POLITICS
Blood is thicker than water
By Sunanda K. Datta-Ray, For The Straits Times
ACROSS BORDERS: Malaysian police firing water cannon at ethnic Indian protesters in Kuala Lumpur last November. The protest later prompted Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to express his concern over the welfare of the minority community. -- PHOTO: AP
IT IS not widely known that on March 12, 1992, Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi, then Malaysia's foreign minister, summoned Myanmar's envoy in Kuala Lumpur 'to express concern over Myanmar's treatment of the Rohingya minority'.
The same day, Indonesia's then foreign minister Ali Alatas said the situation in Myanmar was 'threatening the stability of the region'.
A brief examination of the Rohingya position is necessary before considering the implications of those gestures that may have set a precedent for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's expression of concern over Malaysia's own ethnic Indian minority.
Myanmar's 800,000 Rohingyas have complained of repression since 1978, when the army launched Operation Nagamin (Dragon King) aimed at 'scrutinising each individual living in the state, designating citizens and foreigners in accordance with the law and taking actions against foreigners who have filtered into the country illegally'.
About 200,000 Rohingyas fled to Bangladesh and a further quarter of a million followed in 1992. The Rohingyas are of Bengali stock, from the Chittagong region of what is now Bangladesh, who moved to Myanmar's Arakan district before South Asia came under British rule.
They could not go to Malaysia or Indonesia, which share no land borders with Myanmar. Nor are the Rohingyas ethnically connected to the Malay race in either country, as they are to Bangladeshis. There was thus no risk of Myanmar's troubles spreading to Malaysia or Indonesia. Being contiguous with Myanmar's Arakan Hills, Bangladesh saw this as a very real fear.
AGAINST THE FLOW
History shows that diplomatic propriety is frequently at odds with instinct and human obligations.
Why then were Datuk Seri Badawi and Mr Alatas so concerned about a remote people? The only explanation seems to lie in a shared religion. The Rohingyas being Muslim, like the bulk of Malaysians and Indonesians, the two foreign ministers felt entitled to express interest.
By that token, the government of any Muslim country can respond to anything involving Muslims anywhere on earth. This is English metaphysical poet John Donne's no-man-is-anisland ideal trimmed to only the Muslim segment of it.
It's forgotten today that Nationalist China propounded a similar principle. Its citizenship law based on the lex sanguini theory of an indivisible and indissoluble Sinic nationality held that though seas and frontiers separated the Chinese of China, its offshore islands and the diaspora, they were 'essentially one people with a shared heritage, the Chinese civilisation'.
That made Hong Kong and Macau the Second China, and Nanyang, the region of the southern seas where Singapore is located, the Third. One of several differences between the People's Action Party and the Barisan Socialis in Singapore was that while the former categorically rejected the Third China thesis, the latter viewed it with some sympathy.
Nationalist China's law had an amusing sequel when the British retaliated by requiring all ethnic Chinese refugees in India during World War II to register under the Registration of Foreigners Act. When Tan Chin Tuan of the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation refused, the enraged British police officer in charge of security in Kolkata barked 'purple with rage' that all Chinese were shoemakers, restaurateurs and black-marketeers!
The situation was saved through the intervention of another Briton whom Tan had known in Singapore as a commercial artist but whose Cathay Building office was a front for the Special Operations Executive charged with sabotage missions behind enemy lines.
Though Communist China repudiated its predecessor's citizenship law, it protested when, during the 1962 Himalayan war, a resident of Kolkata's Chinatown was manhandled on a bus.
History shows that diplomatic propriety is frequently at odds with instinct and human obligations. Politicians are also people, belonging to particular races and religions.
Blood is thicker than water.
The writer is visiting senior research fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. This is a personal comment.
Copyright: Sunanda K. Datta-Ray
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Food Safety
Dec 22, 2007
The Big Clean-up
A recent food poisoning outbreak hit over 200 people who ate PrimaDeli's cakes. The company was given the green light to resume operations yesterday, after an 11-day clean-up and inspection process. DIANA OTHMAN and SUMATHI V. SELVARETNAM look at the process.
CLEAN SWEEP: Samples were taken from various surfaces at the factory. -- PHOTO: PRIMADELI
Step 1: All-out efforts to disinfect factory over 11 days
OPERATIONS at PrimaDeli's factory in Keppel Road come to a halt on Dec 4 for a complete disinfection of the premises.
Prima hired cleaning specialists to conduct the massive round-the-clock clean-up from Dec 5 to 16.
All surface materials were stripped off.
Ceilings, floors, walls and production equipment were washed with a high-pressure jet and wiped clean with a sanitiser concentrate to remove all possible sources of microbial infection.
Airborne disinfectants were used throughout the factory.
Dressed in protective gear to stop them from 'shedding' their own germs or contaminants onto the site, six officers from the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) descended upon PrimaDeli's 1,080 sq m food production facility at Keppel Road on Monday.
In two hours, a total of 75 swab samples were taken at the buns, pastry and cakes section of the factory.
Samples were collected from any area where there was any possible contact with food.
This included preparation table tops, kitchen utensils and equipment such as ovens and trays.
The handles of toilet doors and doors to preparation rooms were also swabbed.
The samples collected were sent to AVA's Veterinary Public Health Centre in Lim Chu Kang for testing.
Step 2: Tests on samples to ensure tip-top hygiene
STRINGENT TESTING: Scientists at AVA's Veterinary Public Health Centre checking swab samples for the presence of bacteria. -- ST PHOTO: ALPHONSUS CHERN
View more photos
IN A microbiology laboratory at AVA's Veterinary Public Health Centre, swab samples go through two main tests:
a hygiene indicator - to check how clean they are;
and salmonella detection - to search for any of the germs responsble for outbreak of food poisoning.
The hygiene indicator test reveals the amount of bacteria in the samples.
It also indicates if there are any suspicious germs present.
To carry it out, swab samples are diluted and spread on agar dishes containing nutrients for bacteria growth.
The dishes are placed in different incubators with temperatures ranging between 35 and 44.5 deg C, for two to three days.
In the salmonella detection test, swab samples are screened in an automated machine.
The machine does DNA fingerprinting to identify the unique salmonella strain.
The AVA will allow PrimaDeli and its 39 franchise outlets to open only if laboratory investigations reveal a complete absence of salmonella.
The hygiene indicator levels must also pass muster, that is, the bacteria count should be low and free of any harmful pathogens.
Step 3: Factory can reopen after checks for safety lapses
THE results on Thursday showed that the samples collected were satisfactory in terms of hygiene and that salmonella was no longer present.
The PrimaDeli factory also has to comply with international food safety requirements.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) was engaged in helping the factory review the processes that it uses to check for errors and safety lapses.
The factory passed this second hurdle yesterday.
The AVA gave PrimaDeli the go-ahead to produce items made under high heat, such as cakes without cream, crusty breads, tarts and cookies.
It also allowed PrimaDeli to produce frozen dough that can then be baked at the latter's outlets.
Full factory operations will resume when the AVA is satisfied that hygiene standards are maintained.
PrimaDeli will then be able to bake cakes with cream toppings and other un-baked ingredients.
The company has decided to take things slowly and produce just frozen dough until it is granted permission to resume full factory operations.
Step 3: Factory can reopen after checks for safety lapses
THE results on Thursday showed that the samples collected were satisfactory in terms of hygiene and that salmonella was no longer present.
The PrimaDeli factory also has to comply with international food safety requirements.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) was engaged in helping the factory review the processes that it uses to check for errors and safety lapses.
The factory passed this second hurdle yesterday.
The AVA gave PrimaDeli the go-ahead to produce items made under high heat, such as cakes without cream, crusty breads, tarts and cookies.
It also allowed PrimaDeli to produce frozen dough that can then be baked at the latter's outlets.
Full factory operations will resume when the AVA is satisfied that hygiene standards are maintained.
PrimaDeli will then be able to bake cakes with cream toppings and other un-baked ingredients.
The company has decided to take things slowly and produce just frozen dough until it is granted permission to resume full factory operations.
Step 3: Factory can reopen after checks for safety lapses
THE results on Thursday showed that the samples collected were satisfactory in terms of hygiene and that salmonella was no longer present.
The PrimaDeli factory also has to comply with international food safety requirements.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) was engaged in helping the factory review the processes that it uses to check for errors and safety lapses.
The factory passed this second hurdle yesterday.
The AVA gave PrimaDeli the go-ahead to produce items made under high heat, such as cakes without cream, crusty breads, tarts and cookies.
It also allowed PrimaDeli to produce frozen dough that can then be baked at the latter's outlets.
Full factory operations will resume when the AVA is satisfied that hygiene standards are maintained.
PrimaDeli will then be able to bake cakes with cream toppings and other un-baked ingredients.
The company has decided to take things slowly and produce just frozen dough until it is granted permission to resume full factory operations.
The Big Clean-up
A recent food poisoning outbreak hit over 200 people who ate PrimaDeli's cakes. The company was given the green light to resume operations yesterday, after an 11-day clean-up and inspection process. DIANA OTHMAN and SUMATHI V. SELVARETNAM look at the process.
CLEAN SWEEP: Samples were taken from various surfaces at the factory. -- PHOTO: PRIMADELI
Step 1: All-out efforts to disinfect factory over 11 days
OPERATIONS at PrimaDeli's factory in Keppel Road come to a halt on Dec 4 for a complete disinfection of the premises.
Prima hired cleaning specialists to conduct the massive round-the-clock clean-up from Dec 5 to 16.
All surface materials were stripped off.
Ceilings, floors, walls and production equipment were washed with a high-pressure jet and wiped clean with a sanitiser concentrate to remove all possible sources of microbial infection.
Airborne disinfectants were used throughout the factory.
Dressed in protective gear to stop them from 'shedding' their own germs or contaminants onto the site, six officers from the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) descended upon PrimaDeli's 1,080 sq m food production facility at Keppel Road on Monday.
In two hours, a total of 75 swab samples were taken at the buns, pastry and cakes section of the factory.
Samples were collected from any area where there was any possible contact with food.
This included preparation table tops, kitchen utensils and equipment such as ovens and trays.
The handles of toilet doors and doors to preparation rooms were also swabbed.
The samples collected were sent to AVA's Veterinary Public Health Centre in Lim Chu Kang for testing.
Step 2: Tests on samples to ensure tip-top hygiene
STRINGENT TESTING: Scientists at AVA's Veterinary Public Health Centre checking swab samples for the presence of bacteria. -- ST PHOTO: ALPHONSUS CHERN
View more photos
IN A microbiology laboratory at AVA's Veterinary Public Health Centre, swab samples go through two main tests:
a hygiene indicator - to check how clean they are;
and salmonella detection - to search for any of the germs responsble for outbreak of food poisoning.
The hygiene indicator test reveals the amount of bacteria in the samples.
It also indicates if there are any suspicious germs present.
To carry it out, swab samples are diluted and spread on agar dishes containing nutrients for bacteria growth.
The dishes are placed in different incubators with temperatures ranging between 35 and 44.5 deg C, for two to three days.
In the salmonella detection test, swab samples are screened in an automated machine.
The machine does DNA fingerprinting to identify the unique salmonella strain.
The AVA will allow PrimaDeli and its 39 franchise outlets to open only if laboratory investigations reveal a complete absence of salmonella.
The hygiene indicator levels must also pass muster, that is, the bacteria count should be low and free of any harmful pathogens.
Step 3: Factory can reopen after checks for safety lapses
THE results on Thursday showed that the samples collected were satisfactory in terms of hygiene and that salmonella was no longer present.
The PrimaDeli factory also has to comply with international food safety requirements.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) was engaged in helping the factory review the processes that it uses to check for errors and safety lapses.
The factory passed this second hurdle yesterday.
The AVA gave PrimaDeli the go-ahead to produce items made under high heat, such as cakes without cream, crusty breads, tarts and cookies.
It also allowed PrimaDeli to produce frozen dough that can then be baked at the latter's outlets.
Full factory operations will resume when the AVA is satisfied that hygiene standards are maintained.
PrimaDeli will then be able to bake cakes with cream toppings and other un-baked ingredients.
The company has decided to take things slowly and produce just frozen dough until it is granted permission to resume full factory operations.
Step 3: Factory can reopen after checks for safety lapses
THE results on Thursday showed that the samples collected were satisfactory in terms of hygiene and that salmonella was no longer present.
The PrimaDeli factory also has to comply with international food safety requirements.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) was engaged in helping the factory review the processes that it uses to check for errors and safety lapses.
The factory passed this second hurdle yesterday.
The AVA gave PrimaDeli the go-ahead to produce items made under high heat, such as cakes without cream, crusty breads, tarts and cookies.
It also allowed PrimaDeli to produce frozen dough that can then be baked at the latter's outlets.
Full factory operations will resume when the AVA is satisfied that hygiene standards are maintained.
PrimaDeli will then be able to bake cakes with cream toppings and other un-baked ingredients.
The company has decided to take things slowly and produce just frozen dough until it is granted permission to resume full factory operations.
Step 3: Factory can reopen after checks for safety lapses
THE results on Thursday showed that the samples collected were satisfactory in terms of hygiene and that salmonella was no longer present.
The PrimaDeli factory also has to comply with international food safety requirements.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) was engaged in helping the factory review the processes that it uses to check for errors and safety lapses.
The factory passed this second hurdle yesterday.
The AVA gave PrimaDeli the go-ahead to produce items made under high heat, such as cakes without cream, crusty breads, tarts and cookies.
It also allowed PrimaDeli to produce frozen dough that can then be baked at the latter's outlets.
Full factory operations will resume when the AVA is satisfied that hygiene standards are maintained.
PrimaDeli will then be able to bake cakes with cream toppings and other un-baked ingredients.
The company has decided to take things slowly and produce just frozen dough until it is granted permission to resume full factory operations.
Dec 22, 2007 - Thailand needs stability
Dec 22, 2007
Thailand needs stability
THAILAND will hold its parliamentary election tomorrow, its first following last year's military coup against the government of Thaksin Shinawatra. It is not likely to produce a conclusive result. As our Thailand correspondent Nirmal Ghosh quoted a Thai politician explaining: 'The election is just the qualifying round. The real battle will be in Parliament when MPs have to vote for a prime minister.' There are a number of reasons why this would be so.
To begin with, twice the number of candidates and parties are contesting this election compared with the last. Opinion polls indicate the People Power Party (PPP) - a reincarnation of the disbanded Thai Rak Thai party of Thaksin - is likely to gain the most number of seats but not an outright majority, though that possibility cannot be ruled out. Since the military would not want it to be part of any government, the PPP will probably not lead a coalition. The next government will probably be led by the likely runner-up in the election, the Democrat Party (DP), an outcome the military would favour. If the PPP wins an outright majority, it would set the stage for further confrontation between Thaksin and the Thai elite down the line. If a DP-led coalition excludes the PPP, that would leave the largest party in the country out of power, a constant threat to the elite. Either way, the election is likely to set the stage for more politicking - or business as usual.
That is something Thailand cannot afford. It needs stable government to deal both with security issues in its southern provinces, where a Muslim-led insurgency continues to simmer, as well as with economic issues. Once one of Asean's most promising economies, Thailand may soon be surpassed by Vietnam. It needs effective government to further develop its infrastructure, reform its education system, improve rural services and implement policies to attract investors. Thaksin, despite his faults, did address pressing social and economic problems. That is why he remains popular in large parts of the country, including Bangkok (if the opinion polls are to be believed). The military government that succeeded him has had a spotty record.
The best outcome would be an all-party coalition, including the PPP. In the interest of stability, Thaksin might continue to be excluded from power, but Thailand needs a rest from politics. Whatever result the election produces, Thai politicians need to come together to form an effective government. They will jeopardise their country's future if they treat the election as a mere prologue to post-election politicking.
Thailand needs stability
THAILAND will hold its parliamentary election tomorrow, its first following last year's military coup against the government of Thaksin Shinawatra. It is not likely to produce a conclusive result. As our Thailand correspondent Nirmal Ghosh quoted a Thai politician explaining: 'The election is just the qualifying round. The real battle will be in Parliament when MPs have to vote for a prime minister.' There are a number of reasons why this would be so.
To begin with, twice the number of candidates and parties are contesting this election compared with the last. Opinion polls indicate the People Power Party (PPP) - a reincarnation of the disbanded Thai Rak Thai party of Thaksin - is likely to gain the most number of seats but not an outright majority, though that possibility cannot be ruled out. Since the military would not want it to be part of any government, the PPP will probably not lead a coalition. The next government will probably be led by the likely runner-up in the election, the Democrat Party (DP), an outcome the military would favour. If the PPP wins an outright majority, it would set the stage for further confrontation between Thaksin and the Thai elite down the line. If a DP-led coalition excludes the PPP, that would leave the largest party in the country out of power, a constant threat to the elite. Either way, the election is likely to set the stage for more politicking - or business as usual.
That is something Thailand cannot afford. It needs stable government to deal both with security issues in its southern provinces, where a Muslim-led insurgency continues to simmer, as well as with economic issues. Once one of Asean's most promising economies, Thailand may soon be surpassed by Vietnam. It needs effective government to further develop its infrastructure, reform its education system, improve rural services and implement policies to attract investors. Thaksin, despite his faults, did address pressing social and economic problems. That is why he remains popular in large parts of the country, including Bangkok (if the opinion polls are to be believed). The military government that succeeded him has had a spotty record.
The best outcome would be an all-party coalition, including the PPP. In the interest of stability, Thaksin might continue to be excluded from power, but Thailand needs a rest from politics. Whatever result the election produces, Thai politicians need to come together to form an effective government. They will jeopardise their country's future if they treat the election as a mere prologue to post-election politicking.
Dec 21, 2007 - Religious minorities in Indonesia
Dec 21, 2007
MATA JELI: A PERSPECTIVE ON INDONESIAN AFFAIRS
Protecting religious minorities
By Bruce Gale
ABU Dujana, the self-proclaimed military commander of the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terrorist group, went on trial in a South Jakarta District Court on Dec 12.
But Dujana was not charged with any specific bombing incident. Instead, public prosecutor Bayu Adinugroho argued that the terrorist leader was guilty of stockpiling weapons and conspiring to attack Christians in conflict-torn Poso in the eastern Indonesian province of Central Sulawesi.
The focus on the minority Christian community as the victim of extremist violence may have been coincidental. After all, most observers believe there is insufficient evidence to link Dujana to the JI's bombing campaigns in other parts of the country.
But the charge did seem to go some way towards addressing renewed criticism that the authorities are either unable or unwilling to protect religious minorities from extremist violence.
'The state, whose job it is to protect religious freedom and the right to practise one's faith,' said an editorial in the Jakarta Post last month, 'has failed us on so many occasions that it raises questions about the commitment of those in the government to uphold the Constitution.'
But not all the news has been bad. As often happens in Indonesia, progress on one front is frequently accompanied by a deterioration somewhere else.
On Christmas Eve 2000, a coordinated series of bombings of churches in Jakarta and eight other cities killed 18 people and injured many others. Since then, the approach of the Christmas season also brings forth speculation about another spate of bombings.
But Christmas has been a peaceful affair for some years, and Christian leaders are not expecting any trouble this time around.
'The government is more alert now,' noted retired general Herman Mantiri last week, when I asked him about the security situation during Christmas.
General Mantiri, a devout Christian, was formerly chief of staff of Indonesia's Armed Forces. Last year, thousands of police and army personnel guarded churches across the country during the Christmas and New Year period. Media reports suggest a similar move will be mounted this year.
Official statistics show that while Indonesia's estimated 234.6 million population (as of July this year) is overwhelmingly Muslim, about 10 per cent are Christian.
What really worries Christian leaders is not so much the possibility of bombings during the Christmas season as the increase in extremist attacks during the year.
Mr Theophilus Bela, secretary-general of the Committee for Religious Peace, told me last week that more than 70 churches have either been closed down or have come under attack by extremist groups in the past 12 months. Most were Protestant churches with small congregations located in West Java, but Catholic churches were also hit.
Radical Muslim groups involved in forcibly closing down churches include the Front Pembela Islam (Islam Defenders Front) and the Aliansi Gerakan Ant Pemurtadan (Anti-Apostasy Alliance). Their defence is that the buildings hit are not authorised for use as churches.
By law, Indonesian church groups must have a worship permit. But Christian leaders say a joint regulation issued by the Religious Affairs Ministry and the Home Affairs Minister last year makes it almost impossible to obtain one.
The rule stipulates that a house of worship can be built only if it is approved by at least 60 local residents and the congregation has at least 90 members. A separate building permit is also needed. But Christian leaders argue that, even when these rules are met, subdistrict heads are reluctant to grant the permit.
For this reason, many Christians worship in private homes or rented facilities, some of which have also come under attack.
Apart from general references to the growing influence of fundamentalist Islam, few observers can explain the recent surge in religiously motivated violence.
Ms Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group in Jakarta says the concentration of militant activity in West Java is consistent with the area's radical tradition, which dates back to the formation of the Darul Islam (Islamic State) movement in the 1950s.
Yet another factor, she argues, is the apparent willingness of the authorities to turn a blind eye to the violence.
One puzzle is the fact that most attacks have taken place in regencies such as Kuningan, Tasikmalaya and Indramayu. Industrial areas such as Bekasi and Tangerang, where an influx of workers from poor Christian areas in the outer islands over the past 10 to 15 years might have been expected to produce religious tensions, have been quiet by comparison.
And while radicals often cite alleged Christian proselytising as the source of their ire, many non-evangelical churches have also been targeted.
Also, Christians are not the only victims. Last month, al-Qiyadah al-Islamiyah sect leader Ahmad Moshaddeq declared his own teachings false after a mob flattened his mosque in the same regency.
And on Tuesday, a mob attacked a complex in a village in Kuningan occupied by the Ahmadiyah sect. A small mosque and dozens of houses were reportedly damaged.
A report last year by the US Department of State on democracy, human rights and labour noted that, although often present, police almost never try to prevent violence by radical groups. This reluctance to act puzzles local and international observers, especially since the Muhammadiyah and the Nahdatul Ulama, both influential Islamic organisations known for their moderate views, are on record as condemning violence.
'One of the biggest failures of the Yudhoyono government has been its inability to protect minority groups,' notes Ms Jones.
Official indecision is one explanation, with critics accusing President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of being slow to make up his mind, especially on controversial issues.
Another possibility is that Dr Yudhoyono, whose secular nationalist Democrat Party won a mere 7.5 per cent of the votes in the 2004 legislative election, is worried about alienating the Muslim vote ahead of the 2009 presidential and parliamentary polls.
This theory gains strength from the way in which his administration has given greater power to the Majelis Ulama Indonesia (Council of Muslim Religious Scholars, or MUI) to decide which Muslim groups are 'officially deviant'. Until recently, MUI was hardly taken seriously by anyone.
But one thing is for sure: the issue of church closures is unlikely to fade just yet.
Last week, Protestant and Catholic leaders took their complaints about church closures directly to the Indonesian Commission of Human Rights, prompting officials to say they intend to examine both the violence and the restrictive regulations.
bruceg@sph.com.sg
MATA JELI: A PERSPECTIVE ON INDONESIAN AFFAIRS
Protecting religious minorities
By Bruce Gale
ABU Dujana, the self-proclaimed military commander of the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terrorist group, went on trial in a South Jakarta District Court on Dec 12.
But Dujana was not charged with any specific bombing incident. Instead, public prosecutor Bayu Adinugroho argued that the terrorist leader was guilty of stockpiling weapons and conspiring to attack Christians in conflict-torn Poso in the eastern Indonesian province of Central Sulawesi.
The focus on the minority Christian community as the victim of extremist violence may have been coincidental. After all, most observers believe there is insufficient evidence to link Dujana to the JI's bombing campaigns in other parts of the country.
But the charge did seem to go some way towards addressing renewed criticism that the authorities are either unable or unwilling to protect religious minorities from extremist violence.
'The state, whose job it is to protect religious freedom and the right to practise one's faith,' said an editorial in the Jakarta Post last month, 'has failed us on so many occasions that it raises questions about the commitment of those in the government to uphold the Constitution.'
But not all the news has been bad. As often happens in Indonesia, progress on one front is frequently accompanied by a deterioration somewhere else.
On Christmas Eve 2000, a coordinated series of bombings of churches in Jakarta and eight other cities killed 18 people and injured many others. Since then, the approach of the Christmas season also brings forth speculation about another spate of bombings.
But Christmas has been a peaceful affair for some years, and Christian leaders are not expecting any trouble this time around.
'The government is more alert now,' noted retired general Herman Mantiri last week, when I asked him about the security situation during Christmas.
General Mantiri, a devout Christian, was formerly chief of staff of Indonesia's Armed Forces. Last year, thousands of police and army personnel guarded churches across the country during the Christmas and New Year period. Media reports suggest a similar move will be mounted this year.
Official statistics show that while Indonesia's estimated 234.6 million population (as of July this year) is overwhelmingly Muslim, about 10 per cent are Christian.
What really worries Christian leaders is not so much the possibility of bombings during the Christmas season as the increase in extremist attacks during the year.
Mr Theophilus Bela, secretary-general of the Committee for Religious Peace, told me last week that more than 70 churches have either been closed down or have come under attack by extremist groups in the past 12 months. Most were Protestant churches with small congregations located in West Java, but Catholic churches were also hit.
Radical Muslim groups involved in forcibly closing down churches include the Front Pembela Islam (Islam Defenders Front) and the Aliansi Gerakan Ant Pemurtadan (Anti-Apostasy Alliance). Their defence is that the buildings hit are not authorised for use as churches.
By law, Indonesian church groups must have a worship permit. But Christian leaders say a joint regulation issued by the Religious Affairs Ministry and the Home Affairs Minister last year makes it almost impossible to obtain one.
The rule stipulates that a house of worship can be built only if it is approved by at least 60 local residents and the congregation has at least 90 members. A separate building permit is also needed. But Christian leaders argue that, even when these rules are met, subdistrict heads are reluctant to grant the permit.
For this reason, many Christians worship in private homes or rented facilities, some of which have also come under attack.
Apart from general references to the growing influence of fundamentalist Islam, few observers can explain the recent surge in religiously motivated violence.
Ms Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group in Jakarta says the concentration of militant activity in West Java is consistent with the area's radical tradition, which dates back to the formation of the Darul Islam (Islamic State) movement in the 1950s.
Yet another factor, she argues, is the apparent willingness of the authorities to turn a blind eye to the violence.
One puzzle is the fact that most attacks have taken place in regencies such as Kuningan, Tasikmalaya and Indramayu. Industrial areas such as Bekasi and Tangerang, where an influx of workers from poor Christian areas in the outer islands over the past 10 to 15 years might have been expected to produce religious tensions, have been quiet by comparison.
And while radicals often cite alleged Christian proselytising as the source of their ire, many non-evangelical churches have also been targeted.
Also, Christians are not the only victims. Last month, al-Qiyadah al-Islamiyah sect leader Ahmad Moshaddeq declared his own teachings false after a mob flattened his mosque in the same regency.
And on Tuesday, a mob attacked a complex in a village in Kuningan occupied by the Ahmadiyah sect. A small mosque and dozens of houses were reportedly damaged.
A report last year by the US Department of State on democracy, human rights and labour noted that, although often present, police almost never try to prevent violence by radical groups. This reluctance to act puzzles local and international observers, especially since the Muhammadiyah and the Nahdatul Ulama, both influential Islamic organisations known for their moderate views, are on record as condemning violence.
'One of the biggest failures of the Yudhoyono government has been its inability to protect minority groups,' notes Ms Jones.
Official indecision is one explanation, with critics accusing President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of being slow to make up his mind, especially on controversial issues.
Another possibility is that Dr Yudhoyono, whose secular nationalist Democrat Party won a mere 7.5 per cent of the votes in the 2004 legislative election, is worried about alienating the Muslim vote ahead of the 2009 presidential and parliamentary polls.
This theory gains strength from the way in which his administration has given greater power to the Majelis Ulama Indonesia (Council of Muslim Religious Scholars, or MUI) to decide which Muslim groups are 'officially deviant'. Until recently, MUI was hardly taken seriously by anyone.
But one thing is for sure: the issue of church closures is unlikely to fade just yet.
Last week, Protestant and Catholic leaders took their complaints about church closures directly to the Indonesian Commission of Human Rights, prompting officials to say they intend to examine both the violence and the restrictive regulations.
bruceg@sph.com.sg
Dec 20, 2007 Putin Man of Year
Dec 20, 2007
Putin named Time's Person of the Year
Russian President led country back to table of world power, says magazine
FIRM LINE: Mr Putin, seen here fishing in the Yenisei River of Russia's Tuva region, has fostered a tough-guy image. -- PHOTO: AFP
NEW YORK - RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin was named Time magazine's 'Person of the Year' for 2007 yesterday for bringing his country 'roaring back to the table of world power'.
Mr Putin, a 55-year-old former KGB official, will appear on the cover of Time as the person the editors believe had the greatest impact on events this year, for better or worse.
'He's not a good guy, but he's done extraordinary things,' said Time managing editor Richard Stengel, who announced Mr Putin's selection on NBC's Today Show.
'He's a new czar of Russia and he's dangerous in the sense that he doesn't care about civil liberties; he doesn't care about free speech; he cares about stability. But stability is what Russia needed and that's why Russians adore him.'
The Russian President beat several rivals for the Time distinction. Former US vice-president Al Gore, British author J.K. Rowling, Chinese President Hu Jintao and US commander in Iraq David Petraeus were named runners-up in that order.
The choice came days after Mr Putin announced a plan to hold on to power after his term ends.
On Monday, he said that he would serve as prime minister if his close ally Dmitry Medvedev wins next year's presidential vote.
Born in October 1952 in St Petersburg, then called Leningrad, Mr Putin served as a KGB spy in East Germany.
He rose to head the KGB's successor organisation FSB before being chosen as prime minister by late president Boris Yeltsin in August 1999. Mr Putin took over as acting president when Mr Yeltsin stepped down in December 1999.
He was elected president in March 2000 after a huge public relations campaign to build a profile for the relative unknown.
Since then, Mr Putin has overseen a steady concentration of power within the Kremlin walls, sidelining the political opposition and imposing tight control on the media. This has caused his Western critics to question his democratic credentials.
Two of his outspoken critics, journalist Anna Politkovskaya and former spy Alexander Litvinenko, were murdered last year. That raised concerns in Russia about the stability Mr Putin has been credited with enforcing after the chaos of the 1990s.
But Mr Putin has played to his power base in the security forces and military by fostering a tough-guy image. He has bluntly told Western governments to keep their 'snotty noses' out of Russia's affairs.
Delivering on a vow he made when first elected president in 2000, he crushed the Chechen rebellion, though sporadic attacks continue on Russian forces.
His years in power have been marked by a significant rise in living standards, helped by soaring oil prices, but large sections of the population still live in poverty.
Mr Putin has prided himself on bringing stability and predictability to Russia after the zig-zags of the Yeltsin years. He described the demise of the Soviet Union as 'the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century'.
Polls have shown that talking tough about Russia standing up to foreigners strikes a chord with millions of Russians who yearn for the Soviet Union's once mighty superpower status.
REUTERS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Putin named Time's Person of the Year
Russian President led country back to table of world power, says magazine
FIRM LINE: Mr Putin, seen here fishing in the Yenisei River of Russia's Tuva region, has fostered a tough-guy image. -- PHOTO: AFP
NEW YORK - RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin was named Time magazine's 'Person of the Year' for 2007 yesterday for bringing his country 'roaring back to the table of world power'.
Mr Putin, a 55-year-old former KGB official, will appear on the cover of Time as the person the editors believe had the greatest impact on events this year, for better or worse.
'He's not a good guy, but he's done extraordinary things,' said Time managing editor Richard Stengel, who announced Mr Putin's selection on NBC's Today Show.
'He's a new czar of Russia and he's dangerous in the sense that he doesn't care about civil liberties; he doesn't care about free speech; he cares about stability. But stability is what Russia needed and that's why Russians adore him.'
The Russian President beat several rivals for the Time distinction. Former US vice-president Al Gore, British author J.K. Rowling, Chinese President Hu Jintao and US commander in Iraq David Petraeus were named runners-up in that order.
The choice came days after Mr Putin announced a plan to hold on to power after his term ends.
On Monday, he said that he would serve as prime minister if his close ally Dmitry Medvedev wins next year's presidential vote.
Born in October 1952 in St Petersburg, then called Leningrad, Mr Putin served as a KGB spy in East Germany.
He rose to head the KGB's successor organisation FSB before being chosen as prime minister by late president Boris Yeltsin in August 1999. Mr Putin took over as acting president when Mr Yeltsin stepped down in December 1999.
He was elected president in March 2000 after a huge public relations campaign to build a profile for the relative unknown.
Since then, Mr Putin has overseen a steady concentration of power within the Kremlin walls, sidelining the political opposition and imposing tight control on the media. This has caused his Western critics to question his democratic credentials.
Two of his outspoken critics, journalist Anna Politkovskaya and former spy Alexander Litvinenko, were murdered last year. That raised concerns in Russia about the stability Mr Putin has been credited with enforcing after the chaos of the 1990s.
But Mr Putin has played to his power base in the security forces and military by fostering a tough-guy image. He has bluntly told Western governments to keep their 'snotty noses' out of Russia's affairs.
Delivering on a vow he made when first elected president in 2000, he crushed the Chechen rebellion, though sporadic attacks continue on Russian forces.
His years in power have been marked by a significant rise in living standards, helped by soaring oil prices, but large sections of the population still live in poverty.
Mr Putin has prided himself on bringing stability and predictability to Russia after the zig-zags of the Yeltsin years. He described the demise of the Soviet Union as 'the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century'.
Polls have shown that talking tough about Russia standing up to foreigners strikes a chord with millions of Russians who yearn for the Soviet Union's once mighty superpower status.
REUTERS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dec 20, 2007 Food Supply Crunch in Sg
Dec 20, 2007
Beware food supply crunch
THE extent of reduced food inventories in Singapore and the link to rising prices of groceries and meals out are becoming more apparent. This is not yet a crisis situation, and a straight comparison with the worldwide food supply shortage is not completely relevant. The diversion of a good portion of the American corn crop to ethanol production is feeding through in circuitous ways in higher grain and meat prices across parts of the global supply chain. Costlier animal feed is being compounded by higher meat consumption in new middle-class markets, like China. All that is having a peripheral effect on prices in Singapore, as shoppers in supermarkets and food court patrons have noticed. But Singaporeans' staples of rice, fish, poultry, fruit and vegetables - much of these imported from within the region - have not so far been buffeted by excessive price spikes. There is reasonable confidence there will be no supply disruptions either. Floods and the occasional animal disease outbreak in the supply sources of Thailand, China and Malaysia have brought seasonal supply fluctuations. Singaporeans have grown accustomed to these.
But the margin of market protection is getting thinner as worldwide consumer demand, reduced arable land, bad weather and costlier energy are coming together to constrict supply worldwide. The question consumers and the Government should mull over is how long it will be before the full force of dwindling world food stocks strikes this region, in the form of supply disruptions and sky-high prices. The Food and Agriculture Organisation has given ominous warning of its food price index having risen by 40 per cent this year, against only 9 per cent last year. Wheat stocks are at their lowest since 1980. Corn stocks are also low, thanks to a push towards renewable-energy use in the United States. Incidentally, this is a part answer to the problem of global warming.
Food price hikes here can be tackled with administrative measures, like government aid to low-income families. The NTUC FairPrice supermarket chain is helping customers with discounts on house brands of food and household products, on top of the GST hike it absorbed for six months. But if world supply trends look like heading towards a prolonged crunch, Singapore may find it strategically necessary to increase what food production it can manage. It has had success with space-saving vegetable growing, the hydroponic way. Crops are clean, a premium in these times of questionable production methods. An incentive to increase 'clean' fish farming could also arise, considering the polluted waters of supply regions and the use of banned growth hormones in fish culture.
Beware food supply crunch
THE extent of reduced food inventories in Singapore and the link to rising prices of groceries and meals out are becoming more apparent. This is not yet a crisis situation, and a straight comparison with the worldwide food supply shortage is not completely relevant. The diversion of a good portion of the American corn crop to ethanol production is feeding through in circuitous ways in higher grain and meat prices across parts of the global supply chain. Costlier animal feed is being compounded by higher meat consumption in new middle-class markets, like China. All that is having a peripheral effect on prices in Singapore, as shoppers in supermarkets and food court patrons have noticed. But Singaporeans' staples of rice, fish, poultry, fruit and vegetables - much of these imported from within the region - have not so far been buffeted by excessive price spikes. There is reasonable confidence there will be no supply disruptions either. Floods and the occasional animal disease outbreak in the supply sources of Thailand, China and Malaysia have brought seasonal supply fluctuations. Singaporeans have grown accustomed to these.
But the margin of market protection is getting thinner as worldwide consumer demand, reduced arable land, bad weather and costlier energy are coming together to constrict supply worldwide. The question consumers and the Government should mull over is how long it will be before the full force of dwindling world food stocks strikes this region, in the form of supply disruptions and sky-high prices. The Food and Agriculture Organisation has given ominous warning of its food price index having risen by 40 per cent this year, against only 9 per cent last year. Wheat stocks are at their lowest since 1980. Corn stocks are also low, thanks to a push towards renewable-energy use in the United States. Incidentally, this is a part answer to the problem of global warming.
Food price hikes here can be tackled with administrative measures, like government aid to low-income families. The NTUC FairPrice supermarket chain is helping customers with discounts on house brands of food and household products, on top of the GST hike it absorbed for six months. But if world supply trends look like heading towards a prolonged crunch, Singapore may find it strategically necessary to increase what food production it can manage. It has had success with space-saving vegetable growing, the hydroponic way. Crops are clean, a premium in these times of questionable production methods. An incentive to increase 'clean' fish farming could also arise, considering the polluted waters of supply regions and the use of banned growth hormones in fish culture.
Dec 19, 2007 Rise of India and China
Dec 19, 2007
RISE OF INDIA AND CHINA
A tale of two aspiring nations
By Lee Kuan Yew
NOT ON A PAR YET: Until India gets its social infrastructure up to First World standards and further liberalises its economy, it is unlikely to pose the challenge that China's economic ambitions does to the US, the EU and Japan. -- PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
EVEN though the Indian economy's annual growth rate has been 8 per cent to 9 per cent for the last five years, the country's peaceful rise hasn't led to unease over its future.
Instead, Americans, Japanese and western Europeans are keen to invest in India, ride on its growth and help develop another heavyweight country.
I recently had the opportunity to visit New Delhi twice. Last month, JPMorgan Chase brought its international advisory board, its European board and its principal officers from many parts of the world to the Indian capital for a two-day meeting. And earlier this month, Citigroup invited me to speak along with the bank's top leaders at an Asia-Pacific Business Leaders' Summit there.
Two of the largest US banks consider India to be a growth story and are eager to service American and Indian companies. I did not detect any anxiety over India becoming a problem to the present world order.
But why has China's peaceful rise raised apprehensions? Is it because India is a democracy in which numerous political forces are constantly at work, making for an internal system of checks and balances? Most probably, yes - especially as India's governments have tended to be made up of large coalitions of 10 to 20 parties.
One example of India's 'checks and balances' at work was the suspension of its talks on a US nuclear power deal. Although this deal is manifestly in India's interests, 60 communist Members of Parliament - part of the Congress Party-led coalition government - opposed the deal. Subsequently, the Communists allowed negotiations to resume, reserving their position on the outcome. India's development will, from time to time, run into domestic obstruction.
SCALE OF THINGS
The US, the EU and Japan root for India because they want a better-balanced world, in which India approximates China's weight.
Contrast this with the singleness of purpose in policy and its execution displayed by China's Communist government.
India's navy has an aircraft carrier force; its air force has the latest Sukhoi and MiG aircraft; its army is among the best trained and equipped in Asia. India can project power across its borders farther and better than China can, yet there is no fear that India has aggressive intentions.
Could this be because India is surrounded by states in turmoil? Pakistan is in crisis; a bad outcome there will increase the terrorist threat to India. As Mr Pervez Musharraf is now an elected civilian President, he won't have the same command over the army he has had as army chief. And any other elected president will have even less sway over the military.
Nepal is a deeply divided and troubled country. Sri Lanka is embroiled in an unending civil war, with the Tamil Tigers carrying out endless suicide bombings. India obviously has preoccupations enough to keep its focus fixed on its border regions.
Suppose China were also a democracy with multiple parties and political power bases? Would a multiparty China with a yearly economic growth rate of 9 per cent to 12 per cent be viewed with the same equanimity as India is? Such a China would probably continue to make big strides on the economic, social and military fronts, with more sophisticated capabilities on the ground and sea and in the air and space, and would eventually become a peer competitor, if not an adversary, of the US.
The speed of China's change and the thoroughness, energy and drive with which the Chinese have built up their infrastructure and pursued their goals spring from their culture, one that is shared by the Koreans, Japanese and Vietnamese, who adopted the Chinese written script and absorbed Confucian culture.
The Chinese are determined to catch up with the United States, the European Union and Japan. Fast-forward 20 to 30 years and the world will have to accommodate a more technologically advanced and economically more sophisticated China, whether under a single- or multiparty system.
India does not pose such a challenge - and won't until it gets its social infrastructure up to First World standards and further liberalises its economy. Indeed, the US, the EU and Japan root for India because they want a better-balanced world, in which India approximates China's weight.
The Indian elite also speak, write and publish in English. They hold a wide range of diverse views - and to the degree that Mr Amartya Sen, a Nobel winner in economics, entitled one of his books The Argumentative Indian. Few Chinese, on the other hand, speak - let alone write in - English, and what they publish in Chinese doesn't always disclose their innermost thoughts.
What if India were well ahead of China? Would the Americans and Europeans be rooting for China? I doubt it. They still have a phobia of the 'yellow peril', one reinforced by memories of the outrages of the Cultural Revolution and the massacres in Tiananmen Square, not to mention their strong feelings against Chinese government censorship.
China will have to live with these hang-ups. To reinforce the idea that theirs will be a peaceful path going forward, the Chinese have rephrased the term 'peaceful rise' to 'peaceful development'. Greater openness and transparency in Chinese society would also help.
Singapore and South-east Asia (Asean), sandwiched between these two behemoths, need China and India to achieve a balanced relationship, one that allows both to grow and prosper, pulling up the rest of Asia - East, South-east and South - with them.
The writer is Minister Mentor of Singapore. This article appears in the Dec 24 issue of Forbes Asia magazine.
RISE OF INDIA AND CHINA
A tale of two aspiring nations
By Lee Kuan Yew
NOT ON A PAR YET: Until India gets its social infrastructure up to First World standards and further liberalises its economy, it is unlikely to pose the challenge that China's economic ambitions does to the US, the EU and Japan. -- PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
EVEN though the Indian economy's annual growth rate has been 8 per cent to 9 per cent for the last five years, the country's peaceful rise hasn't led to unease over its future.
Instead, Americans, Japanese and western Europeans are keen to invest in India, ride on its growth and help develop another heavyweight country.
I recently had the opportunity to visit New Delhi twice. Last month, JPMorgan Chase brought its international advisory board, its European board and its principal officers from many parts of the world to the Indian capital for a two-day meeting. And earlier this month, Citigroup invited me to speak along with the bank's top leaders at an Asia-Pacific Business Leaders' Summit there.
Two of the largest US banks consider India to be a growth story and are eager to service American and Indian companies. I did not detect any anxiety over India becoming a problem to the present world order.
But why has China's peaceful rise raised apprehensions? Is it because India is a democracy in which numerous political forces are constantly at work, making for an internal system of checks and balances? Most probably, yes - especially as India's governments have tended to be made up of large coalitions of 10 to 20 parties.
One example of India's 'checks and balances' at work was the suspension of its talks on a US nuclear power deal. Although this deal is manifestly in India's interests, 60 communist Members of Parliament - part of the Congress Party-led coalition government - opposed the deal. Subsequently, the Communists allowed negotiations to resume, reserving their position on the outcome. India's development will, from time to time, run into domestic obstruction.
SCALE OF THINGS
The US, the EU and Japan root for India because they want a better-balanced world, in which India approximates China's weight.
Contrast this with the singleness of purpose in policy and its execution displayed by China's Communist government.
India's navy has an aircraft carrier force; its air force has the latest Sukhoi and MiG aircraft; its army is among the best trained and equipped in Asia. India can project power across its borders farther and better than China can, yet there is no fear that India has aggressive intentions.
Could this be because India is surrounded by states in turmoil? Pakistan is in crisis; a bad outcome there will increase the terrorist threat to India. As Mr Pervez Musharraf is now an elected civilian President, he won't have the same command over the army he has had as army chief. And any other elected president will have even less sway over the military.
Nepal is a deeply divided and troubled country. Sri Lanka is embroiled in an unending civil war, with the Tamil Tigers carrying out endless suicide bombings. India obviously has preoccupations enough to keep its focus fixed on its border regions.
Suppose China were also a democracy with multiple parties and political power bases? Would a multiparty China with a yearly economic growth rate of 9 per cent to 12 per cent be viewed with the same equanimity as India is? Such a China would probably continue to make big strides on the economic, social and military fronts, with more sophisticated capabilities on the ground and sea and in the air and space, and would eventually become a peer competitor, if not an adversary, of the US.
The speed of China's change and the thoroughness, energy and drive with which the Chinese have built up their infrastructure and pursued their goals spring from their culture, one that is shared by the Koreans, Japanese and Vietnamese, who adopted the Chinese written script and absorbed Confucian culture.
The Chinese are determined to catch up with the United States, the European Union and Japan. Fast-forward 20 to 30 years and the world will have to accommodate a more technologically advanced and economically more sophisticated China, whether under a single- or multiparty system.
India does not pose such a challenge - and won't until it gets its social infrastructure up to First World standards and further liberalises its economy. Indeed, the US, the EU and Japan root for India because they want a better-balanced world, in which India approximates China's weight.
The Indian elite also speak, write and publish in English. They hold a wide range of diverse views - and to the degree that Mr Amartya Sen, a Nobel winner in economics, entitled one of his books The Argumentative Indian. Few Chinese, on the other hand, speak - let alone write in - English, and what they publish in Chinese doesn't always disclose their innermost thoughts.
What if India were well ahead of China? Would the Americans and Europeans be rooting for China? I doubt it. They still have a phobia of the 'yellow peril', one reinforced by memories of the outrages of the Cultural Revolution and the massacres in Tiananmen Square, not to mention their strong feelings against Chinese government censorship.
China will have to live with these hang-ups. To reinforce the idea that theirs will be a peaceful path going forward, the Chinese have rephrased the term 'peaceful rise' to 'peaceful development'. Greater openness and transparency in Chinese society would also help.
Singapore and South-east Asia (Asean), sandwiched between these two behemoths, need China and India to achieve a balanced relationship, one that allows both to grow and prosper, pulling up the rest of Asia - East, South-east and South - with them.
The writer is Minister Mentor of Singapore. This article appears in the Dec 24 issue of Forbes Asia magazine.
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