The Government Ensures That It Will Not Take Action On Traders Selling Illegal Imported Clothing

Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan (left). (Photo: Mery Handayani/VOI)

JAKARTA - The government continues to strive to curb imports of used clothes entering Indonesia.

This step was taken as an effort to save the domestic industry. Even so, the government provides concessions for individual traders who sell used imported clothes.

The Minister of Cooperatives and SMEs, Teten Masduki, emphasized that the government will not take action against imported clothing traders.

However, prosecution will be directed at the perpetrators of smuggling imported clothing or textile products.

Teten explained that sellers of imported products that were carried out illegally had legal consequences.

However, because textile industry players are micro-class business actors, the government takes a compromise attitude.

"It is emphasized that for traders, retailers, resellers of clothing used for illegal imports, we do not do repression, different from drugs. Moreover, in this fasting month they still have to find sustenance. Yes, we have a compromise there. What we agreed with the Ministry of Trade, we will tighten the smuggling so that smuggling continues," said Teten, at the Office of the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs, Jakarta, Monday, March 27.

Teten said, this step is a form of the government's effort to protect the domestic textile industry.

This is because the rise of used imported goods, especially when done illegally, actually kills domestic industries.

In fact, said Teten, 31 percent of illegal imported goods were recorded, including used goods entering Indonesia.

Meanwhile, 41 percent are legal products, both clothing and footwear.

"So it's not just used clothes, the local market is not only disturbed by used clothes. It's impossible for local products to survive to be able to stay in the local market, if these illegal used clothes are still coming in. Because they come here as garbage," he said.

As previously reported, President Jokowi said imports of used clothes greatly disrupted the development of the domestic industry.

"I have ordered to find the right one and many people have met every two days. It interferes with the domestic textile industry," said President Joko Widodo after attending the inauguration of the opening of the 2023 Domestic Products "Business Matching" in Jakarta Wednesday, March 15.

Used clothes are goods that are prohibited from being imported based on the Regulation of the Minister of Trade Number 18 of 2021 as amended by the Regulation of the Minister of Trade Number 40 of 2022 concerning Amendments to the Regulation of the Minister of Trade Number 18 of 2021 concerning Prohibited Exports and Goods Prohibited from Imports.

"It is very disturbing, which is called disturbing imports of used clothes, very disturbing to our domestic industry," said Jokowi.