The number of patients with dengue fever or dengue hemorrhagic fever that have been reported in the Badung district of Southern Bali have jumped dramatically compared to 2009 statistics. According to a spokesman from the Department of Health Gede Putra Suteja, the number of reported cases is 1,675 so far this year, and yet in 2009 there were only 1,400 reported cases for the entire year. According to Suteja, the reason for the drastic increase in cases could be that the 5 year epidemic cycle of dengue fever has occurred in the 2010 season, and that unusual rainfall has contributed to the increase in mosquito population. (July 15th 2010)
Nike World Cup Jerseys - Garment Factory Workers in Jakarta see Red
Garment workers in a garment factory near the capital Jakarta making the Dutch, English and Australian replica shirts and the Australia team jersey only earn around $5 a day and labor activists are pushing for that to be doubled. Nike has contracted production of some of its World Cup jerseys out to Jakarta garment manufacturer PT Tuntex, where factory workers earn the basic wage of Rp. 1.1 million ($121.5) a month. “That’s not enough to live in Jakarta so almost all the workers send their children home to live in the village with relatives,” said Alif Imam, an activist with the NGO Educating for Justice. “They work eight to nine hours a day, six days a week. We think Nike should give the workers 2.5 million rupiah per month.” A spokeswoman for PT Tuntex, Sri Wijiastuti, said it followed the law and paid workers the local minimum wage. In a statement emailed to Reuters, Nike said it was committed to working with factories that provide a fair environment. “Nike believes that local wage setting is best done by negotiations between workers, labor representatives, the employer and the government,” the statement said. Inflation is picking up in Asia and manufacturers looking to invest in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy will be watching closely for any signs that wages may be on the rise. The country is looking to boost foreign investment to grow the economy. Textile workers in Bangladesh rioted last month over demands that their pay be lifted above the minimum monthly wage of about $24. (July 10th 2010)
Tiger Countries Meet in Bali to Map Rescue; Only 3,000 Remaining Worldwide
Representatives from 13 “tiger-range countries” met in Bali on Monday (12/7) to draft a global recovery plan ahead of a summit in Russia in September. “We’re gathering here because we share concerns about the sustainability of tigers,” Indonesian Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan said in an opening address to delegates. “It is alarming that out of the 9 tiger subspecies in the world, only six are remaining.” The plan to be drafted in Bali will be used as the basis for discussion at a “tiger summit” in St. Petersburg from September 15 to 18. “In Indonesia alone, only the Sumatran tiger still exists, while the other two subspecies have become extinct,” the minister said, referring to Javan and Balinese tigers which were wiped out in the 1980s and 1940s respectively. He blamed a “lack of law enforcement” for the continuing losses of Sumatran tigers, which number only about 400 in the wild. Several are killed every year by poachers and villagers who compete with them for dwindling forest resources. WWF says the global, wild population of tigers of all species has fallen from about 100,000 to an estimated 3,200 over the past century. (July 12th 2010)
Towering Undersea Volcano Mapped off Indonesia
US and Indonesian researchers, using a powerful sonar system and a robotic vehicle with high-definition video, are exploring terrain off Sulawesi island in hopes of getting a glimpse into complex and little-known marine ecosystems.They have mapped 6,200 sq-km of sea floor since setting off last month, an area equal to the size of the US state of Delaware, according to a news release from the American embassy in Jakarta. They found one undersea volcano that rises more than 3,000 meters in water 5,480mtr deep, said Jim Holden, the chief US scientist for the first leg of the joint expedition. “This is a huge undersea volcano,” he said, “taller than all but 3 or 4 mountains in Indonesia.” The researchers hope the maps and video produced from the journey will pave the way for others who want to follow up on their preliminary findings. “The more we understand these undersea features and the communities of life they support, the better we can manage and protect the ocean and its resources,” said Holden, a microbiologist at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Sugiarta Wirasantosa, the chief Indonesian scientist for the expedition, said the research could contribute to protecting ecosystems that support fisheries. (July 12th 2010)
Attack on Activist Reflects Resistance to Anti-Corruption
Constitutional Court Chairman Mahfud MD said the recent attack on an anti-corruption activist was the manifestation of resistance to the national anti-graft drive. “The motive of the attack is resentment against the corruption eradication efforts. However, the incident must not make us afraid to continue the fight against corruption,” he said after visiting Tama Satya Langkun (25), the activist of the Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW), at a hospital here on Saturday (10/7). Mahfud said he did not know if the attack was linked to reports about suspicious accounts of several high ranking police officers. 4 people attacked Tama in Duren Tiga, South Jakarta, early on Thursday. Tama is now still being treated for his wounds at Asri Hospital in Durent Tiga. The wounds on his head required up to 29 stitches. Tama also sustained injuries on several other parts of his body such as neck, right hand and others and injuries he suffered after falling from his motorbike during the attack. Tama is the ICW activist that has reported suspicious accounts of some police officers to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). (July 11th 2010)
Woman Arrested in Bali with 2.4 Kilos of Heroin
Airport authorities in Bali have arrested a Philippine citizen for attempting to smuggle in 2.4 kg of heroin from Malaysia. Carolina Sarmiento Bautista, 41, was arrested on Monday (12/7) after officers found 2 packages of heroin in her luggage. The drugs had an estimated street value of Rp. 7 billion ($775,000). The head of Ngurah Rai International Airport’s customs office, Bambang Wahyudi, said on Tuesday that Bautista arrived at 7:30 a.m. the previous day on an AirAsia flight from Kuala Lumpur. Bambang said the suspect looked nervous when her luggage passed through an X-ray machine, prompting officers to perform a hand search of her bags. A search of her luggage revealed the heroin taped beneath the liner of one of the bags. Bautista reportedly told officers that an Indian man had paid her $1,000 in Kuala Lumpur to ferry the drugs to Jakarta via Bali. “She claimed she wasn’t acquainted with the man, who she said she met while vacationing in Kuala Lumpur,” Bambang said. (July 12th 2010)
Nigerian Football Players Attempt to Smuggle 2 Kgs Sabu-Sabu into Bali Foiled
Efforts to smuggle sabu-sabu weighing over 2kg into Bali was thwarted by Ngurah Rai Airport Customs officers, Denpasar on Friday (16/7). “This case involves four suspects, each of three foreign nationals and one Indonesian citizen,” said the Head Officer of Customs Supervision and Human Services at the Ngurah Rai Airport. The suspects were arrested shortly after landing on an Air Asia flight from at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport. The suspects were arrested with over 2kg of methamphetamines hidden in a false wall suitcase. The 2 Nigerians were apparently football players but are not currently contracted by any particular team. (July 18th 2010)
Balinese Art Draws International Participants
Some 25 people from the United States, France, Norway, Jakarta and Bali are to take part in an intensive Balinese gamelan and dance study program at the artists village of Ubud in Bali`s Gianyar district. Ubud Cudomani Pengosekan studio chairman Dewa Putra Bearata said here on Friday (9/7) the program will last three weeks. The foreign participants would be spending part of their quality time to study some of Bali’s famous traditional dances and music intensively under the guidance of maestros. A number of Balinese dance and gamelan maestros like Ni Ketut Arini, I Nyoman Cerita and I Made Arnawa would be among the instructors in the program.The program’s activities would be arranged in such a way that the foreign participants could be expected to come to Bali again in 2011 for further explorations into Balinese arts. The Cudomani foundation has many times held Balinese dance and music performances in the USA, Japan and European Union countries. Dewa Berata set up the foundation in 1997 together with several Balinese dance and gamelan maestros. Cudamani studio is practicing and teaching the works of past traditions as well as creating and enacting new breakthroughs as its service to the community. (July 9th 2010)
Indonesian Muslims Praying in Wrong Direction after 1,000-mile mistake
Indonesian Muslims have been praying in the wrong direction for months, facing Somalia when they should have been facing Saudi Arabia, the country’s highest religious authority said today. A cleric from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) admitted the body made a mistake last March when calculating where Muslims should turn to when praying. He said new instructions had now been issued and that people only had to shift their position for the correct alignment. According to Islamic tradition, Muhammad was born in Mecca, and it is said to be the place where Allah’s message was first revealed to him. Each day Muslims from around the world turn to Mecca to pray and, at least once in their lives if they can afford it, travel there to perform the hajj, or pilgrimage. The error did not mean their prayers would be ignored, he added. “God understands that humans make mistakes. Allah always hears their prayers.” (July 19th 2010)
3 Kg Gas Cylinders Exploding Causing Disfigurement, Death and Property Damage
The government and state-owned energy company PT. Pertamina have announced various plans to address the explosions of 3 kg gas canisters, tens of millions of which have been distributed since 2006 under a program to reduce fuel subsidies by swapping kerosene for cheaper liquefied petroleum gas. In response to the accidents, which have led to disfigurement, death and property damage across the nation, Yudhoyono has ordered thorough investigations. Pertamina has also started distributing certified hoses and regulators to replace the faulty equipment at the root of the problem. Pertamina has promised to pay for the treatment of people injured by canister blasts, adding that it had spent Rp. 3 billion ($330,000) on compensation since 2007. However, Wianda Pusponegoro, Pertamina’s media relations manager, had previously said that the company would only pay for plastic surgery that was necessary to save victims’ lives or functional organs. The company provides Rp. 25 million in compensation for deaths and permanent disabilities caused by the explosions. (July 20th 2010).
Two Shariah Police Officers Receive 8-Year Sentences for Rape of Student
The Langsa District Court in East Aceh on Thursday (15/7) sentenced two members of the Shariah Police to eight years in prison each for the rape and torture of a 20-year-old female student in January. The punishment was less than the maximum 12-year jail term demanded by prosecutors, who argued that as members of the Shariah Police, also known as Wilayatul Hisbah, the defendants should have better morals. Prosecutor Sayed Muhammad had previously pointed out that the offenders, Muhammad Nazir, 29, and Feri Agus, 28, had taken turns raping the woman in a detention cell with another officer in the early hours of Jan. 8. The third suspect, Dedy Setiawan, 27, is still at large. Both convicts said through their lawyers that they would consider the verdict before deciding whether to appeal. Judge Lukman Bachmid, the Langsa District Court chief, said on Thursday that both men had received the eight-year sentences because of the harm and trauma inflicted on the victim. The victim, identified only as N, was taken into custody by the Shariah Police for allegedly engaging in an immoral act with her boyfriend. Both she and her boyfriend were detained and questioned by the officers. The rape occurred early on a Friday, which is considered a holy day for Muslims with mandatory prayers held in the afternoon for Muslim men. Sayed said that a medical examination confirmed the victim had been sexually assaulted and that she had suffered severe hemorrhaging as a result of the rape. After the incident was made public, rights activists in Aceh and across the country called for the Shariah Police to be disbanded, saying that it was a law unto itself and did nothing but harass women about their clothes and humiliate young unmarried couples.(July 15th 2010)
