§ Dr. TongeTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the implications of the US $23 billion IMF package for Indonesia for the human rights situation in that country. [16045]
§ Mrs. LiddellI have been asked to reply.
Indonesia's tough programme of reform marks an important step in the process of restoring confidence in financial markets in South-East Asia. It commits the Suharto government to a tight financial framework, together with a number of measures to tackle structural economic weaknesses and open the economy. We fully support these measures, which will lead to improved quality of governance and transparency in policy implementation. This should allow Indonesia to maintain its high rate of economic growth, and contribute to the benefits of growth being widely shared in all sectors of the population.
The programme will be supported by loans of $18 billion-$10 billion from the IMF $4½ billion from the World Bank and $3½ billion from the Asian Development Bank. The remaining part of the projected $23 billion financing need will involve use of Indonesia's own external assets. We support this exceptional access to IMF 496W resources, particularly in view of the prudent macroeconomic policies which Indonesia has pursued over a long period of time.