New bylaw enforcement postponed for a month

New bylaw enforcement postponed for a month

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The city administration has been forced to delay until next month
the enforcement of a new bylaw on private shopping markets that
is expected to promote small-scale traders, following strong
objection from business associations.

"The new bylaw has been signed (by Governor Sutiyoso), but
given the strong opposition from business associations, we need
to explain it to them first," said administration spokesman
Muhayat.

He said that the administration would gather together the
businesspeople concerned in the middle of this month.

"There will be no change in the bylaw as it has been
finalized. Once the explanation has been done, we will start to
enforce the bylaw," he said.

Muhayat, however, could not specify exactly when the bylaw
would be enforced.

According to the new bylaw, which was approved by the City
Council last month, a private market operator should provide
between 10 percent and 20 percent of its space for informal
traders.

Agus Darmawan of City Council Commission B overseeing economic
affairs, said the administration's respective offices, including
that for economic affairs, would be responsible for the
assessment and appointment of small-scale traders.

Agus, from the National Mandate Party, said the new bylaw
aimed at empowering small-scale traders and scrapping
irregularities established by the previous regulation,
gubernatorial decree No. 5/1998 on private shopping markets.

In that decree, a market operator that did not wish to provide
space for small-scale traders would be permitted to pay
compensation in lieu to the administration.

Agus said the compensation ruling was unfair. For instance, he
said, the compensation payable in lieu of 20 percent of the space
being made available to small traders at ITC Cempaka Mas, in
Central Jakarta, was only around Rp 1 billion, while the cheapest
shop-house there sold for at least Rp 1.5 billion (US$173,410).

The new bylaw also carries a maximum sentence of three months
in jail, or a maximum fine of Rp 5 million.

Four business associations, the Indonesian Real Estate
Association (REI), the Shopping Center Management Association
(APPBI), the Indonesian Property Management Association (AMPRI)
and the Indonesian Retail Businessmen's Association (APRINDO),
last week protested the bylaw.

"It will deal another blow to already slack business, as we
would have to provide space to sidewalk vendors whom the city
administration has failed to accommodate," head of the Jakarta
chapter APBBI Stefanus Ridwan told The Jakarta Post.