Thursday, 17 July 2014
Thursday, 14 July 2011
Whodunnit!
An angry mob surrounded the offices of Greenpeace Indonesia yesterday in what some are viewing as a "hired help" demonstration having been commissioned.
The potential candidates who ordered the hit include:
Mattel "Barbie destroys natural forests and pushes rare species such as tigers to the brink of extinction," Greenpeace Indonesia forest campaigner Bustar Maitar said.
The potential candidates who ordered the hit include:
Mattel "Barbie destroys natural forests and pushes rare species such as tigers to the brink of extinction," Greenpeace Indonesia forest campaigner Bustar Maitar said.
Sinar Mas (APP is the Pulp and Paper arm of this Conglomerate within Indonesia): "APP is bad news for Indonesia's forests. It treats Indonesia as nothing more
than a vast disposable asset, grabbing rainforests that are vital to forest
communities," Maitar said.
No matter who, it seems that anyone who attempts to save the natural resources within Indonesia ultimately gets attacked, dismissed, transferred or just generally derided such that any impact that they may have had is marginalised.
Yesterday, it was the turn of Greenpeace to feel the heat, although, funnily enough it appeared to be an attempt at extortion rather than "negative selling" with legendary Jakarta thugs the FBR (Betawi Brotherhood Forum) making all the noise.
Known locally as rent a mob, the FBR are known to turn up, make amusing unreal demands and then adopt a threatening stance when they are treated as a petulant child. Their stance yesterday was that Greenpeace was an illegal organisation as they had not registered with the Jakarta City organisation.
Greenpeace spokeswoman Nur Hidayati retorted with the fact that they had, as required by law, registered with the Minstry of Justice and Human Rights.
The piece below is from today's Jakarta Globe:
An FBR spokesman yelled at Nur Hidayati, saying her response was “arrogant” and indicated that the NGO was concerned about being audited.
The Greenpeace representative said they had nothing to hide and each year received 50,000 individual donations in Indonesia alone.
Greenpeace has recently been in the news for its sustained campaign against the palm oil industry in Indonesia, in particular deforestation activities by major palm oil companies, including Sinar Mas.
FBR spokesman Fajri Husbin demanded that Greenpeace stop spreading negative stories about Indonesian companies, particularly those that created local jobs.
Protesters outside the offices also demanded Greenpeace employees sing the national anthem and recite the state ideology Pancasila and if they could not, face eviction from Indonesia.Love it here. No matter what goes on there's always a whiff of WTF ......
Wednesday, 13 July 2011
One mans fag is another mans medicine!
I quit smoking at 7:36pm on the 6th of April 2010 and have not indulged in a cigarette since then. One single draw on a cigarette about a month later was all the encouragement I needed to stay away!
However, the people in this country have differing ideas on the effects of tobacco, so much so that they use it to cure cancer!
The tobacco industry is huge here and the Indonesian governments new tobacco bill aimed at reducing the amount of tobacco consumed in an attempt to stave of future health problems is under attack from the farmers who claim ( quite correctly I imagine) that there will be massive job losses.
What better way to protest than show that you have faith in your product!
Figures suggest that kids start smoking around 10 years old and that approximately 30% of Indonesians smoke at least 12 cigarettes a day!. Nice local market to have, but, the governments plan to eliminate Tobacco Advertising, prohibit smoking in public and put the obligatory diseased lung shots on the fag packet will cause a gaping revenue hole for the local manufacturers.
With the government at odds to save some of the 400,000 people a year who die from smoking related illnesses or to consider the tax revenues from this industry there are tough decisions to be made and once again, Indonesia proves that it can pretend to do the right thing while ignoring the problem.
Hence the reason for the Smoking Hospital being mentioned earlier. It has all the permits, health credentials and is allowed to operate as a health care facility and is unlikely to be closed.
Cancer. no probs. Let me get a wadge of smoke in your earhole....
Piles, we got you covered, let me inject some of this shit into your big toe!
Sort of says it all.....Indonesia, never a dull moment.
However, the people in this country have differing ideas on the effects of tobacco, so much so that they use it to cure cancer!
The tobacco industry is huge here and the Indonesian governments new tobacco bill aimed at reducing the amount of tobacco consumed in an attempt to stave of future health problems is under attack from the farmers who claim ( quite correctly I imagine) that there will be massive job losses.
What better way to protest than show that you have faith in your product!
Figures suggest that kids start smoking around 10 years old and that approximately 30% of Indonesians smoke at least 12 cigarettes a day!. Nice local market to have, but, the governments plan to eliminate Tobacco Advertising, prohibit smoking in public and put the obligatory diseased lung shots on the fag packet will cause a gaping revenue hole for the local manufacturers.
With the government at odds to save some of the 400,000 people a year who die from smoking related illnesses or to consider the tax revenues from this industry there are tough decisions to be made and once again, Indonesia proves that it can pretend to do the right thing while ignoring the problem.
Hence the reason for the Smoking Hospital being mentioned earlier. It has all the permits, health credentials and is allowed to operate as a health care facility and is unlikely to be closed.
Cancer. no probs. Let me get a wadge of smoke in your earhole....
Piles, we got you covered, let me inject some of this shit into your big toe!
Sort of says it all.....Indonesia, never a dull moment.
Sunday, 25 April 2010
Not as far away as one would think!
My mother came to visit, the usual stuff was planned, visit to Bali, shopping, see her grandchild's school and so on. I re-discovered that there was a limit to what one could actually do in Jakarta before the traffic wore one down and that even if the Monas is a "must see" that the one hour trek to see it becomes tedium of the highest order.
Inspiration came via a glance at the hills on my way to work last Wednesday. One of these bright and clear Jakarta mornings showed the Gunungs in the distance and I knew instantly where we were heading that afternoon.
Taking the Jagorawi Toll, a journey which I have only made three times, two for the A1 Motro races and one for the obligatory visit to Tamam Safari, we chose not to take the well trodden Bogor / Puncak / Tamam Safari road and instead headed right at the junction and made for Ciawi.
As soon as the dual carriageway stopped it became apparent that the decision to avoid the more common tourist route was a good one as the road narrowed and the small market town ahead bustled with "real kampung" activity (as compared to Jakartan kampung activity)
Between the small villages, paddies, hill's and landscapes changed with each kilometre travelled, no two vita's were the same...
The ubiquitous handicraft stores were strewn along the roads, however, not so much "in your face" as Bali can be....
Garden Furniture....
WTF, still never figured this stuff out...
Rattan....
Pottery....
Meanwhile, as we travelled, the little bit's of landscape which makes this place unique unfolded...
Downhill....
Uphill....
The strange multi-storey living accomodations...
Bamboo Car Ports....
More high rise housing....
Wobbly Roofs
Cock Fighting!
Just houses and mountains...
More Paddies...
More mountains and clouds....
Mosques under construction...
Small hidden Kampungs
And finally ending up South of Bogor.
All in all, a three and a half hour trip well worth making...I should do this more often methinks....
Inspiration came via a glance at the hills on my way to work last Wednesday. One of these bright and clear Jakarta mornings showed the Gunungs in the distance and I knew instantly where we were heading that afternoon.
Taking the Jagorawi Toll, a journey which I have only made three times, two for the A1 Motro races and one for the obligatory visit to Tamam Safari, we chose not to take the well trodden Bogor / Puncak / Tamam Safari road and instead headed right at the junction and made for Ciawi.
As soon as the dual carriageway stopped it became apparent that the decision to avoid the more common tourist route was a good one as the road narrowed and the small market town ahead bustled with "real kampung" activity (as compared to Jakartan kampung activity)
Between the small villages, paddies, hill's and landscapes changed with each kilometre travelled, no two vita's were the same...
The ubiquitous handicraft stores were strewn along the roads, however, not so much "in your face" as Bali can be....
Garden Furniture....
WTF, still never figured this stuff out...
Rattan....
Pottery....
Meanwhile, as we travelled, the little bit's of landscape which makes this place unique unfolded...
Downhill....
Uphill....
The strange multi-storey living accomodations...
Bamboo Car Ports....
More high rise housing....
Wobbly Roofs
Cock Fighting!
Just houses and mountains...
More Paddies...
More mountains and clouds....
Mosques under construction...
Small hidden Kampungs
And finally ending up South of Bogor.
All in all, a three and a half hour trip well worth making...I should do this more often methinks....
Thursday, 25 February 2010
Giving it "back" to the Man!
With age comes wisdom, and, it seems in the case of Patih Laman, almost 90 years old and still capable of raising two fingers to authority that this is as true now as it ever was.
Patih is the leader of the Talang Malak Tribe in Sumatra and has won an award for conservation efforts in the Bukit Tigapuluh National Park where he and his kinsmen live.
However, recently he made the journey from the forest to the Provincial Governors Office to hand the coveted award back and ask that it be sent back to Jakarta, presumably with a note saying “Shove it up yer arse”
Patih was displaying his disappointment on the lack of control that the government has with illegal logging operations in the park. Specifically he was disgusted that having saved and conserved over 1,800 hectares of the once massive Penyabungan and Penganan jungle the Government’s inaction toward checking deforestation in his area has caused devastating deforestation.
Putting the problem in perspective is that although he has saved quite a substantial amount of forest land, the surrounding area which consists of 104,933 hectares in Tunu River, 98,577 hectares in Durian Jajar and 21,901 hectares in Kelumbuk Tinggi Baner, has all been converted into oil palm plantations. The rest of the non national park land has been given over to paper production.
Strangely, the areas on the map below which have a red border are areas where the pulp and paper manufacturers are raping the forest are also among the areas where the majority of wildlife sightings have been made.
The tribe who have lived in the forests for many generations used to grow and tend Sialang Tree’s, a preferred home for Honey Bee’s. These tree’s are spread a distance apart to allow a large and varied coverage area for the bees, which, when the honey is ready would supply about 150 kgs of Honey from each tree on each harvest. Sadly, it seems only ten such tree’s exist.
As is the way of things here, it seems that the local government, despite claiming to actively promote conservation, refused to see Patih and he left the award with lower level staff who presumably now have it hanging proudly on their office wall.
Patih is the leader of the Talang Malak Tribe in Sumatra and has won an award for conservation efforts in the Bukit Tigapuluh National Park where he and his kinsmen live.
However, recently he made the journey from the forest to the Provincial Governors Office to hand the coveted award back and ask that it be sent back to Jakarta, presumably with a note saying “Shove it up yer arse”
Patih was displaying his disappointment on the lack of control that the government has with illegal logging operations in the park. Specifically he was disgusted that having saved and conserved over 1,800 hectares of the once massive Penyabungan and Penganan jungle the Government’s inaction toward checking deforestation in his area has caused devastating deforestation.
Putting the problem in perspective is that although he has saved quite a substantial amount of forest land, the surrounding area which consists of 104,933 hectares in Tunu River, 98,577 hectares in Durian Jajar and 21,901 hectares in Kelumbuk Tinggi Baner, has all been converted into oil palm plantations. The rest of the non national park land has been given over to paper production.
Strangely, the areas on the map below which have a red border are areas where the pulp and paper manufacturers are raping the forest are also among the areas where the majority of wildlife sightings have been made.
The tribe who have lived in the forests for many generations used to grow and tend Sialang Tree’s, a preferred home for Honey Bee’s. These tree’s are spread a distance apart to allow a large and varied coverage area for the bees, which, when the honey is ready would supply about 150 kgs of Honey from each tree on each harvest. Sadly, it seems only ten such tree’s exist.
As is the way of things here, it seems that the local government, despite claiming to actively promote conservation, refused to see Patih and he left the award with lower level staff who presumably now have it hanging proudly on their office wall.
That Sinking Feeling!
There’s an awful lot of talk and not a lot of doing! Yes, it’s that time again when the floods, landslides, storms and the numerous other contributors to Jakartan misery all join forces at the same time.
Flood relief canals are yet to be finished, waterways that were dredged are once again laden with the plastic debris that Jakarta seems infested with, Dengue Fever strikes again in the slums of East Jakarta and Bekasi and, it is thought that the worst has yet to come.
Yet, despite the torrential downpours, the city is dying through lack of, yes, you guessed it…water.
It is currently thought that Jakarta is sinking at a rate of between 5-10 cm per year and, given these figures it is clear that in the not too distant future the floods of today will appear miniscule compared to the problems a city below sea level faces.
Groundwater extraction is considered the main culprit, however, it is estimated that more than half the city relies upon the subterranean water sources.
To get a better idea about groundwater usage and it’s sustainability I found this picture on Wiki and scarily, it shows how the aquifers replenish and more importantly, demonstrates that unless carefully used the system can fall into the millennia curve which is where the pundits claim Jakarta is heading – fast!
Estimates to connect houses with mains water and sewage systems are astronomical and no-one, not even private industry can see a way of making any return on investment on a project whose scale cannot be properly imagined.
Think tanks have another option; let’s move Jakarta away from Jakarta. Not strictly speaking what they intend, but, the movement of political power from Jakarta to a fresh site would allow a new start with an infrastructure designed to handle the requirements that a modern capital city needs.
Locations in Central Java and even Kalimantan have been suggested; hopefully with an eye on what impact such a move would have on the existing area, yet, it seems that on the whole such a scheme is destined to failure, mostly due to “what will we do with the old place”?
It is off course about money. Who will pay for a relocation?
If we don’t move, who will pay for the MTR the city so greatly requires?; who will pay for the large scale water conservation programme that is required?; who will pay for the increased green area’s that will be needed to soak up the cities daily figure of 13,000 tons of CO2 emissions?; who will pay for the clean water and sewage systems mentioned above?; and, perhaps more importantly, who will NOT pay for the shortcuts, permissions and general skulduggery involved in any project that is approved.
Ironically, Jakarta stands on a brink, stark choices have to be made and as of today there is no single body that has the power or financing to oversee such an ambitious plan and execute these schemes in a co-ordinated manner.
Until that body is created, it seems we must endure the shitty air (347 days out of 365), be prepared for 2014 when the entire city is expected to become gridlocked, expect to be one of the third of the population who are sickened by respiratory illness once a month, and as for the shits, get used to them, they may be here for many years to come.
Top Investment Tip: Buy shares in any company who manufactures a product that will stop you coughing your guts up or shitting yourself. I foresee a continued demand for these Jakartan essentials.
Flood relief canals are yet to be finished, waterways that were dredged are once again laden with the plastic debris that Jakarta seems infested with, Dengue Fever strikes again in the slums of East Jakarta and Bekasi and, it is thought that the worst has yet to come.
Yet, despite the torrential downpours, the city is dying through lack of, yes, you guessed it…water.
It is currently thought that Jakarta is sinking at a rate of between 5-10 cm per year and, given these figures it is clear that in the not too distant future the floods of today will appear miniscule compared to the problems a city below sea level faces.
Groundwater extraction is considered the main culprit, however, it is estimated that more than half the city relies upon the subterranean water sources.
To get a better idea about groundwater usage and it’s sustainability I found this picture on Wiki and scarily, it shows how the aquifers replenish and more importantly, demonstrates that unless carefully used the system can fall into the millennia curve which is where the pundits claim Jakarta is heading – fast!
Estimates to connect houses with mains water and sewage systems are astronomical and no-one, not even private industry can see a way of making any return on investment on a project whose scale cannot be properly imagined.
Think tanks have another option; let’s move Jakarta away from Jakarta. Not strictly speaking what they intend, but, the movement of political power from Jakarta to a fresh site would allow a new start with an infrastructure designed to handle the requirements that a modern capital city needs.
Locations in Central Java and even Kalimantan have been suggested; hopefully with an eye on what impact such a move would have on the existing area, yet, it seems that on the whole such a scheme is destined to failure, mostly due to “what will we do with the old place”?
It is off course about money. Who will pay for a relocation?
If we don’t move, who will pay for the MTR the city so greatly requires?; who will pay for the large scale water conservation programme that is required?; who will pay for the increased green area’s that will be needed to soak up the cities daily figure of 13,000 tons of CO2 emissions?; who will pay for the clean water and sewage systems mentioned above?; and, perhaps more importantly, who will NOT pay for the shortcuts, permissions and general skulduggery involved in any project that is approved.
Ironically, Jakarta stands on a brink, stark choices have to be made and as of today there is no single body that has the power or financing to oversee such an ambitious plan and execute these schemes in a co-ordinated manner.
Until that body is created, it seems we must endure the shitty air (347 days out of 365), be prepared for 2014 when the entire city is expected to become gridlocked, expect to be one of the third of the population who are sickened by respiratory illness once a month, and as for the shits, get used to them, they may be here for many years to come.
Top Investment Tip: Buy shares in any company who manufactures a product that will stop you coughing your guts up or shitting yourself. I foresee a continued demand for these Jakartan essentials.
Wednesday, 20 January 2010
More Genies, a touch of Rape and may I check your bottom?
Rape, Child Abuse and more Rape have been the recent headlines over here, a serial Killer violating and mutilating young boys, a schoolgirl being raped by genie and the Ache Sharia Police arresting a couple for immorality and subsequently gang raping the girl.
The worst part of it all is that although these crimes upset pretty well everyone, it is the “kick reaction” from the authorities that pretty well sums up how fucked up things can and often do get here.
Take the Street Kids who are being abused. They need help? Of course they do, so here’s what the plan is!
From the Jakarta Globe
Bloody Hell, that one had the Child Rights Campaigners up in arms in no time. Moral outrage hit the streets, the newsstands and presumably the massage parlours as well.
Less than 24 hours later…. From the Jakarta Post, the sound of Jack boot’s and brown shirts retreating from the fray!
Not quite what the Children’s Rights Groups wanted but certainly the cops new that they would have been on the wrong side here. It is not as yet clear whether the Vatican has been contacted to see if they have any volunteers to replace the police in this execise.
If there were any “priests” available, they could possible stand by for an exorcism, specifically of a head teacher (of an Islamic Boarding School) in downtown Tangerang who blamed his “Pet Genie” for the rape of a schoolgirl. Better still, he has openly agreed to a request from the victim’s mother that that the police obtain his DNA in order to prove his innocence, presumably Genies have different DNA….
From the Jakarta Globe…
The crazy thing about it all is that people trust and believe in these “possibilities” and rarely question those in authority who rationalise “crimes” by using spiritual belief and fear of magic as the factors involved.
These stories abound, the cultural mix which often causes Indonesians to revert back to long remembered Animistic beliefs and blend these with current religious thinking is strange, and surprisingly quite common.
What is new however is that this “school of mixed belief” was questioned and considered unhealthy in Post Civil war / Tsunami Aceh. While rebuilding their lives, a differing Islamic model has been introduced which it was hoped would create a more civilised and law abiding region.
The Sharia Laws, which were approved within Aceh but have not been ratified by the government in Jakarta allowed the creation of a Sharia Police Force, whose function is to be defenders of the regions morality.
This force operates under the controversial Qanun Jinayat, Aceh’s set of local bylaws which were raised to to replace parts of the Criminal Code with aspects of Islamic law for Acehnese Muslims. This was approved by Aceh’s legislative council last September, however the Achenese Governor decided after international outrage from Civil Rights Groups based on the sentences which became available for use against transgressors.
The Qanun allows the local courts to sentence transgressors to delights such as stoning and lashing, for offenses such as adultery, premarital and homosexual sex. The bylaws also mandate corporal punishment for rapists, child molesters, drinkers of alcohol and gamblers.
In addition, segregation of the sexes is encouraged, tight trousers, loose or skimpy clothing, holding hands, homosexuality, and an as yet unknown number of interpretations of these bylaws can cause the Sharia Cops to chastise, warn or arrest you without any form of charge being required.
Last week, a young couple who were probably only holding hands on the beach were arrested as “Fornicators” and escorted to the local nick for re-education. The couple were separated and the three officers involved decided to undertake this deeply important re-education upon themselves, despite the couple not having been presented in front of a court. It is claimed that after this re-education they went off duty only to return later.
Their return was not out of any form of duty to ensure that the lessons of Sharia had been understood, specifically by the 20 year old female. In short, they brutally raped the girl, taking turns and repeatedly violating her.
Needless to say they were discovered, arrested (well two of them at least, the third accused has legged it) and rather than being charged under Sharia Law they were charged under Criminal Code, Indonesia’s Civil Law. (Maximum Sentence 12 years)
The Sharia Law in this case would have been Article 29, which stipulates that those convicted of rape can receive 100 to 200 lashes, or a minimum prison sentence of 100 months and maximum of 200 months.
The row rages on, those who believe in the good of Sharia want the accused tried under the Qanun Jinayat and punished to the maximum severity that this law allows, then, there is the official Indonesian Law which the police claim is the only Law which can be applied in this case.
Whichever way you look at it, I would hate to be an Indonesian Cop. Duties include checking little boys bums, DNA swab testing genies and all the while wondering which particular book of law applies.
Bugger that!
The worst part of it all is that although these crimes upset pretty well everyone, it is the “kick reaction” from the authorities that pretty well sums up how fucked up things can and often do get here.
Take the Street Kids who are being abused. They need help? Of course they do, so here’s what the plan is!
From the Jakarta Globe
“The Jakarta city administration said on Wednesday that it would join a police initiative to round up street children and physically examine their anuses for evidence of sexual abuse, a move that the country’s leading nongovernmental child-rights organization opposes as abuse.
The move follows a police announcement on Tuesday that street children would have to submit to rectal examinations in an effort to identify victims of sexual abuse.
Budi Hardjo, head of the city’s Social Affairs Agency, said that during the citywide search for street children, the Jakarta Health Agency and the Jakarta Police would cooperate in an effort to find possible child abusers. He said that 500 personnel from different agencies would be involved.
The planned round-up is in response to the arrest of Bayquni, 49, who is also known as Babe, an accused serial killer who allegedly killed at least 10 male street children. He admitted to police that he sexually abused the corpses of his victims.
As a first step, Budi said, the city would begin a sweep today of all five municipalities in Jakarta. He said children identified by the city would be interviewed to find out why they were living on the street and undergo a health examination.
“When we find them, we will look for the reason they are on the street, whether they are from broken homes, runaways or victims of human trafficking,” Budi said.
Budi said children caught up in the city dragnet would be examined both psychologically and physically. He said they would be given a rectal examination to determine whether they had been sexually abused. “
Bloody Hell, that one had the Child Rights Campaigners up in arms in no time. Moral outrage hit the streets, the newsstands and presumably the massage parlours as well.
Less than 24 hours later…. From the Jakarta Post, the sound of Jack boot’s and brown shirts retreating from the fray!
Jakarta Police announced Thursday that they have withdrawn from the city administration plan to hold physical screening of street children across Jakarta to seek out potential abuse victims.
Jakarta Police chief detective Sr. Comr. Idham Azis said that there have been a “mistake in communication and understanding” on the plan.
“If other government institutions decide to go on with the plan, we hereby declare we are not involved,” he said as quoted by kompas.com.
Not quite what the Children’s Rights Groups wanted but certainly the cops new that they would have been on the wrong side here. It is not as yet clear whether the Vatican has been contacted to see if they have any volunteers to replace the police in this execise.
If there were any “priests” available, they could possible stand by for an exorcism, specifically of a head teacher (of an Islamic Boarding School) in downtown Tangerang who blamed his “Pet Genie” for the rape of a schoolgirl. Better still, he has openly agreed to a request from the victim’s mother that that the police obtain his DNA in order to prove his innocence, presumably Genies have different DNA….
From the Jakarta Globe…
The principal of an Islamic boarding school in Tangerang is vigorously denying allegations that he raped one of his teenage students. His defense: His “pet genie” did it.
A 15-year-old girl, identified only by the initials KHF, told Kompas.com that she was raped at the school last July. She said she had gone to the office of the principal, identified as HDN, to report that she was quitting the school’s student body.
But she claimed the principal changed the topic of conversation by saying that one of his genies had a crush on her. He reportedly promised that she would be given certain “metaphysical powers” if she agreed to have sex with the genie. The girl said she refused the offer but did not tell anyone about the encounter.
A few days later, on July 19, she said she had gone to the pantry and bumped into the principal. She said she had kissed his hand as a sign of respect and then began to feel disoriented. The next thing she remembered was waking up in the principal’s office, exhausted and with pain in her lower body.
The girl said she did not tell anyone about what had happened. Eventually, however, she confided in her mother, Khadijah, who was suspicious about her daughter’s growing stomach. Khadijah took her to the doctor and was told that her daughter was six months pregnant.
The principal has denied raping the girl and reportedly told her parents that his genie was responsible for the pregnancy. He said the genie must have been angry because it had not been fed for months. He is understood to have said the genie “borrowed” his body at the time of the rape.
In response, the girl’s family challenged him to take a DNA test. He agreed and said he was sure the test would reveal the true culprit, the girl’s mother said.
Khadijah and her husband reported the case to the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI) in Jakarta, which in turn filed a complaint with the Jakarta Police.
The crazy thing about it all is that people trust and believe in these “possibilities” and rarely question those in authority who rationalise “crimes” by using spiritual belief and fear of magic as the factors involved.
These stories abound, the cultural mix which often causes Indonesians to revert back to long remembered Animistic beliefs and blend these with current religious thinking is strange, and surprisingly quite common.
What is new however is that this “school of mixed belief” was questioned and considered unhealthy in Post Civil war / Tsunami Aceh. While rebuilding their lives, a differing Islamic model has been introduced which it was hoped would create a more civilised and law abiding region.
The Sharia Laws, which were approved within Aceh but have not been ratified by the government in Jakarta allowed the creation of a Sharia Police Force, whose function is to be defenders of the regions morality.
This force operates under the controversial Qanun Jinayat, Aceh’s set of local bylaws which were raised to to replace parts of the Criminal Code with aspects of Islamic law for Acehnese Muslims. This was approved by Aceh’s legislative council last September, however the Achenese Governor decided after international outrage from Civil Rights Groups based on the sentences which became available for use against transgressors.
The Qanun allows the local courts to sentence transgressors to delights such as stoning and lashing, for offenses such as adultery, premarital and homosexual sex. The bylaws also mandate corporal punishment for rapists, child molesters, drinkers of alcohol and gamblers.
In addition, segregation of the sexes is encouraged, tight trousers, loose or skimpy clothing, holding hands, homosexuality, and an as yet unknown number of interpretations of these bylaws can cause the Sharia Cops to chastise, warn or arrest you without any form of charge being required.
Last week, a young couple who were probably only holding hands on the beach were arrested as “Fornicators” and escorted to the local nick for re-education. The couple were separated and the three officers involved decided to undertake this deeply important re-education upon themselves, despite the couple not having been presented in front of a court. It is claimed that after this re-education they went off duty only to return later.
Their return was not out of any form of duty to ensure that the lessons of Sharia had been understood, specifically by the 20 year old female. In short, they brutally raped the girl, taking turns and repeatedly violating her.
Needless to say they were discovered, arrested (well two of them at least, the third accused has legged it) and rather than being charged under Sharia Law they were charged under Criminal Code, Indonesia’s Civil Law. (Maximum Sentence 12 years)
The Sharia Law in this case would have been Article 29, which stipulates that those convicted of rape can receive 100 to 200 lashes, or a minimum prison sentence of 100 months and maximum of 200 months.
The row rages on, those who believe in the good of Sharia want the accused tried under the Qanun Jinayat and punished to the maximum severity that this law allows, then, there is the official Indonesian Law which the police claim is the only Law which can be applied in this case.
Whichever way you look at it, I would hate to be an Indonesian Cop. Duties include checking little boys bums, DNA swab testing genies and all the while wondering which particular book of law applies.
Bugger that!
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