I moved to Bali from the UK, on leaving the UK all my earthly goods were sent to Bali where I will live. Indonesia has had a particular affection for me for many years, as periodically, for 16 years, I have worked and lived here, so moving to Bali was not so important.
Last week I had to travel to Jakarta to pass my relevant authenticity documents to the receiving shippers so that they could process my shipment from the UK through their customs. During this trip, I flew to Jakarta from Bali on the first available flight arriving at T3 at approximately 10am; 15 Jakarta time. At that moment, an employee of the shipping company met me at the airport and took away all my documents. After which I found a cozy place and waited for several hours for his return. On this occasion, I did not need to travel to the center of the city of Jakarta, since I had spent most of the last 16 years in and out of this city, and also I have lived here for 6 months this year.
In my period of stay here in Jakarta, I have seen this city transform into a sophisticated metropolis with many skyscrapers now adorning the skyline. In 1995, when I first came here, the city was turning into a modern city. Now it is flooded with all the facilities you would expect in a country of some 250 million people in a modern and bright place. Jakarta today is very far from the Jakarta of some 20 years ago, now it is a pleasure to visit it, although it had a particular uniqueness back then, but living here must have been a different story.
I should point out that this country has lagged somewhat behind the other Southeast Asian countries as the development phase has taken longer to take hold here in Indonesia than in other Southeast Asian countries. Perhaps this is due to the presidential reign of Suharto, who maintained a strong control over this country for 32 years and only liberated it during the riots of 1998. After which Indonesia has progressed down the path of true democracy leading to a major businessman. ism you now see today. This creativity has developed and flourished under a very liberal regime, recently being labeled by a BBC poll as the country with the most accommodating policies towards entrepreneurship allowing and encouraging the flourishing of many small businesses.
What I mean here is that Indonesia, with its 250 million people, is not a country to be ignored, in fact quite the opposite, it is a country to be targeted, as the market here is just beginning to grow. reach a mature phase. . Strangely enough; Your people are getting richer here and living standards are on a very low base increasing and this is accelerating.
So with all the financial problems in the western world and all the products developed in the west with little chance of a domestic market, how long can western companies ignore this part of the world?
To recap on history, this is a country that until 1998 was directed and firmly controlled for 32 years by the Suharto family, I say family, as it is said that the leader Mr. Suharto who used only one name, that of his family, was strongly encouraged by his wife from behind and it is said that she was the real power so much that after here the premature death a few years before the disappearance of the power of Suharto hastened his departure since his decisions had less weight than those made during his life.
Suharto came to power during the communist insurgency of the 1960s that swept across Asia. By opposing communism, he tightened his grip on Southeast Asia and I suspect that he became a firm friend to the West, as he was able to secure the shipping lanes that surround this vast part of the world. However, I also suspect that when the Iron Curtain fell, the support of the great powers across the oceans waned, making his position as supreme leader over a somewhat brutal and corrupt authoritarian regime untenable. Thus liberating Indonesia from an oppressive regime, leading to democracy and secure investment opportunities. As a geography lesson, if you took Indonesia off the map and overlapped it with Europe, this country would stretch from London to Tehran, like an archipelago is huge.
During my time in and out of Indonesia, I have seen many changes as you can imagine, but none are as vibrant and exciting as the changes and opportunities that are unfolding today as this country evolves into a stable democracy. Ignoring developments here is sheer insanity on the part of the dwindling fortunes of Western corporations.
In 1998 when democracy began through the civil unrest that arose from the campus of the various universities when the city of Jakarta began to fight back (I guess a form of the Arab Spring that predates the Middle East). Ironically, while the event was taking place here in Jakarta, Suharto was on an official trip to the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Since then, the untold riches have passed to workers who were willing to invest time, money, blood, and sweat.
I started this article by talking about my journey here, as it was inspired by the flight across the north coast of Java. As we got closer to Jakarta I could see a great variety of tight rows of new houses, this was a huge surprise, but when I think about the growth here, I am not at all surprised by this development.
The plane also landed at T3, which was again a very pleasant experience, as it is a new terminal equipped with all the modern facilities that can be expected for the waiting public. There are televisions with news, sports, etc., free WIFI and comfortable chairs to pass the time. Of course, there were many restaurants and cafes available, so a long wait here was a pleasant stay.