SBY's visit to India

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's (SBY's) visit to India had both positive and negative aspects to it. On the one hand, it was reported that SBY's visit marked the opening of a new chapter in the relationship between the two countries (The Jakarta Post, Nov. 24, in which several key business, technology and defense agreements have been sealed with optimism, particularly on the part of Indonesian side.

On the other hand, during SBY's visit to Indian software giant infosys Technologies Ltd., following his speech to executives of the company in a question-and-answer session with them, an "unwanted" occurrence took place when Minister of Industry Andung Nitimiharja raised a question. Unfortunately his English was a muddle, making the executives visibly perplexed, and the audience was silent for a long, uncomfortable moment (the Post, Nov. 23).

Earlier, the President hinted at the possible minor shakeup of his Cabinet, meaning only one or two of his ministers would be replaced. But, as to this, we can only wait and see.

As far as mastery of English is concerned, proficiency in the language should have been tested when ministerial candidates were screened, as this is a prerequisite for someone engaged in global cooperation. This would also have saved the President from the "embarrassment" in India.

M. RUSDI Jakarta