Ministry Of Industry Exhibiting Inmates Creative Products

Jakarta, April 22 (Antara) - Ministry of Industry is exhibiting creative products made by Indonesian inmates in order to eliminate the negative stigma of inmates in the society. "Through this exhibition we want to remove societal negative stigma that inmates carry," stated Director General Correctional of Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, Handoyo Sudrajat, here on Tuesday. The exhibition is held by the Ministry of Industry in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, in Plaza Industri Jakarta on Tuesday. Handoyo noted that inmates creative activity is not just to spend their time, but also to improve their creative skills once they are released. Ministry of Justice and Human Rights are trying to provide capital assistance through companies CSR fund utilizations, so that inmates could start their own business once they are released. Exhibitions and events that include their works have proved that people are appreciating their work, pointed out Handoyo. "The most important thing is that this exhibition is an event to popularize the works of inmates as also to capture market share and pull in stakeholders in order for a cooperation in producing and marketing these works," he explained. At the same time, Director General of Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Ministry of Industry, Euis Saedah pointed out that the ministry is focusing on SME machineries and equipment through a 45 percent discount for domestic machinery and 35 percent for imported machinery. "We are hoping that former inmates are able to take advantage of this program and understand technology development better to create high quality and creative products," she explained. There are 44 inmates all over Indonesia who are participating in this exhibition, displaying high quality products such as garments, arts and crafts, accessories, food and beverages, waste recycling crafts, and processed products.