INDONESIA: Gov’t Raises Subsidized Fuel Prices by Up to 32%

Posted by Asia Views | Sep 5, 2022 | 0 |

JakartaGlobe-Sept 5, 2022

The government announced a long-anticipated fuel prices increase on Saturday in a move to rein in the state budget deficit this year and better allocate the subsidies to the poor. The subsidized diesel price rose 32 percent to Rp 6.800 ($0.46) a liter from Rp 5.150 a liter, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Arifin Tasrif said in a press conference broadcast live from the State Palace in Jakarta. Pertalite, a 90 RON gasoline sold by state-energy company Pertamina, now costs Rp 10,000 a liter, up 30 percent from Rp 7.650. It was the fuel’s first increase since 2019. The price of Pertamax, Pertamina’s RON 92 gasoline, rose 16 percent to Rp 14,500 per liter from Rp 12,500. Arifin said the new price was effective at 02:30 p.m Western Indonesia Time on Saturday. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who opened the press conference, said that the government had tried its best to shield the people from rising global energy prices, but it could not do that without swelling the state budget deficit.

“I actually want domestic fuel prices to remain affordable by providing subsidies from the state budget,” Jokowi said. “However, the budget for subsidies and fuel compensation in 2022 has increased by three times, from Rp 152.5 trillion to Rp 502.4 trillion, and it will continue to increase,” he said. The president also noted that more than 70 percent of the fuel subsidies went to car owners, who should be able to bear a higher fuel cost. “The state’s money should be prioritized to provide subsidies to the underprivileged,” Jokowi said. Sri Mulyani said the government had allocated Rp 24.17 trillion in additional budget for social protection to protect 50 percent of Indonesia’s most vulnerable population from the impact of the fuel price increases. “We estimate that with the additional social assistance of Rp 24.17 trillion, we can avoid an increase in poverty level. We even try to reduce it through other government programs,” she said. Read more at: https://jakartaglobe.id/business/govt-raises-subsidized-fuel-prices-by-up-to-32

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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD

Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.

“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”

INDONESIA: Gov’t Raises Subsidized Fuel Prices by Up to 32%

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