GENERAL NEWS AND HEADLINES

Fugitive Djoko Tjandra skips another court hearing
Detik (https://tinyurl.com/y66w9cpm); Tempo (https://tinyurl.com/y6opcmtq)

The South Jakarta District Court has again postponed a hearing of the case review sought by Djoko Tjandra, a fugitive and high-profile corruption convict, who has reportedly returned to the country after being at large for over a decade.

Djoko, who is seeking to overturn a guilty verdict for embezzling billions of rupiah from the state bailout fund during the 1998 Asian financial crisis, has instead asked the court to conduct an online hearing.

Chief Judge Nazar Effriadi said the court could not give Djoko any more chances, given that this is the third time he has skipped trial.

 

Home Minister prohibits election campaigns involving more than 50 people
CNN Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/yxa6dhs6)

Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian has prohibited regional head candidates to gather more than 50 individuals in their political campaigns nearing the 2020 regional elections to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Tito has even asked the Elections Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) to apply strict measures, including disqualification, for violating contestants.

Besides limiting campaign participants to no more than 50 percent of the venue capacity, campaign organizers must also maintain a safe 1-meter physical distance.

Tito hoped that election contestants could be more creative in conducting their political campaigns.

 

Thousands of workers ready to return to streets
Detik (https://tinyurl.com/yymj6ewz)

Hundreds of thousands of people from labor groups are planning to return to the streets in yet another string of protests against the government and the House of Representatives, said Confederation of Indonesian Workers Union (KSPI) chairman Said Iqbal.

“Hundreds of thousands of laborers will come to the House building as well as the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister,” he said.

Said added that starting on Monday until the end of this month, laborers would rally in their respective regions. While Said did not provide the exact date, he said the rallies would peak at the beginning of next month.

Said explained that there were two main points demanded by the labor unions, namely removing the job creation omnibus bill and stopping massive layoffs as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS NEWS AND HEADLINES

Bank Indonesia warns of U-shaped economic recovery
Kontan, (https://tinyurl.com/yy3l4lge), (https://tinyurl.com/y5wnsr9k) 

Bank Indonesia (BI) expects Southeast Asia’s biggest economy to see a U-shaped recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, a senior official has said, with a continuing rise in coronavirus cases set to impede a sharper rebound. BI at the beginning of the pandemic had predicted a V-shaped recovery, though it had since trimmed its gross domestic product outlook several times. “With the number of cases continuing to rise, this makes it unlikely that there will be 100 percent relaxation. It will be gradual, and this means the economy cannot recover quickly,” BI deputy governor Destry Damayanti said. Damayanti said BI’s prediction was for a second-quarter contraction of 4 to 4.8 percent, roughly in line with the government’s prediction of a 4.3 percent contraction.

 

Jokowi appoints Erick as coordinator of new economic task force
CNBC Indonesia, (https://tinyurl.com/y5e85lz9); CNN Indonesia, (https://tinyurl.com/y3d7rydg) 

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has signed a new government regulation (PP) concerning COVID-19 mitigation and the national economic recovery program, Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto said. The new regulation includes the formation of a new economic task force with State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir serving as its coordinator. Meanwhile, deputy SOEs minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has been appointed as the task force chief. Other ministries, such as the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister, the Office of the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister, the Office of the Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister, the Home Ministry, the Health Ministry and the Finance Ministry, will also be parts of the policy team coordinated by the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister.

 

Motorcycle and cement sales recover in June
Investor Daily, (https://tinyurl.com/y5neds6n) 

Motorcycle sales recorded a fivefold increase in June to more than 150,000 units, from the previous month at approximately 25,000 units. Meanwhile, car sales increased by 255 percent month-to-month (mtm), specifically from 3,551 units to 12,632 units. Cement sales in June were up by 26 percent mtm to 4.86 million tons. Indonesian Motorcycle Industry Association (AISI) sales head Sigit Kumala said the increase in motorcycle sales in June was driven by consumers’ need to avoid commuting by public transportation. Moreover, leasing companies have relaxed the down-payment requirement to a range of 20 to 25 percent, from the previous 40 percent.

 

Govt to operate first toll roads in Aceh and North Sulawesi
Kontan, (https://tinyurl.com/y3ncquf3)                                                                                            

The government is ready to start the operation of two toll roads, the fourth section of the Banda Aceh-Sigli toll road project in Aceh and the first section of Manado-Bitung toll road project in North Sulawesi. The construction of the 74-kilometer Banda Aceh-Sigli toll road is divided into six sections. In total, it will cost Rp 12.35 trillion (US$842.6 million). The fourth section spans 14 km from Indrapuri to Blang Bintang. The first section of the Manado-Bitung toll road spans 21 km from Manado to Airmadidi and costs Rp 3 trillion. The second section, which spans 25 km from Airmadidi to Bitung, will cost Rp 6.19 trillion.

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