Govt economic policies
The Jakarta Post's comment about our country's problems and the government's economic team's performance in an editorial titled Bitter medicine on May 17, contains a number of factual errors.
This economic team shares the deep concern of the Post about the consequences of a weakening currency. Since the current Cabinet took office, the economic team has been working hard to implement policies to strengthen the economy and the rupiah. We have been successful in a number of areas, as acknowledged by our partners.
In an important sense, the depreciation of the rupiah is at least in part a "monetary problem". Bank Indonesia, not the government, was given the responsibility by the current Central Bank Law to maintain the value of the rupiah. If monetary growth is too rapid, one will see the type of depreciation that we have seen over the past 18 months. As Ross McLeod of the Indonesia Project at the Australian University in Canberra pointed out on your editorial page "if inflation and depreciation of the currency get out of hand, the Central Bank must bear the blame". And the fact is the Central Bank Law provides one single objective for Bank Indonesia, i.e. maintaining the value of the rupiah.
The economic team supports the central bank's efforts to tighten the monetary policy, lower inflation and strengthen the rupiah. Wherever blame lies for our current predicament, there are a number of tough decisions that must be made. For instance the weak rupiah and high interest rates that are needed to address them have completely undermined the 2001 budget as passed by the House of Representatives. Thus we now project that without dramatic adjustments to our policies, the budget deficit will balloon from 3.7 percent to 6 percent of Gross Domestic Product.
Since such a high deficit cannot be readily financed without fueling further inflation or forcing interest rates even higher, difficult times demand that hard choices be made. It is for this reason that the government is proposing a series of tough measures to the House. These will include reducing the burden of subsidies on the budget, an increase in the value-added tax and a reduction in development expenditures.
The House will have to make sure that it too can make hard choices. The nation cannot afford to ignore the budgetary problems in the hopes that it will somehow go away. Failing to act now will only further weaken the rupiah and cause further suffering for all Indonesians.
I would like to take exception to the short shrift your editorial gives to the accomplishments of the people of Indonesia last year. We should all be proud that despite the problems in the country last year, the economy grew at 4.8 percent and continued to grow at 4 percent into the first quarter of this year, driven by high levels of non-oil and gas exports, higher than precrisis levels. As stated by Coordinating Minister for the Economy Rizal Ramli when he took office in August 2000, his priority is first of all to push exports. That we now have the beginnings of a recovery, as indicated by the increased use of electricity and cement and increases in car production and sales of motorbikes, is in part due to the diligence of a well- coordinated economic team.
The economic team is now working to implement a comprehensive set of economic policies that will improve the productivity of Indonesian capital and labor so that our products are competitive in world markets irrespective of the value of the rupiah.
But economic policies do not work in a vacuum. It will take more than good economic policy to strengthen the rupiah. Without some sort of solution to our political problems, there is not much that an economic policy can accomplish.
KOMARA DJAJA
Deputy Macroeconomics and Finance The Office of the Coordinating Minister for
Economic Affairs
;JP;WYS; ANPAk..r.. Letter-silicone Silicone surgery JP/4/let
Silicone surgery
I have just returned from lecturing and demonstrating dermatologic surgical techniques at hospitals and universities in Sumatra. While there, I read with great interest your lead article in the Sunday, May 6, 2001 paper on silicone.
I was privileged to be invited to do surgery on multiple ladies with impure silicone reactions while in Solo Tampil menarik tanpa silikon (Beauty without silicone). I was a keynote speaker on the subject "Complications of silicone injections" and "Beauty without complications of silicone" at a seminar in Jakarta.
The problems evolve not from properly administered pure medical grade silicone, but from the impure and adulterated products arriving from China, Taiwan and Thailand, your writers have determined. However, pure silicone products are used throughout the medical world by a variety of specialists, and it panics people to misinterpret this fact.
Artificial impact organs of a variety of types are used successfully, including breast, testes, chin, nose, ureter, etc. All are pure, placed in sterile fashion, and excellent for their respective intended uses. Recent use of a heavy liquid silicone for eye implant work has gone on successfully, and additional new products are on the horizon. But none of these are impure, adulterated or non-sterile, as found in Indonesia, and all are placed by physicians rather than lay operators.
A comment from a plastic surgeon, Dr. Yefta Moenadjat, quoted in your paper, is incorrect. Collagen injections do not stimulate "the formation of natural collagen after each injection". There is a minimal fibrotic reaction to the bovine (cow skin) product in some humans, but reliable and permanent collagen is not lain down after each injection.
Having personally participated in the original clinical studies on the product these many years ago, biopsy studies of injected sites failed to confirm Dr. Yefta's claim. Your reading public is advised to consult with knowledgeable dermatologists/dermatologic surgeons when any foreign materials are to be injected into or on their skin.
PROF. DR. LAWRENCE M. FIELD
Foster City, California
USA
;JP;WYS; ANPAk..r.. Letter-toll gate Kebon Jeruk toll gate JP/4/let
Kebon Jeruk tollgate
The Tangerang toll road, particularly the area between Kebon Jeruk and the Slipi intersection, which has been a burden for many motorists, would be a smoother and more comfortable drive if only the authorities were more responsive to the current traffic situation.
At present, the tollgates to Tangerang and the tollgates to Kebon Jeruk are both located at the same point, across the entire width of the toll road. All the vehicles going to Tangerang and to the significantly growing number of housing areas around Kebon Jeruk (Puri Indah, Kedoya, etc.) become bottlenecked. As a result, the traffic between the tollgates and the Slipi intersection often get congested.
It is necessary for the authorities to build a new set of tollgates to Tangerang that are separate from the Kebon Jeruk tollgates, located a considerable distance up the road. The current location of the Tangerang tollgates is the culprit of the present traffic congestion near the Kebun Jeruk exit area and therefore should be removed. That would be a great relief for commuters from Tangerang and Kebon Jeruk, as well as for the intercity cargo trucks which are frequent users of the toll road.
JENNY LAURITZ KHOENG
Jakarta
;KORAN TEMPO;JRS; ANPAk..r.. Letter-election Expedite general election JP/4/let
Election should be expedited
From Koran Tempo
Considering the heated political situation in our country, plus the fact that the majority of factions in the House of Representatives continue to insist that President Abdurrahman Wahid step down, I would like to propose that the next general election be expedited. Namely, I propose the elections be held in 2002 rather than in 2004, when Abdurrahman's term in office is scheduled to end.
In my opinion, this proposal should be delivered to Abdurrahman during the planned meeting between the President and the leaders of the four top political parties. In this way, there would be no need to hold a special session of People's Consultative Assembly. Also, this plan would calm the political situation so the government could perform its job in peace.
SOETARSO PRIASUKMANA
Bogor, West Java
;WARTA KOTA;FAL; ANPAk..r.. Letter-violence Violence on the train JP/4/let
Stop violence on the train
From Warta Kota
Attacks on the train to Bekasi, Cikarang and Purwakarta have been going on every day now for nearly a month. Stone throwing and even some passengers threatening others with sickles are almost becoming a fact of life. The victims are usually innocent people, including small children and the elderly, who know nothing about this problem. This hooliganism always happens when the train stops at the Cakung station or travels on the route to Cakung and Kranji.
By writing this letter, I am appealing to those Cakung residents who attack the train either from the platform or from behind the banana trees in the area to stop these heinous acts. What good is it to throw stones at innocent people?
Dear brothers, if any of you or your relatives were hurt because of these criminal acts committed by these people, you should take the matter to court, no matter how bad our judiciary is. But please remember that there is also the law of God.
You can, of course, hide and inflict injuries on others, but that does not solve any problems. Whatever your reasoning is for these actions, I firmly believe that you still have a conscience that outweighs vengeance. Therefore, do not use violence as it never solves any problems. Violence only breeds violence.
MITA SIAHAAN
Bekasi, West Java