Govt asked to make trade with China easier

Govt asked to make trade with China easier

JAKARTA (JP): The Association of Indonesian-Chinese Economic,
Social and Cultural Cooperation asked the Indonesian government
on Monday to remove the cultural and political barriers hindering
bilateral trade relations with China.

The association's chairman, Sukamdani, said the Indonesian
government should change its traditional stance of opposing the
use of Chinese languages by Indonesians of Chinese origin, for
the sake of better trade between the two countries.

"I have talked to the related government officials and advised
them to take concrete measures to allow a freer use of Chinese
languages in Indonesia. And I have had a positive response from
the government," Sukamdani told reporters during the gathering
with delegates from the China Council for the Promotion of
International Trade (CCPIT) at the Sahid Jaya hotel.

CCPIT's 12 delegates, consisting of government officials and
business people from China, are here from last Friday until
Tuesday to promote trade ties. The group is led by CCPIT vice
chairman An Chengxin.

Sukamdani said the government policy which bans the use of the
Chinese language is hampering the development of Indonesia's
trade with China.

The government, through a circular letter issued by the
information ministry's Directorate General of Press and Graphics,
in 1988 banned publications and advertisements using Chinese
characters.

Sukamdani gave two reasons for the importance of Indonesian
trade with China: China is a strong country with economic growth
of 7.8 percent in 1998, and China can provide cheap technology
for the development of Indonesia's agricultural industry.

Sukamdani, however, said the Indonesian government has made
good progress in removing some of the political constraints.

"Now the Indonesian Embassy in China can issue visas to people
who want to travel to Indonesia for business, vacation or
cultural purposes without having to process it for three months,"
Sukamdani said.

He said the tedious procedure involved in getting a visa to
Indonesia was due to the unnecessary checking and screening of
applicants, and that this discouraged business travel from China
to Indonesia.

Trade volume between Indonesia and China reached US$4.7
billion in 1997 and $3.6 billion in 1998, despite the economic
crisis. (02)