Australia belongs to Asia

Australia belongs to Asia

In his article Does Australia really belong to E. Asia? ( The
Jakarta Post, Nov. 15, 2001, p.3), Jusuf Wanandi makes a number
of unreasonable observations about the recent election campaign
in Australia. I will take up my serious concerns directly with
Mr. Wanandi as soon as we meet, but for the public record there
are a couple of matters I would like to set straight.

Mr. Wanandi accuses the Australian electorate of being racist
and xenophobic, and of being "immature and full of fear". While
not stated, I assume he is referring to the part played in the
election campaign by the issue of people smuggling.

Australia has a proud record on refugee re-settlement and will
continue its refugee program. Legitimate refugees entering
Australia number some 12,000 annually (second only to Canada per
capita), and they are welcomed by the Australian community --
irrespective of their race or religion. Australian concern about
people smuggling is different, and has nothing to do with racism
or xenophobia.

People smuggling is an organized criminal activity. It
involves substantial sums of money, and is often mixed up with
other illegal activities. Moreover, the so-called "refugees" are
either not legitimate refugees or, if they are legitimate, then
they are "queue jumpers" seeking to circumvent the UNHCR system
and cheat legitimate refugees, who play by the rules, out of
possible placements. It is a growing and serious problem that
affects many regional countries. The issue is not where the
people come from, but how they come.

Australia is an immigrant nation built by people from 160
nations around the world, including hundreds of thousands of
refugees. It is also one of the world's most successful
multicultural societies. Maintaining the right to control access
to our borders does not change that.

Mr. Wanandi also suggests that Australia is showing less
interest in being part of Asia. This is not borne out by reality
if you look, for instance, at the pattern of our diplomatic
representation, at recent trade and investment statistics, the
tempo and scale of our educational contacts, and the people-to-
people linkages. In the case of Indonesia, even during the
difficult period in our relationship that surrounded the events
in East Timor, these linkages were undiminished. I would also
hope that the quality and constancy of Australia's contribution
to economic prosperity in Indonesia and elsewhere in Asia over
the last 50 years could at least be acknowledged.

In short, Australia's commitment to Asia remains undiminished.
The Howard government's continuing efforts to promote closer
integration with Asia through APEC, AFTA-CER and the development
of FTAs in the region are a clear manifestation of this.

RC SMITH

Ambassador

Australian Embassy

Jakarta