Indonesians find Perth attractive

The Indonesian Consulate in Perth says about 10,000 Indonesians are living in the Western Australian capital. About half are students, the rest retired or in business.

Probably the most famous are members of the Gudang Garam tobacco empire who are reported to have spent millions of dollars on buying prime waterfront real estate. They include the family of the company's president commissioner, Rachman Halim.

Perth has long been a popular location for Indonesian property investors, attracted by the state's proximity to Java. It takes only 3 hours 20 minutes to fly from Perth to Denpasar which is in the same time zone, and less than an hour extra to Jakarta.

Several up-market districts have become popular with well- heeled Indonesians. These suburbs are close to universities, the Indian Ocean and the Swan River.

This is a calm, wide waterway that adds charm to an attractive and well laid out city of around 1.5 million people. The lifestyle is generally more relaxed than other Australian capitals.

For those who can afford it, a house or apartment near education facilities gives the family a base while their offspring are at school or university.

The city's medical facilities have also been a draw card: Politician Taufiq Kiemas, the husband of former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, is among many Indonesians who have had major surgery in Perth.

The recent violent clashes between young men from a Lebanese background and those with an Anglo-Celtic heritage that occurred on Sydney beaches have not been duplicated in Perth.

At least 27 Indonesian community organizations have been formed in Perth. About 14 are Christian, four Islamic, including a branch of ICMI - the Association of Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals.

Some are specifically for students. Others represent ethnic groups, like the Balinese, and the Minangkabau from West Sumatra.

The last Australian census recorded that the majority of 47,000 Indonesian-born people living in Australia were women, well-educated, ethnic Chinese and Christian. More than 50 per cent had become Australian citizens.

(Duncan Graham)