Indonesian Political, Business & Finance News

Archive: 20 April 1998

47 articles found

Cyclist Espiritu wins third stage

Cyclist Espiritu wins third stage BATANGAS CITY, Philippines (Agencies): Philippine national team captain Victor Espiritu outsprinted breakaway partner Placido Valdez of Nueva Ecija to capture the third stage of the Marlboro Centennial Tour of the Philippines.

Bank restructuring

Bank restructuring Bank restructuring takes up the largest portion of the 117- point supplementary reform package that was agreed between the government and the International Monetary Fund on April 7, for an obvious reason.

Food shipped to Malaysian state

Food shipped to Malaysian state KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Emergency food aid has been sent to more than 500 hungry families in the drought-stricken Malaysian state of Sabah on the island of Borneo, The Star newspaper reported yesterday.

IBRA to take over more ailing banks, says Fitch IBCA

IBRA to take over more ailing banks, says Fitch IBCA JAKARTA (JP): The number of banks to be brought under the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) is likely to increase significantly over the next few months as rising levels of bad assets deplete the industry's capital, a credit-rating...

Call for common forest fire laws

Call for common forest fire laws KUALA LUMPUR (AP): As the spread of wildfires and haze intensifies throughout Southeast Asia, the head of a regional group has proposed drafting common laws to increase the efficacy of firefighting efforts, a newspaper reported yesterday.Rodolfo C.

Selling pressure likely on local stock market

Selling pressure likely on local stock market JAKARTA (JP): Trading on the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) is likely to be under heavy selling pressure this week due to increasing economic and political uncertainties, securities analysts and brokers believe.

Yogyakarta gets fewer tourists

Yogyakarta gets fewer tourists YOGYAKARTA (JP): The number of foreign and domestic tourists visiting the city, a traditional tourist destination, slumped 25 percent last year over 1996 due to the crisis, the provincial tourist office said over the weekend.M.

Ramos generated $20b FDI

Ramos generated $20b FDI MANILA (AP): President Fidel Ramos' aggressive worldwide quest for investments has generated about US$20 billion worth of business for the Philippines in the last five and a half years, the government said yesterday.

Asia's insurance to see radical shift

Asia's insurance to see radical shift SINGAPORE (Reuters): Asia's economic crisis could spark radical changes in the distribution and regulation of life insurance sales, a senior executive said."There is going to have to be a professionalization of the agency sales force in Asia," Chris Singleton,...

Oil price drop may trigger further cuts

Oil price drop may trigger further cuts KUWAIT (Agencies): Kuwait and Qatar said yesterday OPEC could decide on further oil production cuts if world prices fell further.Oil Minister Sheikh Saud Nasser al-Sabah said "reviewing additional cuts by OPEC states (would be required) if we find that oil...

Protests for reform continue

Protests for reform continue JAKARTA (JP): Even as fellow students participated in a government-sponsored dialog with officials in Jakarta, demonstrations for reform continued on university campuses in various cities on Saturday.

TV today

TV todayTVRI 2:00 p.m. News: Berita 14 2:45 TV Series: The Big Valley 3:05 Management News: Kiat Manajemen 3:30 TV Drama: Lembaran Baru 4:00 Regional News 4:30 Creative Program: Karya Kita 5:00 Indonesian Lessons 5:30 Education Quiz: Cepat Tepat 6:00 News: Lintasan Berita 6:05 Village Program: Rona...

For the Minister of Women's Affairs

For the Minister of Women's AffairsFrom Suara KaryaReading Suara Karya's article Tutty Alawiyah sympathetic with Karlina Leksono's struggle, I share your feelings, Tutty Alawiyah.Additionally, I am thinking of ways to express myself so as to be heard by the authorities to review the steps taken...

Intellectuals support students demand

Intellectuals support students demand JAKARTA (JP): Intellectuals are calling on students to continue with their struggle for political and economic reforms, lending greater weight to a youth movement that has grown into a formidable force over recent months.

Iran chemical exports down

Iran chemical exports down TEHRAN (Reuters): The value of Iran's petrochemical exports increased in the Iranian year that ended on March 20 but fell short of target because of Southeast Asia's economic crisis, a senior Iranian official said in remarks published yesterday.

Concerned over minister's statement

Concerned over minister's statement We would like to express deep concern over recent statements by Minister of Education and Culture Wiranto Arismunandar about university student activities.During his tenure as the rector of Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), we found that Wiranto established...

American citizen shot in drug raid

American citizen shot in drug raid JAKARTA (JP): Police shot a Nigerian-born American citizen, identified as Dennis Michael, in his right leg after he allegedly resisted arrest and tried to flee during a drug raid, an officer said Saturday.

ASEAN Troika optimistic on Cambodian polls

ASEAN Troika optimistic on Cambodian polls BANGKOK (AP): Southeast Asian nations involved in the effort to restore political stability to Cambodia are optimistic that fair elections can be held there in July, a top regional diplomat said yesterday.

East Kalimantan forest fires RI's fifth priority

East Kalimantan forest fires RI's fifth priority JAKARTA (JP): Despite the magnitude of losses incurred, raging forest fires in East Kalimantan rank fifth in the government's crisis handling agenda, according to State Minister of Environment Juwono Sudarsono.

Private sector to tackle haze

Private sector to tackle haze SINGAPORE (DPA): A Singapore-based Briton has started a new private-sector initiative aimed at fighting the smoke haze choking parts of Asia, a news report said yesterday.Lawyer-turned-entrepreneur Jeremy Cama, 42, believes that "the private sector will be more...

Seeking ways to prevent new Asian-style financial woes

Seeking ways to prevent new Asian-style financial woesBy Helmut Maier-Mannhart MUNICH (DPA): Credits worth a total of more than US$100 billion have been promised by the International Monetary Fund to just three countries -- South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia -- to help them avoid financial...

Open letter to the Malaysian Ambassador

Open letter to the Malaysian AmbassadorFrom RepublikaYour Excellency,With this letter, we, Women Solidarity, an NGO concerned with issues related to migrant workers, wish to put forward some matters relative to the protection of Indonesian workers in Malaysia.

AIDS sufferers cannot afford medication

AIDS sufferers cannot afford medication JAKARTA (JP): Only 11 of the 631 Indonesians who have tested HIV positive or are suffering from full-blown AIDS can afford to buy the imported medicine which could retard the impact of the deadly disease.

Movie on dengue fever

Movie on dengue fever JAKARTA (JP): The North Jakarta information office is screening a free movie on dengue fever and measures to prevent it in 31 subdistricts throughout the mayoralty.The screenings start today and last until May 29.

Book published on N. Sulawesi

Book published on N. Sulawesi MANADO, North Sulawesi: A book entitled North Sulawesi Profile has been published for international distribution by the information ministry's foreign information directorate.

Building permits revenue falls

Building permits revenue falls TANGERANG (JP): Revenue accrued by the Tangerang administration from the processing of building permits has sharply dropped because fewer people are constructing houses and buildings, an official said Saturday.The head of Tangerang's development office, H.

Bank restructuring key to economic reform: Fuad

Bank restructuring key to economic reform: Fuad UNITED NATIONS (Reuters): East Asian banks must reform themselves to better channel international financial resources to productive use, Indonesia's Finance Minister Fuad Bawazier said on Saturday.

Will cigarette price hikes help farmers?

Will cigarette price hikes help farmers?By Slamet Hadi Purnomo SURABAYA (Antara): Retail prices of cigarettes have increased up to 100 percent since the beginning of April. Will the increase benefit farmers?The opinions on the matter are divided.

Misleading budget needs correction

Misleading budget needs correctionBy Steven Susanto JAKARTA (JP): A long-standing conceptual error had been officially preserved in the construction of the Indonesian State Budget (APBN)) until the IMF team revealed the difference between its definition of a balanced budget and that of the...

CalEnergy more hopeful on Indonesia

CalEnergy more hopeful on Indonesia CHICAGO (Reuters): CalEnergy Co. Inc. has said it is more optimistic about the outlook for its investments in Indonesia with the country's currency much stronger than a few weeks ago.

170 foreigners await deportation in detention center

170 foreigners await deportation in detention center JAKARTA (JP): One hundred and seventy foreigners whose deportation has been delayed because they do not have immigration documents are crammed into a detention center designed for 75 people in Kalideres, West Jakarta, an official said yesterday.

Reporters angry with regent

Reporters angry with regent CILACAP, Central Java: Journalists here have lodged a strong protest against Cilacap regent Herry Tabri after he ordered his subordinates not to provide information or make statements to the media.

PLN told to honor contracts

PLN told to honor contracts JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Mines and Energy Kuntoro Mangkusubroto is trying to find a solution to the payment dispute between the state electricity company, PT PLN, and its gas and power contractors.

Association bemoans fall in tourist numbers

Association bemoans fall in tourist numbers JAKARTA (JP): An executive of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Guides Association expressed concern Saturday that foreign media reports on Indonesia had caused a sharp drop in the number of overseas tourists visiting the city.Jan L.

Jump woman suffers hallucinations

Jump woman suffers hallucinations JAKARTA (JP): The 38-year-old woman who jumped from the third floor of Cipto Mangunkusumo General hospital on Saturday suffers from hallucinations, her husband said yesterday.The woman, Sri Darwati, who was severely injured, was in a stable condition yesterday.

Where to go in Jakarta:

Where to go in Jakarta:Exhibitions * Photo Exhibition: Potret by Benno Harun and Artli Ali at Plaza Indonesia Atrium, Jl. M.H. Thamrin kav. 28-30, Central Jakarta (Phone: 322908), 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., until May 15.

Students have reached point of no return: Amien

Students have reached point of no return: Amien JAKARTA (JP): Calls for students to return to their classrooms and warnings of repressive measures against unruly protests will fall on deaf ears as students have reached "the point of no return", according to Amien Rais.

Scholars criticize leaders' conduct

Scholars criticize leaders' conduct JAKARTA (JP): Respected scholars Nurcholish Madjid and Amien Rais sharply criticized yesterday national leaders who used Islam to gain political legitimacy, but whose conduct actually tarnished the image of the Moslem majority.

Three directors quizzed over scam

Three directors quizzed over scam JAKARTA (JP): Three directors of PT Artha Buana Sakti, a subsidiary of the now defunct Bank Harapan Sentosa (BHS) Group, are helping police with their inquiry into the alleged illegal sale of company assets worth hundreds of billions of rupiah.

Self-sufficiency in soybean supply likely

Self-sufficiency in soybean supply likelyBy Joko Sarwono BOGOR, West Java (JP): The plunge in the value of the rupiah has forced the government to rethink its strategy of relying on imports to meet the country's ever-growing consumption of soybeans, a vital component of the national diet.

Insect index drops to five

Insect index drops to five SAMARINDA, East Kalimantan: Fires that have been ravaging parts of East Kalimantan forests since January this year have destroyed many species of insects, according to an expert.

RI's 1997 exports up 7.3%, imports down 2.9%

RI's 1997 exports up 7.3%, imports down 2.9% JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's exports rose to US$53.44 billion last year, a 7.28 percent rise from $49.81 billion in 1996, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics.The bureau's March bulletin reports that non-oil and non-gas exports made up $41.

Missing Megawati loyalist reunited with his family

Missing Megawati loyalist reunited with his family MOJOKERTO, East Java (JP): Haryanto Taslam, a loyal supporter of ousted Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) leader Megawati Soekarnoputri, was reunited with his family yesterday after going missing for six weeks.

Medan on shortlist for PDI congress

Medan on shortlist for PDI congress MEDAN, North Sumatra: Officials here confirmed that Medan is on the shortlist of cities being considered to host the upcoming Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) congress in June.

Japanese workout for Aceh workers

Japanese workout for Aceh workers BANDA ACEH, Aceh: About 400 workers here are ready to be sent to Japan to work under an apprenticeship program, the head of the Ministry of Manpower's provincial office, Prie Soekarno, said Saturday.

Japan's troubled companies miss opportunities in crisis: PERC

Japan's troubled companies miss opportunities in crisis: PERC SINGAPORE (Reuters): Japan's economic problems are preventing its banks and companies from taking advantage of opportunities arising from Asia's financial crisis, the Hong Kong-based Political & Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) said.

Foreign lawyers

Foreign lawyers In The Jakarta Post, April 13, Attorney Kartini Muljadi presented clearly the rationale for the position taken by Indonesian lawyers' groups on foreign lawyers working in Indonesia. Other countries have similar restrictions on the employment of foreign attorneys within their borders.