December 23, 2014 edition
THE heated debate on political party alignments has reignited. The new round of speculation began when Democrat Party Chairman Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono met President Joko Widodo at the Presidential Palace on Monday two weeks ago. The stated purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) summit set to take place in Bali in July 2015. Yudhoyono became chief of the GGGI after seeing out his term as Indonesia's president in October.
Speculation that Yudhoyono and Jokowi were actually talking politics was disputed by Amir Syamsuddin, head of the Democrats' ethics board. Amir said the party had no plans to join the coalition of parties supporting Jokowi, as the president is known. It had nothing to do with coalition issues, Amir said two days after the meeting.
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December 16, 2014 edition
Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja 'Ahok' Purnama has chosen Djarot Saiful Hidayat to run the city alongside him as deputy governor. The choice was based on Djarot's two terms of experience as mayor of Blitar, East Java. Since January, Ahok had been impressed by Djarot's leadership style, which he said resembled that of his former boss, President Joko Widodo. As Jakarta governor, Jokowi, as he is known, was known to drop in on people unannounced, crack down on the bureaucracy and prioritize the organizing of sidewalk vendors.
Ahok approached Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri, who supports Djarot, about his choice. There had been whispers that PDI-P politician and Jakarta Regional Representatives Council (DPD) Speaker Boy Bernardi Sadikin would be nominated for deputy governor. The PDI-P is also Jokowi's party.
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January 1, 1970 edition
Peringkat Presiden Joko Widodo turun ke urutan kedelapan dalam jajak pendapat kandidat Person of the Year 2014 majalah Time. Setelah sempat menduduki peringkat empat besar, posisi Jokowi digeser demonstran di Ferguson dan penggerak protes di Hong Kong, Joshua Wong, pada 29 November lalu.
Nama Joshua Wong melesat ke posisi tiga besar setelah pemimpin prodemokrasi Hong Kong itu ditahan polisi dalam unjuk rasa menuntut pemilihan langsung pada Pemilihan Umum 2017. Aksi protes tersebut berlangsung sejak Oktober lalu.
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January 1, 1970 edition
THE response to the price hike for subsidized fuel has been positive among the majority of the public. Of 1,770 respondents to last week's Tempo.co poll, 77 percent said President Joko Widodo made the right decision. However, 21.1 percent said the timing was not right, and 1.9 percent were unsure.
Businessmen appear to be singing the same tune. Many of them have wanted the government to cut the fuel subsidy for some time. Indonesian Entrepeneurs Association CEO Sofjan Wanandi said that if the price did not rise this year, Indonesia's treasury would collapse in the following fiscal year. "Raise it now and next year we will have peace of mind," he said.
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January 1, 1970 edition
WHEN Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, better known as Ahok, was still Jakarta's acting governor, he sent a letter of recommendation to shut down the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) to the Home Affairs and Justice and Human Rights ministries. At the time, the FPI was demonstrating against Ahok's appointment as governor. "The FPI has gone too far," Ahok said at City Hall.
He said the FPI was violating the constitution by rejecting him as governor. Also, it is said the FPI is being racist as it considers his Chinese ethnicity an issue. Ahok, former regent of East Belitung, also said FPI demons often cause traffic jams that are detrimental to Jakartans. "Let's wait and see whether the Justice and Human Rights Ministry will close down the FPI or not," he said.
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November 18, 2014 edition
MANY people were relieved after the arrest of three administrators of TrioMacan's Twitter account. As a result of reports by Indonesian Telecommunication, Telkom, and Abdul Satar to the police, Raden Nuh, Edi Syahputra and Harry Koeshardjono are now behind bars at the Jakarta Police. The three were charged with libel and extortion that could result in 12 years in prison. Police also charged Raden Nuh and Harry with money laundering.
Nuh, Edi, and Harry allegedly spread slander through @TrioMacan2000. They accused a Telkom official, with the initials AY, of collusion in an Information Ministry local internet project. Satar, CEO of TBIG-Telkom, reported TrioMacan and co for allegedly publishing false information on Twitter and affiliated online media.
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November 11, 2014 edition