Berau Coal vs Berau Coal
PT Berau Coal has filed lawsuit against its parent company PT Berau Coal Energy (BRAU) Tbk to the South Jakarta District Court on October 22, 2015, demanding BRAU to acknowledge and pay US$271 million of overdue debts. Earlier, Raiffeisen Bank filed lawsuit against Asia Coal Energy Ventures Ltd, which is now controlling shareholder of BRAU. What a mess!
Gatot’s World Collapses
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) seems to like Gatot Pujo Nugroho. After naming the disgraced Governor of North Sumatra a suspect in two different cases of alleged corruption, on November 3, 2015, the KPK named Gatot as a suspect in yet another graft case.
Updates on Forest Fires
Investigations against perpetrators of forest and land fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan continues. The Ministry of Environment and Forestry (Kemen-LHK) and the National Police (Polri) are increasingly focused on uncovering the corporate actors behind the persistent blaze. The Kemen-LHK has recently announced the list of companies that have been slapped with administrative sanctions and civil lawsuit.
Patrice Rio Capella, the Justice Collaborator
Graft suspect and former Secretary General of the National Democratic Party Patrice Rio Capella had reportedly decided to become Justice Collaborator for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). This development could better equip the KPK with the means of uncovering more from the case of social assistance funds embezzlement in the Provincial Government of North Sumatra.
Attempts to Overcome Forest Fires
The forest fires in Kalimantan and Sumatra have helped reveal not only the weaknesses of existing laws, but also the lack of synergy between Government agencies, especially between the House of Representatives (DPR) and the Regional Representatives Council (DPD).
The AGO before the Pelindo II Special Committee
The Pelindo II Special Committee (Pansus Pelindo II) canceled their meeting with the Minister of State Owned Enterprises (BUMN) Rini Soemarno, on October 29, 2015. The Pansus instead held a meeting with the Attorney General’s Office. In the meeting, the Pansus focused on the particulars of the extension of contract between PT Pelabuhan Indonesia II (Persero) and Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) for the management of Jakarta International Container Terminal (JICT) of Tanjung Priok.
The Debate on the New Import Regulation
The Ministry of of Trade released the new minister regulation (Permendag) No. 87/M-DAG/PER/10/2015 on the Importation of Certain Products. Businesses has reacted negatively to the new regulation. Here are some of the points of contention.
Legislative Journal: Perpres No. 115/2015
Coinciding with his first anniversary in office, the President issued the Presidential Regulation (Perpres) No. 115/2015 on the Task Force of Eradication of Illegal Fishing (Satgas Illegal Fishing). This new Perpress grants extraordinary powers to the Ministry of Marine and Fisheries (KKP) though question remains on whether or not it is the right move.
The Case of Benjina: Towards Prosecution
The investigation into the case of alleged slavery and human trafficking conducted by PT Pusaka Benjina Resources has entered a new stage. The Benjina case file has reportedly been finalized by the Aru Islands Police and have been delegated to the Maluku High Prosecutor (Kejati Maluku).
Pelindo II Strikes Back
PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo) II is apparently unwilling to stay silent while facing an onslaught of political attacks. The state-owned port operator has been under the spotlight since August 2015, when the Police launched a graft investigation after having found irregularities in the Company’s procurement of 10 units of cranes.