[Kabar-Irian] News: Oct 27 - Nov 1 06

[Admin-Editors Kabar-Irian]

KABAR IRIAN NEWS
Oct 27-Nov 1

TOPICS

* Anger in Papua over murder trial, presence of Freeport
* Papua People's Assembly members plan New Zealand study tour
* ADB Proposes $4 Billion in Assistance for Indonesia in 2006-2009
* Australia West Papua Association shock
* Indonesians: Mine Killings Trial Unfair
* 7 Indonesians accused in murder of Americans in Papua...
* Refusal to plea
* Ivan Kolev arrives in Jayapura to coach Persipura soccer club
* 'Denias': Papuan child's quest for education
* Government plans new approach to transmigration program
* Remote Papua schools struggle to get by on bare minimum


Admin note: The Jakarta Post as innaccessible until today. Thus we have many

articles today from the JP.

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailnational.asp?fileid=20061031.G06&irec=5

Anger in Papua over murder trial, presence of Freeport

Markus Makur, The Jakarta Post, Timika

Hundreds of people rallied in Timika, Papua, on Monday in opposition to the

trial in Jakarta of seven Papuans charged with the 2002 murders of two

American teachers and an Indonesian colleague employed by PT Freeport

Indonesia.

Protesters blocked off access for several hours to Freeport's operational

area starting at around 1 p.m. The area was eventually cleared at 5 p.m.

after the police provided trucks to transport the protesters home.

Earlier in the day, demonstrators gathered in front of the Timika District

Court to demand the unconditional release of the seven defendants.

Damaris Onawatme and Vincen Onayame, who organized the rally, said the

demonstrators had earlier sent a message to the Central Jakarta District

Court, where the seven Papuans are being tried, through the Timika District

Court, demanding the release of the defendants.

The organizers said the demonstrators arrived at the court Monday expecting

to receive a response to their message.

"We came here for an answer to our earlier conveyed demand," Onawatme said.

The demonstrators were met by court official Jhoni Kondolele, who said their

demand had been forwarded to Jakarta but there had yet to be a response.

>From the court the demonstrators marched to the Freeport compound, handing

out leaflets along the way about the deadly 2002 shooting.

The leaflets also outlined the demands of the demonstrators, including the

release of the seven defendants, the closure of the Freeport mine and the

withdrawal of soldiers and police officers from Papua.

Onayame said as long as Freeport continued to operate in Papua, it would

remain a source of conflict.

"We will not hesitate to demand that the Indonesian government launch a fair

investigation of the 2002 shooting. The incident took place in Freeport's

compound. The Papuan people, who own the country's largest stock of natural

resources, have been treated unfairly by the U.S. and Indonesia," he said.

Onayame accused Freeport, which is based in the U.S., of exploiting Papua's

natural resources while failing to improve the lives of Papuans.

"Moreover, the working contract awarded to Freeport does not benefit the

people of Timika," he added.

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailnational.asp?fileid=20061031.G02&irec=1

Papua People's Assembly members plan New Zealand study tour

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura

The Papuan People's Assembly (MRP) will leave for New Zealand in December to

conduct a comparative study on the programs used to empower that country's

indigenous Maori population.

The New Zealand government programs will be used as a model for the

indigenous Papuans empowerment agenda, as stipulated in the 2001 law on

Papua's special autonomy.

The trip to New Zealand will be the MRP's first overseas visit since it was

established on Oct. 31, 2005.

MRP Vice Speaker Frans A. Wospakrik told The Jakarta Post on Sunday, during

an event commemorating the assembly's first anniversary in Sentani, Jayapura,

the assembly had chosen New Zealand due to that country's success in

empowering the Maori community in all aspects of life.

"The Maori people have been given a place, they are respected and given

opportunities like any other citizens. The government also recognizes their

customs and traditions," said Wospakrik.

Besides meeting with government officials, the MRP members will also meet

with members of the Maori community to learn about their culture and how

government programs have enabled their communities to develop.

"The MRP will also examine Maori social interaction in the wider society and

their traditional values, and the regulations used by the government to

assure their respect and progress," said Wospakrik.

He said the MRP wished the whole of Indonesia could respect the existing

tribal groups in Papua and help ensure their inclusion in the nation's

progress.

"A nation consisting of many ethnic minorities should protect and empower the

smaller groups, just like it does the larger ones," he said.

Wospakrik warned that without protection the native tribes in Papua could one

day disappear, and that large economic gaps would have the potential to cause

social problems. He cited as an example the tension between the Dayak tribe

and migrants in West Kalimantan.

"We don't want this to happen in Papua. We want everyone to live side by

side, and for indigenous Papuans to be respected and given an equal role as a

part of this great nation," he said.

Meanwhile, Frans Maniagasi, from the Papua Working Group, said the trip to

New Zealand was unnecessary at the moment. He said there were more pressing

issues to settle, especially with regard to indigenous rights.

"There are important tasks which have not been resolved, such as the special

regional regulations determining the rights of native Papuans, which is

especially important when the MRP is a cultural institution that is tasked to

fight for the rights of Papuans," he said Monday.

Frans added that the MRP should assess its performance over the past year

instead of wasting time with trivial activities.

---

http://www.acnnewswire.net/press/en/33795/ASIAN-DEVELOPMENT-BANK.html

ADB Proposes $4 Billion in Assistance for Indonesia in 2006-2009

Jakarta, Oct 31, 2006 (ACN Newswire) - Asian Development Bank's (ASX: ATB)

new assistance strategy for Indonesia in 2006-2009 will provide about $4

billion in loans and grants in support of the country's reform program and

its efforts to grow the economy to benefit the poor.

"ADB's new strategy in Indonesia illustrates our confidence in the country's

future," says ADB Vice-President C. Lawrence Greenwood. "The Government is on

the right track with its reform program and ADB stands ready to offer its

full support."

The four-year plan proposes $3.82 billion in loans and about $47.6 million in

grants. ADB's assistance over the four-year period will be focused on

infrastructure development, improving the financial sector, supporting

decentralization, accelerating the achievement of the Millennium Development

Goals (MDGs), and environmental protection.

"This strategy is designed to support the Government's efforts to address

development constraints with realism and determination," adds Mr. Greenwood.

"A key impediment to equitable economic growth and development is corruption,

and this program focuses on that issue in all loans and grants."

The plan proposes extensive resources toward strengthening governance and

preventing corruption through the training of local and national government

officials, and the strengthening of government institutions. ADB's

comprehensive anti-corruption policy will also be enforced in all loan and

grant disbursements under the program.

In 2005, ADB resumed private sector operations in Indonesia and these will be

continued under the new program in the years ahead. In August, ADB signed a

$350 million private sector loan to help develop the Tangguh Liquefied

Natural Gas Project in Irian Jaya Barat province.

Indonesia enjoyed rapid economic growth and a decline in poverty in the early

1990s until the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which exposed serious governance

problems in the country. Since the crisis, a focus on debt reduction has

lessened spending on economic and social development.

The Government's Medium-Term Development Plan, which ADB supports, seeks to

address these problems and increase the country's economic growth, create

jobs, and improve progress toward the achievement of the MDGs.

"Indonesia is at a critical stage in its pursuit of poverty reduction and

economic growth," says Rajat M. Nag, Director General of ADB's Southeast Asia

Department. "Bold vision, pragmatism, and a commitment to continuous reform

should lead to high economic growth by 2009."


About ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK

ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in the Asia and

Pacific region through pro-poor sustainable economic growth, social

development, and good governance. Established in 1966, it is owned by 64

members - 46 from the region.

In 2005, it approved loans and grants for projects totaling $6.95 billion,

and technical assistance amounting to $198.8 million.

Contact
Ayun Sundari
Email: asundari at adb.org
Tel:+ 62 21 251 2721


Jason Rush
Email: jrush at adb.org
Tel:+632 632 6480; Mobile: +63 920 938 6490

---

http://www.news.vu/en/news/RegionalNews/061030-Australia-West-Papua-

Association-shock.shtml

Australia West Papua Association shock

By Vanuatu Independent
Posted Monday, October 30, 2006

The Australia West Papua Association (AWPA), Sydney, is shocked that a

communique of the Pacific Islands Forum endorses colonial subjugation of West

Papua and disregards West Papua's heroic rejection of the Special Autonomy

package on 12th August 2005, says the AWPA.

AWPA asks the United Nations members at the Pacific Islands Forum to respect

UN General Assembly Resolution 1514 by supporting West Papua's right to Self

-determination and Decolonisation.

AWPA's Joe Colins said "Given the Forum's talk of cooperation and enhancing

social well-being, it is greatly disappointing the Forum has refused observer

status for the people of West Papua at this gathering".

---

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4299918.html

 Oct. 31, 2006, 11:53AM
Indonesians: Mine Killings Trial Unfair

By IRWAN FIRDAUS Associated Press Writer
© 2006 The Associated Press

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Seven men accused of killing two American teachers at a

U.S.-owned gold mine in Papua province refused to enter a plea Tuesday as

their trial wrapped up because they believed the proceedings were unfair,

their lawyer said.

Because no plea was entered, Judge Andriani Nurdin said she would issue a

verdict Nov. 7.

The defendants have remained silent throughout the course of their five-month

trial and regularly walked out in protest.

Prosecutors alleged the men _ all indigenous Papuans _ were members of a

small rebel army fighting for a separate state in the resource-rich province.

They are accused of shooting Rickey Lynn Spier, 44, of Littleton, Colo., and

Leon Edwin Burgon, 71, of Sun River, Ore., in 2002 as their car headed down a

road toward the mine owned by Freeport-McMoran Copper and Gold Inc. and Gold

Mine Inc.

Johnson Panjaitan, a lawyer for the defendants, said his clients refused to

enter the plea because they had routinely been denied access to attorneys and

that the judges were biased against them.

"They do not believe the trial was fair," Panjaitan said.

Officials at the Central Jakarta District Court were not immediately

available for comment.

The hearing in the heavily guarded court was interrupted several times by

rowdy Papuan protesters.

Prosecutors have demanded that the alleged ringleader _ Antonius Wamang _

serve 20 years in prison and that the others serve eight to 15 years.

Wamang, who was indicted by a U.S. grand jury in 2004 for the murders,

admitted to shooting at the teachers' convoy, saying he believed it was

carrying soldiers paid by the New Orleans-based company to guard the mine,

Panjaitan said.

Wamang also acknowledged being a member of the Papuan separatist movement,

which has long seen the mine as a symbol of Jakarta-rule over the province,

the lawyer said.

But the other six, accused of providing logistics for the attack, maintain

they were ordinary civilians, he said.

Some Papuan activists have alleged that the Indonesian army, which has a

history of rights abuses in the province, ordered the 2002 attack to make

sure Freeport would continue to pay soldiers to protect the mine.

The military has denied that and the FBI, which took part in the arrests of

the seven men last year, found no evidence backing up those suspicions.

---

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/31/asia/AS_GEN_Indonesia_US_Teacher_Sl

ayings.php

 7 Indonesians accused in murder of Americans in Papua call trial a sham
The Associated Press

Published: October 31, 2006
JAKARTA, Indonesia Seven men accused of killing two American teachers at a

U.S.-owned gold mine in Papua province refused to enter a plea Tuesday as

their trial wrapped up because they believed the proceedings were unfair,

their lawyer said.

Because no plea was entered, Judge Andriani Nurdin said she would issue a

verdict Nov. 7.

The defendants have remained silent throughout the course of their five-month

trial and regularly walked out in protest.

Prosecutors alleged the men — all indigenous Papuans — were members of a

small rebel army fighting for a separate state in the resource-rich province.

They are accused of shooting Rickey Lynn Spier, 44, of Littleton, Colorado,

and Leon Edwin Burgon, 71, of Sun River, Oregon, in 2002 as their car headed

down a road toward the mine owned by Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Mine

Inc.

Johnson Panjaitan, a lawyer for the defendants, said his clients refused to

enter the plea because they had routinely been denied access to attorneys and

that the judges were biased against them.

"They do not believe the trial was fair," Panjaitan said.

Officials at the Central Jakarta District Court were not immediately

available for comment.

The hearing in the heavily guarded court was interrupted several times by

rowdy Papuan protesters.

Prosecutors have demanded that the alleged ringleader — Antonius Wamang —

serve 20 years in prison and that the others serve eight to 15 years.

Wamang, who was indicted by a U.S. grand jury in 2004 for the murders,

admitted to shooting at the teachers' convoy, saying he believed it was

carrying soldiers paid by the New Orleans-based company to guard the mine,

Panjaitan said.

Wamang also acknowledged being a member of the Papuan separatist movement,

which has long seen the mine as a symbol of Jakarta-rule over the province,

the lawyer said.

But the other six, accused of providing logistics for the attack, maintain

they were ordinary civilians, he said.

Some Papuan activists have alleged that the Indonesian army, which has a

history of rights abuses in the province, ordered the 2002 attack to make

sure Freeport would continue to pay soldiers to protect the mine.

The military has denied that and the FBI, which took part in the arrests of

the seven men last year, found no evidence backing up those suspicions.


---
AP

JAKARTA, Indonesia Seven men accused of killing two American teachers at a

U.S.-owned gold mine in Papua province refused to enter a plea Tuesday as

their trial wrapped up because they believed the proceedings were unfair,

their lawyer said.

Because no plea was entered, Judge Andriani Nurdin said she would issue a

verdict Nov. 7.

The defendants have remained silent throughout the course of their five-month

trial and regularly walked out in protest.

Prosecutors alleged the men — all indigenous Papuans — were members of a

small rebel army fighting for a separate state in the resource-rich province.

They are accused of shooting Rickey Lynn Spier, 44, of Littleton, Colorado,

and Leon Edwin Burgon, 71, of Sun River, Oregon, in 2002 as their car headed

down a road toward the mine owned by Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Mine

Inc.

Johnson Panjaitan, a lawyer for the defendants, said his clients refused to

enter the plea because they had routinely been denied access to attorneys and

that the judges were biased against them.

"They do not believe the trial was fair," Panjaitan said.

Officials at the Central Jakarta District Court were not immediately

available for comment.

The hearing in the heavily guarded court was interrupted several times by

rowdy Papuan protesters.

Prosecutors have demanded that the alleged ringleader — Antonius Wamang —

serve 20 years in prison and that the others serve eight to 15 years.

Wamang, who was indicted by a U.S. grand jury in 2004 for the murders,

admitted to shooting at the teachers' convoy, saying he believed it was

carrying soldiers paid by the New Orleans-based company to guard the mine,

Panjaitan said.

Wamang also acknowledged being a member of the Papuan separatist movement,

which has long seen the mine as a symbol of Jakarta-rule over the province,

the lawyer said.

But the other six, accused of providing logistics for the attack, maintain

they were ordinary civilians, he said.

Some Papuan activists have alleged that the Indonesian army, which has a

history of rights abuses in the province, ordered the 2002 attack to make

sure Freeport would continue to pay soldiers to protect the mine.

The military has denied that and the FBI, which took part in the arrests of

the seven men last year, found no evidence backing up those suspicions.


---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20061030.T01

Ivan Kolev arrives in Jayapura to coach Persipura soccer club

Sports News - October 30, 2006

Former Bulgarian national team coach Ivan Kolev is the new coach of Persipura

soccer club in Jayapura, Papua.

Kolev, who arrived at Sentani Airport in Jayapura on Sunday, along with his

wife Valentina Kolev, received a traditional welcome dance from the club's

officials.

"It's a surprise for me to have a warm welcome from the club," Kolev told

reporters following his arrival.

"Hopefully, I can do my best for the club in near future," he added.

Persipura's welcome committee chairman Benhur Tomy Mano said that Kolev had

received special treatment different to that of previous coaches, as the club

wants the best from Kolev, who also once trained Myanmar's national soccer

team.

"This is the first time we did the welcome dance since we hope for the best

result from the best thing we could deliver," Mano told reporters.

Mano added that the club hoped that Kolev could repeat the team's success

last year, when it topped the Indonesian Soccer League under coach Rahmad

Darmawan.

Persipura finished second in the Copa Dji Sam Soe national championship this

year.

Kolev is expected start selecting players for the team from Nov. 1. --

JP/Nethy Dharma Somba

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20061029.P01

'Denias': Papuan child's quest for education

Features - October 29, 2006

'Denias': Papuan child's quest for education

Director John de Rantau's first feature film shows a boy's determination to

find a proper school, despite his unfavorable background. In Papua, where the

film is set, school is something akin to a luxury, and not to be taken for

granted as we see in a metropolis.

Denias: Senandung Di Atas Awan (Denias: Song Above the Clouds), tells the

story of a rural Papuan child who goes all out in pursuit of his quest for

education.

Denias (admirably played by Albert Fakdawer), has promised his mother to

continue his schooling because it is the only way he can be strong, that even

"mountains will be afraid of him".

He is a clever boy who is liked by his teachers and has a very strong will to

continue his studies.

Even so, he faces so many obstacles over which he has no control: The only

teacher (Muchus) in his village leaves, the school hut collapses in an

earthquake, his father (Michael J.) would rather he stay home and help with

the chores. Going to a school in the city is also out of question, as only

children of village chiefs can go there.

Denias opens in the montane surroundings of a Papuan village, showing

adolescent boys going through a koteka ceremony. A running text appears, like

in a documentary, saying that after the ceremony men and women of the village

must live in separate quarters.

Denias then appears among a group of women that includes his mother, who says

that he should try hard to stay in school. This mother-son conversation

establishes the initial connection between Denias and his wish for an

education.

This scene also marks a contrast in the film between the female world that

favors education and the male world -- shown a little later through Denias'

father and his group -- which is indifferent about it.

Later, after a family tragedy, the female realm subsides into a symbolic form

of chants (performed by contemporary singer Ubiet of Krakatau) that descends

from the sky and acts as guidance for the boy.

The indifference of his father towards education and the importance it holds

for Denias creates a distance between father and son. So the boy finds role

models outside his family.

He attaches himself to his teacher and later to Maleo (Sihasale), a soldier

who stands in for the village teacher.

Denias' character has clearly been created to evoke an emotional response in

the viewer: He is clever as well as a skilled hunter, but he is also left by

his loved ones -- yet he maintains his passion in trying to find alternative

sources of knowledge and affection.

He is, of course, an ordinary boy who likes soccer and fights with his mates,

especially Noel (Ryan Wanobi), the village chief's son, but this conflict is

given an almost noble cause as a protest against class discrimination in

Papuan society.

The help Denias receives to overcome his situation comes mostly from non-

Papuans such as his Javanese teacher, the soldier Maleo, classmate Angel

(Pearce) and his teacher Sam (Zalianty).

Apart from Enos (amusingly played by Minus Karoba), a mischievous homeless

boy he meets in the city, and his mother, the Papuans in this film are

represented as favoring indigenous hierarchy and discrimination by resisting

modernity -- that is, education -- and equality.

The non-Papuan standpoint is perhaps summarized by Sam, who says that Papua

develops very slowly not only because of outsiders' unfairness, but because

the Papuans themselves made it difficult for their own people.

The relationship between tradition and modernity in the debate on Papuans'

right to education as presented in this film would have been more defined if

the majority y of non-Papuan characters were not so one-dimensional in their

saintliness.

Not only are the non-Papuan characters almost too simplistic, but the non-

Papuan actors also fail to breathe life into their characters.

Zalianty basically reprises her role as Mel in Hanung Bramantyo's Brownies

(2005), this time mouthing concerns about access to schooling, while Sihasale

muddles the dramatic potential of his otherwise schizophrenic role as an

altruistic soldier.

Next to Fakdawer and Karoba's well-delivered performance, they fail to

amplify the underlying conflict and emotion that make Denias very moving --

even without the help of Dian HP's dramatic musical scores.

The film decidedly maintains its focus to show that modern education brings

about a more orderly life.

Denias learns about nationhood and longs to be part of it, as opposed to the

tribalism and its hierarchy he experiences in his village. His desire for a

school uniform, a militaristic salute he makes to a homemade Indonesian map

and his being part of a flag hoisting ceremony represents an idealized

relationship between modernity and nationalism. The contrast between the

natural, vast, mountainous forests that Denias has left behind and the

organized dorm-school-city he has moved to also supports this idealized

viewpoint.

The overall tone is the naive, yet moving optimism of its main characters.

Denias is a sympathetic tale about a rural Papuan child's odyssey for

education, a reminder that to some people in some parts of the world school

is indeed a luxury.

Denias opens this week in cinemas. An English-subtitled version will be

screened at the upcoming Jakarta International Film Festival 2006.

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20061027.H06

Government plans new approach to transmigration program

National News - October 27, 2006

----------------------------------------------------------------

This is part 1 of 3 articles written by The Jakarta Post's Ridwan Max Sijabat

on the government's changing transmigration policies.
----------------------------------------------------------------

What might Lampung look like now if thousands of Javanese families had not

been resettled to the province in the 1950s and after?

Thanks to the transmigrants, the province has developed into a modern area

experiencing rapid economic development, with agribusiness, fishing, palm oil

plantations and rubber estates as its backbone.

Lampung is a classic example of how the controversial government-sponsored

transmigration program has transformed regions from unproductive land into

economic centers, as has happened in many coastal stretches and remote areas

of Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua.

Many of the areas were uninhabited until farmers were brought in from densely

populated Java and Bali.

The government has spent a lot of money to finance the program in an effort

to redistribute the population from overcrowded Java to sparsely populated

islands.

Data released by the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry shows that the

government has resettled more than 2.5 million families from Java since

Indonesia became independent in 1945.

In 2006, it spent Rp 30 million (US$3,280) for each family to be resettled

under the transmigration program. The money is used for everything from the

recruitment process to the provision of agricultural tools in the migrants'

new homes.

Not all resettlements are successful, however.

According to official statistics, a total of 367 resettlement areas across

the country have experienced serious problems. Most of the transmigrants have

returned to their home villages because they have conflicts with the local

residents over land ownership.

The figures show that the rate of failure ranges from 30 to 90 percent in

various recipient regencies.

"Yes, many transmigrants have returned to their home villages because they

did not feel at home in remote areas, in conflict with locals over the land

status," Director General for Transmigrant Recruitment, Training and

Placement Diyah Paramawartiningsih told The Jakarta Post here recently.

In the past, thousands of families were resettled by the Dutch colonial

administration to be employed as forced laborers in export-oriented rubber

and palm oil plantations in North Sumatra.

During the New Order era (1965-1998), the program caused social and political

problems, but people did not dare to raise the issue with Soeharto's

authoritarian regime.

Nowadays, accusations come from outside Java, where critics say that the

transmigration program "exports" social problems from Java. Some have gone as

far as demanding that the program be terminated because the resettlers cannot

lift the target regions out of poverty.

Most transmigrants are uneducated and don't integrate well with locals.

Ironically, the best and brightest of the local residents stream to Java for

better opportunities.

Javanese transmigrants were forced to leave Aceh at the height of the bloody

conflict between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and government troops in the

1990s. The eviction was in apparent revenge for the Javanese-dominated

government's iron-fisted rule in the province. The Acehnese accused the hard

-working migrants of stealing their natural wealth.

The presence of transmigrants in Papua has also been blamed for the rapid

spread of HIV/AIDS in Merauke and Mimika. Many women from resettlement areas

in the province have worked as prostitutes and allegedly transmitted the

virus after acquiring it from Thai fishermen.

In Gorontalo, locals were involved in clashes recently with transmigrants.

Thousands of hectares of paddy rice ready for harvest were destroyed by

locals who claimed their communally owned land had been given to the settlers

unlawfully.

More than 7,000 of the 15,000 Javanese families resettled by the government

in a one-million-hectare peat moss area in Central Kalimantan in the 90s have

returned home after they found the land was not suitable for farming.

Manpower and Transmigration Minister Erman Suparno said during his visit to a

failed resettlement program in Laikan village, South Sulawesi, that the

program must be reviewed to make it more attractive to transmigrants and

investors.

"The government plans to develop integrated townships in resettlement areas

to attract domestic and foreign investors to the least-developed regions, as

we have done in Lampung, Jambi, Riau, West Sumatra, North Sumatra and

Bengkulu," he said.

A number of Malaysian businesspeople have invested in palm oil estates in

Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, Sulawesi and East and West Kalimantan, where

townships have developed markets for palm oil farmers and suppliers.

"The townships developed in Jambi, Riau and East Kalimantan have also had

good infrastructure, such as road networks and transportation, as well as

social facilities like hospitals, clinics, houses of worship and school

buildings," said the minister.

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20061027.G03


Remote Papua schools struggle to get by on bare minimum

National News - October 27, 2006

Markus Makur, The Jakarta Post, Timika

Papua has applied the new competemce-based curriculum (KBK) since 2004, in

which students are trained to develop their individual skills and potential.

However, the KBK has only been implemented in schools in urban areas, as the

harsh terrain of Papua's hinterland makes it accessible only by sea and air,

cutting schools off from vital outside support. It is a major impediment for

teachers in remote areas, while students do not have the facilities to

support the new curriculum.

This has been a major cause for concern. Most, if not all, elementary schools

are unable to apply the curriculum, but instead have to stick to the old one

dating back to 1994.

One of the schools that requires serious attention is St. Agustinus Catholic

Development Education Foundation (YPPK) elementary school in Fanamo village,

in East Mimika district.

School principal Yohanes Narpinaha told The Jakarta Post that only he and one

other teacher teach the 235 pupils there. The school only has four classrooms

in which lessons are conducted throughout the morning and afternoon,

including lessons carried out in the principal's office and teacher's staff

room.

Narpinaha said that he had dedicated 15 years of his life to teaching

students in Omawita and Fanamo villages.

However, development in remote areas is slow. Due to the lack of facilities

and teaching staff, many children do not attend school and instead join their

parents to hunt or go fishing.

"The problem faced by most elementary schools in remote areas is the lack of

supporting facilities," he said.

Narpinaha said that he and the other teacher only teach students to read,

write and count. They use the school's old textbooks, therefore it is

impossible to apply the new curriculum. The children also do not wear school

uniforms.

"We teach all subjects from first to sixth grade, and as a consequence the

percentage of students who pass the final exams is far below the required

standard," he said.

Narpinaha said he had to collect his monthly salary of Rp 1 million

(US$110.00) in Timika city by speedboat which would cost him Rp 250,000 for a

round trip. But if he uses a rowboat the trip would take a whole day.

Narpinaha's salary is barely enough to support a family of five children,

especially when the cost of basic necessities is very high in Timika.

"Last year, only three of the students in sixth grade passed the exams. This

was not the teachers' fault, but due to the lack of facilities and the lack

of support from parents for their children's education," he said.

On top of that, no one from the local education office has visited this year

to observe the real condition of schools in Fanamo village. The school had

submitted a proposal to the office to request for additional classrooms but

has not received an official reply.

Head of the Mimika Education Office, Ausilius You, explained that schools in

remote areas were not required to apply the KBK curriculum.

According to You, his office planned to implement a different curriculum

which would be applicable to schools in remote areas of Timika.

He said that the government was still considering four critical issues -- the

lack of school facilities, limited teaching staff, underqualified teachers

and student absenteeism as well as teachers' welfare.

He said the education office planned to develop school facilities and

infrastructure in outlying areas, such as elementary schools in Geselema,

Alama and Kadunjaya.

The government has also built elementary and junior high schools under one

roof in districts where they do not have junior high schools, in which

elementary school students from remote areas could enroll immediately after

graduation.

"We are also going to build high schools in remote areas, such as the Kokonao

state high school in West Mimika and the Mapuru Jaya high school in East

Mimika, which are easily accessible from the districts and villages, so that

students need not continue their studies in Timika city," he said.

You acknowledged that schools in remote areas lacked supporting facilities,

as well as teachers' housing. His office is making efforts to build houses

for teachers, which are urgently needed by teachers in remote areas.

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