Latest news with #AnandaTeresia
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Ride-hailing drivers in Indonesia hold protests to demand better pay
By Ananda Teresia and Heru Asprihanto JAKARTA (Reuters) - Hundreds of taxi and delivery drivers joined protests in several cities across Indonesia on Tuesday over low wages and to oppose a planned merger between the country's largest tech company GoTo and U.S.-listed ride-hailing rival Grab. Ride-hailing and delivery services, especially by motorcycle, are a critical part of the transport landscape in Southeast Asia's largest economy, especially in big cities. GoTo's unit Gojek, which has more than 3.1 million motorcycle drivers on its books, and Singapore-headquartered Grab have dominated the Indonesian market for years. Drivers gathered in the early afternoon near the president's office, parliamentary buildings, and the office of the transport ministry in Jakarta, dressed in their trademark green jackets and helmets. They delivered fiery speeches through loudspeakers, waved flags and held up posters criticising what they said were unfair and exploitative company policies. Drivers, who say they typically make between 100,000 rupiah ($6.09) and 150,000 rupiah for 10 to 12-hour day, also rode in a convoy through some of the capital's major streets. GoTo said in a statement it was open to drivers' input but reducing the company's share of fares was not a solution. On the merger plan, it said it had received proposals from various parties but had "not made any decision." Grab did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Drivers asked the government to ensure they received 90% of the fare from each trip, Raden Igun Wicaksono, the head of the online motorcycle driver association, told Reuters. Under current regulations, companies are supposed to take no more than 20% of the fare, but Wicaksono said that sometimes the companies took more. "There is no sanction in the regulation and the government has always been soft on the companies," he said. Transportation Minister Dudy Purwagandhi, who met company representatives on Monday to discuss the issues, acknowledged the drivers' concerns over the level of commissions and said in a statement that the government was evaluating the scheme. The companies say they take a commission on fares as regulated by the government. Protests took place in cities, including Surabaya, Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Semarang on the country's main Java island, local media reported. Sunardi, 47, who joined the Jakarta protest, said company offers of discounted fares had also reduced driver incomes and called for an end to the practice. The drivers said they feared a merger between GoTo and Grab would result in a "monopoly" and lead to layoffs as well as "predatory prices" for consumers, said Wicaksono. Grab is looking to strike a deal to take over GoTo in the second quarter, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters earlier this month. If the merger goes ahead it would create a regional ride-hailing giant with around 85% of the $8 billion market, according to data analytics firm Euromonitor International. ($1 = 16,410.0000 rupiah)
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Indonesia parliament set to ratify sea boundary with Vietnam, lawmaker says
By Ananda Teresia and Stanley Widianto JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia's parliament is set to agree next week to ratify an agreement made with Vietnam that sets the boundaries of their exclusive economic zones in the contested South China Sea, a lawmaker said on Thursday. The South China Sea is a strategic waterway that has been a source of tension between China and its Southeast Asian neighbours, disrupting fishing and energy exploration in the area. Nico Siahaan, a lawmaker in the parliamentary commission overseeing the agreement, told Reuters the parliament and the government would formally agree to ratify it on Monday, with the actual ratification set for that week or the following week. The agreement, signed in 2022 after more than a decade of negotiations, determines the coordinates of the two nations' EEZs at sea. The Vietnamese parliament also needs to ratify the deal. Indonesia hopes it could reduce encroachments by Vietnamese fishermen in its waters, a frequent source of tension. Hikmahanto Juwana, an Indonesian international law expert who was consulted by the parliament last week, told Reuters on Thursday the agreement means the two countries are ignoring China's claims in the sea. China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, including parts of the exclusive economic zones of Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Vietnam, and waters off Indonesia's Natuna Islands. In 2016, an international arbitral tribunal ruled that China's claims have no basis under international law. China does not recognise the ruling, and insists it operates lawfully in its territory. Indonesia's deputy foreign minister, Arif Havas Oegroseno, told Reuters on Wednesday that the agreement would provide legal boundaries for fishermen and clearly define relations between the two countries at sea. "To Indonesia, as an archipelago with a lot of neighbours, ideally sea borders are done. So we have a legal certainty: where we can make patrols, drill oil," he said. Indonesia's signing of a maritime deal with China last year sparked controversy, with analysts saying it could be interpreted as a change in Jakarta's long-held stance as a non-claimant state in the South China Sea. Indonesia's foreign ministry has repeatedly said the country is a non-claimant state in the South China Sea and has no overlapping jurisdiction with China.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Indonesia's rights groups urge parliament not to pass military law
By Ananda Teresia JAKARTA (Reuters) - Rights groups in Indonesia on Wednesday urged parliament to reject contentious revisions of military laws, saying they would take the archipelago back to an era of military domination and create legal uncertainty. Indonesia's parliament is set to pass the law on Thursday in a plenary council after the house committee overseeing military approved the changes, which will allow armed forces personnel to hold more civilian posts. Rights groups and student organisations called for protests outside the parliament on Thursday. Rights group Legal Aid Institute said the revision would pull Indonesia back 30 years to an era where the late strongman Suharto used the military to dominate civilian affairs and crush dissent in the world's most populous Muslim-majority country. "The revision is a legislative crime that threatens Indonesians and the future of democracy," said Arif Maulana, deputy chair of the institute. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, a former special forces commander and Suharto's former son-in-law, has expanded the armed forces' role since taking office in October. The government defends the bill saying it incorporated concerns and watered it down by stipulating that military officers must first resign before being placed in most civilian roles. A lawmaker from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, Nico Siahaan, said the government added more agencies where active soldiers could be appointed, including the state secretariat, Attorney General's Office, as well as the counter-terrorism and narcotics agencies. Active soldiers in the Attorney General Office would affect transparency of legal processes involving military personnel, Arif said, adding that there was a risk of armed forces using violence in civilian roles. Allowing the military to be more involved in civilian affairs could also lead to abuse of power, human rights violations, and impunity, said Usman Hamid of Amnesty International Indonesia. Budi Djiwandono, the deputy chief of committee overseeing the military law bill, said the government would ensure that it upholds civil supremacy. Djiwandono, who is also Prabowo's nephew, added that no active military personnel would be placed in state-owned companies, dismissing concerns they would be involved in business. The opposition party urged all parties to monitor the implementation of the law to ensure no further expansion of military roles, Siahaan said.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Yahoo
Indonesia to question more than 500 citizens freed from Myanmar scam centres
By Ananda Teresia and Stefanno Sulaiman JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia will question hundreds of its citizens arriving in the capital on Tuesday after they were rescued from online scam compounds in Myanmar, the largest batch of arrivals in the country following a multinational crackdown on the operation. Myanmar's Myawaddy scam centres are part of a Southeast Asia network involving criminal gangs trafficking hundreds of thousands of people to help generate illicit revenues running into billions of dollars a year, according to the United Nations. About 200 Indonesians arrived at Jakarta's airport on Tuesday morning from Myawaddy via Thailand and another 200 will land in the afternoon, the chief security minister, Budi Gunawan, said in a news conference. Around 154 more are expected to arrive on Wednesday, Budi added. They were among 7,000 people from different nationalities freed from scam centres in Myawaddy following a multinational crackdown to dismantle the illegal compounds. "We will conduct an assessment to find out which ones amongst them are victims or perpetrators. Because maybe some of them are the illegal players," Budi said. "We want the Southeast Asia region free from online scams," he said. The 554 people, consisting of 105 women and 449 men, will be taken to a dormitory usually reserved for hajj pilgrims where they will be questioned by police, he said. Those cleared would be allowed to return home but those suspected of being willing participants in financial crimes would face legal processes in Indonesia. Footage showed the arriving Indonesians wearing red masks and bandanas and being welcomed by authorities, including foreign minister Sugiono, after landing. Some of them cried and hugged the officials. Budi said some of them were beaten and electrocuted before being rescued. Others were also threatened that their body parts would be taken if they failed to meet targets set by the cartel, he added. "Be careful when you make friends on social media. I am the victim of social media," a survivor with the initials DN told reporters. Earlier this month, another group of 84 Indonesians returned home from Myanmar while 70 others remain in the country. Some of them were being detained and a few have refused to go home, Budi said. Aside from Indonesia, China and India have also repatriated their citizens from Myawaddy but thousands still remain in the area including those from African nations.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Yahoo
Indonesia to question more than 500 citizens freed from Myanmar scam centres
By Ananda Teresia and Stefanno Sulaiman JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia will question hundreds of its citizens arriving in the capital on Tuesday after they were rescued from online scam compounds in Myanmar, the largest batch of arrivals in the country following a multinational crackdown on the operation. Myanmar's Myawaddy scam centres are part of a Southeast Asia network involving criminal gangs trafficking hundreds of thousands of people to help generate illicit revenues running into billions of dollars a year, according to the United Nations. About 200 Indonesians arrived at Jakarta's airport on Tuesday morning from Myawaddy via Thailand and another 200 will land in the afternoon, the chief security minister, Budi Gunawan, said in a news conference. Around 154 more are expected to arrive on Wednesday, Budi added. They were among 7,000 people from different nationalities freed from scam centres in Myawaddy following a multinational crackdown to dismantle the illegal compounds. "We will conduct an assessment to find out which ones amongst them are victims or perpetrators. Because maybe some of them are the illegal players," Budi said. "We want the Southeast Asia region free from online scams," he said. The 554 people, consisting of 105 women and 449 men, will be taken to a dormitory usually reserved for hajj pilgrims where they will be questioned by police, he said. Those cleared would be allowed to return home but those suspected of being willing participants in financial crimes would face legal processes in Indonesia. Footage showed the arriving Indonesians wearing red masks and bandanas and being welcomed by authorities, including foreign minister Sugiono, after landing. Some of them cried and hugged the officials. Budi said some of them were beaten and electrocuted before being rescued. Others were also threatened that their body parts would be taken if they failed to meet targets set by the cartel, he added. "Be careful when you make friends on social media. I am the victim of social media," a survivor with the initials DN told reporters. Earlier this month, another group of 84 Indonesians returned home from Myanmar while 70 others remain in the country. Some of them were being detained and a few have refused to go home, Budi said. Aside from Indonesia, China and India have also repatriated their citizens from Myawaddy but thousands still remain in the area including those from African nations.
