E. Timor controversy likely to remain
E. Timor controversy likely to remain
JAKARTA (JP): The East Timor question will remain a thorn in
the side of Indonesia's diplomats for quite a while, a senior
official said yesterday.
Anti-Indonesia lobbyists are still very active, playing up the
issues surrounding East Timor's integration into Indonesia in
international forums, Director General of Socio-cultural Affairs
and Information Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Djauhari Nataatmadja, said.
"They will continue to corner Indonesia at every international
forum," he said in a hearing with the House of Representatives
Commission I which oversees security, information and foreign
affairs.
Among the lobbyists are those grouped with the Coalition for
the Independence of East Timor, the East Timor Foundation and
Community Aid Abroad, all of which are based in Australia. There
are also some affiliated with East Timor Alert Network, the East
Timor Relief Association and the East Timor News Agency, Djauhari
said.
Also present at the hearing was Director General of Public
Information of the Ministry of Information, Soetjipto.
Djauhari predicted that critics would focus primarily on the
"security approach" they say is still used by Indonesia in
handling situations in East Timor, Aceh and Irian Jaya.
They will also focus on Indonesia's treatment of political
prisoners and labor activists, he added.
He said the bloody "Dili incident," which took place on Nov.
12, 1991 and was witnessed, recorded and widely broadcasted by
foreign reporters, "totally changed the direction of Indonesia's
diplomacy."
Since then, Indonesia's diplomatic efforts have been almost
totally devoted to repulsing international criticism and
restoring Indonesia's marred image, he said.
He said the efforts had brought about results. "This is
evident from the increasing number of news mentions about
Indonesia. Whereas they seemed to focus entirely on East Timor
before, now they put more emphasis on Indonesia's economic
development," he said.
According to the national investigation commission, 50 people
were killed in the incident after protesters and security
personnel clashed at Santa Cruz cemetery, Dili.
The United Nations has still not recognized Indonesia's
sovereignty over the former Portuguese colony.
Djauhari said Indonesia's membership in various organizations,
such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and
the Asia -Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, has helped
to improve its image.
Responding to House member Tjokong Tarigan, who asked about
the role of non-governmental organizations in providing
information for international consumption, Soetjipto said that
2,000 NGOs had not registered their names to the Ministry of Home
Affairs.
"Most of them are 'disadvantageous' to the government, and a
decree is currently being prepared to organize them. Some,
however, can be -- and have been -- helping the government," he
said.
Djauhari added that the government must "carefully choose the
appropriate NGOs to cooperate with".
Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Irawan Abidin
explained that they have been using the services of professional
media consultants for the past three years.
"We are using their services to improve our international
public relations by publishing books on political events, making
presentations and lobbying," he said. He added that the
ministries of forestry, trade, labor, finance and the state
secretary has also been making use of consultants. (pwn)