Indonesian, Australian NGOs meet to address common problems

Indonesian, Australian NGOs meet to address common problems

Berni K. Moestafa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A group of leading Australian non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) met for the first time with their Indonesian counterparts
here, in order to foster ties among community leaders and to go
beyond the often turbulent political relationship between the two
neighboring countries.

The visiting Australian community leaders represent four major
Australian NGOs focusing on workers issues, the environment,
social service and consumers. They left on Wednesday after a
three-day visit.

Head of the delegation Julian Disney said Indonesia was one of
Australia's important neighbors, yet contact between their
community leaders had been scant.

"There is a special responsibility for us in Australia, and
maybe for other countries, to really get to understand the
circumstances of their immediate neighbors," Disney, who
initiated the visit, said on Tuesday.

Contact among related NGOs between the two countries were
common, he explained, but this visit broadened the relationships
to cross the paths of NGOs and community leaders.

Members of the Australian delegation consisted of: Australian
Council of Trade president Sharan Burrow; Australian Conservation
Foundation executive director Don Henry; Australian Council of
Social Service executive director Megan Mitchell; and Australian
Consumers Association chief executive Louise Sylvan. They were
the highest-level group of Australian community leaders to have
ever visited Indonesia.

The delegation met with the Indonesian Consumers Foundation
(YLKI), the Indonesian Environmental Forum (WALHI), the Urban
Poor Consortium (UPC) and the International NGO Forum on
Indonesian Development (INFID), among others.

They also met community leaders and experts such as woman
activist Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, Tempo chief editor Bambang
Harymurti, political analyst Dewi Fortuna Anwar and rector of
Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University (UIN) Azra
Azyumardi.

Disney said the meetings showed that civil groups in both
countries were dealing with similar problems, while sharing
others.

For example, both countries relied on the same marine
resources. Henry explained that the same fish stock moved between
Indonesian and Australian waters.

"So we've got a shared responsibility to look after the
environment that we both share and we both rely on," he said.

WALHI chairman Longgena Ginting said the two countries'
environmental groups hoped to promote the principles of ethical
investment jointly among Australian mining companies in
Indonesia.

"We also want to encourage Australian companies to buy forest
products from environment-conscious companies here, and not from
illegal loggers," he said.

UIN's Azyumardi welcomed the visit by the Australians.

He said he met them at the university, where they talked about
improving the quality of education at traditional Muslim boarding
schools and other issues.

"They were surprised to see the openness of our education here
(at UIN) and the progressive Islam we teach -- it's more
liberal," the rector said.

The visit by Australian community leaders is part of Disney's
Neighbors Program, under which the delegation would proceed to
visit their Malaysian counterparts.

Their arrival in Indonesia came at a time when the tension was
starting to ease from the countries' different stances in regards
the Iraq crisis.

Such strains are common, however, and is an example of the
volatility that remains at the political level. The two
governments have, at times, differed on issues like people
smuggling, terrorism, Papua and most critically, on East Timor.

The idea to strengthen their relationship at the community
level was initiated two years ago, said Disney.

"Relationships between neighboring countries and peoples are
too important to be left to governments and business leaders," he
explained in an earlier statement.

Globalization, he said, had shown how interdependent nations
were, so that knowing one's immediate neighbors was important.

In Australia, the younger generation had become increasingly
open toward their Asian neighbors, he said.

He allayed concerns that Australia was distancing itself from
its Asian neighbors and clinging on to its Anglo-Saxon roots.

"We think there is a clear long-term trend, which is clearly
positive in Australia, toward more engagement with Asia," Disney
said.

Still, apprehension existed on both sides, he added, and
pointed out cultural differences and to some extent, a
sensationalist media, as part of the problem.

Disney noted a trace of arrogance among Australians, while
some Asians were not keen to accept Australians as Asians.

Even the delegation's visit here was tainted by talk that the
delegation members were supporters of Papua and would meddle in
Indonesia's internal affairs. Disney dismissed the reports as
rumors to discredit the visit.

"The fact that they (apprehensions) are not as bad as they
might have been, is a sign that there is a growing recognition in
both countries, a growing breadth of understanding of each
other's community," he added.

He said that during the meeting, the NGOs agreed to use the
annual Indonesian-Australian ministerial meetings as a framework
for exploring areas of cooperation. The ministerial meetings
cover issues on the environment, trade, health, agriculture and
science.

Henry said they also agreed to participate in the meetings,
noting that so far, only business representatives had been
invited.

Azyumardi said it was high time for both countries' civil
groups to come together, reasoning that while governments may
come and go, relationships between people were permanent.

WALHI's Longgena said that the Indonesian NGOs hoped to repay
the visit by meeting the delegates in Australia in September.