Australia not in Megawati's travel plans

Australia not in Megawati's travel plans

Agencies, Jakarta

Claims by President Megawati Soekarnoputri's husband Taufik Kiemas that the President will make her first visit to Australia have been pooh-poohed by both the Indonesian and Australian governments.

The Australian Financial Review quoted Taufik on Tuesday as saying that Megawati would visit Australia after an official visit to Russia scheduled for April.

However, Canberra says that while Megawati has a standing invitation to visit Australia, there were no plans for her to do so.

Megawati's Presidential Secretary Kemal Munawar concurred on Tuesday, saying Australia had not been included on the President's destination list at this stage.

"A visit to Australia is not on the list of countries the President will visit in the near future," Kemal told The Jakarta Post. "The possibility, however, is always there."

He said his office was making preparations for Megawati's trip to Kuala Lumpur next month to attend the Non-Aligned Movement Summit.

Kemal said that trips to Russia and several other European countries were also on the schedule, but no arrangements had so far been made for those overseas visits.

Although Megawati has traveled extensively since she took office 18 months ago, she is yet to visit Australia, Indonesia's neighbor, with which it has had an uneasy relationship in recent years.

In the interview with the Financial Review, Megawati's influential husband reportedly dismissed the significance of the frequent bilateral tension, saying Indonesia and Australia were closer than it appeared.

"You know our independence was helped by Australia," he said. "If Australia does not quarrel with Indonesia, we are brothers."

Although Australian leaders, including Prime Ministers John Howard, have made frequent visits to Indonesia, there has been only one visit to Australia by an Indonesian president in recent decades.

Former president Abdurrahman Wahid visited in June 2001, one month before he was ousted from office.

Relations between the two countries were damaged when East Timor separated from Indonesia, a process supported by Australia.

A visit to Australia is expected to spark further arguments between the government and House of Representatives, which has a strong anti-Australian sentiment.

So far Megawati, a strong nationalist, has never shown any intention to visit the southern neighbors.