Susilo denies anti-Chinese economic policy

Susilo denies anti-Chinese economic policy

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Leading presidential candidate Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono denied
accusations that he and his running mate Jusuf Kalla were
discriminatory against Chinese-Indonesian businesspeople, saying
his future government would foster unity for the good of the
country.

"I'm not in power, so how could they accuse me of not being
cooperative with the ethnic Chinese?" Susilo questioned during a
press conference at his private residence in Bogor.

"I do not discriminate against anyone ... all elements of this
country should join hands and work together for a better future
in Indonesia."

Susilo was responding to criticism aired by a number of
Chinese-Indonesian businesspeople against statements made by his
running mate, who on several occasions said he would fully
support the policies of past governments, which put a great
emphasis on assisting indigenous businesspeople and putting
certain limits on the ethnic Chinese community.

On Kalla's official website, www.jusufkalla.com, he says:
"Favoritism for pribumi (indigenous) businessmen should be
reaffirmed and maintained."

Born in Makassar, South Sulawesi, Kalla was raised in a family
who successfully expanded to many lucrative sectors, including
engineering, infrastructure, automotive and transportation.

The Kalla family has focused on doing business in the eastern
regions of the country and they have become one of few major
indigenous business conglomerates that are able to compete with
Chinese-Indonesian businesspeople.

Critics said Kalla wanted to emulate the discriminatory
policies under founding president Sukarno, known as Sistem
Benteng (fortress system) that provided privileges for indigenous
businesspeople in the form of loans for small- and medium-sized
enterprises and gave them control over the distribution of staple
commodities.

Under the system, which took effect in 1959, Chinese-
Indonesians were barred from expanding their businesses beyond
the regency level, which prompted some 130,000 Chinese-
Indonesians to leave the country.

Only a few of them survived and were then able to develop a
good relationship with Soeharto, an Army general who seized power
from Sukarno in 1966.

During his tenure, Soeharto became allies with a small clique
of ethnic-Chinese businesspeople who enjoyed certain privileges,
particularly loans, to expand their businesses, which ranged from
the timber industry and banks to automobiles and basic
commodities.

A select group of Chinese-Indonesian businesspeople also built
relationships and later business partnerships with the military.

At the peak of the economic crisis in early 1998, Soeharto's
administration provided more than Rp 138 trillion in emergency
bail-out loans for a number of banks, many of which were owned by
Chinese-Indonesians.

The worsened economic situation led to massive and violent
street demonstrations and eventually forced Soeharto to step down
in disgrace. Hundreds of Chinese-Indonesians and their shops
were targeted and fell victim in mass riots that preceded the
fall of Soeharto.