Garuda repudiates KPPU charge
Garuda repudiates KPPU charge
Evi Mariani
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
National flag carrier PT Garuda Indonesia has repudiated the
conclusion drawn by the country's antimonopoly watchdog, which
declared the airline had broken the Antimonopoly Law.
"PT Garuda Indonesia submitted a letter to the Central Jakarta
District Court repudiating the KPPU's conclusion," Garuda's
spokesperson Pujobroto said in a press statement made available
on Thursday, referring to the Business Competition Supervisory
Commission (KPPU).
Earlier, the KPPU had announced that Garuda was found to have
violated the Antimonopoly and Unfair Competition Law, and that
the airline should pay a Rp 1 billion (US$117,600) fine.
The conclusion was reached after the agency conducted a probe
following a complaint filed by an anonymous computerized
reservation system (CRS) provider.
The CRS provider accused Garuda of hampering fair competition
in the domestic ticket reservation business through an exclusive
agreement with its subsidiary, PT Abacus Indonesia, which
supplies an international CRS called Abacus.
In the press statement, Pujobroto explained that the carrier
had used the Abacus system since 1995, when it was the only CRS
available in the country.
Garuda also deemed the partnership with Abacus an efficiency
measure, he said.
Garuda retorted the KPPU's conclusion, saying that the carrier
was "a CRS consumer", and thus had the right to choose a CRS
provider that offered the most competitive price and quality.
The Antimonopoly Law passed in 1999 stipulates that a business
may not make deals with an aim to control production or services,
which results in unfair competition and/or violates consumers'
rights.
The KPPU, which was established under the same law, has the
authority to investigate businesses suspected of employing unfair
business practices and impose sanctions on them.
The KPPU suffered a blow last year in its efforts to maintain
fair competition in the country's business sector when a court
overturned its decision against a number of parties allegedly
involved in irregularities in the sale of the government's 72
percent stake in car maker PT Indomobil.