[Kabar-Irian] News: Jan 25-29 2008

[Admin-Editors Kabar-Irian]

KABAR IRIAN NEWS

Jan 25-29 2008

TOPICS

* Jayapura`s Mt. Cycloops areas rich in nickel deposit
* Biak Satellite Launch Good for West Papua (opinion piece)
* Indonesian plane hits calf on runway
* MNA jetliner hits cow on landing in Merauke
* TWO HEARINGS IN TRIAL OF SABAR IWANGGIN
* Saving The Rainforest Is a Hero's Job
* We don't need new regions for now: President
* Call for consultation over Jakarta’s plan to further split Papua
* Can the crown jewel of world's coral reefs be saved?
* Talisman Energy deal boosts competitive position in LNG market
* US propped up Suharto despite rights abuses: documents
* Don't gloss over atrocities
* Papuan social pastime: Chewing areca nuts
* HIV/AIDS on the increase despite global decline
*


---

http://www.antara.co.id/en/arc/2008/1/22/jayapuras-mt-cycloops-areas-rich-in-nickel-deposit/

01/22/08 16:44
Jayapura`s Mt. Cycloops areas rich in nickel deposit

Jayapura (ANTARA News) - The Cycloops mountain range which stretches
from Jayapura city to a number of districts in Papua, sits on a huge
nickel deposit believed to be the biggest in the world, a local
official said.

"But the mining resource could not be exploited because the Cycloop
mountain range has been declared a natural conservation area by the
United Nations and is serving as a clean water source for the
locals,"
Toto Purwanto, head of Papua`s Mineral Resources and Mining Office,
said here on Tuesday.

The Cycloops is the only one clean water source for the local people
in Jayapura city, Sentani and other districts in Jayapura, he said.

He said that the Cycloops also served as a buffer zone and a water
catchment area when heavy rain fell.

"If the mining deposit of the area is to be exploited it will wreak
havoc on the local people," Purwanto said.

The results of a geological survey suggests that the Cycloops
mountain
range sit on at least 45 types of mining resource deposits which had
high economic potentials.

Purwanto did not mention the types of mineral resources, however.

But the mining resources of the area could not be exploited because
it
served as the `heart` for the life of people in Jayapura city and
Jayapura district, he said. (*)

---

From: "" <p3_8980 at koteka.net>
Subject: Independence is Coming - Biak Satellite Launch Good for West Papua
Date: Sun, 27 Jan 2008 13:39:42 -0800

The satellite-launch site currently being built by the Russians on the
island of Biak is good for Papua and

Papuans, for a number of reasons:

Indonesia has no other satellite-launch site currently in the country;
* The Russian (technical) presence at the above is positive in our opinion
and will drive existing foreign

companies operating in West Papua to seriously review the plight of the
West Papuans and its case for

independence;
* With the appearance of the Russians in West Papua which is traditionally
an American (and

Indonesian) playground, there is increased protracted lobbying efforts by
Freeport in the Pacific region.

Whilst we cannot be sure of their intentions, the Melanesians of the
Pacific to which the Papuans belong

remain sceptical and are not easily placated over the genocide and
suffering of their own in West

Papua.
* Expect West Papua to garner increasing international attention as the
superpowers jockey for control

over dwindling global natural resources. The loser will be Indonesia for
having enforced a policy of

genocide on the Papuans which has led to its failure to win Papuan hearts
and minds in 46 years of

brutal occupation, when it could have easily treated the Papuans very
differently.
* We do not believe that the international community will tolerate
Indonesian genocide and ethnic

cleansing in West Papua indefinitely.
* We envisage some form of rapid international intervention in the near
future. Indonesia is aware and

has been holding large-scale naval exercises involving rescuing West Papua
from what they perceive

will be "foreign aggression" these last 12 months and have been harping on
endlessly on the "defense of

the territorial integrity of the Unitary State of the Republic of
Indonesia" but really deep down they know

they will not win.
There are 6,000 US marines stationed in the Northern Territories
(Australia) and we do not believe they

are there for fun nor relaxation. The US also has military bases in the
Phillippines from which a pincer

movement in our opinion coupled with Australian Defence assistance from
the east (PNG) will roll back

Indonesian territory as far back as beyond the Molluccas.
* In our opinion Putin is a good man who we hope will not back Indonesia
in the event of the above (it

would be foolish to do so, why invite negative public perception on Russia
internationally when there is a

clear case that genocide and ethnic cleansing has taken place and is
continuing in West Papua). On

the question of West Papua, although Indonesia and China have recently
signed a mutual defense pact,

the Chinese are wise and same considerations applies as to Russia.
* Indonesia's plan firstly is to secure support from Russia and China but
this is nullified for reasons

above. Their fall-back plan will be to mobilise support from the Islamic
world. Economic considerations

aside, we do not believe the upper echelons of the moslem world to wish to
be embroiled and draw

negative attention on their religion for the same reasons given earlier on
Russia and China.
* Indonesia really needs to very quickly change tack and treat Papuans as
equals. Failure to do so will

lead to their loss of the territory in the face of international scrutiny.
The path chosen by Indonesia

currently in our opinion is a sign of desperation and clearly they have
not learnt a thing from events

leading up to East Timor's independence.
* West Papua is so important to US interests geopolitically as well as
access to natural resources that

despite its current economic downturn, it will not hesitate in employing
its military might to secure West

Papua. Indonesian strategists will endeavour to embroil Russia and China
in such a conflict but in our

opinion both mature states are intelligent enough to let matters take its
course and will refrain from

Indonesian agitation. NATO may get involved where necessary but only as a
last resort were Russia and

China to support Indonesia in such a confrontation (unlikely).
* Indonesia is counting on its large military numbers as well as its
civilian militias and moslem fanatics.

However with ageing naval, airforce and army equipment, unlikely to pose
serious challenge to modern

military forces.
* The Indonesian Military is quite weak and undisciplined, fearful of the
Papuan jungle and inhospitable

terrain, so that when faced with superior foreign intervention, will
rapidly be defeated. An archipelagic

country with two aging Chakra-class submarines covering an area spanning
735,355 square miles sums

up Indonesian naval power.
* Indonesian moslems are in the main moderate and unlikely to turn a
conflict scenario into religious war

as West Papua is not traditionally a moslem stronghold. Indeterminate
factors include Jemaah Islamiyah

and Laskar Jihad terrorists, the numerous militias already on the ground
in West Papua, and agitators

acting on orders from the Jakarta elite and top generals. As terrorists
they would be dealt with swiftly.
* Rimbunan Hijau the timber conglomerate is active in the region, financed
by ANZ Bank. We assume it

would keep its current operations to simply business and not military.

Our recommendation:

Indonesia must place Papuans in positions of power in West Papua in the
government, military, security

and all aspects of public, military and security administration. It is
clearly acting like a spoilt neo-

colonialist and clearly thinks its military-occupation of West Papua is
not going to change. However this

is quite unlikely to happen in our opinion.
* Indonesia must allow unhindered access to West Papua by human rights
observers and independent

journalists. Failure to do so only increases international outcry on the
plight of the Papuans.
* Indonesia should treat Papuans as equals in preparation of the
inevitable independence should it wish

to maintain friendly relations with West Papua. We foresee the new nation
of West Papua on

independence to being content in maintaining close relations with the
superpowers to relegate relations

with Indonesia to secondary importance.
* Prepare to welcome the new nations of West Papua and Maluku in the
foreseeable future.

---

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23121751-1702,00.html

Indonesian plane hits calf on runway

>From correspondents in Jakarta

January 28, 2008 06:11pm
Article from: Agence France-Presse

AN airliner with 141 passengers hit a calf while landing at an airport in
Indonesia's easternmost province

of Papua.
The Merpati Nusantara Airlines Boeing 737 was landing at Merauke airport
in southwest Papua when the

calf ran across the runway, the the state Antara news agency reported today.

The Boeing suffered damage to its left engine but no one was injured, the
head of the airport, Herson,

told Antara.

"A calf ran very fast from Jati village on the eastern side of the airport
and the airplane couldn't avoid it,''

Herson said, adding that the airport was not fully fenced in.

The report did not say if the calf was killed.

Airport safety across Indonesia has come under the spotlight following a
string of deadly air accidents in

past years.

---

http://www.antara.co.id/en/arc/2008/1/28/mna-jetliner-hits-cow-on-landing-in-merauke/

National

01/28/08 14:48
MNA jetliner hits cow on landing in Merauke

Jayapura (ANTARA News) - A Boeing 737-300 of Merpati Nusantara Airlines
(MNA) on Monday at 8.46

local time sustained a damaged engine after hitting a stray cow while
landing at Merauke`x airport.

The impact of the collision damaged the plane`s left engine but all of the
jet liner`s 141 passengers were

safe and unharmed, Merauke Airport Chief Herson said on Monday.

"The calf was running fast from Jati kampong which is located east of the
airport, so the plane could not

avoid hitting the animal," Herson said.

He admitted the airport was not yet fully fenced due to financial
constraints. However, he had often

reminded local people to guard their cattle properly so that the animals
would not trespass the airport

area.

He said the airport`s patrol officers routinely check the area to make
sure that the situation was safe

before allowing any plan to land.

Merauke airport serves around 20 domestic flights daily.(*)

Copyright © 2008 ANTARA

---

From:  Tapol <tapol at gn.apc.org>

TWO HEARINGS IN TRIAL OF SABAR IWANGGIN OLIF WERE HELD IN JANUARY 2008

According to a report received from the GKI (Protestant Church) in Papua,
two hearings in the trial of Iwanggin Sabar Olif SH were held in January.
He is facing charges in connection with alleged terror SMS messages he sent
to five friends and to his brother.

The hearing on 14 January heard a demurrer presented by the legal team of
the accused. The demurrer states that the testimony from the witness, Ruby
Z Alamsyah of Telkomsel (Telecommunications), did not comply with legal
requirements because it made no distinction between the five SMS messages.
The charge sheet used the word 'deliberate' and said that the action took
place 'in public'. Counsel for the accused said that Sabar had only sent
the messages to persons he knew and did not do this in a public place.

According to the law, testimony that is uncertain because  it is
susceptible to change is unacceptable in a court of law. Moreover, it is
strange that the prosecutor in his charge sheet linked the sending of the
SMS messages with the tragic events which occurred in the districts of
Yahukimo and Boven Digul whereas in fact the accused never sent any SMS
messages to Yahukomo or Boven Digul

The demurrer of the legal counsel of the accused also drew attention to
other anomalies in the charge sheet:

Firstly, the action of which the accused is charged is in the nature of a
special crime because the arrest involved a joint team from the anti-terror
Special Detachment 88 and the Criminal Investigation Bureau (Bareskrim) of
the Police Force, whereas  it is clear that the interrogation report (BAP)
and the charge sheet stipulates what is regarded as an ordinary crime,
namely the crime of incitement as stipulated in Article 160 of the Criminal
Code.

Secondly, nothing is said about the transfer of the accused to police
headquarters (in Jakarta) on 26 October 2007 for interrogation. The crime
for which the accused stands charged occurred in Papua, or more
specifically in Jayapura, which means that the interrogation should have
taken place in Jayapura.

Thirdly, during the interrogation process, the accused was accused of
inciting Papuans to resist and to defame the good name of the President of
Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as stipulated in article 160 related to
article 134 of the Criminal Code, which should be supported by a charge
made to the police by the person in question, namely the president of
Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, to the police force of Indonesia.

The legal counsel therefore requests the Panel of Judges to release the
accused, Sabar Iwanggin, from prison and restore his reputation and lift
all the charges against the accused.

At the hearing on 21 January 2008, in his statement titled 'Response to the
demurrer of the counsel of the accused, the prosecutor stated that the
evidence regarding the five SMS numbers mentioned is adequate evidence for
the trial to continue. The prosecutor also stated that the accused,
Iwanggin Sabar Olif should not have circulated the SMS messages but should
have prevented their circulation by reported the matter to the police.


  KPKC Synode of the GKI in the Land of Papua


[This report makes it clear that the trial is still in the early stages
which follow the submission of the charges by the prosecution. Assuming
that the judges will reject counsel's request for the trial to be
abandoned, the subsequent hearings will be devoted to hearing testimony
from the witnesses, the summing up by the two sides and then the
pronouncement of the verdict by the panel of judges. This report does not
state where the trial is being held, in Jayapura or in Jakarta. TAPOL]

TAPOL, the Indonesia Human Rights Campaign
111 Northwood Road, Thornton Heath, Croydon CR7 8HW, UK.
tel +44 (0)20 8771 2904 fax +44 (0)20 8653 0322
tapol at gn.apc.org  http://tapol.gn.apc.org

---

TODAY (Singapore)
January 24, 2008

Saving The Rainforest Is a Hero's Job

Governor of Papua has an uphill task battling exploitative
interests

Marianne Kearney in Jakarta

Making his dream come true could be a nightmare but Mr Barnabas
Suebu, the Governor of Papua - home to the most dense jungle in
Indonesia, where stone-age warriors live among the most
bio-diverse region in the planet - wants to preserve huge
swathes of rainforest.

In fact, he wants to preserve 7 million ha - about 110 times
Singapore's land mass.

Papua's forests have been carved up by Chinese, South Korean,
Malaysian and local companies, and much of the logging is done
illegally. Local companies then launder the logs and sell them
at an astounding rate, according to the Environmental
Investigation Agency, which has been monitoring Papua's logging
since 2002.

Greenpeace estimates that every hour, three football fields of
forest are logged in Indonesia. In Papua, home to 42 million ha
of forest, an estimated 7.2 million m3 of timber, much of it
prized hardwood merbau, is being logged each year.

But Mr Suebu said almost none of this vast natural wealth and
rapid exploitation has benefited local people. Papua is still
one of Indonesia's most impoverished provinces, with 40 per cent
of the 2.5 million people living on less than 50 US cents (72
cents) a day, according to the World Bank.

"The benefit for the local people is trivial but the impact is
devastating. There is no benefit at all in plundering the
forests," Mr Suebu told reporters, during the Bali climate
change conference.

"A timber log is priced at US$10, but the price can climb to
more than US$10,000 after being processed into wooden goods," he
said, referring to an entire hardwood tree trunk. The governor
said he has banned the export of unprocessed logs and will also
ban the export of unprocessed palm oil. He said he plans to
begin enforcing this proposal in January, regardless of the
province's lack of palm oil processing plants, and any viable
furniture or wood processing industry.

He has also signed a decree with his counterpart, the Governor
of West Papua, agreeing to a moratorium on deforestation in the
vast jungles covering the whole of the western and Indonesian
part of Guinea Island.

In return, Papua is hoping to earn millions of dollars in carbon
credits if First World countries eventually agree to pay
forest-rich countries for not cutting down their trees. Mr Suebu
and many environmental lobbyists were disappointed that the
United Nations and countries attending the Climate Change
Conference in Bali in December last year could not agree on a
system that would reward countries for preserving their forests.

However, his environmental adviser, Ms Maria Latumahina, said
the governor is confident that such a system will be agreed on
by next year, when world leaders will meet again to hammer out
an agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol before it expires in
2012.

In the meantime, the governor is working towards being able to
trade its preserved forests on the voluntary global carbon
market, where international companies have already begun buying
up carbon credits - or preserved tracts of land - in order to
give their companies some green kudos, said Ms Latumahina.

This also means drafting a raft of implementing regulations and
a system to ensure any timber or timber product which leaves
Papua is properly certified as sustainably harvested. Mr Suebu
also wants to work out how to develop a forestry policy which
can alleviate poverty.

Logging companies quickly persuaded traditional owners to sell
off their logging rights for a song - leaving the Papuans
landless and, pretty quickly, penniless. Unaware of the huge
premium that merbau hardwood fetches on the international
market, some tribal leaders sold their rights for as little as a
few bags of rice.

But it is not the stone-aged warriors who will pose a problem
for Mr Suebu's ambitious scheme but the modern ones; mainly the
well-financed timber barons and those backing them. The military
has been heavily involved for years in Papua's logging business,
either directly as part of local companies or indirectly acting
as "agents".

Mr Suebu, who was named Time magazine's environmental hero in a
special issue last year, admitted he has a huge task on his
hands. "I feel like I've been named a hero without going into
the battlefield. The war is just about to start," he told
reporters at the Bali conference.

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20080126.H01

We don't need new regions for now: President

National News - January 26, 2008

Desy Nurhayati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and the Regional Representatives
Council (DPD) have agreed

the establishment of new provinces and new regions should wait at least a
few months while the

government evaluates whether the new regions would be of benefit to the
local people.

After a meeting with the DPD at the State Palace on Friday, the President
said it was not necessary for

the House of Representatives to endorse bills on the formation of new
regions for the time being.

"We need to formulate a master plan, including determining the exact
timeframe to allow the formation of

new regions, also by synchronizing with the schedule of the 2009 general
election," Yudhoyono said.

"It is feared the formation of new regions may disrupt the current
regional election areas that will be

determined ... after the new election law takes effect."

DPD chairman Ginanjar Kartasasmita said new provinces and regencies should
not be established

before the upcoming election was completed.

"It would be better if the House delays endorsing the bills on new regions
until 2009. Why should the bills

be endorsed this year when the formation of new regions could only take
place after the election?" he

said.

"But we have yet to reach an agreement with the President about the
timeframe," he added.

The House unanimously proposed its initiative to create eight new
provinces and 13 new regencies

during a plenary meeting earlier this week. Most of the new regions would
be located in Papua and

Sulawesi.

If the House approves the bills, Indonesia will have 41 provinces and over
500 regencies and

municipalities.

In the regional autonomy era, a total of 173 new regions have been
established.

Yudhoyono said the government was currently conducting an evaluation on
several newly established

regions to assess whether their formation had successfully improved the
welfare of local people and

benefited regions as a whole.

"The most important thing is we need to consider the main objective in
establishing new regions, which is

to benefit local people. If the establishment only brings setbacks for the
people, it would be useless," he

said.

Ginanjar said the results of the ongoing evaluation of several newly
formed regions had revealed that

some regions had failed to improve their conditions.

He said the failure was proven by stagnant growth in terms of the Human
Development Index, as well as

other parameters.

He did not elaborate further.

"The formation of new regions should not be conducted merely to
accommodate certain interests in the

regions. There are various aspects to consider, especially concerning the
people's welfare," he said.

"It seems the formation of new regions only considers technical aspects
and certain local interests."

---

http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=37688


Radio New Zealand International

The Voice of New Zealand, Broadcasting to the Pacific

Te Reo Irirangi O Aotearoa, O Te Moana-Nui-A-Kiwa
Call for consultation over Jakarta’s plan to further split Papua

Posted at 07:26 on 28 January, 2008 UTC

A religious leader in Indonesia’s Papua has called for Jakarta lawmakers
to consult with Papuans before

going ahead with their plan to

split their region into four new provinces

Last week, Indonesia’s House of Representatives endorsed its own plan to
create eight new provinces,

including adding four provinces to the two in its Papua region.

The move has caused an outcry among many analysts and religious leaders
who describe it as part of a

"divide and rule" tactic by Jakarta.

Now the House has agreed to delay the split for a few months while the
government evaluates whether

the new provinces would be of benefit to the local people.

Father Neles Tebay of the Jayapura Catholic Diocese says there must be
discussion of how the split

relates to Papua’s Special Autonomy status.

    “A comprehensive evaluation by both the central government and the
Papuan people. I think this is

the one step that can be taken by both parties. Otherwise it will create
more problems in West Papua.”

Father Neles Tebay says that as it stands, neither the Papuan People’s
Assembly and Papuan

Legislative Council has given approval for the planned split.

He says that going ahead with that split without that approval would be a
violation of Special Autonomy

law.


---

The Christian Science Monitor January 24, 2008

Can the crown jewel of world's coral reefs be saved?

Peter N Spotts, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

It's 10:39 a.m. on an overcast Tuesday when the skipper points
his 40-foot pontoon boat toward a trio of islands off southern
Bali. As he clears Benoa Harbor, he opens the throttle on three
250- horsepower outboards. Some guidebooks say the crossing
takes 90 minutes. He makes it in 36.

As the boat closes on Nusa Lembongan, the nearest of the three
islands, a pod of bottlenose dolphins appears off the starboard
side - the first hint visiting landlubbers get of the marine
riches these waters hold.

Now, local residents and businesses, conservation groups, and
the Indonesian government are laying plans to preserve those
riches. In February, the parties are scheduled to meet to begin
figuring out how to set up an effective marine-management plan
for the islands. The goal is to ensure that the islands' aquatic
resources are used in a sustainable way while protecting its
most ecologically important areas. It's part of an international
effort to shore up the ecological health of a
2.3-million-square-mile expanse of the Indo-Pacific Ocean known
as the Coral Triangle.

Sometimes called the ocean's version of the Amazon Basin, the
Triangle bursts with the highest biodiversity of any reef system
on Earth. Some 75 percent of all the known reef-building corals
- 500 to 600 species in all - call the triangle home. By
contrast, Australia's Great Barrier Reef hosts some 350 species,
while Belize's reefs in Central America host 70. In addition,
the triangle supports 3,000 species of reef fish, twice the
number found along the Great Barrier Reef or along East Africa's
reef network.

For scientists, the origins of this ecological bonanza represent
what Old Dominion University marine researcher Kent Carpenter
calls "one of the greatest evolutionary and biogeographical
mysteries." For some 2.5 million fishermen in the region, the
triangle represents their livelihood; among its other
attributes, the Coral Triangle is the maternity ward for Pacific
and Indian Ocean tuna. And for conservationists, the Triangle
represents an important source of raw materials needed to reseed
reefs inside and outside the region damaged by bleaching - which
many researchers attribute at least in part to global warming.

The challenge, Dr. Carpenter explains, is that "the Coral
Triangle in particular has a fairly high percentage of reefs
that have been destroyed over the past 20 or so years." The area
experienced severe bleaching during the 1997-98 El Nino, one of
the strongest in the 20th century. But it also faces other
problems. The use of dynamite as a fishing aid, and even the
practice of banging corals with rocks to drive fish into nets,
"is quite prevalent," he adds. Moreover, some 150 million people
live within what might be called the triangle's greater
metropolitan area, providing a source of pollution that also
undermines corals' ability to survive.

Here amid the shallow-water coral formations off Nusa Lembongan,
those pressures seem remote, despite the handful of resorts
nestled in the nearby cove. With a diving mask as a picture
window and fins for propulsion, visitors' views take in corals
that branch, spread platelike, or lay like arrays of flattened
cabbage leaves daubed in pastel greens, purples, pinks, and
muted russets. A giant clam is half buried near the base of one
coral head, while sergeant major fish, surgeonfish, and schools
of anthias flit past.

Indeed, one of the factors driving efforts to preserve this
small patch of the Coral Triangle is its remarkable variety of
marine life, notes Rili Djohani, The Nature Conservancy's
country director for Indonesia. The organization is one of three
international environmental groups working with regional
governments and aid organizations to protect biologically
critical spots in the triangle. The group performed a rapid
ecological assessment and found that the diversity of coral
species here was among the highest in the Coral Triangle.
Currents running past Nusa Lembongan and two sister islands
bring nutrients up from the deep ocean, turning the seas around
them into a five-star feeding ground for dolphins, sharks, rays,
and other fish.

Putting it high on the list of coastal areas to preserve "was a
no-brainer for us," Ms. Djohani says.

How amazing diversity developed

The story of how this region acquired such biodiversity is
thought to begin 55 million years ago, when the three largest
Philippine Islands each sat about 1,000 miles apart. As crustal
plates shifted, the islands drew closer together. Each island
brought with it its own unique blend of marine species. "Most of
the species we see today came into existence during this
dramatic movement," Carpenter says.

With the coming and going of four ice ages between 1.8 million
and 11,500 years ago, sea levels changed dramatically. During
the last glacial maximum some 17,000 to 18,000 years ago, for
instance, global sea levels were nearly 400 feet below today's
levels. This exposed land bridges among several major islands in
the Coral Triangle, effectively isolating large groups of marine
species, which continued to evolve under new environmental
conditions. Once sea levels rose again, the new species rejoined
the wider population. Also, two of the most powerful equatorial
currents on Earth pass through the region. The currents split
and carry larvae from fish, mollusks, and corals over great
distances, delivering them to new habitats where - if they
survive - they can embark on new evolutionary paths.

Yet while scientists and environmental groups have been working
in this marine Amazon for years, only within the past few years
has the region risen on the international conservation agenda,
says Sian Owen, who heads the policy and external relations
activities for the World Wildlife Fund's Coral Triangle program.
Rising concerns about the health of the oceans in general have
played a part. But concerns also have grown about the potential
economic, political, and security implications for the region if
the triangle no longer can serve as an economic bulwark. Beyond
the terrorist bombings in Bali in 2002 and 2005, the region
already has seen a surge of Islamic fundamentalism. This raises
the specter of political instability if a major piece of the
region's economic mosaic disappears.

One sign that countries are taking the Coral Triangle more
seriously came last month in Bali. There, top officials from
IndoA- nesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the
Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste - the six Coral Triangle
nations - agreed to develop an action plan for sustainable
management of the triangle.

The hope is to have the plan ready in May and fully approved the
following year at a summit held in conjunction with the World
Oceans Conference in Manado, Sulawesi. The Asian Development
Bank, the Global Environment Facility, and the World Bank are
devising approaches to help the six pay for their efforts. The
United States has donated $4.35 million toward the goal.

Conservation helps islanders, too

In the meantime, conservation efforts in individual countries
continue. And researchers are attacking a range of scientific
and sociological questions related to building marine protected
areas.

In late November, The Nature ConserA-vancy released a study
looking at whether establishing conservation programs - which
include setting up alternate sources of income for inhabitants,
such as seaweed farms or a cut of the fees tourists pay to enter
national parks - can help reduce poverty in the region. Although
the results in the four marine protected areas varied, overall,
the study found that people in each were better off. More homes
are sprouting satellite-TV dishes, peoples' diets are improving,
and more children are finishing elementary school, says The
Nature Conservancy's Ms. Djohani.

Still, experience is teaching some tough lessons, she says. In
Komodo National Park, incentives to stop dynamite fishing worked
spectacularly well; the use of TNT dropped by some 90 percent.
But people who had followed the rules all along - and so didn't
qualify for incentives - said they felt "we were rewarding the
bad guys." The approach triggered some resentment, and so
officials devised a package to reward good behavior.

---

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/tradingdesk/archive/2008/01/28/talisman-energy-deal-boosts-

competitive-position-in-lng-market.aspx

Talisman Energy deal boosts competitive position in LNG market
Posted: January 28, 2008, 1:55 PM by Jonathan Ratner
Energy, Takeovers

Talisman Energy Inc. has acquired a 3.06% stake in the Tangguh Liquefied
natural gas (LNG) project in

West Papua, Indonesia for US$212.5-million through the purchase of CNOOC
Wiriagar Overseas Ltd.

The project, which is expected to produce LNG sometime in late 2008,
consists of offshore gas wells,

production facilities, pipelines and LNG plant facilities with operating
capacity of 7.6 million tons per

year.

Blackmont Capital analyst Menno Hulshof said the acqusition serves two
purposes. It settles an existing

lawsuit with CNOOC and gives Talisman an advanatage in the LNG market – “a
region that it already

knowns very well,” he told clients in a note.

However, he considers the deal is very small. Mr. Hulshof continues to
rate Talisman shares a “buy” with

a $24 price target.

BMO Capital Markets’ Randy Ollenberger agrees that the impact is neutral.
He rates Talisman at “market

perform” with a $20 price target.

Jonathan Ratner

---

http://www.antara.co.id/en/arc/2008/1/29/us-propped-up-suharto-despite-rights-abuses-documents/

National

01/29/08 10:08
US propped up Suharto despite rights abuses: documents

Washington (ANTARA News) - The United States declassified documents Monday
detailing how

Washington propped up ex-Indonesian leader Suharto, who died at the
weekend, at the expense of

democracy and human rights.

The documents, declassified following requests under a freedom of
information law, showed the US

administration did not use its leverage to bring Suharto to account during
his 32-year reign until his last

months in office.

"One thing that is clear from the tens of thousands of pages of which we
had declassified concerning

US ties with Suharto from 1966 to 1998 -- at no moment did US presidents
ever exercise their maximum

leverage over his regime to press for human rights or democratization,"
Brad Simpson of the National

Security Archive told AFP.

The body, a non-governmental research institute at George Washington
University in Washington,

collects and publishes declassified documents obtained through the US
Freedom of Information Act.

Simpson, who directs the Archive's Indonesia and East Timor documentation
project, said the only time

Washington "decisively intervened" in Indonesia was in 1998, when it was
reeling from a financial

meltdown amid unprecedented riots.

Bill Clinton, the Democratic US president at that time, phoned Suharto
about half a dozen times,

pressing the Indonesian leader to adopt a stringent adjustment program
demanded by the International

Monetary Fund, according to the documents.

Suharto adhered to the demands of the United States and IMF.

"I think it is indicative of the kinds of pressure US could bring to bear
when it decides that it is in our

interest to do so, but this was done on behalf of international financial
institutions, never on behalf of

human rights activists and the pro-democracy movement in Indonesia,"
Simpson said.

The declassified documents include transcripts of Suharto's meetings with
Presidents Richard Nixon,

Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, as well as Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

They also mirrored US perceptions of Suharto from the earliest years of
his violent rule, including the

1969 annexation of West Papua, the 1975 invasion of East Timor, and the
so-called "mysterious killings"

of 1983-1984.


Steadfast ally

The United States was a steadfast ally of Suharto for much of his rule,
providing him aid, weapons and

diplomatic support as it regarded him as an effective bulwark against
communism.

Suharto made his first visit as head of state to the United States in May
1970 amid rampant corruption

and a major crackdown on political parties at home but at the White House
meeting, Nixon told the

Indonesian leader he was presiding over one of the "largest democratic
countries in the world."

"There are no issues between the US and Indonesia," Kissinger wrote to
Nixon approvingly, "and

relations are excellent."

In his talks with President Gerald Ford at the White House five years
later, Suharto brought up the

question of Portuguese decolonization in East Timor and declared "the only
way is to integrate the

territory into Indonesia."

Ford gave no response, according to the documents.

There also was no mention of human rights in Indonesia in the briefing
papers of Suharto's meeting with

President Reagan in October 1982.

Two years later, when Vice President George H. W. Bush visited Jakarta on
the heels of an alleged of

hundreds of civilians in East Timor and "mysterious killings" in
Indonesia, the discussions centered

largely on US ties with the Soviet Union and China.

The US embassy in Jakarta estimated that the government had summarily
executed at least about 4,000

people at that time, documents showed.

Human rights abuses during Suharto's rule included a 1965-1966 crackdown
on suspected communists

and sympathizers estimated by historians to have killed at
least a half-million people.

Following Suharto's death Sunday, he was hailed by the US embassy in
Jakarta as a "historic figure"

who "achieved remarkable economic development."

"Though there may be some controversy over his legacy," Suharto "left a
lasting imprint on Indonesia

and the region of Southeast Asia," the embassy statement read. (*)

Copyright © 2008 ANTARA

---

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,23119925-27197,00.html


Don't gloss over atrocities
Article from: The Courier-Mail
By David Costello

January 29, 2008 12:04am

INDONESIA has lost its formidable dictator Suharto but his poison still
runs in its veins. That may be a

harsh judgment on a leader courted by Australia and esteemed as a national
builder and regional leader.

But consider the facts.

The nation has never confronted the monstrous crimes committed by its
military, now known as TNI,

under his rule.

At the top of the list is the bloody purge of Indonesia's communists (PKI)
and ethnic Chinese in 1965-66,

an episode which killed more than 500,000 people with some estimates
running up to one million.

It comes close to matching the Khmer Rouge's "Killing Fields" rampage in
Cambodia.

After that, the military ravaged East Timor from 1975 to 1999, causing the
deaths of more than 180,000

people. Human rights groups in West Papua claim that more than 100,000
have died since 1962

because of military actions.

Yet Suharto was never brought to trial for these atrocities. In Western
capitals, certainly in Washington

and Canberra, there was little concern at the time. Both the US and
Australia were quite happy that

Indonesia eliminated its communists in the mid-60s. In 1974-75,
Australia's Whitlam government followed

the US in giving the green light to Jakarta's invasion of East Timor. In
1985, Australia became the only

government to formally recognise Indonesian sovereignty over the former
Portuguese colony.

Suharto's death will open his record to cold hard scrutiny and perhaps
call for a little reflection for

veterans of Labor and Coalition politicians from the 1960s to the 1990s.
Ironically, it was not until the

East Timor rampage of 1999 that the Indonesian military culture of
impunity – Suharto's greatest legacy

– finally shocked mainstream Australians.

Suharto's death on Sunday ended the possibility of his prosecution for
corruption in Indonesia. Criminal

charges for his family's extraordinary reign of greed were dropped in 2006
because of the former

dictator's frail health.

When he died he was facing a $US1.5 billion civil suit.

Indonesians had been divided over whether to prosecute their frail former
dictator. President Susilo

Bambang Yudhoyono on Sunday called Suharto "the nation's greatest son". As
the strongman lay dying,

even strident critics such as politician Amien Rais joined an elite
consensus that judging him should be

left to God.

Vigilance over human rights abuses is still being stoked by Indonesia's
National Commission on Human

Rights (Komnas Ham) and by victims of Suharto's rule.

It is important that the enormity of his crimes should not be glossed
over. Some have sought to

characterise the purges of 1965-66 as a spontaneous explosion of communal
violence with Muslims

running amok against PKI members and suspects.

The fact is that Suharto created a climate of anti-PKI hysteria by blaming
it for a botched coup attempt

by junior military officers. He then let the murder spree continue until
his aims had been achieved.

The killing was done by local army units and by military-sponsored
civilians – including Muslim groups

such as Nahdlatul Ulama – and many joined the mayhem to settle personal
scores.

In his landmark 2001 biography of the dictator Brisbane academic Bob Elson
concluded that: "Suharto

must bear central responsibility for the massacres, having conspired to
create a mood of violent

retribution and having encouraged and approved the root and branch
'cleansing' of the PKI."

The sad fact of modern Indonesia is that its soldiers and security forces
still kill and torture with

impunity.

This is largely confined to far-flung outposts such as West Papua but even
in the heartland of Java the

TNI has an unhealthy influence.

Its networks are everywhere thanks to a "territorial" structure which
extends from the provincial level right

down to the villages.

In addition, the TNI derives only 30 per cent of its budget from the state
purse. The rest comes from

business ventures, many illegal, which provides an environment for
corruption and human rights abuses.

Until Indonesia changes this state of affairs, its political and judicial
wings will remain weak and

compromised.

In this week's climate of mourning and forgiveness it is encouraging that
political leaders, including

Golkar Party chairman Theo Sambuaga, were offering reassurances that civil
court actions would

continue to recover assets looted by Suharto's family.

It is only fair to acknowledge the achievements of a man who was an Asian
colossus.

But the correct judgment of Suharto's legacy is that his country is still
paying a high price for his sins.

David Costello is The Courier-Mail's Foreign Editor.

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20080127.W32

Papuan social pastime: Chewing areca nuts

Features - January 27, 2008

Q: Ever wondered where those red stains come from? A: Pinang

The 2,500-year-old Malay tradition of chewing nuts from the areca palm
(Areca Catechu L) may be

deemed backward by the younger generation in Sumatra and Java but for
Papuans, especially in

Jayapura, it is a popular social pastime for young and old.

In the Papuan capital, one can easily find people as young as five years
old with its telltale red blotches

around their mouths, a sign they have been chewing the nut.

Chewing areca (known as pinang in Bahasa Indonesia) is an anytime-anywhere
activity for Papuans

who hold the nut in high regard. Known locally as Tarang Habui, Papuans
use areca nuts in traditional

ceremonies and present them to guests as a sign of friendship and kinship.
For the young areca nut

chewing is part of the social language.

Papuans chew areca nuts with betel fruit and chalk made from ground white
shell. Before chewing, they

peel off the betel nut skin using their teeth. They then chew the betel
fruit which is dipped in white chalk.

Afterwards, they spit out the distinctively bright red juice.

The origin of the areca palm is still debated, with some saying it is from
the Malay peninsula and others

saying the Philippines.

Vast expanses of areca forests once existed on the northern coast of Aceh
in an area known as Pinang

beach.

On the streets of Jayapura areca nut vendors are scattered all over the
city. On sidewalks, in front of

shops and in markets the nut is available.

One packet of pinang, comprising two areca nuts, one betel fruit and chalk
goes for Rp 1,000. These

packets are known as pinang ojek.

Most of Jayapura's pinang sellers are women. By investing Rp 60,000 a day
on ingredients, a seller can

earn up to Rp 120,000, resulting in a monthly profit of Rp 1.8 million.

One of the down sides to the habit is the red spit that is synonymous with
areca chewing. Jayapura

streets are stained with red blotches of dried betel/areca and saliva. In
some places in Jayapura like

Sentani airport pinang has been banned in efforts to keep the area clean.

The other down side is that pinang is believed to cause oral cancer.
Pakistan, where many also chew

areca, has ruled that pinang packets must carry health warnings similar to
those on cigarette boxes.

-- JP/Ricky Yudhistira

---

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20080126.H04



HIV/AIDS on the increase despite global decline

National News - January 26, 2008

Desy Nurhayati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Despite stabilizing figures globally, the National AIDS Commission says
Indonesia's efforts to curb the

spread of HIV/AIDS have been ineffective given a substantial national
increase in infection rates for

2007.

The poor performance was due to lack of comprehensive measures targeting
high-risk groups,

particularly injecting drug users and sex workers, AIDS commission
coordinator for reports and

information systems Wenita Indriasari announced at a media conference
Thursday in Jakarta.

"Efforts have yet to reach most drug users and sex workers, who have been
our main target groups to

prevent the spread of the virus," she said.

Preventive measures only reached some 18 percent of drug users targeted,
and only around 14 percent

of sex workers. This year, the commission aims to make contact with 40
percent of Indonesia's drug

users and 50 percent of its sex workers.

Indriasari said, the commission hopes by 2010 the number of new HIV/AIDS
infections would be halved.

She said targeting drug users needed better coordination between police
and other related stakeholders

-- which had yet to be accomplished.

Local values had also hampered efforts to control the spread, through
promoting the use of condoms by

sex workers and their customers, and couples, Indriasari said.

Indonesia held its national condom week in December 2007 in efforts to
curb the spread of sexually

transmitted diseases, including the HIV/AIDS virus, by promoting safe sex.

The program, however, was a source of controversy for some members of the
community who

considered it to promote promiscuity.

The number of reported cases of people with HIV/AIDS in Indonesia reached
10,384 in September

2007, of which some 2,190 were new infections, contracted last year.

With this rapid increase Indonesia is estimated to have the fastest growth
in the number of new

HIV/AIDS infections in Asia.

Conversely at a global level, the prevalence rate has stabilized at around
33.2 million cases, and the

number of new infections has been declining. This is believed to be a
result of massive efforts to control

the spread of the disease.

"We should learn from other Asian countries, like Cambodia and Thailand,
which have been more

successful in controlling the spread of HIV/AIDS," Wenita said.

She said infections had occurred in most provinces in Indonesia, and was
most commonly contracted

among drug users and sex workers. The virus has also spread to couples and
children in several

provinces including Papua, Wenita said.

"In Papua, HIV/AIDS has occurred not only among high-risk groups but also
in the broader population,"

she said.

Indonesia still depends on foreign aid to support its efforts to control
the spread of the virus.

Of the budgeted Rp 1.3 trillion (US$138.7 million) needed for HIV/AIDS
prevention this year, the

Indonesian government could only provide around Rp 500 billion under its
state budget.

---