Indonesian importers, officials deny garlic cartel allegation
Trade Ministry law bureau chief Lasminingsih, who spoke on behalf of Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan and director general for foreign trade Bachrul Chairi, denied the accusation in the second hearing on the case by the Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) in Jakarta on Monday.
She claimed that neither trade official were subject to the 1999 Monopoly and Unfair Competition Law, which was being used to hear the case.
“In this case, the KPPU does not have the authority to name the government — the trade minister and director general for foreign trade — as defendants because government officials are not subject to the law, only business players are,” she said.
Lasminingsih said in the issuance of horticulture import permits, the Trade Ministry was only one of the parties involved in the process. “This means that the Trade Ministry does not issue the permits unilaterally, but refers to a recommendation from another ministry,” she said, referring to the Agriculture Ministry.
The KPPU held the first hearing last month, with the team of investigators revealing that the alleged cartel was established by three groups of affiliated garlic importers to fix the prices and manage domestic supply.
Source: www.thejakartapost.com