Archive for June, 2006

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Thursday, 29 June 2006

UNICEF airlifting emergency supplies to Indonesia
Times of India – India
… United Nations Children’s Fund is airlifting emergency supplies of hygiene equipment and water containers to flood affected districts of Indonesia, where more …

Indonesia, Microsoft Team to Battle Child Predators
CIO – Framingham,MA,USA
Indonesia has joined forces with Microsoft to fight child predators, making it the first country in Asia to join a growing Internet collaboration. …

Indonesia’s BP Migas says Conoco still keen on Aceh gas field …
Forbes – USA
… interested in developing the Block A gas field in Aceh than on selling out following the exit of its 50 pct partner Exxon Mobil Oil Indonesia, a government …

Indonesia to build nuclear power plant in 2010
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Indonesia would start to build nuclear power plant in 2010 in Central Java province, which targeted to complete in five years, Mines and Mineral Resources …

Sixteen facing execution in Indonesia
Melbourne Herald Sun – Australia
INDONESIA is preparing to execute 16 people, including 10 foreigners from Africa and Asia, who are on death row for drug trafficking. …

More quake survivors infected with diseases in Indonesia
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
More survivors of last month’s quake in Indonesia’s Yogyakarta province have been infected with a variety of diseases, including respiratory problems, skin …

Indonesia prepares for execution of Bali bombers
Reuters – USA
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesia is preparing for the execution of three militants sentenced to death for the 2002 Bali bombings, but the exact date cannot be …

Govt close to finalising prisoner exchange treaty with Indonesia
ABC Online – Australia
… At the eighth Australia-Indonesia Ministerial Forum in Bali, Indonesian Minister Dr Hamid Awaludin says he and Australia’s Attorney-General Philip Ruddock are …

Indonesia ‘failed in its response to bird flu’
Financial Times – London,England,UK
Indonesia’s response to a fatal bird flu cluster was littered with failings, according to international experts, and would have speeded rather than slowed …

The older we get, the more we suspect Indonesia: poll
Sydney Morning Herald – Sydney,New South Wales,Australia
SUSPICION towards Indonesia strengthens with age, according to a poll that finds the young are twice as likely as the elderly to hold a positive view. …

Women caught in a more radical Indonesia
International Herald Tribune – France
TANGERANG, Indonesia To a passer-by, the dress and demeanor of Lilis Lindawati would have attracted little attention as she waited in the dark in this busy …

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Wednesday, 28 June 2006

Indonesia quake anniversary
ABC Asia Pacific – Australia
Many families are still waiting for news about missing relatives and as many as 400-thousand are still sleeping in the open or beneath make-shift shelters. …

Snake Discovered in Indonesia Changes Colors
ShortNews.com – Regensburg,Germany
A new species of snake has been discovered by a WWF reptile expert in West Kalimantan, Indonesia along the Kapuas River. Called …

INDONESIA: AUSTRALIAN PM’S VISIT A CHANCE FOR ‘PATCHING UP’
AKI – Rome,Italy
Batam, 27 June (AKI/Jakarta Post) – Indonesia and Australia began talks Monday about how to repair strained bilateral relations, with President Susilo Bambang …

Indonesia may have nuclear power plant in next 5 years
Xinhua – China
JAKARTA, June 27 (Xinhua) — Indonesia will likely have a nuclear power plant for electricity within the next five years if the country begins the building of …

Inco Indonesia Shares Advance on Phelps Dodge Offer for Inco
Bloomberg – USA
June 27 (Bloomberg) — Shares of PT International Nickel Indonesia, a unit of Inco Ltd., rose to their highest in four weeks after Phelps Dodge Corp., the …

Indonesia govt seeks 500 bln rupiah div from Telkom, 3G proceeds …
Antara – Antara,Indonesia
Jakarta (ANTARA News) – Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the government as majority stockholder will request PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) to …

Indonesia Shares End Flat
MSN Money – USA
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) – Indonesian shares ended almost flat Tuesday, with gains in nickel miner Inco and select bank blue chips keeping the main index in …

Spread of Islamic Law in Indonesia Takes Toll on Women
New York Times – United States
TANGERANG, Indonesia, June 24 — To a passer-by, the dress and demeanor of Lilis Lindawati would have attracted little attention as she waited in the dark in …

Third Kuwaiti relief plane arrives in Indonesia
Kuwait News Agency – Kuwait
KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 (KUNA) — A third relief aid plane sent by the Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) arrived in Indonesia’s devastated Java Island. …

Scientists photograph five ancient coelacanth fish in Indonesia
PlanetSave.com – Portland,ME,USA
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) _ Scientists working off Indonesia’s Sulawesi island have photographed five primitive fish once thought to have died along with the …

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Tuesday, 27 June 2006

Earthquake jolts Bengkulu, Indonesia
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
A tectonic earthquake measuring 5. 2 on the Richter Scale jolted Bengkulu province, Indonesia, Sunday evening but there were no immediate reports of damage or …

Indonesia: Witnessing Tragedy First Hand
Asharq Alawsat – London,UK
… It is also worth noting that Java is by far the most developed island of Indonesia, so it wasn’ta problem for journalists to carry on their work, be it …Â

Indonesia could mediate in NKorea nuclear dispute: Blix
ABC Asia Pacific – Australia
Former United Nations weapons inspector, Hans Blix, has touted Indonesia as a possible mediator in the North Korean nuclear standoff. …

Meredith to Launch Parents in Indonesia
Houston Chronicle – United States
… a unit of media company Mahaka Media, said Monday that they are teaming in an exclusive, multiyear licensing agreement to publish Parents magazine in Indonesia …Â

Nine dead in Indonesia ferry sinking: official
Reuters – USA
… Ferries are a popular means of transport between the 17,000 islands of Indonesia, where sea connections are cheaper and more available than air routes. …

Three new projects announced under S’pore-Indonesia SEZ in Batam
Channel News Asia – Singapore
BATAM, INDONESIA: Three new projects worth about US$120 million have been announced under the Special Economic Zone agreement between Singapore and Indonesia. …

Floods, landslide in Indonesia kill 22
Boston Globe – United States
Police officers and residents clean up mud from mosque hit by flood in Sinjai, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, Friday, June 23, 2006. …

Indonesia-Australia ties returns to normal: FM
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said on Monday that Indonesia’s relations with Australia have returned to normal after they got strained following …

INDONESIA: BASHIR CONSOLIDATES FORCES
AKI – Rome,Italy
Yogyakarta, 26 June (AKI/Jakarta Post) – Thousands of Muslims in Indonesia listened to a sermon Sunday in Yogyakarta by firebrand cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, who …

Quake rattles Indonesia’s Sumatra island
Hindustan Times – India
A 5.0-magnitude earthquake shook Indonesia’s western island of Sumatra but there were no reports of damage or casualties, the meteorology office said. …

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Monday, 26 June 2006

Pak Army medical team to stay in Indonesia for more time on govt …
Online – International News Network – Islamabad,Pakistan
RAWALPINDI: Emergency services and medical treatment being provided by the Pakistan Army Medical Contingent in Central Java, Indonesia have been very highly …

Indonesia: Military Business Threatens Human Rights
Bay Area Indymedia – San Francisco,CA,USA
… “The people of Indonesia pay the price for the military’s economic adventurism,” said Misol. “It’s past time to do something serious about it.”. …

H5N1 Genetic Instability in Karo Cluster in Sumatra Indonesia
Recombinomics – Pittsburgh,PA,USA
The recent workshop in Jakarta on human H5N1 in Indonesia provide additional detail on genetic changes associated with the Karo cluster. …

Quake rattles Indonesia’s Sumatra island
Forbes – USA
JAKARTA (XFN-ASIA) – A 5.0-magnitude earthquake shook Indonesia’s western island of Sumatra late Sunday but there were no reports of damage or casualties, the …

Earthquake hits Indonesia’s Sulawesi island
Reuters.uk – UK
… southern part of the island. Earthquakes are frequent in Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous country. A massive earthquake in …

Pressure Indonesia on Bashir, Rudd urges
ABC Online – Australia
… Opposition says the Prime Minister must take a tough stance on the release of radical Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir during his goodwill mission to Indonesia. …

Indonesia, Singapore to boost island cooperation
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
BATAM, Riau Islands (AP): Singapore and Indonesia signed a deal Sunday to help set up special economic zones on three islands close to the city-state to …

Some coffeeshops in the east tap SCTV signals from Indonesia
TODAYonline – Singapore
HAVING paid $1,000 to screen the “live” cable telecasts of World Cup matches, some pubs and coffeeshops are understandably disgruntled that outlets next door …

Indonesia flood toll nears 300
Bangkok Post – Thailand
Jakarta (dpa) – The death toll from floods and landslides in eastern Indonesia province of South Sulawesi reached more than 280 on Sunday, with dozens of …

Iran science minister arrives in Indonesia
Islamic Republic News Agency – Tehran,Iran
Iranian Minister of Science, Research and Technology Mohammad-Mehdi Zahedi arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia, on an official five-day visit to meet Indonesian …

Assistance package to fight bird flu in Indonesia
ABC Asia Pacific – Australia
In Jakarta, the Australian Health Minister Tony Abbott has signed an agreement worth more than $US7million to assist Indonesia’s battle with bird flu. …

POULTRY INDONESIA
Poultry Indonesia Online – Indonesia
… be developed. Indonesia has many germplasm but unfortunately don’t get enough attention due to many limitations. In waterfowl …

Indonesia meeting on, relations cool
The Age – Melbourne,Victoria,Australia
… over Papuan asylum seekers and the release of terror suspect Abu Bakar Bashir have dimmed hopes that Prime Minister John Howard and Indonesia’s President will …

POULTRY INDONESIA
Poultry Indonesia Online – Indonesia
… The number is considered as slow since the modern slaughter house and processing plants have been started since more than ten years ago in Indonesia . …

39 passengers still missing from capsized ferry in Indonesia
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Indonesian rescue teams have found 12 more passengers from a ferry that capsized off North Sumatra, bringing the number of survivors to 94 with at least 39 …

Indonesia expects Timor-Leste leaders to manage crisis
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Indonesia expected Timor-Leste leaders and people to manage the crisis to regain stability, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Friday. …

Indonesia to speed up EPA with Japan
Hindu – Chennai,India
… Indonesia and Japan agreed in July last year to begin working toward the signing of an EPA, a comprehensive bilateral economic agreement that would include not …

Singapore and Indonesia to ink agreement on economic cooperation …
Channel News Asia – Singapore
… This agreement formalises the aim of Singapore and Indonesia to develop special economic zones in these islands and grow employment and trade. …

Southern Indonesia flood toll nears 250
Mail & Guardian Online – Johannesburg,South Africa
The death toll from floods and landslides in Indonesia’s South Sulawesi province neared 250 on Saturday with another 100 still missing and thousands homeless …

Bird flu mutated in Indonesia family cluster: WHO
CTV.ca – Canada
A slight genetic mutation of the deadly H5N1 virus has been discovered in a small fishing village in Indonesia, a World Health Organization investigation …

H5N1 Transparency and Openness Pledge in Indonesia
Recombinomics – Pittsburgh,PA,USA
… on transparency and openness should lead to the release of the human H5N1 sequences from the Karo cluster, as well as the other human sequences from Indonesia. …

Indonesia searches sea for landslide, flood victims
Reuters.uk – UK
SINJAI, Indonesia (Reuters) – Indonesian search and rescue operations turned to the sea on Friday in the search for missing victims after landslides and floods …

40 still missing in Indonesia ferry accident
Bangkok Post – Thailand
Jakarta (dpa) – Nearly 40 passengers were still missing after a ferry sunk in rough waters off the coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra island, officials said Friday. …

WHO Investigation Indicates Bird Flu Mutated in Indonesia
Voice of America – USA
The World Health Organization (WHO) has determined the deadly H5N1 virus changed slightly among cases in Indonesia last month, but health officials say it is …

‘Law enforcement not yet a priority in Indonesia’
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
… and Dwi Atmanta. Question: Do you think Indonesia has managed to address human rights issues in the wake of reform? Answer: The …

Indonesia may raise budget oil price assumption 8.8%
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
JAKARTA (Bloomberg): Indonesia’s government plans to raise its oil price assumption, used when drawing up the national budget, by about 8.8 percent to reflect …

Indonesia targets $30 billion in trade with China by 2010
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
Indonesia and China hope to expand bilateral trade to US$30 billion by 2010 from about $12.54 billion last year, Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu …

Fukuda asks for Indonesia’s cooperation over N. Korea
Mainichi Daily News – Japan
Former Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda on Friday asked Indonesia to help Japan resolve issues related to Japanese citizens kidnapped to North …

Indonesia to upgrade labs for bird flu tests
Reuters AlertNet – London,England,UK
JAKARTA, June 23 (Reuters) – Indonesia plans to upgrade its national health laboratory to meet World Health Organization standards, a leading scientist said on …

Indonesia may cancel talks with PM
The Age – Melbourne,Victoria,Australia
Indonesia’s president is considering abandoning reconciliation talks with Prime Minister John Howard after Mr Howard failed to overcome backbenchers’ concerns …

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Friday, 23 June 2006

Flood toll passes 200 in Indonesia
International Herald Tribune – France
JAKARTA Soldiers pulled bodies from villages razed by floods and landslides in central Indonesia on Thursday, bringing the death toll to over 200, with 135 …

Indonesia death toll tops 200
InTheNews.co.uk – London,UK
… Indonesia’s social affairs ministry has revealed that several hundred homes have been destroyed or badly damaged as floodwaters in some areas reach six feet in …

Ferry carrying 116 people sinks in Indonesia
Sydney Morning Herald – Sydney,New South Wales,Australia
A ferry survivor, second left, is greeted by relatives upon arrival at Sibolga port in North Sumatra, Indonesia. At least 24 people …

Indonesia backs away from Aust security deal
ABC Online – Australia
By Indonesia correspondent Geoff Thompson. Indonesia’s Defence Minister Juwono Sudarsono says he and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono …

Newmont Indonesia to announce buyer of Martabe mine next week
Forbes – USA
… of its tender for the Martabe gold mine in North Sumatra province despite the objection of an eliminated bidder, an official of Newmont’s Indonesia unit said. …

‘The World Should Help Indonesia’
Zaman Online – Istanbul,Turkey
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has announced that the international community should support Indonesia in its fight against the …

Indonesia confident of achieving trade target with China
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
… of Depok. Pengestu said China as the world’s most populous country becomes an important trade partner of Indonesia. The minister …

Earthquake jolts eastern Indonesia
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
An earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale struck Indonesia’s eastern province of Maluku Thursday, but there is no immediate report of damages. …

Landslides, floods kill over 200 in Indonesia
Mumbai Mirror – India
… “What happened in Sinjai is a warning for the rest of Indonesia if rain falls more than three hours,” said Forestry Minister Malem Sambat Kaban.

Indonesia’s major Muslim groups spearhead moderate campaign
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Indonesia’s to largest Muslim organizations Nadhlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah say they are committed to campaigning for moderate Islam to counter the emergence …

43 missing after boat sinks off coast of Indonesia
Irish Independent – Dublin,Ireland
Forty-three people are missing today following the sinking of their ship off the coast of Indonesia. The vessel sank during bad …

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Thursday, 22 June 2006

AWB sent $12m to Indonesia
NEWS.com.au – Australia
… allegations emerged in court documents lodged in Singapore, which show AWB paid the money through so-called “loyalty rebates” to customers in Indonesia. …

Indonesia urges Australia to review Papua refugee decision
ABC Online – Australia
… Theo Sambuaga has told our Jakarta Correspondent, Geoff Thompson, that Indonesia’s parliament still expects Australia to review its decision to grant visas to …

FluWrap: Indonesia sees 39th death
United Press International – USA
… He died in Indonesia last week, and following tests conducted on samples of his lung fluid, a World Health Organization laboratory in Hong Kong confirmed that …

Canada boosts aid to Indonesia
ABC Asia Pacific – Australia
Canada has increased aid to Indonesia by almost $US18 million to help the country deal with natural disasters and avian flu. Canada’s …

Rain might worsen Indonesia volcano slides
Boston Globe – United States
Indonesia’s Mount Merapi volcano erupts early Tuesday June 20, 2006 as seen from Kali Kuning village outside Yogyakarta, Indonesia. …

Pancasila: Indonesia’s magna charta
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
… This is due to the manifoldness of the divine revelation and of its human pursuit in different cultures. Plurality is also the very texture of Indonesia. …

Boy’s death raises flu toll to 39 in Indonesia
International Herald Tribune – France
JAKARTA Indonesia edged closer to becoming the world’s hardest-hit bird flu country on Tuesday after tests confirmed that a 14-year-old boy died from the …

Indonesia president urges Muslims to fight terrorism
Reuters – USA
… Muslims should help solve global problems including terrorism and reach out to the rest of the world if they want to be understood, Indonesia’s president said …

Landslides and floods kill 51 in Indonesia
Reuters – USA
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Landslides and floods on Indonesia’s eastern Sulawesi island have killed 51 people and the toll could rise, an official said on Wednesday. …

Roundup: Mudflow scatters villagers in Indonesia
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Three weeks of an unceasing, foul- smelling mudflow from a gas well accident have uprooted more locals in Porong district of Indonesia’s East Java province and …

Indonesia: ABB provides 25,000 Euro for Malteser International’s …
Reuters AlertNet – London,England,UK
… ABB employs about 105,000 people in about 100 countries including Indonesia. [ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. …

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Wednesday, 21 June 2006

AWB sent $12m to Indonesia
NEWS.com.au – Australia
… allegations emerged in court documents lodged in Singapore, which show AWB paid the money through so-called “loyalty rebates” to customers in Indonesia. …

Indonesia urges Australia to review Papua refugee decision
ABC Online – Australia
… Theo Sambuaga has told our Jakarta Correspondent, Geoff Thompson, that Indonesia’s parliament still expects Australia to review its decision to grant visas to …

FluWrap: Indonesia sees 39th death
United Press International – USA
… He died in Indonesia last week, and following tests conducted on samples of his lung fluid, a World Health Organization laboratory in Hong Kong confirmed that …

Canada boosts aid to Indonesia
ABC Asia Pacific – Australia
Canada has increased aid to Indonesia by almost $US18 million to help the country deal with natural disasters and avian flu. Canada’s …

Rain might worsen Indonesia volcano slides
Boston Globe – United States
Indonesia’s Mount Merapi volcano erupts early Tuesday June 20, 2006 as seen from Kali Kuning village outside Yogyakarta, Indonesia. …

Pancasila: Indonesia’s magna charta
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
… This is due to the manifoldness of the divine revelation and of its human pursuit in different cultures. Plurality is also the very texture of Indonesia. …

Boy’s death raises flu toll to 39 in Indonesia
International Herald Tribune – France
JAKARTA Indonesia edged closer to becoming the world’s hardest-hit bird flu country on Tuesday after tests confirmed that a 14-year-old boy died from the …

Indonesia president urges Muslims to fight terrorism
Reuters – USA
… Muslims should help solve global problems including terrorism and reach out to the rest of the world if they want to be understood, Indonesia’s president said …

Landslides and floods kill 51 in Indonesia
Reuters – USA
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Landslides and floods on Indonesia’s eastern Sulawesi island have killed 51 people and the toll could rise, an official said on Wednesday. …

Roundup: Mudflow scatters villagers in Indonesia
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Three weeks of an unceasing, foul- smelling mudflow from a gas well accident have uprooted more locals in Porong district of Indonesia’s East Java province and …

Indonesia: ABB provides 25,000 Euro for Malteser International’s …
Reuters AlertNet – London,England,UK
… ABB employs about 105,000 people in about 100 countries including Indonesia. [ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. …

Peter Sondakh Desire to Enter The Cement Business

Wednesday, 21 June 2006

www.prospektif.comÂ

Wednesday, 14th June 2006

Prospektif – Jakarta, Peter Sondakh may become one of the Indonesian conglomerates that can maintain his existence. Under the umbrella of PT Rajawali Corporation, he went into many businesses. Starting from cigarettes, telecommunication, hotel, plantation, mining, retail up to transportation. He experienced many up and downs in doing the business. How did he build his business? How is the performance of the business so far? And whether his ambition to enter into cement industry can be realized?

Low profile. That is the our initial impression upon seeing Peter Sondakh. Even though he is a successful businessman and managed to make into the list of the conglomerates, he is still a low profile person. “He is not an arrogant person, have a good sense humour and always care towards his employees,” said Darjoto Setyawan, Managing Director and Chief Business Development PT Rajawali Corporation owned by Peter Sondakh. The same is true in his daily routine. According to Darjoto, Peter often calls out the names of the employees first. Not only that, this white skin and handsome man always refuses the interview request by the media. The interview request to publish him in the special issue of PROSPEKTIF Magazine was rejected. PROSPEKTIF then must be satisfied with the answers from his trusted lieutenants.

His Early Days
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According to Darjoto, Peter Sondakh trusted lieutenant, Peter started his business around 1980. Starting from a small company that involved in the Tin trading. His luck changed when Peter Sondakh started a joint venture with Ometrace owned by Ferry Teguh Santosa. It all grown into Rajawali Corporation. In that year Peter started to build PT Rajawali Corporation, as a holding company for some of the subsidiaries. PT Rajawali Corporation then started to grow and went into numerous businesses such as cigarettes, telecommunication, hotel, retail, plantation and mining.Â

Time went by, and Peter Sondakh did some business maneuver. Among them was he founded RCTI which became the first private television. In the telecommunication, XL became the first private cellular operator using the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) technology. Peter also successfully managed XL to become the third largest cellular private operator in Indonesia. Together with PT Pos Indonesia, Peter founded Bank Pos. In 1989, Peter founded Lombok Tourism Development Corporation (LTDC). In the same year, Peter also founded Taksi Express. In 1991, Rajawali Corporation took over Bentoel that at that time was saddled with heavy debts and successfully restructure them. In this 1991, Peter also founded PT Metropolitan Retailmart that operates the Metro Department Store.

Peter also went into the property sector by building Sheraton Novotel and Hyatt. Not to mention other businesses such as pharmaceutical company Guardian, and also in the IT sector by founding Telekomindo and NetToCyber. His business grew rapidly. But, unfortunately the crisis that hit Indonesia in the middle of 1998 also hit him hard. Peter, involuntarily unloaded some of his companies such as RCTI, Guardian, Bank Pos, and LTDC. Many of his assets were sold to assist the restructuring of his companies.
“I still remember that it was on 30th June 2000, we were the first that concluded the restructuring process with IBRA. Mr Peter wanted to finish the obligations as quickly as possible,” said Y.W. Junardy, CEO PT Telekomindo Primabhakti, one of the business unit of PT Rajawali Corporation. Starting from 2000, many of his companies that managed to avoid the crisis due to restructuring, such as Bentoel, XL, Metro, Express, Sheraton, Hyatt, Telekomindo, and NetToCyber. Those companies are now growing well.

Taking Over Bentoel
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Managed by some professionals (not as family company), PT Rajawali Corporation recorded some good track records in some of the industry. For instance in the cigarette industry. Through PT Bentoel Prima, PT Rajawali Corporation managed to grow Bentoel brand. Darjoto Setyawan, who was trusted by Peter to take over Bentoel when it was in trouble, now starting to reap the results. Bentoel that was collapsed when taken over, can reclaim back its previous success.Â
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Currently, Bentoel Prima is the biggest cigarette producer in Indonesia, both from the production volume and sales figures. In order to achieve that, Bentoel must work hard through a long and winding road. First, Bentoel must reclaim the third position that is currently held by HM Sampoerna, then to the second position held by Djarum, and into the top one held by PT Gudang Garam. Some of the tactics were used, from managing its Human Resources up to sponsoring the football club ”Arema Malang” of Malang East Java, as Bentoel’s factory happened to be located in this city.
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Education for Employees
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In managing its human resources, the company has the policy to send their employees to study further. According to Darjoto, human resources must be well managed, from the team work point of view, motivation, management, health, discipline and many more. Even if we use the terminology of football team, Darjoto said that “Sales department as striker, administration and research department as the middle players, and the production department as the back players. So, everyone must play together as one orchestrated team in order to achieve the mutual goals.”
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The board of directors and employees have close relationship in PT Rajawali Corporation.
According to Darjoto, the employees can speak and discuss any problems they have. ”Even with the players of Arema Malang, Peter is considered close too. We sit, eat and sing together. We can regard him as parents, mentor, friend, everything,” explained Darjoto.
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Darjoto admitted, that members of Board of Directors of PT Rajawali Corporation always try to get close to the employees and understand their aspiration. The leadership style implemented in PT Rajawali Corporation is in the middle of between authoritarian and democratic style, as well as by giving good examples, which according to Darjoto are able to reduce the conflicts that usually happen between the employees and management. Before the conflicts even occur, Darjoto asks the human resources managers to socialize the contents of the Law of Work Force to the whole employees. Since, according to Darjoto, most of the employees do not understand the regulations contained in that law. ”The most important thing is the approach that we use. For sure, the doors of our office are always opened for them,” said Darjoto.


Current Business ClimateÂ

Currently, there are more than ten companies under PT Rajawali Corporation. PT Rajawali Corporation still retain shareholding in PT Excelcomindo Pratama Tbk, even though the majority of it has been sold to its Malaysian partner. The latest news even stated that even though the shareholding stands at 14%, officially Peter has resigned from his position as President Commissioner from PT Excelcomindo Pratama Tbk. “Peter has resigned from the organization structure and it had been approved by the shareholders as per 31 Mei 2006,” stated Budi, Corporate Secretary staff of PT Excelcomindo Pratama Tbk. “We still own 99 percent shares in the taxi. Bentoel around 20-30 percent, but we are controlling stake since we are the single majority. We work together with Metro Singapore for Metro Department Store. We also own around 95 percent shares in Sheraton Hotel in Bali, Lombok, Bandung and also Lampung. Another hotel in Lombok called Novotel, also 90 percent owned by us. We are currently building a hotel and villa in Bali called Stredis,” explained Darjoto about the ownership of shares and the business of Peter Sondakh at present moment. ”We also own a coal mining in East Kalimantan, palm-oil plantations in East Kalimantan and South Kalimantan,” he added. Since five years ago, according to Darjoto, Peter Sondakh has transferred the whole operational of his companies to the professionals. ”He is just acting as CEO and owner,” said Darjoto.


Cement IndustryÂ

Then, what about his chances in the cement business? According to Thomas Wibisono, conglomerate analyst from the Indonesian Centre of Business Data (Pusat Data Bisnis Indonesia – PDBI), Peter Sondakh can be regarded as ’wiz kid’ in business. ” ’Wiz kid’ in a sense that all of a sudden he became well known businessman and able to work together with two big companies such as Ometraco dan Gajah Tunggal,” explained Thomas.
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Not only that, added Thomas, he started to go into other business. Thomas predicted that Peter can also comes into the cement business. ”I think Peter has fresh fund from the proceed of the sale of his shares in Excelcomindo to Khazanah. And I think he would sell the rest of it,” said Thomas. “Since Peter also has property business, such as hotels, I think the acquisition of Cemex is a long term scenario for him. So, he will be able to control the business from the upstream to downstream,” guessed Thomas.
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Even though it has to face a lot of competitors and still waiting for the green light from the government, but Rajawali Corporation felt the optimism that it will own the shares of PT Semen Gresik Tbk. “We have signed the CSPA (conditional sales and purchase agreement) and therefore ready to be the partner of the government,” said Darjoto. Especially, according to the latest news, Cemex has sent a letter to the government confirming that they would continue with the finalization of CSPA with Rajawali. According to Cemex, after given some deadline, the government still does not use their rights. Therefore, Cemex is in the opinion that the shares of Semen Gresik are free property and can be sold to another party.
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As we all know, Cemex itself has offered its 29,4% shares in Semen Gresik to Rajawali Group. According to the agreement, Rajawali Group will pay that 24,9% shares in Semen Gresik worth totalling US$ 337 million or around US$ 2,28 per share or equivalent to Rp 19.988 per share. We have to admit, that in line with the increase in the infrastructure development in Indonesia, the cement industry has a good potential. According to its financial reports, the performance of Semen Gresik is projected to increase. It is shown in the projection of the increase in the revenue from Rp 6,007 trillion in 2004 to Rp 8,759 trillion in 2005. Likewise with the increase in the net profit from Rp 510,59 billion into Rp936,31 billion in 2006. The market share of Semen Gresik is also projected to reach 43,3 persen, with total production capacity of 15,95 million ton per annum.

Time went by, and Peter Sondakh did some business maneuver

Behind the Failure of New Projects of Putera Sampoerna

Tuesday, 20 June 2006

www.prospektif.com

Monday, 29 May 2006

After selling his family shares in PT HM Sampoerna Tbk to Philip Morris,many businesses that were going to be entered into by Putera Sampoerna. Starting from infrastructure, power plant, agriculture, forestry, pulp and paper, up to the telecommunication. Unfortunately, most of those projects went by without any clear explanations on its progress. What is the reason behind the failure of the new proposed projects of Sampoerna? Are there hidden agendas behind the failure of those proposed projects?
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The clock ticks at 09.30. The office of Sampoerna Strategic located in Jl. Jend Sudirman Kav 45, South Jakarta (ex Danamon Bank building). As we all know, after Sampoerna family sold its shares in PT HM Sampoerna Tbk to the Philip Morris, Sampoerna family that previously maintained their office in Bapindo Plaza – also in Jl.
Jendral Sudirman – now moved to Danamon Building.
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This new office of Putera Sampoerna is indeed located in strategic location. Even, we can call this an intelligent building with its sophisticated information technology facilities. In the building with its 30 floors and complete with its luxurious interiors, Sampoerna family now maintaines their office.
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“Mr Michael Sampoerna (the son of Putera Sampoerna, red) takes this lift upon his arrival,” said one the building security officer who refused to mention his name while pointing to one the lift in that building. Michael has his office on the 25th floor. ”Mr Michael usually comes around 9.30, accompanied by two bodyguards,” said that officer. ”But, it is not clear on what days, since sometimes he does not show up at all,”answered that officer when asked about what days usually the Sampoerna family comes into the office.

For three days (Tuesday, 16 May until Thursday 18 May 2006) PROSPEKTIF waited for the appearance of Michael Sampoerna the President Director of PT Sampoerna Strategic in his office, but failed to meet him. Although, his secretary named Yanti met the PROSPEKTIF and mentioned that Michael Sampoerna is in overseas. ”I am sorry, I can not help you with this current reporting, since Pak Michael is in overseas at the moment,” said this woman when asked for her confirmation about the interview request that has been forwarded. ”His schedules are quite full. He is always moving from one place to another,” she added without elaborating in details.
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According to this woman with the straight hair, Michael currently does not show up very often into his office since he has many matters to attend to overseas. Then again she refuses to elaborate more on this one. Yanti only promised that upon Michael arrival, she will immediately inform Michael about the interview request from PROSPEKTIF.

The regular absence of Sampoerna family in Indonesia may be because they have other businesses to attend to overseas. In the early 2006, it was reported that Putera Sampoerna has become the owner of giant online gambling company called Mansion – which is headquartered in Gibraltar. Putera Sampoerna was reportedly also bought the exclusive Les Ambassadeurs casino in London for 120 million poundsterling. At the same time, it is reported that Mansion will succeed Vodafone as the club sponsor of Manchester United for the period of four years and with total contract valued at 60 million poundsterling. But then it was later reported that the contract negotiation failed to materialize. Another report, as mentioned by Mansion, it is finally managed to become the sponsor of Tottenham Hotspur – which is also the member of Premier League in England. Even if we look at the new logo of Mansion, it reminds us on the famous letter A that appeared in the box of Sampoerna cigarettes.

From the business perspective, what Putera Sampoerna did was very strategic in order to gain profit. Just look at how Samsung successfully able to lift its sales performance in Europe after becoming the sponsor of Chelsea. O2 also experiencing increase in the sales of its product called XDA and PDA after becoming the sponsor of Arsenal. So, judging from this, Mansion is projected to record sharp increase in the profit, since it is an online gambling company which does not need production cost to operate.

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The Cancelled Business ProjectÂ

To reflect a little bit into the past, just soon after the Sampoerna family sold its shares in March 2005, many speculations were riped on the business sector that will be entered into by Sampoerna family using the proceeds totalling Rp 18.6 trillion. At that time, Sampoerna family admitted that they will make investment in the area of infrastructure (electricity) and agriculture.
At that time, the desire of Sampoerna family to make investment in the agricultural sector, namely in the sugar cane plantation in Papua, received overwhelming supports from the government. Â Even, the government issued their guarantee to provide incentives to the Sampoerna family if they can realize that sugar cane plantation in Papua.
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The intention of Putera Sampoerna to enter the agriculture business is not surprising considering that he once had agricultural business. Prior to joining his family business, Putera was the owner of one agricultural company. After graduating from his university in overseas, Putera Sampoerna did not immediately join the cigarette company founded by his father, rather with his wife, Katie – a Chinese American – Putera lived in Singapore and managed his company that dealt with palm-oil plantation.

PowerPR alert on Indonesia

Tuesday, 20 June 2006

Securicor Indonesia workers defy intimidation, continue sit-in …
Union Network International – Nyon,Switzerland
Jakarta, 19 June 2006 – Union leaders report that workers continue to maintain a 24-hour presence at the Securicor Indonesia office despite intimidation. …

Indonesia’s Mount Merapi Volcano Spews Hot Clouds, Volcanic Debris
Playfuls.com – Targu Mures,Romania
Indonesia’s Mount Merapi was still on high alert Monday as the volcano in Indonesia’s densely populated Central Java continued to spew hot clouds of gas and …

Michael Vatikiotis: Why Indonesia needs a new politics
International Herald Tribune – France
SINGAPORE The fundamentalist cleric accused of masterminding violent jihad in Indonesia walked free from jail last week and once again raised fears about the …

Problems in Indonesia result in boxer’s death
The Sweet Science – USA
The pro boxing debut of Indonesian boxer Fadly Kasim came to a horrific conclusion, as the 22-year-old collapsed in the sixth round of a bout in Manado on …

ExxonMobil Confirms Successful Bid in Indonesia Exploration …
Finanzen.net – Germany
Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) confirmed itssubsidiary, Esso Exploration International Limited, was high bidder onSurumana block located in the Makassar …

‘Indonesia may raise 80 trln rph in 2006 bonds’
Daily Times – Lahore,Pakistan
MANADO: The Indonesian government may raise 80 trillion rupiah ($8.5 billion) via new bond issues in 2006, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati told …

Indonesia halts sand exports to Singapore
People’s Daily Online – Beijing,China
Indonesia has moved to freeze exports of sea sand to Singapore, long a lucrative business seen as endangering not only the environment but also tiny islands …

SCAN To Expand Presence In West Asia & Indonesia
Bernama – Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia
… Associates Bhd, an information and communication technology (ICT) security solutions provider, plans to expand its presence in West Asia and Indonesia this year …

Bank Indonesia Will Look at Inflation to Set Key Rate (Update1)
Bloomberg – USA
June 19 (Bloomberg) — Indonesia’s central bank will look at inflation, the current account balance and “probably” exchange- rate movements before deciding …

Indonesia may cull more birds
News24 – South Africa
Jakarta – Indonesia must cull more birds in areas where the deadly bird flu virus, which has killed at least 38 people in the country is found, say experts. …

Bad Sunday for Indonesia in Zhuhai Circuit
Jakarta Post – Jakarta,Indonesia
Indonesia’s R&W Joson F3 team failed to earn a single point Sunday as the Hermanto brothers could not finish the rain-disrupted Asian Formula Three race. …

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