Monopoly at Tanjung Priok

Monopoly at Tanjung Priok

From Kompas

On July 1, 2000, Kompas reported that the president director of Humpuss Terminal Petikemas stated that Ocean Investment Ltd, a subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa had won the tender to buy all of PT Humpuss Terminal Petikemas's shares. The fact that Hutchison now managers two container terminals (JITC and KOJA) at Tanjung Priok is worrying to us as a national company that uses the port more than any other does.

What Hutchison, a foreign company, is doing is obviously monopolistic. It should be noted that 70 percent of the cargo from all over Indonesia goes through Tanjung Priok. In the chief seaports in our neighboring countries like the Philippines (Manila), Thailand (Laem Chabang) and Malaysia (Port Klang), container terminals are managed by two or more companies.

Therefore, we would like to call on members of the House of People's Representatives and the Indonesian government to prevent this monopolistic practice from continuing. It is our hope that the spirit of reform in which the monopolistic ways of Indonesian companies will be done away with, will also lead to the scrapping of monopolistic practices of foreign companies, particularly those at Tanjung Priok.

AI SOEBAGJO WINDOE

Director of PT Samudera Indonesia Tbk