The Politics of Fertilizer 1

"Government to ban fertilizer exports, permit some imports" is the head of this article from today's The Jakarta Post.

The natural question is: "Huh?"

Look one by one:

1. Government to ban fertilizer exports. Why does it need to do this? Of course, if the policy is to be effective, the existing situation is such that the world price is higher than the domestic price. Otherwise, "banning export" doesn't make any sense, because after all, there is no incentive to export.
2. Government to permit some imports. Why does it need to do this? Of course, if the policy is to be effective, the existing situation is such that the world price is lower than the domestic price. Otherwise, "permitting import" doesn't make sense, because after all, there is no incentive to import.

But how come the two come together as suggested by the headline? Which one is correct? What goes wrong? Of course your answer would be: "It's politics, stupid".