Indonesian Political, Business & Finance News

Archive: 27 February 1999

51 articles found

RI avoids relegation with Uzbekistan win

RI avoids relegation with Uzbekistan win JAKARTA (JP): Up-and-down Indonesia had the last laugh at the Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Group One women's tennis tournament in Bangkok on Friday, beating Uzbekistan 3-0 to avoid relegation.

Bus owners to propose 25% hike in fares

Bus owners to propose 25% hike in fares JAKARTA (JP): The city chapter of the Organization of Land Transportation Owners (Organda DKI) is to propose a 25 percent hike in bus fares here to the central government in order to cope with high operational costs, its chief said Friday.

Live TV shows

Live TV shows JAKARTA (JP): Sports competitions to be broadcast live this weekend on local TVs (all times in West Indonesia Time):Saturday English soccer league: Chelsea v Liverpool, SCTV at 10 p.m.Sunday Italian soccer league: Salernitana v Fiorentina, RCTI at 8:55 p.m.

More infants severely malnourished

More infants severely malnourished SEMARANG (JP): At least 190 infants in Purbalingga regency, Central Java are suffering the effects of severe malnutrition, a legislator said on Friday.The chairman of Commission E for Welfare at the Central Java legislature, Soebowo, said increasing numbers of...

Irianese leaders want control of their land

Irianese leaders want control of their land JAKARTA (JP): Irian Jaya leaders told President B.J. Habibie on Friday they wanted to be the masters of their own land, while at least one tribal chief declared his wish outright for the province to become an independent state.

Marcos' settle for US$150 million

Marcos' settle for US$150 million MANILA (AFP): The family of the late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos on Friday announced a US$150 million settlement with victims who were tortured during his ironfisted rule, but insisted it was not an admission of guilt.

SE Asian currencies close on weak note against dollar

SE Asian currencies close on weak note against dollar SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Southeast Asian currencies ended a choppy Asian trading session on Friday on a weak note against the U.S. dollar, after comments from Lawrence Summers, the U.S.

Street children asked to safeguard capital

Street children asked to safeguard capital JAKARTA (JP): Street children, invited on Friday to Jakarta Police headquarters for lunch, received Rp 10,000 and food packages and were encouraged to help safeguard security in the capital.City police chief Maj. Gen.

Bogor residents flock council over speaker's ego

Bogor residents flock council over speaker's ego BOGOR (JP): Some 150 people from 42 organizations here arrived at the local council on Friday to express their anger at the council speaker's failure to put his signature on the credentials of the five nominees for the next mayor of Bogor.

PLN to relocate power plant to Madura

PLN to relocate power plant to Madura JAKARTA (JP): State electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) will relocate a 100-Megawatt (MW) unit of the Grati gas-fired power plant in East Java to Madura to secure power supply on the island, Minister of Mines and Energy Kuntoro Mangkusubroto...

Appointment of ABRI members to City Hall to go ahead

Appointment of ABRI members to City Hall to go ahead JAKARTA (JP): Governor Sutiyoso disclosed on Friday that he would reinstate three out of the four Armed Forces (ABRI) members as city high-ranking officials whose appointments were canceled last year.

Divorce rate soars in crisis

Divorce rate soars in crisis TEGAL, Central Java: The number of divorce cases in the regency has tripled over the past two years, soaring from 30 cases a month before the economic crisis hit in July 1997 to 300 per month in late 1998.The chief of the local religious court, H.

President asks rebel aboard yacht

President asks rebel aboard yacht ZAMBOANGA, Philippines (AFP): Philippine leader Joseph Estrada on Friday invited the chief of the country's largest remaining rebel group to visit him aboard the presidential yacht to make peace.

Where to go in Jakarta:

Where to go in Jakarta:Exhibitions * Traditional Toys Exhibition at National Museum, Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat 12, Central Jakarta (Phone: 3811551), Sunday, Tuesday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., until March 25.

U.S. envoy named to Jakarta post

U.S. envoy named to Jakarta post WASHINGTON (AP): Career diplomat Robert Gelbard, the State Department's top adviser on Bosnia, is expected to be named ambassador to Indonesia, an official said on Thursday.Gelbard previously served as chief of the department's counter-narcotics office.

Half-hearted bank liquidation?

Half-hearted bank liquidation? Owners and employees of dozens of ailing banks are worried whether their name will appear on the list of liquidated or recapitalized banks. These concerns are also affecting the banks' clients.

Deformed youth gets 'new life'

Deformed youth gets 'new life' PERTH (Antara): An Indonesian boy born with a face so deformed he had considered killing himself is to be given the chance of a new life by Australian surgeons.Sandi Gisisi, 17, from a coconut farming family on the tiny island of Ternate in the Halmahera group north...

YLKI accepts lower smaller increase in call rates with conditions

YLKI accepts lower smaller increase in call rates with conditions JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) said on Friday it would accept the government's latest plan to roll back the 24 percent rise in domestic telephone rates to 15 percent, on the condition that state-owned PT...

East Timor at issue

East Timor at issue The issue of East Timor cannot be separated from solutions that favor helping the people's welfare. Reading various reports and articles on East Timor in The Jakarta Post reminded me of my stay in Madison, Wisconsin, four years ago.

Anybody can tap any telephone line, expert says

Anybody can tap any telephone line, expert says JAKARTA (JP): Special bugging devices concealed in forms of ballpoint pens, books, magazines, ashtrays and briefcases can be easily purchased abroad and used to tap any telephone lines, an expert said.

Dayaks warn against latent conflict

Dayaks warn against latent conflict JAKARTA (JP): The grievances of local communities in Kutai, East Kalimantan, with large firms employing migrants there are feared to have the potential for causing social unrest if the government does not make an adequate attempt to resolve the issue.

House approves revised State Budget

House approves revised State Budget JAKARTA (JP): The House of Representatives on Friday approved the 1999/2000 State Budget with some changes in revenue and expenditure targets, despite warnings by some analysts that the budget is too optimistic.

In search for better English teaching system

In search for better English teaching systemBy Setiono JAKARTA (JP): A shift of emphasis of English-language teaching in the country from the structurally oriented approach to communicative approach unfortunately does not have significant implications in communicative language testing.

China's vow not to devalue yuan tested

China's vow not to devalue yuan tested SHANGHAI (Reuters): China's stumbling economy will test the will of policymakers to stave off a devaluation of the yuan this year as the Asian economic crisis brings new pain, analysts said on Friday.

Motorcycle thieves thwarted

Motorcycle thieves thwarted TANGERANG (JP): Following a two-fold increase in motorcycle prices, high demand for the transport in the greater Jakarta area is prompting many criminals to turn to motorcycle theft, despite a police shoot-on-sight order.

Hundreds protest shootings in turbulent Ambon

Hundreds protest shootings in turbulent Ambon JAKARTA (JP): Hundreds of people protested the shootings of civilians in the destroyed Maluku capital of Ambon while renewed clashes which have killed at least 16 people entered their fourth day on Friday.

PPP initiates plan to summon Habibie

PPP initiates plan to summon Habibie JAKARTA (JP): The United Development Party (PPP) faction initiated on Friday a motion to have President B.J. Habibie explain to the House of Representatives the controversial tapped conversation he had with Attorney General A.M. Ghalib.

Asia needs $1t to fund infrastructure projects

Asia needs $1t to fund infrastructure projects MANILA (Reuters): Asia will need up to US$1 trillion over the next 10 years to fund infrastructure development, Asian Development Bank (ADB) chief Tadao Chino said on Friday.

UNESCO, WWF research Lorentz Park

UNESCO, WWF research Lorentz Park JAYAPURA, Irian Jaya: A team from the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the Jakarta office of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), have begun scientific research in the Lorentz National Park, Irian Jaya, Antara reported.

Protesting students walk out of trial

Protesting students walk out of trial JAKARTA (JP): Preceded by their lawyers, all of the 47 students on trial at the Central Jakarta District Court charged with holding an illegal rally walked out of the courtroom on Friday before the judges could read their verdicts.

'Ojek' driver stabbed to death

'Ojek' driver stabbed to death JAKARTA (JP): A 35-year-old ojek (motorcycle taxi) driver was stabbed to death during a robbery on Jl. Marunda in North Jakarta on Thursday night, a police officer said on Friday.

Conversion Rates

Conversion Rates Bank Bali's conversion rates on Feb. 26, 1999: TT rates Bank notes rates Buying Selling Buying Selling Rp Rp Rp Rp U.S. dollar 1 8,720.00 8,765.00 8,720.00 8,815.00Australian dollar 1 5,391.30 5,492.50 5,328.00 5,553.00Austrian schilling 1 696.11 707.03 - -Belgian franc 1 237.

Stock Exchange

Stock ExchangeStock prices on the Jakarta Stock Exchange (in rupiah) on Feb. 26 , 1999: Shares Close Change Trading Volume ----------------------------------------------------------- Ades Alfindo 350 0 0 AHAP Insurance 400 0 0 Alter Abadi 275 0 0 Alumindo Light Metal 325 -50 1,000 Alumindo Perkasa...

Economic recovery needs greater transparency

Economic recovery needs greater transparencyBy Riyadi NUSA DUA, Bali (JP): Continuing trade and investment liberalization, increasing transparency in economic activities and improving macroeconomic foundations would help steer the country out of crisis, a senior economic minister has said.

Fishermen in debt due to weather

Fishermen in debt due to weather SERANG, West Java: Thousands of Banten fishermen unable to set out to sea regularly because of inclement weather in the Sunda Strait are surviving by borrowing money from loan sharks, Antara reported on Friday.

Copper products don't meet quality expectations

Copper products don't meet quality expectations SYDNEY (Dow Jones): Indonesia's pioneer copper smelter, PT. Smelting Copper Co., has delayed its commercial production of copper cathodes as the initial batch of production hasn't met design quality, an official with Mitsubishi Corp.

Kofi Annan disturbed by East Timor violence reports

Kofi Annan disturbed by East Timor violence reports JAKARTA (JP): United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is very disturbed by reports of violence in East Timor as they could hamper efforts towards a peaceful solution in the troubled province, Antara reported on Friday from New York.

PBB assembles Muslim clerics support for polls

PBB assembles Muslim clerics support for polls JAKARTA (JP): The Crescent Star Party is gearing up for the June 7 general election by establishing a team of strategists and soliciting the support of Muslim clerics.

Govt delays bank closures

Govt delays bank closures JAKARTA (JP): The clean sweep of banks, scheduled for Saturday, was delayed by President B.J. Habibie at the eleventh hour, lending credence to rumors that bankers have been busy lobbying ministers and the President to save their banks from liquidation.

Indonesia has improved but abuses continue: U.S. report

Indonesia has improved but abuses continue: U.S. report WASHINGTON (AFP): The resignation of Indonesia's President Soeharto led to broader freedoms, but serious unrest and official abuses continue, the State Department said in its annual human rights report Friday.

Material on Chinese-Indonesians

Material on Chinese-Indonesians JAKARTA (JP): The National Committee for the Nation's Cultural Empowerment will soon launch a series of books, photo albums and a laser disc documenting the history of Chinese-Indonesians.

Ujungpandang batch first to leave for haj

Ujungpandang batch first to leave for haj JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Information Mohammad Yunus officiated Thursday night at the departure of the first group of pilgrims to Saudi Arabia from Hasanuddin airport in Ujungpandang, Antara reported Friday.

End Telkom monopoly

End Telkom monopoly A potentially ugly confrontation between PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) and consumers appears to have been defused by the government's decision to review the increases in domestic telephone rates.

Bulog sticks with import plan

Bulog sticks with import plan JAKARTA (JP): The state logistic agency (Bulog) will not cancel existing rice import contracts although domestic rice production this year is expected to exceed last year's quota, according to Minister of Trade and Industry Rahardi Ramelan.

Floods hamper planting season

Floods hamper planting season BANJARMASIN, South Kalimantan: Chronic flooding in the past three months has thwarted crop planting by thousands of farming families in the transmigration sites of Rawa Muning and Galam Rabah, Antara said on Friday.

Advice needed

Advice needed My name is Agnes. I am a 24-year-old final year student of an English education study program at a private university in Yogyakarta. I am completing the final part of my thesis, with my final examination scheduled this semester.

Pertamina takes Nusamba's 35% stake in TPI

Pertamina takes Nusamba's 35% stake in TPI JAKARTA (JP): State oil and gas company Pertamina has acquired PT Nusantara Ampera Bhakti's (Nusamba) 35 percent stake in insurance company PT Tugu Pratama Indonesia (TPI).

A dilemma

A dilemma Local newspapers recently reported the minimum regional wage would be raised by 15 percent. Many entrepreneurs protested because they argued it was already good enough if they could pay the wages of their workers.

Indian beef imports conditionally allowed

Indian beef imports conditionally allowed JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Agriculture Soleh Solahuddin said on Friday the government would allow local traders to import Indian buffalo meat on the condition it conformed to set requirements.

Bank Bali defends decision to prosecute in Singapore

Bank Bali defends decision to prosecute in Singapore JAKARTA (JP): Hong Kong-based Bali International Finance Ltd., a unit of publicly listed Bank Bali, defended on Friday its decision to file a civil lawsuit against businessman Bambang Sutrisno at the court in Singapore.

Paying a call on Soeharto

Paying a call on SoehartoFrom MerdekaProbsutedjo, half brother of former president Soeharto, has declared Soeharto is making a special effort to become a "pundit". These are modern times, so anyone wishing to be a "saintly" man must be declared.