JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/ANN): Indonesia s Financial Services Authority (OJK) said on Thursday (Feb 18) that Sea Group s e-commerce arm Shopee had acquired local lender Bank Kesejahteraan Ekonomi (Bank BKE) with the aim of transforming it into a digital bank.
OJK official Anung Herlianto said that Shopee, Southeast Asia’s largest e-commerce platform, has yet to make an official application with the banking regulators to transform Bank BKE into a digital institution, but they are “currently preparing the infrastructure to do so.”
He told reporters that OJK was preparing regulations for new digital banks, which would likely be released in mid-2021, but that a digital lender like Bank BKE would be expected to prepare 3 trillion rupiah (US$213.64 million) in capital.
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/ANN): President Joko Jokowi Widodo has instructed the National Police to devise a guideline for the law enforcement body in handling online defamation cases amid rising concerns that the nation’s cyberlaw has been repeatedly abused to silence government critics.
The draconian Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law and its vague provisions on what constitutes defamation on the web have long been criticised by activists for curbing freedom of speech and expression in the country.
Addressing an annual joint meeting of the police and the military on Monday, Jokowi said he was aware that the implementation of the law had often incurred “a sense of unfairness” among the public and therefore called the police to selectively process cases that violate the law.
This aerial photo shows protesters marching on a road during a demonstration against the military coup in Shwebo in Myanmar s Sagaing Region on Feb 13, 2021. - AFP
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Ann): Asean members like Indonesia have been working the diplomatic channels to set up a special Asean ministerial meeting to avert one of the biggest political crises in the region, as civil disobedience continues in Myanmar two weeks after its government was ousted by a military coup.
“Diplomatic efforts are still underway” at various levels, said Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah in cautious discussions with The Jakarta Post on Monday (Feb 15).
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/ANN): Indonesia’s manufacturing activity rose to its highest level since July 2014, as the sector continued its gradual recovery from the pandemic-induced downturn for four consecutive months, although domestic demand is expected to remain slow and extended restrictions still pose risks going forward.
The country’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) further rose to 52.2 in January from 51.3 in December last year, according to business information provider IHS Markit on Monday (Feb 1).
A reading above 50 reflects an expansion from the previous month.
“The Indonesian manufacturing sector remained on the path to recovery at the start of 2021, with growth of output and new orders among the best in the decade-long survey so far, ” IHS Markit economist director Andrew Harker was quoted in the press release as saying.
Floodwaters inundate rice fields in Banjar regency on Jan. 28, 2021, after weeks of heavy rainfall in South Kalimantan. - Antara
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/ANN): The series of weather disasters Indonesia experienced in early January could indicate that the country faces an increased risk of hydrometeorological hazards amid the ongoing climate crisis.
Authorities are urged to adapt disaster preparedness and mitigation measures in alignment with the potential for higher risk, but have been hindered by a limited capacity to brace against future catastrophes.
Data from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) show that Indonesia experienced a rising number of hydrometeorological disasters from 2015 to 2020, six of the hottest years on record according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).