Initial evaluation of the impact of the Y2K bug on Indonesia<\/p>\n
By RM Roy Suryo<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): "Saved by the bell," an idiom often used in
\nboxing, is a good phrase to begin this initial evaluation of the
\nimpact of the millennium bug in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
After all, following the critical period of Dec. 31, 1999 to
\nJan. 1, 2000 and on Jan. 3 and Jan. 4 at the opening of banks and
\nthe stock exchange, when things appeared to be fairly safe, the
\nnext critical date was Jan. 7; there were fears that noncompliant
\ncomputers would take Jan. 7 as a holiday in 1900.<\/p>\n
However because Jan. 8 is Idul Fitri, a day before which the
\ncentral bank, Bank Indonesia, always stops clearing activities,
\nthe anxieties over the bug on Friday, Jan. 7 did not materialize.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, at least, Indonesians can breath a sigh of
\nrelief as the bug has not yet created significant havoc here. Not
\nyet? As its name suggests, the "bug" might not have taken effect,
\ngiven tight, good "security" from six critical sectors so far.<\/p>\n
Therefore the Y2K team, despite what it has been doing it has
\nnot been quite visible to the public, deserves applause for its
\ntemporary success in overcoming the bug, and so do the three
\nministers who openly displayed concern over the problem --
\nMinister of Communications Agum Gumelar, State Minister of Social
\nAffairs Anak Agung Gde Agung and Minister of Mines and Energy
\nSusilo Bambang Yudhoyono.<\/p>\n
Ironically, the State Minister of Research and Technology A.S.
\nHikam has been tight-lipped about this technical problem, which
\ncould have a wide-ranging social impact.<\/p>\n
Possible chaos<\/p>\n
The possible chaos that the bug may still cause should not be
\noverlooked. The prediction that the Y2K problem could cause
\ndisaster at the transitional moment between 1999 and 2000 allowed
\nIndonesia and other parts of the world to take precautionary
\nmeasures. If the prediction had not been made, maybe the
\ncondition would not have been as good as it is now.<\/p>\n
It is true that incidents that occurred in Indonesia were not
\nas bad as those in some other countries. It also would be naive
\nto say that the millennium bug doesn't bite or to assume that Y2K
\nis an unfounded rumor spread by world computer wizards. It would
\nbe just as naive to suspect that the issue was created by
\ncomputer consultants for their personal gain.<\/p>\n
The wrong perception that Y2K is no threat amounts to a simple
\nanecdote about a student who is to sit for an exam. There are
\nthree possibilities that may occur. First, when he studies only a
\npart of a subject, there is a chance he will forget the other
\npart. Second, if studies the whole subject, chances are he will
\nforget a big part of it. Third, if he does not study at all, he
\nwill have nothing to forget.<\/p>\n
So it would be better if those unknowledgeable about Y2K did
\nnot force others to accept their narrow views.<\/p>\n
If major institutions like Telkom, Indosat, Bank Indonesia,
\nthe banking system, the stock exchange, state electricity company
\nPLN, state oil company Pertamina and airlines had not taken the
\nnecessary precautions in December, calamity might have befallen
\nthem. Then Chris Morris' (Gartner Group Pacific) worry that
\nIndonesia was vulnerable to the computer glitch could have become
\nreality.<\/p>\n
Data about institutions and businesses' readiness for the
\nmillennium bug was unconvincing and gave the impression that they
\nwere covering up the truth. This became even more suspicious when
\nthe Certification Institute MKT-2000 issued only 46 Y2K
\ncompliance certificates at the end of 1999.<\/p>\n
Although Indonesia was largely protected from the bug, there
\nwere a few Y2K-related cases.<\/p>\n
First, the appearance of 1900 for more than one minute on Bank
\nIndonesia's Y2K command center computer. It happened in the
\npresence of BI deputy governor Aulia Pohan, who has confirmed the
\nincident.<\/p>\n
Second, an automatic teller machine of Bank Niaga denied
\naccess to a customer's account from which he wanted to withdraw
\nmoney, even though the right procedure had been carried followed.
\nThis incident was recorded and aired by SCTV.<\/p>\n
Third, chaos happened in the automatic recharging system of
\nSimpati prepay SIM card for mobile phones.<\/p>\n
Fourth, the computer systems of some media like Media
\nIndonesia, Republika and Mandiri were down because they were not
\nY2K compliant. Although the problem could be overcome, the
\nincidents are worth noting.<\/p>\n
We should stay alert for possible Y2K disasters even though
\nthe much worried-about change in year has passed. One should
\nremember the computer glitch that hit the ballot-counting process
\nfollowing the June general election. Although the poll ran
\nsmoothly under the watchful eyes of international observers,
\nincluding former U.S. president Jimmy Carter, the ballot-counting
\nand allocation of legislative seats hit a snag. A snag also
\naffected the nomination of president and vice president.<\/p>\n
Although we passed 1999 relatively safely, to have a "victory
\nparty" would be premature because the bug might strike in the
\nfuture. It may affect projects like the standardization of
\nstudent registration numbers because universities still use
\ncomputer systems which are not Y2K compliant.<\/p>\n
Another thing to watch for is the possibility of computer
\ndates jumping to March 3, 2000 from Feb. 28, because some
\ncomputers are not ready for the 2000 leap year. Feb. 28 and Feb.
\n29 are work days and if a glitch does occur, it will not be a
\ncase of being saved by the bell.
\n The writer<\/p>",
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