant JI, he has stood trial and been convicted of involvement in terrorism and the recent arrests of top JI commanders have implicated him in direct involvement in the group's leadership.

During a recent interview in Jakarta, MMI spokesman Fauzan al-Anshori said that Ba'asyir first had the idea of running in the 2009 presidential election after a scandal involving illegal funds in the 2004 electoral campaign emerged in June. The scandal appears to involve all the candidates, including Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"Ba'asyir is considering the possibility" but "he said that he wants to see what the people say first," Al Anshori told reporters.

On 9 June, Ba'asyir's involvement in JI again came to the forefront when Indonesia special police arrested the reputed head of JI, Zarkasih (also known as Mbah, or Grandfather), and the group's alleged military commander, Abu Dujana (whose aliases include Yusron Mahmudi, Pak Guru, Mahfud, Ainul Bahri, Sobirin and Dedi) in Banyumas, Central Java.

Both Dujana and Zarkasih trained in Afghanistan.

Between 9-11 June, special police also arrested seven other JI suspects: Arif Syaifudin, who was caught in Surabaya; Aris Widodo, caught in Karanganyar, Central Java; and Aziz Mustofa and Nur Afifudin, both of whom were arrested in Ngaglik, Sleman, Yogyakarta. All the suspects are believed to be aides of Dujana.

Taking no chances about mistaken identity, National Police spokesman Inspector-General Sisno Adiwinoto said fingerprint and DNA analysis had helped police identify Dujana.

Dujana, who speaks fluent Arabic, and Zarkasih were wanted for a spate of terrorist attacks, including the bombings of two nightclubs on Bali on 12 October 2002, in which more than 200 people were killed, along with a bombing at the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta on 5 August 2003, a suicide bombing outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta on 9 September 2004 and 2 October 2005 suicide bombings on Bali, which killed 23 people.

During a press conference with the Indonesian national police, Dujana said: "From 1993 to 2000, Jamaah was led by ustadz [teacher] Abdullah Sungkar, then he was replaced by Abu Bakar Ba'asyir from 2000 to 2002. Then from 2002 to 2003, [JI] was led by ustadz Abu Risyan. From 2003 to 2005, it was led by ustadz Adung, and from 2005 until now [it has been led] by Zarkasih."

More damning evidence followed, with police telling reporters after the raids that they had seized video footage showing another top JI operative saying that Ba'asyir had once led JI.

Al-Anshori was quick to denounce the allegations. "It's a lie. Ustadz Ba'asyir was never appointed as JI's leader. He was only a friend of Abdullah Sungkar," he said. According to Al-Anshori, a Supreme Court ruling had vindicated Ba'asyir, "We defer to the Indonesian Supreme Court's decision proving that Abu Bakar Ba'asyir had nothing to do with Jemaah Islamiyah […] or with terror attacks in Indonesia."

While Zarkasih and Dujana were arrested on 9 June, their capture was only announced on 15 June. That morning, before the arrests were announced, according to a report on the Indonesian Internet site Jakarta detikcom, Ba'asyir, speaking from his residence at the Al-Mukmin Islamic School in Sukoharjo, called on Zarkasih to continue fighting for his principles.

"Keep your belief. If [Zarkasih] is confident that the way that he has chosen is in line with Islamic Sharia, he must not turn from this position, even though he has to face security problems. If he admits to having chosen the wrong path, he must repent of his sins immediately. Then he must tell the government if he actually did do the things that the government has accused him of or not."

Ba'asyir said that he first met Zarkasih when he was a student at Al-Mukmin, when he was known as Arif Sunarso. "I met him several times at some Koran recitation forum in Malaysia. I do not know about his current activities," Ba'asyir was quoted as saying. "I stress that they [who commit violence] do not commit any terror. Actually they are counter-terrorists. Their objective is good, but they have chosen the wrong way. They aim to fight against the real terrorist, the United States and its ally. So they are only ordinary criminals."
The trial trail

Ba'asyir was arrested a week after the October 2002 Bali bombings. He was put on trial in 2003, but because the prosecution failed to prove that he was a JI leader, he was sentenced instead to 18 months in prison for immigration offences. Police then rearrested him in April 2004 immediately after his release from prison and charged him under Indonesia's new anti-terrorism law.

During his trial, Malaysians Syamsul Bahri and Amran bin Mansur testified that Ba'asyir did in fact head JI. Bahri said he was told by Mukhlas, who was sentenced to death for his role in the 2002 Bali bombings, that Ba'asyir assumed the JI leadership after founder Abdullah Sungkar died in 1999. Amran - also known by his Indonesian name Andi Saputro - gave a less damning testimony, saying "I did hear people saying that Ba'aysir was selected to replace Abdullah Sungkar as JI leader but some people also said that it was Abu Rusdan, not Abu Bakar Ba'asyir."

Ba'asyir was sentenced to 30 months in prison after being convicted of having a role in planning the Bali bombings. He was freed in June 2006 after serving 26 months of his sentence. On the day of his release, he told reporters: "I thank Allah that I am free today. I call on all Muslims to unite behind one goal, which is the implementation of Sharia law."

On 21 December 2006, the Indonesian Supreme Court overturned Ba'asyir's conviction for involvement in the Marriott hotel bombing, greatly angering the Australian government.

Ba'asyir has made a number of provocative statements on terrorism. In October 2002, in the wake of the Bali bombings, he said: "I support Osama Bin Laden's struggle because his is the true struggle to uphold Islam, not terror - the terrorists are America and Israel."
Indonesia treads gingerly

In Indonesia, officials are treading gingerly, and there is considerable debate among Indonesian intelligence specialists as to how much the recent arrests have actually weakened JI. Police say the JI structure has been simplified and centralized, and has four wings: proselytism, education, logistics and the armed wing, which was allegedly led by Dujana. More than 400 alleged JI members have been arrested since the 2002 Bali bombing, and Jakarta has prosecuted almost 200 people for terrorist offenses since then, sentencing five to death.

Ba'asyir certainly views himself as having a political role, if only as an adviser. On 19 February, he and a dozen followers went to the presidential palace to urge President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to implement Sharia law, saying: "We are here simply to advise the president that the country would be devastated if Islamic Sharia law is not implemented."

President Yudhoyono declined to meet with him.

In 2004, Washington requested Ba'asyir's extradition, but Jakarta refused, citing the fact that Indonesia had no extradition treaty with the US.

Washington strongly believes that Ba'asyir is connected to JI. On 13 April 2006, the US Treasury froze the assets of four JI leaders.

"As JI's top leader, Ba'asyir has authorized terrorist operations and the use of JI operatives and resources for multiple terrorist attacks in Southeast Asia. According to JI members, Ba'asyir needed to approve significant JI operations, either personally or through his leadership council. Ba'asyir authorized the Bali bombings of October 12, 2002, that killed 202 people. He authorized the use of JI operatives and resources for a plan to conduct simultaneous bomb attacks against US embassies in Southeast Asia on or near the first anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Ba'asyir also ordered a series of bomb attacks on Indonesian churches on December 24, 2000. The Christmas Eve bombings, carried out in 38 locations in 11 cities, killed 19 people and wounded approximately 120," the Treasury Department said in a statement.

In the meantime, advocates of Sharia law see their time as coming. And Jakarta has already made concessions. In December 2000, the government agreed to Aceh province to implement Sharia law as a compromise to pacify demands for the province's independence.

Another plank in JI's philosophy is the re-establishment of the Caliphate, a 1,600-year-old Muslim religious office ended by Ottoman Turkish leader Kemal Ataturk in 1924, which dated back to the time of the death of the Prophet Muhammad. The idea has steadily gained ground in recent years, and a Ba'asyir victory could energize militants worldwide pressing for the institution's restoration.
Altering the political landscape

If Ba'asyir does decide to run for election, he will face the choice of either establishing or affiliating with one of the country's marginal conservative Islamic parties, as Indonesian electoral law currently prohibits independent presidential contestants.

Particularly galling to Ba'asyir is Article 29 of the Indonesian Constitution that guarantees freedom of religion to Muslims as well as the country's Christian and Hindu minorities, estimated in the 2000 census at 8.7 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively. Other religious minorities, including Buddhists, are numbered at 3.4 percent.

A number of factors could alter Indonesia's political landscape before the 2009 elections. Indonesia's fragile economy, which, while largely recovered from the 1997 Southeast Asian economic crisis, could still experience a downturn. Furthermore, Muslim groups' influence has benefited from increased poverty. When Yudhoyono took office in 2004 he promised new policies to stimulate foreign investment, alleviate poverty and provide millions of jobs - vows that remain largely unfulfilled.

Corruption is also a major concern. Transparency International's 2007 survey places Indonesia among the most corrupt countries in the world, with a lax attitude towards prosecuting offenders, including former president Suharto, accused of embezzling an estimated US$15 billion-US$30 billion during his 32 years in power.

Indonesia placed 55th on Foreign Policy's 2007 Index of Failed States, which nevertheless said the situation had improved from the previous year. "The first direct elections were held in December in Indonesia's Aceh Province, host to a three-decade-long separatist war that ended in a truce in 2005. Former rebel leader Irwandi Yusuf, who escaped from jail after his prison was destroyed by the December 2004 tsunami, was elected governor, sidelining former elites who had long monopolized power."

Further besmirching Yudhoyono's reputation is a burgeoning scandal involving former fisheries minister Rokhmin Dahuri, who admitted in court that he distributed US$1.8 million in government money to candidates in the 2004 elections. Yudhoyono is also accused of having received some of that money - a charge he denies.

Another possible factor aiding a possible Ba'asyir candidacy is the country's fragmented political landscape, with more than 20 political parties. While radical Islamic parties received few votes during 2004 legislative elections, an anti-corruption platform combined with a moderate Islamic platform could well receive in an increased hearing in 2009, especially if Indonesia's major parties trot out tired candidates with dubious track records.

Ba'asyir has proven to be a master at advocating Islamic values while downplaying his reported terrorist connections. A major economic downturn, combined with yet more damaging corruption charges against the country's political elite could well boost his visibility at the polls - a situation that could provide Western democracies with a most unpalatable electoral choice in the world's most populous Muslim nation.

by : Dr John C K Daly

Bringing Aceh back in: Is sharia really needed?

It seems almost natural that the Aceh legislature has passed a bill on adultery based on Islamic sharia - which derives from the Koran and Sunnah (traditions of Prophet Muhammad). According to the Koran, adultery is punishable by 100 strokes of the cane. A married person committing adultery has to be stoned to death.

This should come as no surprise to us given the central government's commitment to honor the political arrangements of 2001 that gave Aceh semi-autonomy and the unique position of being administered by Islamic sharia. Interestingly, the bill on adultery which was passed in early October this year by Aceh's regional parliament is still being put on hold. Aceh governor, the sole executor of any policies designed for the province, is reportedly still not willing to sign it into law.

The bill's fate is still not clear. But, if such thing - the passing of the bill by the regional parliament on one hand, and the unwillingness of the executive to sign it on the other - persists, it will not only create a political debacle in the region, but also raise questions regarding the whole idea of sharia as the governing mechanism of the province. Why bother having Islamic law if it is not going to be put into practice?

While the impasse between legislative and executive bodies may generate concern, especially with regard to the seriousness of some of the elites to implement sharia, it provides opportunities to once again discuss the position of sharia in Aceh. In this case, one simple question that has never actually been presented to the Acehnese in general is whether or not they really need their justice system to be based on sharia.

More than any other region in the country, Islam occupies a very special position in Aceh, to the extent that Aceh is symbolized by the nickname "Veranda of Mecca". Due to this socio-cultural trait, Aceh has never been historically treated as a secular region. At the same time, the government never authorized Aceh to be administered by Islamic principles.

Interestingly, no complaints were ever lodged against the central government on this matter. The uneasy relationship between two important leaders, rebel leader Daud Bereueh and former President Sukarno, for instance, did not involve religious issues. Similarly, Hassan Tiro's bitter enmity toward the government did not concern Islam among Acehnese. Indeed, the existence of the Free Aceh Movement only strengthened the belief that it was economic and political justice that the Acehnese were after.

A struggle to demand economic and political justice is not something that is unique to Aceh. Virtually all the other regions seek the same agenda. These were actually the expectations of any existing regions when they decided to join the unitary state of Indonesia. By integrating themselves into a greater Indonesia, the common ideals - stability, security, and prosperity - can theoretically be more easily achieved.

Under these circumstances there was no justifiable reason for the government to authorize Aceh to administer its affairs in accord with Islamic law as part of its special status. In fact, by doing so, the central government has actually planted a time bomb where Aceh would be viewed by other regions as a regional test case for Islamic sharia at work.

During my recent visit to Aceh I sensed that not even the Acehnese are interested in turning their region into a laboratory for the implementation of sharia. Instead, they want to seize their moment - the golden opportunity that has been presented to them since the fall of Soeharto, and especially after the 2005 peace agreement - so that they can develop Aceh socio-culturally, economically, and politically.

I might be wrong, but the Acehnese perceive the implementation of certain sharia laws such as the adultery law as hindering their efforts to catch up with the country's more developed regions.

It is time that both the government and the parliament need to re-evaluate the authority given to Aceh to administer itself by sharia. It certainly has influenced other regions to pass controversial sharia bylaws - a development that has raised concern and called for a repeal of these bylaws.

The fact that Islam is an important aspect of Indonesian social, political, and legal culture is not something that can be overlooked. Yet as shown in many of our national laws, the necessity to accommodate Islam has to be partial in nature.

While the existence of Islamic family law and rules concerning the management of hajj (the pilgrimage), are perfectly acceptable, an attempt to introduce or pass criminal laws based on Islamic sharia would certainly polarize the country.

Bringing Aceh back in the unitary, secular nature of Indonesia's legal arrangement is an initial step in preventing that from occurring.

by : Bachtiar Effendy

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/11/05/bringing-aceh-back-is-sharia-really-needed.html

KPK urged to probe Kaban's role in Masaro graft

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) must probe former forestry minister M.S. Kaban's role in the allegedly graft-riddled procurement of a radio communication system from PT Masaro, antigraft activists say.

"This is not the first time Kaban has been linked to a graft case.

"Previously, he was allegedly involved with a graft scandal at Bank Indonesia," ICW coordinator Febri Diansyah told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

"Now, it has been claimed he is involved in the Masaro procurement scandal. However, he has not been detained," he added.

The procurement scandal dates back to June 2008 when the KPK probed former legislator Yusuf Emir Faisal over allegations he received bribes from Masaro owner Anggoro Widjojo. The KPK also named Anggoro a suspect, but he fled to Singapore in July 2008.

He has remained at large since.

Anggoro's younger brother, Anggodo Widjojo, was then reportedly named in a taped recording to orchestrate a move to weaken the KPK.

He was said to be using his contacts at the National Police and the Attorney General's Office to frame the antigraft body's deputy chairmen, Chandra M. Hamzah and Bibit Samad Rianto, in graft cases.

The tape, which was broadcast at the Constitutional Court, sparked controversy and its transcript forced President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to establish a fact-finding team to investigate the truth behind the alleged anti-KPK movement by the police and the AGO.

It was during the team's investigation process that Kaban's name was seen to be linked to the Masaro graft case.

After a meeting Wednesday night with National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri on the Chandra-Bibit issue, team leader Adnan Buyung Nasution said during a press conference Kaban's alleged involvement was found when police were investigating the testimony of discharged KPK chief Antasari Azhar.

The investigation on Antasari's testimony, which was used to charge Chandra and Bibit, then found a connection with the raid on Masaro's office by the KPK.

During that raid a document was reportedly found containing information about Kaban's alleged involvement in the procurement scandal.

Buyung said Bambang told him the police did not follow up on the findings during its investigation process on the Antasari testimony because they believed the Masaro case was in the domain of the KPK.

A report by detik.com said KPK investigators had found the document indicated a payment worth Rp 14 billion (US$1.47 million) to Kaban. However, whether the document is valid has yet to be confirmed. The KPK has yet to investigate.

Febri said although there was not enough reason for the fact-finding to summon Kaban because the team had been employed to probe the Chandra-Bibit issue, he thought the team's findings about Kaban's alleged involvement should be enough to push the KPK to probe the former minister further.

"The team can issue a recommendation to the KPK to investigate and arrest Kaban," he said.

One of the team's members, Denny Indrayana, refused to comment on the matter when asked whether the team would summon Kaban on this matter.

Additionally, Kaban did not answer his phone when the Post tried to contact him on the issue.


http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/11/06/kpk-urged-probe-kaban039s-role-masaro-graft.html

Legislative inquiry into Century bailout scandal, no jokes please

Still on the defensive from heavy attacks over the bizarre arrest of two Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputies, the Yudhoyono administration is bracing itself for yet another front.

The budding challenge is a threat from an alliance of legislators, mostly those from political parties which refused to join Yudhoyono’s grand coalition government, to hold an inquiry into the Rp 6.7 trillion (US$699 million) in taxpayers’ money used to bail out Bank Century.

In the forefront are legislators from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), who have formed their own investigative team and put the planned inquiry on its first-100-day list of priority programs.

On the bandwagon are House legislators from smaller opposition parties, the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), the People’s Conscience Party (Hanura) and quite a number of lawmakers from the Golkar Party, which is part of Yudhoyono’s coalition.

The PDI-P party has claimed that, as of last week, 200 legislators from various political parties in the House have signed up for the inquiry — way higher than the 25 petitioners the law requires for such a motion.

The inquiry, if it does materialize, would force the government to disclose the mystery surrounding the bailout that could provide strong ammunition to take the scandal to justice but is not likely to lead to the President’s impeachment.

The government’s rescue of the crumbling private bank has erupted into a political scandal due to the bailout fund’s exponential upward revision, from the initially estimated Rp 1.7 trillion the House approved, to a whopping Rp 6.7 trillion.

You may wonder what you can spend if you wake up and find Rp 6.7 trillion transferred to your bank account — it is a lot, really. By comparison, the government spent “only” Rp 100 billion in emergency funds for victims of the recent devastating earthquake in West Sumatra.

Bank Indonesia and Finance Ministry officials made quite a scene when they openly blamed each other for the outrage. Many people have demanded the authorities look into the possibility of a conspiracy between the owners and corrupt officials to defraud the bank.

The government insists that Bank Century’s survival needed emergency measures and closure would have only triggered a catastrophic domino effect in the country’s banking system. But this explanation raises more questions than answers.

Critics have been questioning if the small bank really deserved the suspiciously gargantuan sum of money that could have been put into more urgent and productive areas, with Indonesia reeling from the global financial crisis.

The massive bailout has given rise to rumors the government had refused to shut down the ailing bank instead because many relatives and financier cronies of top government officials would have lost their huge deposits there.

Under the Indonesian banking laws, the state can only provide Rp 2 billion as a maximum guarantee.

Also under public scrutiny is whether Bank Indonesia, as the controller, effectively monitored the bailout. Appropriate assessments could have either saved the bank or at least minimized the funds that the state had made available to make it healthy.

The bailout saga has been investigated by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) over the past several months. It submitted its interim report to the House of Representatives on Sept. 28 and promised to complete the audit by the end of the year.

From the provisional report, House legislators said they had found criminal evidence surrounding the disputed bailout, such as funds being illegally funneled, inconsistency of statistical data and apparent slackness of supervision by BI.

Advocates of the inquiry have been split over when they should summon the President (or his representatives) to answer lawmakers’ questions on the bailout, which could hamper Yudhoyono’s effort to achieve his own first-100-day targets.

Some opt to wait until the BPK completes its report but the PDI-P insists the inquiry should start as soon as possible.

With 200 lawmakers already signing up, as the PDI-P claims, let’s not be dazzled by the statistics.

Over the past five years, House legislators have attempted numerous such enquiries and pro-government legislators would shoot all of them down.

Now that the 560-member House is dominated by Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party which coalesces with an army of Islamic parties and the Golkar Party, the situation may stay the same. The inquiry motion was tumultuous, as it began as if the country was bracing for a revolution, but after the House politicians assembled for a decision, nothing happened.

This time, the move is sure adding to the pressure for the Yudho-yono regime to honor its promise to fight crippling corruption and will become a test case for the new legislators to prove their commitment to defending the public interest.


http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/11/05/legislative-inquiry-century-bailout-scandal-no-jokes-please.html

Even SBY has trouble cutting formidable Susno loose

A combination of a presidential order, mounting public pressure and a demand from a team of credible national figures, could only force Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji, the National Police chief of detectives, to temporarily relinquish his position.

National Police chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri angrily told reporters in Jakarta on Thursday that he had never dismissed his chief of detectives, despite President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordering him to do so several days ago.

“There is no such thing as a dismissal. The truth is he is temporarily non-active at his own will,” he said two days after wiretapped recordings played at the Constitutional Court revealed his alleged role in a plot to falsely incriminate two Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputies.

Susno’s defining controversy is his central role in what critics say is a blatant attempt to undermine
the KPK.

He created the "Crocodile versus the Lizard" term, of which the powerful crocodile symbolizes the police, while the inexperienced lizard is intended to represent the KPK.

Born in Pagar Alam, South Sumatra, on July 1, 1954, Susno rose to fame during his tenure as West Java Police chief from January to October in 2008.

He was earlier deputy chief of the Financial Transaction Report Analysis Center (PPATK) and in October last year, he was appointed as the police chief of detectives.

Although rumors that State Secretary Hatta Radjasa, Yudhoyono’s most trusted aide, had helped secure his appointment, many observers believe that it was his three years at the PPATK that saw him become a feared police officer among other generals.

In 2005, the PPATK submitted to then police chief, Gen. Sutanto, a report containing bank accounts of 15 high-ranking officials, each of which held billions to hundreds of billions of rupiah.

With generals on salaries of less than Rp 10 million per month, observers said the inflated accounts were proof of rampant bribery within the police force.

David Ridwan Betz, the executive director of the Alliance of State Official Watch, said the 15 accounts only showed the tip of the iceberg of the total number of suspicious accounts held by police officers.

He estimated there were at least 300 officers that had accounts with billions of rupiah.

He said that he knew that one account even contained Rp 800 billion.

The high-ranking officials with such suspiciously large accounts, he said, now occupy strategic positions within the police force, ranging from regental police chiefs, provincial police chiefs to other high-ranking officers.

As former PPATK deputy chief, Susno had access to data of the large bank accounts held by police officers, said Danang Widoyoko from Indonesia Corruption Watch.

“He knows the secrets of most of the high-ranking police officers. That makes him indispensable and very influential within the police force,” he said.

Danang urged the KPK to start investigating all alleged bribery practices in the police.


http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/11/06/even-sby-has-trouble-cutting-formidable-susno-loose.html

Thanks for the ‘cicak’, General!

Dear Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri, thank you for your apology, but none needed – at all.

We actually thank your subordinate who coined the phrase “lizard versus crocodile” – we love it! We look forward to sporting the image of the “cicak” and the “buaya” on our T-shirts and hats, bags and bumpers. The Cicak acronym alone – Cinta Indonesia Cinta KPK, Love Indonesia [means] Love the KPK (the anti-graft body) has given a new cause to nationalism – the right one. If you love Indonesia, support the people in the forefront fighting our dreadful, disastrous legacy.

We love nationalistic causes, the last being sporting batik on all kinds of occasions, a better way to beat reports of Malaysia’s “claim” on our heritage than any bilateral deal.

Now this latest cause is not against a foreign country, it’s against our own authorities – anyone deemed to harbor ill intentions to weaken our homegrown heroes, the corruption fighters. Even if the detained deputies are found guilty of abuse of power, the public fears the powers-that-be seek to drag the KPK into insignificance.

More precisely, the Cicak movement is a collective expression against injustice, for no one can understand the speed and intensity of the police’s investigation into the anti-graft leaders, along with the lawmakers’ earlier move to weaken the KPK and the anti-graft court.

Detective chief Comr. Gen. Susno Duaji coined the phrase cicak lawan buaya to insult the KPK leaders who, as small, helpless, insignificant house lizards, would attempt to take on big, strong rivals who were way out of their league.

Of course, this immediately caught the public imagination as a David against Goliath issue, and the popular band Slank has said we can expect a song on the theme very soon.

What chance is there for the “cicak” to prevail? Will the small, quiet creature only be poised to catch the mosquito, just like in the childhood song, asks anti-graft figure Teten Masduki in his recent article in the Kompas daily, referring to the tune “Cicak, cicak di dinding” (“Lizard, lizard on the wall”).

Given the widespread reaction it was rather amusing when on Monday the National Police chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri apologized to the public for Susno’s coining of the term, and begged everyone to stop using it, just when the T-shirt makers are likely gearing up for a surge in business.

It was even more amusing to read of reports quoting the new independent team tasked to look into the KPK saga, who said that everyone should cool down first – just as Facebook supporters hit 400,000 in a few days, just as protesters braved the heat in rallies across several cities, some with creative street art featuring images and puppets of the house lizards and the crocodiles. Just like children, people like to do everything that authorities say not to, even if it comes with a “please”.

The Cicak term interestingly brings our “nationalism” into the spotlight. As usual, each new patriotic cause loudly demands what it takes to show you love your country. More often we have other countries to fight, or rebels to crush.

Domestic causes like “Love Indonesia, Love the KPK” reflect the times we live in. The anti-graft battle is just one among the nuts and bolts of reformasi, involving the grueling work of washing away the stains from the past that won’t go away. The enemy is nowadays among ourselves; no one but fellow Indonesians have the clout to bring the nation down into the swamps, the home of the crocodile.

Over 10 years ago those who organized and descended on the streets were labeled people who did not love their country, those who brought shame on the nation as they aired our dirty laundry for all to see.

Now in a free Indonesia the big shots are likely crying out to deaf ears to “cool down” and stop referring to the lizard and the crocodile. But freely elected leaders mean demands for answers, for accountability, particularly regarding perceived injustice.

Instead of cooling down, people will freely choose to join rallies, sport black ribbons, or just turn to Facebook and click to join the KPK support movement triggered by the police.

So thank you Mr. Policeman, for the “cicak”!


by : Ati Nurbaiti


http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/11/04/thanks-%E2%80%98cicak%E2%80%99-general.html