SEVERAL INDONESIAN REGIONS BRACE FOR DROUGHT

Sabtu, 22 Jun 2019 23:16

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah
Jakarta, 22/6 (Antara) -
Several regional authorities have been reminded to intensify the monitoring for possible forest fires and droughts, as the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMK) forecasts that this year's dry season will be drier, compared to the previous year.

In fact, all regions in Java, notably West Java, Central Java and East Java, have begun to experience the dry season, which is expected to hit its peak in July and August 2019, with the exception of Bogor, West Java, except where local rains continue to lash the City of Rains.

"Regions which were affected by droughts during the June, July and August period of last year, should be vigilant this year," Adi Ripalsi, head of the agency's climate information analysis sub-unit, said in Jakarta on June 21, 2019, adding, "Last year, the precipitation during the dry season was less than 20 millimeters a month, and this year, it could go lower."

He also reminded people living in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), Sulawesi, and Sumatra to be vigilant due to the impact caused by droughts. The dry season is expected to reach its peak from August to September in these regions.

"NTB and NTT are harvesting rainwater for farming and, hence, this needs to be supported by irrigation water," he said.

In Central Java, some 360 villages in 31 of the provinces 35 districts are prone to drought this year. Even as Central Java has begun to experience its dry season this June, eight villages in the Banyumas District have already begun facing a water crisis.

"Based on the latest data, eight villages are facing a clean water shortage, as precipitation in Banyumas has decreased," Ariono Poerwanto, acting head of the Banyumas disaster mitigation office, said here on Friday.

ASEAN SUMMIT A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO PUT BRAKES ON PLASTIC WASTE IMPORTS

Jumat, 21 Jun 2019 23:30

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah
Jakarta, 21/6 (Antara) - The ASEAN leaders are set to meet in Bangkok, Thailand, from June 22-23, 2019, for the 34th ASEAN Summit, themed Advancing Partnership for Sustainability, which is expected to produce 16 documents.
These include the ASEAN Leader's Vision Statement on the Partnership for Sustainability, ASEAN Joint View of the Indo-Pacific, the ASEAN Leaders' Statement on the ASEAN Culture Year, and the Bangkok Declaration on Combating Marine Waste in the ASEAN Region.

The Bangkok Declaration on Combating Marine Debris in the ASEAN region was proposed by the ASEAN member countries environmental affairs ministers who met in Bangkok, on March 5, 2019, for the Special ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Marine Debris (SAMM-MD).

The meeting was an initiative of Thailand, as the Chair of the ASEAN in 2019, to provide the ASEAN a platform to explore and pursue concrete action on combating marine debris and strengthening collaboration between the ASEAN and supportive partners to address marine debris issues in the region effectively.

Ironically, while the ASEAN member countries are concerned about marine debris, which mostly comprises plastic waste, imports of a deluge of unwanted and toxic plastic waste have flooded the region, including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand over the last several years.

During the 2016-2018 period, the ASEAN region saw plastic waste imports grow by a staggering 171%, from 836,529 tons to 2,265,962 tons. Thats equivalent to around 423,544 20-foot shipping containers, according to data quoted by Greenpeace Southeast Asia.

Making matters worse, much of it is mislabeled as recyclable even though the shipments constitute hundreds of thousands of tonnes of contaminated plastic and other mixed wastes from developed countries that cannot be processed. Some of these imports are illegally shipped into the region, leaving receiving nations with no real capacity to deal with such waste, grappling with the magnitude of the mess, Greenpeace said in a statement recently.

Since the spike in imports, countries have taken measures to counter the growing tide of imports.

Indonesia bans toxic waste imports in accordance with its Law No 32 of 2009 on the Protection and Management of the Environment.

In response to illegal waste imports, the Indonesian Government has taken stern measures by returning five containers of imported waste to its country of origin.

Spokesman of the Indonesian Environmental Affairs and Forestry Ministry, Djati Witjaksono Hadi said that the ministry in cooperation with the Finance Ministry sent back the illegal waste to the United States on June 16, 2019.

In recent months, both Malaysia and the Philippines have also publicly sent back waste shipments to their country of origin. Thailand has announced its intention to ban plastic waste imports by 2021, while Malaysia has stopped issuing new permits for importing plastic waste. Vietnam has also stopped issuing new licenses for the import of waste and has overseen a crackdown on illegal shipments as thousands of containers of paper, plastic and metal scrap build up at the countrys ports, raising environmental concerns.

Greenpeace Southeast Asia and other environmental groups have documented evidence in the last year, highlighting the significant risk this waste poses to local environments and those living nearby, as unspoiled areas are turned into toxic dump sites overnight.

Therefore, Greenpeace Southeast Asia demands that the ASEAN leaders put this issue on the agenda during their summits this year and make a united declaration to address the regions plastic waste crisis. Greenpeace recommends a three-point strategy for ASEAN member states to adopt as they urgently work towards a "Single-use Plastic-Free World".

The strategies are to declare an immediate ban on all imports of plastic waste, even those meant for recycling, and ensure all ASEAN countries ratify the Basel Ban Amendment; to establish a holistic regional policy geared toward massively reducing the production of single-use plastic packaging and products, and facilitating innovation on reusable packaging and alternative delivery systems; and to advance a sustainable and ethical circular economy framework, grounded on zero waste approaches, that protects human health and the environment, and enables the ASEAN region to decouple growth from excessive resource extraction, production, consumption and wastage.

Sadly, the ASEAN region remains the hub of choice for foreign waste disposal following Chinas ban in 2018, said Lea Guerrero, Country Director for Greenpeace Philippines. "Plastics and electronic waste are traded using loopholes in regulations under the guise of recycling and recovery of raw materials. However, much of the imported waste ends up in landfills or is burnt at illegal sites, posing a threat to people and the environment.

This is an ASEAN problem. All countries need to make an urgent joint declaration to end the trade in plastic waste imports from abroad, and put in place systems to support a sustainable plastic-free world, said Heng Kiah Chun, Campaigner, Greenpeace Malaysia, during a press conference in Bangkok on June 18, 2019.

SAIL INDONESIA 2019 TO UNVEIL BEST SECRET OF INDONESIA: NIAS ISLAND

Kategori : National News (NAT)

Jumat, 14 Jun 2019 21:05

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah

Jakarta, 14/6 (Antara) -
Nias Island, located in North Sumatra Province and often considered the best kept secret of Indonesians, will be unveiled to the world at an international maritime event to be organized from July until September 2019.

Sail Nias, the 11th series of Sail Indonesia, will be opened at a ceremony in Teluk Dalam (Bay), South Nias, on September 14, 2019. Sail Indonesia is part of plans to accelerate the development of underdeveloped regions in Indonesia.

Various activities will be organized during the event, including Wonderful Nias Expo 2019, an international surfing contest, a battleship parade, Nias Marathon, a culinary bazaar, and traditional art and cultural performances.

Other activities will include Wind Surfing and Sailing Contests, Free Diving Competition, Stone Jump Festival, Traditional Fishing Boat Parade, Coffee Festival, Fishing Tournament, Wonderful Tourism Photo Expo, One Thousand Tents Festival, and the Mt Sitori cultural seminar.

At least 100 thousand Indonesian and foreign tourists are expected to come for Sail Nias, whose main activities will be held from September 10 to 14, according to Hidayati, head of the North Sumatra tourism office.
Sail Nias will offer an opportunity to promote Nias globally and boost the local economy, Zaman K. Mendrofa, a prominent figure, remarked recently.

ISRAELI ILLEGAL SETTLEMENTS POSE HINDRANCE TO PEACE IN PALESTINE

Jumat, 31 Mei 2019 19:20

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah Assegaf

Jakarta, 31/5 (Antara) - Palestine's struggle for independence has been at the very core of Indonesia's foreign policy, so the Palestinian cause is omnipresent in all aspects of Indonesian diplomacy.
Indonesia is a non-permanent member of the United Security Council (UNSC) for the 2019-2020 period and currently holds the UNSC chairmanship for the month of May 2019.
Indonesia, the worlds largest Muslim-majority nation, has outlined four priority issues and one special-attention issue during its UNSC membership starting January 1, 2019, and ending on December 31, 2020. The special issue is Palestines fight for freedom from illegal occupation by Israel.
On May 9, 2019, Retno Marsudi presided over a meeting, jointly held by Indonesia, Kuwait, and South Africa, that was attended by Palestines Foreign Affairs Minister Riyad Al-Maliki at the UN Headquarters in New York.
"The continued development of Israeli illegal settlements in Palestinian territories is unacceptable," she emphasized during the informal meeting of the Arria Formula themed "Israeli settlements and settlers: Core of the occupation, protection crisis and obstruction of peace."
The number of illegal Israeli settlements has grown steadily, from 110 thousand in 1993, to 620 thousand in 2017. This rising figure is a major impediment in the path to reaching a peace agreement between Israel and Palestine.

INVESTIGATION TEAMS EXPECTED TO REVEAL TRUTH OF POST-ELECTION UNREST

Rabu, 29 Mei 2019 22:38

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah

Jakarta, 29/5 (Antara) -
Jakarta's post-election rally, which ended in violence from May 21 to 22, 2019, claimed eight lives and resulted in hundreds of protestors, and nine police officers, being injured. The police claimed, however, that seven people were dead, while others said the fatalities reached more than 10.

Of those injured, 294 victims were between 20 and 24 years old, and 170 others were below 19 years, while the deaths included three teens, according to the Governor of Jakarta, Anies Baswedan.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) announced the final results of the recent parliamentary and presidential elections on May 22 at 1:28 a.m., declaring that the Jokowi-Maruf Amin pair had secured 85 million votes, or 55.5 percent of the national vote, as compared to contenders Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno receiving 68 million votes, or 44.5 percent.

The Jokowi-Amin pair has since declared victory, while the Prabowo-Sandi pair rejected the KPU's official tabulation result and issued a legal challenge at the Constitutional Court (MK).

This unfinished political process sparked a mass protest from the Prabowo supporters, who alleged massive fraud in the presidential elections.

The police allowed them to stage a rally until they finished performing Tarawih, the evening prayers during the holy month of Ramadan, on the evening of May 21. As revealed by National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Dedi Prasetyo, the peaceful demonstrators left the front of the Bawaslu (Election Supervisory Agency) building around 9 p.m.

INDONESIA ON TOP LIST OF WORLD'S HALAL TOURISM INDUSTRY

Senin, 27 Mei 2019 23:27

Daerah : Jakarta

By Fardah
Jakarta, 27/5 (Antara) - Indonesia, which has been aggressively developing its halal tourism industry over the last five years, has been named the world's best halal tourist destination, based upon the Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2019, outclassing 130 destinations throughout the world.
Mastercard-Crescent rating agency put Indonesia at first place, based upon GMTI standards with a score of 78, along with Malaysia in the upper rankings, Crescent Rating CEO Fazal Bahardeen said, while delivering a GMTI Report 2019 in Jakarta in April.
"After joining GMTI this year, Indonesia should be proud, because it was finally able to rank first in the world's halal tourism, along with Malaysia, with a total score of 78," Fazal Bahardeen stated.
In addition to Indonesia, other countries included in the the 10 best halal tourist destinations are Malaysia, also with a score of 78, Turkey (75), Saudi Arabia (72), United Arab Emirates (71), Qatar (68), Morocco (67), Bahrain (66), Oman (66), and Brunei Darussalam (65).
In defining the ranking, it evaluated four factors -- access, communications, the environment and service.
Indonesias priority halal tourist destinations in 2018 included Aceh, Riau, Riau Islands, West Sumatra, Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, West Nusa Tenggara and South Sulawesi Provinces.