Australians see Susilo as open-minded, honest

Australians see Susilo as open-minded, honest

Professor of history at the University of New South Wales,
Sydney, John Ingleson talked with The Jakarta Post's Rita A.
Widiadana about Australia and Indonesia relations. He was one of
the speakers at the recent Indonesia-Australia Business
Conference in Bali on April 18 and 19. This is an excerpt.

Question How do you view the relationship between Indonesia
and Australia as neighbors in the region?

Answer: It is not yet a natural relationship, in the sense
that there are no deep ties of kith and kin and of common
religious values or a shared political and cultural heritage.

It is undeniable that Australia and Indonesia are located next
to each other. They are physically close. But close proximity
does not necessarily lead to good relations. Relations with
neighbors can be good, bad or quite frequently indifferent.

There are few in either country who understand the subtleties
of the other's history. When difficult issues emerge this makes
it very hard to explain them in the public domain.

At the moments of crisis, it is so easy for the press and
competing domestic interest groups to resort to simplification
and to ignore the broader context of the social and political
forces at work in each society.

How is the image of Indonesia among ordinary Australians?

For most Australians Indonesia is indeed a foreign country.
Few understand the complexity of Indonesian society -- the sheer
difficulty of governing the country even at the best of times. By
and large, Australians have little understanding of the
difficulties of "nation building", let alone nation building in
such an ethnic and linguistically diverse society as Indonesia.
For many, the Islamness of Indonesia remains an issue, largely
because Australian, like the West generally, has a very
simplistic view of Islam, usually viewing it through the prism of
the Middle East.

Does it mean that Indonesia is a serious threat for them in
terms of politics, security?

For over 20 years public opinion polls have shown that
significant numbers of Australians believe that the country that
most threatens them is Indonesia. We might protest that this view
is irrational. We ignore it at our peril. I am a great admirer of
first the Bob Hawke and then Paul Keating governments' foreign
policy which encouraged deeper Australian engagement with Asia.
These governments recognized that such engagement was central to
Australia's future.

However, it was clear at the time and clearer still
subsequently that the Labor government was well ahead of public
opinion. Australian governments have to deal with deeply
entrenched popular phobias about Indonesia. Deeply held concerns
in Australia about Indonesia have been strengthened in the past
decade by Australians' negative views of Islam and Islamic
militants.

Are there ways in which both the Indonesian and Australian
governments as well as their people can change these negative
perceptions in order to create more understanding between the two
countries?

A democratic Indonesia may be quite difficult for Australia to
adjust to because so few understand the subtleties of its
history. The social and political forces inside Indonesia are
very diverse. They will not always adopt public positions to the
liking of Australia. Both Indonesian and Australian politicians
will at times subordinate the long-term development of the
relationship to the short-term demands of domestic politics.

We are going to always have problems in interpreting each
other's democratic processes as long as neither side really
understands the subtleties of each other's history.

How can both Indonesians and Australians learn from each
other's history and society?

Australia should focus on supporting deep educational links
between the two countries. Tens of thousands of young Indonesians
study in Australia every year. Most make Australian friends. Most
enjoy the experience of living in Australia. Most return home
with new skills along with deeper understanding of how Australian
society works. This should be encouraged, through the provision
of significant numbers of scholarships, by publicly valuing the
benefits of educating Indonesians in Australia and by making visa
regulations as easy as possible.

But many Australian universities have already opened
Indonesian programs. Isn't this adequate?

Unfortunately, Australia universities are now abandoning their
Indonesian programs as students' interest has declined
dramatically. Many of the Indonesianists (experts of Indonesia)
are of my generation -- and are not being replaced by younger
people. If this situation is not reversed, this will be
disastrous for Australia's understanding of Indonesia. It must be
reversed immediately. But this will not happen without direct
government intervention.

With the change of government in Indonesia, do you see any
significant impact on the relationship of the two countries?

I am very optimistic that this will have a positive impact. I
remember when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono recently visited
Australia; it was a very successful visit. He was seen by many
Australians as an open-minded, honest and forthright. I have
never seen past Indonesian leaders who could handle the
Australian public, and more importantly the media, in such a
genuine and honest way.

Susilo demonstrated a remarkable capacity in dealing with an
Australian audience. He revealed that Indonesia is now facing
serious corruption problems but he convinced them that his
government will do their best to fight against corruption.
Susilo's speech and manners gave positive signs to the Australian
government, the public and the media as well as the business
community.

It is important for Australians to receive a clear and honest
message from their Indonesian counterparts.

Other factors that enhanced this relationship were the tsunami
and Nias earthquake. The tsunami, for the moment at least, has
swept away much of the negativity felt by many Australians toward
Indonesia. The generosity of the Australian government and its
people has helped heal wounds felt on the Indonesian side too.