The wRap Indonesia: Oct 8, 2014

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Losing presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto’s fresh win over the man who defeated him during the presidential elections and Jakarta’s plan to finance the 2018 Asian Games lead our wrap of stories from Indonesia the past day.

1. Despite fierce lobby, Jokowi camp loses MPR vote

Prabowo Subianto’s Red and White Coalition notched yet another win in the early hours of Wednesday, October 8, by securing the leadership of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) – the body with the power to change the Constitution and impeach the president. President-elect Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s camp offered leadership positions to the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) and the United Development Party (PPP) to gain their support, but this was still not enough to counter the votes for Prabowo’s camp. Prospects for Jokowi’s presidency are looking increasingly dire less than 2 weeks before he is set to be inaugurated, with the losing presidential candidate’s majority opposition in control of both the MPR and the House of Representatives (DPR). 

2.  Australian man who ‘cooked’ transexual Indonesian wife was a prostitute

More details of Marcus Volke, the 28-year-old Australian ‘chef’ who dismembered his Indonesian transexual wife Mayang Prasetyo’s body and boiled parts of her remains in a stove, emerged. It was originally reported that Volke was a chef, but a friend of the couple claimed that he worked in a Melbourne brothel where he used to be a sex worker, reported Australia’s daily Herald Sun. The pair were introduced at the brothel, the friend said. Volke was working as a prostitute overseas where he advertised himself in Denmark as a “young sexy Australian boy, very friendly and easy going, discreet and professional.”

The couple had just moved to an upscale Brisbane apartment where Volke murdered Prasetyo, according to this report. Another friend told the Daily Mail that the pair had never went public in their relationship because of “the life they were leading.”

3. Pro-democracy activists reject Bali Democracy Forum

Prominent non-governmental organizations, including Perludem (Associations for Elections and Democracy), Migrant Care, Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), Kontras (Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence), and Transparency International Indonesia, said on Tuesday, October 7, they were declining the invitation to attend the Bali Democracy Forum.

“We don’t need to talk about democracy in ceremonial events, when the people’s right to vote for their leader has been removed,” Perludem explained in a tweet.

Amid the controversy, Bali Police announced they won’t allow any form of demonstrations or protests during the forum. Read the full Rappler report.

4. Platoon-sized girl band JKT48 named Jakarta’s tourism ambassador

[PHOTO] Terima kasih telah datang di #JKT48GinghamCheckHS 4 Oktober 2014 kemarin. Sampai jumpa di HS Fest berikutnya pic.twitter.com/HokMLfweVy

— official JKT48 (@officialJKT48) October 5, 2014

In an aim to lure foreign tourists, the Jakarta administration named Japanese-inspired girl band JKT48 as their tourism ambassador, Tuesday, October 7. JKT48 is an Indonesian version of Japan-based platoon-sized idol group AKB48. They have a cult following among adolescent boys and middle-aged men in both Indonesia and Japan. “One of our main targets are Japanese tourists … We’re optimistic that members of JKT48 will create a positive image of Jakarta,” said Arie Budhiman, head of Jakarta’s tourism agency. Read more at BeritaJakarta.com. 

5. Jakarta seeks private aid for Asian Games 2018 

With the task of hosting a massive international event such as the 2018 Asian Games estimated to cost about $150 million, Jakarta Deputy Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama is looking to the private sector for help. Ahok said Tuesday, October 7, he will ask assistance from the private sector to provide accommodation and other infrastructure to support the activities. The Jakarta government can then pay a rental fee for athletes’ use of the accommodations during the games. In terms of transport infrastructure, Ahok said he would ensure major projects like the MRT are completed by then.  – Rappler.com