Democracy can provide 'long-term stability'

The following is an excerpt of The Jakarta Post's interview with Indian foreign minister K. Natwar Singh on Wednesday.

Question: What is your view about current relations -- political and economic -- between our two countries and how relations can further be strengthened?

Answer: India and Indonesia share historical and civilisational affinities going back centuries, and given our common experience of colonization, there was a close relationship between the leaders of our respective independence movements. Newly independent India provided substantial support to the Indonesian independence struggle, which finally emerged victorious in 1949.

Our nations were fortunate to be led by two great nationalist visionaries and leading world statesmen of their times, Sukarno and Nehru. The close bonds among them not only drew our countries together but also inspired the Afro-Asian Solidarity Conference held in Bandung in 1955, which as you know eventually led to the founding of the Non Aligned Movement in 1961.

Since the advent of the democratic reform era in Indonesia in 1999, our bilateral relations have prospered and grown in all areas. Politically, we are close geographical neighbors who share a maritime boundary with a mutual stake in each other's progress, prosperity, stability and territorial integrity. As pluralistic democracies and developing societies, we face similar challenges.

Our economic relations are growing. There are substantial Indian investments in Indonesia and bilateral trade has reached US$2.5 billion in 2003. However, much more needs to be done to exploit the full potential of these relations, and we are both committed to working together.

The administration of former Prime Minister Vajpayee has laid a strong foundation for the ties between India and ASEAN. Will there be any differences of approach in your government's policy toward ASEAN?

India's foreign policy attaches primary importance to relations with our immediate neighbors in South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) as well as in ASEAN. We remain committed to strengthening India's 'Look East Policy' and to constructing a long term partnership with ASEAN. Under the Framework Agreement concluded last year, we have just commenced negotiation of a Free Trade Agreement. We are also working on an India-ASEAN Summit in November this year. Politically, we completely share ASEAN's vision and the principles of harmonious and good neighborly relations established by the ASEAN Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, to which India acceded last year.

India has become a regional superpower along with China and Japan. How should the three countries work together in enhancing political and security stability, and, no less importantly, the economic prosperity of Asia?

India shares excellent relations with both China and Japan. There is a tremendous potential for strengthening our cooperation with the two countries and for further consolidating our bilateral relations with them. With China, we are developing a long-term constructive and cooperative partnership. With Japan, we are currently engaged in concertizing out Global Partnership in the 21st century. As three major countries in Asia, India, China and Japan can make significant contributions for the growth and prosperity of Asia.

There is fear among some ASEAN members that the inclusion of Pakistan and India in the ARF will only create problems for the forum because the two countries might try to use the forum to raise their bilateral concerns in a multilateral forum. What should your government and Pakistan do to ensure that such fears do not become reality?

Talking of such fears does not square with the facts as it is ASEAN which reached consensus in June 2003 to include Pakistan in the ARF. As regards India, our concerns were shared with ASEAN members and the ASEAN chair. The current chair of ASEAN thereafter sought and obtained an explicit assurance from Pakistan that it would not raise issues of a bilateral nature in the forum. This assurance paved the way for a consensus on Pakistan's admission to the ARF, and I have every expectation that Pakistan will adhere to its commitment. India for its part has a long established policy of seeking to resolve all outstanding issues with Pakistan bilaterally rather than taking them to multilateral forums.

Indonesia is now regarded as the world's third largest democracy after India and the United States. However, there are growing doubts here that the economy and democracy can develop together. According to your experience, how should Indonesia develop its economy while remaining true to the principles of democracy?

From India's own experience as a developing democracy for over five decades, it is amply clear that these perceived doubts and dilemmas are based on false premises. There is absolutely no evidence to sustain a correlation between authoritarian rule and economic growth or to indicate that democratic societies are unable to bolster rapid economic progress.

In fact, for developing societies it is even more essential to enjoy democratic, transparent and accountable governance, so that the primary focus of government policies and programs is on people-centered growth. People in developing societies naturally expect their governments to be proactive and sensitive to their needs to ensure the efficiency of public institutions and their delivery of social services.

It is the task of democratic governments to remain engaged and responsive to public needs, as economic growth cannot be an end in itself but rather a means to higher standards of living. Last but not least, for pluralistic societies like those of India and Indonesia, it is only democracy and its accountable institutions, which can provide long-term stability.