Democracy can provide 'long-term stability'

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.