Jakarta (Manohara Odelia Pinot part 2, CRUSH MALAYSIA! and An Indonesian Con)

Teenage US-Indonesian model Manohara Odelia Pino, seen here, has returned to her family in Indonesia. Photo: AFP

It appears that Indonesian – Malyasian relations are falling on hard times. No since the good old bad old days of CONFRONTASI! and CRUSH MALYASIA! have things been at such a low ebb.

First, there is the Manohara Odelia Pinot case. If any of it turns out to be true (and there is no reason to think it is not true) then the Malaysian government (and the Indonesian government as well) has much to account for regarding this case.

As you may remember or not Ms. Pinot was whisked away in the private jet of her husband while visiting Saudi Arabia. Kidnapped, in other words, and taken back to Malaysia where AFP reports she  was drugged, raped, and viciously abused.

“JAKARTA (AFP) — A teenage US-Indonesian model has returned to her family in Indonesia with tales of abuse, rape and torture at the hands of a Malaysian prince, after her dramatic escape with the help of Singapore police.

Manohara Odelia Pinot, 17, told reporters she was treated like a sex slave after her marriage to Tengku Temenggong Mohammad Fakhry, the prince of Malaysia’s Kelantan state, last year.

Her mother, Daisy Fajarina, said she would press charges against the 31-year-old prince, and blamed the Malaysian and Indonesian governments for trying to cover up the alleged abuse.

“The things I’ve been afraid of were revealed to be true. Manohara has suffered physical abuse. She’s got several razor cuts on her chest,” Fajarina told AFP on Monday.

“No parent could be silent if their child was treated in such a barbaric way.”

The Malaysian government had ignored her pleas for access to her daughter and had blocked her from entering the country, she said, while the Indonesian embassy had said that Manohara was fine with her new husband. go to article…>

Apparently the Singpore polic helped her to escape this madness. Hopefully her Prince of a husband will find himself  locked up in a Malaysian jail.

Second, is the Asia Sentinel reports:

A research-rich Celebes Sea block spurs a confrontation between two navies

“An unlikely naval confrontation has broken out between Indonesia and Malaysia, with warships from the two nations challenging each other repeatedly in the disputed oil-rich waters of the Celebes Sea east of the island of Borneo this week.

Indonesian navy officials told local media their ships were minutes away from firing on Malaysian warships, which they charged were 12 nautical miles inside Indonesia’s territory. However, they said, they called off the attack when the Malaysian ships pulled back.”  go to article…>

All of this action took place before the Pinot escape.  But it IS an odd priority (or not) that Indonesia would lock and load over a potentially rich gas and oil field rather than for the sake of one its citizens who was kidnapped and tortured.  Such is t he way of the world these days. I would expect as much from my own government.

However, the recent news that is really striking and apparently not well reported is the Indonesian con of the Sultan of Brunei.

As reported by the Straits Times…

Brunei ruler is con victim

“Jakarta – The Brunei Sultan has lost 20 billion rupiah (S$2.8 billion) to a group of Indonesian con men posing as officials from Indonesia’s presidential palace, according to police here.

Commissioner General Susno Duadji, the chief of the National Police criminal investigation unit, put an end to days of speculation by confirming over the weekend that the victim was indeed Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

Gen Susno added at the media briefing that the con men did not speak directly to Sultan Bolkiah. ‘They talked only with the Sultan’s adjutant, who was called from Jakarta,’ he said.

Officials at the Brunei Embassy in Indonesia could not be reached for confirmation, as their offices were closed yesterday.

At least 32 foreign and Indonesian officials fell victim to the gang, said Inspector-General Hadiatmoko, Gen Susno’s deputy.

The local media, including The Jakarta Globe newspaper, said the con men pretended to be presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng and even President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono himself when they asked for money, ostensibly to help fund election campaigns.

The victims were asked to deposit the funds into various bank accounts opened under the name of the public figures to make the scam look convincing. The funds had been frozen and would be returned to the victims, said Gen Susno.

So far, 13 people had been arrested, but two, including the mastermind, were still on the run. go to article…>

Who says we do not live in interesting, it not entirely frivolous and wholly ridiculous, times?

Apparently it all has worked out. Ms. Pinot is damaged for life but free, Indonesian warships held their fire (this time), and the master mind is still at large with the Sultan of Brunei’s pocket money.