VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Philippine Nobel laureate Maria Ressa and her news site Rappler were acquitted by a court of tax evasion charges on Wednesday, in a ruling that media watchdogs and human rights groups described as a win for press freedom and rule of law.

Ressa, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize alongside a Russian journalist in 2021, is head of Rappler, which earned a reputation for its in-depth reporting and tough scrutiny of former president Rodrigo Duterte and his deadly war on drugs.

"This acquittal is not just for Rappler it is for every Filipino who has ever been unjustly accused," Ressa said after the verdict, describing it as a win for justice and the truth.

"These charges... were politically motivated... A brazen abuse of power," she said, while fighting back tears.

The tax evasion case stemmed from accusations by the state revenue agency that Rappler had omitted from its tax returns the proceeds of a 2015 sale of depositary receipts to foreign investors, which later became the securities regulator's basis to revoke its licence.

The tax court said in its ruling it acquitted Ressa and Rappler because of the prosecution's failure to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

The Philippine's justice department said it respected the decision of the court.

Ressa, 59 is currently on bail as she appeals a six-year prison sentence handed down in 2020 for a libel conviction.

She has been fighting a string of government lawsuits since 2018 which she has described as part of a pattern of harassment.

Her plight has stoked international concern about media harassment in the Philippines, described as one of Asia's most dangerous places for journalists.

"Hope is what this provides," said Ressa when asked if she thought the tide was turning under the watch of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, whose office has said the leader respects press freedom.

Media watchdogs and human rights groups lauded the court's decision, which they said was a win for journalists and the rule of law.

"It is a victory for press freedom in the Philippines," Carlos Conde, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

The challenge for the Marcos administration is "to take stock of this and ensure that journalists did their jobs without fear", Conde said.

In October, a radio journalist was shot dead, among scores killed in the past decade.

The Philippines ranked 147 out of 180 countries in the 2022 World Press Freedom Index, and the Committee to Protect Journalists ranks the Philippines seventh in the world in its 2021 impunity index, which tracks deaths of media members whose killers go free. (Reuters)

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) believes that the ranks of regional governments understand what kind of interventions and policies need to be taken to achieve the target of eliminating extreme poverty by 2024.

He then asked the participants attending the “2023 National Coordination Meeting (Rakornas) of Regional Heads and the Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda)” at the Sentul International Convention Center, Bogor, West Java, on Tuesday to follow up on this matter.

"Everything is already listed in the data. Which means the target is already being prepared. I believe all local governments understand the interventions and policies needed to alleviate extreme poverty," he said in his opening remarks at the meeting, which was broadcast live on the official YouTube channel of the Presidential Secretariat.

The data related to extreme poverty should already exist in every village across Indonesia, he added. With this facility, he said he hoped local governments would focus on carrying out policies regarding this matter.

Nevertheless, the head of state reminded that the target of reducing extreme poverty to zero percent in 2024 will not be an easy one to achieve.

Moreover, there are currently 14 provinces where the extreme poverty rate is above the national rate.

"All regional heads please check this; there are 14 provinces that are still above the national rate. Even though our target in 2024 is zero extreme poverty, this is not an easy target. In 2022, there was still 2 percent extreme poverty and 14 provinces (whose poverty rate was) above the national average," he said.

Earlier, Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy said that tackling extreme poverty and stunting will be a priority in 2023. According to him, the two problems overlap.

"The cause of stunting is motivated by extreme poverty, such as obstacles in accessing basic needs, access to clean water, sanitation facilities, and others," he noted.

Effendy said that a number of specific and sensitive interventions related to extreme poverty and stunting will require collaboration and synergy across ministries and agencies to carry out. (Antaranews)

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan believes that Indonesia will become one of the top three producers of electric vehicle (EV) batteries in the world by 2027.

"In 2027, we may be one of the top three EV batteries' and EV cars' producer in the world," Pandjaitan stated during the 2023 National Coordination Meeting of Regional Heads that was monitored online from Jakarta, Tuesday.

The minister's belief was also supported by the signing of a cooperation agreement for the development of the EV battery ecosystem between State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) MIND ID holding and EV battery manufacturers from China Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Limited (CATL) on Monday.

"We are ready to enter a new era of building a lithium battery ecosystem and also an EV car. If everything goes according to plan, we will be able to produce the first lithium battery in 2025," he affirmed.

Pandjaitan said Indonesia's export performance was immediately increased by the downstream industry that was being boosted by the government. He noted that Indonesia's exports of nickel derivatives rose significantly, from around US$8.1 billion to US$33.8 billion in 2022.

"Our exports have increased very well this year, nearly US$11 billion, from the increase in the downstream industry or the downstreaming of only nickel ore. Hence, when we are ready to export lithium batteries, I think the figure will be far bigger," he remarked.

He projected a two-fold increase in the exports of nickel derivatives if the downstream plan to the electric battery industry ecosystem can proceed in the next four to five years.

Earlier, Minister of Investment and Head of BKPM, Bahlil Lahadalia, stated that the Initial Signing Conditional Share Purchase Agreement (CSPA) and Shareholders Agreement (SHA) had been carried out between Antam, a member of MIND ID, and CBL, which is a subsidiary of CATL, on Monday, January 16.

The follow-up progress of this cooperation is in the context of forming a consortium joint venture to develop the EV ecosystem, from upstream to downstream, as part of the green economy transformation program in Indonesia.

"We hope that after the signing of the CSPA, we can push for the downstream commitment agreement process for activities, such as smelters, precursors, cathodes, battery cells, and recycle," Lahadalia stated. (Antaranews)

The 1945 constitutional mandate on the freedom of worship for all people takes precedence over any instructions issued by a district or mayor regarding the development of places of worship, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has highlighted.

He emphasized that as the supreme law, the Constitution must not be disregarded for mere verbal consensus on restricting the construction of places of worship.

"The Constitution must not be disregarded for a mere consensus. If, for instance, there is a meeting consensus or FKUB (Regional Religious Harmony Forum) resolution restricting the development of places of worship, I warn you, the Constitution clearly protects the rights," he said at the “2023 Regional Heads and Regional Leadership Forum National Coordination Meeting” in Bogor, West Java, on Tuesday.

Christians, Catholics, Hindus, and other religious minorities have equal religious rights and worship rights, he added.

Article 29 Paragraph 2 of the 1945 Constitution elucidates the right to worship for residents of all religious denominations according to their faith, he pointed out.

“(The right to worship) is protected by the Constitution, and everyone must understand this issue. Our Constitution granted freedom of religion and worship regardless if there are only one, two, or three (individuals belonging to a religious minority) in cities or districts. We must be mindful of this," Widodo said.

He also expressed concern over reports of incidents where religious minorities in some cities were forced to worship in other regions because they did not have a place of worship in their home city.

"Because I see this still occurs (in some regions). Sometimes, I ponder: ‘Is it that difficult for them to worship their God?’ We are saddened by this incident," the President remarked.

The right to worship for religious minorities remains a contentious issue in some regions, and in some cases, regional heads have bowed to public pressure to reject the development of a place of worship in the name of collective harmony.

Last Christmas, the head of Banten's Lebak district, Ita Octavia Jayabaya, asked Christians in Maja sub-district to join Christmas Mass in a neighboring sub-district as there was no church in Maja. The local authority earlier refused to issue a permit to the Christians to use a hall in the region for Christmas Mass due to public pressure.

Meanwhile, in the same province last September, Cilegon Mayor Helldy Agustian was involved in the signing of a declaration to reject the construction of a church in the city. He justified his involvement by stating that the church did not satisfy the prerequisites needed for its development. (Antaranews)