Year Ender - PLASTIC USE EDUCATION SHOULD START AT EARLY AGE by Fardah

  Jakarta, Dec 13, 2018 (Antara) - Indonesia is a haven for those preferring to use plastic, as plastic products can be found easily and bought at relatively low prices in the country, with a population of some 260 million.

         As an oil producing nation, Indonesia has manufactured various types of goods made of plastics, whose basic ingredient is crude petroleum.

        Despite several benefits that plastics have offered and made life easier, plastic use has environmental consequences, such as land and marine pollution due to plastic waste and deaths of wildlife after ingesting plastics or becoming entangled in plastic trash.

        Plastic has toxic pollutants that harm the environment and cause land, water, and air pollution. It can take hundreds or also thousands of years for plastic to break down, so damage to the environment is long-lasting.

        As to dangers it poses to wildlife, recent public outcry and protests erupted against the effects on wildlife from ingesting or becoming trapped in plastic debris.

         In Indonesia, three sea turtles were found dead some 150 meters off Pari Island, Seribu (One Thousand) Islands District, Jakarta, on November 27, 2018, apparently due to plastic litter found in their mouths and front claws.

         On Nov 19, a carcass of a 9.5-meter-long sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) was discovered by local fishermen, as it was washed ashore the Kapota Isle, Wakatobi District, Southeast Sulawesi. A total of 5.9 kilograms of plastic waste were found in the whale's stomach, including flip-flops and 115 drinking cups.

        As concern over plastic waste is mounting, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has ordered inclusion of plastic waste education in the school curriculum.

Year Ender - PROTECTING INDONESIAN ELECTIONS FROM CYBERATTACKS by Fardah

Jakarta, Dec 13, 2018 (Antara) - Cyberattacks have threatened elections in several countries, and one of the major hacking cases was alleged foreign interference using cyber networks during the US presidential elections in 2016.

          Any form of interference in the election results, be it through money politics or cyberattacks, could endanger democratic well-being of the targeted country. Hence, cybersecurity must be taken seriously to take precautionary measures and prevent threat of cyberattacks.

       On April 17, 2019, Indonesia will hold simultaneous presidential and legislative elections believed to be among the most complex and largest elections in the world. Indonesia is the world's fourth most populous nation, with some 260 million people, and the world's largest archipelagic country, with over 17 thousand islands.

         Four months prior to the elections, cyberattacks have already increased in Indonesia, according to the National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN).

        "From January to October 2018, BSSN had detected 207.9 million trojan attacks and 36 million malware activities, mostly targeting domains of ac.id, co.id, and go.id," Djoko Setiadi, the chairman of BSSN, revealed while addressing participants of a seminar themed "Materializing Conducive Cyber Space To Support Implementation of the 2019 Legislative and Presidential Elections," organized in Jakarta on December 12, 2018.

       Earlier, the agency had reported that a total of 143.6 million cyberattacks occurred during the January-June 2018 period.

        Moreover, some 2,363 complaints were lodged by the public, of which 61 percent were related to cyber fraud.

        He expressed concern over cyberattacks having developed fast, even swifter than the progress in technology and the capability to take precautionary measures, so it is risky and could trigger a crisis in every field at a massive scale of dissemination.

Year Ender - DEVELOPMENT IN PAPUA REMAINS PRIORITY DESPITE SECURITY CHALLENGES by Fardah

Jakarta, Dec 6, 2018 (Antara) - The fact that President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has visited Papua nine times since December 2014 shows that his administration gives special attention to the development programs in the country's easternmost province.

        Jokowi's first visit was in December 2014, just over a month after he was sworn in as Indonesia's seventh president in October 2014. At that time, the president promised the Papuans that he would frequently visit the province. 
    His latest visit was on Nov 16, 2018, where he personally reviewed the construction works of Trans-Papua road development project. The section he checked was on Kilometer 23 between Merauke and Sota in the district of Merauke.  
  The Trans-Papua road, spanning 4.6 thousand kilometers, is expected to improve connectivity on Papua Island, which comprises Papua and West Papua Provinces.

       Trans-Papua will cut time in the transportation of goods, logistics, and people's movement in Papua, which has difficult terrain as a large part of its land area is still covered by thick forest and swamps.

        The implementation of the Trans-Papua development project has so far been smooth, until Dec 2, 2018, when the public was shocked by reports of murders of more than a dozen workers of the road development project.

        Indonesia's security officers have, so far, discovered 16 bodies of slain workers employed by PT Istaka Karya Construction Company.

        Jimy Aritonang, one of the survivors of the terror attack, recalled that some 50 armed men belonging to an outlawed group, led by Egunius Kogoya, had taken 25 workers from their camp to Mount Kabo.

       On arriving in the remote mountainous area, the criminals shot the workers, whose hands were bound. Some 14 men died on the spot, while 11 others pretended to be dead and later attempted to escape. However, five were later recaptured and killed by the criminals, while several others managed to reach a military post.

       The criminals chased them and later got engaged in a shootout with several military officers. One officer, identified as First Sergeant Handoko, was killed in the attack, while another one was injured.

         Jokowi on Dec 5, 2018, expressed condolences on behalf of the Indonesian people, who mourned the deaths of the workers.

SYNERGY AMONG MINISTRIES CRUCIAL TO ADDRESSING MARINE POLLUTION by Fardah

Jakarta , Nov 30,  2018  (Antara) - Three sea turtles were found dead some 150 meters off Pari Island, Seribu (One Thousand) Islands District, Jakarta, Nov 27, apparently due to plastic litter and oil spill, Jakarta Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) stated.

        The turtles were covered in mucus, and plastic litter was found in their mouths and front claws, Chief of Conservation Section of the BKSDA Office in Hajarta Ida Harwati testified.

         Earlier, on Nov 19, a carcass of a 9.5-meter-long sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) was discovered by local fishermen, as it was washed ashore the Kapota Isle, Wakatobi District, Southeast Sulawesi.

        Researchers of the Wakatobi Fisheries and Maritime Community Academy were shocked to find 5.9 kilograms of plastic waste in the whale's stomach, including flip-flops and 115 drinking cups.

        Globally, thousands of marine animals were killed by plastic wastes in ocean. Every year, some one-third of the marine biota, including coral reefs and also seabirds, die owing to plastic wastes that end up in the ocean.

        This situation is a matter of grave concern, considering that coral reefs play a major role in protecting the coast from erosion, coastal flooding, and other destructive events caused by the sea water phenomena. Coral reefs also offer food and shelter for the growth for various marine biota.

        A low turtle population is also concerning since sea turtles play a crucial role in the ecosystem by keeping the wetlands and rivers clean.      
    According to the WWF Indonesia's official website, four of the six species of sea turtles -- green turtles (Chelonia mydas), "belimbing" or leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea), "sisik" or hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata), and "lekang" or olive Ripley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) -- lay their eggs on Indonesian beaches.

PROMOTING GLOBAL COOPERATION IN CREATIVE ECONOMY by Fardah

 Jakarta, Nov 29, 2018 (Antara) - Indonesia, as the largest economy in South East Asia and the fourth most populous country in the world, has huge potential to further develop its creative economy.

        In contrast to other sectors that are heavily dependent on the exploitation of natural resources, the strength of creative economy is based largely on the superiority of human resources. Artwork, architecture, books, technological innovations, and animations, derive from creative ideas of human thought.

        Given the country's potential, the Joko Widodo (Jokowi) administration is determined to make the creative economy a backbone of the Indonesian economy.

        To this end, President Jokowi established a new non-ministerial institution called the Creative Economy Agency (Bekraf) on January 20, 2015, with tasks including assisting the president in formulating, defining, coordinating, and synchronizing policies in the creative economy.

        Bekraf has envisioned to build Indonesia into one of the world's economic forces in the creative economy in 2030.

        To realize this vision, Bekraf has designed six major missions, including by encouraging innovation in the creative field that has added value and competitiveness in the international world.

        As Indonesia believes that it is the time for global community to take up and seriously discuss opportunities and challenges of the creative economy, the country initiated the World Conference on Creative Economy (WCCE) held in Nusa Dua, Bali, on November 6-8, 2018.

        During the conference, at least 15 hundred participants from 30 countries vowed to promote stronger international political commitments to address challenges and seize opportunities in the creative economy.

SEIZING OPPORTUNITIES IN CREATIVE ECONOMY by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 22, 2018 (Antara)- The creative economy has no single definition, as it is an evolving concept that builds on the interplay between human creativity, ideas, intellectual property, knowledge and technology.

         Essentially it is the knowledge-based economic activities upon which the "creative industries" are based, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

         The products could be cultural, artistic, and designer goods and services, among other things.

         During the First World Conference on Creative Economy (WCCE), initiated and hosted by Indonesia, at least 15 hundred participants from 30 countries vowed to promote stronger international political commitments to address the challenges and seize the opportunities in the creative economy.

         "In this era of globalization and advanced technology, the creative industry has become a game changer. As one of the most dynamic sectors, creative economy contributes significantly to the economic growth in many countries," Triawan Munaf, chairman of Indonesian Agency for Creative Economy (Bekraf), stated in his opening remarks during the 1st WCCE held in Nusa Dua, Bali, Nov 6-8, 2018.

         The participants expressed their commitment to strengthening the role of government, the private sector, media, civil society, business council, and academia in the creative economy.

         Indonesia has initiated the establishment of a virtual and/or a physical center that promotes exchanges, collaborations, and international cooperation in the field of creative economy.
    The Center of Excellence for Creative Economy to be based in Indonesia is expected to help the advancement of the objectives of a creative economy at the global level and the achievement of sustainable development goals (SDGs).