STATEMENT

Indonesia’s Involvement in G-20 is not Something to be Proud of;

rather, it Makes the Lives of the Indonesian People Miserable

The G-20 Summit will convene again on June 26-27, 2010 in

Toronto, Canada. Prior to the G-20 Meeting, a Ministerial Meeting
composed of the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the
member countries of G-20 was held in Busan, South Korea. President
SBY will surely attend the G-20 Meeting and deliver his speech in front of
the leader countries that contribute 85 % the world GDP.

For President SBY, Indonesia’s involvement in G-20 is something to

be proud of. This is natural, considering the position and strategic role of
G-20 and Indonesia is the only member of G-20 that came from a country
that is considered as a lower-middle income country; it is as if the level of
Indonesia is equal to industrial countries (G8). Many parties also believe
that the participation of Indonesia in the G-20 forum is the biggest
achievement of SBY as the leader of this Republic.

Is it true that the involvement of Indonesia in G-20 something to be

proud of and it is an achievement that can be offered to the Indonesian
people?

Since the inception of G-20 in 1999, the role of Indonesia as a

member country is not really significant, her role is only to approve the
policies formulated by advance countries (G7) and BRIC (Brazil, Russia,
India and China). The honour to speak in the G-20 forum that was
bestowed upon President SBY is just a pseudo-honour because,
apparently, the honour to speak in this forum has a very high price. As a
member country of G-20, Indonesia should carry the burden of the
financial crisis that is besetting advanced countries at present as a form of
solidarity, despite the fact that the actions and greediness of advanced
countries in exploiting the economy and ecology of poor countries were
never considered as an international crime. In addition to this, the member
countries of G-20, including Indonesia, should also accept the whole
liberalization and privatization agenda of the world economy which is the
primary agenda of G-20 and more advantageous to advanced countries.

The formation of the G-20 Forum in 1999 was actually intended to

respond to the monetary crisis at that time. The crisis has almost become
the main part and characteristic of the capitalist system. Whether we
realized it or not, sooner or later, the exploitative and accumulative
practices in a capitalist system will bring about a crisis and capitalism will
develop from one crisis to another or it create a new crisis (as a
euphemism, Joseph Schumpeter refers to it as constructive destruction).

As a proof, exactly 10 years since the 1998 monetary crisis, the

world economy is once again beset with a crisis. This time, the crisis of
capitalism is triggered by the chaos in the financial market. The products in
the financial market swelled and exceeded the value of the goods and
services produced by the people. Currently, the world GDP is only USD
57.9 trillion (IMF, 2009) while the value of the products in the financial
market is estimated to reach US$ 531 trillion.

At the start, the crisis besieged the financial market of the US in

early 2008. Financial stocks, investment banks and the prestigious
insurance companies in the US became bankrupt. They shattered like the
Twin Towers. This incident forced the US government to conduct large-
scale injection of funds and bail-outs to the financial companies and big
companies in the US. However, like throwing salt in the sea, this action of
the US government did not produce a new economic equilibrium in the
said country.

Later on, the crisis spread to the centres of capitalism in Europe.

This crisis even made Iceland and Greece bankrupt and it is certain that it
will also spread to the other countries in Europe. In the centre of capitalism
in Asia, Japan and Dubai were first attacked by the financial crisis and
they have not yet recovered up to now. There is also a possibility that the
crisis will also spread to the other countries in Asia, especially the
countries that are already integrated in the global financial system,
including Indonesia.

The economic-political experts in the world are convinced that the

present global crisis is not just a financial crisis. Experts are starting to
provide facts about the threat of a food crisis and ecological crisis (climate
change) that will emerge together with the global financial crisis. Despite
this, the propaganda about the threat of a food crisis and climate change
should also be perceived with caution, considering that there is a tendency
to integrate the method in resolving these two crises into the same
package to resolve the global financial crisis.

In order to resolve this crisis, advanced countries promoted a global

step that will not only involve advanced countries but developing countries
as well because they are considered as a new and huge economic power.
Basically, this global step will be taken to make developing countries the
safety net of the economies of advanced countries that cannot reduce their
cost of living and level of consumption in the midst of the financial crisis
that is besetting these countries. Under the pretence of attaining a new
economic equilibrium, developing countries will become the victims and
the objects of the exploitation of advanced countries.

Based on the initiative of advanced countries that were previously

joined together in G-8, a new forum called G-20 was formed. This forum is
composed of the member countries of G8 and the developing countries
that have huge contributions to investments and global trade. As such,
India, China, Brazil, Indonesia, and the other developing countries were
allowed to join the industrial countries to gather strength to confront the
crisis.

In this forum, joint strategies are formulated to resolve the global

financial crisis together. There are at least three main pillars in resolving
the global crisis, namely: first, re-strengthen the position, role, and function
of multilateral financial institutions like the IMF and the World Bank as the
financial source to resolve the crisis. Second, re-strengthen global
investments through various ways, including using the issue of climate
change to obtain new investments. Third, re-establish free trade by
abolishing protection policies and prohibiting the opening of markets,
especially in countries with a big population.

The global strategies mentioned above to resolve the crisis are

basically the restoration of the old ways of capitalism. The economic policy
outline used is neo-liberalism that is based on financial liberalization,
broadening of investments, free trade, and foreign debts. This is despite
the fact that in many discourses, these methods were already identified as
the main cause of the crisis.

For Indonesia, her involvement in G-20 without a reserve means

that this country is willing to accept global formulas and its actors, such as,
the World Bank, IMF, WTO, and TNCs. As a consequence of the
membership of Indonesia in G-20, Indonesia should implement the whole
economic liberalization agenda that is composed of three things, namely:
first, Indonesia should increase the number of her stocks in multilateral
financial institutions and increase the amount of her foreign debts. Second,
Indonesia should be open for more investments, especially in the service
and financial sector, including investment schemes to confront climate
change. Third, Indonesia should abolish various trade barriers (protection)
and ensure the implementation of market liberalization in the country.

As a reward, Indonesia will obtain more commitments for foreign

loans, both from bilateral loans and the loans obtained from multilateral
financial institutions. This is in accordance with the interest of the
government of Indonesia as implied in the speech of President SBY in the
G-20 Meeting in Washington DC in 15 November 2008 when he said that
multilateral financial institutions should prepare liquidity, credit, and
facilities to finance trade in order to maintain across borders economic
activities.

Based on the framework (trap) of the G-20 forum, it is certain that

the burden of the global financial crisis will be bestowed to Indonesia. This
is so because, as we all know, the foreign debt of Indonesia is not only a
problem in terms of its increasing nominal value but also because of her
role in changing the political-economic outline of other countries leading to
neo-liberalism. The huge foreign debt of Indonesia that is accompanied by
strict requirements is the reason why Indonesia is continuously chained to
neo-colonial investments and trade liberalization that will make Indonesia
bankrupt. As such, for Indonesia, G20 is not something to be proud of;
rather, it makes the lives of the Indonesian people miserable.

Based on the things mentioned above, we, from Koalisi untuk

Keadilan Global (Coalition for Global Justice) demand the following :
1. Reject the ways of neo-liberal capitalism in the form of
financial deregulation, trade liberalization, expansion of
investment, and foreign loans as the strategies in
resolving the global financial crisis.
2. Reject the strengthening of the role of multilateral financial
institutions, such as, the IMF and the World Bank and the
use of foreign loans as a financial source to resolve the
 crisis, especially in developing countries.
3. Reject all forms of manipulations towards the issue of food
crisis, climate change, and the agenda of sustainable
development that is actually an effort to prolong neo-
liberalism and imperialism in third world countries.
4. Demand the government to re-implement the national
economy based on the mandate of the Proclamation of
Independence and the 1945 Constitution, particularly
article 33, as the basis of the people’s economy.

Such are our demands

Jakarta, 25 June 2010

Members of the Coalition

1. IGJ (Institute Global Justice)
2. INFID (International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development)
3. KAU (Koalisi Anti Utang)
4. WALHI (Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia)
5. Migrant CARE
6. KRUHA (Koalisi Rakyat Untuk Hak atas Air)
7. SPI (Serikat Petani Indonesia)
8. KIARA (Koalisi Rakyat Untuk Keadilan Perikanan)