The Indonesian Police Watch (IPW) reported on Sunday that the recent five-day series of massive rallies to protest against the government's plan to increase fuel prices had resulted in damage to at least 16 police stations nationwide.
In its press release, IPW said four damaged police stations were located in Jakarta, while the remaining 12 were located in several other big cities, like Makassar, Medan, Yogyakarta, Samarinda and Kendari.
The rallies, held from March 27 to March 31 by students, activists and supporters of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the country's largest opposition party, also damaged four patrol cars and one police motorcycle.
The House of Representatives decided early on Saturday to allow the government to raise subsidized fuel prices only if the Indonesia Crude Price (ICP) was 15 percent higher than assumed in the state budget within six months, meaning that the government had to cancel its initial plan to increase subsidized fuel prices today.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
PKS told to leave government over fuel price rebellion
Democratic Party executive and lawmaker Umar Arsal said on Sunday the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) should withdraw its ministers from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Cabinet after refusing to support the government's recent plan to increase fuel prices.
Umar said the other parties within the government coalition had also been disturbed by the PKS' unexpected political move in the recent fuel price controversy.
“I can understand if the Democratic Party and other
parties in our coalition ask the PKS to take their ministers out of the Cabinet,” Umar said as quoted by tribunnews.com.
The PKS initially had four ministers in Yudhoyono's Cabinet before the President appointed former environment
minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta as Research and Technology Minister replacing Suharna Surapranata, a senior PKS member, in a major Cabinet reshuffle last year.
In a dramatic vote, the House finally agreed to revise the 2012 state budget in the early hours of Saturday. The decision automatically aborted the government’s plan to raise the fuel price by 33 percent from its current price on April 1 but allowed it to increase the price if the Indonesian Crude Price is 15 percent higher than assumed in the state budget within six months.
The PKS had earlier said it would oppose the plan despite being part of the ruling coalition. The party’s lawmakers maintained their opposition during voting to determine the fuel price increase.
Indonesia sets the price of subsidized fuel at Rp 4.500 (49 US cents) per liter, making the country’s fuel price the cheapest among Southeast Asia countries.
Umar said the other parties within the government coalition had also been disturbed by the PKS' unexpected political move in the recent fuel price controversy.
“I can understand if the Democratic Party and other
parties in our coalition ask the PKS to take their ministers out of the Cabinet,” Umar said as quoted by tribunnews.com.
The PKS initially had four ministers in Yudhoyono's Cabinet before the President appointed former environment
minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta as Research and Technology Minister replacing Suharna Surapranata, a senior PKS member, in a major Cabinet reshuffle last year.
In a dramatic vote, the House finally agreed to revise the 2012 state budget in the early hours of Saturday. The decision automatically aborted the government’s plan to raise the fuel price by 33 percent from its current price on April 1 but allowed it to increase the price if the Indonesian Crude Price is 15 percent higher than assumed in the state budget within six months.
The PKS had earlier said it would oppose the plan despite being part of the ruling coalition. The party’s lawmakers maintained their opposition during voting to determine the fuel price increase.
Indonesia sets the price of subsidized fuel at Rp 4.500 (49 US cents) per liter, making the country’s fuel price the cheapest among Southeast Asia countries.
House slams budget revision plan
The House budget committee’s meeting with the government over the revision of the state budget reached a stalemate on Thursday, with lawmakers claiming that government “mismanagement” caused an overhaul of macroeconomic assumptions.
“It has been merely three months since we approved [the 2012 state budget] and we have to make significant and thorough changes already,” Tamsil Linrung, the deputy chairman of the House budget committee from Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said during the hearing, which was attended by representatives from the Finance Ministry, Bank Indonesia, the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) and the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).
“If the changes are based on external factors, then we could understand. But the problem here is the changes look to be caused not by external factors only, but also internal problems, such as the government’s mismanagement,” Tamsil said, citing that state-owned electricity company PT PLN saw electricity subsidies double to Rp 89.55 trillion, from Rp 40.45 trillion in the previous budget.
The government is proposing several alterations in macroeconomic indicators for the state budget. It proposes to lower the yearly economic-growth forecast from 6.7 percent to 6.5 percent, increase the annual inflation target from 5.3 percent to 7 percent and change the official exchange rate to Rp 9,000, from Rp 8,800, against the US dollar.
The proposed revisions will see the price of Indonesian crude oil change to US$105 per barrel, from $90 per barrel, and an oil production target of 930,000 barrels per day (bpd), down from 950,000 bpd.
The substantial rise of global oil prices and the economic slowdown in United States and Europe are among the reasons behind the revision, Finance Ministry acting chief of fiscal policy Bambang Brodjonegoro told lawmakers during the hearing.
Bambang, however, acknowledged government mismanagement had been the major factor behind the overhaul in the state budget’s macroeconomic assumptions.
“We certainly have an internal problem on why the electricity subsidy could soar and our oil production could not achieve the estimated targets,” Bambang said, adding that the government, through the state-owned enterprises minister, would conduct internal evaluations on the matter.
The revision of macroeconomic assumptions in the state budget was imperative to keep the country’s budget deficit below the permissible level of 2.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), Bambang told lawmakers at the end of the hearing, which was adjourned until Friday.
“It has been merely three months since we approved [the 2012 state budget] and we have to make significant and thorough changes already,” Tamsil Linrung, the deputy chairman of the House budget committee from Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said during the hearing, which was attended by representatives from the Finance Ministry, Bank Indonesia, the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) and the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).
“If the changes are based on external factors, then we could understand. But the problem here is the changes look to be caused not by external factors only, but also internal problems, such as the government’s mismanagement,” Tamsil said, citing that state-owned electricity company PT PLN saw electricity subsidies double to Rp 89.55 trillion, from Rp 40.45 trillion in the previous budget.
The government is proposing several alterations in macroeconomic indicators for the state budget. It proposes to lower the yearly economic-growth forecast from 6.7 percent to 6.5 percent, increase the annual inflation target from 5.3 percent to 7 percent and change the official exchange rate to Rp 9,000, from Rp 8,800, against the US dollar.
The proposed revisions will see the price of Indonesian crude oil change to US$105 per barrel, from $90 per barrel, and an oil production target of 930,000 barrels per day (bpd), down from 950,000 bpd.
The substantial rise of global oil prices and the economic slowdown in United States and Europe are among the reasons behind the revision, Finance Ministry acting chief of fiscal policy Bambang Brodjonegoro told lawmakers during the hearing.
Bambang, however, acknowledged government mismanagement had been the major factor behind the overhaul in the state budget’s macroeconomic assumptions.
“We certainly have an internal problem on why the electricity subsidy could soar and our oil production could not achieve the estimated targets,” Bambang said, adding that the government, through the state-owned enterprises minister, would conduct internal evaluations on the matter.
The revision of macroeconomic assumptions in the state budget was imperative to keep the country’s budget deficit below the permissible level of 2.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), Bambang told lawmakers at the end of the hearing, which was adjourned until Friday.
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