Indonesia’s ‘smoking guns’ : Drugs, tobacco and forest fires

Indonesia’s ‘smoking guns’ : Drugs, tobacco and forest fires Julia Suryakusuma  ;   The author of Julia’s Jihad

JAKARTA POST,  19 Maret 2014

                              

                                                                                         

                                                      

What’s with the media frenzy over Schapelle Corby after her recent parole on Feb. 7 and release on Feb. 10? She’s merely a half-pretty, former Gold Coast beauty student and drug mule from a family with known offenses linked to marijuana, who tried to smuggle 4.2 kilograms of high-grade cannabis. She received parole as she had served two-thirds of her sentence and applied. Other foreigners have done so in the past. Renae Lawrence, one of the Bali 9 will also do the same soon. Nevertheless, Corby’s release on parole drew the ire of Indonesian politicians and anti-narcotics groups. The latter, for example, lambasted President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for granting her a five-year cut from her sentence after she appealed for clemency. He did so after a recommendation from a Supreme Court judge who noted that Corby had been treated for mental illness. However, the anti-narcotics groups said the decision sent out the wrong message to drug traffickers. The Corby media circus also distracts from the real, serious issue of a drug addiction crisis in Indonesia. According to National Anti-narcotics Movement (Gannas) statistics, 1.3 million Indonesians between the ages of 10 and 19 have experimented with drugs, while over 570,000 people in the same age group regularly abuse narcotics. And that could be just the tip of the iceberg. The issue of illegal drugs, however, are only one of Indonesia’s “smoking guns”. The second is tobacco. Despite anti-smoking moves in recent years from the government, Indonesia is still home to nearly 70 million smokers, the third largest in the world. While cigarette consumption is declining worldwide, we are in the throes of an uncontrolled tobacco habit: Indonesia is the new “Marlboro country”. The industry is thriving and international tobacco companies are able to operate in ways they haven’t been able to in the US for over 40 years. According to Sudibyo Markus, head of a smoking reduction team set up by the Indonesian Tobacco Control Network, “cigarette consumption is 302 billion sticks per year now”. This makes the per capita consumption of every Indonesian, including babies, 1,250 cigarettes per year. Babies smoking? Yup. Almost 35 percent of children smoke before the age of 10. Shocking. The government has tried to discourage smoking by imposing various prohibitions (ciggy ads before 10 p.m., under-17s from buying cigarettes), and banning smoking in public areas. These bans are mostly ignored. The cigarette industry generates revenue, so the government’s anti-smoking efforts seem decidedly ambivalent. Indonesia is one of the 10 countries that haven’t signed or ratified the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), while 170 countries have. Indonesia’s third “smoking gun” is of course smoke from annual forest fires. Currently the forest and peat fires originating in Riau are at the highest levels since the 2013 haze emergency caused by large-scale burning in many parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan, which affected much of Southeast Asia: Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and even southern Thailand. Indonesia has yet to ratify an ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution. This year, 55,000 Riau residents are suffering from haze-related illnesses: acute respiratory infections, pneumonia, skin and eye problems. Flights as well as daily activities are disrupted, causing heavy financial losses. What is it about Riau that makes it so vulnerable to fires? It’s home to major palm oil and pulp and paper producers! Many belong to, or supply companies that are household names both in Indonesia and overseas. Aha, now we’re getting somewhere! Around 87 percent of the fire alerts across Sumatra for March 4-11 are in Riau and according to data from the Forestry Ministry, half of them fall within land managed by palm oil, pulpwood and logging concessions. During investigations over the last month, police have named 60 suspects in 40 cases of forest fires in eight regencies and cities in Riau province. Shoot on sight orders have been issued for offenders resisting arrest. But are they really the ones to blame? Surely it’s the big palm oil and pulp companies that should be held responsible. The fires return every year because it’s the cheapest and fastest way of paving the way for new plantations. Naturally, these profit oriented companies disregard the law and operate even in areas pledging zero-burning policies. It’s cheap and fast for them, but everyone else has to pay the price. Nice. Indonesia is now a G20 country with an almost US$1 trillion economy. But it’s also the world’s worst forestry sector offender.  So shameful. Cheap and versatile, at least 50 percent of products on supermarket shelves contain palm oil, including food, cosmetics and cleaning products. We buy these products and without realizing it, we are contributing to the problem. But as consumers, we can change that and vote with our wallets. Think before you buy! Buy only green products that use sustainable palm oil. I have no love for tobacco companies, but now I reckon palm oil companies have overtaken tobacco companies as being the most dangerous. They do widespread and long-lasting damage to the environment, the health of millions of people, and kill wildlife. Unlike smokers or drug addicts, the effect of the fires is not a matter of personal choice. People don’t choose to breath the smoke the forest fires create.  It’s a kind of “mass assault” but the law turns a blind eye maybe because they get paid off? Ah, the good old collusion, corruption and nepotism (KKN)! The law really needs to get tough on companies that are behind the fires, and revoke their permits. Both the companies as well as those who willfully burn rain forests should be heavily punished. Jailed for life and making the offenders plant trees for 10 years with their bare hands. All this is very serious stuff, and has dire consequences for Indonesia’s future generations, and should be constantly exposed in the media to raise public awareness of the severity of the problems. But the combo of a photogenic Aussie girl, drugs and a judicial system in a foreign country which has a reputation for being corrupt and unjust, is irresistible. It’s so much more fun and “newsworthy”, isn’t it boys? ●

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A ‘No Drop’ solution to leaks in Indonesia’s democratic system

A ‘No Drop’ solution to leaks in Indonesia’s democratic system Julia Suryakusuma  ;   The author of Julia’s Jihad

JAKARTA POST,  05 Maret 2014

                                                                                                                       

                                                                                         

                                                      

If you live in Jakarta and are lucky enough to avoid flooding during the rainy season, you probably still have had to put up with leaks through cracks in the roof, walls and windows. Obviously you want to protect yourself from these occurrences. Left unchecked, they can result in a huge amount of damage. A television ad for “No Drop” water-proofing paint offers the solution. It features a (Caucasian) couple in bed. The wife starts to take off her husband’s PJs. From the expression on her face, it’s clear what’s on her mind: making whoopee. Suddenly the screen goes black and her voice is heard in the darkness, “How come it’s wet? Is there a leak?” Lights on again, and the couple are sitting up in bed looking at water pouring out of holes in the wall like a sieve. “Bocor, bocor! (leaking, leaking!)”, the wife shrieks. The scene cuts to “later”, and back in bed the husband reassures her that there will be no more leaks in the house because now he’s “condomized” the house with No Drop paint. Lights out and the couple get on with plugging their own leaks. If only it was that easy! While leaks in our houses only happen during the rainy season, the rotting of our democratic system seems to be a year-round phenomenon, with corruption seeping in everywhere. And it’s not just a drip-drip leak though tiny cracks in the system but more like floods gushing in through big gaping holes. Yes, there has been a torrent of ministers and legislators caught red-handed, but I guess few were surprised by that. What did come as a shock was the news that the rising damp has now spread to one of the few national institutions most people considered clean: the Constitutional Court (MK). Akil Mochtar, appointed its chief justice in April 2013, allegedly took bribes for favorable rulings in a number of local election disputes. Talk about ironic. The court was set up after Reformation in 1998, with the aim of safeguarding democracy, good governance and constitutional rights. Its functions include resolving disputes over the jurisdiction of state institutions, general election results and dissolution of political parties. It also has the authority to make a decision if the House of Representatives (DPR) thinks the president or vice president should be impeached. And of course, the court plays a historic role as the only Indonesian court since independence with the power to review the constitutionality of national statutes. Pretty high and mighty huh? And under the leadership of Jimly Asshiddique, the first chief justice (2003-2008), the court became the “poster boy” for reform in a judicial system that for half a century has generally been considered incompetent and corrupt. And it wasn’t shy about expanding its powers to influence the making and application of laws, thus bringing itself into direct conflict with the DPR, the most powerful body in post-Soeharto Indonesia. Establishing itself as clean and fiercely independent, actively exercising its review powers with rigor and transparency to keep politicians high and dry, the court gained great esteem in the public eye. Until now that is. Thanks to Akil, the MK has sprung a major leak, a humungously devastating one, in fact — little short of a national disaster. Standards have been sliding since Mohammad Mahfud MD became the second chief justice (2008-2013) but Akil takes the prize for plunging the reputation of the court to the bottom of the sewer. Jimly was so outraged that he called for Akil’s execution, although he later pointed out it is important to separate Akil’s criminal actions from the institution of the court. Obviously, he doesn’t want to throw out the baby with the bathwater (especially since it’s his baby!). Adnan Buyung Nasution, a leading advocate and key figure in the development of human rights law and constitutionalism in Indonesia, and one of the original proponents of the MK, differs. He feels there is a connection between the two and says that giving the court the job of resolving pilkada (regional elections) disputes was a mistake. “They are a source of corruption, because there are so many and too often the losers don’t want to accept the election results,” and this was something Akil took advantage of. Adnan feels amendments are needed to retract the court’s power over pilkada disputes and hand them to the regular courts. “Otherwise, how can we trust the court in the future especially when we are facing general elections?”  If found guilty, Akil will be punished, of course, but the bigger question is whether the court will survive his actions. More than any other post-Soeharto institution, aside from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), the court has been able to act as a check on government and legislators, making sure they stick to the rules of the game. As a result, our politicians hate the MK almost as much as they hate the KPK. Now that it has sprung a leak, they are already circling it, demolition hammers in hand. The title of a talk show on Metro TV on Oct. 5 last year, Skandal suap MK: Kiamat peradilan Indonesia? (The Constitutional Court bribery scandal: Doomsday for Indonesia’s judicial system?), nicely summed up the problem but it goes even further than that. The scandal, and how it is resolved, will be a litmus test of democratization. Together, the MK and the KPK have been a national “No Drop solution” to protect Indonesia against the erosion of constitutionalism and democracy. If they are diluted, stand back, folks, and watch the dirty water flood in. ●

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Sexy star wars on the legislative stage!   Julia Suryakusuma  ;   The author of Julia’s Jihad

JAKARTA POST,  19 Februari 2014

                                                                                                                        

                                                                                         

                                                                                                                       

How do you prepare yourself to pursue a career in politics? You could study political science, law, finance or journalism; seek opportunities to intern for political campaigns or public-service agencies; learn about the legislative process; network extensively; learn about fund raising and campaign-finance rules and regulations, etc. Or you could forget about that tedious stuff and just smile and look sexy. At any rate, that seems to have been the preferred strategy of 30-year-old Angel Lelga. Her credentials as a caleg (legislative candidate), for the Islamic United Development Party (PPP), is her popularity as a hot actress and sultry dangdut singer. At least I reckon that’s what Suryadharma Ali, religious affairs minister and head of the PPP must have thought when he recruited Angel, a mualaf (convert to Islam), as PPP caleg. Perhaps Angel starred in politically themed films? Nope. Her filmography consists of Susuk Pocong (Needle of the Shrouded Ghost), Rintihan Kuntilanak Perawan (The Moans of the Virgin Female Ghost), which also featured the ravishing Tera Patrick, an American porn actress, and Pelukan Hantu Janda Gerondong (In the Embrace of the Ghost of the Widow Gerondong) — all belonging to the popular genre of sexy horror movies. Not a politician in sight, just corpses and the undead (hmm, maybe there is a link after all). Angel has other claims to fame, however. At age 19 she was once the siri (unregistered) wife of Rhoma Irama, dangdut king and aspiring president (yes, of Indonesia!), and for her nine-year love affair with super-expensive Hermes bags (costing anywhere from US$4,000 up). She had 50, but now a few less since she sold some after she became a legislative candidate, to buy 5 hectares of paddy fields in her electoral district in Central Java so she could provide jobs for the locals and in that way be connected to her constituents. This is what she told Najwa Shihab, the host of talk-show Mata Najwa, on Jan. 15.  When Najwa asked her what she thought about the relationship between Islam, the state, Islamic parties and the existence of sharia-derived perda (regional regulations), Angel’s reply was a blatant and shameful display of her ignorance. Not surprisingly, she became the laughing stock of the twitterati and other Internet critics, and the interview may have put the proverbial stake through the heart of her political aspirations.  Ah well, she won’t be the last actor wanting to go into politics. The Americans backed Ronald Reagan, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Clint Eastwood. In India there is Shabana Azmi, Amitabh Bachchan and his wife Jaya Bachchan; in Italy, Gina Lollobrigida, Alessandra Mussolini and the notorious former porn star Ilona Staller; in the Philippines you have Fernando Poe (a high-school dropout, but a movie star with 300 movies to his name!), Herbert Bautista and, of course, Joseph Estrada who eventually became the 13th president of his country before landing in the slammer. What is it that celebrities bring to the political stage? Name recognition, naturally. Aspiring politicians know how important it is to turn yourself into a household name and how hard — and expensive — it is to do so. Because I’m not a fan of horror movies, sexy or otherwise, I had never even heard of Angel Lelga’s name before. But looking up the names of legislative candidates for 2014, I noticed it’s not just the PPP — all the parties have fresh celebrities lined up.  The National Mandate Party (PAN) has 10, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the National Awakening Party (PKB) have six each; the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party has five; the National Democratic (NasDem) Party and People’s Conscience (Hanura) Party have four each; the PPP, the Democratic Party (PD), Golkar and the Indonesian Justice and Unity Party (PKPI) each have three. The latter are Camel Petir (a dangdut singer), Norma Yunita (a pop singer) and Destiara Talita (a model for adult magazines).  What do these three artists have in common? They are all beautiful and sexy! But don’t worry, the party seniors have made sure that as caleg, they’re covered up in Muslim attire and all appear very decorous indeed. Appearances: the commonality between politics and acting. What’s behind the façade doesn’t matter. But if politics is to be an extension of showbiz and the broadcast media, we’re headed for ruin. The House of Representatives is already notorious for being one of the most under-performing and corrupt institutions in the country — it’s pretty certain that certain celebs could drag it down even further.  Political parties are supposed to be pillars of democracy. However, the current practice of celebrity caleg is a clear sign of the parties’ lack of belief in their own electoral power (not surprising, given the rampant corruption within most parties). In fact its a sign of desperation, and downright stupidity because all the polls and surveys are clear: The public doesn’t trust celebrity caleg. They know they are amateurs, and are totally aware that the nation will be in big trouble if they choose them.  Being appointed as a caleg is normally an incentive and a recognition of years of dedication and loyalty to the party. The trend of the celebrity caleg is clearly a disincentive for professional politicians and potential caleg who don’t have star power, but who could have a better chance of delivering in the long run.  The celebrity caleg phenomenon also serves to undermine the political contract between the party and the electorate which is based on trust. How can the electorate trust a party which is only interested in getting quick votes without thinking of the long-term consequences for the party, the political system, democracy and the nation? I used to be a fan of Star Wars, George Lucas’ epic movie series because it was fun and exciting. But the legislative election of “star wars” that will take place on April 9 — 48 days away — is more of a bimbo time-bomb than a war of stars. Brace yourselves for the explosion — and the mess — folks! ●

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