Alwi reassures Malaysia over Gus Dur's comments

JAKARTA (JP): No disrespect intended, none taken.

That was the conclusion of Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab after meeting on Friday with Malaysian Ambassador Rastam Mohammad Isa to discuss the meaning of an off-the-cuff statement made by President Abdurrahman Wahid.

"The ambassador came to confirm his positive point of view with what the President meant in his statement," Alwi said.

During a policy debate with the House of Representatives (DPR) on Thursday, the President joked that finding ministers in Malaysia was difficult because they were always playing golf.

"If you want to find them, find them on the golf course. Their business affairs are conducted on the golf course," the President said.

"The President's statement did not literally mean that ministers in Malaysia spend most of their time playing golf," Alwi said.

He said the intent of the President's words were an expression of hope that Indonesian ministers could follow the example of their Malaysian counterparts, who delegated much of the technical work to subordinates. Alwi said that in this way Malaysian ministers had more time to focus on important policy issues.

Alwi said that misunderstandings surrounding the statement were probably the result of incomplete media reports. He said the President's words were mistakenly interpreted as politically incorrect and of a mocking nature toward the Malaysian government.

"Some media, both here and in Malaysia, reported the President's statement from a negative point of view," he said.

Alwi emphasized that relations between the two neighboring countries were very important. He said that given the political situation in Malaysia, which has entered a campaign period in the run-up to the general election scheduled for later this month, Jakarta wanted to clarify the statement.

"Don't let the misinterpreted statement be used as campaign material against Malaysian ministers," he said. (04)

The Malaysian ambassador could not be contacted for comment Friday evening and the embassy's information counsellor when asked by The Jakarta Post refused to comment on the meeting.