Control of liquor sales to be tightened: Sujudi
Control of liquor sales to be tightened: Sujudi
JAKARTA (JP): The government will tighten the control of
liquor distribution and will restrict the sale of liquor to
specified outlets such as international hotels and duty-free
shops, Health Minister Sujudi said yesterday.
"Ordinary stores, let alone cigarette stalls, will be
prohibited from selling alcoholic drinks," Sujudi told
journalists after formally appointing several new officials in
his ministry.
The minister's remarks come only days after a private company,
PT Arbamass Multi Invesco, claimed that it had been authorized by
the ministry of home affairs to control liquor sales through a
compulsory labeling system.
Arbamass, owned jointly by Emir Baramuli and Ari Sigit
Soeharto, announced last week that it would cooperate with the
various provincial administrations to control liquor sales in
order to protect the young generation from the bad influence of
alcohol.
Under the proposed cooperation, Emir said, liquor for sale
will bear stickers, issued by PT Arbamass. According to the
amount appearing on the stickers, the sale will be subject to
levy ranging from Rp 600 to Rp 750 per bottle/can, depending on
the alcoholic content of the drinks.
Health Minister Sujudi said he had not been notified of the
private company's plan.
Liquor sales in Indonesia, whose population is predominantly
Moslem, are already strictly controlled. Only two state companies
are permitted to import the substance, which is subject to duties
of between 40 and 170 percent, in addition to a 35 percent luxury
sales tax, a 10 percent value-added tax and heavy excise taxes.
"The ministries of health, industry and trade are now
reviewing the system of liquor production and sales," Sujudi
said.
He said those ministries were considering tightly restricting
domestic production of alcohol drinks.
"Domestic producers, many of them illegal, often do not care
about the quality of their liquor and do not care about the
impact of such inferior-quality alcoholic drinks on customers,"
Sujudi said.
Producers, he added, tout their liquor through small stores,
including cigarette stalls, and quite a number of the buyers are
college students and other youngsters who like to get drunk.
"I therefore fully support the stern measures being taken by
security officials against illegal liquor sellers," Sujudi
said.(vin)