Indonesia executes six drug convicts, five of them foreigners

Indonesia executes six drug convicts, five of them foreigners
Widodo has pledged to bring reform to Indonesia

Ban appeals to Indonesia to stop death row executions

Ban appeals to Indonesia to stop death row executions
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has pleaded to Indonesia to stop the execution of prisoners on death row for drug crimes. AFP PHOTO

Pope: 'Death penalty represents failure' – no 'humane' way to kill a person

Pope: 'Death penalty represents failure' – no 'humane' way to kill a person
The pope wrote that the principle of legitimate personal defense isn’t adequate justification to execute someone. Photograph: Zuma/Rex

Obama becomes first president to visit US prison (US Justice Systems / Human Rights)

Obama becomes first president to visit US prison   (US Justice Systems / Human Rights)
US President Barack Obama speaks as he tours the El Reno Federal Correctional Institution in El Reno, Oklahoma, July 16, 2015 (AFP Photo/Saul Loeb)

US Death Penalty (Justice Systems / Human Rights)

US Death Penalty (Justice Systems / Human Rights)
Woman who spent 23 years on US death row cleared (Photo: dpa)



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"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …

Monday, March 25, 2013

Petition against Maldives rape victim flogging

Google – AFP, 22 March 2013 

Maldive President Mohamed Waheed speaks at the United Nations General
Assembly on September 27, 2012 in New York (AFP/File, Stan Honda)

COLOMBO — More than half a million people have signed an online petition condemning the Maldives over the sentencing of a 15-year-old rape victim to 100 lashes for pre-marital sex with another man.

The petition, started two days ago by New York-based campaign group avaarz.org, calls on Maldives President Mohamed Waheed to intervene and had been signed by 650,000 users on Friday afternoon.

"Let's build a million-strong petition... then threaten the islands' reputation through hard-hitting ads in travel magazines and online until he steps in to save her and abolish this outrageous law," Avaaz said on its website.

Last month the unidentified Maldivian girl was sentenced to a public flogging after police investigating a complaint that she was raped by her stepfather found that she had also been having consensual sex with another man.

President Waheed had expressed shock and asked the state attorney general to appeal the conviction amid an international outcry and condemnation from rights groups such as Amnesty International.

Under law in the Maldives, a low-lying archipelago of coral-fringed islands populated by 330,000 Sunni Muslims, the flogging will be carried out when the girl reaches the age of 18.

Premarital sex is illegal in the popular honeymoon destination, which observes elements of Islamic Sharia law as well as English common law. The fornication law is not known to have been applied to foreign tourists.

The child's stepfather is accused of rape and the murder of a baby born to his stepdaughter as a result. He faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.

In September, a court in the Maldives ordered the public flogging of a 16-year-old who confessed to premarital sex. Her lover was jailed for 10 years.

The Avaaz.org petition can be seen .

On the Net:

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Dutch Designers Pioneer New Batik Style

Jakarta Globe, Katrin Figge, March 23, 2013

For Indonesia\'s high-society women of the 19th and 20th centuries, batik
indicated wealth and status. (JG Photo/Katrin Figge) 

Related articles

Batik, the traditional Indonesian cloth hand-made using a wax-based resist-dyeing technique, is as well-known in Indonesia — and abroad — as nasi goreng.

But not everybody is familiar with Batik Belanda; batik featuring motifs influenced by Dutch culture.

Many Dutch citizens who lived in Indonesia during the colonial era took a liking to batik but over time added colors and patterns that were more familiar to their European origins, such as flowers and images from fairy tales.

An exhibition at Dutch cultural center Erasmus Huis in Kuningan, South Jakarta, in collaboration with Jakarta Fashion Week, the Jakarta Textile Museum, Galeri Batik and batik collector Asmoro Damais, is currently showing several batik fabrics made between 1840 and 1940.

At its peak in the 19th century, Batik Belanda may have been produced by the Dutch for their market back home — as opposed to Indonesian women who made batik sarongs for personal, not commercial uses — but the people who worked on the European designs were still mainly Indonesians.

“The term ‘Batik Belanda’ will lead people who are not familiar with it to believe that this is a mainly Dutch thing, which it isn’t,” long-time batik collector Asmoro said at the exhibition’s recent opening.

The oldest fabrics at Erasmus Huis date back to the mid-19th century and are handled with care, as the colors have faded and the cloth is prone to tearing. Other pieces are surprisingly well-preserved.

What they have in common is the representation of a particular era of Indonesian history, and should be regarded as a valuable piece of the country’s cultural heritage.

Foreign influence

More than simply displaying old batik fabrics and new designs, the exhibition also includes excerpts from the 1993 book “Batik Belanda 1840-1940 Dutch Influence in Batik from Java History and Sources,” written by Harmen C. Veldhuisen and translated into Indonesian.

“For many women who used batik at the time, having a big collection of batik sarongs was a proof of their social status,” Veldhuisen wrote. “Batik was also seen as a good, solid investment.”

He added that it was very common among women to show off their collections whenever they received visitors, following the unspoken rule that the larger and older the collection — preferably including family heirlooms — the greater the host’s social capital.

Several Dutch producers played an important role in the batik industry, and interestingly, there were quite a few women among them.

Catharina van Oosterom began producing batik in Semarang, Central Java, in 1845, while Ms. L. Metzelaar did the same in 1880.

“Ms. Metzelaar was the pioneer in using flower patterns as a motif for batik,” Veldhuisen explained, adding that flowers and little birds subsequently became a trend among batik motifs, and Metzelaar’s designs were often copied.

One of the most famous female batik producers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, however, was Eliza van Zuylen, who introduced intricate patterns and details into her designs as well as Chinese and Arabic nuances that started appearing across the industry.

Batik has also seen Japanese and Indian influences over the years, weaving a rich tapestry of more than just Indonesia’s story and traditions.

Batik Belanda

Through April 4
Erasmus Huis
Jl. H.R. Rasuna Said Kav. S3, Kuningan, South Jakarta
Tel. 021 524 1069

Friday, March 22, 2013

Indonesian Army to Welcome Female Cadets for First Time

Jakarta Globe, Markus Junianto Sihaloho, March 22, 2013

The Indonesian Army sings a patriotic song as they march during the 63rd
 anniversary of the military in Surabaya, East Java, in this October 2008
file photo. (Reuters Photo/Sigit Pamungkas) 
       
Related articles

The Army plans to allow women to train as officers for the first time in the force’s history, as part of sweeping reforms that the Army chief has vowed to usher in ahead of his retirement later this year.

Gen. Pramono Edhie Wibowo, the Army chief of staff, announced on Thursday that of the 192 Army cadets that the Military Academy planned to recruit this year, 16 would be women.

He said the move was part of efforts to improve gender equality in the Army.

“They will train alongside their male counterparts and go through the same activities,” he said of the female cadets.

This will mark the first time in the Army’s history that women will be allowed to train as officers at the Military Academy. Upon graduating, the lowest rank they can hold is that of second lieutenant.

Previously, female Army personnel seeking to attain that rank or higher had to start out as enlisted personnel or non-commissioned officers before being promoted through the ranks.

Pramono said the change was part of wider efforts at military reforms that he hoped to introduce before retiring in May.

“We call on young men and women with a nationalistic spirit who want to help the country to join the Army,” he said.

The general also vowed to end the practice of officers demanding bribes from applicants to the Military Academy or to any Army recruitment office.

“For the Army, whether you’re applying to be an enlisted personnel, a non-commissioned officer or an officer, there are no fees to pay,” he said.

“If anyone is asked to pay a bribe during the recruitment process, please report it. I assure you we will follow up against the officer in question, no matter their rank.”

He added there would be no shortcuts for cadets looking for an easy pass.

“Whether a cadet graduates depends solely on that cadet’s abilities, and not the influence of other people,” Pramono said.

Related Article:


VEILED SOLDIERS: Women soldiers line up during the 52nd
anniversary of the Iskandar Muda military battalion in Banda
Aceh on Monday. Under Aceh's local sharia-based ordinance, all
 women including soldiers, are required to wear veils in public.
JP/Hotli Simanjuntak

Indonesian city tears down church in front of worshippers

Google – AFP, Presi Mandari (AFP), 21 March 2013

Indonesian civilian policemen demolish the Taman Sari Batak Christian
Protestant Church in Bekasi, on March 21, 2013 (AFP, Adek Berry)

BEKASI, Indonesia — An Indonesian city government demolished a church in front of its weeping congregation Thursday, as Muslim protesters egged on workers and branded the Christians "infidels".

Dozens in the 100-strong congregation wailed as a digger tore down the brick walls, with worshippers accusing the government of "criminalising our religion", in a sign of increasing intolerance in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation.

"My heart is aching and I feel numb watching my church collapse. I went to this church for 11 years," Megarenta Sihite, 46, told AFP, wiping away tears as fellow worshippers, dressed in black, hugged each other.

The congregation cries as the Taman Sari 
Batak Christian Protestant Church is
 demoslihed on March 21, 2013 (AFP,
Adek Berry)
"Our church can collapse but not our faith. We will continue to come here for Sunday mass."

As the walls of the Taman Sari Batak Christian Protestant Church -- at the centre of a planning row -- crumbled, police in Bekasi city on the outskirts of Jakarta, dispersed 200 Muslim women who sneaked onto the church land chanting Koranic verses.

Along the road Muslim protesters held back by a police cordon had chanted "Knock the church down now", and "Allahu Akbar" (God is greater).

One man shouted through a loudspeaker: "They're infidels and they've built their church without permission."

Members of the congregation had earlier begged the Bekasi city government to halt the demolition, with children clutching signs reading "please do not dismantle our church".

Reverend Advent Nababan shed tears as the building was pulled down. "You just witnessed the government criminalising our religion," he said.

The local government had ordered the demolition of the church for being built, in October 2012, without a legal permit.

An Indonesian Muslim man, seen during a
 protest against a local Christian church,
 in Bekasi, on March 21, 2013 (AFP, Adek
Berry)
However the congregation said the permit was repeatedly and unfairly rejected after they had spent 13 years worshipping at the site unopposed in a temporary shelter.

Nababan said the church had obtained broad support from the Muslim community before building started. Several neighbours confirmed with AFP they had no problem with a church in the vicinity.

Ninety percent of Indonesia's 240 million people identify themselves as Muslim and the country's constitution guarantees freedom of religion.

The Setara Institute of Peace and Democracy, however, says cases of intolerance are on the rise, with 543 incidents reported in 2011, up from 491 cases in 2009. More than 300 incidents were recorded in the first half of 2012.

Christians are among the main targets, along with worshippers who follow the Ahmadiyah and Shiite Islamic minority sects.

Setara deputy director Bonar Tigor Naipospos said the permit issue was being used as an "excuse".

"The problem is the government has shown no political will to stop cases of intolerance in the country. It does not demand the law be upheld and that perpetrators are brought to account," he said.

The Batak Protestant Church has been at the forefront of attacks in the greater district of Bekasi. One congregation was pelted with rotten eggs and urine by Muslim hardliners who denied them entrance to their land, forcing them onto the street.

Naipospos said more of the 39 Batak Christian Protestant houses of worship in Bekasi were likely to face trouble as only 10 had been granted building permits.



Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Komodo dragon babies hatch at Indonesian zoo - video




Seven baby komodo dragons have been successfully hatched at a zoo in Indonesia. The eggs were taken from two females and artificially incubated. The giant lizards, an endangered species, can grow up to three metres and live for 30 years. The babies hatched on 10 March bring the total number in the zoo's collection to 63

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Global News: 5 Years Old Ryan Wang will Perform in Carnegie Hall, Italy, and China

Global TV News interviews 5 year old piano prodigy Ryan Wang from West Vancouver. Ryan will perform at Carnegie Hall in New York in March, at Fazioli Hall in Italy and in Shanghai of China with the symphony orchestra in July, 2013. He will also be teaming up with Ray Zhang (6 Years Old) hold a concert at Kay Meek Theater in West Vancouver on June 9th, 2013.

All proceeds from this Kay Meek concert will go to the the Sarah McLachlan School of Music which provides music education to undeserved and at-risk youth at no cost. Congratulations! http://www.ffpiano.com





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"Common Questions from Non-Lightworkers" - Feb 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) 

"... Question Three: Is there life on other planets?

... I will tell you, as long as you stay in 3D, you'll still be getting in little metal cans and air suits and going to planets. As soon as you begin the quantum age, however, you will simply wish yourself there, because you will be entangled with everything and can go with intent. If you don't believe this now, you will later, for what I give you is true. It may be lifetimes and lifetimes from now, but the group that is before me is the group that is going to come back over and over. The difference is that you're done coming back in an old energy. This is a new energy..

When you come back, dear one, everything you know will be in your DNA and be on top [available]. You're not going to have to go through what you did before. As soon as you decide to look around and open the door [metaphor for free choice to awaken], everything you've learned this time around will be right there.

This is the attribute of what you would call "a child of new consciousness," which you have labeled with a color - indigo. The child remembers who they are. They are conceptual, and you believe they have to be taught from scratch! Hardly! They remember! Do you understand what is taking place? We told you this last time, but we want to review something with you: The animal on the prairie drops its calf and within hours, the calf is up, running with the herd. Did you know that the calf instantly knows who its enemies are, what water to drink that doesn't smell right, and what berries to eat that are not poison? Where did that come from? How did that infant animal know these things? The answer is that this information was biologically inherited. You call it instinct. But when you have a Human baby - nothing! It doesn't know anything but that it's hungry. It requires 20 years of teaching! Aren't you tired of that? Did you ever think about why the animals have so much knowledge to begin with and you have so little? Does that seem correct for the top of the evolutionary ladder? It's time for that to change.

You're starting to see it, even with the indigos. They come in
 knowing. That's why they're so impatient. You're trying to teach them things they already know instinctively. Just like the calf on the prairie, they come in knowing. Some of them try to teach you. That doesn't always go well. That was question three...."



"The Quantum Factor" – Apr 10, 2011 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Galaxies, Universe, Intelligent design, Benevolent design, Aliens, Nikola Tesla (Quantum energy), Inter-Planetary Travel, DNA, Genes, Stem Cells, Cells, Rejuvenation, Shift of Human Consciousness, Spontaneous Remission, Religion, Dictators, Africa, China, Nuclear Power, Sustainable Development, Animals, Global Unity.. etc.) - (Text Version)

"..... DNA - A Quantum Force 

Now we get to the core truth, don't we? So I will tell you. The ninety percent of DNA which is quantum, is filled with information, both esoteric and timeless. It is a quantum blueprint for everything you are and have been since you arrived on the planet the first time. DNA contains instruction sets for your life; everything from your full Akashic Record - every single lifetime you have had - to the benevolent creator's fingerprint within the seeds of creation itself. Every single talent you ever had is there, even if you don't have any of those today... the record is there. Every predisposition of weakness and strength are there. Biologically, every single instruction to every single stem cell is there. . ..."

"..... DNA is a Dynamic Molecule, not a static one.

Humanity is stuck in the 3D portion of their biological thinking. In your 3-D life, you simply accept the chemistry you're given. You act as though the three percent gene producing part is all there is. You believe it is a chemical protocol that is unchangeable and simply "you." You don't see it for the way it's designed. It's dynamic and always has been. It's not set, but will continue to simply repeat what it does unless there is another quantum influence on it.

Therefore you live with the 3 percent as though it were all there is, and since it just "came with your body" and seems to control everything, you never talk to it. Many of you come in with pre-dispositions based upon the karma which is put upon you from your past lives. You don't come in clean [without karmic energy]. Instead, you arrive with pre-dispositions, fears and phobias. Some are positive. Perhaps you come in as a prodigy continuing your last life... the 8-year-old who can paint like a master and do brushstrokes that take 30 years to develop. What does that tell you about what must be in the DNA?

Perhaps you come in as the composer, the pianist, the prodigy, the violinist, just waiting until your hands can go on the fingerboard or can reach up and fret the notes. Perhaps you come in knowing how to play the piano, just waiting for your hands to get big enough to do what you used to do... without any lessons. How do you explain that, dear ones? The answer is that all this is contained in the dynamic quantum instruction sets of your DNA... the part you never talk to it. .."

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Constitutional Court Justice Apologizes for Remarks Against Gay Marriage

Jakarta Globe, Dessy Sagita, March 13, 2013

Related articles

A constitutional court justice issued an apology after making a statement against gay marriage during a fit and proper test at the House of Representatives.

“I apologize if my opinion offended the gay community. I will ask for God’s forgiveness,” judge Arief Hidayat said in a statement on Wednesday.

During a fit and proper test in front of the House Commission III, which oversees legal affairs, a commission member asked Arief about his opinion on gay marriage. He replied that he was against it because it was unconstitutional and against his religious values.

Hartoyo, a gay rights activist and the secretary general of Ourvoice, an LGBTQ advocacy organization, posted an open letter in reaction to Arief’s statement on the group’s website.

"I represent myself as a Muslim and
gay." / Photo: FB
In the letter, Hartoyo wrote about his struggle as a gay Muslim living in Indonesia.

He detailed an incident in which he and his partner were assaulted in Banda Aceh in January 2007. After a group of men forcefully entered his home, they took the couple to the police station, where they were forced to strip down and were physically beaten.

Six police officers abused Hartoyo and his partner verbally with a number of homophobic slurs and then proceeded to take them outside to spray them with cold water.

Hartoyo added that his homosexuality was something he was born with and not a product of Western culture.

“I have never been to any Western countries and I have fallen in love with men even before I understood what Indonesia and Islam were. I have been a homosexual even before I knew that homosexuality is considered to be a sin by many religious teachings,” the letter read.

“Mr. Arief: if gay marriage is part of Western culture then how would you explain the fact that gay marriage is still disputed in Western countries — such as the United States — even today? Will those who are against gay marriage in those countries then argue that homosexuality is an eastern, southern or northern reality? History in fact proves that when western countries criminalized homosexuality, it was us who actually celebrated sexual diversity in our culture,” Hartoyo wrote.

His letter was featured internationally by several media outlets, including dot 429 Magazine, an online periodical based out of San Francisco.

Following the publication of the letter, David Mills, an openly gay judge from Massachusetts, wrote an e-mail to Arief encouraging him to answer Hartoyo’s letter.

“Mr. Arief replied to my e-mail shortly after judge Mills wrote to him,” Hartoyo said on Wednesday.

Arief said that even though he meant no harm to the country’s gay community, he stood by his stance that based on the Constitution, marriage was only legal between a man and a woman. He went on to say that gay marriage was in violation of the state’s official ideology Pancasila.

“However, as a citizen of the country, you and your community should be protected from violent acts,” he wrote.


Related Articles:



Sunday, March 10, 2013

In Bali, rich foreigners are sparking a property frenzy, but who benefits?

Luxury property prices in Indonesia are rising faster than anywhere else in the world, according to a new report

The Guardian, The Observer, Kate Hodal, Saturday 9 March 2013

Foreign investors are flocking to buy property near Bali's beautiful beaches.
Photograph: Patrick Frilet/Rex Features

They teeter along in stilettos and backless dresses, their partners in partially open buttondown shirts, and duck into restaurants serving champagne, truffles and peppercorn steaks. Afterwards, these crowds of upmarket Indonesians and expats will head to any number of bars along the bustling artery of this once sleepy seaside village of Seminyak, a now vibrant town on the island of Bali that 10 years ago was lined by rice paddy fields and populated with farmers.

All along Jalan Laksmana, Seminyak's main thoroughfare, glass-fronted stores sell high-end surfer-inspired chic, such as £125 bikinis and organic wheatgrass shots, while restaurants cater to the many bule – foreigners – by offering Japanese, Italian and fusion Indonesian cuisine at candlelit tables with Ibiza-like club music on the sound system. Firms with names like Exotiq Property and Elite Havens detail beachfront villas running at £1.5m and higher, showcasing homes close to "the action" – Bali's famous hangouts like Ku De Ta and Potato Head, where languages overheard can range from French to Russian to Chinese.

Bali has long been famous as a playground for both the rich and the not-so-rich, easily providing both villas and backpacker hostels so that visitors can enjoy its white sandy beaches and turquoise waters whatever their budget. But now this island of 4 million is finding another kind of fame – as a major investment opportunity for the luxury property market.

Luxury property prices in 2012 jumped in Indonesia by more than anywhere else in the world, according to research by Knight Frank. The capital, Jakarta, saw an astonishing increase of 38% in luxury property prices from 2011, and Bali came in a respectable second at 20%, tying with Dubai.

While Monaco may still be the world's most expensive place to buy a residential property– homes there can cost up to $5,920 (£3,960) per square foot – if Indonesia keeps up this pace, that could soon change. There are now more millionaires in Asia than anywhere else in the world, and in Indonesia, whose booming economy could surpass the UK's to become the world's seventh-largest by 2030, individuals' net worth has shot up 7% year on year.

What does that mean? In simple terms, says Zoe Rice of property firm Elite Havens' flagship Seminyak office – a low-slung, white-and-blue, beachhouse-themed property that looks as though it should be facing the Indian ocean rather than the village's busy square – property investment in Indonesia is simply "better value than keeping money in the bank".

Much of the growth underpinning Bali's healthy property market comes from domestic buyers, notably the wealthy players of Surabaya and Jakarta, says Rice. But there is also a steady stream of buyers from Australia, France and the UK, and Asian expats from Singapore and Hong Kong, who are keeping the market afloat. And they're not just purchasing second or third holiday homes: vacant land is the number-one choice for Indonesians, followed by hotels, condo-hotels and private villas. For foreign buyers, purchases are of homes and villas for full-time residential use; a market report to be released this week by Elite Havens cites Bali's high tourist arrivals, healthy economy and shifting of government debt to investment grade as reasons why the island is "resilien[t] and [a] safe haven for investors in these globally turbulent times".

"Capital appreciation has been substantial [in Bali] in the past decade," says Rice. "There's been a dramatic increase in Seminyak, where land prices have almost tripled in the last two years because demand is so high and supply so low."

All this has not been lost on local people, many of whom have taken to nicknaming the island kampung bule – "whitey town" – because of the sea of foreigners swarming Bali's streets and beaches.

"Housing in Bali is expensive now because many bule live in their own private villas, and they buy with dollars and pay dollar prices," says 31-year-old Budi Susila, a taxi driver who spends his days transporting foreigners around the island. "That makes locals want to sell their land to bule, which makes more bule interested in moving here, which means that every year we lose more rice paddies and more greenery. The government gives permits very easily for new construction because they get money in their pocket."

Expat hotspot Seminyak has just lost its last rice paddy, says Rice, who claims that the central road that cuts through Legian and up to Seminyak was "lined left and right" with them a decade ago. Now the roads are choked with taxis, 4x4s and motorbikes manned by tanned blonds with surfboards in tow, who snake along many of the busiest areas in southern Bali in traffic so heavy that a 30-minute drive can easily turn into a two-hour one.

Non-beachfront land around the most sought-after areas, including Seminyak and Petitenget, is now worth 2.5bn rupiah per 100 square metres – £171,000 – with prices decreasing the further north and inland one travels, Rice says. But much of the attraction of buying land or property in Bali is being close to the action: Seminyak serves as the de facto centre of Bali's expat beachfront scene, as it is home to world-class restaurants, clubs and bars, where the rich and beautiful can chill out with bottles of champagne over views of Bali's famous sunsets. But even in Ubud, where organic markets and yoga studios rub shoulders with art galleries in what is deemed Bali's northern "cultural centre", land prices increased some 55% in 2012, according to research by Elite Havens.

In Jakarta, which saw a 38% jump in its residential luxury market prices last year, the story is a little different. There, buyers are investing primarily in flats in the central business district in projects that developers are calling "critical housing" – prime property in an overcrowded metropolis of 12 million, says Knight Frank's Hasan Pamudji.

"The economy in Indonesia has been growing roughly 6% every year for the last few years, so there are more rich people in Indonesia now than ever," he says. "But middle and lower incomes have increased as well, which has increased the demand for property."

Although the city is home to extravagant, multimillion-dollar mansions lined by barbed-wire fences, it is flats, rather than houses, that are the new property of choice for those buying property in Jakarta because "they offer security, safety and easy transportation", says Pamudji. "Traffic congestion in Jakarta is very bad, so some buy condos close to their work or business, which saves them having to commute every day from the suburbs or further away."

Often these condos are the first investment for young couples or upcoming wealthy individuals, he adds, with the average price in downtown's "Golden Triangle" retailing at 30m rupiah – £2,050 – per square metre.

Back in Bali, development can be seen pretty much everywhere along the southern coast, with old buildings bulldozed to make way for new commercial properties, among them glittering cafes and restaurant ventures to cater to the ever-burgeoning market of wealthy clientele. In the upmarket beachfront Canggu area, Echo Beach is now home to an InterContinental hotel and the Sea Sentosa project, a resort that calls itself "the benchmark for unparalleled luxury", while a Sunset Road extension is planned to link the capital, Denpasar, with Bali's more western beaches.

But there has been so much development that the local government has recently placed a moratorium along the most congested beachfront areas and is encouraging growth in the island's more remote locations instead. Even there, however, investment can prove tricky, says Australian investment banker Richard Jenkins, who moved to Bali three years ago from northern Australia with his wife and two young children. Having bought a clifftop plot of land in Uluwatu, a windswept, still undeveloped area on the island's most southern tip, the Jenkinses planned to build their own house – but the permits were never forthcoming.

The family now want to move to a £1m property in Seminyak with three villas that they plan to renovate, turning two into holiday rentals.

"This is a good place to invest, definitely," says Jenkins. "There aren't that many places to say that about in the western world. But while it is a positive real estate market, I do get the impression of a looming glut: there's just so much building here going on, and it's all for the tourist market."

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Russian Child Prodigy Trades Siberia for Ubud

Jakarta Globe, Katrin Figge, March 07, 2013

Russian violinist German Dmitriev, who is based in Bali, originally hails
from Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. (Photo courtesy of German Dmitriev)
        
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It’s a long way from Siberia to the tropical island of Bali — some might say that they are worlds apart.

But it is the path that German Dmitriev has followed nonetheless. The violinist, who was born and grew up in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, first came to Bali on vacation in 2011, where he intended to learn how to surf.

As with so many travelers before him, the beauty and enchantment of the island left its mark on the 29-year-old and in February 2012 he decided to move there.

Dmitriev, who lives in Ubud, has taken a break from surfing to focus on his career as a musician.

He is currently recording his first solo album and occasionally plays gigs around the island.

When asked what made him pack his bags and leave behind his home country of Russia for Bali, Dmitriev struggled to find an answer.

“I don’t really know, this is a hard question,” he said. “I think I reached a point where I needed a change in climate, culture and environment. And I think Bali is a very good place for creative people.”

Dmitriev was only 6 years old when he first began to play the violin at the encouragement of his mother, who was a pianist in her youth.

“Piano is considered the king of music instruments, but the violin is the queen,” Dmitriev said.

His teacher quickly realized that Dmitriev showed great talent.

“My teacher pushed me into competitions and encouraged public performances,” Dmitriev recalled. “My first big performance was with the symphony orchestra when I was 9. I played solo.”

Dmitriev quickly grew to love the feeling of being on stage, and at the age of 14, he decided to dedicate his life to playing the violin.

Over the years his style has evolved, especially since moving to Bali.

“I grew up playing classical music, but now I am discovering playing rock on violin, jazz, dubstep — [it all becomes] fusion,” he said.

He added that there were many talented musicians in Indonesia, some of whom he has already collaborated with, including Rio Sidik, Erik Sondhy and Reno Pratama.

Looking to the future, although Dmitriev sees himself staying in Indonesia, he wants to perform all around the world.

“I would like to live in Bali [and] make it my home base,” he said, adding that life on the island has inspired him and nurtured his creativity.

“I want to create music [and] enjoy nature and clear air,” Dmitriev added. “And at the same time, I want to be able to give performances around the world.”



"Common Questions from Non-Lightworkers" - Feb 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) 

"... Question Three: Is there life on other planets?

... I will tell you, as long as you stay in 3D, you'll still be getting in little metal cans and air suits and going to planets. As soon as you begin the quantum age, however, you will simply wish yourself there, because you will be entangled with everything and can go with intent. If you don't believe this now, you will later, for what I give you is true. It may be lifetimes and lifetimes from now, but the group that is before me is the group that is going to come back over and over. The difference is that you're done coming back in an old energy. This is a new energy..

When you come back, dear one, everything you know will be in your DNA and be on top [available]. You're not going to have to go through what you did before. As soon as you decide to look around and open the door [metaphor for free choice to awaken], everything you've learned this time around will be right there.

This is the attribute of what you would call "a child of new consciousness," which you have labeled with a color - indigo. The child remembers who they are. They are conceptual, and you believe they have to be taught from scratch! Hardly! They remember! Do you understand what is taking place? We told you this last time, but we want to review something with you: The animal on the prairie drops its calf and within hours, the calf is up, running with the herd. Did you know that the calf instantly knows who its enemies are, what water to drink that doesn't smell right, and what berries to eat that are not poison? Where did that come from? How did that infant animal know these things? The answer is that this information was biologically inherited. You call it instinct. But when you have a Human baby - nothing! It doesn't know anything but that it's hungry. It requires 20 years of teaching! Aren't you tired of that? Did you ever think about why the animals have so much knowledge to begin with and you have so little? Does that seem correct for the top of the evolutionary ladder? It's time for that to change.

You're starting to see it, even with the indigos. They come in
 knowing. That's why they're so impatient. You're trying to teach them things they already know instinctively. Just like the calf on the prairie, they come in knowing. Some of them try to teach you. That doesn't always go well. That was question three...."


"The Quantum Factor" – Apr 10, 2011 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Galaxies, Universe, Intelligent design, Benevolent design, Aliens, Nikola Tesla (Quantum energy), Inter-Planetary Travel, DNA, Genes, Stem Cells, Cells, Rejuvenation, Shift of Human Consciousness, Spontaneous Remission, Religion, Dictators, Africa, China, Nuclear Power, Sustainable Development, Animals, Global Unity.. etc.) - (Text Version)

"..... DNA - A Quantum Force 

Now we get to the core truth, don't we? So I will tell you. The ninety percent of DNA which is quantum, is filled with information, both esoteric and timeless. It is a quantum blueprint for everything you are and have been since you arrived on the planet the first time. DNA contains instruction sets for your life; everything from your full Akashic Record - every single lifetime you have had - to the benevolent creator's fingerprint within the seeds of creation itself. Every single talent you ever had is there, even if you don't have any of those today... the record is there. Every predisposition of weakness and strength are there. Biologically, every single instruction to every single stem cell is there. . ..."

"..... DNA is a Dynamic Molecule, not a static one.

Humanity is stuck in the 3D portion of their biological thinking. In your 3-D life, you simply accept the chemistry you're given. You act as though the three percent gene producing part is all there is. You believe it is a chemical protocol that is unchangeable and simply "you." You don't see it for the way it's designed. It's dynamic and always has been. It's not set, but will continue to simply repeat what it does unless there is another quantum influence on it.

Therefore you live with the 3 percent as though it were all there is, and since it just "came with your body" and seems to control everything, you never talk to it. Many of you come in with pre-dispositions based upon the karma which is put upon you from your past lives. You don't come in clean [without karmic energy]. Instead, you arrive with pre-dispositions, fears and phobias. Some are positive. Perhaps you come in as a prodigy continuing your last life... the 8-year-old who can paint like a master and do brushstrokes that take 30 years to develop. What does that tell you about what must be in the DNA?

Perhaps you come in as the composer, the pianist, the prodigy, the violinist, just waiting until your hands can go on the fingerboard or can reach up and fret the notes. Perhaps you come in knowing how to play the piano, just waiting for your hands to get big enough to do what you used to do... without any lessons. How do you explain that, dear ones? The answer is that all this is contained in the dynamic quantum instruction sets of your DNA... the part you never talk to it. .."