GOVERNMENT STATEMENT ON THE 2000 DRAFT STATE BUDGET TO THE HOUSE OF THE PEOPLE'S REPRESENTATIVES OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA

GOVERNMENT STATEMENT ON THE 2000 DRAFT STATE BUDGET TO THE HOUSE OF THE PEOPLE'S REPRESENTATIVES OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA


Honourable Speaker, Vice Speakers and Members of the House of the People’s Representatives,
Distinguished Guests,
Fellow citizens all over Indonesia,
Assalamu’Alaikum Warrahmatullahi Wabarakatuh,


Today, it gives me great pleasure to discharge one of the constitutional duties of the President, namely to submit the Year 2000 Draft State Budget to the House.
On this occasion, allow me to invite the Honourable Leadership and members of the House to praise God the Almighty for His blessing which has enabled us to convene this plenary session of the House today. Before proceeding to the substance of the Budget, however, allow me to convey a message of Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2000, Happy Galungan Day and Happy Eid el Fitr 1420 Hegira. It is the hope of the Government that the peaceful atmosphere of Christmas, that of the holy month of Ramadhan and of the Galungan will bring about peace and good rapport between and among us.
The Year 2000 Draft State Budget is the draft for the first-year budget which has been drawn up pursuant to the 1999-2004 State Policy Guidelines.
In accordance with direction in the Guidelines, the draft state budget is a draft for the state budget in the transitional period of the 1 April to 31 March Fiscal Year (FY), which
will become the calendar year. In spite of the fact that the Year 2000 Draft State Budget is meant as the transitional budget, in drawing up the draft the Government did not in the least abandon the good mechanism of cooperating with the House.
This transitional provision is indeed highly important and there is indeed an objective need for that. The Government and the House have to better prepare themselves in order for them to be able to work in the new system of life as members of the nation and state, as regulated by the various decrees of the Assembly in the last General Session. In this new system, the center of the gravity of the legislative authority has been moved from the President to the House. Not only do high state institutions have the obligations to implement the State Policy Guidelines, they also are obliged to report on the implementation of the Guidelines in the yearly session of the People’s Consultative Assembly.
Experience has shown that the constitution which was designed in the framework of setting up the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia fifty five years ago contains many positive points which must be maintained well; however, there are also points which need improving. As was agreed upon in the last General Session of the Assembly, we must keep the preamble to the 1945 Constitution. However, as regards the system of the government which regulates the relationships between and among various state-running institutions, it has been felt that it needs to be restructured. We take this measure either to ward off the concentration and centralization of power or to provide maximum opportunities for the potentials of our nation.
All of those are happening when situations in various fields are still critical and cannot be fully surmounted yet. We are facing options which are not easy to choose and which need to be well weighed before a binding decision is made. It is obvious that all of the problems which have piled up for so long cannot be solved at once. It is obvious that we have to take short-term safety measures first, not only for the sake of overcoming a chain of crises, but also for the sake of building a platform, from which we move forward to the next stage.
In the midst of restless and nervous situations in facing the many national problems nowadays, we should be thankful to God that there are initial convincing indications that as a nation we still have the endurance and potentials to re-awaken. The endurance and potentials are obviously the synergistic effects which arise from the combinations of all of the forces owned by the diverse Indonesian nation. We should also be grateful to God that friendly countries understand the gravity of the problems that we must solve, and they welcome the national policy which we have agreed upon in facing the future.
The Government is fully aware that sociopolitical and security problems constitute national priorities which we must handle, the reason being that the solution of those problems is a prerequisite for restoring our economy. Various short-term basic policies have been, are being, and will be taken to solve those problems. The basic policies and concrete measures still need to be developed further by forging close cooperation with the House.
Nevertheless, on this occasion of submitting the statement on the Year 2000 State Budget which will be effective for only nine months, namely from 1 April to 31 December 2000, allow the Government to focus its attention to the handling of economic issues. The following statement encompasses, sequentially, the main points on the general conditions of our economy, the Government’s vision on the medium-term economic framework, the prerequisites needed for the development of our national economy, and the main underpinnings for the drawing up of the Year 2000 Draft Sate Budget as the short-term economic framework.
Honourable Speaker, Vice Speakers, and Members of House,
As a point of departure in the drawing up of this years’ state budget, it can be noted that the world economy in 1999 grew, so it is estimated, higher than it was in the preceding year. Whereas in 1998 the world economy growth was 2.5 per cent, it is estimated that in 1999 it reached 3.0 per cent. It is estimated that in 2000 the world economy will even grow higher, namely to 3.5 per cent. Meanwhile, Asian countries which were hit by the economic crisis most severely, such as South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia, have gradually been recovered and began to sustain a positive growth in 1999.
The fairly good development in the national economy is shown by the fact that there was an expansion of 3.1 per cent in the second quarter of 1999, which was followed with an increase of 0.54 per cent in the third quarter. On the basis of this, in the FY 1999/2000, the Indonesian economy experienced, it is estimated, a growth of 1 to 2 per cent. In the year 2000 state budget it is expected that the economy will grow at a higher rate of 3 to 4 per cent.
As the outcomes of various Government policies such as the prudent monetary policy, basic commodities are adequately available; the distribution of goods and services is smooth; and the exchange rate of the rupiah is relatively stable; and the growth of the consumers price index in forty three cities (except Dili) was, in the first nine months of the 1999/2000 FY, adequately under control. During that period, there is an inflation rate of minus 2.61 per cent, much lower than that in the same period in the previous FY, which was 40.70 per cent.
The prudent monetary policy strengthened the exchange rate of the rupiah in the 1999/2000 FY (up to November 1999) compared to the rate at the end of the preceding FY. In the 2000 FY (April-December 2000) is estimated to be Rp.7,000.00 per US$ 1.00.
In line with the initial strengthening of the exchange rate of the rupiah and with the decrease in the inflation rate, the bank interest rates also began to slide. This caused negative spread to slide gradually too.
In line with the monetary improvement, the growth of the capital market in the FY 1999/2000 (up to December 1999) showed an increasing trend. This was in line with
there being signs towards improvements in the economic activities. In addition, the more conducive sociopolitical situation resulting from the running of the general elections and from the convening of the sessions of the People’s Consultative Assembly, which went smoothly and safely, also motivated market actors to be active in making investment in the capital market. The number of the emittent companies in the capital market grew to include 15 more companies, of which 9 were share emittents and 6 were bond emittents. In addition, the composite share price index positively reflected the capital market activities. The market capitalization value also rose from Rp. 167.3 trillion to Rp. 451.8 trillion, rising 170.05 per cent.
In the FY 1999/2000, the value of export comprising oil and gas export and non-oil and non-gas export is estimated to amount to US$ 54,151 million, an increase of 12.0 per cent compared to the value of export in the preceding FY, which was only US$ 48.354 million. In the FY 2000, which is only nine months long, the export value is estimated to reach US$ 41,552 million, comprising the export value of oil and gas, at US$ 8,003 million, and that of non-oil and non-gas, at US$ 33,549 million.
In the mean time, the import value in the FY 1999/2000, comprising the oil and gas import and the non-oil and non-gas import is estimated to reach US$ 32,934 million. This figure shows an increase of 7.3 per cent from the import value in the FY 1999/2000, which was US$ 30,707 million. In the FY 2000 the import value is estimated to reach US$ 27,284 million, comprising the oil and gas import at US$ 3,233 million and the non-oil and non-gas import at US$ 24,051 million.
With the improving export and import, the balance of trade in the FY 1999/2000 is estimated to have a surplus of US$ 21,217 million or 20.2 per cent higher than the surplus in the preceding FY, which was only US$ 17,674 million. In the FY 2000 the balance of trade is estimated to have a surplus of US$ 14,268 million.
In spite of the fact that there are indications of improvement, grave problems still pose before us. In the FY 1999/2000, the capital flow, which encompasses the Government’s capital flow and private sector’s capital flow, is expected to undergo a deficit of US$ 3,476 million. In that FY, the Government’s capital flow underwent a surplus of US$ 5,446 million, while the private sector’s capital flow underwent a deficit of US$ 8,922 million. In FY 2000, the capital flow is estimated to have a surplus of US$ 214 million.
Various improvements in the overseas trade can also be seen in the decline of the national debt service ratio (DSR), which in the FY 1999/2000 is estimated to be 54.0 per cent, compared to that in the FY 1998/1999, which was 57.4 per cent. In the FY 2000, the national DSR is estimated to be 47.2 per cent, comprising the Government’s DSR of 12.8 per cent and the private sector’s DSR of 34.4 per cent.
Honourable Speaker, Vice Speakers, and Members of the House,
Both in the drawing up of the 2000 Draft State Budget and in deliberating for the National Development Program and Yearly Development Plan, the Government has seriously paid attention to the general conditions described in the 1999/2004 State Policy Guidelines on the background and roots of the problems of the various crises which have posed before us in the last three years. Accordingly, the Government has scrutinized the vision, mission, and the direction of the policies which have been adopted by the Assembly, encompassing the legal, economic, political, educational, socio-cultural fields as well as the development of the regions, natural resources and living environments, and defense and security.
However, in presenting the State Budget 2000, please allow the Government to concentrate on the economy and to forward the vision on the medium-term economic framework which is needed to adopt policies and take subsequent measures. As the underlying attitude and point of departure, we find it necessary to develop the people’s economic power as the backbone of the national economic development. It is imperative in this regard to bring into being more just and equitable opportunities for all of the people to seize and at the same time to create more efficient and shock-proof economy. In this respect, the active roles of the people at large should be enhanced, especially as regards the roles of the members of the society, the majority of whom are still left behind, by means of creating opportunities to progress and to empower themselves. The progress and empowerment will not only be useful for the people concerned, but will also enable them to contribute more to the development of the nation as a whole. In the future’s national development, the people are the main actors of development. Therefore, it is imperative that a series of policies be developed which will sustain the participation of people at large. These include the policies of labour, human resources development, science and technology development, and the implementation of the regional autonomy.
As regards the labour policy, there are three main items of the agenda which need to be paid attention to.
First, unemployment should be curtailed and business activities restored. The endeavour towards pushing business activities should be directed primarily to ones which have potential for economic recovery such as the enhancement of export and trade. Especially for the small-scale and medium-scale enterprises, which absorb a great deal of labour, an endeavour will be taken by mainly eradicating all impediments that still exist and by providing direct support if it is really needed and if it can be done in an effective manner. Subsequently, improvements will be made in the execution of the labour-intensive social safety net and poverty alleviation programs designed to absorb local labour, including those who have been laid off as a result of the crisis.
Second, an impetus should be provided for cross-labour economic activity mobility, by providing systematic and directed training. On the basis of the results achieved by vocational schools and training centres up to now, training programs should be designed and implemented by the private sector. In this regard, the Government should only play the catalytic role for the sake of achieving the reallocation of human resources.
Third, the labour market is expected to be more flexible; in order to sustain it, various labour regulations need to be rectified.
The improvement of the human resource quality will be done through, among other things, health and education development. The priority of the health development needs to be set higher in order that its target, namely the impoverished members of the community, get the adequate share of the funds. In the medium term, the role of the community health funds should be raised. In line with the process of decentralization, the authority to use the available funds should rest with regency or municipality. As such, the activities developed will better reflect the needs of the region concerned. At a later date, in line with the enhancement of development and the availability of adequate funds for community health development programs, the charge rate to members of the community who are really needy should be lowered. Hospitals should be provided with an impetus to finance their activities, so that limited funds can be allocated for the improvement of community health programs and for the prevention of contiguous and infectious diseases. The private sector’s role in health development needs to be extended too, among other things by developing national insurance and phamarceutical industry.
To improve the quality of primary and secondary education, improvements need to be made with regard to the career development system for teachers as well as to the enhancement of the effectiveness of the utilization of funds available. The overlapping authorities between the Department of National Education and the Department of Home Affairs need to be abolished and the simplification of teachers’ career development from the primary school to the secondary school should be simplified. With the transfer of authority from the central government to the regional governments in the context of decentralization, problems related to efforts towards improving the quality of education and teachers’ career development should be solved. Subsequently, the interposition between the program in the educational sector and the flexibility in utilizing funds should also be improved.
Owing to the limitation of government funds these days, adjustments should be made with regard to the goal and schedule of the nine-year compulsory education program. In addition, primary and secondary school curricula need to be straightened up. Another problem to be solved is the relationship between education development and the need for labour. The goal that we want to achieve is that education be able to yield skilled and professional labour. In the context of improving skills, the role of the skill training schools run by the private sector should be enhanced.
The role of the private sector in the tertiary education should continue to be widened. The autonomy of state universities needs to be extended to enable them to extract sources of educational funds and to develop their curricula, as well as to enable them to open the opportunities to forge cooperation with eminent overseas universities. By the same token, the incentive system for faculty members of universities should be improved, among other things in the appointment of professors and in showing appreciation to research. To maintain the quality of the tertiary education and to ward off the giving of academic degrees by institutions with unclear origin, the control of quality by the National
Accreditation Agency must be strengthened. These measures will provide an impetus for the improvement of the quality of higher education now suffering from fund shortages and the low quality of the faculty members.
We are aware that the economic progress of a country is not only determined by the availability of the production factor, namely capital and labour, but is determined more by the improvement of economic productivities. The element which is highly determinant in enhancing productivity is the mastery and application of technology.
The Government has a very important role to play in enhancing the capacity in mastering and applying technology because the market mechanism tends not to offer technology extensively. The cooperation between research institutions and the business circles absolutely needs to be elevated in order to create mutually beneficial synergy. Such a cooperation at least includes the exchange of information on technology developed by research institutions on the technology needed by the business world. By means of information propagation, access to the enhancement and application of technology in the business sector can be enhanced.
In addition to measures designed to widen people’s participation in development as described above, in the future an endeavour needs to be made to attract more investors to regions. Needless to say, this very much depends on the investment climate in the region as well as on the availability of economic infrastructures which, at the moment, are thought to be inadequate. The concentration of activities, especially industrial activities, is mainly found in locations near big cities in Java. However, in line with the spirit of decentralization, efforts should continue to be made to the effect that regions outside Java can be more developed, to be with the support of reliable local government. The measure towards that end has begun to be taken by gazetting Law No.22 Year 1999 on Regional Government and Law No.25 Year 1999 on the Central-Regional Financial Balance, the objective of which is to bring into being decentralization in a concrete manner.
That truest meaning of the policy on the decentralization of Government in giving extensive autonomy to the region lies in the authorities with which decisions are made and services are rendered with the authorities. With those authorities each of the Regional Governments is expected to develop its creativity, to produce various policies, to improve the quality of services, to bring into being a conducive climate for the empowerment of the community in various walks of life, and to develop infrastructures as well as social, economic and cultural means. In this context, it should be understood that the discussion on the regional autonomy should not be focused only on the topic of the division of incomes between the Central Government and Regional Governments.
The selection of the topic of discussions which focuses only on the issue of the financial balance may drive us to a situation of continuous gaps. On the one hand, it will cause dissatisfaction of those regions which have the big income potentials because the Central Government will find it difficult to satisfy the maximum demand which they set, whereas at the same time the Central Government is responsible for managing the administration of the state government and for adopting a policy of cross-subsidy for regions whose
revenue is small. On the other hand, the topic will also cause extensive worries in small-income regions, which in reality constitute the majority of our country. Their hope for subsidies from the Central Government can evaporate the portion of income to be given by the Central Government to rich regions rises drastically.
On the basis of that consideration, while adopting the central-regional financial-balance policy in a gradual manner, the Government should hope that the Regional Governments and people in the regions, especially the regions which do not have income derived from natural resources, can optimize their creative capabilities in executing and making use of the authorities to be accorded by the Central Government.
The authorities in various sectors of Government can be managed in such a way so as, among other things, to bring into being a conducive climate for investment, facilitating the process of applying for business permits, opening up job opportunities, education quality improvement, health service improvement, and environment preservation.
The Central Government and the Regional Governments should consider their needs for expenditures in a realistic manner, in accordance with the functional duties and authorities between the former and the latter as mutually agreed upon as well as in accordance with the existing sources of revenues. In this respect, balance should be maintained between the relegation of revenue rights from the Central Government and the accountability of expenditures by regional governments.
Honourable Speaker, Vice Speakers, and Members of the House,
The negative impacts of globalization, especially in the financial sector, has triggered the economic crisis. However, we should be bold enough to admit that the bane of the economic crisis which befell us was also due to the weaknesses of the existing institutions. If the institutions had been strong enough, free from the weeds of corruption, collusion and nepotism, and had they worked in accordance with the modern management standards, the crisis would not have been and would not be as long-lasting and as extensive and deep as what has happened.
Therefore, comprehensive institution repairs are the main measure to be taken in overcoming the crisis. They are the key to continue sustainable development. This measure must be taken to ward off a similar crisis from happening in the future. We must be prepared at all times because as a corollary of the globalization, the challenges of the external volatilities will pose us more frequently. With well functioning institutions, our national endurance will rise, and even progress and development can be better exercised.
In the short term, an urgent measure to be taken in the context of accelerating economic recovery is to maintain economic stability and restructure the banking and business sectors considered to be the roots of the causes of the crisis.
In the last two years, 1998 and 1999, in order to stabilize the exchange rate of the rupiah and to prevent hyperinflation from occurring a strict monetary policy was adopted which greatly limited the growth of the amount of money circulating. In the mean time, the position of the state revenue and expenditure was designed to provide a fiscal stimulus so that the economy would not aggravate further. For that purpose, a state budget deficit policy was adopted. However, in order that fiscal policies remained in harmony with monetary policies, deficit expenditures were not exercised by adding the amount of the circulating money, but by borrowing from overseas.
In line with the signs of the economic improvement, for the next one or two years to come, the fiscal stimulus remains necessary, although it should be gradually lowered. In the mean time, the monetary policies should be layed to enhance economic activities. Subsequently, in the following years people’s economic activities are expected to be so recovered that the fiscal stimulus will be no longer needed and that, gradually, the state budget deficit can be abolished in order to achieve a fiscal condition which is more or less balanced enough to stimulate sustainability.
With the general macroeconomic stability being achieved, it is expected that economic growth will continue to prevail. Specifically, export-oriented companies are expected to be able to make advantage of the recovery momentum, which now begins to be pervading. The re-awakening of the national economy will give rise to the increase in domestic demands and people’s purchasing power. Our self-confidence will be restored too.
Equally important as the endeavour to maintain the economic stability, in the framework of accelerating the economic recovery, an urgent endeavour to be taken is to overcome the roots of the causes of the crises. This amounts to remedying the economic institutions through efforts towards restoring the banking and business sectors.
Both endeavours constitute programs, the goal of which is to restore economy, at the same time laying the foundation for further sustainable development. The endeavour towards restoring the business and banking sectors are reciprocally interrelated and therefore should be undertaken simultaneously. The amounts of the insolvent credits owed by companies almost eradicated the room for banking movement. Without the flow of funds from banks, companies find it difficult to be active again as well as to meet their obligations to banks. To overcome impasse, bank restructuring and, simultaneously, company restructuring have been undertaken.
Many circles have raised the question as to how big the cost to be borne by the state will be. The option had to be made in view of the scarcity of alternative policy options and the alternatives are no better. It is necessary to affirm that the bank’s restructuring program is carried out by adhering to the principle of curbing cost to its minimum, at the same time continuing to protect savers, the number of whom reaches millions. Bank owners are the first in line to bear the cost. In addition, efforts should be maximally made to retrieve banking assets. Bank owners and bank managers as well as debtors who decline to cooperate and who are proven to have committed frauds should be brought to court.
All in all, the recapitalization funds have at present reached an amount of more than Rp.500 trillion, the bigger part being borne by the Government. This means that the burden of the expenditures borne by the Government in the coming years will indeed be very heavy. Thus, it is imperative that all of us be very serious in executing this highly important program. In this regard, the Indonesian Banking Restructuring Agency (IBRA) has been given full authority to execute the restructuring of banks. Therefore, this agency must take a firm attitude and be able to work at a high speed with adequate results. The Government is resolved to continue restructuring with a view to bringing into being a strong and sound national bankingsystem able to operate in accordance with international standards.
The efforts towards mending the business sector by means of restructuring the private-sector’s and the real sector’s debts are directed to re-awaken and at the same time strengthen the capabilities of national business circles. Up to now, all in all only a fraction of the private-sector debts has been successfully restructured through the Indonesian Debt Restructuring Agency (INDRA) and the Jakarta Initiatives. The settlement of the private-sector’s debts needs to be accelerated to revert the image of, as well as the international confidence in, the credibility of our national business. Up to now the restructuring of banks has been felt to be sluggish in terms of handling. Among other things, this has been caused by the complexity of the program of restructuring debts incurred by companies. This company debt restructuring program involves thousands of domestic companies as well as creditors in many a country.
The principle held by the Government in solving the problems of debts incurred by companies is one which does not take over the companies’ debts. In this context the Government continuously endeavours to create a conducive condition for reaching an agreement mutually beneficial to the debtors and the creditors. These endeavours include ensuring that the bankruptcy process progresses well, namely by enhancing the functions of the commercial court, by facilitating investment procedures, by settling tax obligations in cases of confiscating and merging businesses, and by developing a national policy in corporate governance. To expedite the process of the settlement of debts incurred by companies, which means supporting the bank restructuring process, an incentive has been designed, in which a debtor who is cooperative will be given debt reduction. This measure will be exercised in a very cautious manner. Debtors who are entitled are only those who have not committed any fraud such as mark-up and credit abuse. In addition, only interests or fines, not the main debts, are subject to be reduced, As such, there is an incentive to complete the bank restructuring program by curbing the cost to its minimum.
As mentioned earlier, reform and economic recovery measures take time. Meanwhile, the impacts of the crisis have been directly felt as being grave by the majority of the people. With the condition of the private sector being weak, the interference of the Government is needed. The instrument is the fiscal policy, the main program of which is the Social Safety Net. This explains why in the next one or two years, this program will be continued. Past weaknesses and shortcomings of the implementation of the Social Safety Net will continue to be rectified on the basic of inputs from various circles, including feedbacks from the Non-government Organizations and the press.
The description above clearly shows that the fiscal policy has been designed with a view to lessening the people’s burden and, in terms of macroeconomy, to prevent the economy from worsening. The dilemma that poses before us is the fact that this rising need comes face to face with the limitation of revenues. On these grounds, external loans will still be needed. Therefore, for the years to come a measure needs to be taken which will shift the policies in a gradual manner from the fiscal stimulus policy to sustainable fiscal capability policy. This will be done by means of efforts towards enhancing the mobilization of domestic resources as well as towards upgrading the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of budget funds. Thus, it can be expected that loans, especially external loans, can be reduced. These measures have begun to be put into practice. Various tax regulations, including tax incentives, have been scrutinized in a comprehensive manner, the objective being to strengthen and raise tax revenues.
To lighten the burden of the budget and concurrently to maintain the liquidity of the balance of payment, various efforts need to be made as regards the management of the foreign debts. The net foreign expenditures, which constitute the difference between the clearing of new loans and the payment of the main loans, can no longer be maintained at the current level. The mode for expenditures by raising the loan stocks such as these should be avoided by attempting to make expenditures adjusted to revenues. In line with the rise of the domestic revenues, efforts should be made to reduce the amount of foreign loans from year to year. If this materializes, in 2004 the repayment of external loans is expected to exceed the new loans, and thus external loan stocks will gradually decrease. As regards the negotiations of new external loans, it imperative to make an effort to the effect that the terms and conditions will lighten the burden of repayment. In the mean time, the gross domestic product should continue to increase so that the ratio of the external loans to the GDP will decrease.
With respect to the utilization of the budget, budget expenditures, particularly for projects funded with external loans, need to be scrutinized in a comprehensive manner and priorities need to be carefully set. If projects whose funding has been approved turn out to have hurdles in the preparation of their execution and to be bad in terms of the performance of their execution, they should be cancelled. Subsequently, new loans, either by the central government or by the regional government, should be adjusted with the budget ability to repay and the loans should be used for productive economic activities only, the implementation of which should be transparent, effective and efficient. In this respect, the management of external loans will be done in a transparent manner and consultation will always be made with the House.
Another endeavour in the context of the economic recovery program is to conduct a restructuring and privatization program for state-owned enterprises. This program aims at making state-owned enterprises with poor performance more effective by elevating their efficiency, profitability and service quality in order to create the foundation for their growth. This measure will also strengthen the state’s financial capabilities, widen their ownership, and reinforce the real sector.
The other item of the development agenda is the economic reform. In order to create more just and equitable opportunities for the whole of the people, concurrently creating more efficient and shock-proof economy, efforts towards eradicating various economic distortions need to be seriously raised. For that purpose, various regulations need improving. In the near future, the Law on the Prohibition of Monopoly Practices and Unfair Business Competition will be gazetted. In addition various trade practices and special treatments will be abolished, and so will the various regulations which constrain inter-province and inter-island trades. These practices and regulations are not only preventing the quick flow of goods and economic resources to allow the economic recovery, but also becoming a source of the CCN practices. The success of these efforts is indeed pivotal to the improvement of the quality and the competitiveness of national products in the domestic as well as in the international markets.
The implementation of the recovery program and economic reforms will lay a strong foundation for a healthy, just, and ethical market mechanism to work. Should these be attainable, all segments of the society will have an equal opportunity to develop their own businesses. The reforms in various sectors - albeit encountering loopholes here and there - have produced a synergy to overcome the crisis. This momentum should indeed be maintained in the future. There is only one way to proceed, namely to continue the reforms which we have already started.
Honourable Speaker, Vice Speakers, and Members of the House,
The afore-mentioned vision can only be sustainably achieved if we are able to create a required precondition. The major step to be taken in the mid-term period is the institution’s development and empowerment, especially the two pillars in achieving good governance, namely the proper handling of governmental affairs and the establishment of a sound legal and justice system.
The changes, which are demanded by the people cover various dimensions and elements, especially those that relate to the attitude towards and responsibility in managing governmental affairs. In this era of reforms, transparency and accountability will be materialized and further improved. Transparency enables the decision-and-policy-making process to be constantly monitored and accounted for.
Public policies are required to be transparent and designed to solely benefit the people at large. Therefore, public policy, which has a tremendous impact upon the people, will be continuously and openly discussed before being adopted. This open discussion will certainly improve the quality of the policy, eliminate the CNN practices, and guarantee the fulfillment of the people’s aspirations although at its early stage it may bear severe consequences for them. A much wider transparency is intended to encourage the attitude of the government personnel to side more with, and better serve, the people.
Apart from it, a more profound correction will be applied against the government personnel, the reason being that an effective system of government is very much contingent upon their performance. The ineffectiveness of the government personnel is primarily caused by three main reasons. First, the supervision system is weak. Second, the system of remuneration is inadequate. Third, the number of the government personnel is excessive. These three factors can become a driving force for some to abuse their power and to commit corrupt acts.
A system of supervision and evaluation plays indeed a central role in improving the performance of the governmental institutions. Currently, the merit evaluation process of the government personnel is very weak, the level of subjectivity is overwhelming and, worse still, decisive action against those who abuse power and whose performance is poor is also far from adequate. If this happens at the leadership level, it will demoralize the officials at the lower level, which, in turn, will also compromise the quality of services rendered to the people.
The existing system of remuneration indirectly encourages the government personnel to disregard the prevailing regulations. This system only does disservice to the improvement of their performance and their career development. Furthermore, it does not only create the Government’s dependence on a paternalistic relation and personal loyalty, but also encourages the abuse of power in an attempt to enrich themselves. With a weak supervision system, there has always been a wide gap of welfare even among those government personnel with the same ranks.
A fundamental hurdle to the effort to increase the salary of the government personnel is the huge amount of funds involved. In the long run, one of the remedies is to reduce the excessive number of the government personnel. However, it is clear that it cannot be done in the short term, for it may create new and equally heavy political and economic problems.
In the short run, the measures that can be taken encompass four elements. First, to ameliorate the system of salary, which is designed to woo not only the productivity of the government personnel, but also the quality of services rendered to the people. Second, to improve the effectiveness of supervision, including that from the society, against acts of corruption and abuse of power. This effort should be coupled with upholding the law against any wrongdoing. Third, to prepare the transfer of civil servants from the central to regional governments, including the preparation of the entailing incentives. Fourth, to design a system of recruitment for new employees based on the real needs whose selection process is open and selective.
In the medium term, the measures that can be considered for adoption cover three elements. First, to encourage a gradual reduction of the government personnel with an adequate compensation for those who opt for an early retirement or to provide vocational training for those who want to be channelled to private sectors. Second, to gradually reduce the government personnel whose main tasks and functions can be carried out by the community; the basic salary will continue to be given to them until they reach a
retirement age. Third, to implement a new system of staffing to all government personnel based on their performance and the real need, including the need to consider the adoption of the working contract system.
As mentioned above, there are two main pillars in creating a good governance, namely to nurture and strengthen the handling of governmental affairs, including the reforms of the government personnel as previously alluded to, as well as to develop and strengthen the system of law and legislation. The reforms in the fields of laws and legislation are indeed mandatory not only for the sake of the economic recovery, but also for the sustainability of the development program. Legal certainty will uphold justice and thus reduce risks in doing business, which is currently far from perfect. To redress the situation there are at least three measures to be taken simultaneously.
First, to improve and implement the existing laws and legislation. The enactment of the Law on Bankruptcy and the Law on Commercial Dispute Courts in order to take legal actions against those bankrupt companies are only two of many examples. Apart from these, there have been efforts to develop a system of assets registration and a law on guaranteeing the collateral existence. These registration system and legislation will reduce the risks which the creditors may encounter, in cases where the same collateral is used to obtain different credits as has been done by some in the past, contributing to the swelling of the insolvent credits. Second, to reform the system of judicature. An independent and professional system of judicature is indeed a high priority in this endeavour. Third, to reform the governmental administrative law in order to avoid overlappings between the regulations issued by one and another government institution.
Honourable Speaker, Vice Speakers, and Members of the House,
After unfolding the prevailing national economic conditions and describing the Government’s vision on the economic framework in the medium term and the preconditions required for the successful recovery of our economy, please allow the Government to present information containing the principles upon which the 2000 Draft State Budget is based as the short-term economic framework.
The 2000 Draft State Budget has been realistically drawn up in order to present an accurate, clear, and transparent picture to the House, domestic as well as international business operators, and indeed to the whole of the people, on the direction, objective, and the strategy of the fiscal policy in an attempt to support the program of structure renewals leading to the recovery of the national economy.
In an effort to improve the transparency and public accountability, starting from the FY 2000 there will be a change in the structure and format of the State Budget, approaching the standard Government Finance Statistics which is internationally used. Based on this new format, the State Budget, which was previously drafted using a dynamic and balanced budget principle, is changed to become a deficit budget, financed by both
domestic as well as international financial sources. The structural and format changes are intended to:
a. improve transparency, for in this new structure the size of the budget deficit, the domestic, financial ability, and the dependence of the state budget on the international financial sources are clearly shown;
b. facilitate an analytical implementation of the on-going strategy of the fiscal policy, including its financing mode, and a comparative analysis between the development of Indonesia’s fiscal operation and other countries’. Apart from it, with this new format the State Budget will also facilitate the monitoring, control as well as the implementation and supervision of the State Budget;
c. anticipate the implementation of Law No. 25/1999 on the Fiscal Balance between the Central and Regional Governments.
This new format of the State Budget is intended to better facilitate the calculation of balance funds, not only for sharing the income generated from natural resources, but also for allocating the general funds.
Generally, the regrouping of income posts and state spending in the 2000 Draft State Budget is as follows:
a. At the income side, the tax component derived from oil and gas revenues is reallocated to its original function and nature, namely at the acceptance of the income tax in oil and gas sectors. Similarly, the acceptance which constitutes a component of the Non-Taxes State Revenues, such as oil and gas mining royalties or the government’s shares over the exploration and exploitation of oil and gas mines are reassigned to the post of the Non-Tax State Revenues.
b. At the spending side, various kinds of spending which have so far created a confusing notion, such as the program to subsidize, the interest rate of which in the previous fiscal years was grouped in the post of development spending, in this 2000 State Budget is reallocated to routine spending. Similarly, the payment of bond interest rate for the national banking restructuring program which is usually registered at the post of development spending, in this
2000 State Budget is reallocated to routine spending. On the contrary, the payment of offshore loans installments which used to be booked at the routine spending post, in this 2000 State Budget is reassigned to become a deducting component of the spending chapter.
c. Attempting to ensure transparency in drafting as well as facilitating the accountability of the implementation and calculation of the state budget, there has been a clear distinction made against various components of budget financing which in the previous fiscal years were assigned to the posts of state revenues and expenditures.
In accordance with the latest development and the projection of the 1999/2000 State Budget as well as the calculation of potentials and its linkage to the state revenues and spending in the next year’s state budget, it is to be predicted that Indonesia’s economy will be better-off in the upcoming fiscal year, and start to show stronger signs of economic recovery.
Several macroeconomic indicators, which have been used as assumptions in drafting the 2000 Draft State Budget, are inter alia the following:
a. 3.8 per cent economic growth rate;
b. 4.8 per cent inflation rate;
c. The price of Indonesia’s crude oil is US$ 18 per barrel; and
d. The exchange rate of the rupiah is Rp. 7,000.00 to US$ 1.00
Generally, the structure of the 2000 Draft State Budget consists of the state revenues and grants, state expenditures, budget surplus/deficit, and the funding derived from the surplus/deficit. The state revenues are those originating and sustainably acquired from within. Grants are those provided by other governments or international organizations, entailing no financial burdens (such as, in the form of returning funds or the paying of interest rate). The state expenditures is the totality of all spending done by the government for financing routine and development activities. If expenditures exceed revenues, it will generate a budget deficit. This deficit should be overcome, for which financial sources ought to be found. On the contrary, if revenues exceed expenditures, there will be a budget surplus to be used to accelerate the payment of the government’s offshore loans or to strengthen the government’s reserves.
Based on the total amount of the state revenues as well as the grants that might hopefully be obtained and in view of all the burdens of the state budget - be it routine or development expenditures - it is predicted that the 2000 Draft State Budget will suffer a budget deficit of Rp. 45,373 billion or approximately five per cent of the GDP. This is due to a smaller amount of state revenues and grants obtained, which are predicted to be
Rp. 137,695 billion (15.1 per cent of the GDP) compared to the state expenditures which are projected to be Rp. 183,069 billion (20.1 per cent of the GDP). Compared to the budget deficit ratio of the 1999/2000 State Budget that hit 6.8 per cent of the GDP, the deficit ratio against the GDP of the 2000 State Budget will therefore decrease to around 1.8 per cent.
Of the state budget which is planned to be Rp. 183,069 billion the largest portion, namely Rp. 143.682 billion (78.5 per cent), will be allocated to routine expenditures in order to support the operational activities of the Government both at the national and the regional levels, including the costs of maintaining the state properties, the payment of both offshore and domestic loan interests, and the subsidy for several commodities that are linked to the primary needs of the people. The rest, Rp. 39,386 billion or 4.3 per cent of the GDP, will be allocated to development expenditures for the financing of the routine development activities totalling Rp. 23,356 billion or 2.6 per cent of the GDP, and the financing of projects totalling Rp. 16,030 billion or 1.7 per cent of the GDP.
In the routine expenditures, there will be three kinds of expenditures absorbing a huge amount of funds, namely: (a) the payment of loan interests which are predicted to be around Rp. 58,989 billion or 6.5 per cent of the GDP, (b) the paying of the salaries of the central and regional civil servants which is predicted to be around Rp. 45,709 billion or 5.0 per cent of the GDP respectively comprising the remuneration of the central government civil servants Rp. 29.355 billion or 3.2 per cent of the GDP and the remuneration of the regional government civil servant Rp. 16,354 billion or 1.8 per cent of the GDP, and, (c) the subsidy which for the 2000 State Budget is planned to be Rp. 26,666 billion or 2.9 per cent of the GDP both for oil and gas and for non-oil and non-gas. These burdens of subsidy will be gradually reduced.
In the development budget, the Government will manage Rp. 8,217 billion or 35.2 per cent of the planned development budget in rupiah totalling Rp. 23,356 billion, while the rest, which is Rp. 15,139 billion or 64.8 per cent, will be administered by regional governments. Meanwhile, project’s funding whose sources come from project loans reaches Rp. 16,030 billion or 1.7 per cent of the GDP.
At the preliminary phase of the implementation of fiscal decentralization as stipulated in the Law on the Fiscal Balance between the Central and Regional Governments, the portion of development budget allocation administered by regional governments will increase from 50.8 per cent of the total budget in rupiah in the FY 1999/2000 to 64.8 per cent at the draft state budget 2000, or an increase from 1.3 per cent to 1.7 per cent of the GDP.
The budget deficit in the 2000 Draft State Budget is expected to be offset with domestic sources of Rp. 22,189 billion or 2.5 per cent of the GDP. The amount will be hailed from non-banking sectors, namely from the divestment of the Government’s shares in the state-owned enterprises (privatization) worth Rp. 5,939 billion or 0.7 per cent of the GDP, and from the sale of banking assets that falls within the IBRA’s program of Rp.
16,250 billion or 1.8 per cent of the GDP, while the remainder of Rp. 23,184 billion or 2.5 per cent of the GDP is expected to be balanced with foreign funding sources.
Honourable Speaker, Distinguished Vice Speakers and Members of the House,
It is true indeed that we have to commit ourselves to work even harder in this difficult economic situation before hoping for a recovered condition to come round.
The attempt to store up state revenues faces formidable challenges. Approximately 71 per cent of the state revenues comes from tax earnings. Of this amount, the income tax and value added tax hit 81 per cent. The basis of these two taxes becomes relatively narrowed compared to the pre-crisis period. The income tax has lowered owing to the decreasing individuals’ and companies’ incomes. Meanwhile, economic activities that take place in the beginning of the recovery phase, parts of which have not yet been covered by the tax régime, also lead to a limited basis for value added tax.
The endeavour to accumulate taxes, therefore, starts from the improvement of the tax administration. To this end, the Government classifies tax-payers into individual and companies with a view to determining the more focused targets for tax collection, especially major tax-payers, and to carrying out better tax audit. Besides, regulations on foundations will be re-organized in order for the latter to achieve social objectives and not to dislodge the tax obligation.
The tax basis is also expanded. Different regulations on privileges, including tax exemptions, will be revised. This, however, does not mean that all tax incentives to attract investment are abolished. It is for this reason that tax allowances to replace tax holidays remain. This policy is in conformity with the agreement reached among ASEAN countries. One other endeavour is through the simplification of the process of reclaiming over tax payment.
Through the above mentioned procedures, the government expects tax earnings to reach 10.7 per cent of the GDP, with the government’s revenues to be expected to record Rp. 137.7 trillion or 15.1 per cent of the GDP. The high figure of revenues cannot be detached from the positive forecast of oil export price. The price, at the time of the drafting of the FY 1999/2000, was forecast at US$ 10.5 per barrel, but then it continuously increased to reach the peak of US$ 23.6 per barrel in November 1999, leading thereby to a historically sharp fluctuation of oil prices. Without disregarding the principle of prudence, therefore, the government sets the price of this commodity at US$ 18 per barrel, expectedly to generate tax and non-tax receipts from oil and gas sectors of Rp. 37.5 trillion.
The other sources for domestic incomes are the revenues taken from government’s services, state-owned enterprises’ dividends, royalties, and other earnings such as repayments of government’s credits. These income sources are classified into non-tax
earnings. In the draft state budget 2000, the incomes from privatization programs, which in the FY 1999/2000 constituted 50 per cent of the government’s non-tax income, are no longer included in this class of income.
The government’s expenditures consist of routine expenditures and development expenditures, each of which is planned to reach Rp. 143.7 trillion. There are some basic changes in the presentation of this year’s draft budget, especially in the routine posts. The payment of the main debts will no longer be put in this post, but will become a part of funding that reduces the amount of loans received. Along this line, if the value of the loan exceeds the payment of the main debt, the figure will show that foreign funding will in general still be needed, meaning also that foreign debts will increase. The system will at least reflect the nett foreign funding that shows the declining foreign debt. According to its character, the payment of the bond interests for banking restructuring, as is the case of the payment of foreign debt interests, is placed in the routine expenditures.
The issuance of the obligation is inevitable for the process of economic recovery necessitates the once-and-for-all finalization of the banking restructuring. The important thing to do is to expedite the process to economize the fund and to bring back the banking system to the normal condition. Measures for banking restructuring are comprehensively planned, detailed, and open to be monitored not only by the government but also by the society at large. The operational restructuring measures including management and capital reinforcement, have been applied to four government banks namely Bank Mandiri, BNI, BRI and BTN, as well as to 10 operationally frozen banks (BBO), 38 commercially frozen banks (BBKU) and 13 private banks taken over by the government (BTO), four of which have been re-capitalized. In addition, the government has amended related regulations to be followed by their strict enforcement. Not only will the regulations cover the banking sector it will also govern companies in general, especially those involved in private debt settlement.
The government needs a huge amount of funds for the issuance of debentures. The amount of the Government’s debentures at the beginning of the FY 2000 - including those to be issued in March - will reach Rp. 625 trillion, carrying the interest for that year of Rp. 42.4 trillion or 4.7 per cent of the GDP. To lessen the burden, the government has, in an optimum extent, tried to retrieve the credits it has issued through the sale of its rights over the assets of the banks. With this measure, the sale of assets in the FY 2000 is expected to generate another funding source worth Rp. 16.3 trillion.
In order for the disbursement of this tremendous fund to meet its target, numerous improvement efforts have been put in motion through, inter alia, the refinement of the IBRA organization, the finalization of the Bank Bali case, and the adoption of firm actions over uncooperative debtors. Of no less importance, the State Auditing Board has executed an audit on Bank Indonesia.
The medium-term measures to reorganize the state institutions and to put an end to the CCN practices cannot also be separated from the effort to ameliorate the incentive system. In the FY 1999/2000 State Budget, the government expenditures for the incentive
reached 39.80 per cent of the total expenditures. It is to be realized, however, that civil servants’ income has yet to meet the appropriate level. In the period of crisis, with the inflation rates of 36.8 per cent and 45.4 per cent during 1997/1998 and 1998/1999, respectively, civil servants’ income was raised by only 15 per cent each fiscal year. The figures clearly show the need for further betterment of civil servants’ welfare, and this becomes more pressing for the level of incentive, since the pre-crisis period, is far under that given by private sector. In this context, there is a need to adjust the balance between the improvement of incentive for the state personnel and the effort to improve the people’s welfare in general.
Taking cognizance of the state’s financial capability and the need for improving civil servants’ welfare to create a clean state personnel and to increase its work on the one hand, and the need for providing incentives that are not counter-productive to the efforts to make the bureaucracy more efficient on the other hand, the government stocks a budget for central and regional civil servants totalling Rp. 45.7 trillion. Albeit the increase of budget for state personnel’ welfare, it is to be noted that its allotment in the routine expenditures has lessened compared to that in the previous year.
To lessen the people’s burden, subsidies continue to be provided covering oil, food, electricity, program’s credit interest and others. The main strength of the policy is target determination in order for the subsidies to reach those who really need them. The funds being economized from this post can then be used to strengthen development funds for, which are aimed mainly at propelling the decentralization process and the poverty alleviation program. This will in turn enable the limited funds to produce optimum results.
However, it should be realized that there is inefficiency in the provision of energy that leads to the over-supplying of the subsidy budget. To overcome this inefficiency, the government will conduct a series of restructuring in the State-owned Oil Company (Pertamina) and will compress the operational budget of the State-owned Electricity Company (PLN). Following up the results of the audit on Pertamina, it is expected that by March this year the Company will have completed its restructuring program to economize its overhead budget, including measures to fix inefficient posts found by the auditing, and at the same time preparing Pertamina to be more competitive in the international market. These measures will be accompanied by the refinement of regulations. As regards PLN, the Government will renegotiate the unjust contracts in a transparent manner.
Albeit measures taken, budget for oil and electricity subsidies will continue to hike. The worthy price of oil in the international market helps increase the oil subsidies for the government will still need to import crude oil to be refined in domestic oil refineries and due to the insufficient domestic production. For that purpose, the Government regretfully has to raise the prices of oil products. Yet, the rise will not be across the board for all the products, and will take into full consideration of consumers’ income. Besides, a specific subsidy scheme will be made available to the poor and the needy. Protection measures for the poor will also be undertaken in the supply of electricity through the decision not to
raise the tariff of consumers subscribing for 450 Watts. With these measures, the amount of oil and electricity subsidies will still be high, reaching Rp. 18.3 trillion and Rp. 3.9 trillion, respectively.
In addition, the government will provide a food subsidy of Rp. 2.2 trillion, to be especially disbursed for supporting low-price rice in food special operation (OKP) programs. As for the program’s credit interest, the government furnishes Rp. 1.9 trillion aimed mainly for farmers’ business credits (KUT).
Aside from different subsidy programs dedicated mainly to lessen the burden of the poor, the government has, through development budget, allocated some funds for social safety net (JPS) and poverty alleviation totaling Rp. 2.8 trillion. The fund is a part of the budget whose management will be entrusted to the local governments, or decentralization budget. By and large, the decentralization budget is planned to cover 64.8 per cent of the pure budget in rupiah of Rp. 23.5 trillion. Compared to the FY 1999/2000 – for nine months to equate the duration of the 2000 draft budget – the total amount increases by Rp. 3 trillion, while the budget administered by the central government decreases by Rp. 3.5 trillion. This founds a primary step of decentralization process, the mechanism of which will be developed in the future.
Of the decentralization funds, most of its quantity is the funds for regency and municipality development, which is Rp. 5.9 trillion. This is in line with the spirit of decentralization to transform the Second Level Regions to become the spearhead of development. These regions are expected to better absorb people’s aspirations so that the fund allocation can in reality match the aspiration of local people. In this context, the provincial budget allocation is projected at Rp. 3.1 trillion and the rural budget allocation at Rp. 670.3 billion. Besides regional development funds that comprise rural, district and provincial funds and social safety net and poverty alleviation funds as mentioned above, there are funds within this decentralization budget, namely land and building taxes (PBB) and property taxes (BPHATB) totalling Rp. 2.6 trillion. The revenues, after being deducted for collecting compensation of 10 per cent, are all administered by the first and second level regional governments.
A total of Rp. 8.2 trillion for development expenditures will be administered by the central government and to be used to fund projects in different sectors, including counterpart funds needed to support foreign-funded development projects. The project loans in 2000 are limited to those which are urgently needed and which show significant progress as expected. The restriction has cancelled 43 projects worth US$ 556 million or, at an exchange rate of Rp.7000.00 to US$1.00, Rp. 3.9 trillion. Similar restriction is applied to prospective projects for 2000, which set only Rp. 16.0 trillion, much lower than the amount allocated for the approved projects in the FY 1999/2000 – within nine months – totalling Rp. 22.5 trillion.
Gradually, should all structural readjustment programs be carried out properly as planned, the economic growth is expected to arrive at the level of 6 or 7 per cent within the next five years. Moreover, this economic growth will be supported by stronger
fundamentals for it is supported not only by the groups of businesses but also by the society at large. Economic recovery is also believed to cover wider areas. Of similar importance, the stable rupiah at the level of Rp. 7000/US$ 1.00 will enable the inflation rate to float at 3 to 5 per cent.
The healthier economy will also strengthen state’s budget in the future. The higher the growth rate is, the better the basis of government’s revenues will be. The improvement of taxation administration, the reduction of tax exemptions and the dissolution of the off-budgets will give rise to the strengthening of the position of government’s revenues at the same time supporting the momentum for overall economic recovery. The budget deficit is expected to decline from 5 per cent of the GDP in 2000 to become balanced in 2004. At the same period, the position of debts government’s comprising foreign and domestic debts are also expected to descend.
These are all in general the main points of the draft state budget for 2000 submitted to the House, as an initial measure of economic programs that will be further formulated in accordance with the mandate given by the People’s Consultative Assembly. In conclusion to this Government’s explanation, it is deemed necessary to enrich it with some points that can be used in the reflection and consideration on the draft both between the Government and the House and in the implementation phase.
The implementation of the state budget is expected to reflect the aspirations well enshrined in the State Policy Guidelines to be transparent and democratic. This very message sends a clear signal for us to render more focus on the process itself, not on the achievment of the targets only. The involvement of the society at large, since the planning process, in the implementation phase as well as in the evaluation stage has to be materialized.
To this end, the government will continue to be at the people’s disposal to be open and transparent, promoting constructive dialogues with the House, with a view to securing long-term development as well as to preventing us from being trapped into short-sighted policy making. The macropolicy to support sustainable development which leads the national economy to become more just, equitable and which is followed by strong economic stability must therefore become the main consideration.
The dialogue between the government and the House is facing the problem of limited time. In this regard, besides the principles of transparency and democracy in the deliberation of the draft, it is of paramount importance for us to keep the schedule on its track so as to enable the implementation of the 2000 state budget to be started on 1 April 2000. The on-time implementation of this state budget is highly necessary in order for us to prevent the risk of negative market perception from appearing. Against this backdrop, phases set in the economic agenda can proceed accordingly. God willing, the economic recovery and the development goals can be reached.
Finally, let us praise God Almighty to bless us with the conviction and strength to bring the national life into the new order we are yearning for in the reform movement towards a civil society. Amiin yaa Rabbal ‘alamiin.
Thank you for the attention and patience of the Honourable Members of the House and all of the distinguished guests.
Wassalamu’alaikum warrahmatullahi wabarakatuh.


Jakarta, 20 January 2000
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIK OF INDONESIA,
ABDURRAHMAN WAHID


Sumber: http://www.ri.go.id/istana/speech/eng/20jan001.htm