Australia-RI ties tested<\/p>\n
Alpha Amirrachman, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Again, relations between Indonesia and its southern neighbor,
\nAustralia, have been tested, this time by the case of Schapelle
\nLeigh Corby. This young former beautician was sentenced to 20
\nyears in prison by the Denpasar District Court for smuggling 4.1
\nkilograms of marijuana into Bali.<\/p>\n
The Australian public are outraged. Tim Lindsay, a professor
\nof Asian law at the University of Melbourne, argues that the
\nunprecedented frenzy of interest in Corby's fate doesn't mean
\nthat it has some legal logic to it. Many also have begun to worry
\nthat the level of hysteria on the part of the Australian public
\nhas reached a worrying level of xenophobia (The Australian, May
\n30, 2005).<\/p>\n
Aside from the rights and wrongs of the case, there are some
\npoints worth considering.<\/p>\n
First, it should be noted that excessive public and political
\npressure can be perceived as a \"new-colonial agenda\" by some
\nsections in Indonesian society. The ultra-nationalists and
\nreligious zealots, for example, may be gratuitously provoked by
\nthis excessive Australian reaction to shoot their political
\nbullets. A political spat between both Australian and Indonesian
\n\"xenophobists\" is undesirable for all of us.<\/p>\n
However, the Indonesian media have also played a role in
\nunfairly pre-judging Corby, as some of them portrayed her as a
\n\"marijuana queen\" before the verdict was handed down, which might
\nbe considered a breach of journalistic ethics in influencing the
\nlegal proceedings. This, too, might have ignited local sentiment
\nagainst Corby.<\/p>\n
Second, the \"intervention\" can also disturb Indonesia's
\nstruggle for the separation of powers. Australia has long been a
\nsupporter of Indonesian legal reform, a perfect position that
\ncould fundamentally help heighten security and economic
\ncooperation between the two countries, and greatly benefit
\nAustralia as well. It is therefore crucial that Indonesia's hard-
\nwon legal reform keeps progressing despite this case.<\/p>\n
Third, one should try to observe the case through the lens of
\nsensitivity. I recall in the aftermath of the Bali blast. After
\nthe broke down of the house of a suspected \"terrorist\" Muslim
\nfamily in Sydney by the Australian authority, Indonesia witnessed
\na string of noisy daily demonstrations protesting against the
\nalleged inhumane treatment the Indonesian family endured.<\/p>\n
At that time, some Indonesian politicians both ultra-
\nnationalists and religious fundamentalists enthusiastically
\njoined the chorus of protests, apparently not necessarily to
\nsupport the case, but to boost their political eminence and apply
\npressure on the government.<\/p>\n
This should give us some understanding of how the Australian
\npublic would react if it were put in a \"similar\" situation. The
\npalpable difference is: The highly emotive Australian public
\nprotest -- despite the expected rise in anti-Indonesia sentiment
\n-- would unlikely be followed by a string of bomb attacks, unlike
\nthe cases in Indonesia, a place where violence and hostility have
\nalmost become the norm.<\/p>\n
Fourth, such emotive feeling and political tension escalating
\nfrom the case are an inevitable consequence of the two countries
\nliving so \"closely\" as neighbors. If we could become involved in
\na political row with Malaysia, a country with which Indonesia
\nshares so much culturally and ethnically, what more Australia,
\nwhich is so foreign both culturally and politically for most of
\nus.<\/p>\n
The case should therefore become an impetus for the two
\ncountries to continue to explore ways to foster understanding. I
\nrecall during my stay in Australia one professor at the
\nUniversity of New South Wales complained that the number of
\nAustralian students studying the Indonesian program had dropped
\nsignificantly after the East Timor case and the 1997 Asian
\neconomic crisis.<\/p>\n
Another professor warns that the danger of this is that more
\nand more Australians would never fully grasp their northern
\nneighbor's character and the complexity of its society.<\/p>\n
However, as the Chinese saying goes, \"One hand cannot clap
\nalone\", the Indonesian side should also follow suit by opening
\nmore Australian studies programs in Indonesian universities. This
\nall can be done with the support from government-to-government or
\nuniversity-to-university cooperation in exchanging the materials
\nor lecturers needed. Indonesia has always been so inward looking,
\nso it is timely for us now to strike a balance between an inward
\nand outward looking attitude.<\/p>\n
Lastly, the case proves that the close proximity between the
\ntwo countries is not only geographical, but psychological as
\nwell, and there are still fissures of understanding that have not
\nbeen filled.<\/p>\n
So, is it possible for the people of the two countries to
\ncompassionately embrace each other? One may be skeptical, but the
\nfact that some sections within the countries are attempting to
\nput the case into the proper perspective shows that a sensible
\nproportion of trust remains intact. Some Australian media have
\nurged the public to respect Indonesia's legal integrity, as have
\nthe two governments.<\/p>\n
It is therefore timely for the people of both countries, in
\nthe spirit of neighborhood, to use this latest case wisely not
\nonly for self-reflection, but also as a window of opportunity to
\nreach into each other's deeper consciousness.<\/p>\n
The writer is an alumnus of the University of Sydney.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/australia-ri-ties-tested-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }