How RI, U.S. improve ties

How RI, U.S. improve ties

Ardimas Sasdi, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Berkeley, California

A recent visit by a high-level U.S. delegation to Jakarta this
month to look at Islam in Indonesia, took place barely a month
after a tour of Indonesian chief security minister Susilo Bambang
Yudhyono to Washington. These visits reflect that now is the
right momentum for Indonesia and the U.S. to strengthen bilateral
ties.

The U.S. message is clear, but both sides need to exercise
caution, taking into account the already difficult position of
President Megawati Soekarnoputri's secular administration in the
largest Islamic country in the world.

This issue on terrorism and Islam can be easily manipulated by
politicians from opposition parties to pit Megawati's ineffective
government, which still grapples with the impacts of the 1997
economic crisis, and which is facing the 2004 elections.

In light of Jakarta's limitations the U.S. would need a design
a plausible plan and a proper communication approach, an aspect
which has surely been considered by the U.S. side, taking into
account the seniority of members of the delegation led by former
U.S. envoy to Syria, Edward P. Djeredjian.

Another factor not conducive to a dialog on sensitive issues
is the current trend among the people and the press in Indonesia
to question any governmental policy.

The problem has been aggravated by the disillusionment of some
Indonesians, who perceive that the situation was more orderly
under Soeharto, as pointed out by a recent poll. It showed how
short the collective memory is when confronted with economic
difficulties. These factors would make it harder for the
government to wage a war against the misguided elements among
Muslims -- if such a plan were to be instigated.

Luckily, the influence of large, influential organizations
like Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah remains strong in shaping
popular opinion among Muslims in politics, social affairs and the
economy.

The myriad of problems and dramatic changes in Indonesia, post
Soeharto, are matters which must be contemplated by both
Indonesia and the U.S. before they act.

The form and capacity of cooperation between Jakarta and
Washington must, therefore, be tailored toward this new political
reality; stress should be given to continued cooperation in the
fields of culture and education.

These days, even humorously intentioned remarks can hurt. The
friend of an Indonesian scholar scheduled to leave for the U.S.
asked him, "Want to be a CIA agent?" This playful statement could
reflect the negative image of some Indonesians of the U.S., which
hit an all time low after the latest U.S. invasion, of Iraq.

Given such negative views and the unfriendly attitudes of
politicians in Washington against the Indonesian Military (TNI)
over human rights abuses, more time is needed to forge a
cooperation in political and military affairs.

The U.S. decision to cut the supply of spare parts for U.S.-
made weapons, grounding the F-16 jets used by TNI, for example,
has been responded to by Jakarta with the purchase of Russian
made jets.

These explain why Indonesia and the U.S. need to explore a new
form of cooperation in order to win the hearts and minds of the
people and politicians in both countries.

Culture and education could still be used for future
cooperation, given the rising influence and leadership of some
American trained scholars in Indonesia, especially influential
Muslim scholars like Muhammadiyah's chairman Syafii Maarif, the
prominent scholar and rector of Paramadina University, Nurcholish
Madjid and rector of the Jakarta Islamic University Azyumardi
Azra.

The existence of such high-caliber scholars has not only been
able to shape a friendly image of Indonesia, but also to contain
a trend toward radicalism among certain Islamic groups. Experts
have attributed this trend to the long, systematic repression of
politically active Muslims by Soeharto's regime and a feeling of
backwardness, because they cannot perform in a modern world.

Cooperation could be in the form of continuing to send
Indonesians to U.S. universities to study Islam and facilitating
the reform of education at Islamic boarding schools where needed;
a number of boarding schools are suspected of teaching an
incorrect concept of Islam.

The opportunity for such cooperation is provided with the
transition to democracy and regional autonomy. Following
cooperation in sectors, such as culture and education, political
and military cooperation would at last eventuate.

The writer is a visiting scholar at the Graduate School of
Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley.