Indonesia may air domestic problems at summit<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid said here on
\nThursday that Indonesia might bring up its mounting domestic
\nproblems during the annual ASEAN informal summit and called for
\n\"active support\" of the regional grouping for the maintenance of
\ncountry's territorial integrity.<\/p>\n
\"We will not discuss the problems explicitly, but they will
\nalways be there and recognized in the background ... it is not
\nsomething that we will sweep under the rug,\" Presidential
\nspokesman Wimar Witoelar told journalists.<\/p>\n
\"In the case of Indonesia, we expect and have always received
\nsympathy and support for our national integrity. We may (during
\nthe summit) want to carry it further to solicit the active
\nsupport of our neighboring countries in making the concept of
\nspecial autonomy for certain provinces work within the ASEAN
\ncontext,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Wimar's statement came as analysts believe that political
\nproblems in key members of the Association of Southast Asian
\nNations (ASEAN) could steal the limelight from the economic
\nagenda during the two-day summit which begins Friday.<\/p>\n
\"Of course there are certain diplomatic and nationalistic
\nparameters which do not allow formal discussion even though this
\nis called an informal meeting ... but we do recognize that any
\nproblem for one ASEAN country is a problem for all,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Commenting on the 45-minute meeting between Abdurrahman and
\nSenior Minister Lee Kuan Yew on Thursday evening, Wimar said that
\n\"President Wahid relies on SM (Senior Minister) Lee as he does on
\na number of people for raw inputs, raw data to formulate
\npolicies\".<\/p>\n
Wimar said, however, that what had been discussed during the
\nmeeting \"is not explicitly available to the public\".<\/p>\n
\"We will see what transpires out of this afterward in the form
\nof policy and implementation,\" Wimar said.<\/p>\n
President Abdurrahman arrived on the island state on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Summit host Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong has said the ASEAN
\nleaders are expected to discuss measures to broaden and deepen
\neconomic integration within the grouping, which covers countries
\nat different stages of economic development.<\/p>\n
ASEAN leaders are also scheduled to sign a landmark e-ASEAN
\nagreement aimed at linking the region electronically.(byg)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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