RI to deport Abu Quassey to Egypt

JAKARTA: The government has decided to deport a suspected people-smuggler to Egypt later this week, ignoring a request by Australia authorities to extradite him to Australia.

Justice and human rights minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said here on Tuesday that Mootaz Attia Mohammad Hasan, alias Abu Quassey, would be flown to Egypt this week.

Immigration Director General Imam Santoso said Quassey would be deported soon after the Egyptian Embassy here settled administrative matters, including providing an airline ticket.

"They (the Egyptian Embassy) have promised us they will prosecute him in Egypt," he told reporters.

Quassey, an Egyptian citizen, was arrested here on immigration charges in November 2001, a month after 374 asylum seekers from Afghanistan and Iraq drowned when their Australia-bound boat sank off Australian waters.

Quassey, who is now in a detention center in Jakarta after serving a six-month prison sentence for a visa violation, has admitted organizing the voyage, but later said that he was only hired as a translator for the asylum seekers.

Australia had earlier asked Indonesia to extradite Quassey to be tried for the deaths of those migrants, but the absence of an extradition treaty prevented Indonesia from granting the request. --JP

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Assets of Hendra Rahardja sought

JAKARTA: The government filed a petition with an Australian court last week to claim the assets of wanted Indonesian banking and business magnate Hendra Rahardja who died in January in the country, a Cabinet minister said.

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra said on Tuesday that the government had asked the Australian government to locate and freeze Hendra's assets there.

"We appeal to the court to pursue his assets as he had been convicted here for corruption and he kept his wealth there," he told reporters at his office, saying that the government did not file a civilian lawsuit against Hendra as it would take longer.

Hendra was sentenced to life in prison in absentia last March for corruption involving Rp 1.95 trillion (US$216.7million) in taxpayers' money distributed to two of his banks under the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Support (BLBI) program during the economic crisis in the late 1990s.

The tycoon, as well as son Eko Edi Putranto and subordinate Sherny Kojongian, fled the country in 1997 to Australia. The government, who had repeatedly sought Hendra's extradition after his arrest in Sydney in 1999, has yet to decide over Eko and Sherny.

"We don't extradite people without reason. We must know what we will get in return" Yusril said, referring to the assets.

Hendra's lawyers have claimed that the government has sold some of their client's assets.

The Australian government had offered Jakarta some US$120 million of Hendra's assets held in Australia following his death.

Jakarta's efforts to reclaim state losses over BLBI cases have yet to bear fruit, although courts here have convicted some of the perpetrators. Several wealthy bank owners, including Hendra, have fled the country to avoid repaying their loans. -- JP

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All schools to be accredited

JAKARTA: The Minister of National Education Abdul Malik Fajar swore in on Tuesday 23 members of the National School Accreditation Body (BAS) whose main task is to appraise the quality of schools at all levels nationwide.

"It's embarrassing but we have to be honest about our quality of education. We may say that our education is growing in terms of number of schools, but it's not innovative," he said to reporters after the ceremony.

The problem, he said, had prompted the government to set up an institution to ensure that schools met national standards throughout the country.

Following the national BAS, provinces, regencies, and municipalities will set up their own BAS. The BAS' offices in regencies and municipalities will evaluate preschools to junior high schools while BAS' provincial offices will evaluate senior high schools.

They would then report to the national BAS, which will give recommendations to improve the quality of education.

The accreditation body's members -- both national and local -- will be selected from communities, besides representatives from the government.

"We cannot work alone. We expect the communities to participate in the activity." said the minister.

The 23 BAS members include nine officials from the ministry, Imam Prasodjo of the University of Indonesia, Yunan Yusuf, the head of Muhammadiyah education council, Abdul Rahman Saleh of Nadhlatul Ulama, Heribertus Sumarjo of the Catholic Education Council, W.B.P. Simanjuntak of the Christian Education Council and journalist Imam Prihadiyoko. --JP

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AJI opens Udin Center

YOGYAKARTA: The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) of Yogyakarta officially announced on Monday night the establishment of the Udin Center, named after murdered journalist Fuad Muhammad Syafruddin. It was established as an information referral center for Udin's case in particular and for violence against the media and journalists in general.

Speaking to The Jakarta Post on Tuesday, Yogyakarta AJI chairman Masduki said that information, data and analysis on the Udin's case were spread throughout numerous places and institutions, making it difficult to access them for either news or research needs.

"If nothing is done about it, they (information, data, and analysis on Udin's case) will be just destroyed and not recognized as important documents," said Masduki, explaining the reason behind the decision to set up the Udin Center.

Udin was beaten by unidentified persons on Aug. 13, 1996 and died three days later in Yogyakarta Bethesda Hospital without regaining consciousness.

Yogyakarta Police have so far failed to name a suspect after it brought to court suspect Dwi Sumadji alias Iwik who was later acquitted by the Bantul District Court due to lack of evidence.

According to Masduki, the center was named after Udin because Udin was considered a symbol of critical journalism. --JP

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PDI-P proposes Saddam street

JAKARTA: President Megawati Soekarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) plans to propose that one of Jakarta's main roads be named after deposed Iraqi president Saddam Hussein.

Senior party member Sabam Sirait disclosed here on Tuesday that he had sent a letter to the secretary of the party's Jakarta chapter Maringan Pangaribuan to pursue the idea.

Sabam said the idea was proposed to recognize the heroic struggle of the Iraqi people against the invading forces of the U.S. and its allies.

He acknowledged that he had also sent a letter to the governor of Jakarta, speaker of Jakarta legislature, the Iraqi ambassador to Indonesia, and the Indonesian ambassador to Iraq.

According to Sabam, Iraq was among the countries friendly to Indonesia because it was the fourth state to recognize Indonesia's independence in 1945. --JP

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Senior journalist to receive honorary doctorate

YOGYAKARTA: Former Kompas chief editor Jakob Oetama is to receive an honorary doctoral degree in communication from Gadjah Mada University here on Thursday.

The university's rector Sofian Effendi said on Tuesday the award would be given to Jakob for his outstanding achievement in developing a peaceful, non-violent and humanist style of journalism that greatly respects justice and takes sides with ordinary people.

"We have seen that in the last 48 years since Kompas was established, Pak Jakob has been consistently developing such a style of journalism, a style that does not cause a headache to readers," Sofian said.

He added UGM had considered awarding the academic title to Jakob, who is an alumnus, two years ago, but technical problems had hampered the plan.

Jakob, a Yogyakarta native, will be the 18th person to receive an honorary doctorate from UGM. Last week the university conferred a doctorate upon Brunei Darussalam Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. -- JP