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Indonesia’s Harry Potter fans will finally get their chance to see the last installment of the hit movie series on Friday, cinema officials said on Tuesday.

“ ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2’ will be screened starting on Friday,” Djonny Sjafruddin, head of the Indonesian Cinema Companies Union (GPBSI), told the Jakarta Globe.

The film will not be exclusively screened by film industry giant Cineplex 21.

Dian Sunardi, head of marketing at Blitzmegaplex, said they had also been informed that the Harry Potter film was scheduled to be screened starting on Friday.

“Unless the distributor changes the screening schedule, ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2’ will be screened by Friday and our first show time will be at 12 o’clock,” she said.

The screening of the boy wizzard’s saga in Indonesian cinemas will mark the return of Hollywood blockbusters to the country more than five months after major American studios began a boycott over a royalty dispute.

“Transformers 3” will likely be screened 10 days later.

“Kung Fu Panda 2” has also passed censors and will be screened.

But Djonny has said that even with Hollywood films back in Indonesian cinemas, GPBSI will prioritize the screening of local films with five due for screening during Ramadan, he said.

On the heels of its war against pornographic Web sites, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology has a new target: Web sites that permit the illegal downloading of pirated music.

Ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto said the government would block the sites, particularly those containing Indonesian music. On Wednesday, he launched a six-month campaign to raise awareness in the fight against a practice that the state says costs it Rp 12 trillion ($1.4 billion) a year.

“The figure is the estimated sum of digital music sold online without the permission of the copyright owner,” he said.

“It is harming the music industry. The six-month campaign aims to get as many recommendations as possible from citizens because we don’t want to make any mistakes.

“Aside from that, this is a sensitive issue and we don’t want people to think that we’re preventing them from accessing cheap entertainment products.”

Gatot said the government had established a group comprised of musicians to help in the campaign against illegal downloads.

The ministry is working with internet service providers, which were involved in blocking porn sites, to implement the campaign. The blocking will be based on the Web address, or URL.

“Once the introductory phase is complete, we are going to raise public awareness by explaining the legal implications of the p r ogram and what the consequences are for actions that violates the regulation,” Gatot said.

The program is based on the controversial Electronic Transaction and Information (ITE) law, specifically Article 25, which protects electronic information, electronic documents, and intellectual property. The campaign also is based on the 2002 Copyright Law.

Gatot said the campaign received support from the Indonesian music industry, which was harmed by the illegal market.

Veteran musician Samsudin Hardjakusumah, better known as Sam Bimbo, applauded the government’s move and described it as a “Lebaran gift” for the industry.

“We at Bimbo have composed more than 800 songs but we continue to suffer losses because if music piracy,” the 69-year-old told the Antara news agency.

“Those who work harder should earn more,” he said. “But because of piracy, those who earn more aren’t those who actually work harder.”

The Communication and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring launched the campaign at a ceremony on Wednesday attended by composers and lawmakers.

The United States’ Environmental Protection Agency met with key stakeholders in Jakarta on Monday in a bid to reduce the city’s suffocating air pollution.

Michelle DePass, an assistant administrator at the EPA, said the meeting provided valuable insights into pinpointing the root causes of Jakarta’s deteriorating air quality.

“This stakeholder meeting is a key opportunity for us to have a discussion,” she said. “But we realize that long-term cooperation [with stakeholders in Jakarta] is needed. We need to work very hard to be able to provide a long-term benefit.”

Last month, the Environment Ministry signed a memorandum of understanding with the EPA designed to strengthen environmental corporation between the United States and Indonesia, and to work on pollution reduction in Jakarta.

The so-called Breathe Easy Jakarta program aims to address the air pollution problem in Jakarta and establish cost-effective strategies for improving air quality and public health.

DePass said the EPA and the Jakarta government would cooperate in areas such as air quality monitoring, compiling emissions inventories, air quality modeling, health assessments and the development of air pollution control strategies. The partnership, she said, would involved capacity building, transfer of technology and some pilot programs.

Karliansyah, a deputy minister for pollution control at the Environment Ministry, said the meeting was hoped to establish a commitment among all stakeholders to work to improve Jakarta’s air quality. “It requires cooperation from all stakeholders to reduce air pollution in Jakarta,” he said. “We need to establish commitment and encourage coordination between the government and stakeholders.”

Karliansyah said that as part of Breathe Easy Jakarta, the government hoped to improve air quality management and work to develop an information system that to manage air pollution.

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo said Greater Jakarta already had a supporting bylaw to implement the Breathe Easy Jakarta program.

“In this case, Jakarta is the only province in Indonesia that already has a regulation on reducing air pollution,” Fauzi said. “So, instead of establishing a regulation, we can just jump to action.”

Karliansyah said Jakarta needed to address the transportation sector, which contributes around 23 percent of the city’s air pollution.

“The increasing number of motorcycles has an impact not only on fuel consumption and heavy traffic but also air pollution,” he said.

Fauzi said that Jakarta was trying to reduce carbon emissions from vehicles by conducting regular emission tests. “This action can reduce air pollution significantly,” he said.

Karliansyah added some action had also been taken at the central government level such as discarding the use of a lead additive in gasoline in 2001 and developing better mass transportation such as the Transjakarta busway.

The government has scrapped more than 2,000 bylaws with the potential to disrupt investment and burden business, the Home Affairs Ministry said on Monday, and thousands more could go.

“Up to now, the ministry has revoked 2,285 regulations,” said Raydonnyzar Moenek, a ministry spokesman. “There are 2,678 more bylaws in the process of being canceled and 175 that are being clarified and could be dropped.

“Basically, those regional bylaws have been revoked because they go against the 2006 presidential decree on improving the investment climate.”

The ministry is reviewing 9,408 bylaws, with the Finance Ministry advising that 4,885 of those could be scrapped.

Raydonnyzar said the bylaws being reviewed were issued between 2002 and 2011, before the 2009 Regional Tax and Revenue Law was implemented.

The national law on taxes and the regional bylaws often contradict, creating an environment where businesses are unsure of their tax obligations.

Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi said his office had reviewed more than 50 percent of existing bylaws that could hamper investment with levies and other taxes.

But there is concern that if the bylaws were all scrapped at once, it would leave many taxpayers out in the cold who had paid their taxes based on the regional legislation.

Gamawan said the government would discuss tax refunds for businesses that paid higher rates under the regional bylaws.

“ We are going to study what kind of refund mechanism is needed because the taxes have been paid for more than five years,” he said. “We might need to consider sourcing funding.”

Since regional autonomy was introduced in the wake of President Suharto’s resignation in 1998, districts and provinces have issued bylaws taxing nearly all businesses and government services. Those bylaws often overlap with laws issued by the central government or conflict with ones issued by other districts and provinces.

The central government has identified many bylaws to be repealed. These included taxes on the traffic of livestock, entertainment businesses, public transportation and the mining industry.

Overlapping taxes between the regional and central governments have been blamed for increasing the cost of living in Indonesia and creating more bureaucratic red tape.

There were few traces left of the violent brawls at Pasar Rumput market in South Jakarta on Friday. Instead, banners saying “we want to stop these clashes and we want peace” and “respect the coming of the holy month of Ramadan” hung along Jalan Sultan Agung, which for the last two weeks has seen a series of fights.

Although police and authorities were quick to say that the brawls were caused by social frictions and disputes over “trivial issues” such as football results, kite competitions and pigeon races, residents believe the clashes were drug-related.

“There is a third party whose aim is to use this situation to supply drugs to the Menteng Tenggulung community,” said one Pasar Rumput resident, who wished to remain anonymous.

“Over the years, the frequency of the clashes has intensified. There were three clashes in one month this year. Some people said the clashes occurred because there was a dispute over parking spaces. I doubt that.

“I strongly believe that there is a third party who wants to take advantage of this situation.

The area has long been associated with drug users but authorities have refused to acknowledge this.

Residents claim that teenagers often shoot up heroin beneath bridges in the neighborhood, particularly at night. They say the next day the ground is littered with needles.

One former drug addict in Pasar Rumput told the Jakarta Globe that there’s money to be made from the brawls.

“Drug prices only increase under two conditions: if there is a religious holiday or a riot,” the former addict said.

Jakino, the urban ward chief, declined to comment on the brawls when contacted by the Globe.

Three times this month, huge brawls involving scores of combatants armed with crude weapons and Molotov cocktails broke out near the busway shelter in Pasar Rumput. Police had to use tear gas to control the mobs.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Baharudin Djafar said there was little evidence to support the residents’ claims about drugs.

“I cannot give any comment on the allegation about drugs until the allegation is proven by arresting the drug dealers,” he said.

Police have recorded at least 35 brawls in Greater Jakarta this year. Twenty of those were in the city proper, and 15 in Bekasi. There were 74 brawls last year, a jump from 16 in 2009.

This month clashes appeared to have occurred simultaneously across the capital. Nine people were arrested on Wednesday.

Mohammad Irvan Olii, a criminologist from the University of Indonesia, said it was unlikely the clashes were being masterminded by drug dealers.

“I doubt that the clashes were created by drug dealers so they could raise their prices, unless the clashes occurred between two rival gangs. The possibility of that scenario is unlikely,” he said. “But, if the dealers are taking advantage of this situation, [price increases] might happen.”

Another Pasar Rumput resident said it appeared the brawls were planned and not spontaneous as police and experts claimed.

“It was Sunday morning,” the resident said. “There were a couple of guys who were in sports outfits walking by. We did not think they were suspicious until they suddenly threw some bottles at display windows. Suddenly a brawl occurred.

“We do not know who they were or why they did it.”

The Culture and Tourism Ministry has launched an initiative to preserve the crumbling colonial-era buildings in the Old Town area of West and North Jakarta, a job it says the city administration has failed to do.

Firmansyah Rahim, head of destination development at the ministry, said on Friday that it was regrettable the Jakarta administration had shown little interest in preserving the historic buildings in the area, which is also known as Kota Tua.

“I’m so glad to see the enthusiasm shown by the other stakeholders in getting involved in improving tourism in Kota Tua,” he said. “Sadly, however, very few Jakarta residents visit the area.”

He said that this highlighted the city’s failure to play a leading role in preserving the area and promoting it as a viable tourism destination.

According to Firmansyah, state enterprises own 22 abandoned historic buildings in the area, and the preservation of these buildings is critical to boosting tourism there.

“I believe there are eight state-owned companies that own historic buildings in Kota Tua,” he said. “We want to discus with them ways to maintain those buildings. Recently there was a report of one historic building collapsing because it had been neglected.

“So we need to find a solution to preserve those buildings, either by turning them into art galleries or restaurants or the like.”

To that end, the ministry launched the Destination Management Organization, aimed ultimately at improving tourism in the area.

“In order to develop Jakarta’s Kota Tua as a globally competitive tourist destination, the ministry will help facilitate an assessment process and conduct studies to improve tourism in the area,” Firmansyah said. “But in order to do so, we need to find common ground and establish a commitment among stakeholders and the government.”

Friday’s launch of the DMO included traditional performances such as the padupa dance that originates from the coastal communities of Sunda Kelapa, the city’s historic harbor.

The Culture and Tourism Ministry has implemented the DMO program in 14 other tourist destinations in the country, including Pangandaran in West Java, Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java, Borobudur Temple in Central Java, Mount Rinjani in West Nusa Tenggara and the whole of Bali.

Others include Lake Toba in North Sumatra, Lake Batur in Bali and the maritime areas of Raja Ampat in Papua, Wakatobi in Southeast Sulawesi and Bunaken in North Sulawesi.

The final Harry Potter installment, Transformers 3 and Kung Fu Panda 2 will be released in Indonesia before the end of the month, Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik said on Thursday.

It appears, however, that it is not all good news for Indonesian movie lovers, with Jero indicating the dispute with Hollywood had not been completely resolved and that ticket prices were likely to rise.

“The two movies are now being censored at the Film Censorship Board (LSF) and if everything is okay then they should be released before [Ramadan],” he told reporters at the State Palace.

The Motion Picture Association of America did not return emails on Thursday seeking comment about Jero’s statement.

Jero, in a doorstop interview, said that even though the movies would be screened, it did not mean the tax dispute had been resolved.

Asked about a potential increase in ticket prices, he said the ministry would not impose a limit in any price hike, though he urged movie theaters to avoid extreme increases.

“Because the movies that will be shown are top movies, if there is price rise, then it should only be small.”

Muklis Paimi, the head of Film Censorship Board (LSF), confirmed to the Globe that three Hollywood films were being censored.

“Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2, Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Kung Fu Panda 2 are being censored,” he said.

“Hopefully, we will have finished this by tonight.”

The Potter movies have a devoted following in Indonesia, where thousands of fans play the wizard sport of Quidditch on Twitter.

Last month, a new tax regime for foreign films was agreed in response to protests by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) over an attempt to charge studios more to screen films in Indonesian cinemas.

“We hope that there will be no more boycotts like this,” he added.

Sjafruddin said local cinemas would also screen several Hollywood hits that they had missed during the five–month boycott.

Since the studios began boycotting the country, Indonesian movie lovers have missed out on “Black Swan”, “True Grit” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides”.

The MPA represents US studios including Warner Bros, Universal Studios and Twentieth Century Fox.

Additional reporting AFP