Legislators wants small business to be protected<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Small businesses not only have limited access to
\ngovernment facilities and protection, but have even become
\nvictims of economic policies, the Indonesian Democratic Party's
\n(PDI) faction at the House of Representatives said yesterday.<\/p>\n
\"Small traders are often evicted from their locations when the
\ngovernment modernizes traditional markets,\" a spokesman for the
\nfaction, Marsinggih Marnadi, said in a House plenary session on
\nthe small enterprises bill.<\/p>\n
He said more than 30 million small entrepreneurs and tens of
\nthousands of vendors must be waiting for their chance to deal
\nwith fair and conducive businesses.<\/p>\n
The faction disagrees with using the term \"the weaker economic
\ngroup\" in the bill because empirical data proves that small
\nbusinesses are often tougher and more resistant against economic
\nrecession.<\/p>\n
However, fair and conducive chances for small businesses will
\nnever occur unless the government dissolves current monopolistic,
\noligopolistic, oligopsonistic and cartel practices, as well as
\ncollusion and corruption, said Marsinggih.<\/p>\n
He, therefore, urged that the House and the government draft
\nanti-cartel and anti-monopoly bills.<\/p>\n
The other factions -- Golkar, the Armed Forces and the United
\nDevelopment Party (PPP) -- of the House agreed with the PDI
\nfaction, saying that any relationship between the big and small
\nbusinesses should not be established out of mercy or charity, let
\nalone gift offering.<\/p>\n
It is compulsory for big companies to foster small ones, while
\nsmall ones have the right to advance in a complimentary scheme.<\/p>\n
It should be in terms of the empowerment of the small, said
\nthe spokesmen for the factions.<\/p>\n
Simon Patrice Morin of the Golkar faction told the session
\nthat the \"distortive\" economic and market structure must be
\nchanged into a more conducive one.<\/p>\n
\"The government, for example, should ease licensing procedures
\nfor small businesses and protect them by providing venues which
\nare close to living and working areas,\" Simon said.<\/p>\n
A.M. Saefuddin of the PPP faction noted that the low quality
\nof human resources still hampers the improvement of small
\nenterprises.<\/p>\n
Minister of Cooperatives and Small Enterprises Subiakto
\nTjakrawerdaya, who represented the government at yesterday's
\nsession, told the press after the meeting that people often blame
\nconglomerates for the slow growth of small businesses.<\/p>\n
\"It is probably because conglomerates have assisted only few
\nof the so many existing small businesses,\" said Subiakto.<\/p>\n
He said the government responded positively upon conglomerate
\nowners' recent vow to provide assistance for small businesses.<\/p>\n
After following a course on the implementation of the state
\nideology Pancasila in business activities in Bali last month,
\nabout 100 conglomerate owners issued the Bali Declaration, saying
\nthat they would make efforts to help small businesses.<\/p>\n
The minister agreed with the factions' proposals to use the
\nterm of empowerment instead of protection and guidance for small
\nbusinesses.(kod)<\/p>",
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