Indonesia – the Troubled Giant
读书会的意义 Indonesia is a vast country. Its 220 million people are spread out over some 17,000 islands that span an arc 3,200 miles long from Sumatra in the west to Irian Jaya in the east. It is the world’s most populous Muslim nation – some 85 percent of the population count themlves as Muslims – but also one of the most ethnically diver. More than 500 languages are spoken in the country, and paratists are active in a number of provinces. For 30 years, this sprawling nation was held together by the strong arm of President Suharto. Suharto was a virtual dictator who was backed by the military establishment. Under his rule, the Indonesia economy grew steadily, but there was a cost. Suharto brutally represd internal disnt. He was also famous for “crony capitalism,” using his command of the political system to favor the business enterpris of his supporters and family.
大麦茶的功效与禁忌
宣城见杜鹃花 In the end, Suharto was overtaken by massive debate that Indonesia has accumulated during the 1990s. In 1997, the Indonesian economy went into a tailspin. The IMF stepped in with a $43 billion rescue package. When it was revealed that much of this money found its
way into the personal coffers of Suharto and his cronies, people took into streets in protest and he was forced to resign.
After Suharto ( who died of heart dia in the hospital in Jakarta on 27 Jan, 2008, with his presidency form 1967 to 1998) , Indonesia moved rapidly toward a vigorous democracy, culminating in October with the inauguration of Susilo Banmbang Yudhoyono, the country’s first directly elected president. It has changed into a more democratic government. The economic front has also en progress. Public debt as a percentage of GDP fell from clo to 100 percent in 2000 to less than 60 percent in 2004.
In recent years, however, Indonesia has a very promising economic development. In 2010, its overall GDP has reached $US706.7 billion, with 6.1% increasing rate over 2009. GDP per capita reached $US3004.9. It is estimated that its GDP would be reaching 6.6% increasing rate in 2011. There is a saying that Indonesia Chine controlled near 70% of its economy, however, many people are doubt about its accuracy.
But Indonesia lags behind its Southeast Asia neighbors. Its economic growth trails that o随声附和的意思
as什么意思f China, Malaysia, and Thailand around 2004 and 2005.
Some obrvers feel that Indonesian is hobbled by its poor infrastructure. Public infrastructures investment has been declining for years. The road system is a mess; half of the population has no access to electricity. The tsunami that ravaged the coast of Sumatra in late 2004 only made matters wor. Mirroring the decline in public investment has been a slump in private investment.
怎么训练口才
According to a World Bank study, business activity in Indonesia is hurt by excessive red tape. It takes 151 days on average to complete the paperwork necessary to start a business, compared to 30 days in Malaysia and just 8 days in Singapore. Another problem is the endemically high level of corruption. Transparency International, which studies corruption around the world, ranks Indonesia among the most corrupt, listing it 137 out of the 158 countries it tracked in 2005. Government bureaucrats, who salaries are very low, inevitably demand bribes from any company that cross their path – and Indonesia’s penchant for bureaucratic red tape means a long line of officials might require
bribes. Abdul Rahman Saleh, the attorney general in Indonesia, has stated that the entire legal system, including the police and the procutors, is mired in corruption. The police have been known to throw the executives of foreign enterpris into jail on the flimsiest of pretexts, although some well-placed bribes can cure their relea. Even though Indonesia has recently launched an anticorruption drive, critics claim it lacks any teeth. The political elite are reported so corrupt that it is not in their interest to do anything meaningful to fix the system.
Q1. What political factors explain Indonesia’s poor economic performance? What economic factors? Are the two related?
Q2. Why is corruption so endemic in Indonesia? What are its conquences?
Q3. Do you think Indonesia is a good place for the overas investment? Why or why not?
Q4. What are the risks facing foreign firms that do business in Indonesia? What is required to reduce the risks?选拔赛
朝花夕拾好句摘抄