Two of three locals call spouse daily
Two of three locals call spouse daily
JAKARTA (JP): Two out of three Indonesians speak to their
spouse on the phone every day, but six percent of them admit they
seldom remember their partner's birthday, a survey found
recently.
Out of the 10 Asia-Pacific economies surveyed, only the
Filipinos can equal Indonesia's 66 percent score in keeping in
touch every day on the phone, according to the Hong Kong-based
Far Eastern Economic Review weekly, which conducted the survey
among 3,000 of its subscribers across the region.
The first part of the "Asia Lifestyle" survey can be found in
this week's issue of the magazine. The second and third parts
will be published in the Aug. 11 and Sept. 15 issues.
The survey discloses that the Indonesian respondents tied for
last place with the Japanese when it comes to remembering
birthdays, with six percent of each group saying they seldom
remembered their spouse's birthday.
By comparison, Nury Vittachi, a senior writer of the magazine,
noted that 98 percent of Filipinos claim to always or frequently
remember the day.
Personality profiles in the survey also revealed affluent
Indonesians are more spiritual than most people in the Asia
Pacific region, and less materialistic than the average.
Vittachi, the writer of the survey, told The Jakarta Post that
Indonesian respondents earn an average of US$83,000 a year, which
is more than the respondents of Australia ($82,000) and Taiwan
($71,000). Indonesian household incomes are $103,000 annually,
which is more than the household incomes in South Korea
($102,000).
The survey found that respondents in the Asia-Pacific
economies have enjoyed a rise in household income of 35 percent
in the past two years, reflecting a major shift in the dynamics
of international affluence.
Christianto Wibisono, a noted researcher in Jakarta, said
yesterday that he was not surprised to learn that the Indonesian
respondents earn as much annual income as $83,000.
"They must be executives working in big companies,"
Christianto said, adding that most Indonesians, however, still
live very poorly with the gap between the rich and the poor much
more serious than in other countries in the region.
According to the latest official data, the income per capita
in Indonesia is $645 while the minimum wage of a blue collar
workers in the Jakarta area is Rp 3,800 ($1.75) per day or Rp
1,140,000 per year.
"We're less egalitarian than other countries," Christianto
said, adding that the difference between an Indonesian
executive's salary and a worker's wages is tremendously unfair to
be compared with other countries. (09)