Anwar Ibrahim to visit Indonesia
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
Former Malaysian deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim will pay a four-day visit to Indonesia starting on Dec. 6, his first trip to another ASEAN country since his release from jail last September.
During the visit Anwar is slated to meet Indonesian political figures, including Vice President Jusuf Kalla, People's Consultative Assembly speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid and former presidents Megawati Soekarnoputri and Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid.
According to Adi Sasono, who is co-sponsoring Anwar's visit, Anwar also wants to meet with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyonono, but the timing for this had yet to be confirmed.
"The visit will not be filled with political talks. Instead, it will be a friendly visit, given the fact that Anwar has developed good relations with many Indonesian figures, be they politicians, academics and even poets," said Adi, a former presidential candidate from the Freedom Party.
Anwar, 57, a former vice-president of Malaysia's ruling party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), was released from jail in September after serving six years on corruption and sodomy charges, which he said were trumped up by then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad to end his political career.
Anwar was rushed to a hospital in Germany for a debilitating back illness shortly after his release and as he recovered from the ailment, he immediately sought a return to politics and vowed to champion the National Justice Party (Keadilan) headed by his wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
The prison term was the second for Anwar as he was once also detained under Malaysia's Internal Security Act (ISA) during his student days as a Muslim firebrand.
During the heyday of reform fever in Indonesia in 1998, Anwar's wife and daughter Nurul Izah visited to seek support for his political struggle.
During the planned visit, Anwar is also slated to give brief speeches at two famous universities, Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in Yogyakarta and the University of Indonesia (UI) in Depok. He, along with his 40-member entourage, will also visit the Darut Tauhid Islamic boarding school in Bandung, West Java, which is headed by noted Muslim preacher Abdullah A. Gymnastiar.
On his visit to Yogyakarta, Anwar will be greeted by governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubowno X at the latter's Palace.
"An informal meeting with the Vice President will be held on Dec. 9, when Anwar has been invited to have dinner at Pak Kalla's residence on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta," Adi said.
Meetings with House of Representatives speaker Agung Laksono and People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid would be held at the national legislative complex on Dec. 7. After this meeting, Anwar would give a speech at the Gedung Kesenian Jakarta (GKJ), during which noted poets W.S. Rendra and Taufik Ismail would recite their latest works.
According to Adi, Anwar would have dinner with Megawati, Abdurrahman and several other political figures at the Darmawangsa Hotel on Dec. 8. Anwar was also slated to deliver a sermon at the Al-Azhar Mosque in South Jakarta before returning to Malaysia on Dec. 10.