24 Indonesian Islands Disappear
Indonesia has lost 24 of its more than 17,500 islands due
to natural disasters and environmental damage, a minister
said yesterday, according to the Antara news agency. Maritime
Affairs and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi said four islands
disappeared when the massive tsunami devastated Aceh on December
26, 2004. Twenty other islands in Sumatra’s Riau province
and in the Seribu island group in Jakarta Bay had also vanished
due to exploitation and environmental damage, Numberi said.
Consequently, Indonesia’s total tally of islands has
fallen from 17,504 to 17,480, he said. (November 30th 2007,
AFP)
Aust Counter-Terrorism Trainer Targeted in Indonesia
Police in Indonesia are investigating whether there are any
terrorism links to a shooting attack in central Java directed
at the Australian director of a counter-terrorism training
centre. Lester Cross is the director of the Australian Government-funded
Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement, based in Semarang in central
Java. Mr. Cross was traveling with his family in a car on
Sunday (25/11) on the way to a friend’s wedding, when
three men on motorcycles fired at their vehicle. The precise
details of the attack have not been confirmed. Local police
Chief Dodi Sumatiawan said bullets struck a bulletproof window
and tyre when a vehicle did not stop. No one was hurt in the
attack. “We strongly believe it was an armed robbery
attempt,” Inspector-General Sumatiawan said. He says
police are still investigating whether there are any links
to terrorism. (November 30th 2007, ABC)
Mass Tree-Planting throughout Indonesia
Indonesia is trying to plant nearly 80 million trees in a
single day, in an attempt to set a new world record and deflect
criticism about deforestation. Police, soldiers and local
officials joined President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the
nationwide project. The plan is part of a campaign launched
at UN climate change talks last year. A World Bank report
puts Indonesia as the world’s third largest greenhouse
gas emitter - owing to deforestation, land clearing and forest
fires. President Yudhoyono took part in the planting of more
than 1,000 native trees in Bogor, west Java. Mr. Yudhoyono
declared the trees a gift to the world, and said the event
showed Indonesia was serious about protecting the environment.
The goal is to have 79 million native trees planted by the
end of the day, and officials are hoping to set a world record.
But according to Greenpeace, Indonesia holds another less
flattering record - the world’s fastest deforestation
rate. (November 30th 2007, BBC)
High Tide Disrupts Flights and Forces Thousands to Flee Indonesia’s
Capital
Indonesia’s environment minister said Tuesday (27/11)
global warming was to blame after parts of the capital were
flooded with sea water, forcing thousands of people to flee
inundated homes & cutting off a highway leading to the
international airport. Authorities used pumps to lower water
levels, which reached up to 1.7mtrs (5.6 feet) in the worst-hit
areas and washed 2 kilometers (more than a mile) inland, said
Iskandar, an official at Jakarta’s flood crisis center.
“I haven’t seen it this bad in several years,”
said Toki, a policeman directing traffic around a flooded
area near Sukarno-Hatta airport, where thousands of people
have been stranded or trapped in the last 24 hours, forcing
many flights to leave with only a handful of passengers. Environment
Minister Rachmat Witoelar said global warming was at least
partially to blame with rising sea levels making coastal cities
like Jakarta especially vulnerable to flooding and monsoon
storms. Authorities also ignored warnings about exceptionally
high 18-year tide cycles, flood expert Jan Japp Brinkman told
the Jakarta Post newspaper, and the situation was exacerbated
by a failure to fix a sea barrier that was breached over a
week ago.(November 27th 2007, Reuters)
Bali Employers Required to Pay New Minimum Rates - January
2, 2008
The Bali Post reports that the Governor of Bali has set a
new minimum wage level of between Rp.685,000 (US$73.66) to
Rp.805,000 (US$86.56) per month for workers in regencies and
cities across Bali. The new levels take effect from January
2, 2008 and vary depending on the area of employment. The
highest rate applies for workers employed in the most populous
Bandung regency of Bali. The new minimum wage levels, set
out in the Governor’s Rule No. 8 of 2007, provide for
monthly wage minimum of Rp. 685,000 in the Bangli, Tabanan
dan Buleleng regencies. The minimum wage for Denpasar is Rp.
800,000 (US$82); Rp. 760,000 for Gianyar regency (US$81.72);
Rp. 737,500 (US$79.30) for Jembrana regency; Rp. 712,320 (US$76.59)
for Karangasem regency; and Rp.686,000 (US$73.76) for Klungkung
regency. The new regulation issued by the Governor states
that the minimum wage paid by a company shall be based on
a consensus reached between the business and the head of the
union, taking into consideration the company’s financial
capabilities and the general cost of living. Companies are
entitled under the law to request a postponement of any mandated
wage increase from the Department of Manpower. To obtain a
postponement the employer must submit company results for
the past two years and minutes of meetings conducted with
the company’s union discussing the requested delay in
paying the required minimum wage. (December 1st 2007, Bali
Update)
Police Bribing Caught on Video, Viewed on You-Tube
A member of the public who goes by the code name “Millstone
2006” has posted a 7 minute video on the You-Tube video
website, which appears to be a Western tourist paying off
a police officer in Bali for being caught driving a motorbike
without a license. The man is seen to be paying the officer
the amount of fifty thousand rupiah before being allowed to
drive away. A spokesman for the police department Mr. Lukman
Wahyu said he would look into the video which was posted on
24th October 2007, to ascertain its authenticity. (December
2nd 2007, Radar Bali)
Police Detain 18 People Suspected of Trying to Create Furor
Police on Monday (3/12) detained 18 youths suspected of trying
to create uproar during the ongoing United Nations climate
change conference in Bali. The people, who hailed from neighboring
West Nusa Tenggara province, are being interrogated at the
detective and criminal unit of the Bali provincial police.
They were detained aboard a boat sailing the waters off the
Bali southern coast en route to Padangbai port in Karangasem
district, Bali, a spokesman of the water police directorate
at the provincial police said. Chief of the Bali Provincial
Police’s Information Service Snr Comm AS Reniban confirmed
the arrest, saying the 18 youths were being detained following
a clue that they would come to Bali to stage a rally in connection
with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC). He said police did not ban people from staging a
rally on the occasion of the conference, provided they had
informed the police about the aim of the rally. (December
3rd 2007, Antara News)
Green Peace’s Rainbow Warrior Docks at Benoa Harbour
Rainbow Warrior, the famous Greenpeace ship that has launched
dozens of battles to save the environment and wildlife, will
dock at Benoa Harbor on Friday (7/11) on a mission to combat
climate change. With a flotilla of 80 small boats around it,
the flagship of the international NGO will carry the message
‘Climate Action Now’, Stephanie Tunmore of Greenpeace
International said. As delegates from 187 countries gather
here to discuss ways to address climate change, Greenpeace
will also stage a rally in the Bali capital Denpasar Saturday
(8/11), which it has named ‘the global day of action
on climate change’, Tunmore added. The NGO has been
collecting signatures around the world, especially from children,
urging strong action to combat global warming. These signatures
will be given to the many ministers scheduled to be here for
the second leg of the Nov 3-14 UN conference on climate change.
Greenpeace is part of a group of over 430 NGOs around the
world, which have formed the Climate Action Network. As the
UN conference opened here Monday, the network placed a giant
thermometer outside the majestic Bali International Convention
Centre to drive home the point that the world is getting hotter.
The message on the 6.7-metre-tall thermometer was: ‘Don’t
cook the climate’. (December 7th 2007, Earthtimes)
Indonesian Lion Air Plane Grounded after Part Falls Off
An MD-90 plane operated by Indonesia’s Lion Air has
been grounded after a three-meter-long component of the aircraft
was found on a runway, an official said Thursday (6/12).This
is the latest incident in a series highlighting air safety
concerns in Indonesia, an archipelago where flying is a crucial
means of travel. Last week the EU extended a ban on all Indonesian
planes flying in its airspace following a series of fatal
accidents in Indonesia. “Lion Air has admitted that
the part belongs to one of its aircraft. The MD-90 is now
grounded and an investigation is currently ongoing,”
said Heri Bakti, the head administrator of Jakarta’s
Sukarno-Hatta airport. Lion Air’s operational director,
Ertata Lanang Galih, said it fell off the plane because of
“a mistake of the workshop, the factory”. (December
7th 2007, Antara news)
Strong Earthquake Rocks UN Climate Conference in Bali
A 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck off Bali on Friday (7/11),
officials said, and it was strongly felt at the UN climate
conference in the resort island. The earthquake, which hit
at 1605 IST, struck 261 kilometers southwest of the Bali resort
of Nusa Dua, where delegates are meeting to craft a strategy
to combat climate change, Indonesia’s Meteorology and
Geophysics Agency said in a statement. There was no threat
of a tsunami, and the quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers,
the agency said. (December 8th 2007, AFP)
Solar-Powered Car First Cab on Rank in Bali
Louis Palmer’s taxi cost as much as two Ferraris, has
a top speed of 90 kms per hour yet could make history as the
first solar-powered car to drive around the world. Palmer,
a Swiss teacher who set off from Lucerne in July, is having
a stop-off in Bali, Indonesia, to help environment ministers
and others among 10,000 delegates get around at a December
3-14 UN climate conference in a luxury beach resort. “I
want to make people aware that there is global warming but
you also have solutions,” Palmer said. His car is an
example of new ways to curb use of fossil fuels at the UN
talks, which is trying to widen a fight against global warming.
He reckons the car would cost around $8,900 if mass produced.
But factoring in work by sponsors and friends the car would
be the cost of two Ferraris. “The top speed is 90, but
in city traffic the Ferraris go 50. So do I.” The car
is 9m long including the trailer and weighs 700 kg. Palmer
admits he cheats if daily trips exceed 100 kms - he then needs
to use a back-up battery, charged by electricity from solar
panels. (December 5th 2007, Reuters)
Yudhoyono Calls on People to Reduce use of Private Vehicles
and Plastics
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called on the Indonesian
people to lessen the use of private vehicles and plastic goods.
In order to reduce air pollution, government officials and
the people should limit the use of private motor vehicles,
the President said here on Tuesday (4/12) when having a dialog
with students, teachers, environmental NGO activists and participants
of the `Bicycle For Earth` Goes To Bali program. The head
of state also called on government officials and the people
to use bicycles when they want to go to a destination that
was only three or four kilometers away. On plastic goods,
the President urged the people to limit the use of non-degradable
plastic and styrofoam food containers. “To ban the use
of plastic and styrofoam, we need to issue a specific law,”
he said. (December 4th 2007, Antara News)
Woman Gives Birth to Indonesia’s Heaviest ever Baby
A woman has given birth to Indonesia’s heaviest ever
baby, a boy weighing 6.9 kilogram’s (15.2 pounds), hospital
staff said Wednesday. The baby was born at a private maternity
clinic on the outskirts of the Indonesian capital Jakarta,
a nurse on duty there told AFP. “He was born at about
4:30 pm (0930 GMT) on Monday, but because of respiratory problems,
the baby was taken to Fatmawati (hospital) a few hours later,”
the nurse said. The 37-year-old mother had gestational diabetes,
which puts babies at risk of being heavier than normal. Indonesia’s
previous heaviest baby, according to the Indonesian Museum
of Records website, was born in East Java’s Surabaya
and weighed 6.4 kgs. (December 5th 2007, Antara News)
Corby Link to Bali Drug Distribution
Four associates of the convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby
were named in a police intelligence report as being part of
a ring that transported drugs between Brisbane and Bali -
three weeks before she was arrested at Denpasar Airport with
cannabis in her boogie board bag. A 2004 police intelligence
report quotes a witness alleging that the four people were
involved in manufacturing amphetamines in Brisbane that were
then transported in powder and tablet form to Bali in a “dark
colored suitcase surrounded by oily paper within a false bottom”.
Corby’s arrest and conviction for drug smuggling captured
the nation’s attention. Corby, now 30, and her family
have long claimed she was a victim and that her bag was used
by drug smugglers. She is serving a 20-year sentence at Kerobokan
prison in Bali. (December 8th 2007, Brisbane Herald)
Surfer Killed by Lightening Strike on Kuta beach
A young surf instructor Ryan Hidayat (26) was killed when
he was struck by lightening as he surfed off of Kuta beach
on Thursday (6/12). Weather conditions over the area were
cloudy with electrical storm activity at the time the surfer
was struck at around 4pm. Ryan was treated in the Intensive
Care Unit of Sanglah hospital, but passed away the following
day. Ryan, affectionately known as Yayat, was popular amongst
the Kuta surfing community, and had lived in Bakung Sari for
many years. His body has been returned to his family in Jember.
(December 8th 2007, Denpost)
