VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed expressed alarm to Taliban officials in Kandahar over violations of women's rights in Afghanistan, the United Nations said on Friday after she made a rare visit to the Taliban's southern heartland.

Mohammed finished a four-day visit to Afghanistan on Friday, also meeting Taliban officials in the capital Kabul after the administration banned most female aid workers and stopped women and girls from attending high school and university.

"My message was very clear: while we recognize the important exemptions made, these restrictions present Afghan women and girls with a future that confines them in their own homes, violating their rights and depriving the communities of their services," Mohammed said in a statement.

In Kandahar - home to the Taliban's supreme spiritual leader who has the final say on major decisions - Mohammed met with Deputy Governor Maulvi Hayatullah Mubarak.

He told her that the Taliban administration wanted a strong relationship with the world, the removal of sanctions on its leaders and to be able to send an ambassador to the U.N., said the Kandahar information office.

The U.N. General Assembly last month postponed for the second time a decision on whether the Taliban administration can send an ambassador to New York. Dozens of Taliban leaders are also subject to U.N. sanctions.

He told her that the Taliban administration wanted a strong relationship with the world, the removal of sanctions on its leaders and to be able to send an ambassador to the U.N., said the Kandahar information office.

The U.N. General Assembly last month postponed for the second time a decision on whether the Taliban administration can send an ambassador to New York. Dozens of Taliban leaders are also subject to U.N. sanctions. (Reuters)

Dozens of Peruvians were injured after tensions flared again on Friday night as police clashed with protesters in anti-government demonstrations that are spreading across the country.

In the capital Lima, police officers used tear gas to repel demonstrators throwing glass bottles and stones, as fires burned in the streets, local TV footage showed.

In the country's southern Puno region, some 1,500 protesters attacked a police station in the town of Ilave, Interior Minister Vicente Romero said in a statement to news media.

A police station in Zepita, Puno, was also on fire, Romero said.

Health authorities in Ilave reported eight patients hospitalized with injuries, including broken arms and legs, eye contusions and punctured abdomens.

By late afternoon, 58 people had been injured nationwide in demonstrations, according to a report from Peru's ombudsman.

The unrest followed a day of turmoil in Thursday, when one of Lima's most historic buildings burned to the ground, as President Dina Boluarte vowed to get tougher on "vandals."

The destruction of the building, a near-century-old mansion in central Lima, was described by officials as the loss of a "monumental asset." Authorities are investigating the causes.

Romero on Friday claimed the blaze was "duly planned and arranged."

Thousands of protesters descended on Lima this week calling for change and angered by the protests' mounting death toll, which officially stood at 45 on Friday.

Protests have rocked Peru since President Pedro Castillo was ousted in December after he attempted to dissolve the legislature to prevent an impeachment vote.

The unrest has until this week been concentrated in Peru's south.

In the Cusco region, Glencore's (GLEN.L) major Antapaccay copper mine suspended operations on Friday after protesters attacked the premises - one of the largest in the country - for the third time this month.

Airports in Arequipa, Cusco and the southern city of Juliaca were also attacked by demonstrators, delivering a fresh blow to Peru's tourism industry.

"It's nationwide chaos, you can't live like this. We are in a terrible uncertainty - the economy, vandalism," said Lima resident Leonardo Rojas.

The government has extended a state of emergency to six regions, curtailing some civil rights.

But Boluarte has dismissed calls for her to resign and hold snap elections, instead calling for dialogue and promising to punish those involved in the unrest.

"All the rigor of the law will fall on those people who have acted with vandalism," Boluarte said on Thursday.

Some locals pointed the finger at Boluarte, accusing her of not taking action to quell the protests, which began on Dec. 7 in response to the ouster and arrest of Castillo.

Human rights groups have accused the police and army of using deadly firearms. The police say protesters have used weapons and homemade explosives. (Reuters)

Hong Kong Finance Minister Paul Chan Mo-Po offered opportunities for green or environment-friendly investment financing to Indonesia at a meeting with Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Head Bahlil Lahadalia in Davos, Switzerland.

At the meeting on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on January 19, 2023, Chan Mo-Po stated that Indonesia and Hong Kong have always been good partners in the areas of investment and trade.

"We also want to offer an opportunity for Indonesia to utilize Hong Kong's position as a global financial center. Last year, we became the number one country in Asia, with the largest environmentally friendly financing value of US$65-67 million. If there is a project that needs green financing, please inform us and we will definitely help," Chan Mo-Po noted in a statement in Jakarta, Saturday.

Lahadalia also welcomed the opportunity of green investment financing from Hong Kong that was presented by Chan Mo-Po.

"We welcome financing investments in the environmentally friendly energy sector because this is an important part of the priority scale of the Indonesian Government. The green economy is indeed growing, but the flow of investment is uneven, especially to developing countries. Good relations between the two countries can be strengthened through environmentally friendly investment financing," Lahadalia explained.

According to Lahadalia, eco-friendly financing can still be optimized in the region of Southeast Asia. Moreover, Indonesia has several environmentally friendly investment projects, including those related to energy transition and development of the electric vehicle battery ecosystem. The potential can be developed and maximized together.

On the other hand, Indonesia is also pushing for value-added investment through energy-oriented downstreaming and environmentally friendly industries.

Based on data of the Ministry of Investment/BKPM, the realization of Hong Kong's investment in Indonesia for the last five years reached US$19 million, with the three highest realized investments sectors: base metal, metal goods, non-machinery, and equipment industries (US$9.67 million); electricity, gas, and water sector (US$3.14 million); as well as housing, industrial areas, and offices (US$1.92 million). (Antaranews)

At least 15 million trees will be planted in the Nusantara capital (IKN) in Sepaku, Penajam Paser Utara, East Kalimantan, which has an area of 100 thousand hectares.

"We will replant the original endemic trees," IKN Infrastructure Development Task Force Head Danis Hidayat Sumadilaga stated here on Saturday.

According to Sumadilaga, IKN carries the forest city concept and only 25 percent of the area will be built for residential areas, offices, and other facilities, while the rest 75 percent will constitute forests.

Another environmental project in IKN development is the nursery of seedlings in Mentawir in the eastern Sepaku Sub-district.

The nursery covers an area of 30 hectares and has ironwood seedlings (Eusideroxylon zwageri) and lowland rainforest trees (Dipterocarpaceae), such as bangkirai or balau (Shorea laevis), which can grow to 70 meters in height.

On a separate occasion, activist and environmentalist who won the Kalpataru Award, Agus Bei, reminded that Balikpapan Bay should not be forgotten in preserving the environment in the IKN development area.

"There is a mangrove forest area, which is a habitat for many species that contribute to the balance of nature," Bei pointed out.

Mangrove trees, such as Rhizopora mucronata, Rhizopora apiculata, Avicennia, Sonneratia, and Bruguiera, are proven to be protective and become environmental tourism destinations.

The 100-hectare mangrove center protects the residential area from strong winds at Balikpapan Bay and provides shade in hot temperatures and becomes a habitat for crocodiles and proboscis monkeys (Nasalis larvatus).

To this end, Bei said he has high expectations for the IKN development and future existence of the new capital.

"From what we know, the IKN concept of a forest city has been proven in Balikpapan, so it is worth waiting for its implementation on a larger scale at the national capital level," he stated. (Antaranews)