Jim Bolger begins tour of Indonesia

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)