Justice Served With A Dash Of Chilli

Indonesia’s central bank wages battle against price-fixing cartels

“It was the mafia running the distribution chain”.

- Karlis Salna

Chillies are just one of the 859 items that make up the reference basket of goods and services Bank Indonesia uses to track consumer price inflation. But because they’re an integral ingredient in the country’s cuisine, a sudden spike in the price of the eye- watering red peppers can set off alarms at the central bank. “Indonesians must have chilli every day,” says Suharman Tabrani, deputy director of the Balikpapan office. “We eat chilli for breakfast.”