Water resource bill needs examining
Water resource bill needs examining
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Activists urged lawmakers on Tuesday to revise some articles in
the water resource bill before bringing it to a House plenary
meeting for endorsement, in order to avoid conflict in the
community.
They also renewed opposition to a plan to privatize the water
sector in order to get loans from the World Bank.
"We urge legislators to open a dialog with the public and
examine articles in the bill before endorsing it," said Nadia
Hadad of the International Forum on Indonesian Development
(Infid) at a press conference here on Tuesday.
Nila Ardhani from the Indonesian Forum on Globalization
(Infog) also suggested that lawmakers revise some problematic
articles in the bill, to prevent possible communal conflict.
The activists feared that lawmakers would rush to endorse the
bill on Sept. 23 to meet the expectations of the World Bank.
Separately, legislator Sumaryoto -- who chairs a working
committee to discuss the water resource bill -- refused to
explain the bill in detail.
"We are still in the process of deliberating the substance of
the bill. Perhaps, the result of our discussion will be known in
the next two or three days," Sumaryoto told The Jakarta Post on
Tuesday evening.
Asked if the legislators intended to finish the bill and
endorse it on Sept. 23, Sumaryoto simply said that the process
would take days and that there was no agreement, regarding the
bill's endorsement on that date.
Nila said some articles in the bill had the potential to
incite communal conflicts.
Article 49 of the bill states that the construction of a
pipeline between regions can only be made if the water supply in
one region exceeds the people's demand.
Taking Jakarta as an example, Nila said residents who are
supplied with water from Bogor and Jatiluhur dam, (both in West
Java), could not access this supply should people in Bogor and
around Jatiluhur dam claim they did not have enough water.
This could also be the case for residents in towns in East
Java alongside the Bengawan Solo River, if residents in Surakarta
claimed that their water supply was insufficient.
Wianto Adipura -- another coalition member -- said he
suspected that the deliberation of the water resource bill was
part of the World Bank's grand plan to privatize the water
resource.
The move would allow foreign investors to control water
resources across the country, he said.
Wianto of the Semarang-based Soegiyopranoto University
disclosed that 119 of the total 293 state-owned drinking water
firms (PAM) had huge foreign debts.
"The debts justify the need to privatize state-run water
companies. This is a proof that there is a grand scheme (behind
the privatization drive)," Wianto said without elaboration.
Articles of the Water Resource Bill
Preamble: The control of water resources by the state is intended
to ensure people's access to water for daily needs
This contradicts Article 78 (2) which says in regard to the
financial condition of state water firms that the government to
some extent can give donations to ensure the prosperity of social
services and the public.
Article 10 (3): The scheme of water management is designed to
involve the public and private sector.
Article 40 (3): Cooperatives, state firms, private companies, and
the public can have a role in clean water
management
Article 46 (2): Control into the whole body of a river can only
be handled by state-owned companies.
Article 46 (3): Control into the body of a river exempted from
above paragraph can be managed by private firm or
individuals with licenses from the government.
Source: Water Resource Bill