Kwik Kian Gie

This is a Chinese Indonesian name; the family name is Kwik.

Kwik Kian Gie (traditional Chinese: 郭建義; simplified Chinese: 郭建义; pinyin: Guō Jiànyì) (born 11 January 1935 in Juwana, Central Java) was the Indonesian Coordinating Minister of Economics and Finance from 1999–2000, and Minister of National Development Planning from 2001-2004.[1]

Kwik Kian Gie is a prominent Indonesian economist who often wrote columns in the newspaper KOMPAS criticizing the policies of the Suharto administration in the late 1980s and 1990s. Following working in a teaching post in the Economics Department in the University of Indonesia, he undertook further studies in the Nederlandse Economische hogeschool (currently Erasmus University Rotterdam) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. After a few years working in the Netherlands following his graduation he returned to Indonesia and held several executive positions and became an entrepreneur.

However, he maintained a strong interest in politics and education, and said to the press that, "I now have enough money to pay for anything I can wish for," and with that started his involvement with the PDI-P opposition political party of Megawati Sukarnoputri.

He also founded Institut Bisnis & Informatika Indonesia (IBII), a well-known business/management school in Indonesia, with his colleagues.

During the rise of Megawati Sukarnoputri he was mentioned as a possible candidate for the important post of Coordinating Minister of Economics and Finance. He was appointed to the position by Abdurrahman Wahid in the Wahid Cabinet in October 1999. However, various political hurdles prevented him from making much progress during his term in office. He was later moved to the position of Minister of National Development and Planning. His period as minister was seen by some as a disappointment due to the hype that he was regarded as failing to live up to. He is well known for being outspoken and is regarded as an honest politician and economist although his writings are sometimes considered controversial.

References

  1. ↑ Mydans, Seth (10 August 2001). "With Politics and Market in Mind, Megawati Picks a Cabinet". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 January 2009.

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