We don't live in cowboy country<\/p>\n
Last Wednesday's fatal shooting of prosecutor Ferry Silalahi
\nof the Central Sulawesi Prosecutors' Office came as a big blow to
\nus.<\/p>\n
It is not the first time a member of the judiciary has been
\nshot dead by irresponsible people. Ferry's murder has further
\nblackened the climate of the country's judicial system.<\/p>\n
A biased court and flawed judiciary has become the status quo.<\/p>\n
British Ambassador Charles Humfrey's disappointment over a UK
\ncompany's loss in a legal dispute with its local partner remains
\nfresh in the mind. Reports said the court had been partial and
\nunfair in the case -- this is only a small example of the unfair
\ncourt proceedings that prevail here.<\/p>\n
It is ironic that clean judicial members, like Ferry, die for
\ntheir principles.<\/p>\n
We condemn such a "cowboy" practice, and Ferry's tragic death
\nshould become the last high price we should pay to uphold the
\nlaw. -- Bisnis Indonesia, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Maid for absconding<\/p>\n
Good help is so hard to find these days, judging by the
\nImmigration director-general's report that more than 17,000
\nforeign maids ran away last year.<\/p>\n
If they were abused as Nirmala Bonat was, then they have every
\nreason to bolt from their cruel taskmasters. But the director-
\ngeneral said mistreatment was not the reason. He explained that
\nthey did not like doing "household chores" and preferred other
\njobs. Or perhaps, although there was no physical, psychological,
\nor sexual harassment, the work was harder than they expected.
\nThere would certainly be problems with their employers and the
\nwork environment.<\/p>\n
If you have to work a 16-hour day, seven days a week, taking
\ncare of four children, cooking three meals a day, doing the dirty
\ndishes, cleaning the house, washing the clothes and cleaning two
\ncars for about RM300 a month, you would probably clear out, too.
\nBut many Malaysian families will tell you that they treat their
\nmaids well, regard them as part of the family, give them days
\noff, help with the housework, provide good working conditions,
\nand pay them decent salaries.<\/p>\n
Yet their maids disappear unexpectedly, leaving them with the
\ndifficult task of getting someone to look after the kids on such
\nnotice, a fine to pay and no hope of getting a refund.<\/p>\n
Like the maids, employers too have tales to tell -- trust
\nbroken, money stolen, valuables pilfered, husbands seduced.
\nAlthough the stories are not as horrific as those of maids
\ntortured, they do show that both are victims of an unsatisfactory
\nstate of affairs.<\/p>\n
Live-in maids have become a necessity for many double-income
\nMalaysian families in the absence of affordable alternatives for
\nthe childcare and domestic services they require. There is also a
\nlarge pool of available foreign workers to mind their children
\nand do the housework.<\/p>\n
But somehow neither the needs of the employers nor their maids
\nare being met and neither are their rights being respected.
\nRecruiting agencies owe it to their clients and the maids to do a
\nmore professional job. Governments, not least those of the
\nlabor-exporting countries, owe it to their citizens to create the
\nmechanisms and regulations to ensure a fair deal for both
\nemployers and migrant workers.
\n-- New Straits Times, Kuala Lumpur<\/p>\n
Old foes say cheese, but old scars remain<\/p>\n
IT may not have quite the power of the image of Nelson Mandela
\napplauding his former jailer, F.W. de Klerk, when the two were
\nawarded the Nobel peace prize in 1993, but Monday's beaming photo
\nin The Australian of East Timorese President Xanana Gusmao and
\nIndonesian presidential candidate General Wiranto was a stunner.
\nAs the leader of Fretilin during the Indonesian occupation, Mr
\nGusmao spent more than six years in Indonesian jails and under
\nhouse arrest.<\/p>\n
As the former commander of Indonesia's armed forces, General
\nWiranto bears direct chain-of-command responsibility for the
\nbloody rampage in Dili that cost 1500 civilian lives after the
\n1999 independence referendum. While the photo is a powerful image
\nof reconciliation, it is also a symbol of the pragmatism of East
\nTimor's leadership. In a country where 41 per cent of the
\npopulation lives below the poverty line, there are more urgent
\nissues than settling old scores.<\/p>\n
That does not mean there is any question of forgiving and
\nforgetting the slaughter, rape and robbery that Indonesian forces
\ncarried out in 1999. The UN-funded Serious Crimes Unit has
\nindicted 369 people for those crimes, including General Wiranto
\nhimself. But ever since the warrant for Wiranto was issued,
\nsenior East Timorese officials, including Mr Gusmao and Foreign
\nMinister Jose Ramos Horta, have been playing down the possibility
\nit will be carried out.<\/p>\n
Wiranto is the chosen candidate of Golkar, the old Soeharto
\npolitical machine, in the Indonesian presidential elections due
\nto begin in less than five weeks. The last thing East Timor, with
\nits population of less than a million, needs is to make a lasting
\nenemy of the 220-million-strong nation that sprawls to its east,
\nwest and north. It is realism that dictates Mr Gusmao's smile,
\neven through gritted teeth.<\/p>\n
-- The Australian, Sydney<\/p>\n
Our economies live in dangerous times<\/p>\n
It is hard to imagine a world without oil. Petroleum underpins
\nmuch of the workings of modern society, whether as fuel for our
\ncars, ships and airplanes, as energy for our electricity plants,
\nor as a basic material for the plastics, industrial chemicals and
\nother industries that have developed for the general betterment
\nof mankind. Industrialization and globalization have helped feed
\nour ravenous appetite for oil.<\/p>\n
Even with technological advances allowing oil to be found,
\nextracted and transported more efficiently than ever before, the
\nworld's oil markets continue to be led by the countries of the
\nMiddle East. Nearly two-thirds of the world's proven reserves are
\nin the Middle East, led by Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The region
\nproduces one-third of total global production, nearly all for
\nexport to the United States, Europe and Japan.<\/p>\n
Any disruption to the world's oil markets can have huge
\nrepercussions. During the 1970s, a blockade of shipments by the
\nOPEC cartel to the West led to deep recessions around the world.<\/p>\n
The potential for a repeat of such circumstances has taken
\ngreater urgency in recent months, heightened by political
\ntensions and security risks in the Middle East. Energy prices
\nhave risen to their highest levels in decades, to over US$40 per
\nbarrel. But it is the risk of global terrorism targeting the
\ndelicate infrastructure of Middle East oil markets that is the
\ngreatest factor behind the recent run up in prices.<\/p>\n
This risk was reinforced by the weekend attack in Saudi
\nArabia. With political stability in the Persian Gulf looking a
\npipedream, common sense would suggest the current volatility of
\nthe oil markets may be more representative of future trends than
\nsimply a short-term aberration.
\n-- The Bangkok Post<\/p>\n
Alan Greenspan's
\nrenomination<\/p>\n
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who has guided our
\neconomy through good and bad times, has been re-nominated by
\nPresident Bush for a fifth four-year term. The appointment, which
\nis expected to sail through the Senate, was no big surprise, even
\nthough Greenspan and Bush don't always see eye to eye. ...<\/p>\n
The Fed chairman has held the job since the summer of 1987 and
\nhas steered our nation through several potential disasters - the
\n1998 Asian financial crisis, the tech bust of 2000 and the
\nrecession stemming from the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001,
\nterrorist attacks, which closed the nation's stock and bond
\nmarkets for more than a week.<\/p>\n
At age 78, Greenspan may not complete his full term, some
\npundits say. But others contend that our central banker will
\ntough it out to the end to ensure that our nation's intricate
\neconomic machine is running smoothly. Let's hope so.<\/p>\n
-- The Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, Pennsylvania<\/p>\n
---
\nKerry on the Democratic
\nconvention<\/p>\n
You could ridicule John Kerry for suggesting he may not accept
\nthe Democratic presidential nomination at his party's convention
\nin July. What's the man thinking? A nominating convention is for,
\nwell, nominating a candidate.<\/p>\n
But let's not be too quick here. The senator has a point. The
\nlast exciting floor battle at a national political convention was
\nin 1976, when Jerry Ford and Ronald Reagan skirmished. Ever
\nsince, the nominee has been known way ahead of the convention.<\/p>\n
Today, the gatherings serve mostly as a trade show for
\npolitical junkies, including us journalists. Like doctors going
\nto Vegas or Miami for their professional gatherings, the
\npolitical class meets every four years, eats good food, hears
\nspeeches and talks among itself. And the thing is televised.<\/p>\n
Oh, yes, taxpayers foot part of the bill. In an era of record
\ndeficits, maybe it's time to stop that and start selling naming
\nrights. Couldn't you see it: the United Auto Workers' Democratic
\nNational Convention? Or the Pfizer Republican National
\nConvention?<\/p>\n
This has possibilities. The lobbyists already dominate
\nconventions. They host big parties for congressmen and others.
\nThey might as well pay the whole tab. Well, it's just a thought.
\nWhether he meant to or not, Mr. Kerry has shown that political
\nconventions have outlived their usefulness. We need an
\nalternative.<\/p>\n
Whatever the alternative, today's conventions are looking as
\ndated as the old Pong computer game. And with security so tight
\nthese days, a new format makes sense. This one definitely isn't
\nworking.<\/p>\n
-- The Dallas Morning News, Dallas, Texas<\/p>\n
---------------------------------------------------------------<\/p>\n
GetAP 1.00 -- MAY 28, 2004 00:22:53<\/p>\n
;AP;
\nANPA ..r..
\nEditorial Roundup
\nBy The Associated Press=
\nJP\/<\/p>\n
By The Associated Press=
\nHere are excerpts from editorials in newspapers around the world:
\n---
\nStraits Times, Singapore, on Taiwan:<\/p>\n
Semantics are an essential part of the political game that
\nTaiwanese leaders are wont to play with China. In the latest
\nmanifestation of word play, Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian's
\ninauguration speech last week was calculated not to infuriate
\nChina but to say - or omit - enough to keep alive its suspicions
\nabout the island's course of action.<\/p>\n
What he must keep in mind is that, unlike pro-independence
\nfundamentalists who can make demands without having to take
\nresponsibility for the consequences, he is mandated to ensure the
\nsecurity and prosperity of Taiwan. Nothing could be more
\nimportant to the Taiwanese.<\/p>\n
China's annoyed response to the speech was expected. What it
\nwill look for now is where Chen's actions lead. He would do
\nhimself and his voters a great disservice if he believed that
\nChina would not act if he crossed the line. It is not in China's
\ninterests to fight a war that sets back its amazing economic
\ntransformation, but it would have no option but to fight if the
\nalternative is the loss of Taiwan. Unlike word play, realities
\ncan be horrendously simple."
\n---
\nEl Pais, Madrid, Spain, on soldiers with immunity:<\/p>\n
The scandal over torture and mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners
\nin the Abu Ghraib prison that is shocking the world makes immoral
\nthe Bush administration's request for an extension of
\ninternational legal immunity for its soldiers in Iraq. This
\nposition is not new. The Security Council already granted this
\nbenefit in 2002 and 2003. But the context has changed and the
\nAmerican request has become a challenge to the very raison d'etre
\nof the newly created International Criminal Court: to put an end
\nto impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity, offenses
\nwhich include the events that took place behind the walls of that
\nshameful prison.
\n---
\nJordan Times, Amman, Jordan, on Israeli incursion into Rafah:<\/p>\n
As the world sat and watched last week, Israel entered Rafah
\nostensibly to root out armed Palestinians and destroy smuggling
\ntunnels.<\/p>\n
In the process, 43 people were killed, among them ... a three-
\nyear-old girl, who died of a bullet wound to the neck. Add to the
\nkilling of children and the unarmed, the destruction of dozens of
\nhomes.<\/p>\n
Let there be no doubt about it: Israel did not enter Rafah to
\nprotect itself; it entered Rafah to exact revenge for the
\nkillings of 13 of its soldiers two weeks ago.<\/p>\n
It entered Rafah to collectively punish Gazans for daring to
\nstand up, in one way or another, to the Israeli occupation. It
\nentered Rafah to tell the world that they can criticize until
\ntheir faces turn as blue as the U.N. flag: Israel can and will do
\nwhat it wants to Palestinians. And what did the world do? A U.N.
\nSecurity Council resolution was passed that, for once, the U.S.
\ndid not veto. Europeans complained. Arabs remonstrated. Even
\nIsraelis protested.<\/p>\n
The response from Israel? The Israeli army denied there was a
\nhumanitarian disaster in Rafah and said the number of houses
\ndemolished were inflated by "Palestinian propaganda." Israeli
\nDefense Minister Shaul Mofaz, meanwhile, said while troops are
\nbeing redeployed, "Operation Rainbow" would continue for a couple
\nof days. In other words, Israel simply responded to international
\ncriticism by ignoring it.<\/p>\n
It is time the EU and the U.N., as well as the Arab world,
\nstarted pushing seriously and with determination for sanctions to
\nbe imposed on Israel.<\/p>\n
While the U.S. will resist, as Washington resisted when
\nsanctions were imposed on South Africa, the sanctions eventually
\nworked there. They may eventually work against Israel. They will
\ncertainly have more of an effect than the international
\ncommunity's current efforts.
\n---
\nThe Times, London, on Iraq:<\/p>\n
Grand promises are not in order, even though there is still
\nroom for grander vision in the long term. Iraqis know that June
\n30 cannot bring a wholesale transfer of sovereignty, but they
\nneed to feel that the date will mark a material shift towards a
\nnational government. The draft resolution presented to the UN
\nSecurity Council yesterday left some important details to be
\ndecided until the caretaker government is named at the end of
\nthis month. But it clearly reflects the U.S. determination to
\nmake good on its word in encouraging Iraqis to take
\nresponsibility for themselves as soon as possible. It must now be
\nhoped that the Security Council's blessing will follow, and that
\nsuch a blessing will signal a commitment by the international
\ncommunity to see things through, and not provide an alibi to cut
\nand run. ...<\/p>\n
Agreement may yet be scuppered by French and German insistence
\non a date for military withdrawal. But experience in Somalia and
\nelsewhere suggests that leaving too soon would reap more certain
\ndisaster than staying too long. Setting a fixed date could be a
\ngift for those who want to see democracy fail. ...
\n---
\nThe Guardian, London, on Taiwan:<\/p>\n
The Taiwan Strait is one of the last items of unfinished
\nbusiness from the cold war - and it can still make us shiver.
\nThursday's inauguration of Taiwan's recently re-elected
\npresident, Chen Shui-bian, has been watched with very close
\nattention.<\/p>\n
No one can quarrel with the status quo in which Taiwan is
\neffectively independent while everyone follows the U.S. lead in
\npretending that "there is only 'one China."' What worries many
\npeople is the danger that either the pro-independence fanatics in
\nTaiwan or the pro-reunification die-hards on the mainland will
\nunmask this charade. We can breathe a little easier now, after
\nencouraging signals from both sides. ...<\/p>\n
Mr. Chen has a bad record of ratcheting up his hyperbole when
\nin domestic trouble, and China still regards him as a "slippery
\npolitician." Beijing's moderation is offset by the way it has
\nbullied Hong Kong over political reform, and it still talks of
\ncrushing a move to independence "at any cost.". Both sides should
\nbe urged to take it easy and settle for what they have got.
\n---
\nDaily Telegraph, London, on attack on the Shia:<\/p>\n
Yesterday's American attack on the militia of the Shia
\nextremist Moqtada al-Sadr comes not a moment too soon. But what
\nis its purpose?<\/p>\n
The fear must be that this is a tactical escalation of force
\nalong a broad line of strategic retreat: biff him a bit before
\nthe next round of negotiation and accommodation begins.
\nObviously, al-Sadr has not won in strictly military terms, but
\nthat was never his game.<\/p>\n
Rather, his aim was to create a political aesthetic for the
\ngratification of certain portions of the Muslim world. He has
\ndefied the coalition and got away with it for a considerable
\nperiod of time, at least in the sense of avoiding total
\nannihilation (rather after the fashion of Yasser Arafat's escape
\nfrom the clutches of the Israelis in Lebanon in 1982). ...<\/p>\n
Iraq's Shia majority, especially, was disempowered under the
\nlargely Sunni Ba'athists. Since Saddam Hussein was overthrown,
\nthey have been told by the Western powers that there must be a
\ndramatic slow-down in de-Ba'athification for the sake of
\n"national reconciliation"; "affirmative action" for their Sunni
\noppressors; and now, their political fate is to be molded by the
\nUN special envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, a Sunni Arab nationalist of
\nthe old school who had few problems with Saddam.<\/p>\n
Inevitably, even the least sectarian of the Iraqi Shias are
\nasking: is the political playing field to be tilted against them
\nonce more for the sake of the West's overarching relationship
\nwith their Sunni Arab neighbors? ...
\n---
\nLa Repubblica, Rome, on Italian participation in Iraq:<\/p>\n
The project of installing in Baghdad a government that
\nrepresents the whole of Iraqi society that also keeps excellent
\nrelations with Washington seems to have failed.<\/p>\n
The peace project in Iraq requires a political and military
\nstep turnaround: an authentic step backward by the Bush
\nadministration.<\/p>\n
This step back will never happen, unless the desertion of
\nimportant allies does not force the White House to rethink.
\nThat's the reason the recall of (Italian) troops ... seems a
\ngesture of farsighted wisdom.<\/p>\n
The choice of staying in Nasiryia or leaving has to be subject
\nto rational evaluation, in which it would be absurd not to take
\ninto account what people actually want.<\/p>\n
All the polls show that Italians favor a withdrawal. In the
\nlast ... 57 percent of those asked declared themselves against
\nItalian soldiers remaining in Iraq.<\/p>\n
Certainly it is an error to govern according to polls but it's
\nno less absurd to blindfold one's eyes when popular opinion shows
\nitself with such clarity.<\/p>\n
If in this situation the authors of a mistaken war were
\nseverely punished by voters, it would be a clear sign of victory
\nfor democracies.
\n--- MORE[<\/p>\n
GetAP 1.00 -- MAY 28, 2004 00:22:44<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/we-dont-live-in-cowboy-country-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }