Indonesia-Australia trade ties strong
Indonesia-Australia trade ties strong
Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Visiting Australian Prime Minister John Howard said on
Thursday that the currently strained political relations between
Australia and Indonesia had no impact on both people-to-people
links and the business relations of both countries.
Howard acknowledged that the political relationship of both
neighboring countries had not been in good shape in recent years
but he said that people-to-people links and business relations
remained strong.
"I am very happy with you here. Sustained by very strong
person-to-person links in so many areas, ... we know that the
basic infrastructure of our relationship has remained very
strong," Howard told Indonesian and Australian businesspeople
during the business luncheon hosted by the Indonesia-Australia
Business Council (IABC).
Howard added that one of the main aims of his visit was to
stress the critical importance of growing business relations and
economic links between Australia and Indonesia to the countries'
bilateral relationship.
Howard is on a three-day visit to Indonesia as part of
Australia's efforts to mend relations between both countries.
Relations between Indonesia and Australia plunged to a low
level in 1999 following Australia's role in leading the
international peacekeeping force to stop violence in East Timor
during its transition to independence.
The Howard administration thereafter made several comments in
the Australian media that many Indonesians considered unfriendly
towards Indonesia.
Legislators refused to meet Howard at the legislature during
the visit.
Howard left on Thursday afternoon for the royal city of
Yogyakarta before intending to return to Australia on Friday.
Meanwhile, State Minister for State Enterprises Laksamana
Sukardi agreed that the current political tensions would not
affect business relations between the two countries.
"That is only a political matter, there is no impact on
business relations," Laksamana told The Jakarta Post after the
business lunch.
According to Laksamana, foreign investors, including those
from Australia, still stayed away from Indonesia mostly due to
domestic problems, including legal uncertainties.
Laksamana urged all parties to work together to solve these
problems in a bid to restore a positive investment climate.
"We urgently need to restore investor confidence in our
country by providing legal certainties," Laksamana said.
"If we continue quarreling, foreign investors will not come
here," he said.
Meanwhile, IABC chairman Noke Kiroyan stressed that the
meeting was meant to show that the business relations between
Indonesia and Australia remained normal despite the political
tension between both countries.
"Australian businesspeople are mature enough not to mix
political and business problems," said Noke, who is also chairman
of Rio Tinto Indonesia, a subsidiary of Anglo-Australian mining
giant Rio Tinto.
Many Australian investors have invested in various business
sectors in the country, especially the mining sector.