Envoy apologizes over Ambalat remarks

Envoy apologizes over Ambalat remarks

Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia Rusdihardjo apologized to the
House on Wednesday for remarks he made concerning the burning of
Malaysian flags during rallies in Indonesia over the Ambalat
dispute.

Rusdihardjo, in Jakarta, told House of Representatives
Commission I on defense and foreign affairs the Malaysian press
had misunderstood his remarks, which he said were meant to calm
the situation.

The Malaysian press reported that Rusdihardjo apologized to
Kuala Lumpur over the burning of Malaysian flags in Indonesia,
and quoted the envoy as saying the protesters were people "who
are hungry and have become angry. Angry people become insane".

The statement was criticized by House members and members of
the public, who said Rusdihardjo had "insulted" Indonesia.

"I apologize if my statement caused confusion and prompted
criticism from you. The Malaysian press misunderstood my
statement because I was using idiomatic expressions. The words
'hungry', 'angry' and 'insane' were not used according to their
literal meanings."

"However, I should defend my apology to Kuala Lumpur because
we have to be fair and acknowledge that burning a country's flag
is a serious crime on a universal scale," Rusdihardjo said.

He added that Kuala Lumpur's claim over the Ambalat offshore
area in the Sulawesi Sea was unjustified and Indonesia would
defend its sovereignty over the area.

"At the start of the Pacific War (World War II), the Japanese
ambassador to the U.S. still bowed, but he reported to Tokyo and
said please go ahead with the attack on Pearl Harbor because
America is unguarded," Rusdihardjo said.

"After all, I'm still a nationalist, aren't I?" he said.

During a later closed-door session, Rusdihardjo briefed the
commission on what he knew of Malaysia's security and military
strength.

Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur have been involved in a heated
dispute over possession of the East Ambalat block in the Sulawesi
Sea. The dispute exploded after Malaysian oil company Petronas
awarded oil exploration rights in the area to Royal Dutch/Shell.

The House members also questioned Indonesia's diplomatic
strategy in the dispute, saying the country was in a superior
bargaining position because the map that Malaysia used as the
basis of its claim over the area had been contested by many other
neighboring countries.

Rusdihardjo said the 1979 map on which Malaysia has based its
claims was protested in 1980 by Indonesia, the Philippines,
China, Singapore, Thailand and Brunei, and in 1982 by Vietnam.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs secretary-general Sudjadnan
Parnohadiningrat said Indonesia and Malaysia had decided not to
involve a third party in trying to settle the dispute because
past experience had shown bringing in outside parties simply made
matters worse.