Forum established to help RI's WTO team

Forum established to help RI's WTO team

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A group of government officials, experts, businessmen and non-
governmental organization (NGO) activists have set up a forum to
study issues to be discussed at the upcoming World Trade
Organization (WTO) talks.

The forum will provide inputs for the country's negotiating
team to fight for Indonesian interests in the WTO talks.

"The establishment of the forum is part of our efforts to
strengthen our position in the WTO meeting," Dian Triansyah
Djani, director for multilateral trade and industry at the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs told The Jakarta Post.

The idea of establishing the forum came from foreign minister
Hasan Wirayuda, he said.

Dian, a member of the forum, said the forum would host
periodic roundtable discussions about WTO issues across the
country, aimed at boosting people's awareness and understanding
of the benefits of market liberalization.

"We don't want to repeat past mistakes, in which we failed to
provide enough information about the ASEAN Free Trade Area
(AFTA), hence many people today are still unaware of the
implementation of AFTA," he said.

Economists who have agreed to join the club include Hadi
Soesastro, Chatib Basri, businessman Anton J. Supit and Bonnie
Setiawan of the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development
(INFID).

On the government side, Coordinating Minister for the Economy
Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti, Minister of Trade and Industry Rini M.
Soewandi and Hasan Wirayuda have also agreed to become members,
Dian said.

Last year, President Megawati Soekarnoputri formed the
national WTO team, which is chaired by Rini with experts
including Mary Pangestu, Marzuki Usman, Djisman Simanjuntak and
Hasan Kartadjoemena.

Indonesia's negotiating team in WTO is currently chaired
Bustami Gusmardi.