Can Australia sever ties with Indonesia?

Can Australia sever ties with Indonesia?

By Aleksius Jemadu

BANDUNG (JP): Australia's foreign policy toward Indonesia can
be at best described as full of paradoxes. On one hand,
Australian leaders regard Indonesia as one of its most important
Asian neighbors, but on the other hand such appreciation can
easily be shattered by contingent policy imperatives.

For example, in the mid-1970s, together with the United
States, Australia tacitly endorsed the Indonesian Military's
invasion of East Timor.

But following the recent violence in East Timor after the Aug.
30 self-determination ballot there, it was Australia which led
other Western countries in bombarding Indonesia with condemnation
and threats.

By playing a prominent role in the establishment and
leadership of the United Nations multinational peacekeeping
force, Australia seems to be embarrassing its closest neighbor in
Southeast Asia.

Does this mean Australia wants to forsake its long-term good
relationship with Indonesia?

Most, if not all, Asian leaders still perceive Australia as
part of the Western world. For example, with its idea for an
East-Asia Economic Caucus (EAEC) within the Asia Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC), Malaysia is insisting that economic
cooperation in East Asia should only include Asian countries,
thus excluding North America, Australia and New Zealand.

Moreover, as far as post-Cold War issues such as human rights,
democratization and environmental degradation are concerned, like
many other Western countries Australia tends to be cynical about
the performance of its Asian neighbors.

There seems to be a contradiction between Australia's
intention to strengthen cooperation with its Asian neighbors and
the actions and statements of its leaders, which only entrench
its Eurocentric perspective.

It is no exaggeration to suggest that economically, Australia
has become an integral part of the Asia-Pacific region.

By the mid-1990s, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) and East Asian countries purchased over 70 percent of
Australia's total exports.

Obviously, Indonesia has a strategic position because
it is a link between Australia and its major trading partners.

Also, as a major power respected by other ASEAN countries,
Indonesia plays a crucial role in determining stability in the
region.

Compared to other industrialized countries, Australia is in
the best position to take advantage of investment and market
opportunities in Indonesia, particularly after Indonesia loosens
regulations which restrict foreign investors.

In truth, both the government and the people of Indonesia feel
humiliated and betrayed by Australia. The widespread opposition
to the participation of Australian troops in the UN multinational
peacekeeping force in East Timor came as no surprise.

There is a fear that the prointegration militias will target
Australian troops, thus drawing Australia into a conflict much
more complicated than it ever expected. The possibility of an
open conflict with Indonesia cannot be ruled out, particularly if
prointegration militias launch attack from the western half of
the island of Timor.

The Indonesian Military tends to be very suspicious about
Australia's motivation in East Timor.

Why would Australia run the risk of damaging its carefully
constructed ties with Indonesia? Is it only for humanitarian
concerns or to raise the popularity of Prime Minister John Howard
back home?

Does Australia have a strategic agenda which might strengthen
its bargaining position vis-a-vis its closest northern neighbor?
Now Australia's fear of Indonesia is turning out to be a self-
fulfilling prophesy.

Unless a quick and profound restoration of mutual respect and
credibility is sought, the countries' bilateral relationship will
likely deteriorate.

In his 1997 book Is Australia an Asian Country?, Stephen
Fitzgerald argued that in order to be accepted as an equal
partner within the community of Asian nations, Australia had to
put aside its irrelevant sense of superiority.

Lack of understanding and a complacent attitude toward its
typically Eurocentric way of judging issues of common concern
with its Asian neighbors, could prevent Australia from becoming a
fully accepted member of the dynamic Asian community.

If Samuel P. Huntington's hypothesis on the clash of
civilizations is valid, and if Australia continues to be
insensitive to the feelings of its Asian neighbors, particularly
Indonesia, it must be ready to live in the midst of a hostile
environment.

With its aggressive policy in East Timor, Prime Minister John
Howard has begun a dangerous political game, the consequences of
which he might never have expected.

Aleksius Jemadu, Ph.D is a lecturer in the School of
International Relations at Parahyangan Catholic University in
Bandung.