The wRap Indonesia: Feb. 23, 2015

JAKARTA, Indonesia – In today’s wrap of stories from Indonesia, activists raise worries about the future of the anti-graft agency, and the latest on the heightening diplomatic row between Indonesia and Brazil. 

1. Activists raise doubts over future of KPK under new leaders

Anti-corruption activists are raising questions over the direction of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) under the temporary leaders appointed by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo because of perceived potential conflicts of interest. Ade Irawan of Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) asked why acting KPK chairman Taufiqurrahman Ruki, a former police officer, immediately asked for an additional 50 investigators from the National Police just hours after being sworn in on Friday. Indonesian Legal Aid Institute Foundation (YLBHI) director Bahrain also questioned Jokowi’s decision to appoint Indriyanto Seno Adji, who had worked as a lawyer in the Bank Century scandal and the BLBI case, which are being investigated by KPK. Read the full story from the Jakarta Post.  

2. Catholic rites denied for Brazilian executed in Indonesia, report says

Indonesian authorities executed Brazilian Marco Archer Cardoso Moreira last month without allowing a priest to perform the last rites as he waited for the firing squad, the Sydney Morning Herald reported on Sunday, February 22. “He had to be dragged from his cell crying and saying ‘help me’,” said Father Burrows, who was supposed to administer the sacrament of reconciliation and penance. “He actually excremented in his trousers”. The guards hosed him down but, says Father Burrows, he continued to weep “all the time up to his last minutes”.

The report comes as the diplomatic row between Indonesia and Brazil heightened over the weekend. Indonesia recalled its new ambassador to Brazil after Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff refused to accept his credentials. 

3. Lawmakers plan to summon Lion Air over holiday flight delays 

Lawmakers plan to question the management of Lion Air, Indonesia’s biggest low-cost airline, in March over last week’s disastrous holiday flight delays, Tempo.co reported. Three days of major delays saw thousands of angry passengers barricade gates and stage noisy protests inside the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Lion Air had grounded 16 flights across the country on Thursday, stranding 6,000 passengers at the start of a traditional long weekend period to mark Chinese New Year, with the delays apparently caused by a combination of mechanical problems and the high number of travelers. A lawmaker from Hanura, Fauzih Amro, also said the government should suspend the airline’s flight permits for a month as punishment. 

4. Model from Central Java crowned Puteri Indonesia 2015