Howard visit to RI takes media spotlight in Australia

By Clay Lucas

MELBOURNE (JP): On Sept. 9, Australian Prime Minister John Howard stood on the steps of the Presidential Palace in Jakarta to receive an official salute from the Indonesian government.

The guns stopped firing at their 19th shot, instead of the 21 normally reserved for heads of state.

Although the official explanation for this shortfall was that Howard is not the Australian head of state, the restrained enthusiasm shown by the Indonesian government was reflected in media coverage back in Australia.

This is the Australian leader's first journey overseas, having been elected to office in March this year. Given the exceptionally strong relationship between his predecessor Paul Keating and President Soeharto, there was pressure for Howard's visit to be a success.

Howard is not a strong foreign affairs proponent, according to Tom Burton from The Australian Financial Review. This is in contrast to his predecessors, in particular, Keating.

The Queensland Brisbane Courier Mail described the messages Howard was sending both the Indonesian government and the Australian people as bewildering.

Prior to the March election in Australia, Howard promised a continuing development of the relationship between Australia and Indonesia. Yet in Jakarta, Howard stated that he "did not see Australia as a bridge between Asia and the West as is sometimes suggested".

The Australian Financial Review observed that this flatly contradicted statements made by Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer earlier, and that the concept of Australia as a base for Western investment in Asia had been one of the key features of recent Australian trade and foreign policy in the area.

Howard was forced to quickly clarify his views on Australia's place in Asia by stating that his government would continue to support Western companies attempting to expand their business into Asia.

Several newspapers, including The Age in Melbourne, saw Howard's statement as designed to bring a sharp distinction between his own view of the area and those of his predecessor Paul Keating, whose flamboyant presence became well-known to many Indonesians.

There was an undercurrent of disappointment that Howard did not attempt to refocus or reenergize the relationships between the two countries and the prime minister's assertions that Australia did not claim to be Asian, and that Australia was not under pressure to choose between its geography and its Western history, were viewed as unnecessarily inflammatory by The Australian.

The Sydney Morning Herald observed that this break with previous policy direction was designed to draw a clear line between the previous Australian government, which had done all within its power to push the idea of Australia as a presence in the Asia-Pacific region, and the Howard government.

One point of interest picked up on by all mainstream media was that the strengthening of the relationship with Indonesia was now a state goal of both sides of the Australian political spectrum.

The view that Howard was not overly concerned with what his Indonesian hosts thought was strongly raised in several newspapers. A number of commentators, including The Australian newspaper's Jakarta correspondent, Patrick Walters, saw Howard's visit aimed at a domestic Australian audience, rather than his Indonesian hosts.

An Age journalist observed that Howard's Jakarta speeches told far more about his own view of Australia than any thoughts he might have for the potential development of the relationship between the two countries.

Howard's refusal to raise the issue of human rights was seen as a failing by many sections of the media. Howard has at all times made it clear he refuses to see human rights as an issue in Australia's relations with Indonesia.

Financial Review journalist Greg Earl expressed the view that the Howard government had absolutely no intention of embarking on opening a new chapter in Australia's approach to human rights and political reform in Indonesia.

Howard's refusal to comment on issues such as East Timor and the July 27 riots were seen as predictable, yet disappointing. The possibility of Howard establishing links to alternative political forces was also raised, and there was disappointment expressed in all newspapers that concerns about the treatment of opposition figure Megawati Soekarnoputri had not been raised.

Howard's description of President Soeharto as a "very skilled and sensitive national leader" brought down the ire of some of Australia's key human rights groups. It should be said, however, that few elements of the media had expected Howard to raise the issue of human rights abuses by the Indonesian government.