Indonesia needs no foreign military intervention, Hoon says<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (AP): The defense ministers of Britain and
\nMalaysia pledged moral support to help Indonesia through current
\ncrises of political turmoil and ethnic violence, but ruled out
\nthe need for foreign military intervention.<\/p>\n
British Defense Minister Geoffrey Hoon said that his
\ngovernment was closely monitoring events in Indonesia, the
\nworld's fourth-most populous nation, which has become one of the
\nmost alarming flashpoints menacing stability in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n
\"The position of Indonesia is a matter of concern to this
\nregion and to the international community,\" Hoon said. \"We want
\nto see Indonesia develop as a stable center in this region.\"<\/p>\n
Hoon's comments centered on violence over the past two weeks
\nin Indonesia's strife-torn province of Central Kalimantan on
\nBorneo Island, where ethnic riots have killed more than 300
\npeople and left tens of thousands bereft of food and medicine and
\nwaiting to flee.<\/p>\n
Officials have so far resisted demands to declare a state of
\nemergency -- one step from martial law. But the violence has
\nunderscores Indonesia's growing inability to rein in ethnic and
\nseparatist violence in several regions of the sprawling
\narchipelago of 13,000 islands.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman Wahid, Indonesia's second president since long-
\ntime dictator Suharto was ousted amid economic crisis in 1998,
\nhas been sharply criticized for not cutting short a 15-day trip
\nto the Middle East and Africa to handle the turmoil.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, Hoon said the international community had
\n\"responded well\" by sending an Australian-led troop force to East
\nTimor in 1999 to quell violence by pro-Jakarta militias following
\nthe territory's vote for independence. But he stressed that
\nIndonesia's present problems could not be solved in the same
\nmanner.<\/p>\n
\"I don't believe the situation in Indonesia now has reached
\nthat situation,\" said Hoon, who is in Malaysia for a two-day
\nvisit on the invitation of his local counterpart, Najib Tun
\nRazak.<\/p>\n
At a news conference, Najib refused to speculate on the future
\nof Malaysia's neighbor or whether his government is prepared to
\nface waves of illegal immigration from Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"We have to be as supportive as possible to ensure that there
\nis stability in Indonesia,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Malaysian troops have been on standby to rescue a handful of
\nMalaysian citizens in Kalimantan if necessary, but officials have
\nsaid that so far they have confidence in the Indonesian military
\nto protect them.<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, Najib said that Indonesia risks
\n\"Balkanization\" into warring, splintered territories. Malaysia
\nand Indonesia share a similar language and religious traditions,
\nbut the smaller nation is significantly better off financially.<\/p>\n
In another development, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander
\nDowner on Thursday defended Australia's frequent pledges of
\nsupport for Indonesia's existing borders, saying Canberra's
\nbacking strengthened the troubled nation.<\/p>\n
The policy is sometimes attacked within Australia by
\nsupporters of secessionist groups in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Downer and Prime Minister John Howard have repeatedly
\nreassured Indonesia its existing borders have international
\nbacking despite breakaway movements in regions like West Papua,
\nalso known as Irian Jaya, and Aceh.<\/p>\n
\"If the nations of this immediate part of the world decided to
\nsupport secessionist movements in, say, Irian Jaya or in Aceh --
\nwherever it may be -- we would very significantly exacerbate
\ntensions in those places,\" Downer told the National Press Club.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indonesia-needs-no-foreign-military-intervention-hoon-says-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}