'Claims against Howard unproven'<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
An expert on Indonesia dismissed on Thursday claims of
\nlegislators here who have condemned Australian Prime Minister
\nJohn Howard for remaining supportive of separatist elements in
\nPapua.<\/p>\n
Harold Crouch of Monash University said that, rather than
\nmaintain their aversion to Howard's visit to Indonesia, members
\nof the House of Representatives's Commission I on international
\nrelations who had made the claims against Howard, should instead
\ninvite him to the House.<\/p>\n
"Get him to come to Commission I, and then show evidence or
\nsome kind of proof that Howard is indeed a supporter of Papua
\nMerdeka (Independent Papua)," Howard told reporters during a
\nseminar on the Maluku conflict here on Thursday.<\/p>\n
"I am sure that the legislators have no such proof," he added.<\/p>\n
It was impossible for Howard to be supportive of Papuan
\nseparatist elements after he had already pledged his support for
\nIndonesia's integrity, Crouch said, as quoted by Antara.<\/p>\n
Australian government officials, Crouch said, have repeatedly
\ndenied these allegations, and added that the Australian prime
\nminister was only visiting Indonesia as a guest of the Indonesian
\ngovernment.<\/p>\n
Crouch noted that he did not understand why the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party for Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) was critical of
\nHoward's visit to Indonesia, too, when its party chair, President
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri, was the very official who invited Howard
\nto visit Indonesia in the first place.<\/p>\n
Despite being one of the first to recognize East Timor's
\nintegration with Indonesia, Australian government officials, and
\nHoward in particular, made a sudden about-face after two decades,
\nand became the first to formally recommend and support a
\nreferendum in the former province.<\/p>\n
Earlier, the legislators had proclaimed anger at Howard's
\nvisit to Indonesia, and refused meet Howard on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Crouch admitted that the East Timor issue would remain a
\nproblem for both countries and, in time, needed to be resolved.<\/p>\n
Growing animosity toward Australia resurfaced in Indonesia
\nafter charges that Howard and members of the Labour Party
\nexploited some of Indonesia's problems for the sake of its own
\ndomestic agenda.<\/p>\n
At issue was the thorny problem of illegal immigration, which
\nreportedly won Howard -- a champion of hard-line policies toward
\nasylum seekers attempting to enter the country via Indonesia --
\nwidespread popularity that culminated in his success in the
\nNovember elections.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Howard and Megawati avoided the sensitive issue,
\nand said that the subject would be discussed during a regional
\nmeeting in Bali later this month.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/claims-against-howard-unproven-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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