Protection still needed for vital industries

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Cooperatives and Small Enterprises Subiakto Tjakrawerdaya says protection is still needed to enable important industries to compete in the free trade era in five years time.

"If we do not protect selected products, we'll lose to competition. Other countries will continue protectionism by giving subsidies," Subiakto was quoted by Antara as saying Thursday in Ujung Pandang, South Sulawesi.

He said Indonesia should develop the domestic market under the principle of "regulated openness".

"Openness has to be regulated to control the speed of change and its consequences," he said at a discussion on the draft 1998 State Guidelines, sponsored by the ruling Golkar.

Subiakto said Indonesia should use its comparative edge to compete in the global market in the free trade era.

He said Indonesia's comparative advantages were a large potential market, a lot of small, middle and big businesses and vast tracts of productive land for agribusiness.

"We have to first and foremost control and develop all our comparative advantages," he said.

Another speaker at the workshop, I Putu Gde Ary Suta, chairman of the Stock Exchange Supervisory Board, said the globalization process of the financial sector and bourses would speed up in the 21th century.

He said the process would create cross-border markets, change investment patterns, law enforcement, financial products, enhance international cooperation and give birth to young professionals, said Putu.

The workshop also featured Minister of Investment/Chairman of the Investment Coordinating Board Sanjoto Sastrowardoyo and Chairwoman of Golkar's central office Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana. (jsk)