The Associated Press: World Bank warns tidal flood may hit Jakarta

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gMYQo4jtRo-4pqPMgknbqexEUGogD90VCBCG1
World Bank warns tidal flood may hit Jakarta

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — The World Bank warned Thursday that an exceptionally high tide could inundate the Indonesian capital next week, forcing thousands of people to flee homes and cutting off the highway to the international airport.

The situation — exacerbated by global warming and the fact that Jakarta is sinking up to 2 inches a year — could mean flooding will exceed last November's roof-high levels in the hardest-hit areas, said Hongjoo Hahm, the bank's infrastructure expert.

"This is just the beginning," he said, as he pointed to homes reaching a mile inland that will likely be affected Tuesday and Wednesday by the 18-year semiannual tide cycle. "It's getting worse and worse."

Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago nation, is one of the world's largest contributors of carbon dioxide emissions, thanks to the rapid pace of deforestation. But experts say the country is also at risk of becoming one of the biggest victims of climate change.

Rising sea waters especially pose a threat to coastal cities like Jakarta, which has sunk at least 7 feet in the last three decades because of excessive ground water extraction, said Hahm.

Eventually, the government should consider building a Dutch-styled dike to protect the Jakarta Bay, he said, "but that will cost billions of U.S. dollars."

The 18-year high tide cycles occur when the sun and moon are in direct alignment and making their closest approach to the Earth. Other factors, such as global warming or El Nino and La Nina, have made the sea swells even larger in recent years, Hahm said.

Beredar Isu Jakarta Rusuh 23 Mei

http://www.jaknews.com/2008/pol/mei/22052008-1430jak05.htm
JAKNEWS.COM--Isu akan terjadinya kerusuhan di Jakarta tanggal 23 Mei ini beredar di sejumlah mailing-list (milis) dalam dua hari terakhir ini.
Kamis (22/5), di Jakarta, menerima telepon dari sejumlah pembaca yang menanyakan kebenaran isu tersebut. "Saya mendapat kiriman email mengenai kemungkinan terjadinya kerusuhan di Jakarta tanggal 23 Mei ini," ungkap Bernas, seorang pegawai bank swasta.

Isi dari email tersebut adalah "Kami dari sebuah komunitas kepemudaan di Jakarta, ingin memberitahukan kepada teman-teman sekalian, tolong disebar luaskan kepada sanak saudara, teman dan rekan sekalian bahwa kemungkinan tanggal 23 Mei 2008 akan terjadi demo besar2an yang ditunggangi oleh kepentingan politik dan lain2. Ketakutan kami adalah ter ulangnya kembali peristiwa mei 1998, karena menurut teman2 kami se komunitas beberapa sopir taksi sudah memberikan sinyalment adanya kerusuhan kembali tanggal 23 mei tersebut seiring dengan rencana pemerintah menaikkan BBM. Kami himbau agar kita semua bersiap dan berdoa agar kerusuhan Mei 1998 tidak terulang kembali...Isi dari pemberitahuan ini bukanlah hasutan tapi agar kita semua bersiap akan terulangnya peristiwa mei 1998 agar tidak menimbulkan korban, jadi dengan sangat tolong sebarkan pengumuman ini"

Namun, dalam email tersebut tidak dicantumkan dari komunitas kepemudaan mana yang menyebarkan informarsi meresahkan ini. "Mudah-mudahan polisi segera mengungkap siapa pengirim email ini dan sekaligus memberiakn rasa aman kepada warga," kata Bernas.

BBM Mau Naik, Purnomo Dipanggil DPR

http://www.jaknews.com/2008/ekbis/mei/22052008-1000jak04.htm
JAKNEWS.COM---Komisi VII DPR, Kamis (22/5), melakukan rapat kerja dengan Menteri ESDM Purnomo Yusgiantoro terkait rencana kenaikan harga bahan bakar minyak (BBM). Sikap anggota Komisi VII terbelah mengenai perlu atau tidaknya pemerintah mengambil langkah menaikkan harga bahan bakar minyak (BBM) bersubsidi. "Raker dengan Menteri ESDM kali ini akan ramai.

Partai pendukung pemerintah seperti Partai Golkar dan Partai Demokrat pasti akan mendukung kenaikan, sementara kami (PDIP) akan menolak," kata Wakil Ketua Komisi VII DPR Sonny Keraf di Jakarta seperti dilansir Antara.

Sebelumnya, rapat pimpinan DPR dan fraksi sepakat membatalkan agenda rapat konsultasi membahas kenaikan harga BBM dengan Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Rapat kemudian menyerahkan kepada masing-masing fraksi dan komisi DPR menyikapi rencana pemerintah menaikkan harga BBM.

Menurut Sonny, PDIP tetap menolak rencana pemerintah menaikkan harga BBM. Alasannya, pemerintah masih memiliki opsi lain guna mengurangi kenaikan subsidi akibat tingginya harga minyak dunia. Opsi lain tersebut antara lain meningkatkan produksi minyak, menekan biaya operasi yang dikembalikan negara (cost recovery), diversifikasi energi dan belum optimalnya pemanfataan bahan bakar nabati. "Program penghematan energi yang sudah dijanjikan sejak tiga tahun lalu juga belum terlihat," katanya.

Dalam raker, Purnomo didampingi antara lain Kepala Badan Pelaksana Hulu Minyak dan Gas Bumi (BP Migas) R Priyono, Kepala Badan Kebijakan Fiskal Depkeu Anggito Abimanyu, serta pejabat Bappenas dan Depsos.

Hari Rabu (21/5) kemarin, Menteri Keuangan Sri Mulyani memastikan pemerintah akan menaikkan harga BBM bersubsidi rata-rata 28,7 persen. Presiden Susilo Bambang Yodhoyono akan mengumumkan kenaikan harga BBM tersebut, Jumat (23/5) besok.

Sesuai dengan skenario Depkeu, dengan kenaikan rata-rata 28,7 persen, maka harga premium menjadi Rp 6.000 per liter, solar menjadi Rp 5.500 dan minyak tanah menjadi Rp 2.500 per liter.

Another earth quake at Indonesia

http://www.detiknews.com/indexfr.php?url=http://www.detiknews.com/index.php/detik.read/tahun/2008/bulan/05/tgl/19/time/214549/idnews/941913/idkanal/10

http://cn.yahoo.com/

http://news.cn.yahoo.com/08-05-/1037/2j51n.html
中新网5月19日电 据国家地震台网测定,北京时间2008年5月19日14时06分,在青川县(北纬32.5度,东经105.3度)发生5.4级余震。

So sad... Another 200+ in danger

WiMAX and the city

http://star-techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file=/2008/5/15/technology/1209642&sec=technology
PETALING JAYA: Internet surfers will have to put up with the 512Kbps maximum speed of the KL Wireless Metropolitan Project now until most of the 3,500 designated hotspots are active.

Packet One Networks Sdn Bhd (P1), one of the four WiMAX ­licensees charged with rolling out wireless broadband service in the country, expects the wait to be about two years.

Currently, 200 hotspots have been activated and most of these are in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) area.

P1 chief executive officer Michael Lai said another 1,300 hotpots in the city would be added by year-end, and the remainder by 2010.

“There will be options to upgrade the speed in the future and in the meantime it’s a free service,” he told In.Tech early this week.

Theoretically, WiMAX speeds can hit 70Mbps.

Connectivity fees will only be charged from 2010, said Lai.

512Kbps (kilobytes per second) is slow when compared to fixed-line broadband speeds offered by TM Net, which go as high as 4Mbps (megabits per second) now. But it is better than dial-up speeds which are typically 56Kbps — the service used by most Malaysians at this time.

Another benefit of wireless broadband is that Internet surfers can roam the city and remain connected.

Lai said P1 has also had to tweak its WiMAX 2.3GHz infrastructure so that it can be used by devices built for WiFi access. WiFi and WiMAX are different technologies that work the same way; with WiMAX having the greater range.

“This has to be done because there are currently no WiMAX-enabled devices available for consumers,” he said. “These devices will likely start showing up in the market in the latter part of the year.”

It will also take some time for the devices to gain critical mass among Internet users in the country, enough to make it worthwhile for P1 to switch back to a fully WiMAX network.

The KL Wireless Metropolitan Project was launched on Monday by Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Zulhasnan Rafique at KL City Hall.

Internet users who want to start using the service will need to first register at www.wirelesskl.com.

Accountant Farina Mohamed Jamal, 26, believes she will enjoy this new connectivity option. “Free Internet access even at 512Kbps is great, especially when you can now surf from anywhere in the city,” she said.

A helpdesk consultant, Azri Samad, 32, was also pleased with the new service but wonders if 512Kbps is going to be enough since the service will likely attract a lot of interest.

“It is free surfing but the ­bandwidth is going to be shared by tens of thousands of Internet users in the city,” he said.

Both hoped that the connectivity fee, when introduced, would be reasonable if not downright ­affordable.

Terror via SMS in Indonesia; Ring in Red — 3GWeek

http://3gweek.net/2008/05/16/terror-via-sms-in-indonesia-ring-in-red/
Is this truly exist?

About a couple of days ago, Indonesia’s cellphone users (later including Brunei) were shocked by such a terror via SMS. This terror, which later popular as “SMS Merah” or “Red SMS” or “Ring in Red” (in english) has surprisingly causing a physical attack that harmed its recipients. One of them is a man from West Sumatera, Indonesia which suddenly be unconscious after read this SMS via his mobile phone.

A group of people believe that this SMS was being sent by such black-magic wizard who just want to test his/her ability by using SMS as a medium. However, Indonesian police officer and most Indonesian, of course denied such mystical reason like this. They still considered this case as an issue in body health.

Here is the content of Ring in Red after being translated into english:

“To all beloved friends. If you receive a call with long numbers, such as +62852731520946, in red, do not pick it up, as there is currently a group of Indonesian students, who are also black magic practitioners, testing their power via handphones. Whoever answers the call will start to foam in the mouth and die shortly afterwards. In Indonesia, there are already nine deaths, and last night, two more died in Puchong. These incidents happened. Please forward this message…”)

This message was from Bruneian. In Indonesia, the number was headed by 0866 atau 066 instead of +62852731520946.