Jim Bolger begins tour of Indonesia

JAKARTA (JP): New Zealand Prime Minister Jim Bolger arrived in the central Java town of Yogyakarta yesterday to kick off his three-day visit to Indonesia.

Bolger, and his delegation of about 25 people including his wife and top officials of his government, is scheduled to fly to Jakarta this morning and proceed directly to formal talks with President Soeharto.

Indonesia is the first stop of his Southeast Asian tour that will also take him to Singapore and Malaysia.

Officials in Jakarta said the talks between Soeharto and Bolger are expected to focus on the upcoming meeting of the leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum scheduled in Jakarta this November.

The two men first met during the APEC leadership meeting in Seattle, the United States, last November.

Bolger last week faced demands from the majority of parliament members in Wellington to raise the issue of East Timor during his meeting here. New Zealand, along with Australia, are among the few Western countries that recognized the formal integration of East Timor with the republic.

During his visit here, Bolger is also slated to meet with Indonesia's top economic officials and also address the Indonesia-New Zealand Business Forum.

The prime minister and his wife Joan will also be visiting Soeharto's huge ranch in nearby Tapos and the Presidential Palace in Bogor. (emb)