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Indonesia
This Week in AsiaEconomics

Indonesia’s China-funded ‘Whoosh’ railway faces corruption probe

The investigation follows allegations that Indonesia paid almost three times more per kilometre than China did for its own high-speed rail

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Indonesia’s then president Joko Widodo (centre, right) reacts as a train on the Jakarta-Bandung High-speed Railway reaches 351 km/h during a test ride in 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE
Resty Woro Yuniar
Indonesia’s anti-corruption watchdog has launched a preliminary investigation into the construction of the US$7.3 billion Jakarta–Bandung High-speed Railway that analysts say could implicate senior figures in the administration of former president Joko Widodo.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) confirmed last week that it was gathering evidence related to alleged irregularities in how the China-funded project, popularly known as “Whoosh”, was awarded and managed.

“The investigation into this case began at the beginning of the year and it is still progressing,” KPK spokesman Budi Prasetyo told reporters on October 27.

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“The team continues to search for information needed to help solve this case,” he added, declining to specify what charges might be brought or the extent of any state losses.

Trains pictured on the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway in Padalarang, West Java. Photo: AFP
Trains pictured on the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway in Padalarang, West Java. Photo: AFP

Indonesian law allows for such preliminary inquiries to assess whether formal charges are warranted. The KPK had already summoned “several parties” involved in the railway’s development who were “cooperative” during questioning, Budi said.

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