SURABAYA: SOUTHEAST ASIA'S LONGEST BRIDGE OPENS--BUT IMPACT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SURABAYA 000062

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, INR/EAP, EB

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON PGOV EINV SOCI ID CH
SUBJECT: SURABAYA: SOUTHEAST ASIA'S LONGEST BRIDGE OPENS--BUT IMPACT
IN QUESTION

REF: A. SURABAYA 13 (BUILDING INDONESIA'S LONGEST BRIDGE)

B. 2007 SURABAYA 78 (MADURA UNPREPARED FOR BRIDGE)

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1. (U) Summary: After decades of sporadic planning, Indonesia's
longest bridge opened on June 10th. Empty pockets and grass
roots opposition stymied the span that now links the islands of
Java and Madura. Burdened with symbolism before it carried its
first car, skepticism over promised economic benefits mixed with
fears of spiritual pollution by Madura's Islamic leaders delayed
the project. Chinese funding and engineers helped overcome the
final barriers to construction. While street lamps disappear
from the span and ferry operators demand government subsidies,
economists, officials and religious leaders don't yet have a
sense of the likely economic or social impact on four of East
Java's poorest regencies. End summary.


2. (U) President Yudhoyono officially opened the Suramadu
bridge, linking the islands of Madura and Java, on June 10,

2009. The bridge had been a dream of successive Presidents and
Governors since the 1960s, but ground was not broken until 2003.
The 1998 global financial crisis and fear of outside influence
by Madura's conservative Muslim leaders stalled construction
until 2005, when Chinese investment and a more supportive
Madurese population was assured.

Chinese Investment
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3. (U) The 5.4 kilometer span connects East Java's provincial
capital, Surabaya, to Madura Island, previously only accessible
by a 30-minute ferry ride. The project's total cost, including
connecting roads, was nearly USD 445 million. A Chinese
Contractor Consortium built half the bridge; Indonesian
contractors completed the rest. Chinese loans accounted for a
reported USD 178 million. The Suramadu Bridge is just one
tranche of Chinese-supported infrastructure projects in
Indonesia totaling a reported USD 507 million.


4. (U) As Chinese loans and engineers revived the project,
Madura's Islamic establishment agreed to drop its opposition.
Former East Java Governor and Madura native Mumammad Noer was
instrumental in convincing conservative clerics that Madura
needed to embrace the bridge in order to raise living standards.
Fears remain that unskilled and uneducated Madurese will be
further marginalized in their own backyard, if factories are
built that don't require their skills. Some clerics remain
concerned that Madura's conservative religious culture will be
polluted by unhealthy influences from Java.

Bridge to a Question Mark
--------------


5. (U) If Madura had a concrete economic development plan --
integrated with the province -- the bridge could attract
investors, tourists and bring a multiplier effect say local
economists. On June 16, the Governor of East Java announced
that President Yudhoyono had appointed the former Regent of
Madiun as the province's representative for the Suramadu
Development Area Board based on his "capability to understand
Madurese culture." To date, however, neither provincial nor
local governments have engaged in the planning needed to realize
the bridge's promise, according to Airlangga University Prof.
Slamet. Slamet believes reduced transport costs will make
Madura's labor more competitive and should spur near-term local
job growth. Congen Surabaya's meetings with Madura's academics,
local officials and religious leaders all suggest that the
course of development will be left to chance, rather than guided
by planning.

Falling Ferry Usage -- Missing Pieces
--------------


6. (U) Since the bridge opened to traffic, ferry operator ADSP
reported a 40% drop in motorcycles and a 70% drop in cars using
the ferries. Ferry operators expressed concern that the number
of ferry users will continue to drop as the bridge toll is lower
than a ferry ticket. The government estimates that ferry
passenger traffic will decrease 20-50% as a result of the
bridge's opening. Ferry operators have requested the government
subsidize their operations and raise bridge tolls in order to
maintain ferry-related jobs.


7. (U) Security on the bridge has been problematic, as
newspapers report that several holes have been discovered on the
approaches and main span where users have removed nuts and

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bolts, especially in the motorcycle lanes. After the press
reported that at least 42 street lamps were missing from the
span, raising concerns about the safety of shipping under the
bridge, PT Jasa Marga, the bridge operator, announced it would
install closed circuit TV and the East Java Provincial Police
announced it would increase its routine patrols of the bridge.
MCCLELLAND