SINGAPORE - Indonesia's ethnic Chinese, believed to have stashed
                 billions of dollars here, are reluctant to repatriate their money because
                 of political problems at home, an expert said on Thursday.

                 Mr Frederick Wu, vice-president of economic research at Singapore's
                 DBS Bank, also said it was still too early for foreigners to invest in
                 Indonesia, where separatist violence and religious strife has dogged
                 President Abdurrahman Wahid's administration.

                 Mr Wu said: "I suppose I would look very closely but I wouldn't put
                 my money in there yet."

                 "I don't think even the ethnic Chinese are repatriating their money. It is
                 just too premature, too early," he said.

                 "There is a ticking time bomb that needs to be defused," he told
                 reporters on the sidelines of a seminar hosted by Singapore's Trade
                 Development Board.

                 "And I hope the government is doing the job in defusing the time
                 bomb. In terms of both the political, social and economic problems, it
                 is difficult to be optimistic," he said.

                 Some US$80 billion are believed deposited in Singapore by ethnic
                 Indonesian Chinese who fled bloody riots preceding and following the
                 ouster of former President Suharto in May 1998.

                 In his first overseas assignment after his election to office last year, the
                 Indonesian President flew to Singapore in November to try to recover
                 the funds.

                 Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong kicked off a two-day visit
                 to Indonesia on Thursday to help Jakarta win back foreign capital
                 crucial for economic recovery. AFP

                       Adapted from The Straits Times, 13 Jan 2000.