Indonesia’s Muslim organizations and Papuan leaders have pushed President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to repeal relaxed investment rules just one month after they were passed.
owerful Muslim organizations and Papuan political figures have successfully lobbied the government to revoke new investment rules meant to spur liquor, wine and beer industries in Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country.
Indonesia’s two leading Muslim organizations, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, the influential Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and various Papuan leaders, among other political figures, pushed President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to repeal the rules on Tuesday, just one month after they had been passed.
Jokowi specifically announced the revocation of three provisions in the third appendix of Presidential Regulation No. 10/2021 that enable investments in the alcoholic beverages industries in Bali, East Nusa Tenggara, North Sulawesi and Papua. The provisions allow governors of other provinces, with the approval of the head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), to open their respective regions for investment in this field.
“Having received input from ulemas of the MUI, NU, Muhammadiyah and other mass organizations, as well as from the regions, I announce the decision to repeal the appendix to the presidential regulation regarding investments in the alcoholic beverages industry,” said Jokowi in a video published on Tuesday.
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The decision comes a month after Jokowi signed the regulation on Feb. 2 as a derivative of 79 laws overhauled by the landmark Job Creation Law that is meant to attract investment to Southeast Asia’s largest economy to spur economic growth.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, overall realized investment in the country grew a mere 2.1 percent to Rp 826.3 trillion (US$57.8 billion) last year. That growth rate was much lower than the 12.2 percent achieved in 2019.
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