Soemitro Djojohadikusumo, Menneg Riset - Anggota Kabinet Pembangunan II

The Benteng program was an Indonesian

economic policy The economy of governments covers the systems for setting levels of taxation, government budgets, the money supply and interest rates as well as the labour market, national ownership, and many other areas of government interventions into the e ...

which consisted of measures to provide ''

pribumi Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, India ...

'' entrepreneurs with

import license An import license is a document issued by a national government authorizing the importation of certain goods into its territory. Import licenses are considered to be non-tariff barriers to trade when used as a way to discriminate against anoth ...

s in order to hasten the development of an indigenous business class. The program was initiated by Industry Minister

Sumitro Djojohadikusumo Sumitro Djojohadikusumo (EVO: Soemitro Djojohadikoesoemo; 29 May 1917 – 9 March 2001) was an Indonesian politician and one of the country's most influential economists. He held notable roles under both presidents Sukarno and Suharto intermitte ...

in 1950 and lasted up until Prime Minister

Djuanda Kartawidjaja Raden Djuanda Kartawidjaja (EYD: Raden Juanda Kartawijaya; 14 January 1911 – 7 November 1963), commonly known as Djuanda Kartawidjaja, usually referred to simply as Djuanda, was an Indonesian politician and ethnic Sundanese noble from the cou ...

abolished it in 1957.

Background

The 1950s saw increased political pressure to nationalize

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

private companies that still existed in Indonesia at the conclusion of the

Indonesian National Revolution The Indonesian National Revolution, or the Indonesian War of Independence, was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during postwar and postcol ...

. However, Indonesia still needed significant foreign funding and skills in order to develop the foundation of an economy that can support its population. In February 1950 President

Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader ...

announced to foreign companies in Indonesia that the recovery of the economy of Indonesia following the revolution requires all available funds, foreign and domestic. In 1953 the Minister of Finance

Ong Eng Die Ong Eng Die (; born 20 June 1910, date of death unknown), was a Chinese Indonesian politician and economist.Tionghoa Chinese Indonesians ( id, Orang Tionghoa Indonesia) and colloquially Chindo or just Tionghoa are Indonesians whose ancestors arrived from China at some stage in the last eight centuries. Chinese people and their Indonesian descendants have ...

, resulting in the dissolution of Wilopo's Cabinet. The program was reviewed in September 1955 by the Burnahuddin Harahap Cabinet and Secretary of Finance Sumitro Djojohadikusumo. Its ethnic-based requirements were scrapped and replaced by downpayment requirements. The formation of the Karya Cabinet led by Djuanda Kartawidjaja in March and April 1957 signaled the transition to a ''directed economy'' under the auspices of

Guided Democracy Guided democracy, also called managed democracy, is a formally democratic government that functions as a ''de facto'' authoritarian government or in some cases, as an autocratic government. Such hybrid regimes are legitimized by elections that ...

; Benteng program was then officially stopped.

References

* Lindblad, J. Thomas, ''The Importance of Indonesianisasi during the Transition from the 1930s to the 1960s'' Economy of Indonesia Chinese diaspora in Indonesia