APB-Net talks fail to reach agreement

JAKARTA (JP): The preparatory talks in Tokyo for the second meeting of the Asia Pacific Business Network (APB-Net), which will be held in Osaka on Oct. 22 and Oct. 23, are deadlocked, Husein Aminuddin, chief of the Indonesian delegation, said yesterday.

"Last week's meeting failed to agree on an agenda, as well as other matters to be tabled at APB-Net II in Osaka because the Japanese delegation, as the hosts, forced its wishes against what had been agreed at APB-Net I in Jakarta last August," Aminuddin added.

He said the Japanese hosts made the first mistake by changing the composition of business delegates invited to take part in the Tokyo meeting.

"Only the representatives of business organizations which have close cooperation with the Federation of Economic Organizations were invited to the preparatory talks," he said.

Since APB-Net I in Jakarta was attended by representatives of the chambers of commerce of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum member economies, many of the delegates in the Tokyo meeting were not apprised of the developments of the private business forum, Aminuddin added.

The APEC forum includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan and the United States.

APB-Net was inaugurated in Jakarta last August as an informal forum designed to develop practical business networking among individual enterprises in member economies.

According to Aminuddin, the Japanese delegation also did not pay any attention to the agreement reached at APB-Net I on the promotion of business linkages between medium and small-scale enterprises.

"Japan even suggested that APB-Net be developed into a formal organization. That is against the agreement in Jakarta, which set the forum as an informal organization to avoid duplication of similar business organizations within the region," he said.

Given the deadlock at the preparatory talks, Indonesian, Canadian and Australian delegations wondered whether it would be necessary to attend the APB-Net II In Osaka next October, Aminuddin added. Aminuddin is also Vice Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Trade and International Relations.(vin)