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Indonesia: Muslims protest hikes, urge govt to quit IMF, impose Shariah
Jakarta Post Some 1,000 Muslim activists from the Hizbut Tahrir (Party of Liberation) marched through Indonesian city of Surabaya on Saturday to demand the government to overturn recent hikes in fuel and utility prices, exit the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and impose sharia, agencies reported. They claimed its application would prevent prices from rising beyond the reach of the country's legions of poor. "Y'see, it's simple: Somebody raises prices, you cut their heads off." The government hiked fuel, electricity and telephone prices by up to 22 percent last week to meet demands by the country's international lenders, mainly the IMF, to reduce budget deficits and increase economic growth. The increases have sparked several days of demonstrations by workers and students in several cites across the country, but by Indonesian standards the protests have been small. Protest organizer Fakih Syarid said the government should run the economy according to Islamic principles. "We must apply a strong system to solve the problem of price hikes, and the answer is in sharia," he said without elaborating. That's because there was nothing to elaborate on. If the only tool you own is a hammer, it's amazing the number of things that need whacked. Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2003-01-11 |
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