Meblog

Wanted Dead or Alive

I thought Indonesia was falling down on the job when it came to fighting terrorism, but I was wrong.  My brother's father-in-law's manager spotted the poster pictured below, sent the following message, and well, good news travels fast. (Thanks, Jeff.)

THE HUNT IS ON !

INDONESIA'S BRIGHTEST ANTI TERRORIST SQUAD HAS PUT THE " WANTED " POSTER
OUT..... ....

" Membawa Tas Kecil berisi Bom "
" Membawa senjata Api di Saku Celana Kanan "
" Kebiasaan  5 kali seminggu lari pagi "
" Berbicara logat Malayu & jarang berbicara "

The clock is ticking.....

Armed and Dangerous:

Noordin Mohd Top

1. Wears glasses.  2. Speaks with a Melayu accent.  3. Black hair that is rather long and tied back 4. Thick Moustache 5. Face is poc-marked from acne and the skin is a light yellow 6. Resembles a person from Ambon 7. Is plus or minus 173 cm tall 8. Carries a bag that contains a bomb. 9. 35 years old 10. Carries a gun in his right pants pocket.

Dr. Azahari bin Husin

1. Thick glasses 2. Well built body 3. Thin moustache 4. Shoulder length black hair worn tied back 5. plus or minus 170 cm tall 6. Dark skin. 7. Normally runs 5 times a week in the morning 8. Carries a small bag with a bom 9. Speaks with a Melayu accent and rarely speaks.  10. 44 years old.

If you see either of these two men, call (061) 7879484 immediately!!!

Indonesian Chairs the UN's Human Rights Commission

Indonesia became a member of the United Nations Human Rights Commission in 1991, and now, Makarim Wibisono, an Indonesian diplomat has been named the chairman of the commission.

Very interesting interview on the Jakarta Post.

He had some good things to say:

Given that Indonesia's human rights record is still poor, will this be a burden in your new job?

Our leadership of the commission is a two-fold opportunity.

On one hand, we can use this momentum to boost awareness and understanding of human rights issues in Indonesia so as to make more advances in the promotion and protection of human rights in our country.

At the same time, we can show the international community that Indonesia is engaged in a process toward a full democracy. If we show human rights abuses as residual cases, we can show that while Indonesia might not have been perfect in the past, it is now in a transitional period and in the future will progress from good to perfect.

We need to explain this perspective (to the international community) because in my understanding there is a positive correlation between a country's democratic processes and its human rights record.

And some possibly not so good things:

What about the counter-terrorism measures taken by several countries, aren't these against human rights?

There are two sides to this argument. Terrorism that kills people without discrimination is clearly against human rights; we need to understand this so we can support actions against it.

At the same time, there is also a tendency to use issues of counter-terrorism as pretexts to justify efforts to limit the rights of people, such as by limiting privacy rights.

If we talk about terrorism and human rights, we must have a clear vision of what we will support and what we have to avoid. We support efforts to avoid the taking of more innocent lives. But we must avoid overreacting in the name of counter-terrorism.

It's all cloaked in such vague terms its hard to know what you are agreeing or disagreeing with.  If the counter terrorism measures being discussed is Putin's use of the Beslan tragedy as an excuse to revert back to his KGB past then I would agree.  However, if the counter terrorism measures being talked about is the liberation of Iraq then I would disagree.  Considering the answer to the first question, I would hope the former, but knowing Indonesia's stance on the Iraq war, I suspect the latter. 

Here We Go Again

The latest news from Reuters in Helsinki headlining the Jakarta Post:

Indonesia and Aceh separatists have agreed to a fresh round of peace talks in Helsinki on Feb. 21 after agreeing last month to try to labor together on the reconstruction of the province devastated by the tsunami.

On the agenda according to the Finnish former President Martti Ahtisaari's Crisis Management Initiative:

The second meeting will aim to explore whether it would be possible to find a comprehensive solution within the framework of special autonomy for Aceh, CMI said in a statement.

Course, besides all the differences and history that will have to be overcome, there is one teeny tiny little problem.  The Free Aceh Movement's (GAM) side is being represented by it's exiled leaders, and no one knows how much influence they have over the "rebels in the jungle." So even if the delegations get beyond planning the date for their next meeting, who knows if the decisions will be accepted in Aceh. You would think that if someone is going to go to all the trouble of planning a peace talk they would at least try to get the right people at the table.

The UN To the Rescue

According to the Jarkata Post, the UN is sending it's first ship to Aceh.  Lets see.  This is January 23 and the tsunami hit on December 26 so I would say the UN is right on schedule making it's grand entrance fashionably late. 

GPS Receiver Thief At Large

As Headlined in the Jakarta Post: Earthquake beacon stolen off Sumatra

PADANG, West Sumatra (Antara): A global positioning system (GPS) receiver on Awera Islet in the Mentawai Islands chain, which monitors the movement of tectonic plates was stolen, a researcher said on Sunday.

Why cause for concern:

"We know that there are many earthquakes with their epicenters under the Mentawai Islands. That is why we placed the GPS units there."

And:

"We cannot provide early prediction of earthquakes or tsunamis in West Sumatra without the receiver. Everyone is put at risk."

The details:

Bambang said the lost GPS receiver, together with a solar panel and batteries, cost around US$900 but was far more valuable for the data it transmitted.

"The GPS receiver, acquired through a grant from theCalifornia Institute of Technology (CalTech), has been in operation since September 2002 and monitors the lateral movement of the Mentawai Islands, which average 37 to 39 millimeters of movement per year," he said.

I better not comment.