Thanks to regional autonomy, the provincial government of Riau now has a say in the mining of its resources. Allegedly, Rp1 billion in slush money is needed to obtain a permit to mine sand, an allegation that Governor Djasit firmly denies.

Regional autonomy is changing the fortunes of many provinces. Under Law No. 25 of 1999 on Regional Autonomy, effective January 2001, all authority of the central government in licensing mining activities