Indonesia may air domestic problems at summit
Indonesia may air domestic problems at summit
SINGAPORE (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid said here on
Thursday that Indonesia might bring up its mounting domestic
problems during the annual ASEAN informal summit and called for
"active support" of the regional grouping for the maintenance of
country's territorial integrity.
"We will not discuss the problems explicitly, but they will
always be there and recognized in the background ... it is not
something that we will sweep under the rug," Presidential
spokesman Wimar Witoelar told journalists.
"In the case of Indonesia, we expect and have always received
sympathy and support for our national integrity. We may (during
the summit) want to carry it further to solicit the active
support of our neighboring countries in making the concept of
special autonomy for certain provinces work within the ASEAN
context," he added.
Wimar's statement came as analysts believe that political
problems in key members of the Association of Southast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) could steal the limelight from the economic
agenda during the two-day summit which begins Friday.
"Of course there are certain diplomatic and nationalistic
parameters which do not allow formal discussion even though this
is called an informal meeting ... but we do recognize that any
problem for one ASEAN country is a problem for all," he said.
Commenting on the 45-minute meeting between Abdurrahman and
Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew on Thursday evening, Wimar said that
"President Wahid relies on SM (Senior Minister) Lee as he does on
a number of people for raw inputs, raw data to formulate
policies".
Wimar said, however, that what had been discussed during the
meeting "is not explicitly available to the public".
"We will see what transpires out of this afterward in the form
of policy and implementation," Wimar said.
President Abdurrahman arrived on the island state on Thursday.
Summit host Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong has said the ASEAN
leaders are expected to discuss measures to broaden and deepen
economic integration within the grouping, which covers countries
at different stages of economic development.
ASEAN leaders are also scheduled to sign a landmark e-ASEAN
agreement aimed at linking the region electronically.(byg)