The Suzuki Cup: Laser Warfare? What Say You Julia Perez?

Football is important! In fact, to some it is so important that they are prepared to do whatever it takes to secure a victory for their side of choice. The extremes that some are willing to go crosses the line of fairness, sportsmanship, and fair play. One such instance is the recent Asian Football Federation Suzuki Cup Final (First Leg) between Indonesia and Malaysia.

This game was played in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia beat Indonesia 3-0. It is always a good thing to give credit where credit is due. However, if one side benefits from less than sporting assistance from their fans is credit really due?

Malaysian fans were permitted to brig laser pens into the stadium where the game was played. The fans wasted no time in making use of these lasers by shining them at, and into the eyes, of Indonesian players. To say it is distracting is an understatement. It is dangerous. If these people were to shine these lasers at aircraft they would be arrested and charged with serious criminal offenses, perhaps even terrorism. They are an embarrassment to themselves and their country. Is it cheating?

Soccer is just a game. It is great that people are passionate about their sport and the teams that they follow. It is, however, just a game.

However, the response from Julia Perez takes the cake. I am not a fan of her singing or her dancing, but I am a fan of her ability to take what skills, and "attributes", she does have and turn them into a successful career as an entertainer and one-time political candidate.

Perez reckons that there is no need for lasers in the return leg. Rather she is going to dazzle and blind the Malaysian team with her most ample of assets, her breasts. Apparently, stripping down to her bra and knickers is probably enough. Although, I would hazard a guess that a die-hard fan like Ms. Perez might be willing to go the full monty and give her Malaysian fans a full-frontal show if it meant Indonesia winning 4-0 and taking the Suzuki Cup.

Better still though would be a bra and panties-clad Perez will strategically placed lasers that she could direct at those Malaysian footballers staring at her naughty bits, where they would not only get an eye-full of what they were expecting, but also an eye-full of very bright, and distracting, red light!

Viva Julia Perez and Viva Indonesian football!

Kopi Luwak from Thailand in Canada...

It would seem that Indonesians will have another close South East Asian neighbour to take aim at considering this story that has made its way into the Calgary Sun Newspaper. Indonesians are pretty familiar with Malaysian attempts to steal all things Indonesian. Most recently Malaysia has been guilty of thieving the odd song or two and a concerted effort to steal the traditional batik textiles of the islands of Indonesia. However, Indonesia has not had any run-ins with Thailand over the theft of Indonesian cultural heritage or products.

Should Indonesia and Indonesians be angry?

The Calgary Sun newspaper in Canada is reporting that the Bean Stop in Eau Claire Market is about to start serving Kopi Luwak. As most connoisseurs of coffee will know, a good cup of Kopi Luwak requires good beans and the best quality beans come from Indonesia and not Thailand. Kopi Luwak requires the palm civet to munch down the coffee beans. These beans then pass through the civet's digestive system and are partially digested. Bean collectors are then employed to pluck the coffee beans out of the civet feces. The beans are then processed.

Kopi Luwak are Indonesian words. However, the beans being sourced for the Kopi Luwak that is to be served at the Eau Claire come from the Doi Chaang area of northern Thailand. Hmmm, can one really even have legitimate kopi luwak if it is not produced in Indonesia?

In any event, the coffee is not going to be cheap, even if it is not the real thing. A cup of the Thai version of Kopi Luwak will set drinkers back a whopping CND 25 a cup and CND 60 for a 50 gram tin. The owner of the Eau Claire apparently has secured about 10kgs of kopi luwak.

Let's face it, Kopi Luwak is popular. After all, it even made it on to the Oprah Winfrey Show!

Bakwan Jagung in The New York Times...

Bakwan Jagung or Corn Fritters are one of my all time favourite Indonesian snacks. They are versatile and can go by themselves as a "between meals snack" or they can form part of a main meal. So, I was pleasantly surprised to see a write up of Indonesian style corn fritters in The New York Times. It was also good to see a recipe attached to the article, and some quotes from an Indonesian Executive Chef, Djoko Supatmono, at the Satay Junction in Manhattan, New York.

I still eat bakwan jagung here in Australia. My wife is an excellent cook, and it helps that bakwan jagung is one of her favourites as well. My preferred accompaniments are sweet soy sauce with chopped chillies as a dipping sauce or sambal mentah (raw sambal - ground up chillies, garlic, pepper), or sambal Bali (I am not a connoisseur on that front, but my mother-in-law had the sambal Bali down pat). We are spoilt for fresh corn in this part of the world, and fresh corn is always the best way to go when making bakwan jagung.

It should not be too long before the Malaysians start trying to claim that they are the inventors of the Bakwan Jagung and that Indonesia stole it from them. Malaysia seems to want to claim all manner of Indonesian things from textiles to music, so food would seemingly not be such a big stretch. If Malaysia does not step forward to make a claim, then Singapore probably will.

MUI, Huh?

It is a good thing that this is a blog, and it is my blog, because I can hold pretty much any opinion that I want and then blog it in any way, shape or form that takes my fancy.

I have said this before, I will say it again, but I say it now...the MUI is a waste of space. The MUI or the Indonesian Council of Ulemas is a group of crotchety old men with nothing better to do than sit around handing out fatwas left, right, and center however it sees fit. Yes, I appreciate there are some out there that will argue that they are merely responding to requests that concerned Indonesian citizens pose on issues of "what is" and "what is not" permitted in Islam.

However, I would argue that when they are discussing medical and scientific matters that extend beyond the grasp of most mortals that they take the time to consult with experts in the field.

The MUI in its infinite wisdom has decided that a meningococcal vaccine produced by GlaxoSmithKline is haram or forbidden because it uses an enzyme in the production process that is derived from the humble pig. I appreciate that pigs are najis or ritually impure in Islam, but this is the only way that the vaccine can be produced.

There are claims that the vaccine can be produced without the pig enzyme. However, these claims have not been subject to medical review and the companies making them have not put forward the scientific evidence for scrutiny.

The vaccine production process involves the use of the pig enzyme. Nevertheless, the end product is cleaned in such a way that no traces of the enzyme remains. To all intents and purposes it is clean.

What is interesting is that the former Health Minister, Siti Fadillah Supari, says the MUI has issued a fatwa which is confusing. This is in fact code for, "the MUI does not know what it is talking about". It must be remembered that Supari, during her term as Health Minister, never missed an opportunity to stick it to western nations and their health practices. So, it seems unlikely she would side with GSK over the MUI unless the MUI were so wrong that the fatwa was not worth the paper it was written on.

What is truly funny, though, is that the GSK vaccine is used in both Malaysia and Saudi Arabia.

Why is this a big deal? Well, Saudi Arabia requires all prospective Haj pilgrims to be vaccinated against meningococcal bacteria and the possibility of contracting meningitis. The conspiracy theorists might hint that there is a need to follow the money trail on this one. The Indonesian Government had already forked out some IDR 20 billion for the GSK vaccine and will now have to fork out another IDR 50+ billion to secure enough supply of the MUI approved Novartis vaccine. Just as well I am not a conspiracy buff, eh?

Ho hum...

Bandung to Kuala Lumpur...

This is a Claytons blog post, the blog post you have when you are not having a blog post! If you want to know what the Claytons reference is all about, look it up here.

Anyways, the point of this blog post is to pose a question to anyone who knows or who cares to answer this question, what is there in Bandung or KL that warrants a daily Malaysia Airlines flight between the two cities?

I was doing the daily rounds of Indonesian news and came across a piece on the maiden Malaysia Airlines flight between Kuala Lumpur and Bandung. I thought that AirAsia was already servicing that route and was wondering why there was such a demand for travel between the two destinations that there was a need for Malaysia Airlines to put on a daily flight.

I appreciate that as the economy picks up that more and more people can afford to travel by air. Yet, I had always figured, perhaps incorrectly so, that the majority of passengers from Indonesia to Malaysia were domestic workers and that these individuals predominantly departed through Soekarno-Hatta airport in Jakarta.

Not that it matters one way or the other, but I am interested to know what the demand is for that there is such a need for daily flights.

Oh well...

Mahatir, 9/11, and Jews...

There is one thing you can always count on from the former Prime Minister of Malaysia, controversy. Whether what he says is true or not seems to be irrelevant. But, on some issues the man is downright creative in the manner he constructs his conspiracy theories. Nevertheless, probably more disturbing is the suggestion that the targeting and killing of Jews has failed to solve the "Jewish problem" at least as he sees it. I wonder if I am reading too much into the implied 'if you are going to do it, then do it right' sentiment that he appears to be suggesting.

If the quotes attributed to him are correct then he paints a pretty disturbing picture of what goes on in his head. It would seem that the only difference between him and Ahmadinejad (who is supposedly of Jewish ancestry) is that Mahatir does not deny that a massacre (probably a little less severe than a using the terms genocide or holocaust to describe the 'Final Solution' envisaged by the Nazis) took place during the Second World War.

The conspiracy theory that if the US can put together a film like Avatar, then they are more than capable of perpetrating the 9/11 attacks and blaming them on Muslims as an excuse to wage war on Muslims. The idea that the 9/11 attacks were not all that they seem, and that the US may have been involved in setting up the attacks on themselves is not a new one. Let's face it, even Rosie O'Donnell is on the record saying that the 9/11 attacks were staged and that the World Trade Centers were brought down with strategically placed bombs.

However, it is his comments about Jews that are most disturbing. Mahatir seems to think that the world's problems are caused by Jews and some kind of Jewish lobby. This is not new either as a conspiracy theory. Nevertheless, what is a little disturbing is that he seems to think that confining the Jews to ghettos and then periodically massacring them is not necessarily a bad idea, but rather it has not been done properly as the Jews have always managed to rise up again and thrive once again.

Mahatir is quoted as saying, "even after their massacre by the Nazis of Germany, they survived to continue to be a source of even greater problems for the world."

Then again, one needs to take whatever Mahatir says with a grain of salt, the man is renowned for his anti-US and anti-Semitic stances. I guess he is certainly not putting his name forward as a man of peace and reconciliation.

Manohara, Corruption, and Cemeteries

I have decided not to go with the traditional Manohara post heading. I think we are up to the mid-twenties or something, but who really cares about that.

There is one thing you have to acknowledge about Manohara and her handlers, they are master manipulators of the media. Manohara is often referred to as a teen sinetron star. Yet, her only foray into sinetron, or Indonesian soap operas, was axed after not fully completing a whole season. There are obviously diverse opinions on why that is, but it seems that the self-titled soap opera was not a big ratings winner once the novelty wore off.

In any event, this has not been a deterrent to Manohara or those handling her public image. She seems to have this uncanny knack of being everywhere that there is a photo opportunity. Most recently she turned up at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout to support a demonstration by the "Red and White Troops" focusing on anti-corruption.

The thrust of the demonstration or protest was that corruption is bad and that convicted corruptors need to be socially stigmatized in life and in death. In death, meaning that the government should set aside special pieces of land to build cemeteries for corruptors. Personally, this seems a tad unnecessary, particularly for god-fearing people. Simply, if corruption is the evil many of us believe it to be then it would seem pretty obvious that God is unlikely to reward corruptors no matter where they are buried.

And, if there is no God then it does not really matter where corruptors commence their worm food journey, does it?

In the understatement of the day category Manohara piped up that she hope that Indonesia will one day be corruption free. Don't we all, Mano?

She went onto say that she hopes corruptors are severely punished and that where those corruptors are government employees that they are fired. This was topped off by a call for unity in the fight against corruption that would see the KPK, the Police, and the Office of the Attorney General reunited in their common cause, corruption eradication.

Although, the best part of the Manohara saga is how she refers to herself in the third person. It is almost like she is not there when she is talking about herself. One quote attributed to her is, “Mano is not afraid to get dark (from the sun). Mano could get in the car but any people out here have to stand the heat.”

I am wondering though, if Mano and her mother, Daisy Fajarina, are so concerned about law and order, then why did they not deal with the case against them in Malaysia which resulted in a rather large default judgment against them? Or why Daisy insists in not finalizing the legal issues pertaining to her alleged abuse of a domestic servant whilst living in France?

People who live in glass houses probably should not throw stones (or walk around naked :D).

Manohara Odelia Pinot -- Part XXIII -- Default Judgment

It has been a while between drinks, so to speak, when it comes to the Mano posts. However, apart from her self-titles soap getting canned, there has not been anything much newsworthy to post on. Nevertheless, patience pays off, and the girl is back in the news this week and in a bit of a lawyer-driven bind.

It is interesting to see that the press refers to Mano as an Indonesian teen soap star. I am not sure that one truncated, and ultimately cancelled, season warrants the description. Yet, as a teenager she still has time to become a star. However, Mano and her mum, Daisy Fajarina, are in a spot of bother. That bother is what is likely to be a 105 million ringgit default judgment against both Mano and her mother for defaming and slandering Mano's former husband, Tengku Fakhry, of the Kelantan royal family.

Mano and Daisy's previous legal representation have handed back the case files and bailed on the case. The Malaysian High Court has decided that Mano and Daisy have until 5 November to get new legal representation on board and complete the case or run the risk of the court handing down a default judgment. It would seem that Tengku Fakhry thinks he is on a winner no matter whether his former wife and mother-in-law get counsel or not, as he was supportive of a delay to allow Mano and Daisy to seek out new legal representatives.

Aside from the cash, the prince is also asking that the court hand down an injunction that prohibits both Mano and her mother from defaming him by constantly stating publicly that the prince sexually and physically abused Mano during their brief marriage. This mistreatment also included an allegation of abduction or kidnapping.

The best defense to an allegation of defamation or slander is truth. It would seem that with this case, the prince is asking both Mano and Daisy to ante up and prove the truth of their allegations or withdraw them and be penalized for making false claims.

It has been suggested that Mano has been paid well for her work on her short-lived soap opera, but I am not sure she was paid well enough to cover a default judgment of 105 million ringgit.

(Photo courtesy of here)

The Jakarta Bombings and Democracy...

The death of Noordin M Top provided the Indonesian National Police with a wealth of information and data apparently. During the shootout which saw Top finally topped, the police managed to recover a laptop that supposedly belonged to Top.

The police have today said that the laptop contained a number of videos. One of these videos was supposedly shot on 21 June 2009, about three weeks prior to the bombing, and shows the bombers, Dwi Permana and Nana Ikhwan Maulana, having a meeting that is being described as a picnic by some, in the vacant lot opposite the JW Marriott hotel and not far from the Ritz-Carlton hotel.

The video is allegedly shot by Saifuddin Jaelani. The video zooms in on Nana pointing to the hotels and saying, "this is our target". It is being reported that Jaelani's voice can be heard saying, "destroy America, destroy Australia, destroy Indonesia".

The video then cuts to Dani saying, "this is not suicide, this is what our enemies fear!" Dani then goes on to say, "this is an obligation for all, those who do not execute this obligation are sinners." Remember, Dani is just a youngster at 18 years of age. If Top and his jihadis could convince an 18-year-old to become a suicide bomber, then it is fair to say that they are a sophisticated and dedicated organization.

If anyone thinks that the death of Top puts an end to the scourge of terrorism in Indonesia they just do not understand the nature of the beast, or the mindset of those, who will go to any lengths to create a world in their own warped version of what they think God intended it to be. There might be a lull, but this is likely to be a lull before the storm. The laptop, according to police, also indicates that Top's band of jihadist warriors were well-organized, well-equipped, well-supported, and had recently re-established links with other terrorist organizations like al-Qaeda.

Apparently, the laptop also includes a letter that Jaelani wrote to his family accusing Americans and Australians of "slaughtering his brothers". This explains the earlier comment, but may also go to show why the James Castle Breakfast gathering was targeted in the JW Marriott. It would seem a pretty good target for a terrorist trying to make a statement about American and Australian involvement in activities that a terrorist considers to be an insult to Islam and an affront to his Muslim brothers.

But, perhaps most terrifying for Indonesia and Indonesians is that Top and his band have decided to target Indonesia and Indonesian interests and the Indonesian government because of its efforts to promote democracy. This begs the question, when one considers, and in spite of the teething problems, the majority of Indonesians would consider more open government and greater democracy a step in the right direction.

It would seem that the more fundamental interpretation of Islam adopted by Top and Jaelani runs counter to what the great majority of Indonesian Muslims believe with respect to democracy.

Perhaps, the drive to democracy will be the trigger that invigorates moderate Muslims to oppose the radical or fundamental elements that seek to destroy rather than build on Indonesia's potential for greatness.

Viva Indonesia and Viva Democracy!

Malaysia, Caning, and Beer -- Part V

Sooner or later it seems Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno is going to feel the thud and sting of the cane. The case is an interesting test of Malaysia's claims to be a moderate Muslim nation and the acceptance of strict forms of Sharia law that impact on only certain groups within the Malaysian ethnic, cultural, and religious fabric. Shukarno has upped the ante in the case by refusing to appeal.

Once the sentence is carried out, she will become the first Muslim woman in Malaysia to be sentenced to a caning and then have the sentence imposed.

Shukarno's crime was to be a Muslim caught drinking beer in a nightclub in Pahang state. The religious court found her guilty of the crime and sentenced her to six strokes of the cane. I have written about the details of the case here.

The government stepped in and requested a review of the case because it believed the sentence to be too harsh and the press about the case could conceivably damage Malaysia's reputation as a moderate Muslim nation.

However, and perhaps in a sign of separation of powers, the religious high court in Kuantan has affirmed the lower religious court's decision and has stated in unequivocal terms that the sentence was correct and it must be imposed as handed-down.

It was also decided that a good ol' caning during the month of Ramadan was not in the spirit of the month where fasting, praying, and cleaning oneself of sins are paramount.

Islamic scholars in Malaysia have generally supported the sentence and have said in any event Shukarno is to be fully clothed and the cane is much smaller and lighter than the canes used in criminal matters. Perhaps this is meant to suggest that it is a lesser offense and hence there is a lesser punishment or it just won't hurt that much anyway, so let's get this over and done with.

Noordin M Top -- Dead

Noordin M. Top is dead. His death has been confirmed by Indonesia's National Police Chief, Bambang Hendarso Danuri, today.

Top was killed in a raid on a suspected terrorist hideout in Solo, Central Java. This brings to an end the seven or so years that Top has spent on the run terrorizing and killing innocent Indonesians and foreigners. The identification has been based on fingerprints on file with Malaysian police authorities.

Top was the leader of a small splinter group, Tandzim al-Qaeda, which separated from Jemaah Islamiyah (Jemaah Islamiyya). Apparently, Jemaah Islamiyah had become too soft for Top's liking as JI was moving away from violent jihad. Although, if one listened to the rhetoric and oration of JI's alleged spiritual leader, Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, you might wonder if this were true.

It might have been better if Top had been capture alive because he would potential be a well of information that if properly handled might have assisted in averting future terrorist attacks in the months and years ahead. But, by all accounts Top was never likely to be captured without a fight, and it seems he has gone out with a bang, so to speak.

All previous posts on Top can be found here.

I guess now he gets to find out if he gets the promised reward of 72 virgins.

Hambali and the Bali Bombings

Riduan Isamuddin (AKA Hambali) was arrested in Thailand in 2003, and after having been the alleged recipient of some free travel around the world to a number of ghost prisons, ended up in Guantanamo Bay as a guest of the US. This is presumably for the duration of the war on terror. However, since Barack Obama has taken office, it has become a little uncertain as to what lies ahead for some of these detainees.

In any event, there is little doubt that Hambali gave up a fair bit of intelligence under the enhanced interrogation techniques used on him, like waterboarding. Nevertheless, even with the favourable rules of evidence that the military tribunals were going to be working under, the US has some doubts that it could currently make a case against Hambali for the Bali Bombings. Hambali was the head of a Jemaah Islamiyya cell that had operational responsibilities for Malaysia and Singapore. This cell was known as Mantiqi One.

The problem is apparently not a lack of evidence, but rather a lack of evidence that prosecutors would be able to adduce and then use in court to prove Hambali's guilt. Nevertheless, it is generally thought that Hambali ordered the targeting of "soft targets" and was the main man when it came to funding the bombings.

Yet, the US authorities are a lot more confident that they can link him to a string of other bombings in Indonesia. It has only been this year that the Indonesian authorities have been granted access to Hambali for interrogation purposes. This is interesting in itself as the majority of Hambali's alleged crimes have occurred in Indonesia and have predominantly killed Indonesians. The two series of bombings that the authorities believe present as the strongest cases against Hambali are the Marriott bombing of 2003 and the Christmas Eve bombings.

If the military tribunals are reconvened, and the rules are not drastically changed, then it would seem that military prosecutors would seek to see Hambali charged with murder and then pursue the death penalty for him.

Malaysia, Caning, and Beer -- Part IV

It would seem that being sentenced to a good ol' caning, wanting to get caned, and actually being caned are very different things.

It is interesting that the Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib Razak, has entered the fray on this one. He has suggested that the Singaporean and Muslim model, Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, not be quite as willing to accept her fate. According to Razak, although he does not want to interfere with the imposition of the sentence or the role of the Sharia Courts, he believes that not all avenues of appeal are yet closed.

The PM is of the opinion that the authorities are "sensitive" to her plight and the implications of the sentence. and therefore she should appeal. I guess there are a number of ways that can be interpreted, and the cynics among us might lean towards the PM interfering in the judicial / justice process. Then again, maybe the cynics would not see it this way.

Shukarno was granted a reprieve as the Sharia Courts and the authorities decided that the holy month of Ramadan was not the opportune time to be caning a young mother of two for drinking beer. Hey, seeing it is Ramadan and a month of forgiveness, how about just vacating the sentence and replace it with a warning that in essence is a slap on the wrist and some choice words about re-offending.

However, I am of the opinion that she wants to get caned. Whether she wants to get caned because it is publicity and any publicity is good publicity, I am not going to speculate. But, she is calling a good bluff on any front by challenging the authorities to get the deed done.

Most people would have appealed the sentence as a matter of course, Shukarno has not. Instead, she has argued that if it is to be done and the authorities are really doing it as a means of educating other Muslims of the ills of alcohol and drinking, then the caning must be done in public. This makes sense to me.

The waiting game continues.

Malaysia, Caning, and Beer -- Part III

Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno is set to be contained according to her sentence sometime next week. The sentence was six lashes of the cane and a fine of 5000 ringgit. Her crime, being a Muslim and drinking beer in a nightclub in the eastern state of Pahang. I wrote about it here.

Shukarno has asked for the sentence to be carried out as soon as possible. Her request is based on two simple reasons; the sooner the sentence is carried out, the sooner she can get on with the rest of her life, and secondly, she wants others to learn from her mistakes so that they might avoid a similar caning in the future. Her regret is apparently the driving force for the desire for a public caning.

Although, there seems to be a bit of a caveat on the caning in that Shukarno wants it carried out in public rather than in the confines of a closed prison. This would certainly seem the most likely way of ensuring maximum exposure (pun intended). It is worth noting that Shukarno will be the first woman to be caned under Islamic Law. There must be a sellable story in that somewhere, particularly when one considers she lives in Singapore and not Malaysia.

It must also be noted that caning is not unusual as a form of punishment in Malaysia. There are at least forty crimes that attract a good caning. The criminal punishment statistics compiled by Amnesty International state that almost 35,000 people have been caned in Malaysia between 2002 and 2008. The majority of these canings were for immigration offenses. Simply, a few strokes on the buttocks and on your way back to wherever it is that you came from.

Amnesty International has been vocal in its opposition to caning. According to Amnesty International, caning is a cruel and degrading punishment, and as such must not be used as a form of punishment. Besides, cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishments are expressly prohibited under international law. AI has, in fact, asked the Malaysian government to vacate this sentence and to pass legislation that would prohibit the use of caning under any circumstances in Malaysia.

However, Malaysia in its defense of the soon-to-occur caning is that the cane (rattan / rotan) is smaller than the one used for men, the swing is shorter, and the purpose is to educate rather than punish, therefore Shukarno is not likely to endure too much pain when it is all said and done.

The problem, or perhaps issue, for me is that the idea of concurrent courts, General and Islamic, means that there is a two-tiered justice system where punishments depend on your religious beliefs, and therefore will differ from others who commit a similar offense or in this case where they commit no offense at all. It is not illegal for non-Muslims to drink alcohol in Malaysia.

Maybe there will be a video so that we can all get a public viewing of the manner of a Malaysian caning.

The Plot To Assassinate SBY -- Part II

It would seem that not everyone is buying into the plot to assassinate SBY as allegedly hatched by Noordin M Top and his band of terrorist colleagues. Some are openly cynical about the evidence provided to date, and have no qualms about suggesting the police have been part of a beat up in order to boost the popularity of the chosen one, aka President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono or SBY.

The claims by experts in the field are that the idea that there was a concrete plan to assassinate the president are baseless, at least at this point in time. Anak Agung Banyu Perwita of Parahyangan Catholic University has said that the bombings of the JW Marriott and the Ritz-Carlton hotels along with the recent raids on the supposed hideouts of Top and his colleagues is hardly convincing proof of a plot to assassinate. In fact, Perwita went so far as to say that the raids were nothing more than a publicity stunt to boost the president's popularity.

The assassination plot was intimated in the speech that SBY gave in response to the most recent bombings of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels. The recent raid in Jatiasih, Bekasi, on the outskirts of Jakarta, and the subsequent discovery of 500kgs of explosives is the proof of the assassination pudding. It is being argued that the proximity of Jatiasih to Cikeas, Bogor, and the private residence of SBY is proof that the terrorists were targeting the president for assassination. A long bow by any stretch of the imagination. One would hope that the police have a little bit more than that.

It might be a little dangerous to assume that they do.

The party of Megawati, PDI-P or the Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle, through one of their members on Commission I, Andreas Pareira, has said that the statements of the National Police Chief, Bambang Hendarso Danuri, are nothing more than assumption and speculation. For Pareira, the idea that Top is now targeting the president signifies a major shift in the manner in which Top's organization is operating. Top and his band of terrorist cohorts have traditionally targeted western interests.

Putting the assassination plots into perspective. Thomas Belfield has a good piece about the attempts on Soekarno throughout his time as leader of the nation.

The Plot To Assassinate SBY...

It seems that the weekend raids on the terrorist organization of Noordin M Top has failed to locate and arrest or kill the main man himself. However, the raids have uncovered what is purportedly an advanced level of planning towards an attempted assassination of the president. Although, I still think the aftermath of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotel bombings was poor timing to reveal that there were plots to assassinate him underway, it is interesting, and important, that greater detail of the plans are coming to light of the alleged plots.

The fact that Top is not dead means that the plots to assassinate SBY may still be well-advanced. It is unclear whether this was a solitary cell tasked with this particular assignment or whether Top has multiple cells operating independently of each other and given similar orders. The rationale being if one gets found out there will be others to step into the firing line.

It is surprising that the security detail on the president has been stepped up. Surprising because he is afterall the president and one would figure that the security detail would always be on a heightened level of alertness.

The assassination plot allegedly involves a rather large car bomb and 500kg of explosives. The aim to detonate the bomb close enough to the president that he would be killed. The two most likely targets were the president's private residence in Cikeas, Bogor, or the State Palace.

The more likely of these targets would have been the private residence as reports are suggesting that security prior to the public uncovering of the plot was a lot less than optimal. The idea of getting a car or van bomb closer enough to the president in the vicinity of the State Palace would really require some insiders to facilitate the movement of the car or van into a location where the deed could be done.

Apparently, the attack and assassination of SBY would be in retaliation for the executions of the Bali Bombers; Amrozi, Mukhlas, and Samudra, and because SBY runs a pro-western government.

The recent raids do not seem to have killed the possibility of future attacks. However, with a bit of luck the raids will have further disrupted the ability of Top and his band of terrorist followers to commit further attacks, and in essence buy some time for anti-terrorism authorities to capture the man.

The plan is brazen, and the fact that Top believes that he could have done it is indicative of a confidence among Top and his followers that anything is possible for them. Hopefully, this over-confidence will lead to more mistakes and the anti-terrorism authorities will dissolve the network once and for all.

Indonesia's Most Wanted Malaysian -- Part II

Latest reports are suggesting that the game might be up for Indonesia's most wanted Malaysian, Noordin M. Top.

It is being reported that either Top has been arrested already or is engaged in a firefight with authorities in Central Java. It would be better that he is arrested in terms of gathering more intelligence on the network. Although, I would be guessing that the interrogation is probably not going to be pretty.

Kompas is also reporting that there is a pretty good likelihood that the game is up for Top.

Detik.com is also reporting that there has been related activity in Jatiasih in Bekasi where police have shot and killed two suspects and raided a house where they have found a live bomb and grenades.

Perhaps the net has not only tightened, but it has now closed on Top.

Postscript...

Word on the street and in the press is that Noordin M. Top is no longer living. I do not figure that this is a good time to be wondering about the paradise that is supposedly awaiting him for doing honor to his God by acting in his name.

Postscript II...

Maybe Noordin M Top has not been topped after all. According to this article, Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group, is suggesting that Top is still alive and well. In another piece over at Yosef Ardi's blog, he is quoting sources that are now confirming that Top was not one of those killed in yesterday's raids.

If these reports are true, then more violence is certainly on the cards. Although, the seizure of 500kgs of explosives is likely to slow planning down somewhat for the next attack.

Indonesia's Most Wanted Malaysian...

And it is not Siti Nurhaliza!

Is the net tightening on Noordin M. Top?

Is it only a matter of time?

Huge public billboards are certainly one way of ensuring that the man remains in the public eye. The other would be for the man to start blogging, particular where the solitary post on your alleged blog is a claim of responsibility for the most recent bombings in Jakarta at the JW Marriott and the Ritz-Carlton Hotels, and where this solitary entry attracts 293 followers and some 2800 comments.

Indonesian and Malaysian Relations -- Part II

The Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia, Dato Zainal Abidin Zain, wanted the Indonesian press to write more favourable pieces on the goodness of Malaysians and their generosity to Indonesians on the whole. To this end, the Ambassador has decided he might have to force the Indonesian media's hand. He has attempted to do this by making a very public display of handing over financial compensation (or assistance packages) to former maids who were abused by their Malaysian employers.

One has to start somewhere.

Indonesian and Malaysian Relations

It seems that the Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia has a few issues with the manner in which the Indonesian press cover Malaysia. Specifically, the issue is that the Indonesian press are, more often than not, portraying Malaysia in a negative light.

The focus of much of the Indonesian media when it comes to Malaysia relates to abuse. The abuse of Indonesian migrant workers, and more recently of the social-climbing starlet wanna be, Manohara Odelia Pinot.

The Ambassador's beef is that violence towards Indonesian migrant workers does not only happen in Malaysia. This is true. The Ambassador is right in pointing out that violence against Indonesia's migrant workers also occurs in Saudi Arabia and even in Indonesia before the prospective migrant workers get a chance to be abused overseas. This hardly seems like a viable excuse to cut Malaysia some slack.

The Ambassador, in essence, states that it is not Malaysian government policy to allow Indonesia's migrant workers to be abused on arrival in Malaysia or for the course of their working placement. This would seem to be a no-brainer, as if it was a government policy then the media coverage would undoubtedly be even more negative than it is now.

According to the Ambassador, anyone who is alleged to have abused someone, Indonesian migrant workers included, would be charged and prosecuted, and if convicted punished to the full extent permissible under Malaysian law.

The reason this is an issue is that Indonesia has ceased sending migrant workers to Malaysia until the issues relating to abuse are more fully resolved, particularly with respect to protections afforded to vulnerable migrant workers. A deal on this matter seems far from assured at the present point in time.

However, where it gets really interesting is that the Ambassador offers up the following example of why the coverage by the Indonesian media is negative: "Please don't portray us as bad people. Fifty percent of prisoners in Malaysia are Indonesians, why do we never hear about this in the news?"

Reading between the lines here; Indonesians that come to Malaysia are bad people because 50% of the total number of prisoners in Malaysian jails are Indonesians. So, we are clearly not as bad as Indonesians. Although, an alternative reading might be that Malaysians have a real problem with Indonesia and Indonesians, and whenever they get the chance will preferably put an Indonesian in jail.

I would have figured that good news is a two-way street. What is good for the goose has got to be good for the gander as well. Perhaps if Malaysian media reported a more balanced picture of Indonesia then perhaps Indonesian media would be equally forthcoming in portraying a more balanced picture of Malaysia.