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