JAKARTA: Indonesian lawmakers canceled plans to ratify controversial revisions to the country's election laws, the deputy speaker of Parliament said, after thousands of protesters rallied in front of the parliament building.
If implemented, the changes could have further enhanced the political influence of outgoing President Joko Widodo.
Parliament met in an emergency session Thursday to overturn one decision made by Indonesia's Constitutional Court on election procedures, while amending another. But the legislature canceled the ratification after failing to achieve a quorum amid the protests outside.
“It was stated that the revision of the regional election law cannot be implemented. This means that today the revision of the regional election law will not be implemented,” Deputy Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad told reporters in Jakarta.
Indonesian police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse thousands of protesters who attempted to storm the parliament building after they tore down a section of fence and threw rocks at police. Protesters occupied roads in front of the building. Some held banners and signs, while others started a fire and burned tires.
The Constitutional Court on Tuesday dismissed a challenge to an age limit that prevents people under 30 from running for regional governorships, which would prevent Widodo's youngest son, Kaesang Pangarep, 29, from running in a regional contest in Central Java.
The court also made it easier for political parties to nominate candidates by cutting back a requirement that they hold 20% of a local legislature.
Parliament on Wednesday passed an emergency motion to change the minimum age to serve as governor to 30 at the time of inauguration and further ease nomination requirements, and had planned to ratify the change in a plenary session on Thursday.
The moves triggered widespread condemnation on social media and raised concerns about a potential constitutional crisis. The legislature was forced to cancel passing the law after failing to achieve a quorum.
Widodo, popularly known by his nickname Jokowi, began his second and final five-year term in October 2019 and is not eligible to run again. He leaves office in October.
Widodo's eldest son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, is the incoming vice president after the same court created an exception to the age limit for the post for former regional leaders. The decision was made while Widodo's brother-in-law, Anwar Usman, was serving as chief justice. Usman was criticized for participating in a case involving a close relative and later dismissed.
Activists, students, workers and Indonesian celebrities and musicians joined the protest Thursday, voicing concerns about democracy in Indonesia.
Protests were also reported in other big cities, including Bandung, Yogyakarta, Surabaya and Makassar.
In Yogyakarta, at least 1,000 protesters rallied in front of Yogyakarta’s parliament building, the state palace and the city's ceremonial center. Their demands included voting down the regional election bill, respecting the Constitutional Court's ruling and rejecting political dynasties.
The simultaneous protests in major cities showed anger at parliament’s efforts to overrule the Constitutional Court decision to allow more candidates to compete in the regional elections, said Yoes Kenawas, a political analyst at Atma Jaya Catholic University.
"They also opposed the dynastic politics carried out by President Jokowi,” Kenawas said.
Indonesia cancels ratification of controversial election law changes as thousands protest
https://arab.news/99885
Indonesia cancels ratification of controversial election law changes as thousands protest
- Power struggle between the parliament and the judiciary comes amid a week of dramatic political developments in the world’s third-largest democracy
Blacklisted naphtha tanker from Russia enters Venezuelan waters while another diverts, ship data shows
- Under U.S. sanctions related to Russia, the ship has a different sanctions profile than Skipper, the tanker that was seized by the U.S. on December 10
HOUSTON: A tanker subject to U.S. sanctions carrying some 300,000 barrels of naphtha from Russia entered Venezuelan waters late on Thursday, while another began redirecting course in the Atlantic Ocean, ship tracking data showed, a reflection of diverging last-minute decisions by ship owners after President Donald Trump ordered a "blockade" of oil tankers under sanctions bound for the OPEC country earlier this week.
The move ramped up pressure on Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro by targeting the country's main source of income and followed the seizure by the U.S. of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela earlier in December.
Vessels that were not subject to sanctions began setting sail on Wednesday from Venezuelan waters after a week's pause, helping drain the country's mounting crude stocks.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Trump's 'blockade' aims to halt sanctioned oil tankers to Venezuela
• Hyperion's sanctions profile differs from seized Skipper tanker
• Venezuela condemns US actions as violating international law
Gambia-flagged medium tanker Hyperion docked on Friday at Amuay Bay on Venezuela's western coast, according to LSEG ship tracking data. It loaded near Murmansk in Russia in late November.
Under U.S. sanctions related to Russia, the ship has a different sanctions profile than Skipper, the tanker that was seized by the U.S. on December 10.
The U.S. can only seize vessels outside of its jurisdiction, or vessels that aren't heading to or from the country, if Washington has placed them under sanctions for links to groups it designates as terrorist, said David Tannenbaum, a director at consulting firm Blackstone Compliance Services that specializes in sanctions and anti-money laundering compliance.
Skipper, formerly called the Adisa, was under sanctions for what the U.S. says was involvement in Iranian oil trading that generated revenue for Iranian groups it has designated as foreign terrorist organizations.
With the Hyperion, though, sanctions were imposed to reduce Russian revenues from energy because of its war with Ukraine.
"The Hyperion doesn't have known ties to terrorism, and therefore unless they can prove it's subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S., Washington can't grab it extraterritorially," said Tannenbaum, who previously worked with the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control that administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions.
REDIRECTS AND U-TURNS
The Angola-flagged Agate, another medium tanker under sanctions that loaded in Russia and had been sailing toward the Caribbean, was seen redirecting on Friday, according to LSEG ship tracking. The vessel was pointing towards Africa, but had not yet signaled a new destination.
Oman-flagged Garnet, also under sanctions and loaded in Russia, continued on its track, signaling the Caribbean as its destination on Friday.
Benin-flagged tanker Boltaris, under sanctions and carrying some 300,000 barrels of Russian naphtha bound for Venezuela, made a U-turn earlier this month and was heading for Europe without having discharged, according to LSEG vessel monitoring data.
Two very large crude carriers not subject to sanctions set sail for China on Thursday from Venezuela, according to sources familiar with Venezuela's oil export operations, marking only the second and third tankers unrelated to Chevron to depart the country since the U.S. seized Skipper.
The American oil major, which has continued to ship Venezuelan crude under a U.S. authorization, exported a crude cargo on Thursday bound for the U.S., LSEG data showed.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday said the U.S. was not concerned about the four vessels that sailed from Venezuela on Thursday, as those were not ships under sanctions.
"Sanctioned boats, we have the capabilities necessary to enforce our laws. We'll have a judicial order, we'll execute on those orders and there's nothing that will impede us from being able to do that," Rubio said.
Venezuela's government called Trump's blockade a "grotesque threat" in a statement on Tuesday, saying it violates international law, free commerce and the right of free navigation.
