Abdurrahman plans whirlwind trips abroad, including Australia

JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid, struggling to maintain a grip on his presidency, is planning trips abroad, including a long-awaited visit to Australia.

Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab told reporters on Saturday that Abdurrahman is scheduled to visit Yemen, Nigeria, Sudan, Abu Dhabi and Cairo at the end of the month before heading to Saudi Arabia for the Haj pilgrim in early March.

"There have been discussions that the President plans to visit Australia in early April," Alwi added.

Palace sources told The Jakarta Post on Sunday that Abdurrahman is scheduled to leave on Feb. 22 and is due to return to the state capital on March 7.

However from Canberra Reuters reported that Australian Prime Minister John Howard was unaware of Abdurrahman's plan to visit, but said he would welcome such a move.

"President Wahid is very welcome in this country," Howard remarked.

In Jakarta a Cabinet source told the Post earlier that due to heightened political tension in the country, Abdurrahman has actually been advised either to cancel or cut short his trips.

The House of Representatives censured Abdurrahman earlier this month for his alleged involvement in two financial scandals, raising the prospect of impeachment proceedings.

He has denied any wrongdoing and refuses to step down.

Abdurrahman has visited dozens of countries since taking office 15 months ago, triggering widespread criticism that he spends too much time abroad instead of addressing the country's extensive economic and social problems.

His trip to Australia has been delayed several times because of anti-Australian sentiment in Indonesia since Australia led an international force to restore peace and maintain security in the former Indonesian province of East Timor.

Palace sources also said that Abdurrahman is scheduled to attend the third summit of the eight developing nations (D-8) in Cairo on Feb. 25.

The D-8, which groups Iran, Malaysia, Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria and Indonesia, was established in 1997 by former Turkish prime minister Necmettin Erbakan.

The first D-8 summit was held in Istanbul in 1997 and last year's summit was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh. (byg)