Cambodia wants to learn from Indonesia in nation building
JAKARTA (JP): Cambodia wants to learn from Indonesia's experience in establishing and developing a nation, State Secretary Moerdiono says.
Cambodian co-prime ministers Prince Norodom Ranariddh and Hun Sen during a meeting with President Soeharto appeared to be "deeply impressed" by Indonesia's history before and since independence in 1945.
"The President explained how Indonesia fought for its independence and described the revolutions, separatist groups and extreme movements following it," Moerdiono said.
The Cambodian leaders considered Indonesia's condition between 1950 and 1965 to be very similar to present Cambodia, he said.
Prince Ranariddh during a separate press conference said that Cambodia would like to learn from Indonesia's experience in organizing its military. He added however that Cambodia is not seeking military aid.
"We only ask Indonesia to think about the possibility of helping us in political, military, or other fields," he said.
The Cambodian government under King Norodom Sihanouk is currently facing insurgency from the powerful Khmer Rouge, which pulled out of a UN-sponsored peace agreement.
Hun Sen said the present Cambodian government has no intention of holding another round table meeting because it would mean encouragement for the Khmer Rouge militia.
"The Khmer Rouge has pulled out to protect their militia. They intend to use the Round Table talks as a means to legitimize and form their own militia," he pointed out.
Hun Sen accused the Khmer Rouge of trying to break Cambodia into two different countries. "This is a very dangerous suggestion which we cannot accept," he said.
Apart from politics, the Cambodian leaders also discussed economic affairs with Soeharto, according to Moerdiono.
Cambodia wants to have direct trade with Indonesia instead of having to go through a third country as at present.
Cambodia is believed to buy about $20 million worth of Indonesian goods through a third country.
Direct trade
Moerdiono said the two countries need to take new steps to enable direct trade, such as by overseeing joint banking and trade regulations which are presently missing, he said.
Ranariddh reassured that Cambodia is economically healthy, although inflation is presently around 20 percent. "But that is better than the 300 percent we had before. We intend to cut this down to about 10 percent," he said.
He added that Cambodia is aiming to achieve seven percent economic growth each year.
Prince Ranariddh explained that Cambodia currently has a very liberal investment law, and further deregulation would make it even more attractive to foreign investors, including those from Indonesia.
Among attractive investment policies are an extremely low (nine percent) tax on private companies -- what he considers the lowest in the world, a tax holiday for corporations up to 8 years, and permission to buy or rent land by companies that are 51 percent owned by Cambodians.
"For this purpose, we will soon establish an embassy here," Ranariddh said.
Prince Ranariddh, who is the son of King Sihanouk, yesterday also addressed a luncheon with the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).
In his speech, Ranariddh appealed to the Indonesian business community to invest in Cambodia and not worry about the insurgency.
"The Khmer Rouge militarily are not a major threat to our security and stability. They are only operating in the remote northwest of the country and not at the door of our capital."
He said Cambodia is hoping to emulate Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia in eliminating communist insurgences through economic development. (pwn/09)