Rangking of some Universities in Asia

UI, UGM, ITB again RI's best performers in university rankings

Erwida Maulia , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Wed, 05/13/2009 11:38 PM | National

Three top Indonesian universities --University of Indonesia (UI), Gadjah Mada University (UGM) and Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB)-- are on the list of top 100 Asian universities, according to a new ranking published on Tuesday.

The first-ever Quacquarelli Symonds (QS).com Asian University Rankings has placed UI, UGM and ITB on the 50th, 63rd and 80th place, respectively, in its list of top 100 Asian universities.

Five other Indonesian universities have failed to make it to the top 100, but are on the top 200 list. Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) is ranked 119th, Airlangga University 130th, Diponegoro University and Sebelas Maret University 171st, and Brawijaya University 191st.

While in the 2008 Times Higher Education (THE)-QS World University Rankings University of Tokyo made it as Asian best performer (ranked 19th in the top 500 world universities list); in the 2009 QS.com Asian University Rankings the Japanese university only finishes third after University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Hong Kong, Japanese and South Korean universities dominate the top 10 places in the QS' premier regional ranking, allowing only the National University of Singapore to join in the 10th place.

Other Southeast Asian universities included in the big 50 list are Nanyang Technological University on 14th place, Thailand's Mahidol University on 30th place and Chulalongkorn University on 35th place, and Malaysia's Universiti Malaya on 39th place.

UI has therefore retained its position as Indonesia's best performer, as it is on the THE-QS 2008 World University Rankings; in which it ranks 287th.

UGM and ITB, however, have switched their positions.

QS managing director Nunzio Quacquarelli said in a press statement sent to The Jakarta Post, “Indonesian universities have performed well, with high peer and recruiter review scores. These results make study in Indonesia an attractive option for international students studying abroad.”

Indonesia's director general for higher education Fasli Jalal said the three top Indonesian universities' had made fairly good achievements with their rankings on the QS.com list, regarding that Asia was home to more than 4000 universities and other higher education institutions.

UI rector Gumilar Rusmiwa Sumantri said earlier that UI's improving rankings was attributable to its internal reforms, which included efficient financial management and efforts to produce more international journals and make the university a choice of study for more international students.

Similar measures have likewise been adopted by ITB, whose rector Djoko Santoso said it had been enjoying increasing number of foreign students in the past few years.

UI ranks best among Indonesian universities in the Social Sciences category, in which it ranks 18th. UGM in Art and Humanities, in which it ranks 14th, and Life Science and Medicine, in which it secures 16th place.

ITB is Indonesia's best performer in Engineering and Information Technology category, in which it ranks 21st; and in Natural Science with 27th place.

The results of the 2009 QS.com Asian University Rankings can be looked at at www.topuniversities.com.

The ranking measures academic peer review, recruiter review, student/faculty ratio, papers per faculty, citations per paper, international faculty review, international students review, and student exchanges inbound and outbound of universities across Asia.

Antasari Sebut Pejabat Negara

Selasa, 12 Mei 2009 | 08:05 WIB

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Penyidikan kasus pembunuhan Direktur PT Putra Rajawali Banjaran (PRB) Nasrudin Zulkarnaen, yang melibatkan Ketua KPK (saat itu) Antasari Azhar, mulai beralih haluan. Selain motif asmara, penyidikan juga terkait soal dugaan korupsi di tubuh sebuah perusahaan BUMN yang sedang ditangani Antasari.

Sebanyak 35 pertanyaan dilontarkan penyidik ke Antasari. ”Difokuskan soal tanggung jawab sebagai Ketua KPK, lalu ditanya juga tentang koordinasi dengan (pimpinan KPK) yang lain,” papar Juniver Girsang yang ditemui seusai mendampingi Antasari dalam pemeriksaan keempat, Senin (11/5) malam.

Semua pertanyaan penyidik dijawab Antasari, termasuk tentang laporan Nasrudin soal dugaan korupsi di tubuh PT Rajawali Nusantara Indonesia (RNI), yang tak lain induk PT PRB. Dalam pengaduannya itu, Nasrudin memberikan sejumlah nama pejabat negara yang diduga korupsi kepada Antasari.

Kepada penyidik, Antasari mengatakan bahwa dia memiliki dokumen-dokumen yang diberikan Nasrudin soal dugaan korupsi itu. ”Ada beberapa nama (pejabat negara yang terlibat), cuma Antasari tidak mau sebutkan dulu, enggak etislah,” kata Hotma Sitompul, pengacara Antasari lainnya.

Pemberian dokumen-dokumen penting soal dugaan korupsi dari Nasrudin ke Antasari itu terjadi setahun lalu. Sejak itulah hubungan Antasari dengan Nasrudin semakin intens dan akrab. Antasari menyambut baik pengaduan Nasrudin soal dugaan korupsi itu, apalagi menyangkut pejabat negara.

Untuk itu, kata Juniver, semua informasi dari Antasari perlu dikaji kembali oleh pihak penyidik. Dokumen itu harus diteliti kebenarannya. Ketika ditanya apakah itu berarti arah penyidikan motif pembunuhan Nasrudin mulai beralih, Juniver mengatakan, ”Itu kewenangan penyidik.”

Dikatakan Juniver, jika memang nantinya motif pembunuhan Nasrudin, yang ditembak seusai bermain golf, beralih dari motif asmara ke masalah politik, maka pihaknya bersyukur. ”Kami berterima kasih. Itu artinya semuanya akan segera terbongkar,” ucap Juniver.

Selama pemeriksaan, Antasari berkeras bahwa dia tidak terlibat dalam rencana pembunuhan Nasrudin. Bahkan, kata Juniver, dalam berita acara pemeriksaan, Antasari membantah telah memberikan perintah kepada Sigid Haryo Wibisono mencari orang untuk mengeksekusi Nasrudin.

Sebaliknya, Juniver menegaskan, Antasari cuma jadi korban dalam kasus tewasnya Nasrudin. Cinta segitiga yang melibatkan Antasari, Rani Juliani, dan Nasrudin sebenarnya cuma bumbu, Antasari pun siap jika dikonfrontasi dengan Sigid dan Wiliardi Wizar soal rencana pembunuhan itu.

Terima perintah

Sementara itu di ruang terpisah, tersangka Eduardo Ndopo Mbete alias Edo, penerima order pembunuhan dari Wiliardi, menjalani pemeriksaan. Sebanyak 44 pertanyaan dicecarkan kepada Edo. BM Selamat Situmorang, pengacara Edo, mengatakan, inti keterangan Edo ke penyidik bahwa pada pertengahan Februari 2009 Edo menerima tugas dari Wiliardi dan Jery Hermawan.

Seperti diberitakan, Jery Hermawan adalah penghubung Edo dengan Wiliardi. Sementara, Wiliardi yang mantan Kapolrestro Jakarta Selatan menerima perintah dari Sigid Haryo Wibisono untuk mencari orang yang bisa membunuh Nasrudin.

Dalam keterangannya ke penyidik, Edo mengatakan bahwa menurut Wiliardi perintah yang disampaikan kepada dia adalah tugas negara. Bahwa Wiliardi mencari orang yang dapat menghabisi seseorang yang digambarkan punya potensi untuk mengacaukan keamanan negara. Antasari Azhar disangka terlibat kasus pembunuhan Nasrudin Zulkarnaen di Padang Golf Modernland, Tangerang, Maret lalu. Dia bersama delapan tersangka lainnya dijerat Pasal 340 KUHP yang ancamannya hukuman mati. Kedelapan tersangka lain itu dua di antaranya Sigid Haryo Wibisono (Komisaris Utama PT Pers Indonesia Merdeka) dan Kombes Wiliardi Wizar (mantan Kapolrestro Jakarta Selatan).

Enam lainnya terdiri atas Heri Santosa (pengendara Yamaha Scorpio), Daniel Daen (penembak/eksekutor), Fransiskus Tadon Keran alias Amsi (pengendali lapangan), Hendrikus Kia Walen alias Hendrik (pemberi order kepada Fransiskus), Eduardo Ndopo alias Edo (penerima order pembunuhan dari Wiliardi), dan Jerry Hermawan LO (penghubung Edo dengan Wiliardi). (Dedy)

14 toddlers in Malang contract HIV/AIDS

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Mon, 05/11/2009 5:47 PM | National

Fourteen toddlers in Malang, East Java, are identified as having HIV/AIDS from their mothers, who got the virus from their husbands, according to the AIDS Prevention Commission.

The commission's Malang branch secretary Adi Purwanto told Tempointeraktif.com that four out of the 14 toddlers had been declared AIDS positive.

All the 14 toddlers were now receiving treatment and free anti-retroviral medication from nearby health centers.

"Initially, they were thought to have suffered from malnutrition, but after being checked, it was found out that they suffered from HIV/AIDS," Adi said.

As of March 2009, Malang recorded a total of 349 people with HIV/AIDS. During the last three months alone, 35 more people have been identified as contracting HIV/AIDS.

The figure is based solely on the data acquired by the government's screening mechanism and NGO outreach programs. The actual figure is thought to be much higher than this official number.

Constitutional Court to begin hearings on election lawsuits

Dicky Christanto , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Mon, 05/11/2009 7:29 PM | Election 2009

Secretary General of the Constitutional Court Janedjri M Gaffar said the court would likely to start hearing process regarding lawsuits filed by political parties related with the election results Monday next week.

"We will commence over the parties complaints on May 18 and we'll take a maximum of 30 days to process all suits,"Gaffar told press conference Monday.

Thus far, seven political parties and one Regional Council legislator candidate have filed lawsuits to the court. The parties are the Indonesian Democratic Affection Party (PKDI), the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), Golkar Party, the Indonesia National People Fort Party (PNBKI), the United Development Party (PPP) and the People Conscious Party (Hanura) and a local party Aceh United Party (PBA). While the legislator candidate who filed for the lawsuit is Kamaruddin.

"To this date, only the PKDI and Kamaruddin that meet all requirements. While the remaining plaintiffs are still obliged to fulfill necessary documents,"Gaffar said.

Most of the plaintiffs, he added, had yet to complete official permissions from their parties leaders in their lawsuits.