JAKARTA The soaring cost of rice and other basic food in Asia has raised security concerns across many Asian countries. In Indonesia, the high cost of staple foods is hurting the poor and raising fears of social unrest.

According to government statistics, in the past year cooking oil has risen nearly 40 percent, rice is up 25 percent and tofu, a staple of the Indonesian diet, has gone up by 50 percent. Bayu Krisnamurti, the deputy minister for agriculture, says the government is concerned the high price of basic commodities has the capability of fueling social unrest, similar to the 1965 coup that led to the rise of the dictator Suharto and the 1998 protests that toppled the former president.

“We are worried. In 1965 we faced a very, very depressing situation to make social unrest,” said Krisnamurti. “Even in a more recent history, in 1998, it’s also a similar situation. We do hope that 2008 is not another situation like that because the cost to the economy is too high.”

Sensitive to price-related unrest, the government continues to spend about 35 percent of its entire budget on fuel and electricity subsidies to keep those commodities affordable for the poor. In January, the government was forced to cut import taxes for soybeans after thousands of people took to the streets in protest over rising costs. Last week, hundreds held demonstrations in Jakarta to demand the government bring down food prices.