Clinton and the rights issue<\/p>\n
Clinton, whose Democratic Party suffered heavy losses in the
\nrecent elections, appears to be more inclined to discuss economic
\nand military issues with Indonesia, which is at present playing
\nthe diplomatic role of \"spokesman\" for the Third World. Clinton
\nis disinclined to take up the human rights issue directly with
\nPresident Soeharto because it represents too small an interest
\nfor the United States. It is enough that the issue is discussed
\nby trade representative Mickey Kantor with an Indonesian partner
\nin dialog, if necessary.<\/p>\n
It seems natural under the circumstances that certain parties
\nnow say that Mickey Kantor will have to bear the embarrassment
\nover the United States's tarnished credibility in Asia should the
\nhuman rights issue be omitted altogether, even at the lowest
\nlevel. For this reason we should be able to predict that the
\nhuman rights issue will be discussed under Clinton's chosen
\nscenario: not at the highest level between heads of state, and
\nnot in the context of APEC.<\/p>\n
Washington is trapped in an awkward position. After the
\nrefusal of the Philippines and some other Asian countries to
\naccommodate its military facilities, the U.S. feels that it no
\nlonger has a foothold in Asia and so it is applying a new
\npressure policy, using the human rights and democratization
\nissues as a club. And it has failed.<\/p>\n
Whatever the case, Washington will have to try to gain a
\ndeeper insight of the development process which societies outside
\nthe U.S. -- particularly in Asia -- are at present undergoing,
\nand of their specific commitment towards democracy which differs
\nfrom that of the United States.<\/p>\n
-- Pikiran Rakyat, Bandung<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/clinton-and-the-rights-issue-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }