Nation should be ashamed of ongoing riots: Mar'ie

Nation should be ashamed of ongoing riots: Mar'ie

JAKARTA (JP): The chairman of Social Safety Net Supervision,
Mar'ie Muhammad, said on Friday rioting in many parts of the
country would not be brought to an end by indiscriminate blaming.

The former minister of finance said the nation should be
ashamed with the ongoing violence, which had tarnished the
country's image.

"Let us show to the world that we are a civilized nation, a
civilized society," Mar'ie said, after meeting with President
B.J. Habibie at Merdeka Palace.

Mar'ie, chairman of the Indonesian Community for Humanity
supervising the use of the safety net funds, said his
organization would launch a massive humanitarian operation to
help refugees in riot-torn West Kalimantan, Maluku, East Timor
and other provinces until there was a return to normalcy.

He said an emergency fund was needed to finance the operation
and the President had agreed to provide state funds for the
charitable works.

He confirmed that he spoke with the President about various
programs including the government's plan to spend Rp 7.8 trillion
(US$906 million) during the 1999/2000 fiscal year to provide
subsidized rice to about 80 million poor people across the
country.

A similar program last year expended Rp 1.1 trillion. The rice
was sold for Rp 1,000 per kilogram.

Mari'e declined to elaborate on the progress of his
investigation on the much-criticized social safety net programs,
funded by the government and world organizations.

"We are still waiting for the government's response," he said
in response to questions regarding letters he recently sent to
several ministries, asking them about alleged misuse of the
safety net funding.

Last year, international organizations including the World
Bank and the International Monetary Fund criticized Indonesia for
a lack of transparency in the disbursement of the Rp 17.8
trillion social safety net fund.

In February, Mar'ie said only 30 percent of the fund had been
distributed to needy people, due to lack of cooperation among
state agencies.

He recently sent a letter to remind Central Java Governor
Mardiyanto that all poor people, not only Golkar supporters, had
the right to receive cheap rice from the government.

Mar'ie cited reports from Banjarnegara and Cilacap in Central
Java where only Golkar supporters were given the subsidized rice.
Other people allegedly were forced to buy it at higher prices.

The Cenderawasih Pos daily reported in March a number of
abuses of the funds in Jayapura, Irian Jaya. Local officials
allegedly pocketed the money or distributed it to relatives or
close friends.

Jayapura authorities reported they had given Rp 25 million to
a group of 60 taxi drivers for a taxi procurement program.

"In fact, the money was only used by six people including the
subdistrict chief," the daily reported. (prb/34)