Indonesia tries to gag Papuan Lecture (News & Updates for August 10, 2010)

1) Indonesia tries to gag Papuan lecture

2) 144 Soldiers at Papua Base Infected With HIV: TNI

3) Penalties promised for illegal wood sales

4) ‘Smooth’ start for polls in Merauke, Asmat

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1) Indonesia tries to gag Papuan lecture

DANIEL FLITTON
Sydney Morning Herald August 11, 2010

INDONESIAN officials have tried to put a stop to a public lecture in Melbourne tonight to discuss the troubled province of West Papua.

In an echo of the pressure brought by China last year to dump the Melbourne screening of a film about a separatist struggle, an Indonesian official this week asked the Victorian branch of the Australian Institute of International Affairs to cancel the event.

Speakers at ''West Papua's Search for Self-Determination'' will include Herman Wainggai - one of 43 West Papuans granted asylum after fleeing by boat to Australia in 2006 - and Deakin university academic Scott Burchill, who was banned from travelling to Indonesia the same year.

AIIA vice-president Graham Barrett said last night West Papua was clearly sensitive for Indonesia but the Institute's policy was to present all views without favour.

Indonesian embassy spokesman Eko Junor said it was disappointing more notice of the event had not been given so the Indonesian ambassador or officials could have attended, to ''enrich the event with another side of the debate''.

Mr Junor said the request to cancel the event was most likely a misunderstanding.

Dr Burchill said Indonesia had pressured countries at the recent Pacific Island Forum to keep West Papua off the agenda.

''The less you talk about it, the more you try to block it, the more intensive the pressure becomes. You'd think they'd learned that from the East Timor experience,'' Dr Burchill said.

The event will be held this evening at Dyason House in East Melbourne at 5.30pm.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

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2) 144 Soldiers at Papua Base Infected With HIV: TNI
Jakarta Globe Banjir Ambarita | August 10, 2010

Jayapura. The Indonesian military announced on Tuesday that at least 144 of its 15,000 servicemen stationed at the Cendrawasih Army base in Papua have tested positive for HIV.

“That figure was based on medical examinations of all personnel at Cendrawasih,” spokesman Maj. Gen. Hotma Marbun said at a press conference at the base in Jayapura.

“Four of those infected have since died,” he said.

Hotma added that the prevalence of HIV here was the highest among Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) bases.

“Most of those who have the virus were sexually promiscuous,” Hotma said, adding they were mostly between the ages of 18 and 20.

To prevent more soldiers from contracting the virus, he went on, base commanders were now carrying out an awareness and education campaign to disseminate information about the dangers of HIV and how to prevent infection .

Meanwhile, those who have been diagnosed with the virus are receiving regular medical treatment, Hotma said.

“We’re doing our best to stop the spread of the disease by reminding the soldiers not to engage in unsafe sex practices, and by reminding the infected soldiers to diligently stick with their treatment plans.”

The revelation comes amid a wider campaign by the government to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in workplaces, as well as to provide treatment for infected workers.

The joint venture by the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration and the National AIDS Commission (KPAN) is also backed by the International Labor Organization.

“Workplaces are ideal for the spread of a virus because they bring people together in close confinement,” said Bambang Giatno Rahardjo, the Health Ministry’s head of human resources development and empowerment.

“Those whose immune systems are already weakened by HIV/AIDS are at greater risk of catching tuberculosis at work.”

There are an estimated 390,000 people living with HIV in Indonesia, according to the latest KPAN data from March 2010.

The commission warns this figure could increase to 500,000 by 2014 unless more is done to promote prevention and treatment programs in workplaces.

Source: Jakarta Globe

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3) Penalties promised for illegal wood sales

Rowan Callick, Asia-Pacific editor
Source:The Australian, August 11, 2010

AGRICULTURE Minister Tony Burke yesterday promised that the government would make it a criminal offence to sell illegally logged timber.
This would fulfil a promise made by Labor before the last election, which leading charities and environmental groups had pressed the government to implement.

But Alan Oxley, who was Australia's ambassador to the World Trade Organisation's predecessor and is now managing director of trade consultancy ITS Global, said the result would involve higher prices for timber.

He said: "This will mean authenticating through third-party audits the source of all timber on sale, which will add significantly to the cost for producers -- even of domestic Australian timber, none of which is sourced illegally."

Mr Burke said suppliers of timber would have to carry out proper tests to ensure wood coming into the country was legal, adding: "We will also require the use of a trade description and the circumstances under which it can be used."

He said bilateral agreements were already in place on illegal logging with Indonesia, China and Papua New Guinea. A spokesman said Australia was also talking with Malaysia, and that New Zealand was "interested in what we are doing".

Greenpeace claimed Australia imported $840 million in illegal timber products annually, including from PNG and Indonesia.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry said about $400m worth of "suspected illegally sourced timber and timber products" were imported annually.

The Australian Conservation Foundation, World Vision, the Uniting Church, Friends of the Earth and the Humane Society International issued a joint statement backing the move.

Lee Tan of ACF said: "This trade fuels corruption, environmental destruction and social disharmony in our closest neighbours."

The Rudd government commissioned the Centre for International Economics to research illegal logging.

It said last October that the most thorough estimates of its extent suggested that 5-10 per cent of the global wood products trade was traceable to illegal origins.

About 15 per cent of world timber production was traded internationally, Canberra said, of which Australia accounted for 2.5 per cent.

The Centre for International Economics said that if Australia were to stop importing such illegal products, and these products were not diverted elsewhere, it could reduce illegal logging globally by $56m a year.

The CIE said Australia would "incur all the costs of restricting imports without achieving commensurate benefits of reducing the damaging effect of illegal logging."

Greenpeace, urging the Coalition to support the proposed legislation, said: "It's a rare occurrence for Greenpeace to be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with industry and the government.

"Today we are able to do that, and congratulate Mr Burke for this policy, which sees Australia take a leading role in the protection of the world's most threatened forests . . . Mums and dads will be assured that their outdoor furniture, decking and toilet paper will come from legal sources."

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4) ‘Smooth’ start for polls in Merauke, Asmat

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura 8/10/2010

Voters in Merauke and Asmat went to the polls Monday as the two regencies held the first two of 23 local elections scheduled for 2010 in Papua.

Four tickets were vying for the Merauke administration’s top positions: Frederikus Gebze-Waryoto, Laurensius Gebze-Adnan Rusyadi, Daniel Walinaulik-Oma La Duani La Damai and Rumanus Mbaraka-Sunardjo.

Merauke General Elections Commission (KPUD) member Jaya Abdul Su’ud said 140,272 voters were eligible to cast their votes on Monday at 403 polling stations in 20 districts, 160 villages and eight subdistricts.

“According to preliminary reports, every polling station had completed voting operations and started counting votes by 2 p.m. The voting process is running peacefully,” Jaya told The Jakarta Post by telephone.

All four regent candidates are native Meraukens, while the deputy regent candidates are all from outside the province.

The Rumanus Mbaraka-Sunardjo ticket was in the lead Monday according to preliminary results, reports said.

The election commission said it expected to announce the poll winners on Aug. 19.

“We will continue to inform the public of preliminary vote counts and will announce the winners at the plenary session on Aug. 19,” he said.

In Asmat, there were 50,414 eligible voters who could cast votes at 172 polling stations in seven districts.

KPUD member Laurentius Ale said there was “smooth voting” and voters were enthusiastic about the process.

“The polling stations started vote tabulations at 3 p.m.,” Laurentius said.

The three tickets in the election are Thomas E. Safanco-Sefnath Meukbun, Yuvensius Biakai-Motong Sarigan and Xaverius Kamepits-Azrul Wail Padupai.

Safanco is the current Asmal legislative council speaker and Yuvensius is former regent.

As in the Merauke poll, all the candidates for Asmat regent were native residents who were joined by non-Papuans as deputy regent candidates.

The poll winners will be announced on Aug. 22.
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