Man of the Year

From left to right: Djoko Susilo, Muhammad Nazaruddin, Wa Ode Nurhayati, Andi Mallarangeng, Achmad Yamanie, Anas Urbaningrum, Angelina Sondakh.

Drum reads: Politicisation and commercialisation of the law.

Most of the public officials who made headlines in 2012 did so not because they made significant contributions to the cultural and social life of the country, but because they used their position and influence to steal from the public purse.

Kompas - December 29, 2012

Directionless

Man: Relax, we're used to surviving without leadership

Having spent most of the year squabbling with each other, blaming everyone but themselves for their own incompetence or fending off an endless series of corruption scandals, President Yudhoyono's ruling coalition appears to have lost any sense of direction and leadership. Things are unlikely to improve much in 2013 as the political elite abandon any pretence of trying to run the country as they begin maneuvering in earnest for the 2014 elections.

Kompas - December 26, 2012

Political racket

Drum reads: Political racket

The incessant racket generated by the political elite throughout much of 2012 can only be expected to get louder next year as potential presidential candidates and political parties intensify efforts to boost their public image in the eye's of an increasingly distrustful electorate ahead of the 2014 legislative and presidential elections

Kompas - December 22, 2012

Arrogance and personal ambition

Man: Arrogance and personal ambition.

The protracted dispute between the Indonesian Football Association and the breakaway Indonesian Football Saviors Committee – both vying for billions of rupiah in government funding – has left the national football team in tatters, and has parallels with many government departments that are run for the benefit of agency heads who pursue personal and political ambitions even when they runs counter to the 'national interest'.

Kompas - December 15, 2012

International Corruption Day

Man: Horeee... Indonesia's the champion (Cup reads International Anti Corruption Day)

Marking Anti-Corruption Day on Friday, two days after Indonesia's global corruption perception index slid to 118th place out of 176 countries, President Yudhoyono (right) declared that the 'time for talk is over', telling law enforcers to go after the 'big fish'. The country's top anti-graft body meanwhile urged Yudhoyono to sign a draft regulation – which has been sitting his desk for over a month – giving the agency more power to recruit desperately needed investigators.

Kompas - December 8, 2012

Prosperity

Sign reads: Prosperity

Indonesia's robust economic growth of above 6% over the last eight years has done little to improve the welfare of ordinary working class Indonesians, with the gini coefficient (a measure of inequality) rising from 0.33 in 2002 to 0.41 in 2011. In 2012 just over 100,000 people owned assets of US$1 million or more, while 82% of the population had less than US$10,000. 51% of bank deposits totalling US$176.8 billion are held by just 0.13% of customers.

Kompas - December 5, 2012

Welcome to Indonesia

In what is becoming a depressingly regular event with the onset of the rainy season each year, torrential rains over the weekend triggered widespread flooding and traffic gridlock throughout much of Jakarta, including the central business district with its iconic Welcome Monument, which is not among the city's 78 flood-prone areas. A total of 19 sub-districts in the city were inundated forcing around 7,000 to evacuate.

Kompas - November 28, 2012

Comparative collusion

Bags read: Engineering comparative study, Red Cross comparative study, XYZ study.

Kid: There's collusion here isn't there Dad?

Often depicted as thick skinned rhinoceroses immune to public criticism, lawmakers have allocated a whopping US$26 million for overseas junkets in 2013 to conduct so-called 'comparative studies' to gather information related to legislation, which critics say can easily be obtained online via internet search engines.

Kompas - November 24, 2012

Comparative study

Lawmakers: Bye... (document in bag reads Comparative Study)

Indonesian communities in Germany have reacted angrily to a 'working visit' by lawmakers saying that they should focus on domestic problems before conducting so-called 'comparative studies'. This year alone lawmakers have visited Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Poland, South Africa, Turkey and the US, with little or nothing to show other than mediocre reports, which according to budget watchdog Fitra will cost tax-payers in excess of US$26 million.

Kompas - November 21, 2012

Golden bridge

1st Student: Independence is a golden bridge, you know...

2nd Student: So where's the bridge?

67 years after independence and almost a century after Indonesia's founding father Sukarno wrote the essay Nationalism, Islam & Marxism, describing independence as a golden bridge beyond which lay justice and prosperity for the Indonesian people, children are still risking their lives during the wet season crossing rivers to get to school due to the lack of basic infrastructure such as bridges.

Kompas - November 14, 2012

The keris of Mpu Gandring

Writing on dragon reads: Corruption, human rights, judicial mafia, terrorism, racial, religious and ethnic conflict, XYZ.

Man (speaking to President Yudhoyono): Try using the keris of Mpu Gandring Mr!

The 11th century legend of the keris of Mpu Gandring tells the story of a ceremonial dagger made by the famous keris maker Mpu Gandring. He was killed by his own creation and, before his death, cast a curse on the weapon that would last for seven generations.

Kompas - November 10, 2012

Convicted civil servants

Fauzi: Former [graft] convicts are prohibited from being government officials.

Following a public outcry over a graft convict being appointed as an agency head in Riau, the government has issued a circular on the dismissal of civil servants convicted of graft after it was reveled that many had not only retained their positions but actually been promoted. According to Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi, in 2012 alone as many as 474 regional officials have been implicated in legal cases, mostly graft cases.

Kompas - November 7, 2012

Dignity

Signs reads Dignity, Corruption, (Malaysian) Ringgit. Bumper reads National Unity Cabinet Volume 2.

Migrant worker: There's no need to talk about dignity Mr! We just want to be free from poverty!

While it likes to indulge in displays of diplomatic outrage each time a new case of migrant worker abuse hits the news, the government continues to ignore the root cause of the problem – the lack of employment opportunities driving poor Indonesians to work in poorly paid and menial jobs overseas.

Kompas - November 3, 2012

Indonesian maids now on sale

Bubble reads Legal Protection, cash box reads Foreign Exchange

A leaflet advertising 'Indonesian maids now on sale' has triggered a public outcry over the exploitation of migrant workers (TKI) in Malaysia. The government recently revoked a two-year moratorium on sending workers to Malaysia, but critics say that migrant workers – which Jakarta likes to refer to as 'foreign exchange heroes' – have little legal protection and are still venerable to abuse.

Kompas - October 31, 2012

Menu of Terror

Board reads: Indo-clown-ia Cuisine

Kid (speaking to President Yudhoyono): The most appetizing is the terror omelette and crusty terror... and to drink the honey and ginger terror milk, seriously Mr!

Analysts say that the recent arrest of 11 suspected Islamic militants said to be planning attacks on foreign embassies is evidence that legal extremist groups are becoming emboldened by the Yudhoyono government's failure to curb religious violence.

Kompas - October 27, 2012

Triad of dark forces

In addition to the myriad of social and economic problems that plague the capital, newly elected Jakarta governor and deputy governor Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo (right) and Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama (left) also face what some observers have called the 'triad of dark forces' – business interests that have enjoyed decades of rampant unregulated development, sabotage by entrenched political forces that dominate the city council and racial and religious bigotry cultivated by the previous administration to shore up electoral support.

Kompas - October 17, 2012

It's like this! But it's also like that!

President Yudhoyono: It's like this! But it's also like that!

Kid: For the salvation of what. And for the sake of who Mr?

Under intense public pressure to intervene in the escalating feud between national police and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) over its investigation into graft at the police's traffic corps, President Yudhoyono finally broke his silence Monday only to issue a series of vague and confusing instructions seen by many as a compromise to protect powerful vested interests within the police.

Kompas - October 13, 2012

Intimidation, threats

Man standing behind KPK chief Abraham Samad: Just when there's so much work. Writing on shadowy figure reads 'Intimidation, threats'.

Hundreds of people took to the streets Friday calling for President Yudhoyono to prove his commitment to corruption eradication. The president has remained silent over the escalating standoff between the national police and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) over its investigation into a corruption case at the police's traffic corps.

Kompas - October 10, 2012

Republic of Indonesia-Clowns

1st Legislator: Revise the KPK law! 2nd Legislator: No way!

Man (talking to KPK chief Abraham Samad): They proposed it themselves now they're rejecting it, it's just to build their party's anti-corruption image right Mr?

Kid: The Republic of Indonesia-Clowns

Smarting from a massive public backlash against yet another attempt to weaken the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) by revising the KPK law – a move backed by all the parliamentary political factions – lawmakers are now tripping over each other trying to convince a sceptical public that they opposed the revisions all along.

Kompas - October 6, 2012

A people's coalition?

Man: Yes! He's won! Kid: A people's coalition?

Politician: Not necessarily! (monitor reads 'political machine' count)

For many ordinary Indonesians, the contest between incumbent Jakarta governor Fauzi Bowo and Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo has come to symbolise a race between an establishment figure willing to use any means possible – including inciting racial and religious hatred to score cheap political points – and a humble grass-roots figure who would transcend such divisions while hoping to create a new Jakarta.

Kompas - September 22, 2012

Don't play favourites

Legislator: Don't play favourites (pointing to KPK chief Abraham Samad)

Legislators are accusing the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) of cherry-picking cases for investigation with the specific aim of pursuing law-makers while ignoring cases involving members of President Yudhoyono's ruling Democrat Party after the KPK named several legislators from the House's graft ridden Budget Committee that it planned to call in for questioning.

Kompas - September 19, 2012

Pandora's Box

Man: If you open this Pandora's Box, who's going to pop out Mr?

Always on the look out for an opportunity to score political points against their opponents, a plan by legislators to setup a new enquiry into the controversial Bank Century bailout suffered an embarrassing setback when former anti-graft chief Antasari Azhar (left) refuted media reports that he said President Yudhoyono (top-right) led a high-level meeting in October 2008 to discuss a bailout plan for the following month.

Kompas - September 15, 2012

Dual loyalties

...Officials shouldn't have dual loyalties

Muqoddas: Please, set an example Mr!

Man: The king is willing to give up his party, yeah right!

A call by President Yudhoyono for his ministers to resign their posts if they are preoccupied with preparing the 2014 election has been slammed as little more than a public relations campaign as he himself remains the chairperson of the Democratic Party's board of patrons, with Corruption Eradication Commission Deputy Chairperson Busyro Muqoddas telling the president to back up his call by setting an example.

Kompas - September 8, 2012

National Sports Project

Man: Now that it's all over, how come it's just being abandoned?

Youth & Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng: It's a National Sports Project isn't it.

Having spent trillions of rupiah of tax payer's money on the construction of facilities for the 2008 National Games (National Sports Week, PON) in East Kalimantan, a lack of funds and political bickering over who is responsible for maintenance has left most of the facilities in such a state of disrepair that they are no longer usable.

Kompas - September 6, 2012

Failed state

Puppets: Violence... horizontal clashes!

Man: Disregarding a phenomena that keeps repeating itself... that's a failed republic

Kid: No it's not Dad... it's a prosperous republic postponed!

Instead of addressing the key issue that led to Indonesia being categorised in a recent study as being in the "warning" zone toward a failed state – religious violence – President Yudhoyono has turned to the Indonesian Ulema Council to help improve the country's image, the very body that is fanning the flames of hatred against religious minorities.

Kompas - September 1, 2012

The law must be enforced firmly and fairly

Bhinneka Tunggal Ika: The national motto, Unity in Diversity

1st Man: The law must be enforced firmly and fairly...

2nd Man: Yeah, give an example

Police have named only one suspect after a mob of 500 Sunni Muslims attacked a group of Shiites in Sampang, East Java, leaving two dead, seven injured and dozens of houses torched. Following a similar fatal attack in December, a district court sentenced a Shia cleric whose house was burnt down to two years for blasphemy while the only suspect in the case was jailed for less than three months.

Kompas - August 29, 2012

Remissions

Carpet reads: Remissions

Man: It's not favouritism, or is it favouritism, or favouring the rich, or good conduct?

Anti-corruption activists have slammed the government after it announced holiday sentence reductions for 27 graft convicts, a move that appears to fly in the face of a presidential moratorium issued last year on sentence reductions for corruption and terrorism convicts following widespread public criticism over the early release of wealthy or politically connected individuals.

Kompas - August 25, 2012

Freedom!

Man at back of bus: Freedom!

Coinciding with this year's Independence Day on August 17, an estimated 21 million Indonesian's will join the Idul Fitri holiday exodus to their home villages to mark the end of the holy fasting month, many of whom will not survive the journey being forced to travel long distances by motorbike on dangerous and poorly maintained roads due to the lack of safe and affordable public transport.

Kompas - August 15, 2012

Where's your driver's license!

National Police Chief Gen. Timur Pradopo: Where's your driver's license!

Man: In this case you can be sure it not just prit-jigo (when a cop blows a whistle then asks for a bribe)

Snubbing its nose at Law № 30/2002 on the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), which states other institutions are not authorised to carry out an investigation if the KPK is already investigating a case, the police are pushing ahead with their own investigation into the procurement of police driving simulators (Simulator SIM) in what is widely seen as an attempt to contain the KPK probe.

Kompas - August 11, 2012

Give it a wash first

Man: Give it a wash first so its clean...

National police chief General Timur Pradopo's (left) leadership is being put to the test after police defied public calls for an investigation into a high-profile graft case involving the procurement of police driving simulators (Simulator SIM) to be handled solely by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and forcibly took over part of the anti-graft agency's probe into the case in what many see as an attempt to protect its own.

Kompas - August 8, 2012

Parcel nation

Man: It's just a parcel... where's the tempeh?

Official: We are not a tempeh nation

Man: Then what kind of nation are we? A parcel nation...

A play on a 1963 speech by founding President Sukarno in which he said, "...We are a hard-working nation, not a tempeh nation, nor a nation of coolies...", referring to tempeh, a cheap source of protein for the poor, which due to skyrocketing prices of imported soybean is becoming increasingly expensive, and the Idul Fitri holiday tradition of giving gift parcels to curry favour with one's superiors.

Kompas - July 25, 2012

Jackpot democracy

Poker machine reads: Election of Regional heads

Man: Jackpot democracy...

With incumbent Governor Fauzi Bowo and Surakarta Mayor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo now set to contest the second round of the Jakarta gubernatorial election in September, the political parties that failed to secure spots in the first round are busy calculating the odds on which candidate will offer the most political and financial gains if they endorse them.

Kompas - July 21, 2012

Food imports

Agrarian rights activists say that the government's policy of trade liberalisation and implementing an almost zero-tariff policy has led to a flood of imported food into the country and is impoverishing more than 44 million farmers who depend upon the land for their survival.

Kompas - July 11, 2012

The Lapindo(s) Beauty Spa

The "Lapindo(s) Beauty Spa" as it is jokingly called, referring to the massive Lapindo mud flow disaster in East Java blamed on drilling by a company linked to Golkar Party chairperson and business tycoon Aburizal Bakrie (right), continues to dog his 2014 presidential ambitions with two victims receiving widespread media coverage as they near the end of a 25-day journey on foot to Jakarta from their home in Sidoarjo to raise awareness of the plight of people from his village, which was buried by the mudflow in 2006 but have yet to receive compensation.

Kompas - July 7, 2012

Is he even listening?

1st Man: Conflicts in the regions continue to smolder Mr...

2nd Man: Is he even listening?

Indifference by regional governments to the plight of local people involved in land disputes with plantation and mining companies is driving people to take their protests to Jakarta, such as the recent case of 84 villagers from Riau who camped outside the parliament for three months and stitched their mouths shut in a dramatic hunger strike to attract public attention.

Kompas - July 4, 2012

Coins for the KPK

A public donation campaign 'Coins for the KPK' has been launched after the House of Representatives (bottom) – which again topped a list of corrupt institutions according to a survey earlier this month – refused to release Rp225 billion allocated from the state budget for the desperately needed construction of a new Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building. Many have accused the House of flagrant hypocrisy having proposed a hefty Rp1.13 trillion budget last year to construct a new building for itself, replete with a spa and recreation centre, which was eventually scrapped due to a massive public outcry.

Kompas - June 28, 2012

Business opportunities

Kid looking at election campaign posters: It's a pretty lively contest yeah...

Man: That's the way it is with business...

The hotly contested election for the next governor and deputy-governor of Jakarta – one of the most corrupt cities in Indonesia and the largest economy in the country – is more than just about winning an election but brings with it a windfall of business opportunities in the form of government contracts for foodstuffs, services and infrastructure, and of course the inevitable kickbacks and markups associated with them.

Kompas - June 27, 2012

Political hostages

Man: Which one's in reverse... and which one's in forward... (baggage reads 'political hostages')

Political observers say that despite the battering President Yudhoyono's (left) ruling Democratic Party is taking in the opinion polls over party chair Anas Urbaningrum's (right) alleged involvement in the graft-ridden Hambalang sports complex project, Yudhoyono is unable to force him out of the party for fear that he will retaliate by implicating Yudhoyono's son and party secretary general Edhie Baskoro in the same corruption scandal.

Kompas - June 23, 2012

Political corruption

As the political parties prepare to do battle in the 2014 general and presidential elections, anti-corruption activists warn that politically related graft cases over the next two years will increase sharply since most campaign funds are raised from illegal sources – corruption, corporate blackmail, milking state-owned companies and money from gambling, drug dealing and illegal logging.

Kompas - June 20, 2012

Save the earth

Speaking in Bogor before setting out for the UN Sustainable Development Conference in Rio de Janeiro, President Yudhoyono appealed to global leaders to move toward a green economy saying Indonesia had adopted an environmentally sustainable model of economic growth where its forests were prized and protected. Back in the real world, a report released by Greenpeace last month said a staggering 5 million hectares of forest has been lost since Yudhoyono announced a two year moratorium on deforestation last year.

Kompas - June 13, 2012

Mr Mud

Despite the best attempts by Golkar Party spin doctors to portray the massive Lapindo mudflow disaster in East Java in a positive light, insisting that he has shown a "moral commitment" in seeking to compensate the thousands displaced by the mud or claims that victims have been paid more than their land is worth, business tycoon and budding Golkar presidential candidate Aburizal Bakrie – whose company has been blamed for the disaster – still seems unable to shake off the "Mr Mud" label.

Kompas - June 9, 2012

Illegal fishing

According to the government illegal fishing in Indonesian waters cost the country US$3.21 billion over the last 10 years. Defense analysts say this is hardly surprising as the bulk of the defense budget is still being absorbed by the army for internal security purposes or on extravagant hardware purchases – which invariably involve generous kick-backs for senior generals – such as the recent controversial order for 100 Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks from Holland instead of desperately needed ocean-going patrol boats and surveillance equipment.

Kompas - June 6, 2012

What about some for us!

Hand reading 'Convicted narcotics prisoner': What about some for us!

Forgotten amid the uproar over an alleged political trade off with Australia after President Yudhoyono (right) granted clemency to convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby, is the fate of scores of political prisoners jailed for peacefully protesting against Jakarta rule in Papua. Unlike Corby, who has the Australian government on her side, Canberra fully supports Indonesia's sovereignty over West Papua and is turning a blind eye to Jakarta's brutal suppression of decent in the province.

Kompas - June 2, 2012

Running for president

Bakrie: Looks fit to run for president he does!

Business tycoon Aburizal Bakrie, a former Suharto acolyte who bought and bullied his way into the chairmanship of the New Order's former ruling party Golkar and is linked to numerous scandals and business controversies – including the Lapindo mudflow disaster and the Gayus Tambunan tax affair – has brushing aside dismal electability ratings and opposition from within the ranks of his own party and is set to declare himself a candidate for the 2014 presidential election.

Kompas - May 26, 2012

Progress?

1st Man: How come we're not making any progress?

2nd Man: Progress? We don't even have a driver.

Parcel reads Human Rights, bus reads Reformasi (political reform).

Fourteen years after president Suharto's overthrow, many say the country has made little or no progress with a small group of elites – many of whom committed past human rights violations – once again controlling the country's politics for their own interests.

Kompas - May 23, 2012

Tighten our belts

Yudhoyono: Economise! We must tighten our belts (waist band)!

Man: But I don't have a waist Mr!

In a repeat of a scene seven years ago, air conditioners at the Palace were turned down and lights turned off following a last week's live televised speech by President Yudhoyono unveiling the government's latest plan to control energy consumption and calling on the people to tighten their belts. Such symbolic gestures will not of course be possible for the one-third of population with no access to electricity, and who probably missed the speech anyway.

Kompas - May 19, 2012

National culture and morals.

Cop: Not in line with our national culture and morals...

Man: And this Mr? (state budget)

More than a few eyebrows were raised this week when police bowed down to Islamic hard-liners and refused a permit for a concert by pop diva Lady Gaga claiming her act is incompatible with Indonesia's culture and morals. Many were also left asking what kind of morality and culture the police – one of the most brutal and corrupt institutions in one of the most graft-ridden and pornographic hungry countries in the world – do consider compatible.

Kompas - May 16, 2012

Restore the party's image

Yudhoyono: Restore the party's image! Problematic members resign!

Kid: And if senior party officials are problematic?

A speech by Democrat Party patron President Yudhoyono last month in which he said all party members who had been named suspects must step down is starting to look like more empty rhetoric with disgraced lawmaker Angelina Sondakh (bottom right) – who was indicted for corruption almost three months ago – still not removed from her position as party deputy general secretary.

Kompas - May 12, 2012

Cowboys

Cowboy: Ah, that’s just a rogue individual...

The disdainful official response last week to a case in which an army captain pulled a gun on a driver during a traffic altercation and an incident involving 15 drunk police officers who assaulted customers in a bar before pointing guns at them and trashing the establishment, has fuelled fears that police and military personnel are being allowed to act with impunity.

Kompas - May 9, 2012

False license plates

Man: In this republic where so much is unverified, counterfeiting is common place Mr... false pledges, false promises, false police, false license plates, false love... and... false teeth...

Democrat Party chairperson Anas Urbaningrum (right) – already dogged by allegations of corruption and money politics – is embroiled in a fresh controversy after illegal licence plates were found on his two cars. Despite the seriousness of the office, police said no action would be taken because they hadn't actually seen the cars on the road.

Kompas - May 5, 2012