'Give me back my Bali'<\/p>\n
In the aftermath of the bomb blast in Bali on Oct. 12, 2002,
\nit is apt to reflect upon a song composed by Guruh Soekarnoputra,
\nentitled "Give me back my Bali."<\/p>\n
It is true that Bali must be restored to normalcy: the
\nsecurity, the peace and the original charm, untainted by the side
\neffects of tourism.<\/p>\n
A careful observation shows that the international community
\nis much more concerned over the Bali tragedy than Indonesians
\nthemselves. Perhaps, we have grown weary of the reform drive and
\nits related effects. We have been talking and talking, and
\nexposing the evil of the old system and praising the virtues of
\nthe new.<\/p>\n
In fact, we are still looking for the right format of our
\nnationhood. We are still in transition. We are still looking for
\nthe best way to behave as a nation.<\/p>\n
During the previous regime, we believed in social cooperation,
\nbut only in theory, because in practice we allowed profit-based
\ncapitalism to permeate into all aspects of life.<\/p>\n
Even today, materialism is heightened. Our Constitution has
\nbeen amended to improve it, but in reality, its significance is
\nstill unfelt. So, we have become indifferent. We have become
\nempty. We look for the significance of our lives, individually or
\nin groups.<\/p>\n
So to speak, we need not only the return of our Bali, but also
\nthe return of our Indonesia. Give me back my Indonesia.<\/p>\n
-- Kompas, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Questioning privatization now<\/p>\n
The Bali blast has weakened the financial markets in Indonesia
\nalthough in the last few days there has been a modest rebound.<\/p>\n
This situation has led to a question about the government's
\neconomic program such as privatization of state-owned enterprises
\nand bank divestment. When the financial market is weak, the
\nresult of this program will certainly be far from satisfactory.<\/p>\n
However, the government is faced with a dilemma. To go on with
\nthe program would mean a low yield (unfavorable price for
\nprivatized assets) while to postpone the program would lead to
\ndoubts about its commitment to reform.<\/p>\n
In such a situation, in which the investors' trust in our
\ngovernment is low, the government must do something to enhance
\nits credibility. Most important of all is that it seriously
\ninvestigates and solves the Bali bomb case and shows its strong
\ncommitment to eradicate terrorism by, for example, issuing a
\nregulation in lieu of a law against terrorism.<\/p>\n
If the restoration of security takes longer than expected, the
\ngovernment may postpone its economic program. The government must
\nnot sacrifice the long-term purpose of privatization for its
\nshort-term demand, such as covering the budget gap.<\/p>\n
It must be remembered that, given the fairly weak market, even
\nstrategic sales will benefit only the investors.<\/p>\n
-- Bisnis Indonesia<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/give-me-back-my-bali-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }