Flood in Wasior, West Papua

Heavy rainfall in West Papua on Monday has flooded the town of Wasior, Teluk Wondama district, causing the death of almost 100 people and many others missing.

Please find below a related article that I have quoted from Kompas.

Various TV stations have quoted officials of environmental organizations i.e. Walhi and Greenpeace, as saying that the most possible cause of the flood is massive deforestation that has been going on for so many years in the province.

Indonesia Flood Toll Rises to Almost 100

Kamis, 7 Oktober 2010 | 14:03 WIB

 

A picture shows the aftermath of deadly flooding caused by torrential downpours in Teluk Wondama, Indonesias West Papua on October 5, 2010. At least 56 people were killed and 24 remain missing after the flash floods.

 

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The death toll from flash floods in a remote region of eastern Indonesia has climbed to at least 97 with dozens of people still missing, an official said Thursday. Rescue workers were still searching for survivors from floods which hit West Papua province’s Teluk Wondama district on Monday following torrential downpours, a rescue official said.

“At least 97 people were killed and more than 800 people were lightly and badly injured,” Papua search and rescue official Mochamad Arifin told AFP. “We are still searching for dozens of missing people,” he said.

Those killed had reportedly drowned and been swept away by the powerful waters along with uprooted trees, rocks and debris. Experts warned such events will become more common in the archipelago due to a combination of climate change, land conversion and logging, which can contribute to landslides and flash floods after monsoonal downpours.

Indonesia’s climatology agency said most parts of Indonesia had experienced torrential rains, strong winds, high waves and flooding due to extreme weather this year.

President SBY and the RMS

Yesterday, President Susilo Bambang Yudoyono (SBY) made a last minute cancellation of his visit to Holland.

SBY told reporters that he canceled the visit because a Court in The Hague examined a petition filed by a rebel group in southern part of Maluku province (RMS), requesting for the arrest of SBY for human right violation. He said that he is not afraid to be arrested, but he felt that such Court proceedings insults the national pride of Indonesia.

The Dutch government regretted the cancellation, saying that it has offered SBY diplomatic immunity against criminal prosecutions.

Meanwhile, the Court in The Hague has rejected the RMS's petition, due to which RMS plan to file an appeal against said ruling.

SBY's said decision was supported by government officials and members of his Democrat Party, while political observers and the opposition regarded it as an undiplomatic action that draw world attention on the RMS as a tiny rebel group. They questioned the credibility of our inteligence agency and the presidential Security Unit (Paspampres) in preparing for the visit.

Considering the above, I felt that the said cancellation has given RMS the biggest benefit since it declared independence and crushed in 1950 i.e. world attention they really need right now as a tiny unknown rebel organization.
From now on,  I hope that the government would be more careful in handling such matters, e.g by acquiring professional advice from world class experts in international relation and law.

Related acrticles : 
-  Breaking News: 'Insulted' Indonesian President Cancels Dutch State Visit (The Jakarta Globe)
-  RMS admits defeat, plans to file appeal after SBY rearrange Dutch visit (The Jakarta Post)
-  Republik Maluku Selatan (Wikipedia)

The Military Today

Today, 5 October, the Indonesian National Military also known by abbreviation of its Indonesian name i.e. TNI, celebrated its 65th anniversary.

The celebration was held at the at the Halim Perdana Kusuma Airbase in East Jakarta. lead by President Susilo Bambang Yudoyono, attended by some cabinet ministers and commanders of the Army, the Navy and the Air force.

I hope that at the age of 65, TNI would be matured enough to position itself as an organization which would always based its plans and actions only for the very best interests of the country and the people of Indonesia, therefore would not merely be the tools of the government or the parliament.

Related articles :
- President SBY Pimpin Upacara HUT TNI (Kompas)
- A professional track for TNI anbd Yudhoyono (The Jakarta Post)

Photo : Courtesy of Kompas.

Who's reponsible for the Train Crash?

On Saturday morning, a train collided with another train in Pemalang, Central Java, killing 36 passengers and injuring many others.

The incident occured when a train i.e Argo Bromo from the capital, Jakarta, plowed into the rear of another train i.e Senja Utama, that was sitting at a station in Pemalang, Central Java, knocking several carriages off the track.

After questioning 9 people including two drivers of both trains, the Police announced that the incident has been caused by human error, and therefore named the driver of the train Argo Bromo as a suspect. Thus, just like in previous trains accidents where only the driver has been deemed to be responsible..

Considering that a train driver does not do his job by himself, but must rely on others outside the train   e.g traffic controller, schedule arranger, train condition inspector, etc. I wonder whether or not it would be better to investigate first all possible aspects that might cause the accident, before blaming anyone.

Related articles :
-  Indonesia investigates train crash that killed 36 (AP/Google)
-  Argobromo train machinist named (The Jakarta Post) 

Photo: Courtesy of Koran Baru.

The Batik

On 2 October 2009, the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultutal Organization (UNESCO) has announced that Batik as Indonesia's traditional textile dying technique as an intangible element of the world's cultural heritage.

Since then Indonesians wear Batik shirt/dress more often than before a.o wearing them to the office on Fridays.

The growth in consumption of Batik textile and garment is obviously a very good development for Indonesia's Batik textile industries.

However, with the ASEAN China Free Trade Agreement effective 1 January 2010, Batik textiles and garments from other countries especial cheap ones from the People's Republic of China have also enjoyed this growing market.

- UN Batik Recognition Swells Indonesia (The Jakarta Globe)
- Yudoyono calls for batik day (The Jakarta Post)
- Batik Cina Kian Mengancam (Inilah.com)

Photo of Batik : Courtesy of Deplu.

Hari Kesaktian Pancasila

Every year on 1 October, a commemoration of Hari Kesaktian Pancasila is held at the Pancasila Monument, Lubang Buaya, East Jakarta.

The words Hari Kesaktian Pancasila can be translated as Pancasila Sanctity Day. Pancasila is a symbol of Indonesia as a nation, that can be translated Five Principles consisting of : Believe in God, Humanity, Unified  Indonesia,  Democracy and Social Justice.

Today's event was attended by President Susilo Bambang Yudoyono accompanied by Vice President Boediono, cabinet ministers, military commanders and chief of police.

A Brief History :


On the night of 30 September 1965, six Army Generals and one lieutenant were kidnapped from their homes in Jakarta by unidentified men, who killed and buried their bodies under the present location of the Pancasila Monument at Lubang Buaya (English: Crocodile Hole).

The Army accused that the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) was responsible for said kidnappings and killings, and on 11 March 1966 they have persuaded former President Soekarno to allow the Army led by Maj.Gen Soeharto take repressive actions against PKI, and ban it afterward. 
Actions against PKI,  at that time world's third largest communist party after China and USSR, have caused many of its members died, and many others sent to an isolated detention camp on the Island of Buru in Maluku Province.

On March 1967, Soekarno was replaced as President by Gen. Soeharto who then ruled until May 1998. And since then, 1 October has been commemorated as the Pancasila Sanctity Day.
 

Bicycle Bomb in Bekasi

A bicycle is the most safest means of transportation, because we can ride on it without using any fuel, thus saving our environment from any pollution.

But yesterday, I learned that a bicycle can also be used to injure or kill people, i.e. after I heard the news about the explosion of a home made bomb strapped to the back of a bicycle in Bekasi, Wwsta Java (town outside Jakarta), badly injuring the rider of said bicycle i.e Ahmad.
More story about the bicycle bomber can be read on the article (below) quoted from The Jakarta Globe.

Considering that the alleged Bicycle Bomber carried two threatening letters, and location of explosion was near two Policemen, I wonder whether the bomb was targeted at the Police.

Bicycle Bomber No Terror Expert, Bekasi Police Say
Ulma Haryano, Farouk Arnaz & Zaky Pawas | October 01, 2010

Jakarta. A man who allegedly tried to blow up two policemen in a botched suicide attack in Bekasi on Thursday was an amateur, police said.

National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Iskandar Hasan said the suspect, identified only as Ahmad, was in critical condition as officers investigated possible links to terror networks.

“What he did is still categorized as terror, no matter what the background. We are still investigating what his motive was, and where he managed to get a homemade bomb,” Iskandar said.

The 38-year-old man, described by police as a drifter who moved from one mosque to another, suffered serious injuries to his face, neck and torso in the blast and broke his right arm and leg.

Iskandar said it appeared Ahmad had sought to kill himself and Adj. Comr Herry Azhari and Second. Brig. Sugianto, who were unharmed in the attack.

The officers were stationed at the Sumber Artha traffic police post, near Sumber Artha market in Kalimalang, Bekasi.

People had seen Ahmad “roaming around the area for the past five days,” Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar said.

Iskandar said that just before the blast, Herry had told Ahmad not to ride his ontel (vintage bicycle) on the sidewalk.

“Ahmad then lost control of his bicycle and hit the road divider and the crude bomb detonated,” he said. “We do not know whether the bomb detonated prematurely or not.”

Police said the bomb contained about 50 nails and gunpowder.

They added that Ahmad was carrying two suicide notes.

One of them read: “This bomb is for all you kafirs [infidels]! We will come chasing after you even if you run up to the clouds. Your death is certain. Mujahideens are still living in Indonesia.”

University of Indonesia criminologist Erlangga Masdiana agreed with the police view that the attack was amateurish.

“Real terrorists have clear goals,” he said.

“Unclear ones are usually only for sabotage. Of course every terrorist attack has a message, but it will not be on a piece of paper and very much obvious to regular people.”

He also pointed out the attack came days after the police, military and lawmakers had been talking about the need to cooperate in the war on terror.

“There is a strong suspicion that the person was just being used in order to achieve a certain agenda,” he said. “A real terrorist would not be that clumsy.”

Erlangga dismissed the idea that the target had been the traffic police as they were not a threat to terrorist movements.

The International Crisis Group’s Sidney Jones gave examples in which terrorist groups had hit back against law officers.

“We’ve seen policemen killed in March and April in Kebumen and Purwerojo, retaliation against prosecutors in Poso and plans from other terrorist in Indonesia for attacks that were never carried out on the National Police,” Sidney said.

She said the attack by 10 gunmen that killed three policemen in Medan last month was retaliation. “We can’t accuse the police of being lax. All terrorist attacks are difficult to predict.”

Ismail Hasani, a researcher with the Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy, said Thursday’s incident further highlighted weakness in the country’s intelligence-gathering efforts.

He believed there was an “internal tug-of-war” between antiterror squad Densus 88, the police and the military over how to deal with terrorists.

The botched bombing came on the same day Densus 88 chief Brig. Gen. Tito Karnavian was replaced by his deputy, Sr. Comr. Muhammad Syafii.

Tito will be the top deputy at the new National Anti-Terrorism Agency (BNPT).

The body, which answers only to the president, is charged with preventing terrorism, protecting civilians, deradicalizing terrorists and building national preparedness.