East Kalimantan 'might rebel'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The natural resource-rich province of East
\nKalimantan could turn rebellious like Aceh and Irian Jaya if the
\ncentral government continues to neglect development in the area,
\na local legislator warned.<\/p>\n
Deputy speaker of the East Kalimantan provincial legislative
\ncouncil Khairul Fuad said that, so far, local people had acted
\npolitely in demanding a larger share from locally-generated
\nrevenues.<\/p>\n
Khairul reckoned that every year, East Kalimantan contributes
\nRp 70 trillion to the state coffers. This year, he said, the
\nprovince will only receive Rp 6.7 trillion from the state budget.<\/p>\n
East Kalimantan is rich in mining resources. Major
\nmultinational companies operating there include state-owned oil
\ncompany Pertamina's profit-sharing partners Expan, Vico, Total
\nIndonesie and Unocal; gold-mining company PT Kelian Equatorial
\nMining, liquefied natural gas firm Badak LNG and fertilizer
\nproducer PT Pupuk Kaltim.<\/p>\n
\"East Kalimantan wants a bigger portion of the cake. The
\nfinancial balance between the central and local government must
\nbe improved for the sake of fairness,\" he said, as quoted by
\nAntara news agency.<\/p>\n
\"It would make sense if East Kalimantan could receive 60
\npercent, or about Rp 42 trillion, of locally generated revenues.
\nAnd the rest could go to other provinces as development funds.\"<\/p>\n
Only with that share could East Kalimantan catch up in terms
\nof development, especially involving infrastructure, human
\nresources and agriculture, in more affluent provinces, he added.<\/p>\n
Perceived injustice has given rise to separatist rebellions in
\nnatural resource-rich Aceh and Irian Jaya. Some activists in Riau
\nhave also voiced their demand for independence.<\/p>\n
\"We have been left in a state of neglect for years, even
\nthough we are the second largest foreign exchange earner after
\nRiau,\" Khairul said.<\/p>\n
The present government, he said, also means to sideline East
\nKalimantan as is obvious in its policy, in which densely
\npopulated provinces receive more from the budget than less
\npopulated areas.<\/p>\n
\"This means that the bulk of the budget from the central
\ngovernment will still go to Java,\" Khairul said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/east-kalimantan-might-rebel-1447893297",
"image": ""
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