Public debates needed

Minister of National Development Planning/Chairman of the National Development Planning Board Ginanjar Kartasasmita in his speech on the occasion of accepting an honorary doctor's degree in development administration from Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta on April 15, said that all public policies which have an extensive impact on the welfare of many should be transparent and beneficial to the people at large. A public debate on the subject should be held prior to the enacting of such a policy.

The topic of a public debate was again emphasized by Ginanjar in a closed discussion with the editorial staff of the newspaper Suara Pembaruan in Jakarta on Monday. According to the minister, the time has come for public debates to be held, or intensified, on matters of public policy that have a far reaching impact on the welfare of the people. Such debates constitute the essence of democracy, besides being required by the drive for modernization and greater openness or transparency as well as by globalization.

Considered further, public debates are one manner of exerting public control because it is through public debates that the community is informed about certain policies and thus can prepare to carry out such control when the policies are implemented.

-- Suara Pembaruan, Jakarta