Tony Sitathan – Irwin Goenawan graduated at the top in his class studying for magister manajeman, the Indonesian equivalent of a master of business administration (MBA) degree. He comes from a middle-class family. His father is a respected academician and honorary professor in Jakarta's Pancasila University, while his mother runs a small gift shop selling paintings and art and craft in Central Jakarta.

Irwin has most of the essentials in life and some of the luxuries that others his age can only dream of. But despite his above-average lifestyle and overall sense of achievement from graduating at the top of his class, something deeply bothers him. Unemployment.

Irwin graduated almost two years ago to qualify for magister manajeman, but has been trouble finding a job to suit his skills.

"I have been talking to IT [information technology] companies, banks and financial houses as well as research and broadcasting media houses and it looks like it is getting nowhere. Everyone seems to be maintaining the status quo since there has been a freeze in hiring new staff to replace the older ones that are on the verge of retirement," he said. Irwin was unable to get full-time employment in Jakarta and is thinking of moving to Bandung and helping his cousins run a clothing store.

Irwin's plight is not new to Jakarta or elsewhere in Indonesia. Unemployment has become a major national problem. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics' (BPS) latest quarterly survey, the level of unemployment at the beginning of the second half of this year reached 8 million people, or 8.2 percent of the country's 97.6 million labor force.

Although the unemployment figure appeared low, BPS acknowledged that the new data were "worrying" because 61 percent of the unemployed were young men in the 15-24 age range. And the greatest worry, according to sociologist Indrayani Shanti, is the fear that this age group may turn to crime to make a living. "There are more and more youths today, unable to find employment, turning to crime and other means to eke a living in cosmopolitan cities like Jakarta. My greatest worry is that unemployment may be a breeding ground for social misfits and those who might exhibit criminal tendencies," she said.

According to the BPS report, about 34.5 percent of the unemployed were young men who were senior-high-school graduates. "This is a disturbing trend, seeing well-qualified students not finding meaningful employment. Is the state to be blamed for turning a blind eye to this social problem?" said Indrayani.

Rini Paramitha works as a nightclub hostess in the West Jakarta. Unlike many of her peers in the nightclub profession, she is a senior-high-school graduate. She tried working in a metalwork factory in Tangerang, on the outskirts of Jakarta, but it closed down. Unable to support her family, she became a hostess.

She says she goes out only with customers she wants to go out with and is under no pressure from the owner of the establishment to please the clientele. "I have my own reasons for working in this line. At least it's a stable income, accompanying foreigners as a club hostess, singing karaoke songs. The times I do decide to earn a little extra, sometimes exceeding Rp500,000 [about US$55] for a night, I pick and choose whom I want to spend my night with," she says unabashedly.

The Indonesian government knows only too well that unemployment and underemployment put an indirect stress on the state coffers even though, unlike Australia, Germany or the United Kingdom, which pay out dole to citizens who qualify for social security, Indonesia does not have any safety net for its citizens. The indirect stress to the state coffers comes in the form of crime and violence, which are on the increase.

There was recently an episode in which some students were gathered for a demonstration that opposed the re-election of the current governor of Jakarta, Sutisloyo. "Around 1,000 students were rounded up from the various high schools and universities, where each student was given around Rp50,000 together with a meal allowance to stage a protest in front of parliament," said Malik Arjuna, a student demonstrator and ringleader. Traffic in the road leading to parliament was paralyzed for a day and hundreds of policemen were called in, as well as members of the armed forces (TNI). Such episodes amount to a cost to the state, which has to cover the expense of mobilizing a protective blockade and to disperse protests that sometimes got out of hand.

The BPS survey sampled 18,132 households across the country. The unemployment data here refer to open unemployment, which the bureau defines as the percentage of people categorized as part of the labor force who have no job and are actively seeking work. The survey was aimed at establishing an early-warning system for the government to monitor the country's labor problems.

Yunita Rusanti, head of the labor evaluation and statistical section at BPS, said this was the first quarterly survey published since 1994. The survey was restarted on a recommendation from the International Monetary Fund, which requires Indonesia to keep itself abreast of labor problems.

Independent experts, however, have estimated the country's unemployment at more than 40 million by including the huge amount of disguised unemployment, defined as the number of people in the labor force working less than 35 hours per week.

Indrayani says the unemployment rate of 8 percent is seen as unrealistic because it is lower than the rate in some European countries. "This survey does not reflect the true extent of unemployment in Indonesia and cannot be taken as a benchmark for officials to base their projections and estimations [on]," she said.

Although the Indonesian economy is expected to show approximately 6-7 percent growth for 2002, Indonesia has not recovered from the economic crisis of 1997-98. "The plain fact of the matter is companies are not operating as before and state-run companies that offered full-time employment to the masses are far more selective now and, given the drain on finances, the iron rice bowl of the Suharto era is not there anymore," said Winatunggung Salembar, an economist with PT Trimegah Securities.

Also given the backdrop of the inflation rate of 8-9 percent and the weakening of the rupiah against the greenback, the rupiah can do a lot less than it could before. The true value of the rupiah has dropped marginally as well, reflecting the true nature of Indonesia and Indonesians now – weathered, downtrodden and unemployed.