Chinese-Indonesian 'power' myths blasted

JAKARTA (JP): Observers blasted on Monday myths about Chinese- Indonesians as a creation of corrupt government officials to serve their interests and drive a wedge between the ethnic group and the rest of the population.

Political economic observer Faisal Basri of the University of Indonesia said the resentment-provoking remark that "Chinese- Indonesians make up 3 percent of the population but control 70 percent of the economy" was misleading and served nothing but to further the interests of corrupt officials.

In a discussion at the University of Indonesia, Faisal cited the practice of "political franchising" during the New Order era, whereby some Chinese-Indonesian businesspeople became the fronts for businesses controlled by those in power.

Being in the forefront made the collusive businesspeople -- and the whole Chinese community -- the target of public resentment. For the backers, being behind the scenes did not necessarily mean they profited less than the front people.

He cited a giant flour company owned by tycoon Liem Sioe Liong which had to allocate 26 percent of its net profit to a foundation linked to the Army.

"It's a patron-client kind of relationship," Faisal said.

Such ties between businesses and the power holders were rampant under Soeharto's New Order regime, he said.

"From (former president) Soeharto to governors regents (as patrons) ... almost all have their own clients."

Chinese-Indonesians were the favorite choice for the rulers simply because they were "obedient" and politically weak compared to "indigenous" businessmen, Faisal said.

So, he argued, the statement "3 percent of the population controlled almost 70 percent of the economy" was made up.

The discussion, held by the university's School of Letters, was titled Ethnic Chinese as a Minority in Indonesia.

Also speaking were National University of Singapore's associate professor Leo Suryadinata and sociologist Thung Ju Lan of the National Institute of Sciences (LIPI). Sinologist A. Dahana of the University of Indonesia led the discussion.

Population

On the population of the Chinese-Indonesians, Leo -- who wrote a number of books on the community -- said it was around six to eight million or 3 percent to 4 percent of the total population of 202 million.

However, the last accurate statistical data on the Chinese population in Indonesia was compiled in 1930.

According to Leo, the Chinese-Indonesians comprised 2.3 percent of the total population at the time.

Leo also said the "minority" was not really a minority because Chinese-Indonesians could be the third largest ethnic group after the dominant Javanese and Sundanese.

In an article published by The Jakarta Post on Aug. 14, sociologist George J. Aditjondro also slammed the cliche that "the Chinese constitute only 3.5 percent of the population but control 70 percent of Indonesia's economy" as a myth.

"As far as I have been able to investigate, this myth originates from a passage in the 1995 study of Michael Backman, an executive officer with the East Asia Analytical Unit of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra," wrote George, who teaches the sociology of corruption at the University of Newcastle in Australia.

George quoted Backman's study, Overseas Chinese Business Networks in Asia, that says: "Sino-Indonesians control approximately 73 percent of listed firms by market capitalization. At the end of 1993, Sino-Indonesians (who constitute just 3.5 percent of all Indonesians) controlled 68 percent of the top 300 conglomerates and nine of the top 10 private-sector groups."

However, George said many people had forgotten to read the footnote which explained what was meant by "market capitalization". It states that: "Control by market capitalization has been determined after listed firms controlled by governments or foreigners are discounted." (aan)