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. …

Sunday, March 30, 2014

SBY Meets With Families of Migrant Workers Facing Death Sentences Overseas

Jakarta Globe, Mar 30, 2014

President Yudhoyono meets with the families of migrant workers on death
row in Central Java on March 30, 2014. (Photo courtesy of Twitter/@sbyudhoyono)

Jakarta. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Sunday met with families of Indonesian migrant workers facing the death penalty abroad, in the wake of recently announced negotiations to save the life of a worker who admitted to killing her Saudi employer — the latest in a string of high-profile cases involving Indonesian migrants.

“As you know, the government is making serious efforts to seek forgiveness from Saudi Arabia and the victim’s family,” Yudhoyono said at the meeting in Hotel Gumaya, in Semarang, Central Java, as quoted by news portal Detik.com.

Satinah Binti Jumadi Ahmad, 41, of Ungaran, Central Java, was sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia after admitting to slaying former employer Nura in 2007 and fleeing with 37,970 riyal ($10,125). She is scheduled for execution on April 4 if the Indonesian government cannot collect the proper sum of diyat, or blood money, by that date.

The al-Garib family initially requested 10 million riyal in 2011, but the Indonesian government managed to negotiate the amount to 7 million — with 5 million to be paid now and another two due in the next to years.

The families of Siti Zaenab, Tuti Tursilawati and Karni, all awaiting execution in Saudi prison, were also in attendance at the meeting, as were Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi, Education and Culture Minister Muhammad Nuh, presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha and foreign affairs advisor Daniel Sparingga.

On Friday, Yudhoyono sent an envoy to Saudi Arabia to meet with the al-Garib family before the execution deadline: Head of the task force on migrant worker protection (Satgas TKI) Maftuh Basyuni, accompanied by a team of Foreign Ministry and Manpower Ministry staffers. They delivered the 5 million riyal, according to a report published on the Cabinet Secretary’s official website, setkab.go.id.

Yudhoyono said that 246 Indonesian migrant workers were facing the death penalty abroad, but that 176 had been freed during his time in office.

“We have freed 176 people from death sentences,” he said, according to news portal Detik.com. “That is not a small number considering how hard it is to ask forgiveness for even one person.”

He said that the central government sought clemency for Indonesians facing foreign death sentences as a matter of principle rather than as the result of political pressure.

Satinah’s brother, Paeri Al Fery, expressed gratitude for Yudhoyono’s actions.

“Thank you for your help, mister President,” Paeri said. “Thank you for coming to Semarang. Please pray for us.”


Indonesian migrant workers wait to exit a boat at North Jakarta’s Tanjung Priok
 port in this file photo. The workers were sent home from Saudi Arabia. (JG Photo/
Yudhi Sukma Wijaya)



SBY visits ‘sacred’ megalithic site

The JakartaPost, Jakarta, Archipelago, February 26 2014

Talk from the top: President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono gives a speech after
 touring the Gunung Padang megalithic site in Cianjur, West Java, on Tuesday.
 The President and his entourage visited the site following research by a team
including the President’s special staffer Andi Arief. Antara/Novrian Arbi

The mystery that shrouds Gunung Padang Megalithic Site seemed to attract President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who went to one of the country’s most-talked about tourist spots in Karyamukti village, Cianjur regency, recently.

The President, First Lady Ani Yudhoyono and their entourage arrived at the site, which is located at an elevation of 885 meters above sea level, on Tuesday noon, Antara news agency reported.

State Secretary Sudi Silalahi, Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto, Coordinating People’s Welfare Minister Agung Laksono and Cooperatives and Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Minister Syariefuddin Hasan all joined the President and his wife to climb hundreds of steep steps, which ascend five tiers.

The Mount Padang Independent and Integrated Research Team (TTPMGP) has found evidence that a structure, which dates back thousands of years, exists below the mountain.

Disaster and Social Relief Affairs presidential advisor Andi Arief, who facilitates TTPMGP, said the tiers concealed a pyramid that predated the Egyptian pyramids by more than 10,000 years.

Arief’s statement had caused controversy among scientists. The team is still researching the matter after local residents objected the excavation for fear that the site would be damaged.

While at the site, which measures 900 square meters, Yudhoyono said the research must be completed so it could become a complete site like Borobudur.

“This is a huge undertaking and needs to be planned, budgeted and scheduled. It needs leadership and the right policy. We hope the task is finished soon,” Yudhoyono said as quoted by Antara.

He added that the law had given mandate to the West Java provincial administration to manage the project. “But, the central government will assist,” said Yudhoyono.

“I express my highest appreciation to the tireless researchers. Many of them don’t believe it, some are annoyed but everyone is firm. This is a good beginning despite it being unfinished,” said Yudhoyono.

Yudhoyono and entourage were at the site for around three hours.

Gunung Padang has become popular with domestic tourists in recent years.

At the site’s information center visitors are told that the terraced site was first recorded by Dutch researcher NJ Krom in 1914 before being rediscovered by local farmers in 1979.

The geological structure of the stones is columnar jointing, each stone varies in size and is prismatic.

It is believed the site was a place to carry out rituals and the top was considered the most sacred part.

Before undertaking ritual, people would clean themselves in a pond located in the south of the site.

The West Java provincial administration has called on the Cianjur regency administration and the local community to help protect the megalithic site, especially from vandalism, as well as to attract more tourists.

Locals are very protective of the site and remind visitors not to litter or eat there.

Entry costs Rp 2,000 (17 US cents).

Related Article:


Exclusive: 'locked-up' Saudi princesses' message for Obama

Channel 4, Fatima Manji, 28 March 2014

"He should be ashamed to meet a leader that has four grown women locked up" - the message from two Saudi princesses to President Obama as he meets with their father, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.


In an exclusive on-camera interview with Channel 4 News, we talk to Princesses Sahar and Jawaher, who say they have been held under effective house arrest, by their father, the king, for more than a decade.

Princesses Sahar and Jawaher are the daughters of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. They say they have been held in the royal compound in Jeddah for the last 13 years, and their sisters Maha and Hala are also being held in separate villas. They claim they are not allowed to travel or leave their home.
If he does that to his own children, how do you think the rest of the country is? - Princess Jawaher
Princesses Sahar and Jawaher claim they have little communication outside of their gates - "no-one is allowed in or out." They say the internet is their only window onto the world. Via Skype, they tell Channel 4 News they are "cut off, isolated... and alone" and that "our father, the king, is responsible."

Their mother Alanoud Al Fayez, who is divorced from the king, first went public with their story two weeks ago, giving her first broadcast interview to Channel 4 News. Since that interview was broadcast, the princesses say restrictions on them have been tightened and they are no longer even allowed to make trips with armed guards for food, as they were previously.

They say food is now becoming scarce in their home, that they are desperate for the world to listen to their story and for someone to help.

Their only hope is that our report will make a difference, and that is why they wanted to broadcast this interview. Princess Sahar says: "This is a risk we're taking, we're happy to do it, we understand full well the repercussions, but we don't know what's going to happen."

Princess Sahar said to reporter Fatima Manji "why are we, grown women, held against our will? I believe we are now hostages."

Her sister, Princess Jawaher, said: "If he does that to his own children, how do you think the rest of the country is?"

The Saudi embassy in London has so far only responded to these claims by saying "this is a private matter".


Related Articles:

Malaysia Airlines' ticket sales suspended by 2 websites in China

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2014-03-29

A screenshot of the notice on the Elong site announcing the suspension
of Malaysia Airlines ticket sales. (Internet photo)

Two Chinese ticketing websites announced that they have suspended sales of Malaysia Airlines' flight tickets until the company reaches an agreement with the families of the 153 Chinese passengers on the missing plane MH370, reports the Chinese-language Beijing Times newspaper.

One of the two websites Elong said it made the decision because two of the passengers on the plane that disappeared March 8 en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur bought their tickets through their site. The firm said that they have also been dissatisfied with the airline's response to and handling of the incident. It began the suspension Thursday and will not lift it until the families reach an agreement with the airline. People who have already bought the airline's tickets through the site can still use them or get a full refund from Elong. The Chinese firm will also provide compensation of 100,000 yuan (US$16,100) to each of the families of the two passengers who were booked on the flight through the website.

Another website Ly.com also announced a suspension for an indefinite period of time and offered full refunds for customers who wanted to cancel flight tickets and tours they had bought through the ticketing website. The refunds are available to all customers no matter whether or not Malaysia Airlines have agreed to refund tickets.

The Malaysian civil aviation authority pledged to continue the search for the plane for as long as it takes, citing the example of an Air France plane, for which search teams spent two years looking before recovering the black box of the crashed flight in 2009. Several countries have been taking part in the search effort for the missing plane, and there has been no talk of putting an end to the search as yet.

The black box of the missing flight is set to run out of battery in ten days. The air operations commander of the Royal Malaysian Air Force Lieutenant General Datuk Seri Ackbal Abdul Samad said the search area for the missing plane has been narrowed. A ship specializing in probing has also joint the search effort.

Related Articles:

Saturday, March 29, 2014

INTERPOL rejects claim attributed to Malaysia that checking INTERPOL's databases may have slowed immigration checks

Interpol, 28 March 2014

LYON, France – Malaysia’s decision not to consult INTERPOL's Stolen and Lost Travel Documents (SLTD) database before allowing travellers to enter the country or board planes cannot be defended by falsely blaming technology or INTERPOL. If there is any responsibility or blame for this failure, it rests solely with Malaysia's Immigration Department.

INTERPOL’s SLTD database takes just seconds to reveal whether a passport is listed, with recent tests providing results in 0.2 seconds.

The fact is that the US consults this database more than 230 million times per year; the UK more than 140 million times; the UAE more than 100 million times and Singapore more than 29 million times. Not one of these countries, or indeed any INTERPOL member country, has ever stated that the response time is too slow.

The truth is that in 2014 prior to the tragic disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH 370, Malaysia’s Immigration Department did not conduct a single check of passengers’ passports against INTERPOL’s databases.

Consequently, two individuals possessing stolen Austrian and Italian passports were able to board MH 370. Had Malaysia consulted INTERPOL's SLTD database, the fact that both passengers were using stolen passports would have been discovered almost instantaneously.

Malaysia’s Immigration Department owes it to all passengers boarding flights originating in, or passing through, Malaysia to make sure that passports registered as stolen or lost in INTERPOL’s databases cannot be used to board any flight.

In this regard, despite this unjustified attack on INTERPOL, we remain ready, willing and able to help Malaysia better safeguard its citizens and visitors from those seeking to use stolen or fraudulently altered passports to board planes.

INTERPOL has no idea why Malaysia’s Home Minister chooses to attack INTERPOL instead of learning from this tragedy.

After years of witnessing countries fail to consult INTERPOL’s SLTD database prior to allowing travellers to cross borders and board planes, INTERPOL created I-Checkit which will allow airlines and cruise lines to ensure that no passenger can use a stolen or lost passport registered in INTERPOL’s database to board one of their planes or ships.

Related Articles:

Missing MH370 likely to have disintegrated mid-flight: experts



....SB: That’s very good, Lord. Thank you. I’m going to move quickly to Flight 370, and then hopefully a short talk on global citizenry.

Ashira said that Flight 370 had exploded, but he didn’t say what the cause of the explosion was. Others have said that a secret naval weapon was used to cause it to disintegrate. And recently a prominent channel said the plane was suffering from hydraulic failure, was in an uncontrolled state, at risk of imminent destruction; whisked out of the air in mid-flight, was taken aboard an enormous spaceship from Sirius claimed to be part of the Federation fleet under the Ashtar Command whose full report is available from a certain website.

Now, Ashira said they took a few people up who still wanted to remain in form, but the rest — they passed on. What is the truth, Lord?

AAM: This is not an action — let us put it this way — this is not an action that your star brothers and sisters have been deeply involved in. This is an action of what we would refer to, or Gabrielle would refer to, as of violence, of sabotage, of subterfuge. And it has continued.

So there are lies upon lies upon lies. And what is occurring … this is a terrible situation. And it is painful to so many. But what it is also doing for humanity, it is bringing up what we would call shared compassion and grief. Because if you were to look at the grief and the confusion and the compassion component of what is being felt and emanating from the hearts of the collective, individuals all over the planet, it is out of alignment with the situation even including those who have been on the plane and who have suffered and the families that are left suffering the loss of their loved ones.

So it has amplified and shown the global community, in a time when there has been much strife and conflict on the ground, the other side of the scale, where you are seeing the global community coming together in compassion and sending healing for many. It is also bringing together the global community in saying, “We require, we demand truth.” Because there have been such significant untruths, every step of the way. And now what is occurring, among what you think are responsible agencies of many countries, is that they are looking for scapegoats. They are looking for situations to hang this on.

The truth will come out, but the function of this act of violence has been hijacked in many ways not by your star brothers and sisters but by the Company of Heaven to teach several very important, critical, timely lessons. The ship has not been taken on board a mothership elsewhere. That is false hope.

SB: Where is the ship, Lord? Is it blown to smithereens, or is it at the bottom of the ocean?

AAM: For all intents and purposes, it is not intact. We cannot give you the totality because that would be breaking our agreement.

SB: And then of course you couldn’t tell us what nation did it, either?

AAM: It is not so much a nation as individuals acting independently.

SB: All right. I’m not sure whether I should go further in trying to get more details, or…. whether….

AAM: Please do not.....

Sunday, March 23, 2014

The moment a giraffe 'says goodbye' to a dying zoo worker

DutchNews.nl, Friday 21 March 2014

The touching moment was captured on film. Photo: Stichting Ambulancewens

A 54-year-old zoo worker suffering from terminal cancer was 'kissed' by a giraffe while on a visit to say goodbye to the animals whose pens he cleaned.

Mario was wheeled around the Blijdorp zoo in Rotterdam in his hospital bed thanks to the charity Ambulance Wish Foundation. While visiting the giraffes, one approached Mario and appeared to nuzzle him.

‘It was a very special moment. You saw him smile,’ the foundation’s director Kees Veldboer told the AD. ‘It was special that the animals knew him and could sense all was not well with him.’

Mario, who had learning difficulties, had worked at the zoo for most of his adult life.

Related Article:

Question: Dear Kryon: I live in Spain. I am sorry if I will ask you a question you might have already answered, but the translations of your books are very slow and I might not have gathered all information you have already given. I am quite concerned about abandoned animals. It seems that many people buy animals for their children and as soon as they grow, they set them out somewhere. Recently I had the occasion to see a small kitten in the middle of the street. I did not immediately react, since I could have stopped and taken it, without getting out of the car. So, I went on and at the first occasion I could turn, I went back to see if I could take the kitten, but it was to late, somebody had already killed it. This happened some month ago, but I still feel very sorry for that kitten. I just would like to know, what kind of entity are these animals and how does this fit in our world. Are these entities which choose this kind of life, like we do choose our kind of Human life? I see so many abandoned animals and every time I see one, my heart aches... I would like to know more about them.

Answer: Dear one, indeed the answer has been given, but let us give it again so you all understand. Animals are here on earth for three (3) reasons.

(1) The balance of biological life. . . the circle of energy that is needed for you to exist in what you call "nature."

(2) To be harvested. Yes, it's true. Many exist for your sustenance, and this is appropriate. It is a harmony between Human and animal, and always has. Remember the buffalo that willingly came into the indigenous tribes to be sacrificed when called? These are stories that you should examine again. The inappropriateness of today's culture is how these precious creatures are treated. Did you know that if there was an honoring ceremony at their death, they would nourish you better? Did you know that there is ceremony that could benefit all of humanity in this way. Perhaps it's time you saw it.

(3) To be loved and to love. For many cultures, animals serve as surrogate children, loved and taken care of. It gives Humans a chance to show compassion when they need it, and to have unconditional love when they need it. This is extremely important to many, and provides balance and centering for many.

Do animals know all this? At a basic level, they do. Not in the way you "know," but in a cellular awareness they understand that they are here in service to planet earth. If you honor them in all three instances, then balance will be the result. Your feelings about their treatment is important. Temper your reactions with the spiritual logic of their appropriateness and their service to humanity. Honor them in all three cases.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Vatican, Anglicans, Muslims unite to fight slavery

Google – AFP, 18 March 2014

from left : Anglican bishop, Sir David John Moxon, Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest,
 Catholic bishop Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo and Professor Mahmoud Azab pose
 after the signature od the "Global Freedom Network" agreement on March 17,
2014 at the Vatican (AFP, Andreas Solaro)

Vatican City — Catholics, Anglicans and Muslims came together Monday to fight slavery with the launch of a global network to tackle human trafficking, forced prostitution and child labour.

The Global Freedom Network, the brainchild of billionaire Australian magnate Andrew Forrest, will pressure governments and businesses to free millions of men, women and children held in bondage around the world by 2020.

"Today, the economic exploitation of our fellow human beings causes almost 30 million people to be enslaved, more than at any time in human history," Forrest said at the launch.

The Vatican, the Anglican Communion and Cairo's Islamic al-Azhar University are leading the initiative, which "brings together faith communities of almost three billion people -- nearly half of the world's population -- and will invite all faiths to join its leadership," he added.

Overcoming strained relations between the Vatican and al-Azhar -- which deteriorated during the papacy of pope Benedict XVI -- the network brings together Pope Francis, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, Ahmed el-Tayeb.

Representatives of all three met at Vatican to sign up to the initiative, which Forrest said would bring together "millions of churches and mosques to gather in one great army to fight the war against slavery."

The network will call on the world's 50 biggest corporations to root out exploitation of workers in their supply chains and ask the Group of 20 most advanced nations to set up a global fund to finance programmes tackling slavery.

"There are forms of slavery in all industrial sectors," said Forrest, who has secured the support of fellow billionaires Bill Gates and Richard Branson.

Mahmoud Azab, on behalf of al-Azhar, told AFP the network is a "strong appeal against the egotism of rich countries, against materialistic societies which must stop all forms of aggression against the human being".

"Modern slavery and human trafficking are one of the greatest scandals and a tragedy of our age, which touches every part of the world in some way," said David John Moxon, who represented Welby.

In 2013, the Walk Free Foundation published a Global Slavery Index, covering all forms of bondage from people trafficking to children forced to wed, which estimated that 29.8 million people live in slavery worldwide.

The west African nation of Mauritania ranked worst for slavery, followed by Haiti and Pakistan.

Related Articles:




goldenageofgaia.comSteve Beckow,  March 24, 2013

“… GW: Well, let’s move over to Italy, then. And Pope Francis met with leaders of the various world faiths in this last week. In his humble style that he is becoming noted for, he chose not to sit on the usual papal throne, but rather in a simple armchair, a beige armchair.

Some of the other leaders had expressed optimism in the change of style of Francis. Are the other religious leaders now aware of the information that Francis is aware of? The higher information. And will they collectively be starting to change the tune of religious faiths around the world? Will this become a song sung by Francis and the faiths?

AAM: It has begun. They are humming. They are finding that it is a catchy tune, that is attractive, that it has a beautiful melody and refrain that sings in their hearts. Francis has basically thrown away the throne. He is not over-lighted to proceed in such a manner.

And what he is first and foremost doing is that he is reminding those others of all faiths that their role is to serve and that leadership is service, that they are shepherds of all ilks, all stripes, all colors. But their role is to collect and to show the way, in humility and patience, in forgiveness and compassion.

So, what Francis has begun to do is to say we do not need to be in control. We cannot find the middle way, the pathway of peace and true brotherhood and sisterhood through trying to control people. And this has been a gift. Oh, and dear heart, he has only just begun.

You have been asking for signs. Well, you are seeing them, are you not, on many fronts. But pay attention to this one. And might I give you a hint? Follow the money.

GW: Hmm. Intriguing. Okay. Well, at this point, then, now you have said previously, or it has been said previously, that Francis is over-lighted with the soul of St. Francis, and that he will be stepping forward in his role and that he is aware of and in contact with our galactic family.

That wasn’t clear previously; maybe you can clarify that. Has that knowledge and awareness been imparted to the leaders of the other faiths at this time? Are they aware of that and openly embracing that?

AAM: It has not been fully disclosed. It has been fully implied. And so… [laugh] I’m sorry. I laugh because it is a beautiful time that we have waited for. Now, let me suggest to you — no, let me simply tell you flat out, my friend, because you are a newsman. There were several galactics present at this gathering. The presence of the galactics was fully implied. And in side conversations it was a full point of discussion.

But the first focus of Francis is not to push the agenda of the galactics, but simply rather to let everybody know that they have been part of this enclave and part of the knowledge of the papacy for a long time. But his first agenda is bringing communion, community and peace amongst the different faiths and sects, amongst the human beings.

So that is his primary agenda. But he is weaving many things into it. Is he aware of the galactics? He has been aware of them for a very long time. He has been aware of them most of his life, actually. And so it is not that it is not on his agenda; it is. It is just not the first thing on his agenda.  …”

Dutch state owes millions to Dutch Indonesians, book claims

DutchNews.nl, Tuesday 18 March 2014

(Volkskrant/ANP)
The Netherlands owes millions of euros to the 380,000 Dutch forced to flee the former Dutch East Indies between 1950 and 1970 and banks and insurance companies also owe them a considerable debt, writes the Volkskrant on Tuesday.

The claim is made by journalist Griselda Molemans whose book ‘Opgevangen in andijvielucht’ (Welcomed by the smell of endive) chronicles the repatriation of thousands of Dutch Indonesians to the Netherlands.

Many had lost the paper work relating to bank accounts and life insurances in the confusion surrounding the Japanese occupation and the Indonesian revolution and so were unable to claim what was theirs.

Report

Molemans bases her findings on a 1945 report from the archives of the Federal Reserve in New York. It says that the 17 largest insurers sold 251.8 million guilders worth of life insurances in the former Dutch colony, the paper writes.

A large part of the unpaid funds were transferred to the United States after the Japanese invasion. The central bank of Indonesia, the Javasche Bank, likewise found a safe place for its gold and deposits.

According to Molemans the proof lies in the American vaults. The Dutch association of insurers denies the administration is in New York. Any claims only go through the Dutch archives.

Transparency

For its part, the Dutch state failed to pay out salaries and pensions to soldiers in the Dutch colonial army. Prisoners of war, citizens and the so-called ‘comfort girls’ never received their share of the Japanese compensation money.

Contrary to what most of the population believed at the time, the Dutch Indonesians were made to pay for their own repatriation and lodgings. The average debt was 15,000 guilders.

The Royal Netherlands institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies KTIVL , which has been championing more research into the colonial war, is quoted as saying the claims are ‘new’.

‘Some redress has been made by the state following earlier claims but claimants never received the sum they were entitled to,’ a spokesman for the institute said.

Silfraire Delhaye, chairman of the Indisch Platform, formed in the wake of the movement to pressure the Dutch government into recognising past wrongs in Indonesia, told the Volkskrant that although the material debt to the Indonesians is still a great one, recuperation of the money is complicated.

‘Many policies and deposits ended up elsewhere. We don’t know why. We need transparency and knowledge.’

Monday, March 17, 2014

Final missing 'Japan diver' body found in Indonesia

Google – AFP, 17 March 2014

Offerings are left on Semawang beach on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on
 February 19, 2014 after a scuba diving accident involving Japanese women. Five
divers were rescued and two killed, with the final body found only March 17, 2014
(AFP/File, Sonny Tumbelaka)

Malang — A body believed to be that of a Japanese diver who went missing with six others off Bali a month ago has been found far from where she disappeared, Indonesian police said Monday.

The body, thought to be that of diving instructor Shoko Takahashi, was found at the weekend on Sempu island, East Java province, some 400 kilometres (250 miles) from where the divers went missing.

Five of the other female Japanese divers in the group were rescued days after they went missing on February 14 while the body of a sixth washed up on the Indonesian resort island.

(AFP, Sonny Tumbelaka)
The body found at the weekend was barely recognisable -- the head was missing -- but Takahashi's Balinese husband believes it is her due to the clothes inside the diving suit, police said.

"The body was found on Saturday on a beach on Sempu island in Malang district," Malang marine police chief Slamet Prayitno told AFP.

"The husband, who came to the hospital last night, said he is 98 percent sure that the body belongs to his missing Japanese wife."

The body was flown to a hospital in Bali late Sunday, he said.

Takahashi was based on the resort island and with her Balinese husband ran the operator Yellow Scuba that took the divers out on the ill-fated expedition.

The captain of the boat that took them out has been arrested and faces a charge of "negligence which caused the loss of life" after leaving the divers alone in the open seas during the trip.

The women, all experienced divers, went on the expedition off Nusa Lembongan island, just east of Bali, an area famed for its stunning underwater beauty but also strong, unpredictable currents.

The survivors have told how the weather suddenly turned stormy and huge waves pushed them for miles before they managed to clamber onto a rocky outcrop near neighbouring Nusa Penida island.

They were eventually spotted on the outcrop and plucked to safety. They suffered dehydration and sunburn but no life-threatening injuries.

Related Article:


Saturday, March 15, 2014

In Joko Widodo Candidacy, A ‘Historic Decision’

Jakarta Globe, Mar 15, 2014

Senior PDI-P officials Puan Maharani and Tjahjo Kumolo holding up handwritten
 letters from chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri on Friday declaring Joko Widodo
the party’s presidential candidate. (SP Photo/Joanito de Saojoao)

Jakarta. The country’s main opposition party has tagged Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo as its presidential candidate for the July 9 election, in a surprise announcement on Friday that brings an end to months of speculation over whether party chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri would seek another stab at the presidency.

The announcement by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) was widely welcomed, with analysts saying Joko had cleared the biggest hurdle on the path to the presidency.

The PDI-P made the announcement at 2:42 p.m. on its official Twitter account, @PDI_Perjuangan, saying: “Megawati Soekarnoputri has officially mandated Jokowi as the 2014 presidential candidate.”

The governor spoke with reporters during an during an impromptu visit to Marunda, North Jakarta, saying he was prepared to run in the presidential race.

“I have been given the blessing of PDI-P chairwoman Megawati to be a presidential candidate. In God’s name, I am ready.”

Later in the day, Puan Maharani, a senior PDI-P official and Megawati’s daughter, confirmed that her mother had ordered all party members to support Joko’s bid, and had issued a similar call to all voters.

Tjahjo Kumolo, the PDI-P’s secretary general, said Megawati had made the decision to nominate Joko on Thursday evening, after concluding that he was the best choice for moving the country forward.

Sure win

Analysts have said that getting the PDI-P’s nomination was the biggest challenge for Joko if he sought to run for president.

“Now that he’s got the nomination, I think he will win the presidency,” said Muhammad Qodari, executive director of pollster IndoBarometer.

IndoBarometer’s latest survey conducted earlier this month showed Joko as the frontrunner with more than 30 percent of votes, followed by Prabowo Subianto, the founder and chief patron of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), a distant second with less than 16 percent.

Business tycon and Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie was in third place with 11.8 percent.

“Making the announcement before the legislative elections will make the PDI-P’s electability the highest among all the parties,” said Wawan Ichwanudin, a political science lecturer at the University of Indonesia.

The outcome of the April 9 legislative election is critical for parties eyeing the July 9 presidential ballot.

In order to be eligible to nominate a candidate, a party must win of 25 percent of the vote in the legislative election or 20 percent of seats at the House of Representatives.

Parties falling short of this threshold will have to form coalitions with other parties to make up the numbers.

Polls show that the PDI-P would get a sizeable boost in votes in the April ballot if it announced Joko’s candidacy before the legislative election.

‘Historic decision’

The popular reaction to the announcement has also been largely positive, with Jokowi, the governor’s popular nickname, becoming a worldwide trending topic on Twitter as millions expressed their support for him to become president.

Rival politicians were among those offering their congratulations.

Luhut Panjaitan, a Golkar stalwart, praised Megawati for nominating Joko, saying that the decision was “historic for Indonesia.”

“Mega has made an extraordinary and historic decision as the country needs a pro-people leader,” said Luhut, Golkar’s deputy chief patron.

“It’s a decision from an honest leader to make Indonesia better.”

From within the PDI-P, longtime Megawati confidant Sabam Sirait joked that Joko would have to take good care of himself, in a jibe at the governor’s skinny frame.

“We’ve asked him not to be too tiny. Indonesia need him to stay healthy,” Sabam said.

Running mate

Following the announcement, speculation mounted about who the PDI-P would choose to be Joko’s running mate, with officials from other parties hinting that they might want to hitch their wagon to the PDI-P’s in order to get the number two slot on the presidential ticket.

Bima Arya Sugiarto, a senior politician with the National Mandate Party (PAN), said the PDI-P had made a “beautiful breakthrough.”

He said the presidential election would be a three-horse race between Joko, Prabowo and Aburizal.

“I urge the PAN to quickly decide what we will do because the political constellation has changed totally,” Bima said.

“The option is we can join the PDI-P or form a coalition with Gerindra and Prabowo,” he added.

PAN has declared its chairman, Hatta Rajasa, who is also the current chief economics minister, as its presidential candidate.

Jusuf Kalla, the former vice president and a Golkar stalwart, expressed his willingness to become Joko’s running mate if asked by the PDI-P.

“I won’t refuse. If it is for the nation, we should be ready,” he said.

However, Idrus Marham, Golkar’s secretary general, insisted that the party would not join the PDI-P in a coalition because it was putting all its support behind Aburizal’s presidential bid.

“The PDI-P has a presidential candidate, and we also have our own candidate. So how do we form a coalition?” he said.

He said Golkar had no trepidation about the impact of Friday’s announcement.

“We decided on our own candidate two years ago. We are prepared. The challenge is how we can convinced people to vote for us,” Idrus said.

But with Kalla — a far more popular figure than Aburial both within Golkar and with the political establishment and general public — throwing his weight behind Joko, analysts are predicting a loss of votes for Golkar in the legislative election, which in turn will affect its ability to nominate Aburizal for the presidential ballot.

“Golkar will lose part of its voters because many are still loyal to Kalla. It will also threaten Aburizal’s chance,” said Ubedillah Badrun, executive director of the Center for Social and Political Studies.

Kalla has also gained support from the National Awakening Party (PKB) to team up with Joko, with the party lobbying the PDI-P to form a coalition even before the legislative election.

Marwan Ja’far, the PKB deputy chairman, said his party and the PDI-P had “communicated intensively” for a Joko-Kalla ticket in July.

Maruarar Sirait, a veteran PDI-P official, said his party would need time to decide who would run with Joko.

“We want to be careful to pick the running mate because we don’t him or her to be a liability,” he said.

Gerindra, meanwhile, said Joko’s nomination would not affect Prabowo’s popularity.

“According to our own survey, Prabowo’s electability continues to increase across the country,” said Suhardi, the Gerindra chairman.

He expressed confidence that Prabowo could defeat Joko in the election.

However, Qodari from IndoBarometer said that with Joko now in contention, Prabowo’s chances had diminished.

“Surveys have consistently indicated that Prabowo will not win the presidency if Joko runs,” he said.

The Democratic Party of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, which is holding a big-tent convention to choose its own candidate, also said it was ready to face off against Joko.

“We have prepared a strategy to face Joko’s nomination. Our candidates at the convention have been ready to challenge Joko, Prabowo or Aburizal,” said Andi Nurpati, a Democrat deputy secretary general.

Jakarta Deputy Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, from Prabowo’s Gerindra, also voiced his support for Joko’s candidacy, saying that his boss could help make the country better.

“I will support whoever wants to fix the country and has a good track record,” he said.

Under the law, Basuki will automatically become the governor until his term ends if Joko is elected president.

Joko will be required to take leave of office to campaign.

Basuki said that in anticipation of Joko winning the election, he had proposed Rieke Dyah Pitaloka, a PDI-P legislator, as a suitable deputy governor once he become governor.

He said that he and Rieke had worked well before in the House.

Rieke said separately that she and Basuki were old friends.

“I was on his campaign team when he ran for governor of Bangka-Belitung,” she said, adding that she and Basuki then met again at the House and had worked together since.

“We we’ve discussed many issues. While we have different opinions on several issues, we share a common stance on many other issues,” she said.

Rieke last year ran in the West Java gubernatorial election but lost.

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