News Desl, Jakarta – Business players have strongly criticized a government-sanctioned business competition watchdog's plan to increase fines for companies proven guilty of cartel practices in the proposed revision of the 1999 Monopoly Law.
The Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) has endorsed the revision of penalties for such violations from the current level of a maximum Rp 25 billion (US$1.9 million), to 30 percent of a company's total sales.
Sutrisno Iwantono, an Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) executive in charge of public policy, said the proposal could hamper business growth as the penalties could easily send businesses into bankruptcy.
"Thus, it will be fairer to calculate fines based on illegal profits obtained from cartel practices. Then, it could be multiplied by one, two or three times in accordance to the severity of the offences committed," Sutrisno said Wednesday in a discussion.
KPPU head Syarkawi Rauf argued that the new policy would create a stronger deterrent effect.
"The prevailing law is not fair because the KPPU could set fines to as low as Rp 1 billion and the highest at Rp 25 billion. Thus, small size businesses are forced to bear huge fines whereas big businesses can't be fined more," he said.
Lawmaker Azam Azman Natawijana, deputy chairman of House of Representatives' Commission VI overseeing trade, industry and investment, meanwhile, said the House's Legislation Body (Baleg) had received the draft revision. Lawmakers, he said, would discuss it early next year with the government to decide whether they would proceed with the revision. (win/hwa)