Sidelines
Hatred is strength. Anger is force. Darth Vader understood this. And probably so, too, those who have formulated political words and acts since the 20th century: from Hitler to Donald Trump, from Stalin to IS, from the Ku Klux Klan to Pol Pot, from the Red Guards to the Islamic Defenders Front. They incite anger, they spread hatred, and then they turn both of them into 'ideology' and from then on who knows how many victories are celebrated and how many millions of bodies pile up.
Anger, hatred, violencethey differ from one another and do not always have a relationship of cause and effect. Yet how often we see the three fused, both in history and in imagination.
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Interview
Ade Komarudin wasted no time in stepping on the gas pedal soon after he was sworn in to replace House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Setya Novanto who recently resigned. Ade, a native of Purwakarta, went on a marathon of meetings with the heads of political parties. Ade first met with National Democrat (NasDem) Chairman Surya Paloh. The next day, Ade attended the swearing-in ceremony of ambassadors at the State Palace, where he met with Hanura Party Chairman Wiranto. He also plans to eventually pay his respects to Megawati Soekarnoputri, who leads the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
In fact, Ade's political consolidation actually began before he took over the reins of the legislature. He even went to see Democrat Party Chairman Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, telling him, "I will have met with 10 political party chiefs and influential people," Ade recounted last week.
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Law
Bona Sigalingging never missed a count of how many times the congregation of the Yasmin Indonesian Christian Church (GKI Yasmin) had conducted their services on the street across from the State Palace in Jakarta. The latest Sunday service on January 3 was the 108th held on Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat, Central Jakarta.
Neither do they only use the location for their fortnightly prayer meets. For the last four years, they have also celebrated Christmas services right there on the road. On Christmas Day last year, GKI Yasmin worshippers held a joint-service with the Huria Kristen Batak Protestan Filadelfia (the Batak Protestant Church) from Bekasiwho have also been evicted from their own church. "We decided to do Christmas services there because we have been banned from worshipping in our church," said Bona, a spokesman for GKI Yasmin, on Wednesday last week.
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Diplomatic Bag
At a meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi in Jakarta recently, Singapore's top diplomat Vivian Balakrishnan conveyed Singapore's interest to intensify cooperation in several areas, such as manpower development. Balakrishnan was on a two-day visit to Indonesia last week.
The cooperation will include a scheme to help Singaporean companies recruit personnel from Indonesia. Balakrishnan said Indonesian universities will be able to provide graduates with relevant skills in the digital world. "We are thinking of launching a scheme, in which Singapore companies will be able to recruit their human resources here and provide services for the rest of the world," he said.
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Investigation
THE problem of illegal Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia is a very complex one, made even more complicated due to the alleged involvement of many government officials. Even so, there are plenty who feel that if the bureaucracy is managed well, including the issuance of permits by immigration offices, the government would be able to prevent the trafficking of these workers and the 'slavery' of Indonesians abroad.
In an interview with Tempo in his office last November, Maryoto Sumadi admitted to plenty of irregularities when it comes to the issuing passports in the provinces and at Indonesian consulates abroad. Maryoto said the predicament was a difficult one to manage because it involves many interested parties. "The motivation inevitably has to do with money," he said. Excerpts:
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Opinion
There has been quite a buzz over the recent appearance of Golkar Party's two disputing camps at the State Palace. The visit of Aburizal Bakrie and Agung Laksono, both of whom claim to be the rightful Golkar chairman, should not be seen as a sign of President Joko Widodo's mastery of national politics. In fact, if he is not careful, Jokowi can get sucked into the morass of the vicious influence of the political oligarchs surrounding him.
The origins of the Golkar conflict can be traced back to the presidential election campaign two years ago. At the time, Aburizal offered Gerindra Party Chairman Prabowo Subianto to be a candidate for the presidency. After its nominee lost, Golkar opted to be a balancing power by staying outside the government. With a number of other parties backing Prabowo, Golkar became the main engine of the opposition, the Red and White Coalition.
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Indicator
Citing lack of money as the reason, the government is toying with the idea of levying funds from sales of fossil fuel to develop renewable energy. Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said publicly broached the idea when he announced the fuel price decrease late last December.
The energy resilience fund will be levied at Rp200 per liter for Premium and Rp300 per liter for Diesel fuels. Based on initial calculations, within one year, the amount of funds collected would reach Rp16 trillion. The plan immediately triggered controversy regarding which agency should be responsible for its management, the method used for collection, the relevant laws governing it and the fund's accountability.
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National
Megawati Soekarnoputri corrected the speech draft a couple of times. The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairperson was not yet happy with the points the speech would raise regarding the Outlines for Government Policies (GBHN). Megawati then added her own words to underscore the argument. "It's Ibu Mega's idea," said PDI-P Secretary-General Hasto Kristiyanto last Thursday.
Before the speech was drafted, Mega had the idea researched by a team from PDI-P's Situation Control and Analysis Center that her son Muhammad Prananda Prabowo headed. "Ibu also read historical documents to seek inspiration," Hasto said.
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Weekly Business
FINANCE
BKPM Prunes Investment Licensing
The Investment Coordinating Agency (BKPM) launched a new service for investors at the Central One-Stop Integrated Service Point (PTSP) to shorten licensing time. BKPM Chief Franky Sibarani said the service constituted a breakthrough to facilitate new investment ventures as well as business expansion undertakings.
BKPM Prunes Investment Licensing
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Economy
There is no indication that the off-white house on Jalan Granting, Surabaya, generates Rp250 million per month in business earnings. Its iron fence is rusty. There is peeling paint on the building's front wall. "This is my house for garment production," said Farida Basamalah, owner of Familita Muslim garment workshop, last week.
The house bearing no nameplate is the hub of the Familita operation. Some 20 men and women go there to work every day. In the living room stands a long table, where workers cut reams of fabric. Iron shelves stacked with yarn line the room, with mannequins standing on guard. Two rooms have been transformed into a single sewing room. "We have neighbors working in their own homes to fold the garments we produce," said Mega Dwi Haryati, Farida's second offspring.
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Cover Story
Kurnia Widodo was shocked when Tempo showed him photographs, taken from various angles, of a man in blue jeans and matching t-shirt as he walked around holding a Beretta handgun. Kurnia saw the pictures an hour after the man wearing a Nike baseball cap carried out a terror attack in Central Jakarta early last Thursday.
At the time, photographs of the young man wearing blue canvas shoes and carrying a backpack appeared on some online media with no explanation of his identity. But Kurnia immediately recognized the man in the photo. "Oh my God, that's Afif or Sunakim," he said repeatedly. As a comparison, Tempo showed Kurnia other photographs of the same person, looking slightly older, when he was on trial several years ago. Kurnia insisted the person in the photographs was Afif.
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Tempo Talks
Improving Connectivity, Boosting Cooperation
This year, Indonesia and India mark 75 years of diplomatic relations. However, the ties between the two nations have existed much longer, predating the establishment of the Republic of Indonesia and the Republic of India. These connections span social, cultural, religious, economic, and trade aspects. But do those close ties of the past have any bearing on the present relationship? Why is there no direct flight between the capitals of the two countries?
Indian Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste, Sandeep Chakravorty, shares his views on this matter at TEMPO TALKS.
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December 23, 2024
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