http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/spy-promises-protesters-jihad-on-graft/story-e6frg6so-1225808798159
SPY promises protesters 'jihad' on graft a.. Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta correspondent b.. From: The Australian c.. December 10, 2009 12:00AM TENS of thousands of Indonesians took to the streets yesterday in a national day of action after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono declared himself at the frontline of a "jihad" on corruption. Thousands of extra police were stationed in the capital, Jakarta, and cities across the country as protesters gathered in what an increasingly worried Dr Yudhoyono had predicted would be "lies and character assassination" against him. A deluge of corruption scandals in recent weeks has appeared to weaken the President's public standing, after he first avoided taking direct charge of any of the crises and then wavered in his dealing with them. His "jihad" line, in a nationally televised speech, was an attempt to regain the upper hand in a war in which he also described "corruption . . . (as having become) a common enemy". But critics seized on his use in that speech of figures from corruption watchdog Transparency International, which had Indonesia's standing elevated from 2.6 to 2.8 on a 10-point scale this year over last year, and little better improvement over the past half-decade. "A rise of 0.8 over five years -- that's not really a success, is it?" asked Indonesia University political commentator Arbi Sanit. And the head of Transparency International Indonesia, prominent lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis, said that despite Indonesia's slow improvement on the organisation's corruption perception index, the recent scandals represented "setbacks that were (comparatively) larger". Yesterday's protests, held to mark the UN's International Anti-Corruption Day, built on momentum that has been gathering since two commissioners on Indonesia's national anti-graft body were stood aside over corruption allegations. The two commissioners, Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M Hamzah, officially returned to work on Tuesday after a presidential decree that they be reinstated. The pair was suspended three months ago over bogus claims of bribery and extortion against a fugitive corruption suspect, Anggoro Widjojo. Mr Anggoro's brother, Anggodo Widjojo, is also alleged to have tried to bribe Mr Bibit and Mr Chandra to stop their investigation. Mr Chandra said this week they would remove themselves from the Anggodo investigation, but indicated he would renew his focus on the controversial Bank Century bailout. "(Before my suspension) there were early indications of corrupt behaviour (relating to the bailout) . . . although I do not yet know about developments over the past three months," he said. Mr Bibit, meanwhile, said his aim now was to strengthen the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) "so that if we hit a wall, we are not easily broken". Dr Yudhoyono has strengthened his backing in recent days for an invigorated commission, which has been locked in a fierce struggle for supremacy with the police and Attorney-General's department. Indonesians have seized on a characterisation of the anti-graft body as a gecko fighting the crocodile of police and prosecutors. In his speech on Tuesday, Dr Yudhoyono said "a strong and capable KPK is still very much needed" and called for its wire-tapping abilities to be maintained. It was a controversial KPK wire tap on Indonesia's recently sacked chief detective that led to the standing aside of the two commissioners and sparked the street protests. Dr Yudhoyono campaigned for a second five-year term as president on a strong anti-corruption platform, but in the weeks since the corruption scandals began to unfold he has faced mounting criticism over his inability to rein in the problem. He and his son, fellow member of parliament Edhie Baskoro, last week lodged a lawsuit against an organisation backed by opposition parties that claimed they had personally profited from the Bank Century bailout. Dr Yudhoyono now faces a parliamentary inquiry into the scandal, which could ultimately lead to his impeachment. Related Coverage a.. Anti-corruption protests turn violent Adelaide Now, 8 hours ago b.. SBY steps in to end trials The Australian, 24 Nov 2009 c.. SBY faces grilling on graft allegations The Australian, 23 Nov 2009 d.. Indonesia set to act on corruption Adelaide Now, 23 Nov 2009 e.. Bank rescue taints SBY's re-election campaign The Australian, 20 Nov 2009 End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
