A meeting of two women presidents
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's visit to Indonesia to meet Ibu Megawati Soekarnoputri should be an occasion for both women leaders to address the problem of poverty more vigorously in their respective countries in particular and in Asia in general. The simple reason is that the meeting of the two Asian leaders of a similar background -- daughters of their countries' former presidents -- would not fail to create a dramatic effect if they took up the matter in addition to other issues related to bilateral relations.
I am not ashamed to lament over the fact that both in the Philippines and in Indonesia there are very rich people living alongside very poor citizens and that the gap is widening. Therefore, to single out the problem of poverty seems to be in the spirit of the fight against terrorism from wherever it may come. The bombing incidents in Indonesia are a kind of terror that may be motivated by extreme elements witnessing this growing gap. One may also see insurgency in the Philippines as a manifestation of discontent over the big contrast between those who live in luxury and the abject poverty in society.
In his address before the UN General Assembly, President George Bush acknowledged that unless extreme poverty is addressed successfully by the world organization, international terrorism will easily find its way to the hearts of the disillusioned and the rebellious living in hopeless conditions. At the moment, the world is witnessing a confrontation between the richest and the poorest nations of the world, a battle that is unworthy of human civilization.
Women may not be better managers than men or even not better politicians than men. But those who have made it to the top like Arroyo and Megawati should leave no stone unturned to fight poverty as their way of suppressing terrorism. The capitalist system may be blamed for the unfair distribution of national and social welfare. But the same system is ready to assist nations that need assistance, albeit for a price.
GANDHI SUKARDI
Jakarta