Year Ender - 2013, HISTORICAL YEAR FOR INDONESIA'S FOREST PROTECTION by Fardah

  Jakarta, Dec 31, 2013 (Antara) - During the past one year, the Indonesian government has made several historic policies and breakthroughs for the preservation of its forest, the world's third largest after the Amazon in Brazil and Congo's forest, if they are implemented properly.

          Indonesia has over the past year among other things established Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) Agency;   extended forest moratorium for another two years to prevent new clearing of primary forests and peat lands; and signed the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade - Voluntary Partnership Agreement (FLEGT-VPA) with  (EU)  to fight illegal timber trade.

News Focus - EU-ASEAN TIES: SUPPORTING, SHARING AND INSPIRING by Fardah Assegaf

  Jakarta, Dec 31, 2013 (Antara) - The European Union (EU) and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) have been working closely to strengthen the ASEAN-EU Partnership and to support ASEAN's goal of building ASEAN Community by 2015 and beyond.

        ASEAN and EU are both often seen as examples of two successful regional groups. However, ASEAN and the EU have very different historical backgrounds, development levels and perspectives as well as approaches on political, economic and security issues.

Year-Ender -INDONESIA'S REDD+ AGENCY SET TO BE IN FULL SWING by Fardah

    Jakarta, Dec 28, 2013 (Antara) - A new agency to protect Indonesia's rainforests is ready to begin work to implement a first of its kind environmental program.

         President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono signed Presidential Regulation No. 62/2013 on August 31, 2013, entitled Managing Body for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD), concluding a process that took more than two years.

Year Ender: PEOPLE-CENTERED ASEAN - BETWEEN RHETORIC AND REALITY by Fardah Assegaf

    Jakarta, Dec 26, 2013 (Antara) - Over the last several years, ASEAN has proclaimed the rhetoric of becoming "people-oriented" or "people-centered" in a number of documents, speeches and meetings.

       After 46 years, ASEAN leaders have now started talking about shifting the focus from state-centric to people-centric activities that would benefit people in the regions. However, it seems like this realization and its implementations are rather slow.
  "I know only a little about ASEAN; it was from school. But, whether I have benefited from ASEAN, I don't know because it was not taught in school," stated Irma, 22, an Indonesian migrant worker who has been working in Singapore for the last two years.

INDONESIA'S POLICE, MILITARY PLEDGE NEUTRALITY AHEAD OF GENERAL ELECTIONS 2014 by Fardah

   Jakarta, Dec 25, 2013 (Antara) - Indonesia's security forces will play crucial roles in ensuring smooth, peaceful and fair implementation of direct general elections to elect president, vice president and legislators in 2014.

        Next year, legislative elections will be held on April 9, after a campaign period between January 11 and April 5, while the presidential election is expected to be held on July 9.

        The general elections will be organized by Indonesia's General Elections Commission (KPU) with the cooperation of institutions such as the General Elections Supervisory Body Bawaslu), the National Police and the Government Goods and Service Procurement Policy Agency (LKPP).

ARAB SPRING ADDS TO PALESTINIAN REFUGEES' SUFFERING by Fardah

    Jakarta, Dec 23, 2013 (Antara) - On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, commemorated on November 29, the Indonesian government reaffirmed its continued commitment to support the Palestinians in their struggle for independence.

         "For over six decades, the Palestinian occupation problem has remained unresolved. The Palestinian refugees have been living under distress for too long," the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry's Director of Socio-Cultural and International Organization of Developing Countries Arko Hananto Budiadi stated at the event observed in Jakarta, on November 28, 2013.

Year-Ender - INDONESIA CALLS FOR MORE VIGOROUS EFFORTS TO SUPPORT PALESTINE by Fardah

     Jakarta, Dec 20, 2013 (Antara) - Indonesia has been supporting Palestine consistently and incessantly over the past six decades and has pledged to continue to do so until an independent Palestine state is established.

        The endless support is not because majority of Palestinian and Indonesian people are Muslims, but above all, it is based on humanitarian consideration, stated Din Syamsuddin, chairman of Indonesia's second largest Muslim organization Muhammadiyah, recently.

International Recognition Brings Babad Diponegoro Into Spotlight by Fardah Assegaf

Jakarta, Dec 18, 2013 (Antara) - Indonesia is proud that Babad Diponegoro has been included in the Memory of the World Register by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) because the heritage documentary truly deserves the honor.

Babad Diponegoro, or Autobiographical Chronicle of Prince Diponegoro, is a beautifully written poetic masterpiece by Prince Diponegoro, who was not just a national hero but also a genius, Javanese mystic, pious Muslim, and leader of the "Holy War" against the Dutch in Java between 1825 and 1830.

INDONESIA SHOULD PLAY LEADING ROLE IN SOLVING ROHINGYA PROBLEM: EXPERT

by Fardah
    Singapore, Dec 14 (Antara) - Indonesia should play a leading role in solving the problem of Myanmar's Rohingya minority by integrating the Jakarta Declaration and Bali Process, said Rafendi Djamin, Indonesia's Representative to ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights.

         "The humanitarian situation, including the stateless status of Rohingya, must be addressed, and their basic human rights must be protected. They must be able to meet their medical needs and have opportunities to work, for instance," Djamin told ASEAN journalists, during a workshop on Reporting on Regional Integration and ASEAN, here on Saturday.

MYANMAR MUST STOP ESCALATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST ROHINGYA: ACTIVIST

by Fardah
   Singapore, Dec 14 (Antara)- The Myanmar government must stop the escalation of violence against the Rohingya minority because it is dangerous and could develop into genocide, Rafendi Djamin, a noted Indonesian human rights activist, said.

       "The human rights situation in Myanmar is regressing because the government and politicians let the escalation of violence continue against the Rohingya people," Djamin, Indonesia's representative to the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), said on the sidelines of a workshop entitled Reporting on Regional Integration and ASEAN, here on Saturday.

ERADICATING CORRUPTION IN INDONESIA IS EASIER SAID THAN DONE by Fardah

Jakarta, Dec 11, 2013 (Antara) - International Anti-Corruption Day, which is observed on December 9, was commemorated almost across Indonesia by student rallies, speeches by political representatives, including the president, and seminars.         Corruption is rife in Indonesia. Nevertheless, despite the persistent presence of corruption, Indonesia is one of the few countries in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) that has shown improvement.

Profile - RI'S POLICE INVESTIGATIONS UNIT TO BE INVIGORATED BY ALIUS' APPOINTMENT By Fardah

    Jakarta, Dec 10, 2013 (Antara) - When National Police Chief General Sutarman announced his decision to appoint Suhardi Alius as the Head of the Crime Investigations Department (Bareskrim), the Presidium Chairman of Indonesia Police Watch (IPW) Neta S Pane expressed his appreciation for the move.

        Pane, who is often critical of the National Police's policies, has described the appointment of the former West Java Police Chief Inspector General Alius as a breakthrough in the promotion of young cadres from among the Police elite and for making Bareskrim a more dynamic outfit.

JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE INDONESIAN POLICEWOMEN WEAR HIJABS by Fardah

Jakarta, Dec 6, 2013 (Antara) - The debate surrounding the introduction of headscarves for policewomen in Indonesia, a predominantly Muslim country, continues to rage on, with authorities denying accusations of a slow response to the issue.

HEALTH MINISTRY ABORTS CONTROVERSIAL CAMPAIGN ON CONDOM USE by Fardah

Jakarta, Dec 5 (Antara) - The health minister`s policy on the use of condoms, yet again, triggered controversy and opposition, particularly from Muslim leaders in this country, which has a Muslim-majority population.

Last year, just a few weeks after being appointed as health minister, Nafsiah Mboi was strongly criticized for her plan to distribute free condoms to fight Human Immuno Deficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).