Indonesian minister clarifies no deal struck between China’s Ping An and national health insurer

Minister Luhut Binsar Panjaitan made the comments after social media users asked why a Chinese insurer would be working with Indonesia’s health insurance agency

This comes amid concerns about China’s growing influence in Indonesian affairs, despite the government’s aim to increase Chinese investment

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Luhut Binsar Panjaitan (2nd from right) meets with Ping An officials in Shenzhen, China. Photo: Twitter

Published: 8:28pm, 26 Aug 2019Updated: 3:41pm, 27 Aug 2019

A senior Indonesian minister in charge of ties with China was forced to clarify over the weekend that Jakarta had not struck any deal with Ping An, China’s biggest insurer by market value, to improve the national health insurance agency’s information technology systems.

Coordinating minister for maritime affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, a trusted adviser to President Joko Widodo, released a statement after Indonesian social media users asked why a Chinese company had to be involved with the agency known colloquially as BPJS, which might give it access to the social security data of 222 million Indonesians.

Others asked why the 71-year-old former military general was so quick to rely on China to solve Indonesia’s problems, underscoring once again the domestic sensitivities that Jakarta has had to navigate as it seeks closer ties with Beijing.

Indonesia President Joko Widodo. Photo: AP

In the run-up to the April election in which Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, was re-elected, there were a series of online hoaxes aimed at inflaming anti-China and anti-Chinese sentiment in the Muslim-majority country.

Rizal Ramli, former coordinating minister for economic affairs, tweeted: “Are we really going to ask China’s help for BPJS? Are we really not that creative or is there a hidden motive behind the act?”

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