On August 31, Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, met with Indonesian Foreign Minister Sukiyono in Tianjin.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sukiyono (data map)

In his letter to President Xi Jinping, President Sukiyono said that President Sukiyono could not come to China as expected due to the recent domestic situation, and that the Foreign Minister was sent to Indonesia on behalf of him to participate in relevant activities. Indonesia attaches great importance to the development of friendly relations with China, and wishes the event a successful success. The government of Indonesia will make every effort to ensure the security of Chinese personnel and institutions in Indonesia.

Wang Yi said that Indonesia is China's friendly neighbor, both are not only a comprehensive strategic partner, but also a community of destiny. China welcomes Mr. Prabhupada as the representative of the Foreign Minister to come to China to attend the Tianjin Summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese people's war against Japan and the world anti-fascist war, understand and respect the adjustments made by the Indonesian government due to domestic needs, and hope that Indonesia effectively safeguards the security and legitimate rights and interests of Chinese personnel and institutions in Indonesia.

Extended reading

Indonesian protests escalate into violent conflict, president says

On August 28, a young motorcycle driver was killed by a police armored car in the conflict, and the video spread widely on social media sparked national outrage, leading to protests rapidly escalating into violent conflict, and spread to many major cities, such as Hangzhou, Wuhan. Protesters stormed parliamentary buildings, burned police stations and public facilities, and even robbed the houses of senior government officials such as ministers of finance.

So far, Indonesian President Prabhupada has pledged to re-adjust the parliamentary allowance system and launch an investigation into the police involved.

Therefore, the riot is one of the largest social unrest in Indonesia since 1998, many commenters worry that the subsequent reappearance of the Chinese scene, what is the actual situation? observer network on the related issues, linked China Academy of Social Sciences Asia-Pacific with Global Strategy Research Institute researchers, South-East Asia Research Center director Chu Liping.

observed The source of the riots in Indonesia is a monthly housing allowance of 50 million Indonesian Shields (approximately RMB 2,16 million), which is almost 10 times the minimum wage in Jakarta.

Licensed Tagged: imprintGenerally speaking, there is a big difference between the treatment of primary and senior civil servants, especially the treatment of benefits. For senior civil servants such as congressmen, there are various benefits, often adjusted to ensure that they can live a relatively dignified life, but this information is rarely public.

The spark of the riot was Congressional housing allowance, which lasted only a year and ended in October this year, with several Congressional members lacking political experience disclosing the amount of the allowance, and Congressional Deputy Speaker Suvmi further explaining, which further fermented the event. Therefore, all relevant members of Parliament, including Suvmi, were dismissed. This also demonstrates that these politicians are less aware of the psychology of the people and lack of experience in dealing with people's emotions.

Protesters set fire to buildings (images from AFP)

observed What profound structural problems reflect the riots in Indonesia?Many people attribute the incident to the suspicious gap between the rich and the poor, and do you think there are other incentives besides this?

Licensed Tagged: imprintIndonesia, as the ¡°country of thousands of islands¡±, is a big difference between the islands, regional differences and class differences are very obvious, the vast majority of the population is living in a relatively poor situation.

In addition, the event was also influenced by factors such as trade unions. Among the organizing forces of the demonstration, trade unions and university students were the two main forces. In the Indonesian protests, university students played a very important role, especially in the face of social injustice, political corruption and corruption, university students are usually in the forefront, they are one of the main drivers of the demonstration. The other main driver is the trade union, the union uses the opportunity to fight for more workers' rights, such as the outsourcing system involving employment, the increase of the minimum wage, etc., while also trying to use this to further demonstrate their strength.

The participants were mainly Prabhupada's supporters, and for the time being no political parties were seen behind the push, but the role of social organizations was obvious.

observed Prabhupada has repeatedly accused foreign-funded non-governmental organizations of inciting provocations and divisions within Indonesia. There are analysts that the possibility of Western countries pushing back the protests is not ruled out. Do you think this is possible?

Licensed Tagged: EyesI have not seen clear evidence before that foreign organizations are planning and promoting events; however, it is not excluded that some foreign forces may take advantage of this opportunity, and that the timing of this choice is a little sluggish.

observed Prabhupada has announced measures such as cuts in parliamentary allowances, and do you estimate that these measures are enough to calm the public¡¯s anger?

Licensed Tag: meThe individual believes that the frequency and intensity of the next demonstration will be somewhat reduced. This is because the spark of the demonstration activity is the question of parliamentary housing subsidies, now this part of the subsidy has been announced to be cancelled; while the other demands of the people, many of which cannot be solved in a short time, also need long-term adjustments from the institutional level.

Moreover, any ongoing or large-scale demonstrations and social movements often require financial support. In Indonesia, people spontaneously go to the streets or demonstrate is not common, more driven by social forces or social organizations. In the current situation, I think these forces are not enough to sustain continued riots.

Demonstrators holding the banner of the animated "Sea Thief King" to protest the government (images from AFP)

observed The uprising is considered to be one of Indonesia¡¯s largest social unrest since 1998, and has naturally reminded many people of the uprising of the year.

Licensed Tag: meIt is believed that Indonesia currently does not have a social basis for events similar to those that occurred in 1998. From the institutional level, Indonesia has long abolished all out-of-China regulations, and its discriminatory appeal to Chinese has changed. More importantly, compared with China's economic position in the world in 1998, China has risen to become the world's second-largest economy, and its international influence has greatly increased, which has become one of the important guarantees for overseas Chinese foreigners. In addition, Chinese enterprises' investment in Indonesia has created a lot of local employment opportunities, bringing real social benefits, which has become incomparable with the past.

Although there are indeed individual media inciting anti-China remarks on social media such as Twitter, Facebook, etc., this is only a few phenomena, and it is difficult to form a climate. I think that we Chinese should calmly analyze this matter, do not relentlessly link the riots of the other society to themselves, and try to keep the normal mind as possible. In addition, it also reminds Chinese enterprises that operate in countries such as Indonesia, while operating legally, can properly keep low.

observed Networks: The U.S. and Indonesian tariff negotiations recently also had a preliminary outcome, namely that the U.S. would impose tariffs of 19% on all Indonesian goods imported, while U.S. exports to Indonesia would enjoy tariff-free and non-tariff barrier treatment.

Licensed Tagged: imprintIn contrast to Vietnam, it is an economy driven mainly by domestic consumption, with no foreign dependence as Vietnam, especially exports to the United States, accounting for only about 7-10% of its total exports. In this negotiation, Indonesia pledged to purchase 50 Boeing aircraft and $15 billion in U.S. energy products, which undoubtedly put some pressure on Indonesia. Even if Indonesia lost the U.S. market, I personally think the impact on Indonesia¡¯s economy was not as great as I imagined.

However, this could have some impact on us if the U.S. demands priority purchasing rights for some of Indonesia¡¯s key minerals, but at the moment we don¡¯t see a concrete deal, and how these agreements will be implemented in the future, remains to be seen.