Susilo texts millions in antidrug campaign<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Millions of mobile phone users across the country received on
\nTuesday a short text message from a very important person.<\/p>\n
For most it would have been the first time they received an
\nSMS from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.<\/p>\n
During a ceremony marking the International Day Against Drug
\nAbuse and Illicit Trafficking at the State Palace, Susilo sent a
\ntext message to millions of users of all major mobile phone
\nservice providers to raise their awareness of the campaign.<\/p>\n
"Stop drug abuse and drug-related crimes right now. Let us
\npreserve and build a healthy, smart and progressive nation," said
\nthe message.<\/p>\n
It is not known how much the message delivery cost the state.
\nOne text message costs between Rp 250 (2 US cents).<\/p>\n
The message identified the sender as "Presiden RI" but unlike
\nSusilo's SMS hotline service, receivers could not reply to the
\nPresident.<\/p>\n
Susilo is keen on his cell-phone and texting and often
\nmentions the service in official speeches.<\/p>\n
He made public recently one of his private mobile numbers,
\nwhich he said was part of a bid to encourage feedback from the
\npublic, promising to respond to callers. Unsurprisingly, phone
\nlines became jammed after the number became public and few people
\nknown to have texted the President have received a response. One
\nwho did, a teacher in a small town in Central Java who sent
\nSusilo an SMS to complain about his unpaid salary, said the
\nPresident told him he would look into the issue.<\/p>\n
Later, Susilo's aides organized a new number to message the
\nPresident.<\/p>\n
The senders sent messages on a wide range of issues, even
\nsuggesting Susilo perform magical rituals to safeguard the
\ncountry and prevent more earthquakes and tsunamis.<\/p>\n
During Tuesday's ceremony, Susilo reiterated the government's
\nfirm stance against drug dealers, saying Indonesians considered
\ndrug smuggling a serious crime.<\/p>\n
"There has never been presidential pardon to a convicted drug
\nsmuggler (in the country's history). This fact reveals that we
\nhave a zero tolerance to drugs," he said.<\/p>\n
Several ambassadors of neighboring countries attended the
\nceremony.<\/p>\n
Those who had been convicted for the crimes must serve out
\ntheir sentences, whether they were foreigners or Indonesian
\nnationals, Susilo said.<\/p>\n
"I call on all parties to respect Indonesia's legal system.
\nThere is no use launching a campaign to try and change public
\nopinion in order to free an individual found guilty of drug
\noffenses," he said.<\/p>\n
The remark was apparently referring to Australian citizen
\nSchappele Corby, who was jailed for 20 years in May after being
\nconvicted of smuggling 4.1 kilograms of marijuana into Bali.<\/p>\n
The verdict sparked anger in Australia, with many Australians
\nbelieving Corby was a victim of an international drug ring.<\/p>\n
A series of incidents targeting the Indonesian Embassy in
\nCanberra with a white powder substance were also suspected to
\nhave been orchestrated by hard-core Corby supporters, which local
\nand Australian media have dubbed "Jamaah Corbiyah".<\/p>\n
Susilo defended the country's law on narcotics with its
\nmaximum death penalty for drug traffickers, saying death was an
\neffective deterrent in the fight to stop illegal drug use, which
\nhas risen to alarming levels in the country.<\/p>\n
The National Narcotics Body (BNN) revealed that around 3.2
\nmillion Indonesians or almost 1.5 percent of the population were
\ndrug users. About 78 percent of them were youths in their 20s.<\/p>\n
"The state must not give up its fight against criminals,
\nespecially drug syndicates. Otherwise, they will rule the state,
\nwhich will lead to a failed state," he said.<\/p>",
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