Despite people's belief that civil servants' salaries are just

Despite people's belief that civil servants' salaries are just
barely enough to live on, many high school and university
graduates are still attracted to the civil service.

The abundant number of applicants for recent civil service
vacancies in the regencies of Bogor and Tangerang is an example
of this.

On the first day, the registration committee in Cibinong,
Bogor, was overwhelmed by 5,000 applicants vying for 329 posts
available in the Bogor regency.

Why are job-seekers still interested in being civil servants.
The old paradigm obviously remains: no dismissals or layoffs, and
an eventual pension.

Probably only one out of every 1,000 applicants would be
willing to say that they wanted to become a civil servant so they
could devote their life to the country. This kind of idealism
apparently fades.

Unfortunately, the quality of the job-seekers applying for
government jobs is not great. High school and university
graduates who have good educational backgrounds and a lot of
determination generally prefer going to a private company.

They are aware of the consequence of working for private
companies: they can be fired at any time or their companies could
go bankrupt. But those who are qualified and determined believe
they will have bright careers in the future.

In other countries, like Singapore, the interest in the civil
service is very low. The government of Singapore is reportedly
offering higher salaries for civil servants to lure more people
into the service.

-- Warta Kota, Jakarta

New U.S. immigration
regulation discriminative

The new U.S. immigration regulation, which took effect on Oct.
1, is controversial for its discriminatory nature. Malaysian
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has criticized it for its "anti-
Muslim hysteria".

U.S. immigration officers will keep a record of the personal
identity, including fingerprints and photographs, of anybody
suspected of being a terrorist and of anybody coming from any of
the 15 countries, including Malaysia, the U.S. believes harbor
terrorists.

This new immigration regulation has disrupted the global
coalition against terrorism. The U.S. has shown a hostile
attitude toward the 15 countries on its terrorist list. These
countries formerly supported the U.S.'s war on terrorism, but now
feel both disappointed and angry with the U.S.

In fact, the fight against terrorism began to lose its focus
when the U.S. threatened to destroy Iraq. President Saddam
Hussein must be toppled and replaced by someone who can cooperate
with the U.S. and give it huge opportunities in oil exploration.

Massive protest rallies have been held in major European
cities, decrying the U.S.'s true motive in planning to attack
Iraq and protesting against the U.S.'s bellicose attitude.

The U.S.'s new immigration regulation has only created more
tension in the world. -- Kompas, Jakarta