Dewanti Wardhani, Jakarta – Responding to the Trade Ministry's prohibition on the sale of alcohol in minimarts, Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama is considering allowing minimarts and special bottle shops to sell alcohol.

Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel recently issued Ministerial Regulation No. 6/2015 on the distribution of beverages, prohibiting supermarkets and minimarts from selling drinks containing more than five percent alcohol.

The new regulation was intended, the minister claimed, to uphold morality and culture in society and to help end the distribution of bootleg liquor that had claimed many a number of lives in recent years.

"There should be a bottle shop selling alcoholic drinks only. It's common in other countries. Anyone can buy from the bottle shop as long as they are over 21 years old," Ahok told reporters at City Hall in Central Jakarta on Wednesday.

Ahok said that such stores would not need special licenses. However, he said, the city administration would conduct an in-depth study before allowing supermarkets and minimarts to sell alcohol.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/04/22/ahok-allow-minimarts-sell-alcohol.html