JAKARTA History today, 25 years ago, January 10, 1998, the eldest daughter of President Soeharto, Siti Hardijanti Rukmana (Mbak Tutut) initiated the rupiah Love Movement. He initiated this movement so that Indonesia could escape the trap of economic recession.
Mbak Tutut's steps were followed by all groups. From officials to celebrities. Previously, a recession storm became the most frightening scourge. All Indonesian people are made to live even more miserable. Many companies are out of business and unemployed everywhere.
The presence of the 1997-1998 economic recession was underestimated by officials. He considered Indonesia to be able to get through the recession storm smoothly. Moreover, President Suharto was at the helm of leadership.
He has a flashy record in bringing Indonesia through the economic recession in 1966. That is, his teachings in the fight against the upcoming recession are reliable. The result is far from wild. Predictions that occurred in the 1997 economic recession were in fact heavier. The rupiah exchange rate fell to its lowest level. All sectors were affected.
This condition is getting heavier when Indonesia still depends on a number of imported products. Among other things, food, fruits, fuel, machinery, bicycles, and computers. A series of products experienced a significant price increase. The stock in the field is running low. Even if there is a price, it must be expensive.
At its peak, many companies are in danger of going out of business because raw material prices are increasing. This phenomenon makes the unemployment rate increase sharply. All Indonesians were crushed by recession.
How bad the condition of the Indonesian economy is like an airplane that is experiencing a super stall (sharp) due to a loss of lift). I have to use my strength to use the instrument so that the aircraft can turn quickly to prevent it from spreading to earth (in the form of hyperinflation).
Now the plane that almost fell to earth has flown in a horizontal position. So don't push the pilot seat. Don't force other people to take it. Don't do that, because the pilot has acted properly. I took three years to fly the plane to an altitude. But I don't want to sell soy sauce," said the Minister of Research and Technology, Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, describing the impact of recession as quoted by A. Makmur Makka in the book The True Life of Habibie (2008).
Instead of the government moving, all the people and officials were also moved to try to make independent efforts to fight the economic recession. Mbak Tutut, for example. The MPR RI member initiated a movement on January 10, 1998. The rupiah Love Movement, his name.
Mbak Tutut also imitated the movement by selling the large amount of US dollars he had. His steps were also followed by many businessmen and celebrities.
They tried to exchange a lot of US dollars so that the Indonesian economy would survive the recession. Even though these efforts were not able to save the Indonesian economy, which was already in disarray.
The most striking and unique thing is the reaction of President Soeharto's eldest daughter, Siti Hardijanti Rukmana or Mbak Tutut, who launched the Rupiah Love Movement by selling her dollar. Kompas daily contains a picture of Mbak Tutut when he sold 50 thousand US dollars at Bank Bumi Daya Imam Bonjol Branch, with an exchange rate of IDR 6,450 recently.
This effort is proof of his love for the rupiah and concern for the economic crisis that is hitting Indonesia. When the movement was rolled out, Mbak Tutut exchanged money when the exchange rate reached Rp. 10,150 per US dollar. The rupiah love movement was continued Monday, January 12 when at the initiative of a number of journalists, a number of conglomerate leaders, high-ranking officials, business executives and others, the crowd sold their dollars, "explained Sanjoto Sastromihardjo in the book Reform in the perspective of Sanjoto (1999).
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