Reform for foreigners

Reform for foreigners

As my friend Roland Woehrle pointed out in his May 27 farewell
letter, Indonesia is a great country and I personally believe
that if there is a solution to the present crisis, there might
even be a brighter future than Indonesian people nowadays dream
of! That requires good politicians available to come to the fore
and also support from the international community.

It will certainly take a lot of time until the country is
reformed to the extent the people demand.

In the meantime, may I, as an expatriate, ask for a favor,
namely to include some reforms for us in the overall program. I
would definitely feel much more comfortable and relaxed here in
your country, if:

* the new government would cancel the ridiculous exit tax
residents must pay every time they leave the country.

* the new government would liberalize visa and stay/work permits
to enable international businesspeople to move around more
easily. As long as the corresponding regulations are being
misused by Indonesian immigration staff to squeeze people for
money, businesspeople will certainly not be motivated, as they
have in the past, to stay on.

* TV programs should be liberalized so that, for instance, people
are not presented with a president's speech on all six channels
at the same time. I consider this kindergarten programming not
suitable for grown-up people, who should have options.

I realize, of course, that at this moment the new government
has more important subjects of reform but as you'll need foreign
support to overcome your problems it would be nice if some
foreign requirements could also be considered.

MANFRED WEBER

Jakarta