Indonesia won't seek apology from Beatrix<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia will not use the upcoming visit of
\nNetherlands' Queen Beatrix to demand an apology for the 350 years
\nduring which the Dutch colonized this country, an official said
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
Emil Salim, who heads the national committee for the
\ncelebration of Indonesia's 50th anniversary of independence, said
\nthe visit was not connected with the golden anniversary, although
\nit is scheduled to begin only four days after Independence Day,
\nwhich falls on Aug. 17.<\/p>\n
\"President Soeharto has told the committee that we are
\ninviting Queen Beatrix for a state visit, which is not connected
\nwith the celebration of our 50th anniversary,\" Emil said while
\nclosing a seminar reviewing the revolutionary period.<\/p>\n
\"We will not ask for an apology,\" he said at the Indonesian
\nInstitute of Sciences, which hosted the seminar. \"This is a state
\nvisit on which the queen will be accorded full honors,\" he added.<\/p>\n
The queen and her husband, Prince Claus, are scheduled to
\nbegin their Indonesian visit on August 21.<\/p>\n
Suggestions that she use the visit to apologize to the people
\nof Indonesia for the colonial past came from some people in the
\nNetherlands, rather than from Indonesia.<\/p>\n
As preparations run full steam in The Hague to fill in the
\ndetails of her visit, a debate has been raging on whether or not
\nthe queen should address the Dutch's human rights record during
\nthe 350 years they ruled Indonesia, especially given the Dutch's
\nown strong feelings on human rights issues.<\/p>\n
A Dutch media poll found that 38 percent of respondents
\nbelieved that the queen should apologize, the Republika daily
\nsaid yesterday.<\/p>\n
J.P. Pronk, the Dutch minister of development cooperation,
\ncaused outrage among Dutch veterans of the war of independence
\nwhen he suggested that the queen should visit Indonesia on
\nIndependence Day.<\/p>\n
The Netherlands officially recognized Indonesia's independence
\nin 1949 when the former agreed, after five years of bloody
\nfighting, to hand over sovereignty.<\/p>\n
Indonesia proclaimed independence on Aug. 17, 1945,
\nimmediately after the Japanese surrendered to the Allies.
\nSubsequently, it fought a fierce battle to repel the Dutch
\nattempt to reimpose colonial rule.<\/p>\n
Queen Beatrix was originally invited to take part in
\nIndonesia's golden anniversary but, because of the controversy
\nthe plan sparked in the Netherlands, Jakarta and The Hague agreed
\nthat she should begin her visit after Aug. 17.<\/p>\n
After 50 years of independence, Indonesia aimed to show that
\nall that had happened was \"history\" and that the country bore no
\nmalice towards it former colonial ruler, said Emil, who served
\nfor more than 15 years as cabinet minister.<\/p>\n
\"The government hopes that this is the attitude of the entire
\nnation,\" he added.<\/p>\n
He said it was entirely up to the queen whether or not she
\nmade an apology in her speech here. She would also be welcome to
\nattend any activity related to the independence celebrations,
\ndespite the fact that the visit was not connected with the
\nevents, he added.<\/p>\n
\"I also experienced abuse at the hands of the Kempeitai
\n(Japanese military police)...but we must look to the future, not
\nthe past, in determine our relations with other countries,\" Emil
\nsaid. (anr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indonesia-wont-seek-apology-from-beatrix-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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