'Joint operation telecoms safeguard local companies'

'Joint operation telecoms safeguard local companies'

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications
Joop Ave is confident the private-public joint operation system
for telecommunication projects would protect local companies amid
free trade in information technology.

Joop said yesterday Indonesia's decision to endorse the
information technology agreement under the World Trade
Organization (WTO) framework was not made "merely because it was
there".

"In fact, some countries may, in a way, feel outdone by
Indonesia," he said.

Under the joint operation system -- known as KSO -- the state
telecommunications firm PT Telkom and its private partners are
responsible for installing and operating telephone lines in
specified areas for 15-year periods.

Each private consortium is given three years to install new
lines and 15 years to operate them: Telkom will share the revenue
from these operations.

The joint operations, which were officially launched last
year, will give Telkom an estimated Rp 15 trillion (US$6.5
billion) within the contract periods.

Joop said the contracts would help the country accommodate
foreign information technology.

"Since (domestic and foreign telecommunication firms) are
bound by the 15-year contracts, we will have 15 years to prepare
ourselves before entering a free information technology market,"
he said.

The information technology agreement, endorsed by WTO members
last week, aims to scrap tariffs in the rapidly growing market
for information technology products. The market was worth about
US$600 billion last year.

Deadline

The United States proposed a year 2000 deadline for zero-
tariffs on information technology products. Developing countries,
including Indonesia, did not agree to a specific time frame
although they basically supported the proposal.

Joop said yesterday Indonesia "refused to be dictated" by
developed countries on when to completely liberalize its
information technology products market.

"We cannot be treated the same way... We are willing to
approve the proposal because we want to develop. But don't
dictate to us," he said.

The Ministry's Secretary-General Jonathan Parapak said
yesterday that about 75 percent of information technology
products had zero-tariff levels.

"I think we will be ready to completely liberalize our
information technology products market some time between 2003 and
2005," he said.

He said the government was developing the "Nusantara 21"
vision which was expected to involve extensive private sector
participation.

The vision aims to provide equal access to all the country's
regions and districts with an accurate, up-to-date database.

The database would be transmitted by various telecommunication
technologies, including fiber-optic and satellite transmissions.

"This will require not only hardware infrastructure but
software appliances as well. And to do this, we will need huge
investments which we hope will mostly come from the private
sector," he said.

Joop yesterday launched a CD-ROM and an official home page on
Indonesian tourism on the Internet. He also introduced the
official mascot of Indonesian tourism, called Jakantara, which
was taken from the Javanese wayang figure of Petruk.

The tourist promotion database, developed by PT Ultra Sumber
Daya and PT Internet Nusa Bhakti, would contain information on
domestic tourist destinations. (pwn)