Courier group wants govt to scrap PT Post monopoly<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Association of Courier Companies
\n(Asperindo) urged the government on Friday to revoke PT Pos
\nIndonesia's (Posindo) monopoly rights and give greater freedom to
\nprivate courier companies.<\/p>\n
Asperindo chairman Rudy J. Pesik said on Friday that the
\ngovernment's hesitation towards deregulating the Indonesian
\npostal service was unfounded and unreasonable as postal
\nliberalization has become a trend in a world increasingly anti-
\nmonopolistic.<\/p>\n
Posindo's monopoly has been justified on the grounds of public
\ninterest: to provide a mail system that ensures confidentiality,
\naffordability and accessibility throughout the country.<\/p>\n
\"The government has always given the excuse that the private
\nsector was incapable of providing services to people in rural
\nareas. Well, of course, we never tried because the monopoly was
\nheld by Posindo,\" he said in a media conference here.<\/p>\n
Rudy said that if the monopoly were revoked, he was certain
\nthat many people would want to enter the postal industry as
\nPosindo's partner, as was the case with PT Telkom when its
\nmonopoly over the provision of telephone services was eased.<\/p>\n
The government strengthened Posindo's long held monopoly
\nthrough a 1984 law.<\/p>\n
The 1984 postal law stipulates that the state-owned company
\nhas exclusive rights to deliver personal letters, postcards and
\naerograms. Other forms of mail such as printed matter and small
\npackets can be delivered by private courier companies.<\/p>\n
However, in practice, Rudy said that the private companies
\ncould only deliver documents weighing more than 500 grams,
\npackets weighing a maximum of two kilograms for small packages
\nand 30 kilograms for large packages, newspapers, and sekograms --
\nspecial letters in braille for the visually impaired.<\/p>\n
The definition of documents has also been a source of dispute
\nbetween Posindo and private courier companies, he said.<\/p>\n
While for most people the difference between private letters
\nand documents is clear-cut, in Indonesia both could be referred
\nto as surat, the word stipulated in the 1984 postal law as
\ndescribing personal letters, Rudy explained.<\/p>\n
\"Everything here is referred to as a letter: surat nikah
\n(marriage documents), surat ijin mengemudi (driver's license),\"
\nhe said, adding that some of Asperindo's members have been raided
\nbecause they delivered tender papers.<\/p>\n
The association said that the government is drafting
\nlegislation which would amend the law. But Rudy said that the
\namendment would mean nothing to the private sector if the
\nexclusive rights so far enjoyed by PT Post were not abolished.<\/p>\n
Rudy said that if the government could not revoke the rights
\nimmediately, it should at least show goodwill by easing the
\nrestrictions made for courier services.<\/p>\n
\"The government should at least gradually ease off the weight
\nrestrictions, and set a deadline for a complete revocation,\" he
\nsaid, adding that if the minimum 500 grams for documents was
\nformalized in a government edict, it could mean massive lay-offs
\nfrom small and medium courier companies with inner-city
\noperations. (tnt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/courier-group-wants-govt-to-scrap-pt-post-monopoly-1447893297",
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