Indonesia Logistics and Forwarders’ Association (ALFI/ILFA) threatens a strike if the government revises the shipping bill UU No 17/2008 that will eliminate or not involve the association in policy making, including in tariff set up.
House of Representative (DPR) Commission V and Ministry of Transportation conducted a meeting today, September 20, 2024, to discuss the revision of the shipping bill.
In responding the meeting, ALFI refused the government initiative to eliminate Article 110 point 1 and 5 of the Shipping Bill. ALFI has extensively been standing against it since the Ministry of Transportation conducted a public hearing a month ago (August 16, 2024) and told an initiative to delete the points (Article 110 point 1 and 5).
ALFI threatens a national strike if the government (Ministry of Transportation and DPR) force to delete the points from the shipping bill.
“We have expressed our (ALFI/ILFA) standing position for several times and in several ways. We have expressed it in an official letter both DPR and government (Ministry of Transportation) and in any meetings and discussion we join in,” ALFI/ILFA Chairman Akbar Djohan said it in a press statement today (September 20, 2024).
Akbar warns that deleting those articles and points from the shipping bill would open up opportunities for Port Authorities to arbitrarily and unilaterally set tariffs related to the use of waters and/or land and port services.
Akbar also revealed that the elimination of these articles could affect tariffs and have an impact on the existence and sustainability of member businesses ALFI/ILFA, which consists of more than 4,300 companies and SMEs that absorb more than 100,000 employees.
This does not include company members and employees from other associations, which can represent more than 10,000 companies and hundreds of thousands of employees.
“Authority can unilaterally set tariffs related to the use of waters and/or land and port services,” he said.
Akbar urged House of Representatives to maintain its proposal in the bill to involve associations in Article 110 (Paragraph 5) in determining port service tariffs. He said, this is a form of community participation as regulated Article 274 and 275 of the Shipping Bill. The articles stipulate that the community has the same and broadest possible opportunity in order to improve the implementation of shipping optimally.
“So, DPR proposal to involve associations in determining port services is very relevant,” explained Akbar.
He explained that setting port service rates that are too high will result in increasing high logistics costs and cause domestic product prices to become uncompetitive in the national and global markets.
“The elimination of Article 110 Paragraph (1) and (Paragraph 5) can lead to excess favourite sentiment that only benefits subsidiaries of state port operators and kills private sectors,” he said.
Akbar said that until now the determination of goods rates has been carried out through agreements between each association, including shipping association INSA, stevedoring companies’ association APBMI; ALFI/ILFA; importers GINSI, and exporters GPEI.
According to Akbar, the Government’s reason for stating that Article 110 and (Paragraph 5) have been regulated in Ministerial Regulation (PM) 72/2017 and PM 121/2018 is no longer relevant. This is because the two PMs are now said to be in the process of being changed through a new Draft Ministerial Regulation (RPM).
“The opinion of the Government that Article 110 Paragraph (1) and Paragraph 5 is sufficient to be included in the Regulation of the Ministry of Transportation, is an unclear reason and cannot be accepted by ALFI/ILFA,” he explained.
The government, he said, only accommodate the interest of state port operator PT Pelindo and other state logistics companies and ignores thousands of companies and employees who join under the auspices of; APBMI; ALFI/ILFA; INSA GINSI and GPEI.
He said, ALFI/ILFA would hold a national strike if the Government maintains its position to abolish Article 110 Paragraph (1 and Paragraph 5). “The Indonesian Logistics and Forwarders Association (ALFI/ILFA will hold a national strike to convey aspirations directly to the House of Representatives by involving other related associations,” he said.