Some 1,500 rulings may be revoked

PADANG, West Sumatra: At least 1,500 rulings issued by the central government and various provincial administrations during the New Order era may be revoked when Law No. 22/1999 on regional autonomy takes effect.

State Minister for Regional Autonomy Ryaas Rasyid said here on Saturday that many of these regulations hindered the peoples' activities as they involved strict regulations and taxes on various private activities, such as setting up new businesses.

"In the past, much of the people's creativity in the regions was curdled by bureaucracy, which was further aggravated by a lot of red tape needed for various permits," he said, adding that many regulations were too "centralistic".

He called on local administrations and councils to establish new regulations in place of these restrictive ones in accordance with the individual needs of different areas.

"Provincial administrations and councils should pass new ones right away, because they are the ones who know and understand the potential of their regions," Ryaas said.

He also urged regional administrations to place a strong focus on the development of human resources.

"For a region to be able to compete in the global market, then their human resources must be adequate. It (human resources) will be the gauge both on a national level and international level," he said as quoted by Antara. (01)