Chandra on Al Jazeera...

This is a brief video, but provides a little insight into what the issues are and the supposed proof that the police have.

Worth watching. It looks like the Daniel S. Lev Law Library in the background.

Enjoy!

A Pittance of Time -- Terry Kelly...

Something that we must all ponder no matter what our personal views might be about war. We must not forget the sacrifices of so many. Simply, two minutes is no time at all to spend thinking about those sacrifices and being grateful for those that made them.

It is indeed a pittance of time that one needs to take out to remember.

Lest we forget!

Enjoy.

Blog Housekeeping -- Word Verification...

Dear All...

It seems that a lot of my posts are getting spammed. Therefore, I have opted to activate word verification. Hopefully, this will reduce the amount of spam I am getting about buying pirated DVDs and CDs from Russia and other places, as well as medications from all over the globe. After all, there is only so much Viagra and Cialis that one man can use :D

Hopefully, you all will get to enjoy the rest of your Friday and have a nice weekend to boot.

Remembrance Day...

The shall not grow old,
As we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them,
Nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun,
And in the morning
We shall remember them.

-- The Ode.

Official Cicak Logos...

I have always fancied myself as a bit of a gecko as opposed to a crocodile.

So, it has been with great interest that I have watched the Cicak vs. Buaya spat as it unfolded in Indonesia. The Cicak (Cinta Indonesia, Cinta KPK / Love Indonesia, Love the KPK) movement has shown in a very short space of time what is possible when like-minded individuals get together and confront head-on the entrenched and special interests of the few, in this case the buaya (crocodiles of the Police and AGO).

This is people power, or perhaps gecko power, in action. And, what action it has been in the sense that the recently re-elected SBY has been presented with the perfect opportunity to cement his mandate, and his legacy, as a reformer by cleaning house and getting rid of all of the dead wood in the Indonesian National Police Force (Polri) and the Office of the Attorney General (AGO).

Long Live the Cicak!

Time For SBY To Step Up To The Plate...

The Fact Finding Team appointed by the President of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono or SBY, has held a press conference to relay their findings and what they intend to put in writing to the president. It is worth noting that the fact finding team, or the Team of Eight as it is known, have no real powers to stop the investigations by the police or the Office of the Attorney General (AGO).

Nevertheless, considering that SBY went to the trouble of appointing the team means that if he does not follow through on what the team finds, then he will look like he is dragging his feet and this can only be a negative in the long-term for the president and his legacy.

The fact finding team has reported that the police and the AGO do not have a case against Chandra and Bibit. The evidence that they offered up to the team as proof of the case has been deemed inadequate. It has been deemed to be insufficient to sustain the indictment and it has been deemed to not be sufficient to get a conviction. This is a pretty big slap in the face for both the police and the AGO.

It is worth noting that this is also a pretty big slap in the face for the president as well. He steadfastly refused to become involved and his reluctance to do so has shown him to be weak on ant-corruption measures and willing to do whatever it takes to avoid making the hard decisions and upsetting the apple cart. The failures in this case will continue to haunt SBY for some time. They might also be instrumental in undermining any legacy that he thought he might be leaving with respect to being a reformer and corruption fighter.

What the interim report does put into play now is how should those who remain be dealt with. This is particularly so for the lead actor in this charade, Anggodo. Anggodo by his own admission has seemingly said he was trying to bribe members of the KPK and had disbursed money for that purpose. If there is no evidence, and the fact finding team says that there is not, then Anggodo must be charged with obstruction of justice type violations and making an attempt to bribe members of the KPK.

Furthermore, the Chief of Police and the Attorney General must also be investigated to determine what they knew and when. It seems that both were either involved in the construction of the case against Chandra and Bibit or were aware early that it was a fabrication. Both men have fronted the relevant Commission at the DPR and claimed that there is evidence of the extortion and bribes being completed, In essence, they have suggested that both the police and the AGO intend to pursue the matter to its conclusion.

The only way that either can avoid the pink slip treatment is to prove that to all intents and purposes they were "just doing their jobs". Somehow this seems unlikely.

It appears that round three, four, and five have gone to the KPK as well. The police and the AGO are taking a beating in not only the courts of law but the court of public opinion as well.

Time to give this one up.

Smells Like Bullshit...

Here is a little gem from the Indonesian Attorney General. This was offered to Commission III at the Indonesian House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat / DPR), as reported by The Jakarta Post:

“There is no evidence of bribery. But there is other proof to lead us to conclude the violation took place, although we have no adequate evidence of the acceptance of bribes.”

This is clearly double-speak nonsense. Two parts of the quote state that there is not only no evidence but what they have is inadequate. This is then moderated by there is proof that the violation, in this case bribery and extortion, took place.

Now, if this is what the Attorney General intends to proceed to trial on, then he really must start packing his bags and cleaning out his office.

The president has no choice but to intervene. The AG must be dismissed and replaced by someone who has a better understanding of what the law requires for an indictment to be made and a trial to be undertaken. Simply, the "proof" that the AG is referring to is clearly the recanted testimony of a number of suspects and witnesses. The fact that the proof has been recanted suggests that the prospects for success at trial would be somewhere between nothing and a snowflake's chance in hell.

It is way past time for the police and the AGO to give this one up.

No apologies for the title of this post or the picture.

Kidnapping Julia?

Now that it seems Maria Ozawa (aka Miyabi) has pulled the plug on coming to Indonesia to play the lead role in the film "Kidnapping Miyabi" out of fear for her life, or perhaps it's just because she cannot be bothered to go toe-to-toe with the Indonesian Ulama Council (Majelis Ulema Indonesia / MUI) or Islam Defenders Front (Front Pembela Islam / FPI). Either way, the Japanese porn star that was looking to expand her portfolio of film work into the comedy genre, Maria is now history.

So, rather than write the concept off altogether perhaps the people at Maxima Productions can come to an arrangement with a suitable Indonesian replacement. Perhaps this might be a series of suggestions of possible "stars" to take on the role that was to formerly be played by Miyabi.

It would seem that the MUI and the FPI could not possibly have a problem with a local starlet taking the lead role in an Indonesian comedy. Furthermore, it would seem that the relevant Minister would not be able to make up some lame excuse that might prevent Julia from getting a visa. Although, stranger things have happened. The film, being a comedy and all, should not run foul of the relevant authorities that are now tasked with ensuring that all Indonesian film meet exacting moral and educational standards.

First cab off the rank, so to speak, is Julia Perez. Ms. Perez has quite a following in Indonesia. At least she does in my anecdotal studies on the issue. She might not be a porn star of the magnitude of Miyabi, but nonetheless she does have the image of being a bit of a sexy rebel (unfortunately this is usually without a cause). Simply, suggestion one; "Kidnapping Julia".

I think it is a surefire hit. Just so you can see why, I have included a few "promotional" shots (all pictures freely available on the internet).

Suggestion two...stay tuned! I am thinking Jade Marcella...

Bye Bye Chief of Police, Bye Bye Chief of Detectives...

The game might very well be up for both the Chief of Police, Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri, and the Chief of Detectives, Comr. Gen. Susno Duaji. That game being their employment in their current positions. Any attempt to maintain them by the president will be a mortal wound for the president as both the Chiefs are tainted beyond salvation. In essence, the president himself signed off on the pink slips when he created the fact-finding team, and then tasked that team with uncovering the truth.

There remain questions of independence considering the president appointed a team to uncover the mentioning of his name in a some wire-tapped conversations. However, the fact-finding team was always going to find that there was no evidence against Chandra Hamzah and Bibit Rianto because there was none to start with.

Indonesian law in its current form would not sustain the trumped-up criminalization of authority charges, and the alleged corruption has to-date not been proved. In fact, there is not even enough in police hands at the moment to even formulate the charge.

The fact finding team is supposedly going to send an interim report to the president that states that there is not enough evidence to proceed against Chandra and Bibit, either on the current charge or the alleged corruption. The president can no longer sit back and say that he is going to let this charade run its legal course. That course is done. The charges against Chandra and Bibit must be dropped and they must be reinstated immediately to their positions as Commissioners on the Corruption Eradication Commission.

This farce has already damaged the president, and any feet-dragging on his part once the fact finding team reports will only further damage his credibility as a corruption fighter.

If the president is worth his salt, then the Chief of Police will resign, or be dismissed, within 24 hours of the fact finding team's report (assuming that they report that there is not enough evidence to proceed). Quite simply, the Chief of Police used a Parliamentary Commission to state publicly that the police had enough evidence to proceed against Chandra on the corruption allegations. This would seem to be a clear case of putting the cart before the horse.

In simple terms, the Chief of Police lied, and he seemingly has misled and lied to the parliament about the state of the police investigation into the allegations.

Furthermore, the Chief of Detectives must also resign or be dismissed. After all this was his own personal vendetta or war against the KPK, and he has been found wanting in the honesty and integrity department. This is in spite of any claims he may have made as God is his witness that he never received any bribes. Whether he did or did not is irrelevant. His pursuit of Chandra and Bibit was a clear abuse of power on his part, and that in itself is sufficient for him to fall on his own sword and resign. If he does not have the desire or courage to fall on his sword, then the president needs to ensure that the man is dismissed from his position.

Once the president has taken the opportunity to clear out the dead wood from the police force, he must then turn his attention to the Office of the Attorney General (AGO). Heads will also need to roll there. And, those heads must continue to roll until a new Attorney General is appointed. Best case scenario for the next AG is that it is a lawyer of good standing and a clean reputation. It cannot be an internal promotion from within the ranks of the AGO as the AGO has shown that as an institution it is tainted with corruption.

The reality is that an outsider with a mandate and the support of the president will have a foot up in terms of cleaning house and setting the AGO on the path of real reform.

This would seemingly be the perfect opportunity for the president to clean house, and start fulfilling the promise of corruption eradication, clean governance, and a brighter future free from institutionalized corruption for all Indonesians.

Postscript...

I should add that the Deputy Attorney General, Abdul Hakim Ritonga, and the Chief of Detectives, Comr. Gen. Susno Duaji, have tendered resignations.