RI sends $3.3 million worth of assistance to Pakistan

Antara News, Tuesday, August 31, 2010 15:56 WIB

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The total assistance of Indonesian aid to Pakistani flood victims is worth $3.3 million and it will be sent to the country in two stages.

Coordinating Minister for People`s Welfare Agung Laksono said here on Tuesday that the total assistant was worth $3.3 million and the fist stage has been sent to Pakistan and the second would follow.

"The first stage of assistance, amounting $1.3 million in the form of logistics and medicine was sent to Pakistan early of this month," Agung Laksono said here on Tuesday.

He added that the second stage in the form of cash money would be sent on Wednesday, September 1, 2010.

"In the second stage of the assistance we will send a cash of $2 million along with National Defense Forces (TNI) and medical personnel," Agung Laksono said.

He said a 45-member group consisting of medical personnel, TNI personnel, and National Board of Disaster Mitigation personnel would soon be sent to Pakistan.

"The dispatch of the second phase assistance to Pakistani flood victims is in accordance with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono`s instruction," Laksono said.

He said the first phase of assistance which has been sent to Pakistan was made up of among others 4,000 pieces of blanket, 500 packages of canned food, 3 tons of medicine, and 50 tons baby food.

According to Agung Laksono, the dispatch of humanitarian assistance to Pakistan was part of Indonesian solidarity to the flood victims in the country.

Mexico sacks 10% of police force in corruption probe

BBC News, 30 August 2010 Last updated at 18:01 GMT 

The federal police force in Mexico says it has sacked almost 10% of its officers this year for corruption, incompetence or links to organised crime.

More officers could face disciplinary action
 in the wide-ranging crackdown

Commissioner Facundo Rosas said 3,200 officers had been fired.

More than 1,000 others were facing disciplinary action and could also lose their jobs, he added.

None of the officers would be allowed to work in police forces at local, state or federal levels, Mr Rosas said.

Many of those removed are now facing criminal charges.

At a news conference, Mr Rosas said some of the officers had been accused by subordinates of having links to drug cartels in Ciudad Juarez, the country's most violent city.

The commissioner said this was only the first stage of a purge of Mexico's forces.

Soon after taking office, President Felipe Calderon launched an all-out war against the drug cartels.

In many parts of the country he has deployed the army against the traffickers despite the opposition of many of his critics.

But Mr Rosas said the federal police force was also taking part in the drugs war.

He said the ongoing purge was part of a strategy to rid the police of corruption and make its 34,500 officers more reliable, as they were an integral part of the country's security forces.

The war against the drug cartels has left some 25,000 people dead since Mr Calderon came to power in December 2006. 

RI, Singapore exchange border agreement

Antara News, Tuesday, August 31, 2010 03:18 WIB

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian and Singapore governments have exchanged a Ratification Agreement Charter on Fixing the Sea Boundary of the Two Countries South of Singapore.

The charter agreement, according to the Foreign Ministry in Jakarta on Monday was ratified by Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty M.Natalegawa and his Singapore counterpart George Yong-Boon Yeo at the Singapore foreign ministry.

The agreement was the product of eight rounds of negotiations between the two countries since 2005.

Under Article 5 of the Agreement, the exchange of the charter caused the agreement to become effective as of August 30, 2010.

On the occasion, the two foreign ministers also signed a Joint Submission Letter for depositing the agreement to the United Nations Secretary General.

The sea boundary agreed on under the agreement is the continuation of the sea boundary already agreed upon in the agreement between Indonesia and Singapore on the Sea Boundary signed on May 25, 1973.

The sea boundary between Indonesia and Singapore was fixed on the basis of international law, namely the 1982 Sea Law Convention, in which the two countries are part of the Convention.

In deciding on the sea boundary, Indonesia used its basic point reference in Nipa Island, and the basic lines of the Indonesian archipelago drawn from Nipa Island to Karimun Besar Island.

The basic lines are the basic lines of the archipelago whose coordinates are set in Law no 4/Prp/1960 on the Indonesian Waters which had been renewed by Government Regulation No 38/2002 and Government Regulation No 37/2008.

The coordinates are set by using the World Geodetic System of 1984 Datum (WGS 1984) and the lines connecting each of the coordinates: 1 (1:10/46.0/NL (North Latitude), 103:40/14.6/ EL (East Longitude); 1A (1:11/17.4/NL, 103:39/38.5/EL); 1B (1:11/55.5/NL, 103:34/20.4/EL); and 1C (1:11/43.8/NL, 103:34?00.0/EL).

The sea boundary in the western segment will make it easier for security personnel and shipping safety in operating in the Singapore Strait, because there is legal security on the sea boundaries of the two countries.

The negotiating technical team for the Indonesian maritime limit consists of representatives of ministries and sectoral representatives of the ministries and the relevent sectoral trans agencies namely the foreign ministry, defense ministry, Military Headquarters, Navy Headquarters, and the Navy`s Hidro-Oseanographic Agency.

The team also gets inputs from a team of experts comprising experts and academicians.

Now that the agreement had been ratified, the next step would be increasing bilateral cooperation in managing the border regions, including those related to navigational security issues, the environment, and the use of natural resources.

With the completion of the sea boundary in the western segment (Tuas/Nipa Island), there is still the eastern segment 1 and eastern segment 2 which need to be negotiated by the two countries.

The eastern segment 1 is the Batam/Changi and eastern segment 2 is the area around Bintan-South Ledge/Middle Rock/Pedra Branca which is still awaiting the result of further negotiations between Indonesia and Singapore.

The two foreign ministers agreed to immediately start the negotiations on the sea boundary in the eastern segment (Batam-Changi).

Maid torture report arrives in Kingdom

By MD RASOOLDEEN | ARAB NEWS, Aug 29, 2010

RIYADH: The Sri Lankan Embassy received on Saturday the medical report regarding the Sri Lankan housemaid who was found with 24 nails and needles embedded in her legs, arms, hands and forehead, allegedly pushed into her body by the Saudi couple she worked for as a method of punishment.

A video statement from the victim translated into Arabic language was also handed over to the Saudi Embassy in Colombo for necessary action.

“We have the report regarding L.T. Ariyawathi, a 49-year-old domestic aide who came to Riyadh in March for employment under a Saudi sponsor,” an embassy official told Arab News, adding that this would facilitate the mission to take up the case with the Foreign Affairs Ministry here requesting action against the employer.

Although the mission knows the details of the Saudi sponsor, the official said it is not protocol to contact him directly. Arab News tried to contact the sponsor but did not get a response.

“All our actions will be channeled through the Saudi Foreign Ministry,” he said.

Doctors in Sri Lanka removed on Friday 13 nails and five needles from the maid’s body. Six needles in her hands reportedly could not be removed because the procedure would damage nerves and arteries.

Condemning it as a inhumane act on an innocent worker, Kingsley Ranawaka, chairman of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), said that the Saudi authorities should wake up regarding such human rights violations.

“Prompt action by the Saudi government will not only give confidence to the rest of the workers but will also stand as a warning against such merciless employers who treat workers like animals,” Ranawaka told Arab News from Colombo.

As a welfare measure, he added the SLBFE is making arrangements to build a house for the maid.

“It was the sole purpose of her going for overseas employment and we want to fulfill her wishes,” Ranawaka said, adding that these workers go for foreign jobs in search of greener pastures to improve their living conditions back home. “Unfortunately, a few end up with such misery.”

Ranawaka said that last year around 35,000 housemaids came to the Kingdom and 17,000 had already come during the first of the current year.

The state-run radio in Colombo said the chairman of the National Insurance Fund Senaka Abeygunasekera visited the patient at the hospital Friday and awarded the first insurance installment of 100,000 rupees (SR 3,300). Another 250,000 rupees (SR 8,200) will be given to her shortly.

In a related development, the incident of the tortured housemaid had caused panicked among the new housemaids who are scheduled to arrive in the Kingdom.

A job agent in Colombo told Arab News Friday that he had 10 housemaids ready to be dispatched to Riyadh for employment but now they are hesitating to come to the Kingdom because of this alarming news of human torture.

“This is going to affect our trade,” said the agent, who wished to remain anonymous.

Related Article:

Saudi couple "hammer 24 nails" into Sri Lankan maid

Pakistan flood victims pleased with US aid

RNW, 30 August 2010 - 2:01pm | By Kjeld Duits 

(Photo: RNW/Kjeld Duits)

At a small airport, less than an hour from the Pakistani capital Islamabad, 16 US helicopters are ready for a long day of distributing aid. They will carry food to people in the Swat mountains. Most of the bridges in this region have been destroyed by flooding and the area is almost completely cut off from the rest of the world.

“Since 5 August, we have flown in 1 million kilos of aid to the disaster area and we have evacuated more than 8000 people,” says Lieutenant-Colonel Allegretti, the base’s efficient spokesperson for the US mission. He has all the data literally at his fingertips on a small electronic gadget. “Most of the people who we have evacuated, were completely cut off,” he added matter-of-factly.

The problem becomes immediately apparent as soon as the helicopters fly two-by-two into the stricken region. Almost every bridge has been destroyed.

Taliban

A simple wooden emergency bridge has been constructed

“Only three of the 53 bridges in our region are still standing,” says a Pakistani officer who wishes to remain anonymous. The area where he works is inhospitable and remote. The Pakistani army only recently managed to drive out the Taliban after heavy fighting. In spite of the emergency situation, aid organisations are having difficulty getting permission to visit the region.

One of the devastated bridges can be seen from the mountain slope. The road ends abruptly on the river bank and continues on the other side. Less than 100 metres further along, a simple wooden emergency bridge has been constructed, which is only just wide enough for people to cross in both directions. Some are carrying large boxes or sacks on their backs.

Emergency bridges

The engines of three US helicopters, which fly in material to build the emergency bridges, drown out the voice of the officer. The helicopters are the only way of getting equipment to where it is needed. Pakistani soldiers and villagers carry the extremely heavy bridge parts on their backs. A group of mountain dwellers looks on. Dressed in Pakistani clothes - a long shirt over baggy trousers - they are waiting until they can get out.

A nearby village receives bags of flour bearing the words “US aid” underneath an American flag. As soon as the helicopter lands, a long row of young men forms a human chain to waiting lorries. Hastily they pass on the sacks of flour, which create clouds of white dust around them.

The huge amount of attention it draws shows how important the aid is. The whole village appears to have turned out. The crowds on the slopes around the landing area look like an arena full of football supporters.

Surprisingly positive

“We are very grateful for the US aid,” says Muhammad Rafiq, a 31-year-old farmer. Just about all the men standing around him agree. “If the US didn’t help, who would?” asks Muhammad Zab. It is a surprisingly positive comment about the Americans in a country that generally doesn’t like them.

Tandool Khan gets into the helicopter with his three-year old son. His head is bandaged and he has a swollen black eye after falling off the roof of a house. A doctor in a tent next to the fields where the helicopters land patched him up with a dozen messy stitches.

After coordinating aid flights for ten hours, Sergeant Ken Rose is exhausted. His uniform is wet from sweat, dust and sand stick to his hair. Asked whether he would like a cold beer and a long shower, he says tiredly, “All I want is a drink of water and my bed.”

Recent protests have changed Indonesia-Malaysia diplomacy

The Star, Sunday August 29, 2010 MYT 11:33:00 AM

JAKARTA: Recent ugly demonstrations in front of the Malaysian embassy here by the People's Democratic Front (Bendera) seem to have changed the scenario in the diplomacy of Malaysia-Indonesia ties.

The lobbing of faeces into the embassy compound and burning of the Malaysian flag in protest against the alleged arrest of three Indonesian fisheries officers by Malaysian marine police in the vicinity of Riau waters on Aug 13 seem to have hurt relations somewhat.

Kuala Lumpur insists that the Indonesian fisheries authorities had intruded into Malaysian waters and abducted seven Malaysian fishermen on that date.

Jakarta, on the other hand, claims that the Malaysian fishermen had trespassed into Indonesian waters.

While the situation in Malaysia is just hotting up, the situation here has reached a serious level with calls on Indonesia to sever diplomatic ties.

Universiti Indonesia international relations senior lecturer Andi Widjojanto was among those who had made the suggestion.

He called for the downgrading of diplomatic ties with Malaysia, if not sever them as a shock therapy.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who had often been blamed for not being firm, said the best solution was via talks but stressed that Indonesia would not compromise over its territory.

Susilo has sent a letter to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, expressing the hope that the problem would be settled amicably and that border talks would continue.

Social activists who did not favour close Malaysia-Indonesia ties were quick to seize the opportunity by harping on nationalism and blaming Susilo for giving in too much in the negotiations with Malaysia.

Politicians, including Indonesian Cabinet ministers, were quick to blame Malaysia for the Riau incident, fanned by media reports that painted Malaysia as an arrogant nation.

Pressure has prompted Indonesian Foreign Minister Dr Marty Natalegawa to send a diplomatic note to Malaysia protesting the action of Malaysian marine police and claiming that the incident occurred in Indonesia territory.

Indonesia based its decision on a 2009 map while Malaysia is using a 1979 map.

Malaysia replied insisting that it occurred off Johor based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982.

The Indonesian media used issues like mistreatment of Indonesian domestic maids by Malaysian employers and Indonesians facing death sentences for drug and other serious offences to sow hatred in Indonesians against Malaysia.

A poll by the Republika daily on Aug 23 revealed that 3,607 respondents or 72.91 per cent said Malaysia was the least friendly among seven countries, among them Australia, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines.

Malaysia too faces problems in Indonesia where the land on which the ambassador's residence is located in Kemang, South Jakarta, was seized by some people.

It took 12 years for the court to return the land although it is Jakarta's responsibility to protect foreign diplomats.

Some 48,000 hectares of oil palm plantation belonging to Sime Darby, mostly in Kalimantan, are under threat of being auctioned while Petronas, which was invited to invest with the promise of being able to sell subsidised fuel, was only given limited rights in Sumatera.

The meeting between Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman and Dr Marty on Sept 6 in Kota Kinabalu to discuss border issues is seen as a positive step.

Since border disputes are not something which can be resolved overnight and there is a possibility of them recurring, it is hoped that the mechanisms in place would be fully utilised to maintain cordial bilateral ties. - BERNAMA

Hong Kong protest over Manila hostage deaths

BBC News, 29 August 2010 

Thousands of people have joined a rally in Hong Kong to express their anger at the Philippines' handling of last week's tourist coach hijacking.

Hong Kong people are demanding an explanation
 for the handling of the siege

They are demanding an explanation of how eight Hong Kong tourists were killed in the hostage-taking in Manila.

Their coach was hijacked by a disgruntled ex-policeman, Rolando Mendoza, who was killed as police attempted to rescue the hostages.

Earlier, about 1,000 people in the Philippines attended his funeral.

Mendoza, 55, seized the bus with an assault rifle in an attempt to get back the job he lost in 2009 for extortion and threat-making.

'Shocked and grieved'

The rally was organised by both pro-Beijing and pro-democracy political parties - a rare occasion for them to unite, says the BBC's Annemarie Evans in Hong Kong.

"My feelings were, of course, like those of all Hong Kong people," said the president of Hong Kong's Legislative Council, Tsang Yok-sing.

"We were shocked, we were very much grieved when finally so many of our Hong Kong citizens were killed and we find the way the Philippine authorities handled the situation very unacceptable," he told Hong Kong radio.

In all, 22 Hong Kong tourists were taken hostage along with three Filipinos - a driver, a guide and a photographer.

Nine people were released in early negotiations but 15 were kept aboard the curtained bus for hours as the hostage drama was played out before live television cameras and broadcast around the world.

Police in the Philippines said on Sunday that the hostages were killed by Mendoza's gun and not police weapons during their rescue operation.

As the talks failed and Mendoza became increasingly agitated, police made several unsuccessful attempts to board the coach. Shots could be heard fired from inside the curtained bus and no-one knew how many hostages were still alive.

Survivors and experts have criticised the Manila police for being indecisive and slow in their handling of the crisis.

Anger in Hong Kong has been further fuelled by the news that highly-trained army and police teams who specialised in hostage takings were standing by but not used, says our correspondent.

Philippine vice-consul Val Roque said text messages had been sent to members of the estimated 200,000-strong Philippine community asking them to "set aside what they are doing" and attend memorial masses on Sunday.

"The masses are the Filipino community's way to express their grief and sympathy in relation to the tragedy in Manila," he told AFP. 

Bangladesh to send 45,000 maids to Singapore

RNW, 29 August 2010 - 10:43am

Singapore will recruit 45,000 Bangladeshi domestic workers in a boost for the impoverished country's labour export sector after jobs dried up in the Middle East and elsewhere in Asia, an official said Sunday.

Singaporean recruiting firms agreed on the number following talks in Dhaka last week, director of the government's Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training (BMET) Nurul Islam told AFP.

"They want some 45,000 maids in a year. We shall train the maids and start sending them to Singapore by the end of this year," Islam said.

"It's a very good news for us. It comes as our traditional markets such as the Middle Eastern countries and Malaysia have yet to ride out the impact of the global recession."

The global downturn affected jobs for Bangladeshi workers in the construction and manufacturing sectors in the Persian Gulf.

According to the BMET, Bangladesh sent 202,000 workers abroad in the first half of 2010 -- the lowest in four years.

Malaysia, hit hard by the recession, has accepted no new Bangladeshi workers for more than a year.

Saudi Arabia, which employs more than two million Bangladeshis, signed up only 2,200 in the first quarter of 2010. For the same period in 2008, it employed 48,000.

Related Article:

Saudi couple "hammer 24 nails" into Sri Lankan maid

International wildlife smuggler held at KLIA

The Star, By SEREAN LAU, ONG HAN SEAN, LEE YEN MUN and ANDREW SAGAYAM, Saturday August 28, 2010

SEPANG: A man, believed to be international wildlife trader Anson Wong, has been detained at the KL International Airport following the seizure of more than 90 snakes from various species.

It is learnt that the man was in transit from Penang to Jakarta on Thursday when he was detained by Malaysia Airlines staff, who had been alerted after a piece of luggage was reported broken. The snakes were found inside the bag.

According to a government official, 95 of the snakes are believed to be boa constrictors, two are suspected to be rhinoceros vipers and one is believed to be a matamata turtle.

Selangor police chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar confirmed that a man named Anson Wong was picked up at 8.50pm on Aug 26, by airport security for allegedly trying to smuggle snakes. He has been remanded until Tuesday.

“We have handed the person over to Perhilitan (Wildlife and Natio nal Parks Department) for further investigations,” he said.

It had been reported by The Star in February that Wong had been linked to a Dec 15 seizure in the United States of various types of animals from an exotic animal outlet.

Two of the trader’s companies were found to have been supplying animals to the outlet.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) had claimed that CBS Wildlife and Sungai Rusa Wildlife, both owned by Wong, were supplying various types of animals and wildlife to US Global Exotics (USGE).

Wong pleaded guilty to trafficking in wildlife in the US and was sentenced to 71 months’ jail in 2000.

newsdesk@thestar.com.my

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No final decision taken on woman's stoning: Iran

RNW, 28 August 2010 - 10:32am

Iran said on Saturday that it has yet to take a final decision on the stoning of a woman convicted of adultery and complicity in her husband's murder, adding that execution of the sentence has been stayed pending a review by the judiciary.

"In this case, implementation of the sentence has been stayed and is under review by the judiciary," foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told AFP.

Iranian officials say that Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani, a mother of two, was sentenced to death by stoning after she was found guilty of adultery and of being an accomplice in her husband's murder.

The sentence has sparked an international outcry with calls for the European Union to adopt new sanctions against Iran if it is carried out.

Related Article:

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Taiwan Boss Sentenced for Forcing Muslims to Eat Pork

Jakarta Globe, August 27, 2010

Taipei. A Taiwanese garment factory owner was sentenced to six months in jail for forcing three Muslim women on her staff to eat pork, but she could escape prison by paying a fine, a court official said on Friday.

Chang Wen-lin was sentenced for coercion after she confessed to pushing the three women, all from Indonesia, to eat the meat, which is considered strictly taboo in Islam, according to the Panchiao district court in Taipei county.

However, in light of her confession and her decision to compensate the women, she will be allowed to pay a fine of 60,000 Taiwan dollars (1,875 US) in exchange for a two-year suspended sentence, said a court spokesman.

Chang initially defended herself by saying she thought that eating pork would provide the women with energy, but later agreed to give each worker 150,000 Taiwan dollars.

The case stirred an outcry in Taiwan and abroad when the three women complained that Chang threatened to cut their salaries if they refused to eat the meals she provided, including pork.

They also filed a complaint to the Taipei county government saying that they were overworked and had not been paid for around eight months.

There are around 350,000 foreign labourers in Taiwan, largely from Southeast Asia including the Philippines, Indonesia, and Vietnam. 

Agence France-Presse

Indonesian, Malaysian Foreign Ministers Discuss Sea Boundary on Sep. 6

Jakarta Globe, August 27, 2010

Demonstrators sing songs of patriotism during a protest outside the Malaysian embassy on Thursday. Activists from a number of youth organizations staged a rally to protest against a recent incident that saw Indonesian naval officers arrested by Malaysian authorities in the disputed waters off Riau Island. (Reuters/Supri)

Related articles

• Love Thy Neighbor, Love Upin and Ipin - Aug 27, 2010
• Malaysia Urges Indonesian Authorities to Act Against Bendera as Group Vows to Continue Fecal Attacks - Aug 27, 2010
• Border Battle Should Be Waged in Court - Aug 27, 2010

Kuala Lumpur. Indonesian Foreign Minister Dr R.M. Marty M. Natalegawa will meet with Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman on Sept 6 in Kota Kinabalu, capital of East Malaysia state of Sabah, to discuss the sea boundary between the two countries.

Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia Da’i Bachtiar said the bilateral meeting would also find the best solution to avoid a repeat of incidents that could affect the close relations between the two neighbors.

“We will all learn from the incident to speed up the processes that are still pending especially with regard to the boundary between Malaysia and Indonesia which frequently causes conflicts,” he said at a press conference at the Indonesian Embassy.

On Aug 13, the enforcement division of the Indonesian Marine and Fisheries Ministry detained seven Malaysian fishermen in the Malaysian-Indonesian waters near Bintan, Riau Islands, while the Malaysian Marine Operations Force detained three enforcement officers of the Indonesian ministry.

The case had resulted in various reactions where 37 members of the Indonesian Bendera movement demonstrated in front of the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta on Monday and hurled human feces as ‘gifts’ to Malaysia, which was alleged to have tarnished Indonesia’s image in an even worse manner.

Da’i had personally expressed regret on the feces-throwing incident and attributed the demonstration to the anger and dissatisfaction of the Indonesian people accumulated over cases involving the two countries in the past.

“In terms of ethics, I certainly don’t agree to the throwing of feces, but in terms of jurisdiction, are there any legal provisions that the police can use to prosecute in court, the demonstration is considered as an accumulation of past cases,” he said.

He said the Indonesian government also gave an assurance on the security of Malaysian nationals and other nationalities residing in Indonesia and the police were also raising security measures at the embassy and the official residence of the Malaysian Ambassador in Jakarta.

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North Korea tells Carter wants to resume nuclear talks

Reuters, SEOUL | Fri Aug 27, 2010 5:12am EDT

(Reuters) - North Korea's number two leader has told former President Jimmy Carter that the reclusive state is committed to denuclearizing the peninsula and resuming six-way talks, the North's state news agency said on Friday.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (2nd L)
 poses with Aijalon Mahli Gomes, an American
 citizen who was detained by North Korea
 for illegal entry, at Pyongyang airport
 August 27, 2010. (Credit: Reuters/ Kyodo)

Carter left the North on Friday morning, KCNA said. The Carter Center in a statement from the former president said that he was leaving Pyongyang with an American who had been convicted of illegally entering the country.

"Kim Yong Nam expressed the will of the DPRK government for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the resumption of the six-party talks," KCNA said, referring to the meeting of the North's number two with Carter.

Carter's visit took place amid heightened tensions on the peninsula after the torpedoing in March of a South Korean warship, which Seoul blames on the North and which prompted Washington to announce expanded sanctions against Pyongyang.

Shortly after Carter arrived in Pyongyang, the North's reclusive leader, Kim Jong-il, left for ally China on a surprise trip that analysts believe may be to line up Beijing behind his dynastic succession plans.

Carter was leaving Pyongyang with Aijalon Mahli Gomes, who was arrested in January and sentenced to eight years of hard labor. KCNA said last month that he had tried to commit suicide.

(Editing by Ron Popeski)

Socialist networking? North Korea makes a splash on YouTube

RNW, 26 August 2010 - 1:51pm | By Andy Sennitt

The idea of North Korea deciding to launch an international charm offensive might seem ridiculous, but the hermit state is certainly up to something. A flurry of activity over the past few weeks has seen North Korea appear on YouTube, Twitter, and briefly on Facebook – although two attempts to establish a presence on the social networking site failed when Facebook management deleted the pages for "violating the site's terms of use".

Arrival at Pyongyang airport of former US president
Jimmy Carter

The YouTube channel is flourishing, and as of 26 August it had received more than a quarter of a million upload views. Initially, most of the videos were old ones taken from the official North Korean websiteuriminzokkiri.com, but I was interested to note a 19-second video showing the arrival at Pyongyang airport of former US president Jimmy Carter, who is visiting the country on a humanitarian mission to seek the release of a Boston man jailed since January. Unfortunately the audio and subtitles have only been in Korean so far, but the video shows that Mr Carter received a warm welcome.

Comments

Predictably, the YouTube channel has received a variety of comments – over one thousand as of 26 August – ranging from "North Korea is best Korea" posted multiple times by ostensibly different people, to one that says "I feel for the North Korean people. The DPRK has destroyed their will. I await the fall of your train-wreck of a nation."

The Twitter account seems to be used only to carry headlines from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), and so far has failed to reveal any details of the daily life of the dear leader. KCNA has been available for many years via a server in Japan, so there’s nothing particularly striking about this development.

Government denies involvement

What’s intriguing is that the North Korean government denies that it has anything to do with the new sites.Forbes magazine quotes an unnamed government official as saying that the accounts are run by government supporters, not government officials, living in Japan and China, not North Korea. Those social media sites are still banned in North Korea, says the official. Nevertheless, the Twitter account gives the location as Pyongyang.

But even if the government is not actually running the accounts, they are being advertised on the Home Page of uriminzokkiri.com, which carries the latest official news from North Korea, and is only available in Korean, though the servers are actually located in Shenyang, China. This suggests that the target audience is South Koreans and North Korean exiles worldwide.

The Official Webpage of The Democratic People's Republic of Korea for international visitors is actually run by the Korean Friendship Association, and does not have any links to the YouTube and Twitter pages. The servers for this site are located in Germany, but the people who run it are in Spain, and have Spanish names, although they all include 'Government of the DPR of Korea' in their contact address.

All the 'North Korean' websites mentioned in this article are actually hosted on servers located in other countries. It's quite common for websites to use servers outside their country of registration, but it makes it difficult to find out who's really behind these sites.

Black clandestine?

Media analyst Kim Andrew Elliott comes up with another idea that should not be dismissed. He writes “This social networking effort might be a classic black clandestine effort, with all the messages pro-Kim Jong-il for now, but eventually deviating from the party line, maybe supporting one faction over the other, as a way to sow discord inside the DPRK, or among its supporters.”

Whoever is behind these initiatives seems to have good contacts with Pyongyang, as the short video of Jimmy Carter appears to be an item from the TV news, and was uploaded very quickly after the event. Of course, as North Korean TV is now available on satellite, it could have been recorded from a satellite feed. Further monitoring of the YouTube channel may make it clearer exactly what is going on.

All this online activity makes the Voice of Korea, formerly known as Radio Pyongyang, sound very old-fashioned, not helped by the atrocious audio quality of the shortwave service. I rarely listen to it, but I would be very surprised if the Voice of Korea makes even a passing reference in its broadcasts to YouTube and Twitter.

What's really going on?

It could be that the regime in Pyongyang is just carrying out some experiments and doesn’t want to admit to anything until the Central Committee has given its blessing. Do they, perhaps, realise that their external radio service is now so decrepit that it’s time to look at new ways of telling the world about the dear leader? Have they simply used a translation program that has turned ‘social networking’ into ‘socialist networking’? Or will Kim Andrew Elliott’s black clandestine theory turn out to be spot on? Time will tell, even if the North Korean government won’t.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, left, accompanied by his North Korean counterpart, Pak Ui-chun, in Jakarta on Monday. Marty warned Pak that there was an “inherent risk” attached to the current freeze in six-party talks over the North’s nuclear program. (Reuters Photo/Enny Nuraheni)

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