Heaptalk, Jakarta — Trade Minister Budi Santoso firmly denied that Ministerial Regulation Number 8 of 2024 (Permendag) was responsible for PT Sri Rejeki Isman Tbk (Sritex) ‘s recent bankruptcy. According to him, the regulation is critical in safeguarding Indonesia’s textile industry.
“When did Trade Minister Number 8 take effect? It was implemented on May 17th, 2024, just a few months ago. There is no way a regulation could cause the Sritex company to collapse that quickly. Do you even know what textiles the policy covers? This policy and previous regulations aim to protect the textile industry,” Minister Budi said.
The policy is the third amendment to Ministerial Regulation Number 36 of 2023 concerning import policies and regulations. Minister Budi elaborated that, under Permendag Number 8, textile imports require a technical recommendation or industrial assessment.
“According to the regulation, textile imports must have a technical recommendation from the industry. Additionally, quotas are set to import finished garments, and we have long imposed anti-dumping duties on textiles,” he added.
In response to queries regarding the government’s handling of the Sritex business turbulence, Minister Budi confirmed that President Prabowo has mandated four Ministries to tackle the issue.
“We have already implemented numerous protective measures, enabling the Ministry Regulation has not had any adverse impact. It seems there is a misunderstanding; our intent with this regulation was to avoid issues stemming from previous regulations,” he concluded.
