In the News

This has been a really big deal here in Indonesia over the last week. You can click here to read the story. Think Watergate, just on a smaller scale...

It is basically a power struggle between the police (which is a national force here in Indonesia) and the anti-corruption agency, KPK. Although KPK has had its own struggles with internal corruption (even though it is an anti-corruption agency), they been fairly successful lately at bringing many corrupt officials and businessman to justice. The police and judges for a long time have enjoyed tremendous power, political control, and financial gain through the use of bribes, pressure, and corruption. I'm not exactly sure what is true yet, but I think the police is fearing the end of their days of mostly unchecked control, and they have arrested two of the top KPK officials as a warning against too much KPK success.

It has been playing out like a soap opera in the papers and news broadcasts. Every day there is a new twist, a new bit of information to make the story even more interesting, and sometimes more unbelievable.

Note: There is a general perception among the Indonesian public that the majority of police will take part in corruption, even if it is usually just on a small scale. Even though things are getting better, I still tend to agree with that perception.