These days taxi driver Rusdi often earns little more than 50,000 rupiah (US$5.50) for driving a 17-hour shift through Jakarta's congested traffic. The increased cost of petrol is stealing a large chunk of his income. The Indonesian government decided in May to raise fuel prices by 30 percent, forcing Rusdi to spend significantly more on petrol, but the taxi company for which he works has neither increased fares nor reduced his daily fee to drive the taxi. "My company doesn't care about our problems," he told IRIN. "Now we're the ones who have to subsidise fuel for the company." The additional charges for petrol, plus the costs of repairs and the daily cab rental fee, are forcing taxi drivers like Rusdi to work longer and longer hours. When the government raised fuel prices, the move sparked protests throughout the country where millions of poor people were already hit by rising food prices. An increase in fuel costs means higher prices of essential commo...