Indonesian publishers cry out for paper supplies

JAKARTA (JP): Both newspaper and book publishers appealed to the government yesterday to take immediate steps to ensure a steady supply of affordable paper.

The Association of Indonesian Book Publishers (IKAPI) warned, during a hearing with the House of Representatives, that sharp increases in the prices of school books were resulting from the dearth of paper.

The Union of Newspaper Publishers (SPS) held an extraordinary meeting yesterday to discuss the shortage which, it says, is threatening the existence of dozens of newspapers.

The Association of Indonesian Journalists (PWI), in a separate statement, called for the abolition of import duties on paper and the elimination of other taxes on newspaper as one way of reducing costs.

"We support the 'no tax on knowledge' principle," said PWI Secretary General Parni Hadi, as quoted by Antara.

Newsprint, the raw material used by news publications, is currently still subject to a five percent import duty.

Many book publishers have been using newsprint for school textbooks in order to make them affordable to a wider audience.

Now, with the dire shortage of newsprint on the local market, book and newspaper publishers are competing with one another for the same dwindling supplies. Book publishers need at least 8,800 tons of newsprint per month, while newspapers require a further 12,000 tons per month.

The price of newsprint for newspaper publishers has been set at Rp 1,700 per kilogram after negotiations between the SPS and the two Indonesian companies that supply the material.

Book publishers, however, have to pay more than Rp 2,000 per kilogram.

Both IKAPI and SPS officials contradicted Minister of Industry Tunky Ariwibowo's assurances that the supply of newsprint in Indonesia was adequate.

"As of today there is no newsprint paper on the market," IKAPI chairman Rozali Usman told the House's Commission IX, whose sphere of responsibility includes education.

The SPS said the shortage had already taken a heavy toll on some of its members.

The Bandung Pos has reduced its pages from 16 to 12 and, according to reports, a newspaper in Aceh is about to stop printing altogether.

Leading publisher Surya Paloh of the Jakarta-based newspaper Media Indonesia warned that as many as 100 newspapers could go under during 1996 unless newsprint supply was guaranteed at cheaper prices.

Usman estimated that schoolbook prices would increase by as much as 40 percent this year. "If we had access to the promised 3,000 tons from producers, the increase would only be about 20 percent."

"With the newsprint shortage, we could turn to HVS paper," Usman said. But, he added, that would also entail an increase in production costs.

He said the Ministry of Education and Culture had promised to provide a subsidy of Rp 400 for every kilogram of HVS paper, currently priced at Rp 3,400 per kilogram. "We urge the government to adhere to its commitment."

The government has already waived value added taxes on all "educational books", but IKAPI said yesterday that all books should be accorded the same treatment.

Meanwhile, SPS acting chairman Handjojo Nitimihardjo urged paper suppliers to abide by their commitment to ensure adequate supply at the mutually agreed price level.

In his speech opening the SPS extraordinary meeting, he said some newspaper publishers had already been forced to pay more than the agreed 1,700 per kilogram.

"We are not asking for paper prices to come down, we are only appealing for a rational price ... Our earlier commitment was that newspaper publishers would take the paper on the basis of the price we agreed on," he said.

Legislators joined the chorus yesterday calling for government action to ensure adequate paper supply.

"The newsprint crisis is clearly a threat to the government's nine-year compulsory education program and the new school curricula," said Ansori Achmad of the Golkar faction.

Ansori also supported IKAPI's demand that its members be charged the same price for newsprint as newspaper publishers.

Some relief may be on the way after the government last week lifted a ban on the import of waste paper, the main raw material for newsprint producers.

"We hope that with (Friday's) announcement, the suppliers will be able to increase production," said IKAPI's Fachri Said. (anr)