Graft, legal reforms 'main hurdles to Jakarta's progress'

The Straits Times, March 21, 2007
By Yeo Ghim Lay


LEGAL reforms and control of corruption remain pressing issues for Indonesia, says a researcher who has studied governance in the country.

Sir Tim Lankester, president of Corpus Christi College, Oxford University, said yesterday: 'Regarding the rule of law, progress has been glacial, relative to need.'

Working as a consultant for the United Nations Development Programme, he has monitored governance reform in Indonesia since 2000.

While an 'enormous amount' has been achieved since the fall of the Suharto regime in 1998, law and anti- corruption reforms still leave much to be desired, he said.

Sir Tim, a former World Bank economist who was private secretary under British premiers James Callaghan and Margaret Thatcher, was speaking at a lecture co-organised by the Singapore International Foundation and the Institute of Policy Studies.

He said that among the factors behind the slow pace of legal reform in Indonesia is the reluctance of the Supreme Court to embrace change.

For example, a Judicial Commission was established on a 2004 law to monitor judges' performance but its power was stripped after the Supreme Court questioned the law behind its creation.

'President (Susilo Bambang) Yudhoyono is well aware of the problems and would like to take action. But his hands appear to be largely tied due to opposition from the Chief Justice and from Golkar,' said Sir Tim, referring to the dominant political party.

Corruption, while less of a problem in the central government, has risen at the provincial and local levels, he added.

This problem was echoed by Ms Indrasari Tjandraningsih, a researcher at the Akatiga-Centre for Social Analysis in Indonesia.

She believes the decentralisation of Indonesia, which began in 1999, has led to a poor investment climate and reduced worker welfare.

Companies often have to pay a lot of taxes and fees to the village and the district authorities and deal with a corrupt bureaucracy, putting the priority of worker welfare on the back burner, she told The Straits Times.

Despite the challenges Indonesia faces, Sir Tim said he is optimistic about its future, going by the progress made in press freedom and economic growth, among other areas.

He said: 'Whilst much still has to be done, I believe there is a substance and a momentum to the reform programme that ought to be better recognised outside Indonesia.'