A new partnership takes shape
A new partnership takes shape
The Daily Star, Asia News Network, Dhaka
The meeting between Megawati Soekarnoputri and Khaleda Zia is
special in the sense that this meeting was between two woman
governmental heads representing two Muslim majority countries.
Here we point out this fact as a contrast to what the West is in
the habit of saying about the place of women in Muslim societies.
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell had but a few hours for
us while President Megawati is honoring us with three days of her
presence. The contrast aside, we are proud to host such important
guests simultaneously.
We consider Megawati's visit to be another significant
development in our "Look East" policy. One of the major foreign
policy initiatives of this government has been to reinforce our
already excellent relations with the Southeast Asian countries
and add a new dynamism in it. The first major demonstration of it
was the exchange of visits by the Thai and Bangladeshi Prime
Ministers and the extension of some special trade privileges to
us by the former. The strengthening of our relations with
Indonesia follows naturally from the initial steps we took.
Bangladesh has expressed its desire to be a member of ASEAN
Regional Forum (ARF) in attaining which Indonesia has committed
to lend us a helping hand, and our membership of ARF should now
only be a matter of time. Southeast and East Asia have been and
continues to be major growth centers. Together with China, this
region holds out the prospect of being among the fastest growth
areas in the world. Thus it is the natural place to link up with
if we want to be a part of that growth process.
As moderate and liberal Muslim majority countries we have lots
of things in common just as we have many similar challenges to
face -- mainly global terrorism. The recent bomb attack in Bali
has come as a rude wakeup call to the governments of both
countries. We must face the fact that an extreme fringe has
developed within our society that espouse hatred and violence as
a means of achieving their ends. The Indonesian experience is a
clear signal that it can happen in a highly tolerant society.
Therefore collaboration between our two countries in fighting
terrorism, as committed by our PM during her banquet speech on
Wednesday, is most crucial.
We welcome the four-point trade and business related
agreements that have been signed between the two sides. Avoidance
of double taxation, counter trade agreement, exchange of lists
between the two commerce ministries, and the cooperation between
our two apex trade bodies are all significant steps. As possible
trading partners both countries will now have to follow these
developments with a strong political commitment.
Trade can only proceed on clear policy decisions followed by
incentive packages that will make business sense among the
private sector on both sides. The formation of joint Business
Council is a welcome step and the planned trip to Indonesia by
our trade bodies a natural follow-up. The big business delegation
accompanying President Megawati is a clear indication of the
interest of Indonesia to build strong business ties with us.
A far more active cultural relationship between our two
countries is also something we should work for. Both of us have
significant minorities whose distinct cultural and ethnic
diversity has made our culture far more rich and varied. We hope
that this visit by the Indonesian President will be followed by
cultural exchange between our two countries, to enable greater
understanding and appreciation of the cultural diversity that
makes us, along with Malaysia, so unique among Muslim majority
countries.