Megawati flies to Mexico on Tuesday<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
In the aftermath of the Bali bombing, President Megawati
\nSoekarnoputri is slated to leave on Tuesday to attend the Asia
\nPacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Mexico.<\/p>\n
Officials from the President's office said on Monday that
\nMegawati would leave on Tuesday at midnight, making a stop in
\nGreece for around nine hours before continuing the journey to
\nMexico.<\/p>\n
\"The President will return to Indonesia on Oct. 28 after the
\nsummit is over,\" the official said.<\/p>\n
The trip was originally planned for 16 days, as Megawati was
\nto conduct a state visit to Cuba before the summit and attend the
\nG-15 in Venezuela and a meeting of the Association of Southeast
\nAsia Nations (ASEAN) in Cambodia afterwards.<\/p>\n
However after the Bali attack on Oct. 12, Megawati cut short
\nthe planned trip to attend the ASEAN summit and will leave
\nJakarta on Nov. 3.<\/p>\n
Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda said that Megawati
\ncould not miss the APEC Summit as Indonesia needed all the
\nsupport it could garner after the Bali attack.<\/p>\n
\"There will be two retreats during the summit, the first one
\nto discuss the counter terrorism issue and the second to discuss
\neconomic efforts in the current global market,\" Hassan said.<\/p>\n
Megawati will also host a luncheon of the ASEAN member
\ncountries as the current ASEAN chair, Cambodia, is not a member
\nof APEC, Hassan said.<\/p>\n
The summit will be the first event in which Megawati will meet
\nwith international leaders after the Bali attack, which claimed
\nmore than 185 lives.<\/p>\n
Analysts said this would be a good opportunity for Megawati to
\nspeak directly to the world about what happened in Bali.<\/p>\n
Major changes also occurred in the number of the President's
\nentourage. An official at the State Palace told The Jakarta Post
\nthat as of Monday Megawati's husband Taufik Kiemas and daughter
\nPuan Maharani were not included in the trip.<\/p>\n
The President will also only take two legislators and two out
\nof four presidential adjutants on this trip.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for the Economy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-
\nJakti, Minister of Trade and Industry Rini Suwandi and Hassan are
\nthe three ministers who will accompany the President.<\/p>\n
Megawati was criticized for the huge numbers in her entourages
\nfollowing her recent overseas trips, and State\/Cabinet Secretary
\nBambang Kesowo promised that such large groups would be reduced.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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