Harmoko calls for modest lifestyle during crisis

JAKARTA (JP): Golkar chairman Harmoko again called for public austerity to cope with the monetary crisis, saying that to do so would be an act of nationalism.

"We need to try even harder to live simply and modestly," Harmoko was quoted by Antara as saying Saturday when addressing Golkar's 33rd anniversary celebrations held by the local Padang, West Sumatra branch.

"This situation is a test of our nationalism. We have to prove our social solidarity," said Harmoko, who is also the House speaker. It was Harmoko's second call for frugality in less than a week.

Indonesia has been hit by the monetary turmoil since July which has seen the rupiah decline against the U.S. dollar. The rupiah dropped to a record low of 6,000 last week following rumors that President Soeharto had died.

Last Friday, Vice President Try Sutrisno called on women, particularly members of organizations of civil servant's wives and female employees such as Dharma Wanita and Dharma Pertiwi, to stop going on shopping sprees abroad during the monetary crisis.

Quoted by State Minister of Women's Roles Mien Sugandhi, Try said that women should stop coveting for expensive foreign goods when they could find similar products in Indonesia at more reasonable prices.

"People of other countries will laugh at us... our country is in trouble, how can we enjoy ourselves abroad," she told reporters after meeting with the vice president.

"In short, this habit (of going on shopping sprees) is a no go. Bapak (Try) says no way," she said.

Women organizations including the Dharma Wanita branches of the Agency for Technology Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) and the Ministry of Transportation were recently involved in an uproar over shopping sprees abroad.

A group of 20 women from the agency's Dharma Wanita went to Bangkok from Dec. 9 to Dec. 12. The trip was reportedly subsidized by its chairwoman, Hasri Ainun Habibie, the wife of State Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie.

Hasri said the women went on holiday on their own initiative. She did not travel with them, according to Terbit daily.

It was also reported recently that Dit Haryanto, the wife of Transportation Minister Haryanto Dhanutirto, went to Bangkok together with other members of the ministry's Dharma Wanita chapter.

Customs at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport had detained several boxes which contained goods from the shopping spree in Bangkok, as they were not accompanied by appropriate papers.

Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto said his wife was only accompanying her disabled teacher to seek medical treatment in Singapore.

But he admitted that several of the wives of his officials did go to Bangkok on their own initiative, using their own money.

He claimed that customs had only a few goods, not dozens of boxes as had been reported. (prb/09)