Dyatmika School Student Tops English Studies for Bali Schools
Karina Andita a 6th grader from Dyatmika School junior high
has taken out the highest award for English language studies
for the region of Bali. Karina breezed through both local
district and regional competitions and will represent Bali
in the national language competitions in Jakarta later this
year. (September 9th 2006, Bali Post)
Indonesia’s Bird Flu Deaths Hit 48
The World Health Organization has confirmed two more cases
of bird flu in Indonesia, one of them fatal, bringing the
country’s death toll from the virus to 48. The cases,
which occurred last year, were added to the WHO tally because
of a recent change in the testing standards that the body
sets for cases of the H5N1 virus. They were already included
in Indonesia’s Health Ministry tally. “WHO is
adding two cases in Indonesia, dating back to June and November
of 2005,” the WHO said in a statement received Saturday
(9/9). “The retrospectively confirmed cases bring the
total in Indonesia to 63. Of these cases, 48 have been fatal.”
Nearly all the people who have been infected had close contact
with sick birds or their droppings. However, scientists fear
the virus could mutate into a form that is spread easily among
humans. (September 9th 2006, The Herald)
Undersea Quake Rocks Bali
A strong undersea earthquake rocked parts of eastern Indonesia
on Saturday (8/9), the United States Geological Survey said.
There were no immediate reports of damage, and a tsunami alert
was not issued. The 6.2 magnitude quake struck deep under
the Flores Sea, 205km north-east of Sumbawa island, the survey
said in a statement. Residents of Bali and Flores said they
felt the quake, but they had not seen any damage as a result
of it. (September 9th 2006, Bali Post)
More Than 90% of Trauma Injuries for Bali Caused by Road Accidents
A survey conducted over a two year period at the Sanglah General
Hospital emergency room has shown that 95.62% of cases admitted
to the department are caused by motor vehicle accidents. The
second most common cause for admission to the E.R. was heart
conditions. During the past two years the emergency room has
treated a total of 6,941 patients. 71.4 % of those treated
were male and 28.6% were female. The age group most commonly
admitted were those aged between 11 & 30 years. (September
6th‘06, Bali Post)
New Species Discovered off Indonesia: A shark that Walks on
Fins
Scientists combing through undersea fauna off Indonesia’s
Papua Province said Monday they had discovered dozens of new
species, including a shark that walks on its fins and a shrimp
that looks like a praying mantis. The team from U.S.-based
Conservation International also warned that the area, known
as Bird’s Head Seascape, is under danger from fishermen
who use dynamite and cyanide to net their catches and called
on Indonesia’s government to do more to protect the
area. “It’s one of the most stunningly beautiful
landscapes and seascapes on the planet,” said Mark Erdmann,
a senior adviser of Conservation International who led two
surveys to the area earlier this year. “Above and below
water, it’s simply mind blowing,” he said. Erdmann
and his team claim to have discovered 52 new species, including
24 species of fish, 20 species of coral and eight species
of shrimp. Among the highlights were an epaulette shark that
walks on its fins, a praying mantis-like shrimp and scores
of reef-building corals, he said. (September 18th 2006, AP)
Indonesia Raises Alert Level at Mt Talang Volcano
Scientists have raised the alert level at a rumbling volcano
on Indonesia’s Sumatra Island after it showed signs
of increased activity, but a major eruption is not imminent,
an official said Sunday 10/9). Sensors on the slopes of Mount
Talang in west Sumatra picked up increased volcanic activity
and a build-up of gases, but the mountain did not send debris
or lava down its slopes, said Dalipa Marjusi, an official
at a monitoring post. The 9,186-foot mountain was spewing
brownish smoke some 820 feet into the air on Sunday, after
the alert was raised to the second-highest level a day earlier,
but nearby towns and villages were in no danger, Marjusi said.
He said authorities had yet to evacuate 43,000 people living
just outside a danger zone but were urging villagers and tourists
to stay off the mountain’s slopes. After a minor eruption
last year, more than 25,000 people were evacuated because
of fears of further volcanic activity. The mountain, in Solok
in West Sumatra province, about 560 miles northwest of Jakarta,
is one of at least 129 active volcanoes in Indonesia, the
world’s largest archipelago nation. (September 9th 2006,
AP)
Prosecutors Reject Corby Appeal Bid
Indonesian prosecutors rejecting Schapelle Corby’s last
ditch appeal say there was no need for police to fingerprint
the body board bag in which she’s alleged to have concealed
4.1kg of marijuana. There was no need for fingerprinting because
the evidence was inside the convict’s bag,” said
prosecutor Suhadi, in his written rejection of Corby’s
bid to overturn her 20-year sentence for drug smuggling.Corby
last month applied to Indonesia’s Supreme Court for
a judicial review of her case - the last chance court appeal
before she pleads for clemency. She insists the marijuana
found in her body board bag at Denpasar airport in Oct. 2004
was planted by members of a drug ring operating at Australian
airports. One plank of her final appeal was that as police
had not checked for fingerprints on the plastic bag containing
the marijuana, prosecutors had failed to prove she was a drug
smuggler. The arguments by Corby’s lawyers, and prosecutors
counter-arguments, will be sent to the Supreme Court in Jakarta,
which will rule whether there is enough reason to reopen her
case. (September 13th 2006, AEST)
Australian “Today Tonight” Host Held in Indonesia
Australian Seven network personality Naomi Robson and a television
crew have been stopped by Indonesian authorities after attempting
to enter the troubled province of Papua on tourist visas,
Indonesian authorities have confirmed. The Today Tonight current
affairs show host and her four-member crew were questioned
on arrival at Jayapura airport in Papua on Wednesday (13/9)
morning after a tip-off from anonymous sources, Indonesian
foreign affairs department spokesman Desra Percaya told AAP.The
five are now expected to be deported and possibly fined and
blacklisted from ever entering Indonesia, Mr. Percaya said.
“When we looked at papers, the documentation, it seems
there was a breach of immigration regulation, meaning that
they entered Indonesia using the on-arrival visa which is
for tourism, while we do have some information and other indication
that they are going to do some kind of journalistic activity.
That’s why they were being questioned by the local authorities,
by the police”. (September 13th 2006, AEST)
Telephone Repairman Convicted over Bali Bomb II
An Indonesian court has sentenced a telephone repairman to
eight years in jail for his role in last year’s suicide
bombings on the Island of Bali. The presiding judge said Dwi
Widyarto has been “found, legally and convincingly,
guilty of having taken part in terrorism.” The 33-year-old
was accused of helping to transfer footage onto a compact
disc showing a suspected militant threatening Western nations.
Malaysian-born Noordin Mohammad Top, who remains on the run,
is thought to have organised the Bali attacks. The bombings
on October 1, 2005 killed 20 people. An Indonesian school
teacher, Abdul Aziz, was jailed for eight years for his part
in the same plot earlier this week. Two other men accused
of taking part in the bombings are still on trial. (September
7th 2006, Radio Australia)
Indonesia Sets Date for Execution of Christian Militant
Three Indonesian Christian militants convicted of leading
a mob that killed Muslims will be executed on Thursday, the
convicts’ lawyer said, despite a papal plea for clemency.
Fabianus Tibo, Marianus Riwu and Dominggus Silva were sentenced
to death in 2001 after being found guilty of leading a Christian
mob in an attack that killed more than 200 people at an Islamic
boarding school during Muslim-Christian clashes in Central
Sulawesi’s Poso region. “Yesterday the prosecutors
gave the letter of notice (to the convicts) for the execution
to take place on September 21,” Roy Rening, the lawyer
for the convicts, told Reuters. The three farmers were scheduled
to face a firing squad last month at a secret location in
Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi province. But the decision
was delayed after demonstrations by thousands of Indonesians,
and an appeal from Pope Benedict. The men have appealed for
presidential clemency for a second time last month. President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono rejected their appeals for a pardon
last year and there has been no indication he will change
his mind this time. Indonesia last carried out an execution
in March of last year when a woman in East Java province was
put to death in a multiple murder and mutilation case. Muslim-Christian
clashes erupted in Central Sulawesi from late 1998 to 2001,
killing 2,000 before a peace accord took effect. Three Islamic
militants have also been sentenced to death for their leading
roles in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202
people. (September 19th 2006, Reuters)
Indonesia Joins Criticism of Pope’s Comments on Islam
Religious leaders in Indonesia have joined mounting criticism
in the Muslim world over recent remarks by the head of the
Roman Catholic Church criticising Islam. In a recent speech
in Germany, Pope Benedict quoted a 14th century Christian
emperor who said that the Prophet Mohammed had brought the
world nothing but evil. The head of Indonesia’s second
largest Islamic organisation, Muhammadiyah, says the pope’s
comments betray a lack of understanding...and could hurt the
“harmonious” relations between Muslims and Catholics.
There’s also been criticism and calls for apologies
from government and religious leaders in Pakistan, India and
the Middle East. The Vatican has said it was not the intention
of the Pope to hurt the feelings of Muslim believers. (September
15th 2006, Radio Australia)
Indonesia Raises Alert Level at Smoking Mount Bromo Volcano
Indonesia has raised the alert level at a smoking volcano
on Java Island, and is urging villagers and tourists to stay
off the mountain’s slopes, the government said Wednesday
(6/9). Mount Bromo typically erupts once a year, but it does
not send debris or lava far down its slopes and nearby towns
and villages were in no danger, government volcanologist Suryono
told el-Shinta radio station. Bromo was placed at the second-highest
alert level on Tuesday (5/9), meaning an eruption may occur
within one or two weeks, said Suryono. “The mountain
is showing signs of mischief and the smell of sulphur is very
strong,’’ said Suryono, urging hikers and villagers
not to visit the crater. “It never erupts dramatically,
but the danger here is people get very close to the crater,’’
he said. The 2,329-meter-high (7,641-foot-high) mountain is
one of Java’s most popular tourist attractions. Villagers
often trek to the crater to leave offerings at the peak. (September
6th 2006, AP)
Indonesia Becoming Regional Drug Gateway
Indonesia is emerging as a drug haven on Australia’s
doorstep and a key transit point for deadly shipments of heroin,
cocaine and amphetamines to our shores. A major new report
by the Australian National Council on Drugs also reveals an
alarming rise in the use, production and trafficking of illicit
drugs across the Asia-Pacific region. It identifies a new
breed of drug user in Asia - the affluent children of those
who are riding the region’s economic boom. “Amphetamines
are making substantial inroads into rapidly growing and economically
powerful youth cultures in many countries,” the report
says. “This is especially the case among children of
political leadership in some countries.” The report,
obtained exclusively by The Australian, has worrying implications
for Australia, which has boosted police resources in the region
to try to strangle the flow of illicit drugs. It finds Indonesia
and China have emerged as key players. “Following the
end of the Suharto era there has been a considerable growth
in the drug trade (in Indonesia),” the report finds.
“Indonesia was previously a transit rather than destination
country for illicit drugs but this has recently changed so
that Indonesia is now a point of transit, a destination and
a source of drugs.” Indonesia’s wild and remote
coastline is a haven for drug-smugglers wanting to bring their
illegal cargo into Australia. “Cocaine from the Andes
travels via Brazil onwards to Hong Kong, then to Denpasar
(Bali) and often to Australia,” the report says. (September
19th 2006, The Australian)
