Timor conference debacle<\/p>\n
For the last several weeks, after Philippines President Fidel
\nRamos, obviously under \"pressure\" from Jakarta, decided to stop a
\ncontroversial conference on East Timor in Manila, no day has
\npassed without world media reports on the conference.<\/p>\n
The other day, for instance, one could watch the television
\nimage (and read the printed media's reports) of the Northern
\nIrish Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire, who came to
\nparticipate in the conference, being escorted back to the plane
\nupon arrival in Manila for expulsion from the country.<\/p>\n
And yesterday we read the report of a scuffle in front of the
\nIndonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur between Indonesian workers and
\nmembers of a Malaysian non-governmental organization who came to
\nprotest Indonesia's \"occupation\" of East Timor. Meanwhile, the
\nManila conference itself continued to get major world media
\ncoverage.<\/p>\n
As we watch those images on the television and read the media
\nreports on the furor over the conference, one question keeps
\nnagging in our minds: Is this the kind of publicity that we
\nreally want?<\/p>\n
It is easy enough to see that the answer could well be: \"No.\"<\/p>\n
By putting \"pressure\" on Manila, instead of stopping the
\nconference as apparently some of us naively expected, the event
\nhas taken a twist. And all of a sudden, helplessly, we are having
\nto watch an obscure conference develop into a media blitz which
\nis sure to damage to our reputation.<\/p>\n
A few weeks before, for instance, one never would have
\nexpected that Danielle Mitterand, the wife of French President
\nFrancois Mitterand, who was also blacklisted from attending the
\nManila conference, would accuse Indonesia of exercising a \"kind
\nof blackmail\" and of exerting \"tyrannical pressure\" on her not to
\nattend.<\/p>\n
Moreover, one can also feel the slow rumble of the tremor
\nrising beneath us, a growing feeling of disappointment from the
\nneighborhood over Indonesia's way of handling the issue. There's
\neven a hint of a whisper that Indonesia has applied \"big
\nbrotherly\" pressure to another Association of Southeast Asian
\nNations member under the pretext of the ASEAN spirit of
\nsolidarity.<\/p>\n
Whatever the case, damage has been done and we have to address
\nthis. Perhaps, it is too farfetched to liken the damage of the
\n\"Manila incident\" to that of the \"Dili incident\" of November,
\n1991. But there are some similarities.<\/p>\n
Among others, one can expect that for a long time to come the
\nworld's attention will continue to focus on East Timor because
\nmany people who previously knew nothing about East Timor are now
\naware of it. And, possibly, some of them may raise questions in
\nthe future.<\/p>\n
Of course, nobody should wash their hands of the situation by
\nclaiming that the misfortune is not of our doing and rather blame
\nit on the Philippines government. Instead, we should admit that
\nmostly the current view was influenced by our poor judgment and
\nover-sensitivity to the East Timor issue.<\/p>\n
One lesson we should learn is that it is time to realize that
\nthe world has changed and a new sense of democratization and
\nopenness is in the air. Each and every country has its own
\nsystem. Thus, one should not expect that the government of any
\ngiven nation would have control over such groups as non-
\ngovernmental organizations (NGOs), or the judiciary, for that
\nmatter.<\/p>\n
On the governmental level, one can expect that the ASEAN
\nspirit of solidarity will continue to prevail, but one should not
\ntake it for granted that, for example, all ASEAN NGOs will
\nmaintain the same spirit.<\/p>\n
In the past, Indonesia has played a model role in ASEAN
\nthrough a low profile and strong self-restraint, while continuing
\nto maintain its dignity. And undoubtedly, the very success of
\nASEAN is partly caused by this kind of stance. Thus, let's heal
\nthe wounds and try to return to the \"basics.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/timor-conference-debacle-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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