Indonesia Matters reports that VP Yusuf Kalla has told businessmen of Chinese descent to regard Indonesia as a home, not a hotel.
It is precisely statements like this, uttered by pribumi or bumiputra leaders in Indonesia and Malaysia, that make them feel like leaving the country or at least headging some of their money overseas.
The truth of most businessmen of Chinese descent in Southeast Asia is that they have become loyal citizens of the countries in which they, and very often generations of their family, have been born and grew up in. many of them would never want to live in China, the home of their ancestors but a land which has become alient to them as they developed local preferences and tastes.
Many of these Chinese are also nationalistic and have done more for the country than many other people. They have built roads, schools, hospitals, temples, mosques and churches for the local communities when they did not have to.
Yet most of them at some level are considered second class citizens by the local nationalistic jingoists.
Indonesia’s Chinese businessmen, especially the conglomerate bosses, have had a particularly tough ride, especially since Reformasi. Overnight almost all of them have been tarred as “corruptors” and until today there is a witch hunt against them. There are persistent calls for justic, seizure of their assets etc etc.
Sure, many of them were anything but squeaky clean. If this is the case then they shoudl be brought before the law, be guaranteed a fair trail and the matter should end there. But this government is so namby pamby that many of them remain accused but their cases are languising in some bureaucratic drawer or the judiciary system.
Even if they wanted to face the music and start all over again, they cannot.
Is it a wonder then that these businessmen of Chinese descent choose to take their money and invest it elsewhere, like in China where they welcome investors whether they are the sons of the Yellow Emperor or not.
Maybe Kalla should think more like a hotel operator and think more about how to attract guests of Chinese descent to stay in his patch insteaqd of going to that oh-so-attractive hotel down the road which spares no expense at making them feel at home.
Unspun 
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