Warna Warni Bali |

The Jakarta Post | Mon, 12/12/2011 11:24 PM

DENPASAR: An inactive grenade was found by a trash picker in a garbage bin on Jl. Setiabudi on Friday.

The grenade was found inside a cardboard box along with magazines, compact discs and a rifle by Novi Akbar Purnama Putra, 28, when he was picking through the garbage bin.

Following Novi’s report, the Bali Police’s bomb squad immediately headed to the location and took the bin’s contents to the Mobile Brigade’s headquarters.

Police spokesman Sr.Comr. Hariadi said on Saturday that the police declared none of contents dangerous.

“The grenade was filled with tear gas but no longer active, and the rifle is a toy, so it’s not dangerous at all.”

Link: The Jakarta Post

Danau Batur tercemar bahan kimia (photo by: Ni Komang Erviani)

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Sat, 12/10/2011 8:44 AM |

The Bali administration has established a special team to save highly polluted Lake Batur, according to a government official.

Anak Agung Gde Alit Sastrawan, head of the Bali Environmental Agency, said on Friday that concrete action should be taken immediately before the lake’s condition worsened, considering that the lake was a main source of groundwater for the island.

“We have found sodium and phosphates in the lake’s water at an alarming level, in excess of the BOD [biological oxygen demand] level. Thus the lake’s water is not fit for human consumption,” he said after a meeting to decide on action to save the lake.

The high level of the chemicals was attributed to the economic activities of local people around the lake, who use chemical fertilizers for their farmland and feed their fish with food containing chemical substances.

The high amount of the chemical substances has reportedly triggered an abnormal level of aquatic plant growth  in the lake. The blooming plants in turn disrupt the balance of the lake’s ecosystem.

Pollution might also be aggravated by rampant illegal mining nearby.

“This is a warning for us to save the lake immediately,” he said.

A large part of the water from the lake flows to Tampaksiring, which hosts the sacred spring of Tirta Empul and provides water to paddy fields in Gianyar.

Batur is the largest of four lakes  on the island. Other large lakes include Lake Beratan in Tabanan, Lake Buyan and Lake Tamblingan in Buleleng.

The lake is one of the largest caldera lakes in the country. The government has also launched a program to turn it into a geological park.

“Batur is included [on a list of] 15 lakes in Indonesia that have been the focus of conservation programs by the central government,” Alit said.

Currently, the agency is still working on an action plan to save the lake. It has established a forum consisting of government officials, NGOs and the public.

“This forum will develop a comprehensive program to save the lake and evaluate the program,” Alit said.

One measure to prevent further pollution in the lake is finding an alternative source of income for local people, including by developing creative enterprises, such as making bamboo handicrafts.

It is also expected to encourage people to plant more bamboo, which has an ecological function of binding water.

“We are also trying to find other alternatives. It’s not really complicated. It just needs commitment from all stakeholders,” Alit added.

I Nyoman Gamayana, head of Kedisan village, said he supported the administration’s plan to save the lake. He said that the lake’s condition has degraded.

“We used to take water from the lake and drink it, but now we can’t. The water is smelly and dirty,” he said.

He expected that the action plan to save the lake would not neglect the economic interests of local people, since the lake has been their primary source of livelihood.

photo by: Ni Komang Erviani

Ni Komang Erviani and Luh De Suriyani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Fri, 12/09/2011 8:33 AM

The Bali administration will next year add a new route to the Trans Sarbagita public bus service, which is the province’s only public inter-city transportation system.

Launched to ease the island’s severe traffic congestion, the bus network will be expanded next year with a new route connecting downtown Denpasar with Udayana University and GWK (Garuda Wisnu Kencana) Cultural Park in Jimbaran.

“We are still waiting for 10 buses from the central government. Once all of those buses are here we will immediately begin operating the new route,” provincial transportation agency head Made Santha said on Thursday, adding that smaller buses would be used for the new route to adapt to the narrower and more congested roads in the downtown area.

Each of the air-conditioned buses can accommodate 25 seated and 15 standing passengers. The 15 buses that are currently serving the Trans Sarbagita first route, connecting Batubulan terminal in Gianyar with Kuta and Nusa Dua, can accommodate 36 seated and 20 standing passengers each.

“There will be no differences in ticket prices and operational hours,” Santha added.

The ticket price for the Trans Sarbagita service is Rp 3,500 (39 US cents) for regular passengers and Rp 2,500 for students. Operational hours are 5 a.m. until 9 p.m.

“Hopefully, the new route will be able to act as an alternative mode of transportation for Denpasar residents. The general public has been waiting for the opening of this downtown route,” he said.

One resident, Ni Putu Ayu Erni, said that she was just one of many people eagerly awaiting the start of the new service.

“It will save me the hassle of riding a motorbike or driving a car,” she said.

As an employee of the Nusa Dua-based Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC), she said that she had been a regular user of the Trans Sarbagita service since its official launch on Aug. 18.

The public bus service has gradually won its place in the hearts of Balinese. Trans Sarbagita executive Krisbiyanto disclosed that the existing Batubulan-Nusa Dua service moved around 1,400 passengers
per week.

“Half of them are regular passengers who use the service on a daily basis to reach their workplaces,” he said, adding that foreign visitors had also begun to use the service.

The provincial administration disclosed that the final form of Trans Sarbagita would comprise 17 routes connecting strategic points in Denpasar, Badung, Gianyar and Tabanan.

Another Trans Sarbagita executive, Arsana Laga, stated that the existing route should increase its load to improve the route’s contribution to easing traffic congestion.

“The load factor, or passenger rate, is still at 22 percent. We have set a target of 30 percent for 2012,” he said.

The Jakarta Post | Wed, 12/07/2011 11:41 AM

DENPASAR: Udayana Military Command military police detained an Army corporal following a shooting at a popular bar in Kuta that left a security guard critically wounded.

The soldier was identified only as A.M., who is an officer with the intelligence unit at the Wirasatya military base.

“The soldier is being interrogated at the military police headquarters to establish the nature and motive of the shooting,” Udayana Military Command spokesperson Col. Wing Handoko said on Tuesday.

Udayana Military Command oversees military affairs in Bali and West Nusa Tenggara while the Wirasatya military base is responsible for military affairs in Bali.

The shooting took place prior to dawn Monday outside the Santa Fe Bar in Legian, Kuta. Details about it are sketchy.

Witnesses said that the incident took place after a brawl between several of the bar’s patrons.

The bar’s security guards broke up the fight and one of them, identified as Wayan Surata, was escorting a patron out of the bar when he was shot.

Surata is being treated at Sanglah General Hospital’s emergency unit.

The attending physicians are concentrating on stabilizing his condition before performing surgery to extract the bullet from his abdomen.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/12/07/soldier-arrested-after-bar-shooting.html

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Wed, 12/07/2011 11:37 AM |

The Bali Corruption Court got tough during its first trial on Tuesday by ordering that a woman defendant be kept in custody for the duration of the trial with the presiding judge vowing a speedy trial.

Regional corruption courts were established in provinces across Indonesia following a Constitutional Court ruling in 2006 stating that the corruption court in Jakarta lacked both the legal foundation and jurisdiction to process corruption cases from regions outside Jakarta. The performance of the regional courts have been criticized recently for being soft on defendants. Acquittals of graft suspects in Samarinda and Bandung caused public uproar and growing demands for the regional corruption courts to be dissolved.

The Bali Corruption Court started its debut trial in a room of the Denpasar District Court. The first case to go to trial was related to the provincial transportation agency’s road signs development project, which covered 80 kilometers of road in Denpasar, Singaraja and Amlapura. The primary defendant is Endah Suparsetyaningsih, 47, the director of Pradana Tehnik, the company that won the bid for the Rp 2.14 billion (US$237,540) project. Seven other individuals have also been indicted in the case.

Prosecutor I Made Tangkas accused Endah and scores of the agency’s officials of doctoring the project’s final report to make it appear that the project had been completed on time. However, a field inspection carried out by detectives, experts from Udayana University and an agency team revealed that the project had not been completed.

“There are 20.5 kilometers of road that have yet to be equipped with proper signs. In this case, the state suffered a loss of Rp 942 million,” he said.

Endah was charged under articles of the Corruption Law that carry sentences of 15 years to life imprisonment.

“The defendant breached the law to gain financial benefit for herself and her corporation,” he said.

The defendant claimed that she did not understand the substance of the indictment. Presiding judge IGB Komang Wijaya Adhi then announced that the defendant would be taken to the detention center immediately after the hearing.

“I order the prosecutor to place the defendant in custody for the next 20 days,” he said, adding that the panel of judges had the authority to extend the detention period by up to 60 days.

photo by: Agung Parameswara

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Mon, 12/05/2011 11:20 PM

A 14-year-old Australian boy convicted of marijuana possession was deported at pre-dawn on Sunday after completing his two-month jail sentence. The boy and his family left the resort island at 1:05 a.m. local time aboard Virgin Blue DJ4146 flight heading for Sydney.

His homeward journey started on Sunday morning when he left the immigration detention facility in Jimbaran. Escorted by uniformed officials from the Denpasar Prosecutor’s Office and accompanied by his father, the boy was transported in a car to Kerobokan, the island’s largest correctional facility, to sign discharge documents and undergo the official release process.

The entourage arrived at Kerobokan at around 7:30 a.m. local time.

The boy, identified as L.A.M., was wearing a balaclava to cover his face.

His legal team, led by M. Rifan, accompanied him throughout the process, including having his photograph and fingerprints taken.

The process culminated when he signed the release papers.

“He has undergone all the required processes and is officially released today,” Kerobokan chief warden Siswanto announced.

Scores of immigration officials then picked up the boy and transported him to the immigration office at Ngurah Rai International airport.

At immigration, L.A.M. and his father were interviewed by the officials and underwent an immigration legal process related to his deportation.

After waiting for almost four hours at the immigration office, L.A.M. was finally taken into the airport’s international departure terminal.

The immigration authority placed the boy on its no-entry list. He would not be allowed to enter Indonesia for the next six months.

L.A.M.’s chief legal counsel, M. Rifan, stated that the boy was excited and joyful about his release.

“He was extremely happy knowing that he soon would be reunited with his family and friends. He was still feeling shock over the ordeal, but overall he was very happy,” Rifan said.

He also expressed satisfaction toward the manner with which L.A.M. was treated during his prison time, in particular the authority’s willingness to place him in a separate detention facility.

“We hope this will set a good precedent and that the authorities will follow this example in dealing with child inmates in Indonesia,” he said.

Throughout the trial L.A.M. was not detained at Kerobokan prison or the special detention facility for juvenile offenders in Karangasem. Instead he was placed in a 35 square meter room at the immigration’s detention facility in Jimbaran and allowed to be accompanied by his parents and to use a Playstation.

The decision to place him in that facility was made by no less than three high-ranking Indonesian officials — the National Police chief, Law and Human Rights Minister and the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister.

At that time 11 Indonesian children were jailed at Kerobokan prison in the same blocks as adult prisoners.

L.A.M. was arrested Oct. 4 on Padma Street, Kuta, by plainclothes narcotic detectives for having 3.6 grams of marijuana in his possession.

He confessed that he bought the illegal drug from an unknown person.

The fact that he is a minor soon turned the case into a high-profile media saga.

He was sentenced to two months imprisonment on Nov. 25 by a panel of judges presided over by Amzer Simanjuntak.

It was the lightest sentence the Denpasar district court has ever dispensed on drug-related offenses.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/12/05/drug-related-minor-convict-sent-home.html

HIJAUKAN LAHAN KERING-Aksi penanaman pohon dilakukan pemerintah bersama masyarakat di lahan kering di Desa Tulamben, Kabupaten Karangasem, yang terletak tepat di kaki Gunung Agung, Jumat (2/12). Hingga Desember ini, Bali baru mampu menanam 724.700 batang pohon dari total 8,59 juta batang pohon yang ditargetkan tanam dalam tahun ini untuk menyukseskan program tanam satu milyar pohon karena terkendala musim hujan yang belum merata. (photo by: Ni Komang Erviani)

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Karangasem | Sat, 12/03/2011 10:38 AM

Bali has failed to achieve it’s target of planting 8.5 million trees on 21,031 hectares in a massive reforestation campaign. The campaign is part of a national program of planting 1 billion trees launched by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono last year.

The province has so far only managed to plant 724,700 trees, or 8.4 percent of the target set for the February 2011-January 2012 period, said I Gusti Ngurah Wiranatha, head of the provincial forestry agency.

He blamed the weather for the failure, claiming that many regions of Bali had not experienced the rainfall normally expected.

“The problem is that the rainy season has yet to arrive throughout Bali. If we plant the trees, we’re worried that the trees will die,” he said on the sidelines of the planting of 1,000 trees on parched land in Tulamben village in Karangasem regency.

Wiranatha said the tree planting would be prioritized in areas with a high intensity of rain.

“We have only planted in Tabanan, Jembrana and Bangli, and in some parts of Karangasem.”

The tree planting is carried out in forested areas and previously unforested areas on lands belonging to local people. On such land, the planted trees are mostly those which have an economic value so as to encourage people to take care of the trees.

“We are hopeful that the planting will achieve beneficial results and reach at least 80 percent of the target,” Wiranatha said.

He said the results of the planting was very much determined by the weather but that the most important thing was the number of trees that grew well, not necessarily the number of trees that had been planted.

The tree planting in Karangasem was held in observance of the national Tree Planting Day. The event was part of a bigger campaign targeting the planting of 12,000 trees.

“Due to the weather problems, particularly the uneven intensity of rain, we have only been able to plant 1,000 trees. These trees will be taken care of by the farmers of Tulamben village.”

The farmers have committed to plant the remaining 11,000 trees during the rainy season.

Wiranatha said that Bali would make greater efforts to meet the target of planting 8.59 million trees by the deadline of Jan. 31 next year.

“We still have two more months. We’re optimistic we can still achieve the target.”

Even if they missed their target, the planting would be continued next year, he added.

Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika, who led the tree-planting campaign in Karangasem, hoped people would be more aware of the campaign and participate in the planting of 1 billion trees.

The campaign, which is in line with the province’s Bali Clean and Green program, is crucial to help solving environmental and economic problems, as parched and eroded land can lead to problems causing poverty.

“We’re still facing the problems of drought and water crisis. Therefore, we need to plant more trees.”

Karangasem Regent Wayan Geredeg said people in the regency, where most of the land was relatively barren, were now more aware of the economic and environmental benefits of planting trees.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/12/03/bali-falls-far-short-reforestation-effort.html

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Mon, 11/14/2011 10:39 PM |

The Indonesian Navy says seven warships will be on hand to secure the ASEAN Summit which is slated to be attended by 15 heads of states from Nov. 17 to 19.

Five warships arrived in Bali as of Sunday and started to establish a secure perimeter in the waters of Nusa Dua, the main venue of the summit.

The Navy has also deployed three elite Kopaska frogman and underwater demolition units to Bali.

The combat divers, who have an extensive counterterrorism training, have been tasked with securing the shore near the Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center (BNDCC) and the Bali International Convention Center (BICC).

Udayana Military Command chief Maj. Gen. Leonard said the deployments would maximize security throughout the summit.

“We will provide a maximum level of security in land, on the sea and on the air,” he said at on sidelines of an inspection of naval forces at Benoa harbor on Sunday.

According to the government’s standard operating procedures, the Indonesian Military (TNI) is the lead agency for security for any event involving the President or visiting heads of state.

The Udayana Military Command covers Bali, West Nusa Tenggara and East Nusa Tenggara.

The five warships currently in Bali are the destroyers KRI Karel Satsuit Tubun and KRI Slamet Riyadi, the KRI Kerapu and KRI Sura fast patrol boats, and the KRI Banda Aceh, an amphibious assault ship equipped with five helicopters, 22 tanks and 560 marines.

“The security arrangements for the summit involve the integration of the military and police forces. That’s why several police patrol boats have also been dispatched from the National Police headquarters in Jakarta to Bali. Here, they will carry out joint security operation with the Navy,” Leonard said.

The Navy would also secure the island’s major seaports. “Security arrangements have been out in place at Gilimanuk, Padangbai, Celukan Bawang and Benoa harbors,” he stated.

While patrols have already started, Leonard said security during the summit would be even higher.

“Several designated points in the area will be cleared of all activities, including fishing boats. We cannot completely close down the sea the way we do on land, but those several designated points must be cleared from all activities,” he said.

The TNI will also establish a no-fly zone over the summit area.

“Only individuals with ASEAN Summit identity cards will be allowed to enter the Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC) area. Those without the proper ID, even members of security agencies, will be turned away,” he said, adding that Nusa Dua hotels had arranged special IDs for their guests and employees.

Public transportation vehicles and taxi will be prohibited from entering the area during the summit.

Separately, Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika and scores of provincial senior officials joined a prayer session to ask for blessings for the summit.

Held at the temple inside the governor’s official residence compound, the event was attended by some 200 people, including priests from all major temples in Bali.

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Fri, 11/04/2011 7:11 AM |

The Bali and Denpasar administrations will build a museum and monument dedicated to Puputan Badung, a historical battle in 1906 between the Badung people and the Dutch colonial forces.

“The monument will be the icon of Denpasar and serve as a memorial, museum and public library,” said Gde Kusuma Diputra, head of the city’s spatial agency, on Thursday.

The monument will be built in the north area of Puputan Badung field. The existing Puputan Badung statues will be relocated to the top of the planned monument and will serve as the landmark of the complex.

The bronze statues of a man, a woman and a boy in battle stances and carrying spears and krises, show that the historic battle involved Balinese men and women of all ages.

Diputra said the monument would be built with Denpasar’s characteristic architecture.

“We will also provide sufficient green space in the museum and keep the trees in the field.”

A 400-car basement parking lot will also be built.

The monument will also be equipped with information about the historical battle in digital format, which will be kept in the museum.

Located near the city’s heritage area — including Jl. Gajah Mada, Jl. Veteran and Jl. Thamrin — the monument is expected to support the area’s preservation and the city’s tour program. The construction project will start next year, and the agency is focusing on distributing information to the public.

Nyoman Gunarsa, head of the Bali Museum Association, said he supported the monument’s construction in Puputan Badung.

“It’s a good idea, and it will be very meaningful to making Balinese people more aware of the nation’s struggle in the past and how their predecessors fought for their freedom from the colonialists.”

However, he suggested that the museum should be built directly on the battle site, which was currently occupied by Jaya Sabha, the governor’s official residence. The building is located to the north of the planned site.

“The governor should let Jaya Sabha be the museum location.”

Gunarsa added that the monument was also expected to be a work of art and an attractive tourist destination.

I Ketut Ardhana, a historian from Udayana University, said the Puputan Badung battle was a historical moment that held valuable lessons for the current generation.

The heroes’ fighting spirits to defend their rights against the Dutch is a remarkable characteristic of Bali that should be hailed.

http://m.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/11/04/puputan-badung-be-immortalized-monument.html

APEC venue proceeds, despite opposition

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Thu, 11/03/2011 10:46 AM |

Despite mounting opposition from students and environmental activists, the plan to construct a mega-resort for the venue of the 2013 APEC summit moves forward, as Badung regency started processing the permit for its construction.

The project is estimated to cost US$280 million and is expected to be completed by mid-2013 before the summit in November, in what is known as the Bali International Park (BIP).

On Wednesday, the regency administration met with representatives of PT Jimbaran Hijau to review a presentation from the developer about the BIP development.

“The developer has proposed the permit. They should first present their plans for the project to the Badung regent,” said the regency’s spokesman, Wayan Weda Darmaja.

Weda said the developer had proposed the permit months ago but the regency could not process the permit because some requirements had not been fulfilled.

The requirements included completing the process of transferring the land-use rights from PT Citra Tama Selaras, the owner of the land, to the developer as well as the payment of land and building tax of
Rp 7.2 billion by the developer. All the requirements have now been fulfilled by the developer.

Weda said the regency administration needed to hear a presentation from the developer to gain a complete picture of the project.

“We need to know what they will build and whether they have fulfilled all the requirements before we issue the permit.”

However, the regency administration would still consider opinions from the public about the project. He said that despite mounting opposition, his office had also been urged by many parties to speed up the process.

“Some are against the project, while some have urged us to speed up the process. We will consider all opinions. The most important thing is that the company fulfills all the requirements.”

 The regency administration’s decision to process the BIP’s permit triggered opposition from Gumi Bali Forum, an organization of students and environmental activists.

On Wednesday, 10 activists held a demonstration at the Sudirman junction to voice their opposition.

The activists, from Bali Environmental forum (Walhi), Frontier Bali and Udayana University, brought posters expressing their opposition to the development of the BIP.

They demanded that the regency administration refuse the permit. They also demanded greater transparency on tax paid by PT Jimbaran Hijau to the government.

Their third demand was for the regency administration to implement the government regulation on the use of abandoned land on the 174 hectares of land on which the BIP would be built.

Activist Abdul Haris said the development of the BIP would spark many problems.

 “The project has violated, among other regulations, the moratorium on the development of tourist accommodation in the south of Bali.”

Earlier this year, Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika issued a moratorium on the development of new hotels in south Bali as the area already had too many hotels, and in the hope that development projects would be diverted to poorer regions in northern and eastern Bali.

Haris also criticized the acquisition of land from PT Citra Tama Selaras by PT Jimbaran Hijau, in which the latter company should have paid tax of 10 percent of the land’s value.

Link: http://m.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/11/03/apec-venue-proceeds-despite-opposition.html