Susilo returns, but no Kalla at airport
Susilo returns, but no Kalla at airport
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono arrived home here on Saturday
after leaving the country for an official trip to Malaysia and
Thailand.
A number of Cabinet members welcomed him as he landed at the
Halim Perdanakusumah air base in East Jakarta; the protocol to
welcome a president who arrives back from a foreign trip.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla, however, was absent. Since taking
office in October last year, he has never missed such a ceremony,
a development that may give Jakarta's political pundits new
ammunition to speculate over the rising political rivalry between
Susilo and Kalla, who chairs the Golkar Party, the largest in the
House of Representatives.
Kalla flew to Padang from Halim Perdanakusumah earlier in the
morning to open a Minang ceremony and other events in the West
Sumatra capital of Padang. According to his aides, Kalla had
informed Susilo that he was unable to welcome the President at
the airport.
The President held a limited Cabinet meeting upon arrival at
the air base's VIP room with Coordinating Minister for People's
Welfare Aburizal Bakrie, Coordinating Minister for Political,
Legal and Security Affairs Widodo Adi Sucipto, Minister of Home
Affairs M. Ma'ruf, Indonesian Military Commander Gen. Endriartono
Sutarto and National Police chief Gen. Sutanto.
Presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said that the
ministers gave an update to the President on the famine in Papua,
the ruling of the Supreme Court on the mayoral election dispute
in Depok, West Java and the peace-building process in Aceh.
The President specifically ordered Sutanto to investigate a
trafficking case involving an Indonesian worker in Malaysia
forced to work as a prostitute by her agent.
"The President said that it shall not be considered a solitary
case and asked the National Police chief to investigate the case
of forced prostitution and other related cases," Andi said.
Susilo also asked Sutanto about developments in the
investigation into alleged graft at the immigration section of
the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
Susilo asked Aburizal to solve the problem of famine due to
crop failure in Papua. The minister reported to the President on
a series of measures to be taken by the government to help the
Papuans as well as a plan to prevent any famine in the future.
The President, who is scheduled to visit Aceh for the first
anniversary of the Dec. 26 tsunami, asserted that the government
and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) shall continue to uphold the
peace deal, Andi said.
Indonesia and GAM signed a peace accord in Helsinki on Aug. 15
to end 32 years of conflict in the province, which was devastated
by a massive earthquake and tsunami that left over 131,000 dead
and 500,000 others homeless.