Moving high gear in international diplomacy<\/p>\n
By Meidyatama Suryodiningrat<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): To say that Indonesia's foreign policy went into
\nhigh gear in 1994 would be an understatement. But for a brief lull
\nin June, Indonesia's foreign policy was blowing at full steam.<\/p>\n
Hosting the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting,
\nbeing elected to the United Nations Security Council, riots at
\nGalang island, the on-going East Timor saga, activities as regional
\npeace broker, the impasse on the Sipadan and Ligitan island
\nnegotiations along with activities as chair of the Non-Aligned
\nMovement (NAM) have been a source of pride, concern and headache.<\/p>\n
Headaches aside, Indonesia's excursions into the international
\narena this year have boosted its image as a diplomatic power to be
\nrespected and reckoned with.<\/p>\n
Undoubtedly the highlights of the year were the APEC meetings and
\nIndonesia's election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security
\nCouncil (UNSC).<\/p>\n
The sixth APEC Ministerial Meeting was held Nov. 11-12, followed,
\non Nov. 15, by the economic leaders meeting at Bogor Presidential
\nPalace, West Java.<\/p>\n
No matter what critics have subsequently said about the resulting
\n\"Bogor Declaration\", the fact remains that Jakarta's unrelenting
\ndiplomatic vigor managed to squeeze out a nodding consensus from all
\n18 member economies.<\/p>\n
Economic realism aside, Indonesia's diplomacy made history and for
\nmany that is what counts, for now.<\/p>\n
Though the success of APEC is the result of a combined effort of
\nvarious ministries, much of the ground work was laid by the foreign
\nministry.<\/p>\n
Lacking the fanfare and media hype of the APEC meeting, officials
\nfrom the foreign ministry hosted a series of meetings covering three
\ncities, including two-holiday hotspots -- Bali and Yogyakarta --
\nover the span of nine months.<\/p>\n
A month prior to the APEC meeting, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali
\nAlatas, at the foreign ministry building, proudly announced
\nIndonesia's election to the Security Council.<\/p>\n
Since the start of the year Indonesia has coveted a non-permanent
\nseat and early on expressed confidence in this objective.<\/p>\n
An aggressive, yet typically low-keyed, approach was launched to
\ndrum-up support as Asia's representative, replacing Pakistan, who
\nend their term on Dec. 31.<\/p>\n
The candidacy met with no resistance and on Oct. 20 Indonesia
\nacquired 91 percent of the 184 votes cast at the UN General
\nAssembly.<\/p>\n
In 1994 the continuing saga of East Timor persisted in the same
\ntune of protest with no swan song in sight.<\/p>\n
The themes of criticism by Non-Governmental Organizations,
\nFretilin and Lisbon echoed much of the past -- referendum, the 1991
\nDili incident and human rights abuses.<\/p>\n
However, a rather embarrassing jolt came when South African
\nPresident Nelson Mandela arrived in September and addressed his
\nconcerns on East Timor to President Soeharto.<\/p>\n
A new development in the shape of a \"people to people\" approach
\ntook shape this year in the form of the Portugal-Indonesia
\nFriendship Association (PIFA) which engages in contacts among East
\nTimorese on both sides of the debate.<\/p>\n
The advent of PIFA, headed by Siti Hardiyanti Rukamana, daughter
\nof President Soeharto, is encouraging, especially considering it
\nsponsored a visit in March by 24 Portuguese of East Timorese
\ndescent.<\/p>\n
The diplomatic front on East Timor has also produced encouraging
\nresults this year with the deferral of East Timor on the UN General
\nAssembly agenda for the 12th straight year.<\/p>\n
At the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Indonesian diplomats
\nalso successfully watered down, if not removed, the mention of East
\nTimor in various documents this year.<\/p>\n
Talks at finding an internationally recognized solution continued
\nthrough the trilateral talks between Indonesian and Portuguese
\nforeign ministers under the aegis of UN Secretary General.<\/p>\n
However, the talks seem to be stuck in an exchange of Confidence
\nBuilding Measures (CBMs) and have resulted little in providing a
\npermanent solution.<\/p>\n
The most stressing development on the issue of East Timor seems to
\nbe a trend by the foes of integration to hold conferences in
\nneighboring ASEAN countries.<\/p>\n
In May, the National Council for the Maubere Resistance sponsored
\na conference on East Timor at the Philippines University in Manila.<\/p>\n
Jakarta was up in arms about it and there were ominous signs of a
\ncrack in relations between the two countries.<\/p>\n
Though government ministers deny any form of intervention,
\nJakarta's disgust prompted the Ramos government to bar foreigners
\nfrom the conference, including Irish Nobel laureate Maireed Maguire.<\/p>\n
Without overtly flexing its diplomatic muscle, Indonesia's
\ninternational stature has been growing in proportions and it has
\nbegun to exercise its growing clout as a popular peace broker.<\/p>\n
The workshop on the South China Sea at Bukittinggi, West Sumatra,
\nin October, demonstrated this growing savvy as a nation capable of
\ngenerating the respectful attention of others in the region.<\/p>\n
Though the workshop only produced a trite set of CBMs on the
\noverlapping claims of the Spratly and Paracel islands, Indonesia's
\nactive role is vital in defusing any military action.<\/p>\n
The chain of envoys and ministers arriving to solicit Indonesia's
\nsupport and aid in various international disputes further
\ndemonstrates this growing stature.<\/p>\n
Both Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic and Prime Minister Haris
\nSiladjzic came separately to gain support for the Bosnian cause.<\/p>\n
In April and May alone there were at least three envoys, all
\nbidding for Indonesia's attention, including Cuba's Foreign Minister
\nR. Robaina, Iraq's Foreign Minister Said al-Sahaf and Cameroon envoy
\nTsanga Abanda, who sought Jakarta's mediation in a dispute with
\nNigeria over the Bhakhasil island.<\/p>\n
Add to this the numerous meetings as chair of NAM, such as the
\nrecent Asia-Africa Forum in Bandung to help the development of
\nAfrica.<\/p>\n
However, the stream of issues being presented Indonesia's way have
\nindirectly taken their toll, with foreign minister Ali Alatas'
\nsuffering a \"mild heart attack\" in late May, requiring a quadruple
\nbypass.<\/p>\n
Heart problems should not be a surprising occurrence at the
\nforeign ministry in light of the many predicaments often faced.<\/p>\n
The visit to Bali of Taiwan's President Lee Teng-hui in February
\nis one case where diplomats had the arduous task of defending it to
\nthe furious Chinese government as a \"private visit\".<\/p>\n
Then there were the riots by the Vietnamese boatpeople at Galang
\nisland which accompanied the visit of Vietnam President Le Duc Anh.<\/p>\n
Some 500 boat people went on a hunger strike to protest their
\nrepatriation home and at least one person died of self-immolation.<\/p>\n
Other headaches included the deadlock on negotiations of the
\ndisputed Sipadan and Ligitan islands with Malaysia.<\/p>\n
After holding talks earlier in the year, Malaysia, at the start of
\ntalks in September, surprised Indonesian negotiators by calling for
\ninternational arbitration.<\/p>\n
The talks ended at an impasse and it took a meeting between
\nMalaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and President Soeharto
\nbefore the issue cooled down with an agreement to continue further
\ntalks.<\/p>\n
Despite these minor obstacles, Indonesia, in 1994, no doubt came
\nout a winner in the foreign policy department, punctuating Jakarta's
\nprofile abroad.<\/p>\n
In fact the whole year has been a careful ascendance towards a
\ncrescendo into the international spotlight of APEC and the UNSC. The
\nquestion now is whether, in 1995, Indonesia can play the leading
\nrole it has won.<\/p>",
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