POLICE GENERAL'S APPOINTMENT AS ACTING WEST JAVA GOVERNOR STIRS CONTROVERSY by Fardah

Jakarta, June 21, 2018 (Antara) - Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo's decision to install Commissioner General of Police M. Iriawan as West Java acting governor has courted controversy despite the minister's assurance that Iriawan's appointment is in line with existing regulations.

         After studying the appointment, the State Secretariat reached a conclusion that it does not violate any laws, so President Joko Widodo issued a decree on the appointment of Iriawan, Jakarta's former police chief, according to Kumolo.

         The minister installed Iriawan as the acting governor of West Java Province in Bandung, West Java, on June 18, 2018.

         Iriawan, concurrently main secretary of the Indonesian Resilience Institute, succeeded Governor Ahmad Heryawan, whose term of office ended on June 13, 2018.

         His inauguration was based on Presidential Decree No 106/P of 2018 on the honorary dismissal of the governor and deputy governor of West Java for the 2013-2018 term of office and the appointment of acting governor of West Java.

         The appointment of the Police commissioner general was criticized by Luthfi Andi Mutty, a member of Parliament, who opined that the decision is a violation of the existing regulations.

         "Appointing an active police general as the acting governor is a violation of at least three regulations," Mutty noted in a statement.

        As per Law No. 3 of 2002 on Indonesian Police, a police officer can hold a position outside the police after resigning from his post.

         Law No. 10 of 2016 stipulates that to fill the gubernatorial seat, the government can appoint a civil servant.

TOURISM AS DRIVING FORCE FOR N SULAWESI'S ECONOMIC GROWTH by Fardah

Jakarta, June 12, 2018 (Antara)- North Sulawesi has set a target to attract 120 thousand foreign tourists in 2018 for which it has intensified tourism promotion and infrastructure development activities to support its ambition.

         Tourism industry has become a pillar of the province's economy, as it has contributed significantly to supporting the local economic growth in Manado.     
    North Sulawesi Governor Olly Dondokambey expressed belief that the tourism industry holds potential to boost the province's economic growth.

         "We will continue to develop the tourism industry, which is a driving force of the regional economy," he noted.

         According to the governor, the tourism sector had a positive impact on the economic growth of 6.32 percent in 2017, or above the national average of 5.07 percent.

         Nearly 100 thousand foreign tourists had visited North Sulawesi in 2017, while the number of domestic tourists reached 169,523.  
   In the first quarter of 2018, some 29,413 foreign tourists had visited North Sulawesi, up from 17,941 in the same period last year.   
   During the first four months of 2018, tourist arrivals in the city had increased by 500 thousand, Head of the Marketing Department of the Manado Tourism Office Abdiel Badjen remarked in Manado last May.

UNSC NON-PERMANENT MEMBER INDONESIA TO STRENGTHEN ROLE AS PEACEKEEPER by Fardah

 Jakarta, June 11, 2018 (Antara) - Indonesia is proud of being elected as the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) non-permanent member for the fourth time owing to its experiences and dedication to maintain world peace by joining various UN peacekeeping missions.

   
         President Joko Widodo lauded the election of Indonesia as a UNSC member, saying that it is a reflection of the international community's recognition of the country's track record.

   
         Indonesia, which will officially fill the seat as of January 1, 2019, beat Maldives by 144 votes to 46 after 190 UN member countries cast their votes at the UN Headquarters in New York on June 8, 2018.

   
         Indonesia had earlier been a non-permanent member of the UNSC in 1973-1974, 1995-1996, and 2007-2008 terms.

   
         The Security Council has 15 members comprising five permanent members -- the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China -- and 10 non-permanent members serving for two years.

   
        Apart from Indonesia, four other countries were elected as non-permanent members of the UNSC: South Africa for Africa; the Dominican Republic for Latin America and the Caribbean; and Germany and Belgium for Western Europe and other countries.    

INDONESIAN INT'L ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY AS STUDY CENTER OF ISLAMIC CIVILIZATION by Fardah

  Jakarta, June 5,2018 (Antara)- President Joko Widodo's administration is determined to build an international Islamic university that can also serve as a study and research center of Islamic civilization in Indonesia.

         Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Vice President M Jusuf Kalla laid the first cornerstone for the construction of the Indonesian International Islamic University (UIII) campus in Depok, West Java Province on June 5, 2018, to materialize the dream.

         Construction of the UIII campus had been planned since the past two years, according to Jokowi, who was on the occasion accompanied by Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin; Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljno; Research, Technology, and Higher Education Minister M. Nasir; and Governor of West Java Province Ahmad Heryawan.

         The plan had been discussed for two years but finding the land was not easy, he noted.

         Jokowi said he was keen to allocate one thousand hectares of land for the UIII campus, but it was difficult to find land on Java Island.

         "I offered (land) outside Java, but all teams disagreed," he added.

         "In fact, we get 142 hectares of land, which is far from one thousand hectares. However, after I observed it on the field, I was surprised, as 142 hectares of land is already quite vast. Alhamdulillah (thank God). Imagine if we could have got one thousand hectares," Jokowi pointed out.

         The university is to come up on 143 hectares that belonged to Indonesia's state radio station on Pemancar street, Cisalak village, Sukmajaya sub-district, Depok Municipality. The buildings will be on 21 hectares and the rest of the land will be open spaces and greenery.

         The president revealed that the design of the UIII campus will be futuristic and expressed hope that the UIII would become a study and research center of Islamic civilization in Indonesia.