Focusing on Aussie defense policy<\/p>\n
By Robert Goodfellow<\/p>\n
WOLLONGONG, Australia (JP): The Australian shadow minister for
\ndefense Stephen Martin is scheduled to be in Jakarta this week.
\nHis brief: to initiate high-level dialogue with President
\nAbdurrahman Wahid and other dignitaries including the minister of
\ndefense, the Indonesian Military commander, the minister of
\nmaritime exploration, senior parliamentarians, military figures
\nand academics.<\/p>\n
However, Martin's real challenge is a little more delicate.<\/p>\n
The shadow minister is faced with two problems. In developing
\nan alternative defense policy that distinguishes the Labor
\nopposition from the Howard government he must serve two
\n\"masters\".<\/p>\n
The first \"master\" is domestic public opinion; his party is
\nwell aware that the International Force for East Timor was
\nenormously popular with ordinary Australians.<\/p>\n
Indeed the deployment of Australian forces last year received
\nenthusiastic bipartisan support; a rarity in the adversarial
\nworld of Australian politics. Consequently, substantial long-term
\naid for an independent East Timor is an accepted reality, no
\nmatter what political party governs. It is a price that
\nAustralian taxpayers appear well prepared to pay.<\/p>\n
Martin's second \"master\" is the powerful foreign policy legacy
\nleft by former Labor prime minister, Paul Keating -- arguably the
\n\"Father of Australia's engagement with Asia\". Keating was able to
\nfast track Australia's economic integration with the region at a
\ntime when Australia was a more Eurocentric and less outwardly
\nlooking society than it is today.<\/p>\n
Despite criticisms of Keating's dealings with the government
\nof ex-president Soeharto, the foreign policy momentum achieved
\nthrough the 1993 Summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
\nforum in Bogor, West Java, has moved Australia steadily closer to
\nfuture \"headquarters Asia\" status, in particular as a regional
\nbridgehead for American and European trade and investment.<\/p>\n
The present Liberal government of John Howard is in fact still
\nbenefiting from the small amount of residual goodwill that
\nremains between foreign affairs departments in both countries.<\/p>\n
Keating's foreign minister, Gareth Evans (now head of the UN
\nCrisis Contact Group), was fond of referring to Australia's
\nfuture role as \"the odd man in of Asia\" (rather than the odd man
\nout).<\/p>\n
A decade later this remains Stephen Martin's greatest test --
\nto creatively manage defense imperatives between the world's only
\nAsian and proto-Western societies to share a common border; and
\nto be inclusive, dynamic and creative in looking for new ways of
\nachieving regional peace and prosperity.<\/p>\n
Interviewed in Canberra this week by this writer, Martin chose
\nhis words carefully. He stated that on one hand, \"Australia must
\nensure that nobody draws the wrong conclusions from the role we
\nplayed with the United Nations in East Timor. It was an important
\nrole in stopping the violence there, under the auspices of the UN
\nand with the agreement of the Indonesian government\".<\/p>\n
However on the other hand Martin echoed a more conciliatory
\napproach taken by Labor since Keating: \"There is no denying that
\nEast Timor has placed a great burden on our relations. It is now
\nmore important than ever for Australia to undertake mutually
\nbeneficial cooperative endeavors with Indonesian forces.\"<\/p>\n
He added, \"An example is a joint initiative to combat piracy
\nat sea. My visit is underpinned by the desire to build a mature
\ndefense relationship between our countries; one based on
\nconfidence building.\"<\/p>\n
Australia, he said, must continue to respect Indonesia's
\nterritorial integrity. \"We must constantly be aware of the
\ndifficulties Indonesia faces in maintaining stability in such a
\ndiverse and widespread archipelago state\".<\/p>\n
Martin's strongest criticism was however reserved for the
\nHoward government's minister for defense John Moore, who has
\nstruggled with the portfolio since replacing Ian McLachlan -- it
\nis no secret that Moore does not enjoy a warm relationship with
\nsenior officers of his department.<\/p>\n
This acrimony has been reflected in the slow progress made by
\nhis office in respect to current official defense policy. In fact
\nthe last Australian government \"white\" or policy paper was
\nreleased as far back as 1994. This has meant that the Australian
\ndefense forces have waited over six years to receive clear
\nguidance and strategic advice as to the future direction of their
\noperations in the region.<\/p>\n
Martin was quick to comment on this. \"The timing of the
\nrelease of the government's \"green\" or discussion document has
\nless to do with regional military triumphalism and more to do
\nwith a government and minister that have failed to come to grips
\nwith the defense portfolio and the challenges confronting the
\ndepartment.<\/p>\n
\"It is for these reasons that the release of the discussion
\npaper has rung some alarms bells in the Indonesian Military,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The facts are, he added, \"that the Australian department of
\ndefense is long overdue for a strategic blueprint to map its
\nfuture directions in the region for the next two decades.\"<\/p>\n
When asked what kind of defense relationship Labor foresees
\nwith Indonesia, Martin answered: \"Australia and Indonesia have
\nshared interests in maintaining a strategic dialogue and pursuing
\npractical initiatives such as combating piracy. Any future
\nmilitary cooperation between our armed forces should be but one
\nstrand of a broader more diverse relationship.\"<\/p>\n
He continued, \"I must stress that Indonesia's (or Australia's
\nfor that matter) dignity and self-respect is not diminished by
\npursuing good relations with each other. I don't see Australia's
\nrole in the region as one of deputy sheriff as others have
\nindicated, rather that our region needs to establish solid lines
\nof strategic and defense dialogue to establish a core of
\ncooperation centered around peacekeeping and mutual assistance\".<\/p>\n
In the future, he said, \"The Labor party under Kim Beazley
\nwill continue to build on the foundations built by previous Labor
\ngovernments. I look forward to forging strong economic, trade and
\ndefense relations with our newly democratized neighbor\".<\/p>\n
Australians will be watching Martin to see if he can represent
\ntheir perspective on regional cooperation without compromising
\nthe view that Indonesia has new responsibilities as a modern,
\ndemocratic nation.<\/p>\n
Indonesians will be watching to see how he is able to manage
\ndomestic Australian public opinion against the Australian Labour
\nparty's desire to reinvent the \"Keating relationship\" with
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
The writer is a cultural consultant on Indonesia to
\ninternational business based at the University of Wollongong
\n(sujoko@ozemail.com.au).<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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