Putting much-awaited consumer protection law in perspective

JAKARTA (JP): The situation is changing for consumers who have long lacked recourse concerning dud products and shoddy services.

With the consumer protection law set to take effect on April 21, the public hopes they will no longer be ignored, exploited or harassed by producers and service providers. Violators of the law are subject to a maximum Rp 2 billion fine or five-year jail term, in addition to the revocation of the business permit.

Under the law, the first of its kind, both customers and producers/service providers are on an equal footing, something which was neglected for many years.

Consumers gained a strong position years ago in many countries. Then U.S. president John F. Kennedy declared four basic rights of consumers on March 15, 1962: the right of security, accurate information, to be heard and to make a choice. The rights have been internationally recognized; the 1985 UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection stated that consumers from all nations have certain basic rights regardless of their wealth or social status.

Law No. 8/1999 on consumer protection will be implemented in Indonesia a year after it was approved legislators. The initial bill was proposed to the House of Representatives by the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) in 1981.

The 15-chapter, 65-article law is expected to protect the country's 210 million people who -- as stated in YLKI's statement when the law was signed by then president B.J. Habibie last year -- have been systematically oppressed in the political, legal, economic and cultural spheres.

Here are pertinent articles from the law.

Article 4 governs consumer rights, such as the right for comfort, security and safety in consuming a product and/or partaking of a service; and the right to receive correct, clear and honest information about products or services.

Article 5 regulates consumer obligations, including paying according to the agreed exchange value.

Article 6 defines businesspeople's rights, including obtaining legal protection from unscrupulous consumers.

Article 7 states businesspeople's obligations, including to provide correct, clear and honest information about the state of a product and/or service; to treat consumers without discrimination; and to provide compensation and/or substitution if a product and/or service is not as agreed.

Article 8 defines prohibitions against businesspeople in marketing their product.

In the first subarticle, businesspeople are prohibited from producing and/or marketing a product and/or service that, for example, lacks an expiry date.

Other subarticles prohibit businesspeople from marketing damaged or tainted products, including pharmaceuticals and food supplies.

Article 9 prohibits businesspeople from offering, promoting or advertising a product and/or service inappropriately through, among other things, using exaggerated endorsements, such as stating a product is safe and carries no risks or side effects, without providing complete information.

Article 10 bars businesspeople from offering, promoting or advertising a product and/or service through false or misleading statements.

Article 11 bans businesses from using auctions or bargain sale marketing to mislead consumers by, for instance, hiking the price or rate of the product and/or service prior to the sale.

Article 12 prohibits businesspeople from offering, promoting or advertising a product and/or service at a special rate or price and in a certain quantity and time, if they do not intend to carry it out as offered, promoted or advertised.

Article 13 bars businesspeople from, among other things, offering, promoting or advertising drugs, traditional medicine, food supplements, medical equipment and health services by promising gifts in the form of other products and/or services.

Article 14 regulates the use of a lottery system in marketing.

Article 15 bars businesspeople from coercing customers, physically or mentally, in offering their product and/or service.

Article 16 controls the offering of products by mail.

Article 17 regulates advertisements, including banning ads which could deceive consumers.

Article 18 bans businesspeople from using fixed clauses in a document and/or agreement. All fixed clauses are annulled under the law and businesspeople are required to make necessary adjustments.

Article 19 states that businesspeople are responsible to compensate consumers who suffer losses due to their products or services.

Article 20 holds advertisers responsible for the impact of their ads.

Article 25 obligates producers of products with long-term use to provide spare parts and/or after-service facilities.

Article 26 obligates businesspeople to honor the guarantee and/or warranty of their products.

Article 29 makes it the government's responsibility to supervise the execution of consumer protection and to guarantee that both customers and businesspeople obtain their rights and fulfill their obligations.

Article 30 states that the government, community members and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for consumer protection should monitor the execution of the law.

Articles 31 through 43 regulate a national body for consumer protection, which is situated in the capital and answers directly to the president. The body has a maximum of 25 members, representing the government, businesspeople, NGOs on consumer protection, experts and academicians.

Articles 49 through 58 rule on the establishment of an arbitration board in charge of solving consumer complaints. The body, which will be available at the regional level, will have five members at most and be accountable to the minister.

Article 55 states that the body in charge of solving consumer complaints should make a decision within 21 days after receiving the complaint.

Article 56 stipulates, among other things, businesspeople's obligation to execute the body's decision within seven days.

Article 60 defines administrative penalties. The body in charge of solving consumer complaints will impose penalties to those violating articles 19 (subarticles 2 and 3), 20, 25, and 26. Violators face a maximum fine of Rp 200 million.

Article 62 states criminal penalties. Businesspeople violating articles 8, 9, 10, 13 (subarticle 2), 15, 17 (subarticle 1: a, b, c, e and subarticle 2), and 18 will face a maximum fine of Rp 2 billion or prison terms of up to five years.

Businesspeople who violates article 11, 12, 13 (subarticle 1), 14, 16, 17 (subarticle 1: d and f) will face up to Rp 500 million in fines or prison terms of up to two years.

Article 63 states criminal charge as stipulated in article 62 might lead to, among other actions, the revocation of business permits. (ste)