Indonesia minister arrested over pandemic aid corruption

Yahoo –AFP, December 6, 2020

Two Indonesian ministers have been arrested in recent weeks over
corruption allegations

Indonesia's social affairs minister was arrested Sunday for allegedly taking $1.2 million in bribes linked to food aid for those hit by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Juliari Batubara was named as a suspect after Indonesian anti-corruption agents seized suitcases, backpacks and envelopes stuffed with cash equivalent to $1.2 million in a sting operation on Saturday. 

He turned himself in on Sunday at the anti-corruption agency's headquarters, becoming the second minister in President Joko Widodo's government to be arrested over alleged graft in recent weeks. 

"That's the people's money... it's aid urgently needed to help during Covid-19 and for the national economic recovery," Widodo said after Batubara's arrest, vowing he would not protect any corrupt officials. 

Indonesia's economy -- Southeast Asia's biggest -- has been hit hard by the pandemic, and the government has rolled out aid programmes such as food packages to help those in need. 

Batubara has been accused of involvement in a bribery scheme linked to one such aid project. 

Officials have alleged that he received more than $1 million from two contractors that were appointed to supply basic food packages for people affected by the pandemic. 

For each package, Batubara would receive 10,000 rupiah, or $0.71, officials alleged. 

If found guilty, he could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of one billion rupiah ($70,000).

Indonesian foreign minister: 'Trying to create a culture of tolerance'

Concerns abound in recent times about the threats posed by radicalization and terrorism to Indonesian society. The country's foreign minister spoke to DW about how the government is tackling these issues.

Deutsche Welle, 20 February 2017

DW: There are growing concerns about increasing radicalization in Indonesia. How vulnerable is the country to this threat?

Retno Lestari Priansari Marsudi: Let me start by saying that radicalization is not a problem limited to any particular country. The threats of radicalism and terrorism are faced by almost every nation worldwide. We discussed them during the G20 meeting and also ways to improve and coordinate counter-terrorism measures.

Terrorism is one of the most challenging threats to world peace. In 2015, for example, outfits affiliated to IS [the so-called Islamic State terror group] were responsible for carrying out attacks in 28 countries. That figure was twice the number of attacks in 2014. Over the past 16 years, 93 nations have experienced terror attacks, resulting in some 32,000 deaths. I, therefore, would like to stress that no country is immune to terrorism.

What measures are being put in place by Indonesia to deal with these threats?

I think Indonesia is a good example for how to cope with such threats. We have the biggest Muslim population of any other country in the world, and at the same time our community is very heterogeneous. We are therefore trying to create a culture of tolerance.

Since the birth of Indonesia as a country, we Indonesians know we have different ethnicities and multiple religions, but we all want to have one country - Indonesia. So a culture of tolerance is always there. However, as evidenced by almost all countries, Indonesia has also faced radicalization and the threat of terrorism. But Indonesia has so far been able to cope with the situation.

Whereas most countries focus on hard power to counter radicalism and terrorism, Indonesia has laid emphasis on a soft power approach, and it's working very well.

How do you think the fears surrounding radicalism would impact Indonesia's economic development prospects?

I don't think international investors are worried at all about the threat of radicalization in Indonesia, as everybody is aware that this kind of danger exists everywhere. Regarding foreign investment, the president of Indonesia has always stressed his commitment to make the nation's economy more open and competitive. This is reflected in the government's initiatives over the past year, when we introduced 14 economic reform packages. With these measures, we do hope to draw in more foreign investment into our fast-expanding economy.

Again, we are striving to make our economy more open and competitive and this should attract greater foreign investment into the country.

Many are calling on Indonesia to step up its efforts to help tackle the Rohingya crisis. How do you envisage the Indonesian government's response to the problem?

To start with, Myanmar is an ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] country, like Indonesia. If something happens in Myanmar, it will surely affect the rest of the region. So there are only two options here: either help Myanmar resolve the problem or don't help.

Indonesia, for its part, has decided to actively and constructively engage with Myanmar. We understand the problem there, which created a humanitarian crisis and a security concern in Rakhine state. We continue to convey our concerns to the Myanmar government and stress on the need to create an environment that is conducive for peace in Rakhine.   

Retno Lestari Priansari Marsudi:

 'Indonesia has decided to actively and

 constructively engage with Myanmar' 

on the Rohingya issue

We have also communicated with Myanmar on the importance of protecting and respecting the human rights of all communities, including the Muslim communities. We also underline the significance of inclusive economic development, particularly in Rakhine state.

This way, we convey our views, concerns and criticisms to our counterparts in the Myanmar government, while offering our assistance at the same time.

Furthermore, I have discussed the issue of Rohingyas with many stakeholders, including Kofi Annan. I have visited Myanmar three times, traveled to Dhaka and paid a visit to the refugee camps in Cox's Bazar.

I want to underscore that we would like to not only help Myanmar in addressing the immediate issues in Rakhine state, but also provide more medium- and long-term assistance for the country's development.

Retno Lestari Priansari Marsudi is currently serving as Indonesia's foreign minister.

The interview was conducted by Vidi Legowo-Zipperer during the recent G20 foreign ministers summit in Bonn, Germany.

SBY’s Tour de Java Ends with 10 Recommendations to Joko’s Administration

Jakarta Globe, Edo Karensa, March 21, 2016 

 

Former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono with wife Ani Yudhoyono visiting
children during the SBY Tour de Java. (Antara Photo/Aloysius Jarot Nugroho)

Jakarta. Former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono marked the end of his Tour de Java by issuing recommendations for 10 major issues to President Joko Widodo’s administration on Sunday (21/03).

SBY, who is also chairman of the Democratic Party, ended the 13-day tour across the Java by holding a coordination meeting with 34 heads of party’s provincial leadership boards in Surabaya, East Java.

“Through many events of ‘meet the people’ and ‘meet the cadres,’ the Democratic Party listens, discuss and gather aspirations directly from the people regarding many latest national issues,” said a party’s statement, released on Sunday.

The visit, which saw him go to West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta and East Java provinces over 13 days, concluded with the announcement of his findings:

Infrastructure development

The Democrats sees massive infrastructure development under Joko’s leadership as a good thing which will contribute a lot to country’s long-term economy.

Yet, the party suggested the policy should be followed with appropriate funding methods, arguing that "too much state budget for infrastructure will disrupt efforts to eradicate poverty."

Coordination between ministries and stakeholders are also needed to prevent "noisy" policy, like recent issues with the Jakarta-Bandung fast train.

Drugs and terrorism The Democrats support government’s efforts to fight the drugs and terrorism crimes with still respecting the laws and human rights.

State budget and fiscal policy

The Democrats understand serious problems in the state budget, calling on the government to seek rational and feasible solutions.

“It needs to be explained to the public transparently so they can know the problems; how to cover the deficit, whether by issuing new obligations or cutting off the budgets in certain posts,” the statement said.

Tax amnesty draft bill

The party sees the Tax Amnesty draft bill as a good thing and has been implemented appropriately in some other countries. SBY calls on the bill to ensure the aspects of economic benefit, social justice and good governance, before being approved and ratified.

KPK and efforts against corruption

The Democratic Party said the corruption eradication efforts must be prioritized so that a draft bill to weaken the antigraft agency should not be deliberated.

“We don’t want the KPK [Corruption Eradication Commission] to be the only one strong and effective [law enforcement institution]. All law enforcement institutions, like Police and Attorney General’s Office [AGO] [should also be strong].”

Unemployment

SBY’s party called on the government to impose appropriate tax policies to companies as the slowing economy growth has caused lay-offs and poor job absorption.

Political party’s Sovereignty

“Make sure the law supremacy is the main thing, not politics. Law is the commander, not politics,” the party statement said. They called on all parties to respect the parties’ sovereignty in addressing their own problems as stipulated in the laws.

Football and PSSI

The party said the conflicts of the Indonesian Football Association, or PSSI, has caused many losses for the country’s football climate as FIFA sanctioned Indonesia’s football in international events.

“Indonesia is humiliated and people have suffered the loss. The problems have occurred for long tome and dragging on uncertainly. Because of that, it needs to be resolved soon.”

Honorary staff and teachers

The Democrats suggested the government issue a policy ruling on the working guarantee for the honorary staff and teachers who currently cannot be promoted to be civil servants. The policy should be explained clearly to public and implemented consistently.

Government’s transparency and accountability

The Democratic Party sees some use of state budget which is lack of transparency and accountability, calling on the government to improve the governance to prevent budget-misuse and corruption.

The visits, dubbed #TourDeJavaSBY, also aimed to gather supports ahead of the 2017 simultaneous regional elections. In last December's simultaneous regional elections, Democratic Party candidates won 63 positions from 264 province, district and city races.

Former Minister Jero Gets Four Years for Embezzlement

Jakarta Globe, February 09, 2016

Jero Wacik was found guilty of corruption during both his time as tourism
minister and as energy minister. (Antara Photo/M. Agung Rajasa)

Jakarta. The Jakarta Anti Corruption Court sentenced former minister and Democratic Party politician Jero Wacik to four years in prison on Tuesday (09/02) for two separate embezzlement cases during his time as the country's tourism minister and later as energy minister.

The court, presided over by Judge Sumpeno, also ordered to Jero pay a fine of Rp 150 million ($11,000) and return Rp 5 billion in state losses or face an additional year in prison.

The sentence is far from the nine years imprisonment, Rp 350 million in fines and Rp 18.79 billion in compensation that the prosecution had earlier demanded, despite Jero becoming one of the few people to be found guilty of corruption in two separate public posts.

Judge Sumpeno argued that Jero's cancer-stricken wife Trisna Wacik is gravely ill and Jero "still has to pay for his daughters' college tuition," when he explained the court's decision to not meet the prosecution's demand.

Sumpeno also instructed the Corruption Eradication Commission, also known as the KPK, to unfreeze bank accounts belonging to Jero's wife and one of his daughters, Sagita Sinta Pratiwi, saying that they were not related to the crime.

The court ruled that Jero had embezzled Rp 7 billion in operational funds for personal expenses during his time as tourism minister from 2008 to 2011 and another Rp 1 billion during his time as energy minister from 2011 to 2014.

The funds, meant to cover expenses related to his roles as ministers, were instead used to buy concert tickets for his daughters, designer handbags for his wife and to pay for Jero's weekly trips to massage parlors, among other expenses.

He was also found guilty of bilking energy companies out of Rp 10 billion in kickbacks while serving as energy minister.

Both sides can still lodge an appeal.

Matthew message (Channelled by Suzanne Ward, November 20, 2015)

Matthew Ward - November 20, 2015

Matthew Ward

With loving greetings from all souls at this station, this is Matthew. As some in the Illuminati ranks are being arrested or ousted from influential positions and others are abandoning ship, the hardliners are digging in their heels where they still have some leverage. Most noticeable is what their international drug trade funds—CIA and Mossad “black ops” activities, which include downing the Russian plane, and ISIS, the source of the recent massacre in Paris.

Because the public at large isn’t aware that the Illuminati even exist, there is no understanding that they act independently of their countries’ governments in planning and carrying out acts of violence. Thus finger-pointing is at the United States, home of the CIA, or Israel, which is thought of as the Zionist homeland. The truth is, a rogue faction of the CIA follows Illuminati orders; and the Zionist movement is the Illuminati’s militant and spy operation that never has served the best interests of Israelis or Jewish people anywhere else. Eventually those distinctions will become widely known, and indeed that is important; however, it cannot ease the sorrow of losing loved ones or other life-changing traumas in any of the tragedies perpetrated by the Illuminati.

The assault on Paris served their aim by causing death, grief and, initially, chaos and fear, but the act was born of growing desperation about fast-waning control and decreasing numbers of minions, and desperate individuals act without thinking rationally about the consequences. They intended to put and keep the world in the grip of fear—they feed on the energy of fear; instead, they united the world in the high vibrations of compassion and resolve to stand strong against terrorism.

Military might has been galvanized, police are pursuing instigators and suspects, and the search for potential terrorists extends across national borders, but finding and fighting terrorist groups wherever they are will not stop them. Only eradicating terrorism’s roots can do that. The hatred that underlies terrorism—and has led to millions in refugee populations—is rooted in one or more circumstances that can be linked to Illuminati activities or teachings: self-serving foreign interference, betrayal, economic exploitation, bigotry. Each generation instills in the next that all who generate such circumstances must be eliminated, and none realizes that all of them are merely puppets in a diabolical play scripted by manipulative individuals who are fast losing ground. As vibratory rates keep rising, minds and hearts on both sides of this heart-wrenching divide in your society will be opening so that empathy, mutual respect and kindness can replace hatred, prejudices, vengeance and fear of differences.

Momentum in Earth’s energy field of potential has been moving ever more forcibly toward the end times of dark controllers as their opposition has grown increasingly formidable and widespread. Along with intensifying light on the planet, the expanding strength of parties collaborating to uproot all of the Illuminati’s malicious tentacles assures that their worldwide network is on its way to permanent dismantlement.

Then the society can proceed full tilt to continue what amounts to a global salvage operation after a massive storm swirled around the world. The first steps were taken when some of Earth’s Golden Age planners met with some of your wisest individuals to determine the best ways to hold the Illuminati accountable for their crimes against humanity; recover their vast fortunes that were illegally and immorally amassed and fairly distribute those monies as well as release technologies they have long suppressed; end polluting and remedy environmental damage; and disclose and halt the various forms of mind control. Along with those efforts underway, truths will come forth about the presence and assistance of other civilizations, the laws that govern life in this universe, and the interconnected consciousness of everything in existence. Energy streamers in those areas and all others where change and enlightenment are needed are gathering power to propel Earth to her destiny: Restoration to her original health and beauty and her humankind living peacefully, cooperatively and in harmony with all of Nature.

Beloved family, we understand your impatience for that destiny to reach fruition. You don’t remember that by comparison with other civilizations, the passage of Earth’s peoples out of millennia of dark captivity into the light of freedom is occurring almost in the blink of an eye. How we wish you could see your world from our vantage point! Not only would you marvel at the speed and scope of accomplishments, but you would see how greatly your light is contributing to the progress and upliftment of your society.

Now we shall continue answering your insightful questions about the soul. “When souls were breathed/birthed/created by the Creator, did it all happen at once or has it taken place spasmodically over time and is, perhaps, still happening?” The “ingredient” of every soul, which is pure love-light energy, came into being with Creator’s first expression of Itself in what you call “the big bang.” The “birth” of independent, inviolate, eternal soul-selves, which began after that momentous occasion when their “ingredient” was created, has been happening ever since then in your concept of linear time and, as far as we know, will continue until every soul in the cosmos remembers and returns to its Beginnings in Creator.

“Am I right in thinking that the Creator births us in groups of about 60 souls, about 30 of which become our family soul group? We mostly move through our chosen incarnations playing out different agreed roles within those groups but sharing contracts, occasionally, with souls from other soul groups as the need arises?” There is no rigidity about the numbers of souls within any group, or cluster; but indeed souls from one group may share contracts with those in another as the need arises. However, during this era when the entire universe is in acceleration mode and countless souls are taking advantage of the unique opportunity to choose concentrated karmic lessons so they can complete them in one lifetime rather than several or even many lifetimes in a third density world, another form of cooperation is much more prevalent. In addition to experiencing their own chosen lessons, many souls are assisting others with theirs. Heretofore this was usually within the cumulative soul group—which can number in the thousands—but now strong souls are sharing the karmic burdens of weaker souls in any group anywhere in the universe. The purpose of this extraordinary assistance that exemplifies unconditional love is to strengthen weak links within the Oneness of All.

“Does every soul split into a Twin Soul?” It isn’t that souls “split,” and twin souls, or twin flames, are rare. They are the simultaneously co-created first two personages in a root soul’s long lineage, and because they are endowed with identical qualities, their feelings for each other are the most intense that any soul can feel for another. Twin souls in a physical civilization are irresistibly attracted to each other, and while the sexual aspect is strong, it is their profound feeling of needing to be together that overwhelms all other considerations; often this highly emotional attachment leads to serious disagreements and the souls part ways. In a spirit world, the twins are equally attracted to each other but without physicality’s “smothering” love; and however far apart the two may be in the universe, their bond enables joyous telepathic communication and sublime feelings about a shared beginning in pure love.

“It sounds as if ‘soul contract flexibility’ means that even if people don’t follow their contracts, they still evolve. How is this fair to people who do live according to their contracts?” Flexibility doesn’t pertain to conscious decisions that are contrary to contract provisions, but to the ways whereby provisions may be experienced. Say, for example, that the choice is to leave this lifetime suddenly at age 25 in a vehicle crash. Shortly before reaching that age, the person is skiing and gets buried deeply in snow when an avalanche roars down the mountain; or, a few weeks after celebrating the 25th birthday, the person is hiking in the woods and fatally hit by a hunter’s stray bullet. Either of those possibilities would serve the same purpose as the contract choice. That is a dramatic example, to be sure, but flexibility applies to any provision—perhaps a job, residence location, financial investment or special event—that offers the same karmic lessons and the same growth potential to all souls in the pre-birth agreement.

“Matthew said, ‘a person’s etheric body and lifetime memories enter Nirvana.’ What happens to people with dementia who lost their memory?” Dementia creates layers of forgetfulness around a person’s memory bank, the repository of all memories throughout the lifetime. After personalized healing in Nirvana, where the layers are gently removed, all memory is restored, including the stages of “losing” it.

“When a soul in the tiny orb part of Nirvana accepts the light, is that what Christians call redemption?” No, at least not knowledgeably. Christian teachings about redemption are akin to a person gaining God’s forgiveness by repenting for having lived wickedly according to religious concepts of sin and Judgment Day. A soul that absorbs enough light to embody and start evolution anew is in accordance with universal laws that people steeped in religious dogma most likely don’t know exist.

“I know a child who fits what I’ve heard about souls ‘born bad.’ Why would a soul choose this?” There is no such thing as a soul “ born bad” —the composition of every soul is pure love-light energy. We don’t know about that child’s circumstances, but we can mention possibilities that could apply to any child who may be thought of as “chronically misbehaving.” The family’s pre-birth agreement may include the child’s behavior as opportunities for the parents to learn patience and other parenting skills such as accepting the child’s limited capabilities, nurturing his or her abilities and interests, and equitable treatment of siblings. Discomfort due to an undiagnosed physical condition could underlie a child’s rebelliousness; so could adverse reactions to chemicals in food, water or medications, and toxicity in vaccines may have produced symptoms similar to autism. If there is ongoing tension in the home, a child could be responding to the low vibrations emitted in that kind of atmosphere. A discarnate entity that doesn’t realize its physical life ended could have attached itself to a child during a period of severe physical, mental or emotional stress; if so, an experienced energy worker can help the entity understand its status and help it move on to a spirit world.

If there is no pet in the home, let us offer this suggestion: Let the child choose a companion animal and discuss at the appropriate age level the child’s responsibilities in caring for it. It is immensely heartening that many in your world, including in the medical establishment, are seeing the significant benefits of a close human-animal relationship for people of all ages—this is a significant step in a society’s advancement.

“If souls who are stillborn or die as infants chose that in their contracts, can they remember doing it or anything at all about other lives?” In the case of stillborn infants, souls leave the bodies with full knowledge that this is in accordance with the family’s pre-birth agreements, which are designed for the experiencing needs of all participants. As babies who die in infancy grow older in Nirvana—and they age there much more quickly than your calendar years pass—they remember their choices and purpose, to provide soul growth opportunities to others in the pre-birth agreements. And, like all others in spirit worlds, they become consciously aware of soul-level knowledge to the extent it was remembered or experienced in all other lifetimes. `

Our message about lost souls evoked the following questions . “Is a lost soul still an inseparable part of God?” It is as long as it remains in the basest part of a spirit world in this universe. If it is deemed by Creator to be permanently light-resistant, or “lost”—and only Creator can decide that—the soul’s energy is reabsorbed into Creator’s cosmic essence, where it had its Beginnings.

“Do a lost root soul’s progeny know what happened to them ?” No. The instant their life force is withdrawn, they lose the ability to know anything whatsoever. However, that their energy and the root soul’s energy were reabsorbed by Creator is within cosmic consciousness, therefore within the mass consciousness of this universe; and when the progeny reemerge from Creator’s essence and regain their memory fields, knowledge of what happened to them is available.

“When people in lost root souls’ lineage are ‘redeemed,’ where will they start over? How will they explain to others what happened to them?” They won’t need to explain anything to anyone. When their lives abruptly ended, family and friends who believe in an afterlife assumed that’s where those souls are. And so they will be—they will regain conscious awareness and all memories in their civilization’s spirit realm.

Of course we shall happily answer other questions you may have about the soul, and we hope that the information in this and prior messages has shown the infinite importance of each and every soul and the inseparability of all in the Oneness of All.

Dear brothers and sisters, as you continue your Earth journey, know that light beings throughout this universe honor your steadfastness in the light and embrace you with unconditional love.

LOVE and PEACE

Suzanne Ward

Website: The Matthew Books

Email: suzy@matthewbooks.com

Related Articles:

Fox News guest analyst charged with fraud

Obama leads chorus of world outrage over Paris attacks

Russian plane broke up 'in the air': expert probing crash

G20 leaders pledge to cut off financing to curb IS terrorism


2015 Kryon Kundalini Tour (Cusco #2, Peru) - Nov, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - New (Reference to Paris/ISIS/Dark-Old Energy/USA+Warning for Governments around the World !!!)

"Revelations of Darkness" - Oct 1, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“ .. Do Not Despair

There's too much information to give you in one channelling, in one sitting, so I refer to past messages for you to better understand and reference the information in order to get the bigger picture. So I wish to remind you of something I also told you in a recent channelling called Do Not Despair. You're winning! It's because you're winning that the dark consciousness on this planet is feeling it, and the humanity that represents darkness is pulling out everything it has to survive.

It Has Always Been There

Let's look at it, because it's all over the news. Are you shocked at the sudden existence of the organization that will remain unnamed [for this channelling]? Where did it come from? How could it be so organized? How could it be so well funded? This organization could have its own country soon! They might as well name it, “The Old Energy Dark Country”, for that's what it will represent.

The barbaric past of humanity comes forward to show its face. It has always been there, hiding under the rocks and between the cracks of civilized humanity. It couldn't show itself until now, but now it has to. It's ugly and it's not for the faint at heart, is it, dear ones? Seeing evil personified in Human action is abhorrent. It is so ugly and so dark that you cannot look upon it with a gentle heart. God is not a part of it and this is obvious.

You're winning! Light is winning! The uprising of dark consciousness would not have shown itself with this strength, or this quickly, if this were not so. This is exactly what I told you to look for, and it is proof that those representing this dark consciousness are in trouble. Dear ones, dark consciousness has always had a tried-and-true system. It lurks in the shadows and influences all the power places of the planet - government, commerce, finance. Suddenly, it can't hide there as well anymore and it's out in the open.

Where is the funding coming from? It is coming from a storehouse that has always been there, dear ones. It uses income that has been generated from low consciousness acts, collected for a very long time. Funding didn't just appear. It has been stored, waiting to be used in order to spread fear and darkness to save what they believe is their way.

Who Will Win?

Dear ones, they haven't got a chance! But it looks like they do, doesn't it? Everything that they are doing is calculated to scare you into submission. Are they winning? Now, that's a question I want you to take from here and examine every day.

Fear is black. If you're in fear, there is no light. You can be the grandest Lightworker, or even be the channeller, but if you're in fear, it doesn't matter how many years you've done light work, or how much light you've accumulated personally. It all goes away with fear, and then they've won the battle for your mind. Do you understand this?

The Strength of the Old Soul - YOU

Old souls, Lightworkers reading this, the experiences you have had over lifetimes and lifetimes are incredible! The old soul knows fear. I don't want to be too graphic, but I want you to understand! What was it like when you put your head in the guillotine because you talked about God in a way that was inappropriate? What was it like to be bound hand and foot when they lit the match at your feet? Old soul, that's fear! You carry those experiences in your Akash.

I want to tell you they haven't got a chance to scare you! You absolutely know what fear is, and they haven't got a chance as long as you cling to that part of you that is the strength of God. You've been through it all. That means you've got the weapons of truth, wisdom and light. Don't forget it. Don't forget who you are!

Do you see how fast they assembled? It seemed like only yesterday that there was no organization at all. Where did they come from? Have you noticed a certain hesitancy to fight them? Why is it that the citizens of the lands that they are invading are hesitant to fight them? Instead, these leaders are calling on others to help. Why is it that the others are also hesitant? I want to show you that there are some anomalies of logic that are not making sense, because this is a battle you have never seen before on this planet. We've expected it, but you haven't. It's about consciousness, not land or resources.

How to Win?

We gave you the secret before of how to defeat them without taking even one life: Simply take away their funding. They cannot exist without their funding. The funding has to be organized, stored, and distributed. It has to be generated in such a way that it must also go through institutions. Did you hear that? All you have to do is stop the system. Winning won't be done with bombing. It's going to be done with intelligence, clever thinking and financial forensics. It's time to get smart on some of these things and not to be afraid to look at this puzzle differently than you have before. Do not apply the energy they are using in order to fight them, because you won't win. Figure it out. It's the last bastion of organized darkness and evil thinking on this planet coming together to try to survive the assault of your light. Don't be afraid to look at the funding trail, no matter where it takes you.

Fear is Their Weapon

I want you to know something as you look at your news. It may appear that you are unable to stop them. In many places, they will gain strength as they create fear. The fear is easily created in those who are not old souls and who don't know fear like you do and who don't have the armor of your spiritual experiences. This puts you in the front line, dear one. Did you realize that? But you don't have to go fight them on their terms. All you have to do is broadcast light. High consciousness will beat fear any day.. .”

Justice Ministry: No Idul Fitri Sentence Cuts for Graft Convicts – Yet

Jakarta Globe, Erwin Sihombing, Jul 21, 2015

Corruption convict Muhammad Nazaruddin, center, was one of dozens of people
 reported to have received a sentence reduction for Idul Fitri. The Justice
Ministry has denied this. (Antara Photo/Novrin Arbi)

Jakarta. Indonesia’s Justice Ministry has insisted that no sentence reductions were awarded to corruption convicts for the Idul Fitri holiday last week, following local media reports of cuts of up to two months for some notorious convicts.

“Not a single letter [approving a sentence cut] has been issued, in keeping with Government Regulation 99 of 2012,” M. Akbar Hadiprabowo, a spokesman for the ministry, told reporters in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Any sentence cuts, known locally as remissions, reportedly handed out to graft convicts “are merely recommendations from local offices of the Justice Ministry and are still being processed,” he added.

The 2012 government regulation was introduced by the administration of then-minister of justice Amir Syamsuddin to make it more difficult for corruption convicts to qualify for a sentence cut, as part of the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono administration’s wider efforts to get tough on graft.

Under the regulation, corruption convicts must pay all fines and damages imposed by a court before they can qualify. They must also cooperate with law enforcement authorities investigating others implicated in the same case, and must have approval from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on whether they deserve a sentence cut.

The current justice minister, Yasonna Laoly from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), drew widespread condemnation earlier this year for calling for the regulation to be rescinded because it was too harsh on graft convicts.

His office, though, appears to still be abiding by the regulation in not approving sentence cuts this Idul Fitri. (The ministry traditionally hands out sentence cuts ranging from 15 days to two months during major public holidays.)

Local media reported last week that dozens of corruption convicts, including high-profile prisoners such as former Democratic Party treasurer Muhammad Nazaruddin and rogue tax official Gayus Tambunan, had received sentence cuts of up to two months.

Nazaruddin is serving a seven-year sentence for bid-rigging in a contract for the construction of an athletes’ village in Palembang, South Sumatra, for the 2011 Southeast Asian Games; Gayus has been hit by a string of convictions for bribery, passport forgery and other offenses, putting his sentence at 30 years.

Prison Guard in Meth Bust Loses His Shirt – and Little Else

Jakarta Globe, Erwin Sihombing, Jun 02, 2015

The Justice Ministry’s Mualimin Abdi takes the shirt from Dedy Romadi, a prison
 guard caught in a meth bust, at a dismissal ceremony in Jakarta on Monday. Dedy
 keeps all his benefits as a civil servant, despite the severity of his alleged crime.
(Antara Photo/Vitalis Yogi Trisna)

Jakarta. An Indonesian prison guard caught allegedly trafficking 16 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine will be entitled to his full lifetime benefits as a civil servant following an “honorable” discharge.

Dedy Romadi, from Bandung’s Banceuy Penitentiary, was given a public dismissal at a ceremony at the Justice Ministry in Jakarta on Monday.

“With respect to [any infractions committed as] a member of staff, he’s clear,” Mualimin Abdi, the ministry’s director general of human rights, said at the dismissal ceremony.

“With respect to the law, he still has to answer to the police and the BNN [National Narcotics Agency],” he added.

Dedy was arrested in a BNN-led bust at a Central Jakarta mall on May 22 while allegedly carrying out a drug transaction. He eventually led officers to a stash of 16.3 kilograms of crystal meth and 778 ecstasy pills.

He faces a possible death sentence if convicted of trafficking, but the Justice Ministry, which oversees the country’s prisons, appeared to take the case – the latest involving a prison guard caught in the dealing or manufacture of narcotics – much less seriously.

Mualimin, who stripped Dedy of his prison guard jacket during the dismissal ceremony, said the symbolism sent a “strong message” about the ministry’s attitude to such offenses.

“I won’t tolerate anyone who abuses their authority. Such people must be heavily punished,” he said.

He did not explain the gaping discrepancy between Dedy’s “abuse of authority” and the lack of infractions cited in the guard’s dismissal.

The “honorable” discharge effectively means that Dedy will continue to receive the benefits to which a civil servant is entitled, including a pension and lifetime health insurance – even if he goes to jail for drug smuggling.

For his part, Dedy claims he was not dealing drugs but rather was collecting evidence seized from inmates.

The bust came just over a week since the arrest of a guard from the prison island of Nusakambangan off Central Java, the site of 13 of the 14 executions carried out so far this year – all involving drug convicts.

In that arrest, officers caught Bayu Anggit Permana, a guard from the island’s Batu Penitentiary, with 364 grams of meth. A prisoner at the island, one of several on Nusakambangan, later admitted to paying Bayu to smuggle the drugs out of the prison.

Police have charge Bayu and Abdul with drug dealing – not trafficking – which carries a sentence of 12 to 20 years.

Drug seizures are common at prisons on Nusakambangan, where officials have a history of being complicit in allowing prisoners to set up meth labs.

The island was also the location for the executions on April 29 of eight convicted drug offenders, seven of them foreign nationals, including Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.

In going against international condemnation of the executions, President Joko Widodo claimed Indonesia was in the grip of a “drug emergency” – based on a study whose methodology has long been debunked by experts – and that the death sentence served as a deterrent against would-be drug offenders.

The arrests of Bayu and now Dedy – and countless other offenders in between – would seem to suggest otherwise.

Fortune Ranks Surabaya Mayor Risma Among World’s Greatest Leaders

Jakarta Globe, Mar 27, 2015

Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini. (JG Photo/Yudek)

Jakarta. Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini has been named as one of the world’s 50 greatest leaders by American business magazine Fortune.

Risma, as she is popularly known, is ranked 24th on the list, above Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun and Nigeria’s Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. She is the only Indonesian included.

“Elected as Surabaya’s mayor in 2010, Rismaharini has transformed her city of 2.7 million people into a new kind of Indonesian metropolis, one that celebrates green space and environmental sustainability,” the magazine said.

Other notable leaders included were China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and Apple CEO Tim Cook, who is ranked top of the list.

In February last year Risma was named world mayor of the month by the City Mayor Foundation.

Risma, who has a degree in architecture, rose to fame in 2005 as the head of the Surabaya park department which is responsible for rejuvenating the city’s parks and developing more green spaces.

The mayor has been praised for her hands-on approach to the city’s problems, such as picking up trash along the roadside or getting out of her car and directing traffic.

But not everyone has been happy with her performance. Last year, she received both praise and criticism for closing down Indonesia’s biggest red light district, also known as Dolly. She sent sex workers back to their home towns with a small amount of money to start new businesses.

Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini. (JG Photo/Yudek)

Related Article:

Surabaya’s Tri Rismaharini Honored as One of World’s Best Mayors

SBY Honored, Along With Companies, for Green Growth

Jakarta Globe, Feb 26, 2015

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono when he was still president of Indonesia. (EPA
Photo/Bagus Indahono).

Jakarta. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was among a diverse group of winners of awards for sustainable business practices whose names were announced on Wednesday evening, with the former Indonesian president receiving praise for “his achievements in developing green growth in Indonesia and his commitments to action on climate change globally.”

A Special Award for Leadership in Green Growth and Development was presented to Yudhoyono at the Shangri La Hotel Jakarta, during a ceremony attended by Vice President Jusuf Kalla, Coordinating Minister for the Economy Sofyan Djalil and other ministers, as well as CEOs, heads of international agencies and media.

“Development and growth is something that needs to be planned carefully. It needs to ensure social inclusiveness. It needs to protect the environment, it needs to correspond to climate challenge, it needs to go on for the long term,” Yudhoyono said at the award ceremony.

The 2014 Sustainable Business Awards Indonesia were organized by Global Initiatives in cooperation with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) and the Indonesia Business Council for Sustainable Development.

The organizers said in a press release that cement company Holcim Indonesia emerged the overall winner, but companies such as Bank BNI, Astra International, Bukit Asam, Nestle Indonesia, Bumi Serpong Damai and Unilever also won in various categories.

Tony Gourlay, CEO of Global Initiatives, said in the press release: “For the third year in a row, we are pleased to showcase companies in Indonesia who have embedded sustainability in their corporate mission and whose leadership shares this vision. We encourage other companies to follow their lead and communicate their sustainability efforts more widely.”

The complete list of SBA winners

MAIN AWARDS

Overall Winner: Holcim Indonesia

1. Strategy and vision: Unilever Indonesia

2. Workforce: Holcim Indonesia

3. Community: Astra International

4. Energy management: Holcim Indonesia

5. Water management: Bukit Asam

6. Waste & material productivity: Danone Aqua Group

7. Climate Change: Holcim Indonesia

8. Supply Chain: Nestle Indonesia

9. Land Use, Biodiversity and the Environment: Monsanto Indonesia (Branita Sandini)

10. Business Responsibility and Ethics: Unilever Indonesia

* Environmental Disclosure: Dupont Agriculture Products Indonesia

SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARDS

1. Pioneer in Green Finance in Indonesia: Bank Negara Indonesia

2. Outstanding leadership in sustainable agriculture: Great Giant Pineapple

3. SME placing sustainability at the core of its business: Pulau Nikoi

4. Outstanding Energy Management in the mining sector: Vale Indonesia

5. Outstanding Water Management in the property sector: Bumi Serpong Damai

Special Award for Green Growth & Leadership: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

Plan to test Indonesian schoolgirls for virginity scrapped after outcry

Local MP had proposed all girls had to be virgins in order to graduate from school

The Guardian - AFP,  12 February 2015

A Muslim high-school girl sits in a classroom. A local Indonesian MP had
proposed that all girls have a virginity test in order to graduate from school.
Photograph: Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

High-school girls in an Indonesian district will not be subjected to virginity tests in order to graduate, an official has insisted, after a lawmaker sparked an outcry by proposing the move.

The MP in the Jember local parliament on the main island of Java, last week put forward a regulation on “good conduct” that included forcing female students to pass a virginity test before they can complete high school.

He argued that the move was aimed at tackling pre-marital sex in conservative Indonesia, which has the world’s biggest Muslim population.

But rights groups and Islamic authorities alike reacted furiously, prompting officials in Jember to swiftly distance themselves from the plan.

Kusen Andalas, deputy head of the district, insisted Wednesday that the proposal would not go ahead: “I don’t think it is ethical to carry out such tests, it is against people’s rights.”

The parliament’s deputy speaker, Ayub Junaidi, had already reportedly apologised for the comments and said no such bylaw would be enacted.

Human Rights Watch deputy director for Asia, Phelim Kine, described the proposal as “appalling”, adding: “The Indonesian government’s tolerance for this violence against women and girls needs to end.”

The issue of virginity tests has caused controversy in Indonesia before.

In 2013, the education chief of a city on western Sumatra island sparked outrage by suggesting that teenage schoolgirls should undergo virginity tests to enter senior high school.

The police faced criticism last year after a study said female applicants to the force were subjected to such examinations.

Related Article:

Use of Virginity Tests Must End, Activists Tell Joko