Gambling Industry Overview in Indonesia
The following approaches will be presented
- Gambling legislation in Indonesia
- Gambling authorities in Indonesia
- Online casinos in Indonesia
- and more
Situated in South-East Asia, Indonesia has a population over 240 million, which is why it is known as the fourth most populous country in the world. About 85% of its citizens are Muslims.
As of gambling activities, they are currently illegal on the territory of Indonesia. The fact that the county has set a strict regime is considered to be partly due to the country's devotion to the religion of Islam, which does not permit certain activities, including gambling and drinking alcohol.
Overview
While the rest of Asia has been reported to increase its growth when it comes to gambling, Indonesia is intentionally going in the opposite direction. Some reports and surveys suggest hat the gambling industry in Asia will account for more than $80 billion over the next few years, but there are cultural and religious prerequisites that determine the strict country's policy in this industry.
Up to date, casino and gambling activities are illegal in Indonesia. Thanks to the great number of Muslim people living in the country, all kinds of casinos, poker rooms, bingo halls as well as betting shops are prohibited in the country.
There was a state-run lottery in Indonesia in the past, but a great number of Muslim citizens protested against it. That is why the lottery was discontinued.
Despite the ban over casino operations, gambling activities still exist in the country, and are even quite popular, especially in towns that are a tourist attraction. Underground gambling arcades and sports betting rings are literally flourishing in most of the country's major cities, but they also often get raided because of their uncertain statute.
Top Rated Online Casinos for Indonesia
Punishments for gambling in Indonesia are quite harsh, especially for the societies in which casinos and gambling activities are flourishing. For example, the punishment for illegal gambling in the northern province of Aceh, is caning. The punishment usually takes place publicly, in order for the society to take it as a warning.
Relevant Legislation
As already mentioned, the legal landscape in Indonesia has not been affected to the reported growth in the area of online gambling activities so far, or at least not in a way that is to sharply alter the current status quo.
Still, there was some kind of a reaction to the rapidly changing economic situation, as in 2012 three of the country's ministries were reported to had been planning a major change in Indonesian legislation related to online gambling. This was also considered a reaction to the large amount of money spent on betting over the Euro 2012 football championship.
The strict Islamic Law is also something that should be taken into consideration when it comes to the unusual gambling laws of Indonesia, especially in an environment where gambling becomes more widespread day by day. In addition, the blanket approach of the Indonesian Government is considered to have resulted in several gaps and loopholes in the country's gambling legislation. The country's officials are also expected to put their efforts into filling these loopholes in with more appropriate pieces of legislation.
Online Gambling
Online gambling provides local citizens with the opportunity to play casino games, poker, bingo, as well as bet on world sport events. However, considering the tough ban imposed on both land-based and Internet gambling operations, there are no legal local websites available in Indonesia.
Still, a great variety of international websites provided by some of the world's largest companies, which allow Indonesian players to enjoy their favorite pastime without leaving the safety and comfort of their homes.
However, over the past few years, the country's officials have decided to take some measures and finally put an end to the illegal online gambling in the country. This decision comes at a moment when the consequences from banning the Internet casino and gambling operations are becoming more and more serious. Up to date, the Social Affairs Ministry of Indonesia is reliant to the about 8,000 licenses granted on an annual basis primarily to free lotteries.
Three of the country's ministries are said to have been preparing to pool their resources and consider the problem together in order to come up with a revolutionary plan, which may tighten the regime for illegal online gambling websites once and for all.
The ministries concerned are the Social Affairs Ministry, the Religious Affairs Ministry and the Communications and Information Ministry. In 2012, they announced that they were making plans for implementation of new legislation concerning Internet gaming operations.
Each of the above-mentioned three ministries are expected to play an important part in overthrowing the illegal web-based gambling operations. As mentioned above, currently it is the Communications and Information Ministry's responsibility to block local players from accessing online gambling websites.
The other two ministries – the one of the Social Affairs and the one of the Religious Affairs – are expected to put their efforts in assisting the change and still manage to keep the existing gambling laws of Indonesia. The Social Affairs Ministry is to investigate if the websites that are granted with licenses provide simplistic Internet games, or they break the gambling laws of the country.