Growing wealth gap

The surging ranks of millionaires and the concentration of wealth in the commodities sector highlight how the benefits of Indonesia's revival are far from being evenly spread among classes and regions in the huge archipelago.
While Hermes bags change hands for up to US$50,000 (RM150,000) and buyers face a six-month wait for a US$1mil (RM3mil) Lamborghini super car, far-flung regions like Papua and Maluku struggle to provide basic public services.
About 100 million Indonesians – about 40% of the population – live on less than US$2 (RM6) a day, the World Bank says. Average wages at US$113 (RM339) are a third of China's.
About 60 million of Indonesia's 133 million-strong "middle class" spend between US$2 and US$4 (RM6 and RM12) a day, the World Bank says. A 1,500 rupiah (50 sen) per litre cut in fuel subsidies being considered by the government would push 2.4 million people below the poverty line, a study by the University of Indonesia found.
"I don't feel middle-class, I feel poor," said 21-year-old Siti Aisah, who runs a shack selling snacks to construction workers that is almost in the shadow of Fitria's sprawling house in a Jakarta suburb. She said her family can afford to spend about US$10 (RM30) on good days – middle-class by some measures.
Corruption-prone governance, poor infrastructure, low spending on social welfare and health, and the business dominance of a relatively few families contribute to entrench inequality.
"Indonesia's tiny stratum of ultra-wealthy citizens continues to be plumped up by a process of wealth extraction from natural resources rather than by wealth creation through industry and production," said Jeffrey Winters, an associate professor at Yale University of the United States.