America expected to reinstall RI trade status, House told

America expected to reinstall RI trade status, House told

JAKARTA (JP): The government is optimistic the United States
will retain its policy on trade privileges provided to Indonesia
under the Generalized System of Preference (GSP).

The government is certain that Washington will prioritize its
good bilateral ties with Indonesia rather than making big issues
out of things like labor standards and human rights, Director
General for Foreign Economic Affairs Wisber Loeis said in a
hearing with House of Representatives (DPR).

"We are optimistic that the U.S. government will finally
decide not to rescind our GSP status because of Indonesia's
improving labor standards and our ties with other nations," he
told DPR Commission I on foreign affairs.

After a six-month suspension, which started on February 15,
Washington will decide whether or not to cancel trade privileges
next month. They are expected to announce their decision in
September.

Washington has threatened to permanently suspend trade
privileges under the GSP to Indonesia, which it says has a poor
record of labor standards.

Wisber said that the government has asked the International
Labor Organization to provide Indonesia with technical assistance
to improve the labor standards, noting that it has been making
progress in the last two years.

"The U.S. government has acknowledged that labor conditions
have improved," he said presumably referring to the last six
months.

Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief said recently that the
government would continue to enhance the workers' conditions but
argued that the improvement was made not because of U.S.
pressure.

Wisber said that the U.S. government was striving to eradicate
all obstacles in its bilateral ties with Indonesia to ensure
success at the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
meeting, to be held in Jakarta in September.

"Developed countries, especially the United States, Japan and
Australia, are serving their own national interests in
encouraging Indonesia to make the summit a success," he said.

U.S. President Bill Clinton is scheduled to attend the meeting
where many of the problems facing to the two countries, including
the GSP issue, will be discussed, Wisber said.

When asked if Washington will decide to eventually suspend
Indonesia's GSP status, Wisber said it was the U.S.'s right to
make such a decision and that it would not affect Indonesia's
economy.

"We do not want donor countries, including the United States,
to tie political conditions with financial and economic
cooperation. We will never beg them to make a decision benefiting
us," he said.

Indonesia earned some US$640 million in 1992 from its selected
products exported to the United States under the GSP facility.

Military aid

Meanwhile, Director General for Foreign Political Affairs
Izhar Ibrahim, who also attended the hearing, said that the
United States wanted to lift its military aid ban.

"In a meeting last week, the U.S. Senate voted for lifting the
ban and the proposal has been submitted to the Congress for
approval within 14 days," he said. He added that the proposal was
brought to the Senate for review by Senator Donald Johnson of
Louisiana.

In October of 1992, the U.S. froze some 2.3 million dollars in
international military education and training (IMET) to Indonesia
because of the tragic incident in Dili, East Timor on Nov. 12,
1991, in which 50 protesters were killed. (rms)