Chinese fight open discrimination on Batam

Chinese fight open discrimination on Batam

Fadli, Batam

A group of Chinese-Indonesians has opened on Batam a "complaint
post" in the city, where ethnic Chinese can lodge complaints on
the bureaucratic obstacles.

Anas, a member of the Batam branch of the Chinese-Indonesian
Social Association (PSMTI), said the complaint post was opened on
May 27, and was possibly the first such facility in the country.

The organization has opened two complaint posts in the city:
one at PSMTI Batam headquarters in the Seruni shopping complex
and another at Batam International University (UIB).

Anas said the facilities were established in response to
frequent complaints from the Chinese-Indonesian community on
bureaucratic discrimination they had experienced, especially when
applying for passports and identity cards.

It is common knowledge that government officials and civil
servants often extort money from Indonesian-Chinese, and that if
a Chinese refused to hand over the money, their applications
would be delayed indefinitely or would not be processed.

Prior to the 1998 reform movement, public complaints over the
practice were rarely heard, due to the bureaucratic system under
the Soeharto regime.

After his ouster, however, protests against the practice have
been on the rise, with indigenous Indonesians joining the chorus,
and have encouraged more Chinese to voice their complaints and
experiences.

Indonesians of Chinese descent only comprise about 4 to 6
percent of the national population, but contribute greatly to the
economy.

According to Anas, no individual has taken advantage of the
new service, but he hoped some would visit the facility soon.

"In opening the post, we hope to see the end of bureaucratic
discrimination. We demand equality in public services, like other
citizens," he said.

After a predetermined number of complaints had been filed, the
group would arrange to meet with the relevant government
officials to seek a solution in each case.

Amat Santoso, a local Chinese-Indonesian, said he experienced
a difficulty when he recently applied for a passport extension,
because he did not have the "required" Indonesian citizenship
certificate (SBKRI) for Chinese-Indonesians.

The law on SBKRI requirement was abolished in 1996, but has
yet to be enforced.

"I had to bribe the immigration officials in order to
facilitate my application. It's ridiculous," he said.