AROUND 39 million people, or 17.7 percent of the total population of Indonesia, are living below the poverty line. Some feel that the main reason for this jump in the poverty figure is the fact that the price of rice has increased by 33 percent. The influence of rice has attracted the attention of many groups.

To try and find some answers, Tempo interviewed Charles Peter Timmer, an international food produce economist, on Wednesday last week. Timm